Tensions between inclusion and change in worldview education: can Joe F. Kincheloe’s bricolage help teachers navigate them?

This is the final version. Available on open access from Routledge via the DOI in this record. This paper delineates tensions that arguably are inherent to integrative Worldview Education in plural societies, due to the subject’s dual commitment to imperatives of inclusion and change. The imperative of inclusion stems from the subject’s mandate to integrate the whole plurality of pupils in society, whereas the imperative of change stems from the subject’s mandate to promote certain aims and values over others. The task of handling such tensions can be daunting, and teachers need resources that enable them to do so. The main aim of this paper is thus to provide a critical examination of the metaphor of bricolage, as it was conceptualised by Joe L. Kincheloe, in search of such resources. The examination points to the following chain of argument: (1) Kincheloe’s bricolage contains its own tensions between inclusion and change, due to its application of multiple methods, methodologies, and perspectives, combined with a desire to promote social change. (2) There is a strong overlap between the two sets of tensions. (3) Teachers should be aware of the distinct political and philosophical underpinnings of Kincheloe’s bricolage, and how these can create new tensions, possibly productive ones, if teaching and learning in Worldview Education is framed as bricolage work

Do people who experience more nature act more to protect it? A meta-analysis

This is the author accepted manuscript. The final version is available from Elsevier via the DOI in this record Data availability: The data used in this study can be found in Table S1.Addressing the global environmental problems facing our planet requires a significant shift in human behaviour. Personal experiences with nature are suggested to be a key driver of pro-environmental behaviour. However, the validity of this idea is uncertain. Using a systematic literature review and meta-analysis, we show that direct experiences of nature are positively associated with a wide range of positive actions towards the natural environment, including recycling, energy conservation, green purchasing, and participating in conservation volunteering. Nature experiences were more strongly linked to ‘pro-biodiversity’ behaviours (actions that specifically focussed on wildlife and habitat conservation) than other general pro-environmental behaviours, although the difference was statistically marginal. There was no difference in the strength of the association with pro-environmental behaviour between nature experiences during childhood and those during other times in life. Adjustment for publication bias did not produce significantly different results. While highlighting a need for experimental or longitudinal study designs in this area, our results suggest that enhancing people's engagement with nature can be a valuable strategy for promoting behaviour change that helps address global environmental issues.Japan Society for the Promotion of ScienceToyota FoundationResearch Institute for Humanity and Nature (RIHN)Natural Environment Research Council (NERC

Comorbid health conditions and their impact on social isolation, loneliness, quality of life, and well-being in people with dementia: longitudinal findings from the IDEAL programme

This is the final version. Available from BMC via the DOI in this record. Availability of data and materials: IDEAL data were deposited with the UK Data Archive in April 2020. Details of how to access the data can be found here: https://reshare.ukdataservice.ac.uk/854293/.Background: Most people with dementia have multiple health conditions. This study explores (1) number and type of health condition(s) in people with dementia overall and in relation to age, sex, dementia type, and cognition; (2) change in number of health conditions over two years; and (3) whether over time the number of health conditions at baseline is related to social isolation, loneliness, quality of life, and/or well-being. Methods: Longitudinal data from the IDEAL (Improving the experience of Dementia and Enhancing Active Life) cohort were used. Participants comprised people with dementia (n=1490) living in the community (at baseline) in Great Britain. Health conditions using the Charlson Comorbidity Index, cognition, social isolation, loneliness, quality of life, and well-being were assessed over two years. Mixed efects modelling was used. Results: On average participants had 1.8 health conditions at baseline, excluding dementia; increasing to 2.5 conditions over two years. Those with vascular dementia or mixed (Alzheimer’s and vascular) dementia had more health conditions than those with Alzheimer’s disease. People aged≥80 had more health conditions than those aged<65 years. At baseline having more health conditions was associated with increased loneliness, poorer quality of life, and poorer well-being, but was either minimally or not associated with cognition, sex, and social isolation. Number of health conditions had either minimal or no infuence on these variables over time. Conclusions: People with dementia in IDEAL generally had multiple health conditions and those with more health conditions were lonelier, had poorer quality of life, and poorer well-being.Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC)National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR

Predatory publishing in medical education: a rapid scoping review

This is the final version. Available from BMC via the DOI in this record. Data availability: All data pertaining to this study is presented within the manuscript.Background: Academic publishing is a cornerstone of scholarly communications, yet is unfortunately open to abuse, having given rise to ‘predatory publishers’– groups that employ aggressive marketing tactics, are deficient in methods and ethics, and bypass peer review. Preventing these predatory publishers from infiltrating scholarly activity is of high importance, and students must be trained in this area to increase awareness and reduce use. The scope of this issue in the context of medical students remains unknown, and therefore this sought to examine the breadth of the current literature base. Methods: A rapid scoping review was undertaken, adhering to adapted PRISMA guidelines. Six databases (ASSIA, EBSCO, Ovid, PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science) were systematically searched for content related to predatory publishing and medical students. Results were single-screened, facilitated by online reviewing software. Resultant data were narratively described, with common themes identified. Results: After searching and screening, five studies were included, representing a total of 1338 students. Two predominant themes– understanding, and utilisation– of predatory publishers was identified. These themes revealed that medical students were broadly unaware of the issue of predatory publishing, and that a small number have already, or would consider, using their services. Conclusion: There remains a lack of understanding of the threat that predatory publishers pose amongst medical students. Future research and education in this domain will be required to focus on informing medical students on the issue, and the implication of engaging with predatory publishers

Transformative (Bio)technologies in Knowledge Societies: Of Patents and Intellectual Commons

This is the author accepted manuscript.It is no longer a science fiction tale. The 21st century saw its first lab-grown beef burger being cooked and eaten at a live press conference in London, making the harvest of animal meat for human consumption without actually killing animals a reality. Transformative biotechnologies, like cell-cultivation, are redefining fundamental elements of our life, and these innovations promise to change the way we perceive, behave and eat in the future. Lab-grown, cell-based or “cultured meat” is now available for consumption in selected outlets in Singapore, and is estimated to become widely available for sale directly to consumers imminently. If its projections realise, the multitrillion global meat market is on the verge of a disruption unlike anything seen in times past, with cultured meat potentially displaying far-reaching effects on climate change, food security and animal welfare. This chapter begins from the proposition that we currently lack an integrated understanding of the nature, causes and implications of regulatory shifts that appropriately deal with transformative biotechnologies in knowledge societies. With the aim of gaining a better understanding of ‘knowledge society’ epistemologies, this chapter explores the role of patents in cellular agriculture, a field of enquiry that uses cell-cultivation technology, as a case study to elucidate the extent to which IP rights can be deployed to generate optimal public welfare. Through a public interest lens, it also seeks to understand whether growing calls for open science can be aligned with the needs of a flourishing innovation ecosystem. If legal systems have the ability to create parameters that will determine whether and to what extent societal change will happen, it stands to reason that the effectiveness of these legal systems will be directly correlated to the level of granularity with which they mirror social realities. In the same vein, the value of a patent, for example, will be determined by its terms of protection. Combining theoretical and doctrinal legal approaches along with insights from political and economic theories on regulation and governance, this chapter looks at some of the legal questions to illuminate how governments, regulators and stakeholders balance and meet the demands of pressing social challenges, such as climate change and food insecurity, with the benefits of transformative biotechnologies to create an intellectual commons. More specifically, this chapter argues that, in order to avoid ‘a tragedy of the intellectual commons’, intellectual property rights (IPR) demand to be governed by agile, responsive regulatory approaches. It does so by engaging with legal interpretations of terms of protection for patents, against a backdrop of rapidly evolving (bio)technologies that continue to test the resilience of current legal frameworks. It will also deliberate whether, as a result, IPR calibration with current public policy imperatives has gained renewed importance to ensure continued rewards for intellectual creation while promoting social progress

An analysis of the effects of clouds in high-resolution forecasting of surface short-wave radiation in South Africa

This is the final version. Available from the American Meteorological Society via the DOI in this record. Data availability statement. All data created or used in this study are available upon request to the South African Weather Service.We assess site-specific surface shortwave radiation forecasts from two high-resolution configurations of the South African Weather Service numerical weather prediction model, at 4 and 1.5 km. The models exhibit good skill overall in forecasting surface shortwave radiation, with zero median error for all radiation components. This information is relevant to support a growing renewable energy sector in South Africa, particularly for photovoltaics. Further model performance analysis has shown an imbalance between cloud and solar radiation forecasting errors. In addition, cloud overprediction does not necessarily equate to underestimating solar radiation. Overcast cloud regimes are predicted too often with an associated positive mean radiation bias, whereas the relative abundance of partly cloudy regimes is underpredicted by the models with mixed radiation biases. Challenges highlighted by the misrepresentation of partly cloudy regimes in solar radiation error attribution may be used to inform improvements to the numerical core, namely, the cloud and radiation schemes. Significance Statement This paper provides the first comprehensive assessment of high-resolution site-specific NWP forecasts of surface shortwave radiation in South Africa, exploring clouds as the main drivers of prediction biases. Error attribution analyses of this kind are close to none for this part of the world. Our study contributes to understanding how cloud and radiation schemes perform over South Africa, representing a step forward in the state of the art. In addition to the scientific interest, the capabilities developed through this work may benefit the second largest economy of the continent. In a country where energy security is of critical relevance, the availability of useful and usable weather information is paramount to support its industry and socioeconomic growth.Met Office Weather and Climate Science for Service Partnership (WCSSP)South African National Research Foundatio

Fieldnotes as never really ‘raw’ data: Analysing the social life of public space on London's South Bank

This is the final version. Available on open access from Wiley via the DOI in this record. Data availability statement: Owing to the consenting process for the fieldwork described in this paper, research data referred to in this paper cannot be shared.Unlike for other forms of qualitative data, examples of how fieldnotes are analysed are rarely provided in the literature. Using fieldnotes from my ethnographic study of the production of public space on London's South Bank as a starting point, this paper considers why this might be the case. In particular, the paper argues that for fieldnote-based research, analysis is a feature of note-taking, rather than a discrete phase of activity conducted using our fieldnotes once they have been collected. In this vein, the paper encourages researchers to be aware of the analytical in their fieldnotes, and to be open to the ways that analysis inside the notebook can help us identify salient objects of enquiry in our work.Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC

Cytoneme-mediated transport of active Wnt5b-Ror2 complexes in zebrafish

This is the final version. Available on open access from Nature Research via the DOI in this recordData availability; Microscopy data reported in this paper and any information required to re-analyse the data reported in this paper are presented within the paper or are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request. Source data are provided with this paper.Chemical signalling is the primary means by which cells communicate in the embryo. The underlying principle refers to a group of ligand-producing cells and a group of cells that respond to this signal because they express the appropriate receptors1,2. In the zebrafish embryo, Wnt5b binds to the receptor Ror2 to trigger the Wnt-planar cell polarity (PCP) signalling pathway to regulate tissue polarity and cell migration3,4. However, it remains unclear how this lipophilic ligand is transported from the source cells through the aqueous extracellular space to the target tissue. In this study, we provide evidence that Wnt5b, together with Ror2, is loaded on long protrusions called cytonemes. Our data further suggest that the active Wnt5b-Ror2 complexes form in the producing cell and are handed over from these cytonemes to the receiving cell. Then, the receiving cell has the capacity to initiate Wnt-PCP signalling, irrespective of its functional Ror2 receptor status. On the tissue level, we further show that cytoneme-dependent spreading of active Wnt5b-Ror2 affects convergence and extension in the zebrafish gastrula. We suggest that cytoneme-mediated transfer of ligand-receptor complexes is a vital mechanism for paracrine signalling. This may prompt a reevaluation of the conventional concept of characterizing responsive and non-responsive tissues solely on the basis of the expression of receptors.Chinese Scholarship Council (CSC)Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC)Living Systems Institute, University of ExeterMedical Research Council (MRC

Recontextualising Global Inclusive Education Policy in Pakistan and Bangladesh

This study casts Global Inclusive Education Policy (GIEP) as a travelling policy, one anticipating reinterpretation as it engages with contextual dimensions in Pakistan and Bangladesh. In this study, GIEP concerns the ensemble of antidiscrimination policies produced by UNESCO, for use within the United Nations Development System (UNDS), rooted in the Right to Education (UN, 1948). It offers a reflexive interpretative account of in-depth interviews with elite policy actors working for or advising multilateral and bilateral organisations, and the state governments of Pakistan and Bangladesh. The aim is to understand how GIEP is recontextualised within wider socio-political contextual dimensions. The recontextualisation process is framed through a combination of Migdal’s (2001) paradox between state image and practice, and Wagner’s (2012) concepts of structural-institutional and interpretative-plural modernities. This frame situates GIEP in a tension between the structural-institutional image of Pakistan and Bangladesh, which views social inclusion as secured through laws, rights, norms and citizenship, and the interpretative-plural practice of each state established in political kinship and patronage. This thesis emphasises the limitations of a state-centric approach to GIEP in generating ‘mutual recognition’ between states and marginalised groups, particularly in ethno-federal, postcolonial, or deeply divided societies. Similarly, it notes the importance of considering patronage and political kinship as central forces shaping GIEP but without necessarily identifying these systems as ‘bad governance’. The findings indicate the recontextualisation of GIEP is anchored in complex wider socio-political issues and is reworked according to other agendas, travelling in name only. The results stress socio-political history as the foundational layer for all other recontextualisation processes. In both countries, GIEP is used as a convergence platform across which disparate domestic and international political agendas are worked. These agendas are subsequently rearticulated according to the moral frameworks of policy actors as they ‘broker’ GIEP. The findings imply GIEP is not necessarily adopted by Pakistan and Bangladesh because of its efficacy or moral values but because it brings with it access to other things which secures state and elite survival. Thus, when considering the recontextualisation of GIEP, it is imperative to consider the position of educational inclusion within the wider sociopolitical and historical context. This study offers possibilities for refining our understanding of the recontextualisation of GIEP, particularly in countries outside the industrialised North. By emphasising overlap and convergence, as well as resistance, I conclude it is useful to view the recontextualisation of GIEP as comprised of layers rather than levels. ‘Layers’ expands reflection on the breadth and depth of recontextualisation to include socio-political state history, state practice, the position of GIEP in the wider socio-political arena

Trajectories of cognitive and perceived functional decline in people with dementia: Findings from the IDEAL programme

This is the final version. Available on open access from Wiley via the DOI in this recordData availability statement: IDEAL data were deposited with the UK Data Archive in April 2020. Details of how the data can be accessed can be found here: https://reshare.ukdataservice.ac.uk/854293/INTRODUCTION: Impaired cognition and instrumental activities of daily living (iADL) are key diagnostic features of dementia; however, few studies have compared trajectories of cognition and iADL. METHODS: Participants from the IDEAL study comprised 1537, 1183, and 851 people with dementia, and 1277, 977, and 749 caregivers at baseline, 12 and 24 months, respectively. Addenbrooke's Cognitive Examination-III and Functional Activities Questionnaire were used to measure cognition and iADL, respectively. Scores were converted to deciles. RESULTS: Self-rated iADL declined on average by -0.08 (-0.25, 0.08) decile points per timepoint more than cognition. Informant-rated iADL declined on average by -0.31 (-0.43, -0.18) decile points per timepoint more than cognition. DISCUSSION: Cognition and self-rated iADL declined at a similar rate. Informant-rated iADL declined at a significantly greater rate than cognition. Therefore, either cognition and perceived iADL decline at different rates or informants overestimate increasing iADL difficulties compared to both cognition and self-ratings. HIGHLIGHTS: Self-ratings of the degree of functional difficulties were consistent with cognition Decline in self-rated everyday activities was consistent with cognitive decline Informant-ratings of everyday activities declined more than cognition.Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC)National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR)Alzheimer’s Societ