Active Methodologies for the Promotion of Mathematical Learning

In recent years, the methodologies of teaching have been in a process of transition. Multiple active methodologies have proliferated, with the aim of changing the concept we have had of teaching so far. These advocate for a student who plays a leading role in the process of building learning, while the teacher acts as a figure who facilitates and glimpses the paths to learning. In order to be able to carry out this type of teaching in an optimal way, it is necessary for the teaching and research community to be correctly trained in its pedagogical principles and in the tools that boost its implementation. Among these principles and tools, it is of vital importance that information and communication technologies (ICT) be adequately handled. The use of active methodologies (project-based learning, problem-based learning, service learning, flipped classroom, mobile learning, etc.) or innovative pedagogical approaches (simulation, role-playing, gamification, etc.) promotes an improvement in the motivation of students as well as their skills. This aspect is especially important in the area of mathematics, whose contents are characterized by their abstraction, thus highlighting the need for its dynamization in classrooms of different educational stages

Auxiliaries in nursing: implications for the division of nurses' labour

The study presents the thesis that nursing with its wide range of work in spheres of the management, teaching and prac¬ tice of nursing care relies for its maintenance and extension upon the stable contributions of auxiliary workers. Auxiliaries in the U.K. context are nursing workers without recognised qualification to nurse and who may have little or no formal training for their work. A secondary theme is argued that auxiliaries are inherently disadvantaged in the professional nursing structures. The disadvantage is due to a reified image of nursing which is unrelated to patients' needs and unrelated to the daily practice of nursing care. The reification of nursing and the resulting disadvantage to unqualified nursing workers render them less effective than their quantity and human potential should allow. Through the means of two national reviews of policies related to auxiliaries in general and psychiatric divisions of the N.H.3., a wide variety of patterns of employment, instruction, and use were found; nursing managers also revealed a range of problems met in the employment of less-than-fully qualified workers in nursing systems. With this problem-oriented perspec¬ tive, the characteristics and work of auxiliaries in one English health district characterised by relatively low reliance upon these workers, are described. The health district, one of three districts serving as case studies for^he government health department—funded research, was examined by means of postal questionnaires, personal interviews, work diaries and observation of nursing activities. The study, endeavouring to contribute to the discussion of work levels in health care, and within this in nursing care of patients, provides base-line information upon which experimental research may be undertaken

Climate change adaptation: from science knowledge to local implementation

Der Klimawandel trifft die Landwirtschaft in Entwicklungsländern am härtesten. Obwohl viele Studien über die Folgenabschätzung zum Klimawandel existieren, beurteilen nur wenige eine räumlich differenzierte Auswirkung und stellen konkrete Anpassungsstrategien für Kleinbauern zur Verfügung. Viel hängt auch davon ab, ob die Bauern den Klimawandel wahrnehmen und ob sie davon überzeugt sind dass er sie treffen wird. Es fehlt Wissen über die Wahrnehmung von Klimarisiken durch Landwirte, und darüber, wie ihre Entscheidungsfindung bei gleichzeitiger Einwirkung von mehreren Riskien beinflusst wird. Klimawandelanpassung findet bereits an vielen Orten statt, die Skalierung von erfolgreichen Beispielen scheitert oft. Was fehlt, sind neue tools, die ein kosteneffizientes Monitoring und Evaluierung des Fortschritts in der Anpassung an den Klimawandel ermöglichen. Die hier beschriebene Forschung zielt darauf ab den Klimawandeleinfluss räumlich zu evaluieren, die Wahrnehmung der relevanten Akteure zu verstehen und effiziente tools für Monitoring und Evaluierung zu entwickeln, die eine Anpassung durch Bauern evaluieren können. Die Studie verwendete mehrere Methoden um den Prozess der Anpassung zu studieren und Wissenschaftsergebnisse zur lokalen Umsetzung von Strategien in einer Fallstudie als gekoppeltes Mensch-Umwelt-System (HES) zu zeigen. Als Erstes wurden Geographische Simulationsmodelle zur Ermittlung von räumlich differenzierte Auswirkung eingesetzt. Zweitens wurde ein Ansatz von Mentalen Modellen verwendet, um Unterschiede in der Wahrnehmung von Experten und Bauern zu untersuchen und Klimarisiken im Zusammenhang mit anderen Risiken zu verstehen. Drittens wurde ein Prototyp für Monitoring und Evaluierung der Umsetzung von Anpassungsstrategien entwickelt. Das DSSAT-Modell wurde zur Feststellung der räumlich differenzierten Folgenabschätzung verwendet. Die Ergebnisse zeigen, dass die Ertragsvariabilität für ausgewählte Anpassungsoptionen zwischen den geographischen Standorten variiert. Für die Fallstudie Cauca in Kolumbien zeigen die Ergebnisse der Mentalen Modelle, dass Experten und Bauern die Befürchtungen der Risiken unterschiedlich wahrnehmen. Die Clusteranalyse ergab vier Typologien von Wahrnehmungen bei Bauern. Die Verwendung von GeoFarmer in einem der vier Pilotprojekte zeigte eine zunehmende Anwendung und Skalierung klimagerechter Landwirtschaftspraktiken durch die Bauern nach Demonstrationsveranstaltungen auf. Die Studie hat gezeigt, dass nachhaltige Umsetzung von Anpassungsstrategien durch Bauern nicht mit einem wissenschaftlichen Ansatz oder einem tool erfasst werden können. Vielmehr identifiziert sich eine erfolgreiche Anpassung an den Klimawandel durch eine Mischung aus was wo funktioniert (räumliche Allokation), warum es funktioniert (Akteure) und wie es skaliert werden kann (räumliche Umsetzung). Dies fordert transdisziplinäre Prozesse um die lokale Umsetzung der Anpassungsstrategien zu ermöglichen, und regelmässiges Monitoring und Evaluierung. Das Monitoring und Evaluierungssystem sollte unterschiedliche Ebenen erfassen können, wie zB das Sammeln von Indikatoren auf lokaler Ebene, Wahrnehmungen auf der Communityebene, und den Evidenz- und Wissensaustauschs auf globaler Ebene.Impacts from climate change on agriculture are expected to hit economic livelihoods in developing countries hardest. Although many studies exist on climate change impact assessment, few of them assess spatially differentiated impact gradients and translate them into actionable strategies and possible adaptation pathways for smallholders. The success of implementation of these strategies relies in no small extent on farmers’ perceptions of climate change including their knowledge and beliefs how it will affect them. There is not enough knowledge about farmers’ perception of climate risks and how it influences decision making under multiple stressors. However, climate change adaptation is already happening in many places, but scaling of good practices often fails. What is missing are new tools that allow cost-effective monitoring and evaluation of climate change adaptation strategies at scale. The research described here aimed for spatially assess impact-gradients and derive options for adaptation, understand climate-risk perceptions of relevant actors and develop tools for monitoring and evaluation to measure and track the evidence of farmers’ adoption of adaptation strategies. This research used multiple methods to study the adaptation process and bring science output to local implementation of strategies in a case study as a coupled human-environmental system (HES). First, geospatial simulation modelling was used to analyse impact-gradients and adaptation options. Second, a mental model approach was used to study differences in experts and farmers perceptions and better understand climate risks in the context of other risk. Third, a prototype was developed for cost-effective monitoring and evaluation of the implementation of adaptation strategies. The Decision Support System for Agrotechnology Transfer (DSSAT) model was used to identify impact gradients for dry beans in Central America and dry beans and maize in East Africa. Findings show that yield variability for selected management options varies between sites. For the case study Cauca in Colombia, findings of analysing mental models of experts and farmers reveal that they perceived concerns and enablers for adaptation similarly, but risks and barriers to adaptation differently. The cluster analysis of farmers’ risk rankings revealed four typologies of farmers based on their perceptions. Using the GeoFarmer application in one of the four pilots uncovered the increased adoption and scaling of climate-smart agriculture practices after demonstration sessions. This research demonstrated that the sustainable implementation of adaptation strategies by smallholders could not be captured with one approach or tool. Instead, successful adaptation to climate change is a mix of identifying what works where (spatial allocation), understanding why (actors for implementation) and how can it be implemented on the scale (spatial adoption). It calls for transdisciplinary processes of transferring scientific knowledge to local implementers and tracking of adoption of practices and technologies by farmers. Tools for monitoring and evaluation should be capable of capturing different system levels of adaptation; collecting indicators at the farm level, perceptions at the community level, and enable processes of knowledge sharing through a network of actors at the global level and in between sites