Teacher educators and learning styles in the learning and skills sector

The aims of this thesis were to describe the use of learning styles within the Learning and Skills sector; to investigate the reproduction of the conceptual confusion by teacher educators, to critically analyse the underpinning evidence in the learning styles debate and identify the reasons for the promotion of learning styles. The central research question investigated the extent to which teacher educators within the sector were aware of the debate around learning styles. The sub questions uncovered the beliefs of teacher educators towards learning styles and the rationales they used to justify their use.A critical realist ontology was paired with a social constructionist epistemology and a qualitative design was applied. The chosen methodology was the in-depth, semi structured qualitative interview with a grounded theory approach to the data analysis. Sixteen respondents were recruited by theoretical sampling with nine of them being identified as ‘supporters’ of learning styles and six of them as ‘detractors’.The interviews took place outside of the interviewee’s place of work and all relevant ethical guidelines were followed. The conversations were digitally taped and transcribed using a denaturalised strategy. The transcripts were coded using QSR NVivo and six major themes emerged. Two were In vitro themes ‘Knowledge and Use of VAK’ and ‘Conceptual Confusion’. The rest were in vivo themes, ‘Beliefs About Stereotyping’, ‘The Ofsted Hypothesis’,’ The Learning Styles Debate’ and ‘Enthusiastic Socialisation’.The analysis of the themes provided a number of elements of interest and relevance. It was found that the VAK approach was not the most popular inventory used within the sector. That the conceptual confusion recorded in the literature, concerning learning styles, was reproduced almost identically amongst the supporters’ beliefs. Both supporters and detractors believed that learning style diagnosis was unlikely to lead to the stereotyping of student approaches to learning. The belief that Ofsted supported and rewarded the use of learning styles’ practice at inspection was influential amongst both groups. The supporters tended to suppress and distort the implications of the debate surrounding learning styles; they were shown to be less willing to present the debate as a part of their teaching practice when compared to the detractors. The analysis also showed that supporters were more likely to experience an enthusiastic introduction to learning styles. This analysis provided answers for all of the research questions as it highlighted that all of the interviewees were all cognizant of the styles’ debate. The beliefs of the supporters and detractors alike regarding learning styles were compared and contrasted and their rationales and justifications were highlighted.The grounded theories that emerged from the analysis offered a number of strands of new knowledge. The most important new knowledge to emerge regarded the role of initial teacher training and/or colleagues in providing an enthusiastic socialisation into learning styles theory and practice. If such an introduction occurs it can facilitate a confirmation bias that leads to a robust and positive belief system that rejects modifies or ignores contentious research evidence. The supporters of learning styles exhibited a reliance on personal opinion and experience in preference to empirical evidence as a result of the bias.Recommendations were proffered to modify the practice of teacher educators to ensure that the debate around learning styles was presented accurately. Directions for future research were described

Behavioural simulation of biological neuron systems using VHDL and VHDL-AMS

The investigation of neuron structures is an incredibly difficult and complex task that yields relatively low rewards in terms of information from biological forms (either animals or tissue). The structures and connectivity of even the simplest invertebrates are almost impossible to establish with standard laboratory techniques, and even when this is possible it is generally time consuming, complex and expensive. Recent work has shown how a simplified behavioural approach to modelling neurons can allow “virtual” experiments to be carried out that map the behaviour of a simulated structure onto a hypothetical biological one, with correlation of behaviour rather than underlying connectivity. The problems with such approaches are numerous. The first is the difficulty of simulating realistic aggregates efficiently, the second is making sense of the results and finally, it would be helpful to have an implementation that could be synthesised to hardware for acceleration. In this paper we present a VHDL implementation of Neuron models that allow large aggregates to be simulated. The models are demonstrated using a system level VHDL and VHDL-AMS model of the C. Elegans locomotory system

An Intelligent Fuse-box for use with Renewable Energy Sources integrated within a Domestic Environment

This paper outlines a proposal for an intelligent fuse-box that can replace existing fuse-boxes in a domestic context such that a number of renewable energy sources can easily be integrated into the domestic power supply network, without the necessity for complex islanding and network protection. The approach allows intelligent control of both the generation of power and its supply to single or groups of electrical appliances. Energy storage can be implemented in such a scheme to even out the power supplied and simplify the control scheme required, and environmental monitoring and load analysis can help in automatically controlling the supply and demand profiles for optimum electrical and economic efficiency. Simulations of typical scenarios are carried out to illustrate the concept in operation

The anatomy of a woodland: stand profile diagrams as an aid to problem-based learning in undergraduate forestry education

Forestry education is poorly served with published examples of teaching and learning methods that enable students to engage actively with the discipline. This is not the case in other professional disciplines, such as the biology, medicine and engineering, where sub-disciplines have emerged and are devoted to the development and evaluation of optimum learning strategies. In this paper we present a short field-based practical that introduces forestry students to forest stand dynamics, applied forest ecology and silviculture. Students measure a series of tree and stand parameters in 2 contrasting forest types. They then analyze and interpret the data to develop their understanding. Reflective practice is built in by setting questions designed to promote enquiry and the self-identification of future avenues for personal development. The project, as described here, was devised for students at the National School of Forestry, England, but the principles could be applied to almost any learning environment. Planning within curriculum teams would be required to identify the appropriate location for this exercise in specific undergraduate programmes

Sustainable forest management

This article presents a case study of sustainable forest management at Thirlmere Reservoir in the Lake District. The interaction between forest and water resources, and the value of the surrounding landscape, makes Thirlmere an excellent location for demonstrating modern approaches in sustainable forestry. Today, forests are managed for a variety of purposes: environmental, economic and social. This case study shows that such management requires a range of geographical understanding, and illustrates the synoptic approach required at A2