Saskatchewan vegetable production – an opportunity awaits

Non-Peer ReviewedAt 7% “in-season” self sufficiency, Saskatchewan imports about $25,000,000 of fresh vegetables annually. To further exploit this apparent diversification opportunity a vegetable project was initiated in 1996 to demonstrate newer production technologies and to obtain data for Saskatchewan based costs of production. One half acre sized fields of pumpkin, carrots, cabbage, peppers, cucumber, broccoli, cauliflower, romaine lettuce, celery, Brussels sprouts and cantaloupe have been grown and marketed to simulate commercial production. The results have shown that acceptable yields of suitable quality produce can be grown and superior quality where proximity to market is a factor. Net returns have been positive for the most part but, since labour is such a significant component of variable costs, productivity and efficient use of labour can be critical. These initiatives have given the vegetable industry in Saskatchewan further impetus and direction. A number of new producers and a new generation cooperative, currently in the formative stages, appear poised to further diversify the agricultural landscape with SASK GROWN fresh vegetables

Hydrogen transport in superionic system Rb3H(SeO4)2: a revised cooperative migration mechanism

We performed density functional studies of electronic properties and mechanisms of hydrogen transport in Rb3H(SeO4)2 crystal which represents technologically promising class M3H(XO4)2 of proton conductors (M=Rb,Cs, NH4; X=S,Se). The electronic structure calculations show a decisive role of lattice dynamics in the process of proton migration. In the obtained revised mechanism of proton transport, the strong displacements of the vertex oxygens play a key role in the establishing the continuous hydrogen transport and in the achieving low activation energies of proton conduction which is in contrast to the standard two-stage Grotthuss mechanism of proton transport. Consequently, any realistic model description of proton transport should inevitably involve the interactions with the sublattice of the XO4 groups.Comment: 11 pages, 11 figures, to appear in Physical Review

Balanced Literacy in an Urban School District

This is the authors' accepted manuscript, post peer-review. The publisher's official version is available electronically from: http://dx.doi.org/10.3200/JOER.98.5.272-280.Balanced literacy is a philosophical orientation that assumes that reading and writing achievement are developed through instruction and support in multiple environments using various approaches that differ by level of teacher support and child control. This study describes one urban school district’s real-world attempt to create a balance between reading and writing, between teacher-directed and student-centered activities, and between skillsbased and meaning based approaches to literacy instruction. A triangulation strategy using multiple methods of data collection, including classroom observations, inventories of the physical environment of classrooms and school buildings, teacher surveys, and student interviews, was used to measure balanced literacy components. Results suggest that teacherdirected instruction, a fundamental aspect of balanced literacy, was implemented less often than either independent reading or writing activities. Teachers appeared to be allocating instructional time as directed by district administrators, and they were implementing components of a balanced literacy program. Additionally, most school buildings had a physical environment supportive of balanced literacy. However, the amount of time devoted to instruction and modeling effective reading and writing strategies seemed too limited for a group of students with poorly developed reading and writing skills

Macro-language planning for multilingual education : focus on programmes and provision

This overview identifies some common features of macro-level language planning and briefly summarises the changing approaches to the analysis of macro-planning in the field. It previews six cases of language-in-education planning in response to linguistic diversity presented by the contributors to this issue. The cases show how macro-planning can either fail to recognise diverse ethnolinguistic identities or work to acknowledge them. Three common themes in language planning for multilingual education can be identified from the contributions: (i) top-down definitions of what counts as mother tongue can have both intended and unintended outcomes; (ii) language-as-problem responses to linguistic diversity can work to reinforce social exclusion; and (iii) the acknowledgement of diversity and minority language rights needs to flow through from statements of intent to on-the-ground implementation if they are to become a reality