Ripping yarns: Science in Asia

The article explores the life and works of botanist Joseph Rock, historian Joseph Needham, and physicist J. C. Bose. Rock's expeditions and personality have become an enduring part of China's history which shows the notion that scientists participate in public affairs. Needham has embraced the documentation of the country's history of science and technology. Bose's infusion of three careers shows the notion that science is a blend of logic and imagination

Lifelong science learning

The author discusses the incorporation of lifelong learning in the study of science in New Zealand. He explains two preliminary thoughts related to the creation of a setting for lifelong learning in the field of science including the sustained enrichment necessary to enhance school science experiences of students. He also explores three major capabilities such as the understanding of the nature of science and engaging in socio-scientific issues that lifelong learning might entail

What influences the emergence of a new subject in schools? The case of environmental education

New subjects are always emerging but only some gain a place in the formal school curriculum. In fact, most of the now accepted conventional school subjects have, at some stage, struggled to become established. This paper presents findings of a three-year study of teacher and school responses to the introduction of environmental education (EE) as a new subject within the Taiwan national curriculum. School leaders and teachers were interviewed the year prior to the introduction of the new curriculum and during the first two years of implementation. Findings substantiate the importance of six themes (such as examination status and a university pathway) raised in elaborations of the traditional Layton/Goodson model. However, the complex community-school relationships and the value accorded in EE to community-based and even global action, as opposed to academic outcomes, highlighted the need for curriculum policy makers to consider expanding the traditional model with another five themes and most importantly introducing three particular themes. When seeking to promote the emergence of a holistic and integrative subject such as environmental education there is a need to also consider local environment involvement, the transformative nature of EE within whole school involvement, and linkages with a national cooperation network. Without these factors it appears EE may struggle to gain a place in the curriculum

Patients’ Views: Peer Support Worker On Inpatient Wards

Purpose: To explore patients’ experiences of intentional mental health peer support (PS) Design/methodology/approach: Seven in depth interviews were carried out by an independent researcher with individual inpatients who volunteered via a PS worker following leaflet and poster distribution explaining the research on the two wards. Each recorded interview of thirteen questions was transcribed verbatim by the researcher and analysis identified common themes across the interviews. Findings: An overarching theme of communication with patients was identified together with six main themes: person centeredness, practical support, building connections, emotional support, modelling hope, and recovery interventions. There were no negative comments expressed by interviewees. Research limitations/implications: Small scale qualitative research allows in-depth exploration of experiences which is valuable in informing the further development of peer support. Originality/value: There are very few published reports of inpatient experiences of peer support in inpatient settings

Preparing to Take the Field: A Temporal Exploration of Stress, Emotion, and Coping in Elite Cricket

The purpose of this study was to explore the stress, emotion, and coping (SEC) experiences of elite cricketers leading up to and on the day of their first competitive fixture of the season. Four elite male cricketers (M = 21.25, SD = 1.5) completed Stress and Emotion Diaries (SEDs) for the 7-day period leading up to and on the day of their first competitive fixture of the season. We then interviewed the cricketers to explore the content of the SEDs in more detail. We used semistructured interviews to glean insight into the stressors, cognitions, emotions, coping strategies, and behaviors. Inductive and deductive content data analysis provided a holistic and temporal exploration of the SEC process underpinned by the cognitive-motivational-relational theory of emotions (Lazarus, 1999). The results highlighted the ongoing and continuous nature of the SEC process while illustrating the coping strategies the cricketers used leading up to and on the day of competition

The contructivist paradigm and some implications for science content and pedagogy

Through a comparison of the widely-held traditional view of science with the constructivist view of science, we argue that the constructivist view of the content of science has important implications for classroom teaching and learning. This alternative view of science concepts as human constructs, scrutinised by application of the rules of the game of science, raises many challenges for teachers. Reconceptualisation of teachers' views of the nature of science and of learning in science is important for a constructivist pedagogy. We argue here that open discussion of the 'rules of the game' of science would contribute to better learning in the classroom, since learners would be better equipped to change their existing concepts by knowing more about the nature of science itself

Mechanical Faraday effect for orbital angular momentum-carrying beams

When linearly polarised light is transmitted through a spinning window, the plane of polarisation is rotated. This rotation arises through a phase change that is applied to the circularly polarised states corresponding to the spin angular momentum (SAM). Here we show an analogous effect for the orbital angular momentum (OAM), where a differential phase between the positive and negative modes (±ℓ) is observed as a rotation of the transmitted image. For normal materials, this rotation is on the order of a micro radian, but by using a slow-light medium, we show a rotation of a few degrees. We also note that, within the bounds of our experimental parameters, this rotation angle does not exceed the scale of the spatial features in the beam profile

Priorities, identity and the environment: Negotiating the early teenage years

This study focuses on the negotiation of environmental identity by ten New Zealand students as they progressed from late primary school to junior secondary school. Interviews with these students and their parents focussed on six theoretical perspective prominent in environmental education: significant life experiences, transformative learning, environmental literacy, values, action competence and environmental identity. Thirteen major themes emerged, which are discussed in terms of two overarching findings. Firstly, the deep-seated, composite and pivotal resonances between home and school influences in effective environmental education for sustainability (EEfS) learning are described, and suggestions are made for how this can be better taken into account. Secondly, a focus on the complex negotiation of the early teenage years suggests how promoting EEfS might occur more productively in secondary schools