Using Gamification to Motivate Students with Dyslexia

The concept of gamification is receiving increasing attention, particularly for its potential to motivate students. However, to date the majority of studies in the context of education have predominantly focused on University students. This paper explores how gamification could potentially benefit a specific student population, children with dyslexia who are transitioning from primary to secondary school. Two teachers from specialist dyslexia teaching centres used classDojo, a gamification platform, during their teaching sessions for one term. We detail how the teachers appropriated the platform in different ways and how the students discussed classDojo in terms of motivation. These findings have subsequently informed a set of provisional implications for gamification distilling opportunities for future pedagogical uses, gamification design for special education and methodological approaches to how gamification is studied

Biofilm genetics of Burkholderia cenocepacia

Burkholderia cenocepacia is a soil bacterium and opportunistic human pathogen found to infect the lungs of cystic fibrosis (CF) patients. One factor that may allow B. cenocepacia to persist in the CF lung and continue to cause a decline in lung function is its ability to form biofilms. Little is known about the genetic mechanisms allowing this bacterium to transition from an acute to a chronic (biofilm) lifestyle. I used both transposon mutagenesis and positive laboratory selection to identify mutations that increase biofilm production. Mutations affecting capsule polysaccharide synthesis were identified, among others, by random mutagenesis to confer an increased biofilm phenotype, whereas mutations putatively resulting in increased intracellular levels of cyclic-di-GMP were identified in biofilm-adapted isolates

Opposition to Abortion, Then and Now: How Amicus Briefs Use Policy Frames in Abortion Litigation

Early in the debate over abortion, opposition to the procedure was primarily described in terms that reflected moral concerns about the protection of “the unborn.” Indeed, much of the media coverage and public discourse describing opposition to abortion since the time of Roe characterizes the movement as focused on securing rights for all human beings from the moment of conception (Huff 2014, 39). However, interviews with activists and movement leaders suggest that antiabortion groups have employed an array of public outreach strategies over time. As seen above, the former director of the antiabortion group National Right to Life described how market research into public perceptions of his organization led to a shift in its outreach strategy in the 1990s. But did this shift in public rhetoric and outreach strategy extend to litigation as well? While most of the literature on social movements and framing focuses on the media, here we focus on another important venue that social movement organizations use to push for policy change and to raise visibility: the Supreme Court. Given the primacy of Supreme Court decisions in the abortion debate, it is crucial to understand changes in groups’ use of frames in legal arguments presented to the Court. There is every reason to believe that the frames employed in briefs filed before the Supreme Court represent important strategic decisions by pro-life activists and groups in response to signals from the political environment and the current temporal context (Meyer and Minkoff 2004; Tilly 1978; Meyer 2004), or what is sometimes called the political opportunity structure. Framing in amicus briefs should align with the messaging strategy employed by the group in other advocacy contexts and be reflective of the political opportunity structure (Tarrow 1998:77) and adapted somewhat to fit the language of law and the contours of legal doctrine. (We explore this point more in the conclusion.

Understanding and fostering children’s storytelling during game narrative design

Children typically have extensive expertise and experiences of computer games, which can enable them to make valuable contributions when involved in the design of games. Within this paper we discuss our approach to the involvement of children in the game design process, specifically to inform a game narrative. We describe two design workshops with children, which focused on the design of the narrative within a literacy game based on the Day of the Dead festival. We describe how the knowledge that resulted from these workshops furthered our understanding of children’s storytelling schema and preferences for games as well as their approach to story creation and expression during the game design process. We also discuss how our findings informed an initial set of design principles for guiding narrative design within children’s games as well as recommendations for including storytelling design activities within the technology design process

Never just a number: evaluating the impact of a holistic approach to UK poverty

The core aim of the research is to show the social value of CAP’s work in tackling poverty and related problems of debt, joblessness, dependency, and low capacity. The evaluation covers the four main strands of CAP’s approach to helping people: Debt Advice Centres; back to work Job Clubs; programmes tackling low-grade dependencies through Fresh Start groups; and Life Skills groups, which help people to develop capacity to manage on low incomes. In order to understand CAP’s approach and working method in helping people to escape poverty and indebtedness, LSE interviewed Debt Centre Managers, clients, volunteers, and HQ staff. A further aim of the research is to propose a headline Social Return on Investment (SROI) figure for each of the frontline services; provide an overall headline SROI figure for the charity as a whole; and develop an estimate of the wider societal cost of debt, unemployment, addiction and poor life skills. It then becomes possible to show the savings to society brought about through CAP’s intervention, assessing the outcomes for service users following intervention. LSE Housing and Communities aims to apply a theory of change to the work of CAP, identifying core principles, tools and hoped for outcomes

Retrofit to the Rescue: environmental upgrading of multi-storey estates

'Retrofit to the Rescue' looks at the ambitious refurbishment of Wilmcote House in Portsmouth for a new study on the social impact of retrofit works. In 2010 LSE Housing and Communities were asked to conduct interviews with 50 tenants on the Edward Woods Estate, to assess the community and social impact of retrofitting three high rise towers (23 storeys) in Hammersmith and Fulham. The resulting report - High Rise Hope - found that residents liked their community and area, expressed support for it to be saved and were happy to stay put during the works. In spite of many delays and hiccups, the final outcomes were generally extremely positive

The North West Highlands UNESCO Global Geopark : Oldest Fossils in Europe

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