Engaging student voice to improve pedagogy and learning: An exploration of examples of innovative pedagogical approaches for school improvement

Drawing on some recent work in schools in the UK, this paper considers some evidence that suggests that involving students in dialogue about their own learning helps young people become better learners and teachers improve their pedagogy. There continue to be significant barriers and challenges to the development of such innovations in schools in the UK. Chief among these are the fears of teachers relating to accountability for the performance of their students in standardised tests. However, there are many teachers who are finding and creating opportunities to develop dialogic engagement with their students, even within this context. It is from their practice that examples and illustrations are presented and some implications are drawn out for school improvement

An investigation into discourses of learning in schools

This thesis reports a research project describing the discourses of learning in four\ud UK schools. It describes how people in the schools use language about learning.\ud There have been few comparable studies of the discourses of learning.\ud A rationale for studying discourses is presented, arguing that discourses constitute\ud meanings, including the meanings of learning. It makes an argument that the\ud study of discourses of learning in schools can make a useful contribution to\ud understanding learning in schools.\ud Research was carried out in two primary and two secondary schools, in London\ud and the Midlands, which had been involved in programmes to develop learning.\ud Data was gathered from conversations with students and teachers, from classroom\ud and other observations and from documentary materials. This was analysed to\ud produce a description of three discourses: performance, work and learning.\ud The findings have implications for those concerned with effective learning in\ud schools. Performance discourse operates in all four schools, but despite the UK\ud policy context, it is challenged by other discourses. The discourse of work is\ud especially dominant in classrooms. It is argued that the discourses of work and\ud performance reflect meagre views of learning and do not encourage an\ud understanding of effective learning. The richer discourse of learning was evident,\ud but harder to find than the others.\ud This study makes a contribution to understanding the complexity of learning in\ud schools. The constitutive nature of the discourses, the influence on the discourses\ud of different contexts and of the contributory learning perspectives are all explored.\ud The schools and classrooms where a richer discourse of learning operates are\ud examined for what they can tell us about working against the grain of the\ud performance and work discourses

Social ties and physical activity patterns over the life course : gender, race, and age variations

In this dissertation I explore the lived experiences and meanings underlying population patterns linking social ties and exercise. To do so, I frame an analysis of qualitative data from 60 in-depth interviews with 15 white women, 15 black women, 15 white men, and 15 black men with life course theory and critical perspectives on gender, race, and age. In Article 1, I examine how parental influence matters for individuals’ exercise trajectories (i.e., lived experiences of change or stability in exercise patterns) from childhood into adulthood, how adult life course transitions (e.g., parenthood) and turning points (e.g., injury) matter in relation to this influence for exercise trajectories, and how they matter differently at the intersection of race and gender. I develop the concepts of disrupted advantage and disadvantage to refer to my key finding that adult life experiences can disrupt processes of cumulative (dis)advantage around exercise in ways that differ at the intersection of race and gender. In Article 2, I examine the gendered processes through which intimate relationship formation and dissolution result in shifts in exercise habits and find that relationship formation shapes men’s and women’s exercise habits in distinctive ways. Further, these gendered processes are shaped by men’s and women’s relational gendered performances, which reveal the importance of a gender-as-relational perspective for understanding the links between relationship formation and gendered changes in exercise habits. Finally, in Article 3 I examine how body image, as socially constituted, shapes individuals’ motivation to exercise in ways that differ by gender, age, and race. I further examine how, through exercise intentions and practices, individuals craft meanings about the body, gender, race, and age.Sociolog

Inhibitory effects of cytoskeleton disrupting drugs and GDP-locked Rab mutants on bradykinin B2 receptor cycling

The bradykinin (BK) B2 receptor (B2R) is G protein coupled and phosphorylated upon agonist stimulation; its endocytosis and recycling are documented. We assessed the effect of drugs that affect the cytoskeleton on B2R cycling. These drugs were targeted to tubulin (paclitaxel, or the novel combretastatin A-4 mimetic 3,4,5-trimethoxyphenyl-4-(2-oxoimidazolidin-1-yl)benzenesulfonate [IMZ-602]) and actin (cytochalasin D). Tubulin ligands did not alter agonist-induced receptor endocytosis, as shown using antibodies reactive with myc-tagged B2Rs (microscopy, cytofluorometry), but rather reduced the progression of the ligand–receptor–β-arrestin complex from the cell periphery to the interior. The 3 fluorescent probes of this complex (B2R-green fluorescent protein [B2R-GFP], the fluorescent agonist fluorescein-5-thiocarbamoyl-D-Arg-[Hyp3, Igl5, Oic7, Igl8]-BK and β-arrestin2–GFP) were condensed in punctuate structures that remained close to the cell surface in the presence of IMZ-602. Cytochalasin D selectively inhibited the recycling of endocytosed B2R-GFP (B2R-GFP imaging, [3H]BK binding). Dominant negative (GDP-locked)-Rab5 and -Rab11 reproduced the effects of inhibitors of tubulin and actin, respectively, on the cycling of B2R-GFP. GDP-locked-Rab4 also inhibited B2R-GFP recycling to the cell surface. Consistent with the displacement of cargo along specific cytoskeletal elements, Rab5-associated progression of the endocytosed BK B2R follows microtubules toward their (−) end, while its recycling progresses along actin fibers to the cell surface. However, tubulin ligands do not suppress the tested desensitization or resensitization mechanisms of the B2

Perinatal Cat and Dog Exposure and the Risk of Asthma and Allergy in the Urban Environment: A Systematic Review of Longitudinal Studies

Background. The literature is contradictory concerning pet exposure and the risk of development of asthma and other allergic diseases. Using longitudinal studies, we aimed to systematically review the impact of pet ownership in the critical perinatal period as a risk factor for allergies in childhood. Methods. Medline database was searched for urban cohort studies with perinatal exposure to cats and/or dogs and subsequent asthma or allergic disease. Results. Nine articles, comprising 6498 participants, met inclusion criteria. Six found a reduction in allergic disease associated with perinatal exposure to dogs or, cats or dogs. One study found no association. Two found increased risk only in high-risk groups. Conclusion. Longitudinal studies in urban populations suggest that perinatal pets, especially dogs, may reduce the development of allergic disease in those without a family history of allergy. Other unmeasured factors such as pet-keeping choices in allergic families may be confounding the association seen in these high-risk families, and further study is required

Bradykinin receptors : agonists, antagonists, expression, signaling and adaptation to sustained stimulation

Bradykinin-related peptides, the kinins, are blood-derived peptides that stimulate 2 G protein–coupled receptors, the B1 and B2 receptors (B1R, B2R). The pharmacologic and molecular identities of these 2 receptor subtypes will be succinctly reviewed, with emphasis on drug development, receptor expression, signaling, and adaptation to persistent stimulation. Peptide and nonpeptide antagonists and fluorescent ligands have been produced for each receptor. The B2R is widely and constitutively expressed in mammalian tissues, whereas the B1R is mostly inducible under the effect of cytokines during infection and immunopathology. Both receptor subtypes mediate the vascular aspects of inflammation (vasodilation, edema formation). On this basis, icatibant, a peptide antagonist of the B2R, is approved in the management of hereditary angioedema attacks. Other clinical applications are still elusive despite the maturity of the medicinal chemistry efforts applied to kinin receptors. While both receptor subtypes are mainly coupled to the Gq protein and related second messengers, the B2R is temporarily desensitized by a cycle of phosphorylation/endocytosis followed by recycling, whereas the nonphosphorylable B1R is relatively resistant to desensitization and translocated to caveolae on activation

Greenspace and Atopic Sensitization in Children and Adolescents-A Systematic Review

In the last decade, studies investigating greenspace have highlighted several benefits to human health. However, the effect of greenspace on allergies and atopic sensitization in children was not clear. While several studies have investigated this link, the evidence has not been systematically synthesized. We conducted a systematic search of eight databases. Study characteristics and findings were extracted from five articles covering 11 cohorts published between 2012 and 2016, and study quality assessments were performed. Due to significant heterogeneity, meta-analysis was not conducted. Findings were not consistent, possibly due to variations in exposure measurements, study populations and location, the specific allergens tested, and inclusion of confounders. Protective effects from greenspace were reported in four cohorts, while two cohorts showed an increase in sensitization related to greenspace. The other five cohorts found no significant effect of greenspace on atopic sensitization. There is limited understanding of the contributions of greenspace to specific allergens. Future research should consider amount and type of greenspace, as well as the specific allergens tested

Developing a blood cell‐based diagnostic test for myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome using peripheral blood mononuclear cells

Myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS) is characterized by debilitating fatigue that profoundly impacts patients' lives. Diagnosis of ME/CFS remains challenging, with most patients relying on self-report, questionnaires, and subjective measures to receive a diagnosis, and many never receiving a clear diagnosis at all. In this study, a single-cell Raman platform and artificial intelligence are utilized to analyze blood cells from 98 human subjects, including 61 ME/CFS patients of varying disease severity and 37 healthy and disease controls. These results demonstrate that Raman profiles of blood cells can distinguish between healthy individuals, disease controls, and ME/CFS patients with high accuracy (91%), and can further differentiate between mild, moderate, and severe ME/CFS patients (84%). Additionally, specific Raman peaks that correlate with ME/CFS phenotypes and have the potential to provide insights into biological changes and support the development of new therapeutics are identified. This study presents a promising approach for aiding in the diagnosis and management of ME/CFS and can be extended to other unexplained chronic diseases such as long COVID and post-treatment Lyme disease syndrome, which share many of the same symptoms as ME/CFS