Feedback From Student Teachers at Molepolole College of Education on Issues Related to HIV / AIDS Education at CJJS’s and Molepolole College of Education, Including the Use of the Talkback Programme.

A questionnaire was carried out with 176 year two and three students from MCE returning from teaching practice in CJSS’s. All the data used in this report was taken from these replies. There were no observations in schools by the author or further interviews with the students themselves. Therefore all these issues raised would benefit form further follow up in the field. The majority of CJSS’s are showing the Talkback programme. A significant minority are not. In those where it is shown most teachers are reported to have access to it although the questionnaire did not explore how many teachers actually watch the programme. Many student teachers seem to watch the programme when given the opportunity and some make use of it in their teaching. Videos tend not to be made of the programme and are not readily available to staff or pupils in the schools. Very little use is made of the programme in MCE (this is true in at least one other of the colleges of education, and probably in all the others). There is a dearth of basic health and safety awareness at CJSS’s. They also lack basic equipment and resources in this area. Teaching and learning around HIV / AIDS would seem to be based on fairly traditional methods and resources with some notable exceptions. A lot more use could be made of community based organisations particularly those involving PLWA’s. There are few resources that are not solely text based. This will cause particular problems for pupils with some disabilities and other special needs. Considering the fact that female pupils aged 15 - 19 are far more likely to be infected than males there was no specific mention of any interventions / resources aimed particularly at this group. Most classroom based discussion seems to be around basic causes, spread and prevention of HIV / AIDS infection. Students indicated a need to know more about testing procedures and ARV’s. There seemed to be little indication that hands on ‘life skills’ based teaching approaches were in use. There was some evidence of unwillingness by some schools and individual teachers to confront the issues, and some of teachers abusing pupils sexually

Evolution or Revolution? An Analysis of the Changing Faces of Development Education in the United Kingdom.

The following paper investigates whether and to what extent there may have been an ideological shift in the realisation of development education policy and practice over the past three decades. Using the United Kingdom as a case study, the paper provides a review of the literature in the field and investigates the extent to which the introduction of the Primary School Curriculum through the Education Reform Act (1988) may have had an effect on the teaching and learning of development issues within schools. Using a conceptual framework loosely based on the work of Andriotti (2008) which interrogates the narrative used in policy formation, the paper provides a comparative analysis of policy and curriculum documents. The overt and subliminal ideological perspectives adopted in these documents are interrogated to determine the relative positioning regarding how best development issues might be addressed. A critical analysis of findings is then used as the basis to determine whether there has been a de-radicalisation of the ways in which development education policy and content is addressed particularly in the contexts of formal education

Open Pathways to Literate Worlds –The TESSA (Teacher Education Sub Saharan Africa) Experience

Although the mediation of a teacher in the context of a formal school is not the only way that a learner might acquire basic literacy skills the fact remains that in most instances this is the manner in which such skills are achieved. This poses a challenge for many parts of sub-Saharan Africa where there are severe shortages in teacher numbers, in the capacity to train adequate numbers of teachers, and in access to locally appropriate materials to support teacher development in a manner that will impact on success rates of children in basic education including literacy acquisition. This chapter explores the way in which the open education resource (OER) Teacher Education in sub-Saharan Africa (TESSA) is attempting to provide sustainable and appropriate responses to such a challenge. It describes the broad philosophical approach that underpins TESSA before exploring some of the TESSA materials and pedagogic approaches to supporting teacher education with regard to literacy. The impact of the scheme so far is analysed briefly through the findings of various internal and external evaluations. Particular cases of the use of the TESSA literacy resources in Zambia to support literacy initiatives from an international non-governmental organisation (Read to Succeed – USAID) and a local scheme (The Reading Tree) are briefly discussed to illustrate both the efficacy and flexibility of the resource. Finally, various challenges and opportunities regarding the TESSA approach are deliberated with particular regard as to how these might help shape the response to the challenge of providing literacy education in the future

Peace Perceptions Of Prospective Teachers For Promoting Peace Activities For School Settings In Pakistan

Peace has been recognized as a matter of education and to be promoted at the initial level.  The present study attempts to generate a profile of activities toward peace education among prospective teachers.  The Nominal Group Technique (NGT) was used by selecting fifteen prospective teachers as a Nominal Group (NG). NGT was applied under a sequence of stages (idea generating, selection, listing, clarification, ranking and consensus stages). Results generated from the NGT were organized into three categories of student-related activities, teacher-focused activities, and administration and community- related activities. Participants’ preferences were higher for activities that included individual practical participation. Participation in the Action Research process was ranked at the  bottom. Tentative conclusions are drawn with regard to teacher education and peace studies

The Role of the Membrane Potential in Chondrocyte Volume Regulation

Many cell types have significant negative resting membrane potentials (RMPs) resulting from the activity of potassium-selective and chloride-selective ion channels. In excitable cells, such as neurones, rapid changes in membrane permeability underlie the generation of action potentials. Chondrocytes have less negative RMPs and the role of the RMP is not clear. Here we examine the basis of the chondrocyte RMP and possible physiological benefits. We demonstrate that maintenance of the chondrocyte RMP involves gadolinium-sensitive cation channels. Pharmacological inhibition of these channels causes the RMP to become more negative (100 µM gadolinium: ΔVm = −30 ± 4 mV). Analysis of the gadolinium-sensitive conductance reveals a high permeability to calcium ions (PCa/PNa ≈80) with little selectivity between monovalent ions; similar to that reported elsewhere for TRPV5. Detection of TRPV5 by PCR and immunohistochemistry and the sensitivity of the RMP to the TRPV5 inhibitor econazole (ΔVm = −18 ± 3 mV) suggests that the RMP may be, in part, controlled by TRPV5. We investigated the physiological advantage of the relatively positive RMP using a mathematical model in which membrane stretch activates potassium channels allowing potassium efflux to oppose osmotic water uptake. At very negative RMP potassium efflux is negligible, but at more positive RMP it is sufficient to limit volume increase. In support of our model, cells clamped at −80 mV and challenged with a reduced osmotic potential swelled approximately twice as much as cells at +10 mV. The positive RMP may be a protective adaptation that allows chondrocytes to respond to the dramatic osmotic changes, with minimal changes in cell volume. J. Cell. Physiol. 226: 2979–2986, 2011. © 2011 Wiley-Liss, Inc

Assessment insights from the Margins: Garnering the Views of Learners with Disabilities Through Lesson Study

This presentation reports on a small-scale British Academy funded research project using Lesson Study at two universities, one in the UK and the other in Brazil. Specifically, this presentation presents findings from one aspect of the research carried out in the UK, which sought perspectives from a sample of Level 5 university students regarding their experiences of assessment. The students self-identified and willingly participated on the basis of certain characteristics: all had a cognitive or neurological disability, and all identified as being the ‘first in family’ to have attended university. Data arising out of the ‘de-briefing’ sessions with the students of three rounds of LS was analysed and various themes emerged. Many of these reflected previous findings in research literature. A closer reading of the data revealed facets that might otherwise have been ‘occluded’ from view had not such a research process occurred. A tentative framework using the notions of ‘proximity’ and ‘perceptibly’ that might help staff consider the requirements of such students is proposed

Lesson study as a pedagogical practice in higher education from an inclusive perspective: strategies and resources indicated by professors

Lesson Study as a strategy for inclusive pedagogical practices has been used in some countries as a form of collaborative work, involving both teachers and students; and fosters discussions during the implementation of teaching practices. This article aims to present an excerpt of the results of an investigation using Lesson Study conducted in Brazil, simultaneously with the University of Worcester. The analysis indicated the resources and strategies suggested by the professors during the realization of a cycle of the Lesson Study approach. The study concluded that the opportunity to research in a university context increased the understanding of inclusive education among the involved agents

British Society of Gastroenterology guidance for management of inflammatory bowel disease during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The COVID-19 pandemic is putting unprecedented pressures on healthcare systems globally. Early insights have been made possible by rapid sharing of data from China and Italy. In the UK, we have rapidly mobilised inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) centres in order that preparations can be made to protect our patients and the clinical services they rely on. This is a novel coronavirus; much is unknown as to how it will affect people with IBD. We also lack information about the impact of different immunosuppressive medications. To address this uncertainty, the British Society of Gastroenterology (BSG) COVID-19 IBD Working Group has used the best available data and expert opinion to generate a risk grid that groups patients into highest, moderate and lowest risk categories. This grid allows patients to be instructed to follow the UK government's advice for shielding, stringent and standard advice regarding social distancing, respectively. Further considerations are given to service provision, medical and surgical therapy, endoscopy, imaging and clinical trials