Soil Micromorphologic Features of Holocene Surface Weathering and a Possible Late Quaternary Buried Soil, Northwest Arkansas

Micromorphologic features of an alfisol developed in White River alluvium near Fayetteville, Arkansas are typical for this soil order. The A horizon has a relatively high organic matter content and an abundance of quartz sand grains with a silt and clay matrix. Voids are relatively common and some have been partly infilled. In contrast to the A horizon, the E horizon has less organic matter, larger voids, and some weak orientation of the clay matrix. The parent material for these horizons was deposited in the past 4,700 years and these pedologic horizons have formed since that time. In the underlying B horizon clay has accumulated in the form of grain coatings and caps and as void linings. Translocation of clay into this horizon has relatively decreased the abundance of matrix silt and clay, and the amount of void space. The clay matrix that remains has extensively become oriented and some of the void space that remains is planar in shape. Both these features are partly responsible for the subangular blocky structure of this horizon. Deposition of this parent material began more than 8,000 to 10,000 years ago and was complete by 4,700 years ago. Many of the soil features have formed since 4,700 BP as the soil surface accreted upward. The lower portion of the B horizon (2B) is developed in an older alluvial parent material, more than 10,000 years old. Some micromorphologic features suggest that the upper portion of this 2B horizon originally was an A/E horizon that has been modified after burial by subsequent weathering of the present ground soil. Some relict surface horizon features, such as relatively abundant voids, infilled vughs, and matrix, have persisted after burial. Other features characteristic of A horizons, such as organic matter, have been destroyed by oxidation. Many of the micromorphologic features in this 2B horizon have developed since burial, more than 10,000 years ago. Translocated clay features are abundant and partially mask the relict A/E horizon features. The lower part of the 2B horizon was a B horizon that continued to develop as a B horizon after burial. Translocated clay features are more abundant in this horizon than in the overlying relict A/E horizon

Reflective positioning : the impact of conversations in the social and cultural environment of midwifery practice settings on professional learning for students

Literature reviews on the topic of reflection and reflective practice encompassed midwifery, nursing, medicine, allied health, education and professional education. This investigation also included socio-psychological theories by leading authors such as Benner (nursing), Sch&ouml;n (professional education) and positioning theory by Harr&eacute; and others. Positioning is a psycho-sociological ontology in which individuals metaphorically position themselves within three entities: people, institutions, and societies, where conversations are constructed and make an impact upon the social world. The social and cultural structures and interactions developed in Archer&rsquo;s morphogenesis were examined in terms of the impact of possible encounters and the transformational effects of learning experiences in practice settings. These bodies of work provided the theoretical framework for the author&rsquo;s research of students&rsquo; experiences in midwifery education for postgraduate students from which selected excerpts with three participating students and their supervising midwives are presented. These excerpts are related to reflective practices and the professional conversations conducted between students and midwives. It was found that reflective positioning applied in midwifery education by students can serve as an analytical tool in explaining social and cultural elements of clinical placements to influence and transform their learning. The potency of conversations that occur in everyday moment-to-moment interactions do contribute to students&rsquo; induction in professional midwifery practice and their identity formation as a midwife.<br /

Professional midwifery education : blended teaching and learning approaches

Blended teaching and learning approaches are used in the postgraduate course of Graduate Diploma of Midwifery for students who are predominately women with family responsibilities residing in metropolitan, regional, or rural Victoria, a major state in Australia. The Virtual Maternity Clinic (VMC), a virtual learning experience (VLE) research project, was implemented during trimester 2, 2009. The purpose of the project was to expand the blend of teaching and learning activities to support students in their preparation for professional practice. The VMC includes four characters in early pregnancy and care provided by their midwife. All students enrolled in midwifery courses (postgraduate and undergraduate) at Deakin University were recruited to participate in a two-phase, pre- and post-use evaluation process related to the VMC. Findings from the pre-evaluation included that students \u27had high expectations of the VMC in supporting their learning. The results from the post-evaluation of the VMC indicated that students \u27were very satisfied that the VMC supported their learning. Future research directions include further development of the VMC

Moving towards a model of professional identity formation in midwifery through conversations and positioning theory

The disciplines of nursing and midwifery both uphold a powerful oral tradition that can impact upon student learning. Students enrolled in a Graduate Diploma of Midwifery are supervised and assessed by midwives during their placements in midwifery practice settings by a program of \u27preceptorship\u27 support and where conversations are innate. Positioning theory, eveloped by Harre and others, is a metaphorical concept in which an individual \u27positions\u27 herself/himself within entities of encompassing people, institutions and societies where conversations are conducted either privately or publicly. As construction sites of professional learning, conversations are underpinned by reflective practices.In unravelling conversations, positioning may be applied as an analytical tool by educators to interpret the emerging meanings and themes in their discussions with students, reflective journals by students and in meetings with preceptors/midwives.<br /

Factors that influence women\u27s disclosures of substance use during pregnancy : a qualitative study of ten midwives and ten pregnant women

The present study was designed to examine the factors that motivate or act as barriers to disclosure of substance use by pregnant women. Participants included 10 midwives and 10 pregnant women who attended two ante-natal clinics at an Australian maternity hospital. One clinic specialized in women who were substance users and one clinic was specifically for young women (under 19 years of age). Midwives and pregnant women were interviewed in-depth about disclosure of substance use. Interview transcripts were analyzed, and the results revealed six main themes: practice style, assessment of substance use, practice environment and privacy, child protection issues, health of the baby, and continuity of care. The findings are discussed in relation to recommendations for best practice in midwifery care when working with pregnant women who use substances.<br /

Teaching Women\u27s History to Men in Prison

To me, real feminism means working together with other people to try to change the balance of power and wealth, working for everybody\u27s right to human dignity. —Inmate at Massachusetts Correctional Institute, Norfolk With all the problems of getting women\u27s history accepted in traditional institutions, why try to introduce it in an environment that we could expect to be unsympathetic? The idea, when it was first suggested to us, sounded improbable. As we discussed it, possibilities began to emerge. We were each giving courses at Boston University on women\u27s history in America: one emphasizing the economic and social aspects, the other using a historical and literary approach. We could easily collaborate on an interdisciplinary course. Such a course would provide a new way of looking at American life for men who had reason to question the American history they had learned in their school days. It would allow us to try our material with students of very different backgrounds from those of our college students. Since Boston University\u27s Metropolitan College had been giving degrees at Norfolk, a medium-security prison, for several years, we would have the support of a successful, established program. One of us had been both teacher and administrator in the program for several years and knew how hard-working and challenging students who were inmates could be. The reasons for giving the course overcame our reservations, and we agreed to teach it in the spring of 1978

The Role of Mentor Teachers in the National College of Education, Adaptive Cycles of Teaching (NCE ACT) and the Improvement of the NCE ACT

This paper reports research on a practicebased curriculum, the Adaptive Cycles of Teaching (ACT), supported by a cloudbased technology that enables coaching and feedback to preservice teacher candidates as they engage in classroom instruction. Specifically, the research explored mentor teachers’ perspectives on the benefits and limitations of the ACT literacy model and if mentors’ own literacy instruction practices improved through their involvement with ACT. Ten mentor teachers (grades 16) were interviewed. Interviews were transcribed and thematically coded to address the research questions. Findings indicated that mentors had a positive view of the ACT literacy model, and saw an impact on their students’ learning. Mentors benefited by having additional reflective opportunities, and in some cases, learning new literacy instruction practices. Mentors identified challenges in completing all the coaching steps and working with the technology. This feedback has lead to refinements in the coaching steps and the technology coaching platform

The feedback session within the context of teacher training and development : an analysis of discourse, role and function

Abstract\ud Lesson observation followed by feedback is commonly used within a wide range of\ud teacher training and teacher development contexts. This study describes and compares\ud the behaviour, as manifest in the discourse, within two sets of feedback sessions, and\ud offers explanations for this behaviour. In the first type of feedback session trainers give\ud feedback to trainees as part of a pre-service teacher training course. In the second,\ud Directors of Studies give feedback to practising teachers, in the context of in-service\ud teacher development.\ud The research methods employed led to analysis of data from both etic and ernic\ud perspectives. The conversations in the feedback sessions were video recorded,\ud transcribed and analysed using the methodology of Conversation Analysis, and an etic\ud perspective gained. In addition, in order to obtain an ernic perspective, the perceptions\ud of all the participants were obtained by means of interviews and questionnaires.\ud The findings of the study are as follows:\ud • Both sets of feedback session can be said to belong to the type of discourse described\ud as 'talk at work'. They contain features typical of other conversations identified in the\ud literature as institutional talk, and differ significantly from informal or non-institutional\ud conversations.\ud • The details of the discourse and differences between the two types of feedback\ud session are created as a result of the way the participants perceive their roles and the\ud function of the sessions. In tum, these perceptions and the resulting discourse are, to a\ud large extent, shaped by the institutions for which they work.\ud • The final finding is that, in recursive fashion, the discourse serves to reinforce the\ud perception of the roles and functions so that they become further institutionalised