Using photography in research with young migrants: addressing questions of visibility, movement and personal spaces

This article discusses the experience of using photography in a research project with young (prospective) migrants in Ghana and Italy. Photography can be an empowering research tool, one that offers young participants a degree of control over the research process and thus allows their points of view to emerge. However, researchers need to consider that the choice of subjects may be influenced by the children’s desire to avoid taking photographs in public, as they may attract attention and the act of pointing a camera may provoke unwanted questions and comments. Moreover, young people often lack the means to move independently, and this may further restrict the subjects they are able to photograph. Finally, they may resent adults’ intrusion into their free time and therefore see taking photographs as a chore. I argue that all these factors need to receive greater attention when choosing photography in research with young participants

A critical analysis of language policy in Scotland

Language offerings in Scottish universities are diverse and have their own acute sense of their situation. Some have a precarious hold, others are buoyant. In a research and teaching environment increasingly determined by league tables and “power rankings”, this paper considers a variety of insecurities which have manifested themselves in the context of the Gaelic Language Act (Scotland) 2005; in the changing landscape of modern languages, symbolically represented in the university sector; and through the new Curriculum for Excellence for Scottish Schools. In particular, it critically examines some of the less visible aspects and informal forms of language practices which thrive or survive in Scotland today. Drawing theoretically from Cameron (2012), Cronin (2003; 2006; 2012) and Forsdick (2005), and from postcolonial and indigenous scholars of languages, including Tuhiwai Smith (2012) and Muehlmann (2007), the paper considers the legislative environment with regard to language planning in Scotland and offers some theoretical ways forward

Review essay

THE GAZE OF THE WEST AND FRAMINGS OF THE EAST, SHANTA NAIR-VENUGOPAL (ED.) (2012) Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan, XV + 264 pp. ISBN: 978-0-230-30292-1, h/bk, £66.0

La géoarchéologie fluviale : concepts, attendus et méthodes d'étude rétrospectives appliqués à la caractérisation du risque hydrologique en domaine méditerranéen

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Dynamique hydrogéomorphologique et diversité végétale dans le delta du Rhône (France) de -10 000 ans à demain

International audienceLe delta du Rhône représente aujourd’hui une vaste plaine de niveau de base dont la surface est estimée à 1742 km2(fig. 1). Ancrée entre les deux bras du Rhône, la « Grande Camargue » n’en constitue à peine que la moitié (850 km2).La présente étude vise à retracer l’histoire hydrogéomorphologique et végétale du « grand delta » à l’échelle del’Holocène1.Dans le delta du Rhône, les écosystèmes végétaux sont très bien connus. La diversité végétale y est élevée malgrél’absence de relief : plus de 1000 espèces recensées parmi les plantes à fleurs pour un total de 4700 espèces habitant laFrance. La végétation actuelle est fortement dépendante non seulement des paramètres climatiques globaux mais aussidu milieu local, en particulier de la teneur en sel des eaux de surface et de sub-surface, et des actions humaines2.L’évolution de la plaine deltaïque, dont les principaux prismes sédimentaires ont été édifiés en moins de 6000 ans, dansun contexte de fluctuations plus ou moins marquées du niveau de la mer, des apports alluvionnaires etd’occupation/utilisation des sols, a forcément eu une incidence sur la dynamique végétale et la biodiversité en général.Il nous a donc paru utile de reprendre les étapes de l’édification du delta du Rhône, à la lumière des travaux dequelques-uns de nos prédécesseurs3, enrichis et complétés par les données stratigraphiques acquises plus récemment, etsurtout grâce aux jalons chronologiques apportés par les trouvailles archéologiques et les datations 14C, qui souventavaient fait défaut dans les études antérieures

'You have to be a bit brave' : barriers to Scottish student-teachers' participation in study-abroad programmes

This article reports on a study that examined Scottish student teachers’ attitudes to study-abroad and the reasons underpinning their reluctance to participate in these programmes. Data collection comprised a mixed-methods approach consisting of a survey of 318 student-teachers in one Scottish university followed by semi-structured interviews with 12 volunteers. Descriptive and thematic data analyses revealed that the majority of student-teachers perceived international study experience as useful to their development as teachers. However, their lack of confidence and anxiety about travel were significant reasons about why they did not take up opportunities to study abroad. In particular, fear of not being understood and fear of different cultural norms and practices shaped their decision to remain in Scotland. In order to allay these fears and increase student–teacher participation, the authors suggest universities invest in intercultural competence training, language education and provide detailed briefings as part of the recruitment process into study-abroad programmes

Analyse statistique et modélisation de la variabilité longitudinale du gradient granulométrique du Rhône

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Cartographie sectorielle et dynamique de la plaine alluviale du Rhône suisse (Tourtemagne-Sierre) depuis la fin du Petit Age Glaciaire

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