Applying the mastery learning model in a wildlife recreation planning and management class

Wildland Recreation Planning and Management is a 400 level course taken by Wildland Recreation majors (B.S. in Forestry) in the spring semester of their Junior year prior to their summer internship. Due to the number of field trips taken during the semester, the course is limited to 12 students. Generally 7-9 students are Wildland Recreation majors with the remaining students from Wildlife and Fisheries Science, Ornamental Horticulture and Landscape Design, or Liberal Arts. The course meets once a week from 12:40 to 6:30 pm although the class period varies with the use and length of field trips. The Mastery Learning approach in this class evolved out of the desire to raise the competency level of students in preparation for their internship experience and their future professional careers. In particular, the need for a mastery approach was based on the demands and expectations placed on the students by their internship experience. In their internships, students address issues and concerns associated with visitor and resource management often in presentations, conversations, and meetings with people from different backgrounds and disciplines. Essentially, the students are communicating with and educating the public and other professionals about concepts related to resource protection and visitor management

DO SPORTFISH CONSUMPTION ADVISORIES AFFECT RESERVOIR ANGLERS' SITE CHOICE?

Increasing numbers of freshwater ecosystems have had sportfish consumption advisories posted in recent years. Advisories are sometimes issued in lieu of environmental remediation if they are considered more cost-effective than "cleaning up" the resource, but this approach assumes that anglers adjust behavior in response to the warning. Previous studies, however, suggest that compliance with advisories can be quite low. In contrast, this study measures a statistically significant response by reservoir anglers to consumption advisories. In particular, anglers are less likely to choose to visit a reservoir with an advisory than a similar reservoir without an advisory. Furthermore, the economic losses due to advisories are quantified for anglers in two regions of Tennessee.Resource /Energy Economics and Policy,

A hybrid-stress finite element for linear anisotropic elasticity

Standard assumed displacement finite elements with anisotropic material properties perform poorly in complex stress fields such as combined bending and shear and combined bending and torsion. A set of three dimensional hybrid-stress brick elements were developed with fully anisotropic material properties. Both eight-node and twenty-node bricks were developed based on the symmetry group theory of Punch and Atluri. An eight-node brick was also developed using complete polynomials and stress basis functions and reducing the order of the resulting stress parameter matrix by applying equilibrium constraints and stress compatibility constraints. Here the stress compatibility constraints must be formulated assuming anisotropic material properties. The performance of these elements was examined in numerical examples covering a broad range of stress distributions. The stress predictions show significant improvement over the assumed displacement elements but the calculation time is increased

Landowners\u27 perceptions of white-tailed deer damage to crops in Tennessee

We conducted a mail survey to determine Tennessee landowners\u27 perceptions of white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) damage to crops, their tolerance for damage and the effectiveness of damage control methods. Fifty-five percent of landowners had wildlife damage and 47% had deer damage. The majority had light or moderate damage. The majority of participants who had taken measures to prevent damage used hunting. State-issued depredation permits were rated the most effective method of controlling damage. Although most survey participants did not have substantial deer damage, landowners with serious deer damage problems may need further assistance

Landowners\u27 Perceptions of White-Tailed Deer Damage to Crops in Tennessee

We conducted a mail survey to determine Tennessee landowners\u27 perceptions of white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) damage to crops, their tolerance for damage and the effectiveness of damage control methods. Fifty-five percent of landowners had wildlife damage and 47% had deer damage. The majority had light or moderate damage. The majority of participants who had taken measures to prevent damage used hunting. State-issued depredation permits were rated the most effective method of controlling damage. Although most survey participants did not have substantial deer damage, landowners with serious deer damage problems may need further assistance

Using the Engaged Student Approach in Wildland Recreation Classes

n the fall of 2000, the structure of the introductory class in Wildland Recreation (50 students) was revised from a more traditional approach to a blend of the “engaged student” and “mastery learning” approach. The “engaged student” approach is based on creating opportunities for the student to become involved with real world activities and make connections with professionals in the field while learning the basic concepts of recreation. The class is viewed as a job setting with similar expectations. The “engaged student” takes responsibility for their own learning, similar to what they need to do throughout their career with life-long learning

Explaining Public Support for Fisheries Management Alternatives

Angler preferences for fisheries management alternatives were evaluated with probit and ordered probit regression techniques. The information provided by these models was sufficient to identify angler characteristics that influence support for various management alternatives. Older anglers preferred regulations that are uniform across reservoirs, whereas more highly educated and active anglers preferred individual reservoir regulations. More active anglers favored implementation of publicly popular regulations, even if the management agency believes the regulations to be nonbeneficial. Members of fishing clubs did not favor implementing popular regulations over agency objections. Educational level, club membership, and income were correlated with angler perceptions of regulatory complexity. These results suggest that agencies may engage in activities designed to efficiently target informational material to particular segments of the angling population

Estimating Tennessee Residents\u27 Willingness to pay for Teaming with Wildlife

A contingent valuation model of support for the Teaming with Wildlife (TWW) proposal is reported for Tennessee residents. Based on a random digit dial telephone survey, the preferred statistical model found the median tax rate supported by Tennessee residents for nongame species management is approximately 1.4%. This is commensurate with the tax rates contained in proposed TWW legislation. Residents who engage in recreation activities subject to the TWW tax are more likely to support the program than those who do not engage in these activities. The results indicate Teaming with Wildlife enjoys support among the population it directly taxes