Getting more from getting out : increasing achievement in literacy and science through ecological fieldwork

This paper demonstrates the positive impact of learning through ecological fieldwork upon children's ability to write, and to write about science. Specifically we have carried out a relatively large-scale study (involving 379 children aged 9–11 years from 8 primary schools in North East England) comparing intervention classes (involved in fieldwork) and comparison classes (no fieldwork). Pre-intervention assessments revealed no differences between classes in mean literacy scores; post-intervention assessments revealed that significantly higher literacy scores were achieved by children who had carried out fieldwork (girls consistently outperformed boys in all classes). Intervention class children achieved higher scores in science (ecology) assessments than their comparison class peers before and after the intervention. We suggest that this may be an effect of these children thinking as scientists throughout the project. Our work confirms that a child-centred outdoor learning experience focused upon science can result in learning benefits across the wider curriculum

Terrestrial laser scanning and 3D imaging: Heritage case study – The Black Gate, Newcastle Upon Tyne

This paper offers a case study on the recording of a section of wall on a complex heritage building, the Black Gate in Newcastle upon Tyne. The paper adopts case study methodology to assess the appropriateness of using a long range scanner based upon pulse technology for the recording of part of this historic structure and describes the scanning instruments adopted as well as the selection of appropriate software for the pre-processing and documentation. The study offers an overview of the survey planning stages, field operation, and processing of 3D point cloud data using the third party software adopted, including problems encountered. Issues emerging are discussed, in both the 2D and 3D modelling of detailed surfaces from point cloud data, and in the process of software selection, data preparation and export, pre-processing of point cloud data, meshing and the creation of 2D geometry and 3D animations. The paper describes the end results offered as deliverables for this project, and offers recommendations for a working method that can produce data suitable for producing stone-by-stone elevation drawings. The work processes and cost / time indicators are included in this case study and conclusions will consider whether the technique adopted could lead to an improved solution for heritage recording compared to those traditional techniques which are currently employed to produce stone-by-stone elevations. Areas for future research are identified

An Education in Chisasibi

For Margaret\u27s Community Engaged Learning project, she worked with the charitable organization Elephant Thoughts, a collection of teachers and volunteers who work together with Indigenous schools in Canada and internationally to teach summer courses. Margaret was placed in Chisasibi Quebec, on the picturesque shores of James Bay. For the month of July she taught French as a third language in a local high school and herein presents photos and reflections on the experience

Being available, becoming student kind: a nurse educator’s reflexive narrative

A thesis submitted to the University of Bedfordshire, in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of PhilosophyThis thesis is a story of how I came to construct and illuminate a reflexive narrative as a journey of self-inquiry and transformation towards personal realisation. It shares a view of reflection as lived in being and becoming a reflective nurse educator in higher education. My narrative draws upon, autoethnography, critical social theory and hermeneutic perspectives. Johns (2010) six dialogical movements have been used to give structure to my narrative. Nineteen reflections generate the reflexive narrative in a hermeneutic spiral, as each text informs the other along the journey. Insights become clearer through guidance, dialogue, and engagement with the literature. Early reflections show anxiety, emotional distress and entanglement as I tried to solve student problems. Maternalism influenced my approach to being with distressed and struggling students. Gradually these feelings give way to being available, becoming student kind as an enabling relationship with students. Becoming student kind is framed through my adaptation of the Being Available Template (Johns 2013). It is realised through; listening, presence, caring, empathy, compassion and emotional intelligence. Poise, a self-management practice ensures that personal concerns and tensions do not hinder my relationships with students. Mindfulness expressed as spirituality sustains this process. This path to becoming student kind creates a learning space for student growth and development. In so doing, students are enabled to enter into a nurse patient relationship through being available. I express my empowerment through a dialogical voice, transforming my practice with individual students, in the classroom and beyond. Understanding the tensions within the complexity of university culture influencing nurse education, informs collaboration with colleagues towards a shared vision of nurse education. I turn to reflect on a journey of constructing a reflexive narrative. Five stepping stones for dialogue in advancing guided reflection as a foundation for nurse education are offered. My inquiry weaves a story of reflection as testimony to a fusion of practice and theory. I reveal practice wisdom, informing my day to day work in being available becoming student kind in relationships with students. I explore the contribution to knowledge, my practice and future research, considering the strengths and challenges therein

Breakfast clubs: Starting the day in a positive way

Breakfast clubs are widely promoted as having a beneficial impact on children’s behavior at the start of the school day, which can be conducive to their learning within the classroom. However, the few available studies that have considered the impact of breakfast club attendance on children’s behavior have yielded mixed results and no studies to date have directly observed children’s behavior within the breakfast club setting. Using a combination of real-time observation and filmed breakfast club footage, the aims of the current study were to: (1) devise a set of observational criteria appropriate for use in the breakfast club setting; (2) investigate the occurrence of both positive and negative behaviors. A sample of 30 children aged between 3 and 11 years were recruited from 3, opportunistically sampled primary school breakfast clubs in the North East of England, UK. The behaviors they displayed within the breakfast club setting on two separate days were observed and coded for subsequent analysis. Results of the investigation showed that children’s behavior could be classified into three positive and three negative behavioral categories. Using these categories to code children’s behavior as they engaged in breakfast club showed that children displayed more positive than negative behaviors within the breakfast club setting and this was the case regardless of the type of activity (i.e., quiet or boisterous) children were involved in. Findings are discussed in relation to breakfast club policy, implementation, and evaluation

The effects of automation in libraries: the implications for work organisation and job design

The purpose of this thesis was to investigate how libraries, as organisations, may adapt to the introduction of automation, specifically the use of computing technology. The study focusses on the effects on the organisation of work. The thesis commences with an overview of libraries, their organisation, structure and environment, placing the development of automation in context. The nature of work in libraries is described and a categorisation of selected tasks drawn up, divided into four functional areas: acquisition, organisation, exploitation and administration. The question of whether librarianship is a profession is addressed. The relationship between the ‘professional’ and 'non-professional' is raised. Reviews of published research into the job preferences of library workers and the characteristics of library work are undertaken. The development of automation in libraries is described, followed by a review of library experiences of automation, with specific reference to the impact on organisational structure and the nature of work. Theories of job design are described and their use within libraries examined. The potential application of contemporary approaches to job redesigns is investigated. Field research undertaken involved administering a questionnaire to a group of library workers whose libraries were members, at that time, of the Scottish Libraries Cooperative Automation Project (SCOLCAP). Questions covered job preferences and characteristics, and attitudes to automation. The various facets of the topic are brought together in a final discussion. The future of libraries and librarians is explored. Some recommendations for further research are made. The major conclusions are that automation is a catalyst for change in libraries rather than an instigator of change; that there are strategic choices involved in the change process, including choices in the capabilities of the technology used, why it is used and how work is organised around it. A model outlining the consequences of automation in libraries is presented