An investigation into how ICT is used in teaching and learning by Initial Teacher Educators on the Primary BEd and PGCE courses in the School of Education at a British University

MA EducationThe purpose of this study was to explore the use of ICT in teaching and learning by initial teacher educators, on Primary PGCE and BEd courses, in one British university. The aim was to determine what and where good practice with ICT already existed on the Primary education courses and to identify points of action to make improvements. The world now is technology-rich and as such beginning teachers need to be prepared for the ever-changing demands of ICT in their future careers in schools, especially as their pupils are becoming ever-more digitally 'native'. This study wanted to find out what it meant to use ICT well in teaching and learning on an Initial Teacher Education course for the primary age ranges. It also wanted to ascertain the barriers to the successful embedding of ICT into the curriculum of the Primary education course. Finally, it sought to make recommendations to the case study institution as to what and how improvements could be made. The research was carried out through a thorough review of current literature as well as an analysis of the policy documents at both a local and national level. Staff who taught on the Primary education courses completed a questionnaire which allowed them to comment on their attitudes, views and usage of ICT in their teaching and learning. These results were then cross-referenced to PGCE students' evaluations of the ICT on their course, from the previous year. It was found that ICT in teaching and learning should be made explicit through the sharing of aims for learning. These aims should include as a minimum, coverage through subject areas of national curriculum for ICT for Key Stages 1 and 2, allowing students to see how ICT is supported in a particular field. Also, the curriculum should include the explicit modelling of ICT for teaching and learning in university sessions and also including activities for school experience which will strengthen students' understanding further. This will involve a curriculum review. In order to ensure that staff are competent, both at a personal level and for their embedding of ICT in their curriculum planned CPO at an appropriate level and in a meaningful context will be necessary, on an ongoing basis to keep up with the changes in technology. This would be supported by time for collaboration between colleagues to develop ideas for the curriculum

Can student teachers’ pedagogy be enhanced by heeding children’s thoughts about their learning?

A thesis submitted to the University of Bedfordshire in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Professional Doctorate of EducationThe focus of this enquiry was to enable student teachers to engage with children’s views to construct meaningful classroom learning experiences. The underpinning assumption was that learning is socially constructed. Issues addressed were: what pupils thought helped/hindered their learning in classrooms, how heeding children’s views of barriers to/facilitators of their learning can be used by student teachers for lesson evaluation, planning and reflective practice, to what extent children’s views can support student teachers’ understanding of children’s learning and the development of their pedagogical practices (this includes both curriculum planning and teaching), the development and learning of initial teacher education students as student teachers engaged in reflective practice. The research comprises two case studies; pilot and subsequent larger-scale project. It incorporated action research designed as iterative spirals of research, evaluation and development in classrooms where the student teachers were teaching children. New learning accumulated in one cycle was intended to be taken into the next. Bespoke pedagogical tools were used to create dialogic spaces and also as research data collection techniques. They scaffolded inter and intra- personal exchanges to enable student teachers to understand children’s learning from a socio-cultural perspective. These tools mediated children’s reflection on their learning and then feedback to the student teacher about what they had learnt; how they had learnt it and what would enable them to learn better. The results indicated: enhanced student teachers’ understanding of how children learn as they adapted their practice in response to children’s views, enhanced learning by the children owing to their exchanges on the interpersonal plane, with peers in the dialogic space created by the bespoke pedagogical tools, mentors require development to support student teachers to engage meaningfully with children’s learning. Outcomes cannot easily be generalised from case studies. This study found: children can express learning needs when appropriate scaffolds enable them to articulate abstract concepts, when student teachers respond to children talking about learning they can develop their practice.Implications for Initial Teacher Education are that it should: highlight the importance of children’s voice to support student teachers in developing their pedagogy, model ways in which teachers can create dialogic spaces for children’s interthinking, consider what development mentors require to support student teachers’ understanding of children’s learning in classrooms. Mediating the construction of dialogue with the Thinking Fish provided a way into both the process of interthinking for children, and also student teachers’ understanding of such interthinking as expressed through their dialogue in the focus groups. Thus the Thinking Fish may be considered to be the vicarious presence of the teacher. This may be a useful approach for teachers and student teachers to adopt as the experience for the participants in this study was meaningful and replicable in future practice, using real classroom activity as research data

Livelihood diversification: the role of charcoal production in southern Malawi

Growing urban populations in Sub-Saharan Africa are increasing demand for charcoal. This paper presents a detailed case study of three communities supplying charcoal to Zomba, a medium-sized city in Southern Malawi. Using the Sustainable Livelihoods Framework to structure our analysis, we examine individuals' motivations for producing charcoal, assess the seasonality of charcoal production, how livelihood outcomes vary between men and women, and identify sources of vulnerability for charcoal producer livelihoods. Drawing on data from four focus group exercises in each community and a total of 42 semi-structured interviews, we identify direct (e.g. financial) and indirect (e.g. strengthening of social networks, improved access to goods and services, opportunities for livelihood diversification) benefits that contribute to reducing producers' vulnerability to financial insecurity and improve their livelihoods. Irrespective of the benefits obtained and the actions (e.g. prioritising charcoal production over farming) of producers, participants did not perceive charcoal production as a desirable activity because the work was illegal, stigmatised hard and dangerous. Producers' primary motivations for engaging in production were to provide income to meet one-off purchases of expensive items, respond to an income shock, or to meet recurrent seasonal needs. Under certain conditions women were more dependent on income from charcoal production than men, as they had fewer alternative income generating options available to them. There was no reported management of charcoal resources in the study area, therefore the environmental sustainability of charcoal production and its associated benefits are uncertain. Malawi's current de facto charcoal ban leads to enforcement activities that exacerbate livelihood risks and increase producers' vulnerability to income insecurity

FTIR measurement of cellulose microfibril angle in historic Scots pine wood and its use to detect fungal decay

Microfibril angle (MFA) – the orientation of cellulose fibres in the S2 layer of the secondary cell wall – is a key determinant of the stiffness and strength of timber. The microfibril angle depends on the way in which the timber was grown and its position within the tree. Microfibril angle can be measured by X-ray diffraction and other methods, but the methods in current use are slow or require advanced instrumentation. The aim of this study was to explore the use of polarised Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) microscopy as a relatively fast and inexpensive method for measuring MFA in historic Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.). The FTIR measurements were calibrated against X-ray measurements of MFA in modern Scots pine. We observed a wide range in MFA values and a radial pattern of MFA similar to modern Scots pine in undecayed Scots pine heartwood from sixteenth and seventeenth century beams in Scottish secular buildings. The density of the heartwood was also similar to modern plantation-grown Scots pine despite the much slower growth rate recorded in the ring widths of the historic timber. The sapwood, which had been attacked by both insect pests and fungi, showed an erratic reduction in density and a large increase in MFA compared to the modern material. The increased sapwood MFA was attributed to selective destruction of the S2 layer of the wood cell walls by fungal decay. Using MFA measurements in conjunction with density offers the possibility to estimate the mechanical properties of sound historic pine timber, to detect fungal decay more sensitively than by density alone, and to distinguish between pest and fungal attack in a way that relates directly to the remaining mechanical performance of the timber

Chemical and Mechanical Differences between Historic and Modern Scots Pine Wood

Timber is one of the most common historic building materials, but relatively little is known about how it ages in situ. Here we investigate historic and modern Scots pine to determine any chemical or mechanical differences between them. Fourier-transform infrared (FTIR) microscopy was used to investigate differences in the chemical composition of Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) timber, comparing small samples from historic beams about 500 years old with modern timber. The hemicellulosic acetyl content was reduced by about half in the historic samples, uniformly across the thickness of the beams. A chemical mechanism was therefore suggested for the loss of acetyl groups, as has been observed in paper. In paper, deacetylation and the resulting release of acetic acid are accompanied by loss of strength. Mechanical testing of the historic timber was difficult because the available length of the samples along the grain was only 20 mm. After developing a miniaturized compression test developed for the purpose, it was shown that the relative stiffness of the historic Scots pine samples was reduced by about half compared to modern material

The structural and mechanical integrity of historic wood

Little is known about historic wood as it ages naturally. Instead, most studies focus on biological decay, as it is often assumed that wood remains otherwise stable with age. This PhD project was organised by Historic Scotland and the University of Glasgow to investigate the natural chemical and physical aging of wood. The natural aging of wood was a concern for Historic Scotland as traditional timber replacement is the standard form of repair used in wooden cultural heritage; replacing rotten timber with new timber of the same species. The project was set up to look at what differences could exist both chemically and physically between old and new wood, which could put unforeseen stress on the joint between them. Through Historic Scotland it was possible to work with genuine historic wood from two species, Oak and Scots pine, both from the 1500’s, rather than relying on artificial aging. Artificial aging of wood is still a debated topic, with consideration given to whether it is truly mimicking the aging process or just damaging the wood cells. The chemical stability of wood was investigated using Fourier-transform infrared (FTIR) microscopy, as well as wet chemistry methods including a test for soluble sugars from the possible breakdown of the wood polymers. The physical properties assessed included using a tensile testing machine to uncover possible differences in mechanical properties. An environmental chamber was used to test the reaction to moisture of wood of different ages, as moisture is the most damaging aspect of the environment to wooden cultural objects. The project uncovered several differences, both physical and chemical, between the modern and historic wood which could affect the success of traditional ‘like for like’ repairs. Both oak and pine lost acetyl groups, over historic time, from their hemicellulose polymers. This chemical reaction releases acetic acid, which had no effect on the historic oak but was associated with reduced stiffness in historic pine, probably due to degradation of the hemicellulose polymers by acid hydrolysis. The stiffness of historic oak and pine was also reduced by decay. Visible pest decay led to loss of wood density but there was evidence that fungal decay, extending beyond what was visible, degraded the S2 layer of the pine cell walls, reducing the stiffness of the wood by depleting the cellulose microfibrils most aligned with the grain. Fungal decay of polysaccharides in pine wood left behind sugars that attracted increased levels of moisture. The degradation of essential polymers in the wood structure due to age had different impacts on the two species of wood, and raised questions concerning both the mechanism of aging of wood and the ways in which traditional repairs are implemented, especially in Scots pine. These repairs need to be done with more care and precision, especially in choosing new timber to match the old. Within this project a quantitative method of measuring the microfibril angle (MFA) of wood using polarised Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) microscopy has been developed, allowing the MFA of both new and historic pine to be measured. This provides some of the information needed for a more specific match when selecting replacement timbers for historic buildings

Computer simulations of the interactions of the (012) and (001) surfaces of jarosite with Al, Cd, Cu2+ and Zn

Jarosite is an important mineral on Earth, and possibly on Mars, where it controls the mobility of iron, sulfate and potentially toxic metals. Atomistic simulations have been used to study the incorporation of Al3+, and the M2+ impurities Cd, Cu and Zn, in the (0 1 2) and (0 0 1) surfaces of jarosite. The calculations show that the incorporation of Al on an Fe site is favorable on all surfaces in which terminal Fe ions are exposed, and especially on the (0 0 1) [Fe3(OH)3]6+ surface. Incorporation of Cd, Cu or Zn on a K site balanced by a K vacancy is predicted to stabilize the surfaces, but calculated endothermic solution energies and the high degree of distortion of the surfaces following incorporation suggest that these substitutions will be limited. The calculations also suggest that incorporation of Cd, Cu and Zn on an Fe site balanced by an OH vacancy, or by coupled substitution on both K and Fe sites, is unfavorable, although this might be compensated for by growth of a new layer of jarosite or goethite, as predicted for bulk jarosite. The results of the simulations show that surface structure will exert an influence on uptake of impurities in the order Cu > Cd > Zn, with the most favorable surfaces for incorporation being (0 1 2) [KFe(OH)4]0 and (0 0 1) [Fe3(OH)3]6+

Surgery for women with endometrioma prior to in vitro fertilisation: proposal for a feasible multicentre randomised clinical trial in the UK

Acknowledgements We thank all clinicians who filled the questionnaire, all patients and their partners who participated in interviews and focus groups, all women who helped to design WP3, theStaff at Aberdeen Fertility Centre who helped in recruiting for the qualitative study, Prof. Graeme McLennan (Director Clinical Trials Unit) and Prof. Shaun Treweek (Health Services Research Unit) in Aberdeen for their valuable suggestions in the design of the proposed trial, Dr Tarek Gelbaya for personal communication and Dr C Tomosseti for personal communication. Funding The study was funded by NHS Grampian pump priming endowment fund (RG14437-12).Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Defects and impurities in jarosite: A computer simulation study

Computer modelling techniques involving a rigid ion model have been used to investigate the defect structure and impurity site preferences in end-member K-jarosite. Calculated intrinsic vacancy energies show that the K2SO4 neutral cluster, with an energy per species of 1.34 eV, will be the most common defect in the pure phase. Defect reactions leading to vacancies on the Fe site have high energies, in excess of 4.0 eV per species, and are thus unlikely to occur in great numbers. However, the calculations show that divalent metal cations can be incorporated onto the Fe site via solution reactions with oxides leading to the formation of goethite. Calculated solution reactions are exothermic and thus predicted to be highly favourable. At K sites substitutions occur in the order Cd > Zn > Cu, but will be limited due to endothermic solution energies and structural considerations