Vocational ladders or crazy paving? Making your way to higher levels

The report is part of a suite of research projects on apprenticeships under the overall theme of 'making work-based learning work'. The aim of this particular study was to explore the role of level 3 vocational qualifications and work-based learning, including Modern Apprenticeships, as progression routes to higher education and to higher-level knowledge and skills more generally. The study comprised secondary analysis of national datasets, and an exploration of supply, demand and progression patterns in four contrasting employment sectors, focusing on enablers and inhibitors of work-based education and training

The measurement of applied forces during anterior single rod correction of adolescent idiopathic scoliosis

Adolescent idiopathic scoliosis (AIS) is the most common form of spinal deformity in paediatrics, prevalent in approximately 2-4% of the general population. While it is a complex three-dimensional deformity, it is clinically characterised by an abnormal lateral curvature of the spine. The treatment for severe deformity is surgical correction with the use of structural implants. Anterior single rod correction employs a solid rod connected to the anterior spine via vertebral body screws. Correction is achieved by applying compression between adjacent vertebral body screws, before locking each screw onto the rod. Biomechanical complication rates have been reported as high as 20.8%, and include rod breakage, screw pull-out and loss of correction. Currently, the corrective forces applied to the spine are unknown. These forces are important variables to consider in understanding the biomechanics of scoliosis correction. The purpose of this study was to measure these forces intra-operatively during anterior single rod AIS correction

Towards a strategy for workplace learning: Report to HEFCE by CHERI and KPMG

The study, undertaken between March and November 2005 aimed to inform HEFCE thinking on developing a strategy for workplace learning by: exploring the nature, purposes and outcomes of workplace learning; considering workplace learning within the broader relationships between the worlds of work and learning; exploring emerging changes in higher education which may impact on workplace learning in the future; identifying structural issues that currently enable or inhibit workplace learning, and identify future opportunities

Water distribution systems in pig farm buildings:Critical elements of design and management

SIMPLE SUMMARY: The piped water systems within buildings on pig farms provide pigs with continuous access to drinking water, and on many farms are also used for short periods to medicate growing pigs with antibiotics to help keep them healthy and productive. We surveyed managers of 25 medium to large pig farms across eastern and southern Australia to investigate critical elements of the design and management of water systems that impact water provision to pigs. We found wide variation in the configuration, length, and pipe materials and diameters of water systems in buildings across farms. In many buildings, main pipelines were larger in diameter than required. While this helps ensure that drinkers always provide plenty of water to pigs, it means water flows through pipes very slowly. We also found that in many buildings the number of pigs per drinker was above the recommended maximum, cleaning and disinfection of water systems was not done on many farms, and few managers were aware of the risks to water quality and pig health. We have identified important aspects of water provision to pigs for which recommendations could be added to industry guidelines used by pig farm managers. ABSTRACT: Drinking water distribution systems (WDSs) within buildings on pig farms have critical elements of their design and management that impact water provision to pigs, water quality, the efficacy of in-water antimicrobial dosing, and, thus, pig health and performance. We used a mixed-methods approach to survey managers of 25 medium to large single-site and multi-site pig farming enterprises across eastern and southern Australia. We found wide variation in the configuration (looped or branched) and total length of WDSs within buildings across farms and in pipe materials and diameters. Within many conventional buildings and some eco-shelters, WDSs were ‘over-sized’, comprising large-diameter main pipelines with high holding volumes, resulting in slow velocity water flows through sections of a WDS’s main pipeline. In over half of the weaner buildings and one-third of grower/finisher buildings, the number of pigs per drinker exceeded the recommended maximum. Few farms measured flow rates from drinkers quantitatively. WDS sanitization was not practiced on many farms, and few managers were aware of the risks to water quality and pig health. We identified important aspects of water provision to pigs for which valuable recommendations could be added to industry guidelines available to pig farm managers

Self-Directed Support: A Review of the Barriers and Facilitators

This is a report on the published literature on the barriers and facilitators of self- directed support. It was undertaken to inform a research study funded by the Scottish Government 2009-2011 that is evaluating initiatives in three local authorities. These initiatives aim to improve take up of self-directed support for people eligible for social care and other public funds. The three test site areas are working to reduce bureaucracy; to make the processes easy and 'light touch'; and to provide training and leadership to people working on these developments. Scottish Government has provided extra money to assist these three authorities and to help people in other areas learn from their experiences

Short-term herbivory has long-term consequences in warmed and ambient high Arctic tundra

Source at https://doi.org/10.1088/1748-9326/aa579d. Climate change is occurring across the world, with effects varying by ecosystem and region but already occurring quickly in high-latitude and high-altitude regions. Biotic interactions are important in determining ecosystem response to such changes, but few studies have been long- term in nature, especially in the High Arctic. Mesic tundra plots on Svalbard, Norway, were subjected to grazing at two different intensities by captive Barnacle geese from 2003–2005, in a factorial design with warming by Open Top Chambers. Warming manipulations were continued through 2014, when we measured vegetation structure and composition as well as growth and reproduction of three dominant species in the mesic meadow. Significantly more dead vascular plant material was found in warmed compared to ambient plots, regardless of grazing history, but in contrast to many short-term experiments no difference in the amount of living material was found. This has strong implications for nutrient and carbon cycling and could feed back into community productivity. Dominant species showed increased flowering in warmed plots, especially in those plots where grazing had been applied. However, this added sexual reproduction did not translate to substantial shifts in vegetative cover. Forbs and rushes increased slightly in warmed plots regardless of grazing, while the dominant shrub, Salix polaris , generally declined with effects dependent on grazing, and the evergreen shrub Dryas octopetala declined with previous intensive grazing . There were no treatment effects on community diversity or evenness. Thus despite no changes in total live abundance, a typical short-term response to environmental conditions, we found pronounced changes in dead biomass indicating that tundra ecosystem processes respond to medium- to long-term changes in conditions caused by 12 seasons of summer warming. We suggest that while high arctic tundra plant communities are fairly resistant to current levels of climate warming, underlying ecosystem processes are beginning to change. In addition, even short bouts of intense herbivory can have long-term consequences for some species in these communities

Children’s experiences outdoors: Education and community contexts

Children’s right to play is enshrined in Article 31 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, 1990). The early childhood period is a time when children’s values and dispositions towards outdoor play and environments are formed. Children have an intrinsic drive and natural curiosity to explore the world around them and outdoor environments are a key context for this exploration.  Outdoor play and learning provide significant benefits for all aspects of children’s development - physical, cognitive, social and emotional (Brussoni et al., 2015)