Using critical reflection to prepare practitioners for pedagogical work with infants and toddlers

This paper examines an early childhood care and education practitioner preparation program set in the School of Human Services at Griffith University in Queensland. Within this program traditional methods of teaching reflective practice have been employed in an effort to develop this skill in prospective graduates. The authors critique this traditional process arguing that it limits the ability of practitioners to effectively engage in the reflective process as it tends to be based on isolated experiences that do not create space for a dialogic relationship. Moreover, it is argued that there is an urgency, with respect to the development of critically reflective practitioners to work with young children, particularly infants and toddlers, in light of recent policy changes. Strategies are developed to move prospective practitioners from practice/ self-reflection to critical reflection. Implications for practitioner educators are discussed

Presence as a dimension of first year in higher education: Measuring the value of strong affective relationships

For many university students, the commencement of university study is often fraught with difficulties. Whilst family and paid employment commitments sometimes compete with study time, some students worry that they do not have the wherewithal for tertiary study or that they may not be successful in their new venture. This paper sets out to investigate some of the concerns experienced by a group of first year students participating in a weekly context-specific support program. In contrast to the traditional approach of offering academic support to students, this program emphasises social support and the development of a learning community as essential to academic success. The notion of presence as a key indicator of quality of learning is applied to the critical reflections of students as they engage with tertiary study. In providing a time and a place for students to meet with a group of academics on a weekly basis, the program operates with no fixed academic agenda and positions students and academics as life-long learners. Through the adoption of an enabling pedagogy, authentic presence is achievable for academics and students

Productive partnerships: cross-departmental connections in a tertiary context

This chapter describes the development of productive and collegial relationships in a cross-departmental capacity-building project. The MMTP built on a first year experience program-the FYI Program (using the acronym that could stand for First Year Infusion or For Your Information)that we had designed, and had been conducting within our Faculty of Education for 1 year. Even though the program had involved a fairly small number of students, we were convinced that it had the potential to assist the 1 st year students in their transition into university study. It also provided a positive faculty response to student retention and progression issues (for further details, see Noble & Henderson, 2008). We used the Associate Fellowship to extend this first year program, and to promote the approach we used through the development of a professional development toolkit

Engaging with images: understanding identity of beginning pre-service teachers and the impacts of pastoral care in a community of practice

[Abstract]: At a regional Australian university, a Learning Circle approach was implemented with a small group of first year education students who identified themselves as “at risk” of failure in the tertiary context. As part of their participation in weekly meetings, the students engaged in discussion, reflection and problem-solving related to their transition to university study. They also participated in a visual research inquiry which included the construction of photographic images and research conversations about being university students and dealing with study demands. Through the privileging of interactions and relationships, the students were able to make connections to other Discourses from their lives outside university and began to develop a sense of agency and a growing capacity to move within and between their multiple identities. This article argues that, in order to address transition and retention issues within teacher education, effective social integration and support should accompany academic preparednes

Playing it real in a virtual context: developing sustainable connections to university

For teachers from within the early childhood education and care sector, working with children and families in the current societal context has become increasingly problematic (Gardner, 1999, 2003; Prout, 2003a, 2003b). From one standpoint, research has indicated that much of the difficulty associated with working in this field is symptomatic of the uncertainty, discontinuity and insecurity characteristic of the post-modern condition (Dahlgren & Chiriac, 2009; Hulqvist & Dahlberg, 2001; Jenks, 1996a, 1996b; Lyotard, 1984; Prout, 2003a, 2003b). As authors of this paper, whilst we agree with this particular standpoint, it can be argued that the aforementioned perspective can be seen as an over-simplification of the problems in the ECEC field. While the characteristics of the post-modern condition may be considered to be at the heart of some of these problems, the complexities of current policy reform, the demands of neo-liberal approaches to the provision of care and education (Ball, 2003; Beck, 1999; Hulqvist, 1998; Popkewitz, 2000; Rose, 1999, 2000), as well as a lack of understanding of current contexts for children and their families compound the present state of play across the sector (Moss, 2003; Prout, 2003a). Thus, new demands are evident for teachers in the ECEC field in relation to both personal and professional skill development. Therefore preparation for understanding the impact these contexts have on their identity development is critical to evaluating pre-service educator’s university experiences in contract with the reality of the rural practice context. On the grounds that learners view and interpret new information and experiences through their existing network of knowledge, experience and beliefs (Dahlgren & Chiriac, 2009; Darling-Hammond, 1997; Helm, 2006), the project’s design acknowledges and anticipates that the beginner teachers' experiences will be shaped, in part, by what they 'bring' to those experiences, including their initial choices to enter the profession, and their prior conceptions and expectations about teaching and initial teacher preparation (Helm, 2006). In this case study, juxtaposition between preconceptions and expectations of pre-service teacher education and early experiences as beginning teacher in a rural Australian context are explored and the key research questions guiding data interrogation include: o What are the connections between your initial expectations about becoming a teacher and commencing your university studies and the reality of teaching in a rural context? o How has this influenced or shaped your professional identity and learning? o How has the rural context impacted upon the manifestation of the curriculum, impacting your professional decisions and development? o How do you use the knowledge, skills and abilities developed at University in your professional context? o What have you learned about yourself as an individual as well as you as a professional? What will you do differently now as an outcome of your professional learning thus far? A model of critical reflection is used to interrogate the data from interviews and facebook postings over a 2 year period. Key themes emerged and these relate to the concept of teacher identity, the role of relationships, a sense of agency, the notion of relevance, and the central presence of emotion. In this paper these themes are presented as core features of the experience of 'becoming a teacher'

Monocyte: Endothelium interactions and the control of inflammatory gene expression

These studies have focused on the ability of monocytes to influence endothelial cell function in the context of immune and inflammatory responses. Monocytes when cocultured with endothelial cells upregulated E-selectin mRNA and protein expression, with initial appearance on endothelial cells at 3 hours and sustained expression at 21 hours. In contrast, IL-1 induced a transient upregulation. Cell:cell contact was important for monocyte induction of E-selectin expression, an effect which was partially mediated by TNF. Monocyte induction of E-selectin gene expression was NFKB dependent. Addition of exogenous IL-10 to endothelial cell/monocyte cocultures inhibited E-selectin expression at 4 and 21 hours whilst having no effect on E-selectin induction by IL-1 or TNF. In addition, coculture with endothelial cells induced monocyte expression of IL-10 mRNA with maximal levels at 30 hours. Monocytes influenced endothelial cell survival and expression of the bcl-2 homologue, A1, an anti-apoptosis gene. The level of A1 mRNA in serum starved endothelial cells decreased with time, however, addition of monocytes to serum starved endothelial cells increased A1 gene expression for up to 21 hours compared to the transient induction by IL-1. Coculture of monocytes with serum starved endothelial cells reduced endothelial cell death at 21 hours. Cell:cell contact was required for maximal A1 mRNA induction. The role of calcium-dependent proteases in leukocyte transmigration was investigated using calpain inhibitors. Addition of calpain inhibitors reduced the migration of monocytes and neutrophils through cytokine stimulated endothelial monolayers as well as chemokine stimulated migration across unactivated endothelium. Adhesion of leukocytes to the endothelium was not affected by the presence of calpain inhibitors. These studies have demonstrated the ability of peripheral blood monocytes to influence the function and survival of endothelial cells, and have also investigated the molecular mechanisms responsible for such interactions

Engaging with Images and Stories : Using a Learning Approach to Develop Agency of Beginning At-Risk Pre-Service Teachers

At a regional Australian university, a Learning Circle approach was implemented with a small group of first year education students who identified themselves as “at risk” of failure in the tertiary context. As part of their participation in weekly meetings, the students engaged in discussion, reflection and problem-solving related to their transition to university study. They also participated in a visual research inquiry which included the construction of photographic images and research conversations about being university students and dealing with study demands. Through the privileging of interactions and relationships, the students were able to make connections to other Discourses from their lives outside university and began to develop a sense of agency and a growing capacity to move within and between their multiple identities. This article argues that, in order to address transition and retention issues within teacher education, effective social integration and support should accompany academic preparedness

Phenomographic elaboration: Arts-based inquiry as a complement to data collection and analysis

Phenomenograhy, as an approach to educational research, began appearing in publications early in the 1980s with the predominant form of data drawn from semi-structured interviews. As a qualitative approach, it is used to describe the variations in people’s experiences through their own discourse and for analyzing meaning that people ascribe to their world. Critics of this approach have highlighted the need to pay closer attention to a deep examination of the phenomenon. This paper provides an overview of a doctoral study in progress, whereby a methodological elaboration has been developed in response to these points of critique. Given that the study sits within the early childhood education and care (ECEC) field, the authors postulate that by combining an arts-based inquiry technique with the traditional semi-structured interview technique, participants were more likely to feel at ease and therefore a greater depth of reflection on their own experiences would likely ensue. The production of the arts-based plate, as a representation of each participant’s lived experience in relation to the impacts of regulation on ECEC teacher’s pedagogy and practice, was used as a ‘spark’ to commence the semi-structured interview process and equally, provide an anchor for reference points for both participant and interviewer throughout that process. We argue that this methodological elaboration allowed a deeper examination of the phenomenon

Skistodiaptomus pallidus (Copepoda: Diaptomidae) establishment in New Zealand natural lakes, and its effects on zooplankton community composition

The North American calanoid copepod Skistodiaptomus pallidus is an emerging invader globally, with non-indigenous populations recorded from constructed waters in New Zealand, Germany and Mexico since 2000. We examined the effects of S. pallidus establishment on the zooplankton community of a natural lake, Lake Kereta, where it was first recorded in late-2008, coincident with releases of domestically cultured grass carp (Ctenopharyngodon idella). Although not present in any of our samples prior to August 2008, S. pallidus was found in all samples collected in the subsequent five years. ANOSIM indicated zooplankton community composition significantly differed between samples collected before and after S. pallidus invasion, whether the invader was included in the analysis or not. Zooplankton species affected most greatly were the copepods Calamoecia lucasi and Mesocyclops sp., which decreased in their relative importance, and the cladocerans Bosmina meridionalis and Daphnia galeata, which increased. Rotifer species were relatively unaffected. As the length of grass carp released were >6.5 cm, direct predatory effects by this species on the zooplankton community are unlikely. Associated reductions in macrophyte biomass could explain increases in the relative abundances of planktonic cladocerans (B. meridionalis and D. galeata). However, the effect of macrophyte reduction by grass carp on zooplankton communities is considered to be limited elsewhere, while the reduced macrophyte biomass cannot explain the decrease in relative abundance of the native planktonic calanoid copepod C. lucasi. Competition between C. lucasi and S. pallidus is the most compelling explanation for the reduction in importance of the native calanoid copepod species. Skistodiaptomus pallidus appears to have undergone a “boom-and-bust” cycle in Lake Kereta, increasing in relative abundance in the first three years following establishment, before declining in importance

Are you handling genital oedema confidently?

Men, women or children can suffer from oedema (swelling) of the genitalia. When differential diagnosis has excluded acute trauma or pathology and swelling remains, the condition may be diagnosed as genital lymphoedema, a chronic condition that increases the relative risk of cellulitis. Diagnosis of genital oedema is often delayed due to problems with patient and health professional behaviour, in terms of embarrassment, lack of confidence or lack of knowledge. Awareness of this condition and knowledge on how to manage it will go a long way in helping both patients and clinicians overcome the challenges of addressing genital oedema. This article describes the authors' experiences in managing genital oedema. It also briefly discusses a new international project that seeks to identify the knowledge and training that health professionals need to manage this condition more confidently