What makes or breaks higher education community engagement in the South African rural school context : a multiple-partner perspective

The purpose of this study is to inform global citizenship practice as a higher education agenda by comparing the retrospective experiences of a range of community engagement partners and including often silent voices of non-researcher partners. Higher education–community engagement aims to contribute to social justice as it constructs and transfers new knowledge from the perspectives of a wide range of community engagement partners. This qualitative secondary analysis study was framed theoretically by the transformative–emancipatory paradigm. Existing case data, generated on retrospective experiences of community engagement partners in a long-term community engagement partnership, were conveniently sampled to analyse and compare a range of community engagement experiences (parents of student clients (n = 12: females 10, males 2), teachers from the partner rural school (n = 18: females 12, males 6), student-educational psychology clients (n = 31: females 14, males 17), Academic Service-Learning (ASL) students (n = 20: females 17, males 3) and researchers (n = 12: females 11, males 1). Following thematic in-case and cross-case analysis, it emerged that all higher education–community engagement partners experienced that socio-economic challenges (defined as rural school adversities, include financial, geographic and social challenges) are addressed when an higher education–community engagement partnership exists, but that particular operational challenges (communication barriers, time constraints, workload and unclear scope, inconsistent feedback, as well as conflicting expectations) hamper higher education–community engagement partnership. A significant insight from this study is that a range of community engagement partners experience similar challenges when a university and rural school partner. All community engagement partners experienced that higher education–community engagement is challenged by the structural disparity between the rural context and operational miscommunication.http://journals.sagepub.com/home/esjhj2018Educational Psycholog

Growth of infants born to HIV-infected women, when fed a biologically acidified starter formula with and without probiotics

Objectives: To compare the growth of HIV-exposed uninfected infants fed a biologically acidified milk formula with or without probiotics (Bifidobacterium lactis) during the first six months of life, with control infants fed a standard starter formula. Design: Multi-centre, double-blinded randomised controlled trial. Setting: Infants born to HIV-infected women delivering at one of three academic hospitals in Johannesburg, South Africa. Subjects: Consenting HIV-positive women, who had previously decided not to breast-feed, were randomised to receive one of three milk formulas for their newborn infants. Outcome measures: Comparisons of growth parameters through the first four months of life were made between infants fed the acidified formula without probiotics and those fed the control formula (“acidification effect”), and between infants fed the acidified formulas with and without added probiotics (“probiotic effect”). Results: Of 131 randomised infants, 33 (25%) did not complete the study and 13 (10%) were HIV infected, leaving 85 infants available for analysis. Infants receiving the acidified formula with probiotics had more rapid head growth (p=0.04) and showed a trend towards more rapid weight gain (p=0.06) over the first four months of life than the infants receiving the acidified formula without probiotics. No other significant differences between the feeding groups were demonstrated. Conclusions: Infants in all study groups grew well, with increased head growth and a trend towards increased weight gain for those receiving probiotics. There were no differences in morbidity between the three study groups and no evidence of adverse effects of the study formulas. SAJCN Vol. 21 (1) 2008: pp. 28-3

EVALUATION OF THE COMPRESSIVE MECHANICAL PROPERTIES OF CELLULAR DMLS STRUCTURES FOR BIOMEDICAL APPLICATIONS

Published Conference ProceedingsThe type of material used in biomedical applications depends on specific implant applications; different types of implant need different mechanical properties. Since the architectures of bone tissues in the human body are not completely dense and solid, it is desirable to produce biomimic structures as a replacement for damaged bone tissues. Learning from nature, it can be understood that cellular structures would be more preferable for biomedical implants than dense solid structures. Verification of mechanical properties of DMLS PA 2200 cellular structures should be conducted since scaffolds from this material have been proven for biomedical applications. Ti6Al4V alloy is well known to have a superior track record as leading material for bone replacement since it is a light-weight and biocompatible material, but the density of human cortical bone is less than half that of solid Ti6Al4V implants. The mismatch of the elastic modulus between such implants and bone tissue is one of the major causes of stress shielding, bone resorption and implant loosening. Finite element analysis showed big differences in strains of jaw bone and an implanted solid Ti6Al4V part. The elastic modulus of lattice structures was used to simulate a complex mandible to obtain foreknowledge of manufacturing advanced light-weight implants with suitable biomechanical properties. Compressive properties of proposed cellular structures were determined to demonstrate the viability of attaining different effective elastic moduli for Ti6Al4V implants

Higher education uses community engagement-partnership as a research space to build knowledge

The purpose of the current article was to compare the retrospective experiences of community partners with higher education (HE) qualifications, in community engagement (CE) in order to inform global citizenship as a HE agenda. Qualitative methodology was appropriate in this study as we were interested in gaining in-depth insight into the understanding of partners of HE-rural school CE-partnership. We conveniently selected an existing Flourishing Learning Youth intervention for the purpose of secondary data analysis of the retrospective experiences of several participant-groups. Researchers confirm that HE should promote social justice in development interventions. Insight generated by this study is the fact that community challenges are not confined to a lack of assets, but also include ignorance about the invaluable local resources.https://www.springer.com/journal/10671hj2022Education InnovationEducational Psycholog

Growth of infants born to HIV-positive mothers fed a whey-adapted acidified starter formula with prebiotics and nucleotides

Objectives: The objectives of this study were to evaluate whether infants born to known HIV-positive mothers, but who were not themselves infected with HIV and who were fed a chemically acidified starter formula with prebiotics with or without nucleotides during their first six months, displayed growth rates equal to uninfected infants fed a chemically acidified starter formula without prebiotics or nucleotides.Design: The design was a multi-centre, double-blinded randomised controlled trial.Setting: The study was carried out in four academic hospitals, three in Johannesburg and one in Cape Town, South Africa.Subjects and intervention: The subjects were newborn infants born to consenting HIV-positive women who had previously decided not to breast feed. The infants were randomised to receive one of three milk formulas. The intervention comprised chemically acidified formula without prebiotics or nucleotides, with prebiotics only, or with prebiotics and nucleotides.Outcome measures: The outcome measures were the growth parameters through the first six months of life.Results: Of the 150 randomised infants, 50 did not complete the study and 16 (12.8% of those tested) were infected with HIV, leaving 84 infants available for analysis. All three formulas were tolerated well, with no differences in growth parameters seen with the addition of prebiotics and nucleotides. The growth rates of the study infants up to the age of six months were very good, showing an increase in Z-scores from negative values at the time of enrolment in the first week after birth to around zero for length and > 0.5 for weight.Conclusions: The three chemically acidified formulas were tolerated well and resulted in good growth over the first six months of life. No benefits were seen with the addition of prebiotics or nucleotides. The growth rates were similar to those found in previous studies of ours on biologically acidified formulas. The chemical acidification of infant formulas appears to be a realistic alternative to biological acidification should an acidified formula be required.Keywords: milk formula; acidification; probiotics; nucleotides; infant growt

Secondary schooling and rural youth transitions in Lesotho and Zimbabwe

Based on case studies centred on two rural secondary schools in Lesotho and Zimbabwe, this paper examines the gendered impacts of schooling on young people’s transitions to adulthood. School attendance is shown, first, to disrupt the conventional pathways to adulthood: young people attending school may leave home sooner than they otherwise would, and take responsibility for their day-to-day survival, while marriage and childbearing are often delayed. More significantly, secondary schooling reflects, and contributes to, a growing sense that adulthood itself is not fixed. An alternative version of adulthood is promoted through schools in which formal sector employment is central. Yet while young people are encouraged to opt for, and work towards, this goal, only a minority are able to obtain paid employment. The apparent possibility of determining one’s own lifecourse serves to cast the majority of young people as failures in their transitions to adulthood

An indigenous psychology perspective on psychosocial support in Southern Africa as collective, networking, and pragmatic support

This comparative case study seeks to describe the traditional African psychosocial support practices used in postcolonial Southern Africa. We use an indigenous psychology theory (relationship‐resourced resilience) as a theoretical lens to understand and supplement dominant Western discourses on psychosocial support. Seven Southern African communities with high need and indigenous belief systems were conveniently sampled. Participatory reflection and action methods were used to generate data from a snowball sample of individuals with a dominant African home language and who demonstrated significant vulnerability (n = 430: elders = 240; youth = 190; men = 150; and women = 280). Focus groups were audio‐recorded and their speech transcribed. Observation data were documented in photographs. After in‐case and cross‐case analysis, we found that psychosocial support was collective, pragmatic, and capitalised on networking. The psychosocial support strategies expand insight into the indigenous psychology theory on collective resilience. The intentional description of robust non‐Western psychosocial support practices, continued to be used by elders and young people in rural and urban spaces in Southern Africa, establishes that endemic practices exist in lieu of policy‐level support to provide much‐need services given frequent and intense need. Knowledge of the way in which psychosocial support is commonly provided affords an opportunity to graft development initiatives onto that which has withstood adversity, rather than reimagining interventions.This research paper and approach have emerged as a result of the work and thinking advanced by Kim Samuel in her collaboration with Oxford University's Poverty and Human Development Initiative and through her leadership as President of the Samuel Family Foundation.This research has also been done in partnership with Synergos, the Nelson Mandela Children's Fund (NMCF), and the Foundation for Community Development (FDC) in Mozambique, working to overcome isolation and deepen social connectedness for children and youth in Southern Africa. Nelson Mandela Children's Fund (NMCF) Researchers: Vuyani Patrick Ntanjana & Fezile July.Nelson Mandela Children's Fund Regional Partners: SADC Countries; South African Provinces: Lesotho—Red Cross‐Lesotho; Gauteng—Albertina Sisulu Special School; Swaziland—Save the Children, Swaziland; Eastern Cape—Diaz Primary School; Namibia—Church Alliance for Orphans; Limpopo—Sepanapudi Traditional Authority; North West—Emmang Basadi Advocacy and Lobby Organisation.http://wileyonlinelibrary.com/journal/casp2019-09-01hj2018Education Management and Policy StudiesEducational Psycholog

Electrospun chitosan-based nanobres for removal of phenols from drinking water

Chitosan-based nanofibres were synthesized using a fibre electrospinning technique and tested for the removal of 3-methyl- 4-nitrophenol from aqueous solutions. The downside of chitosan-based materials is swelling. In this study, it was found that the addition of polyisoprene not only improved the electrospinning ability of chitosan but also reduced the swelling of the nanofibres by 50%. the adsorption studies of 3-methyl-4-nitrophenol on the chitosan-based nanobres were conducted in a batch process. e nanobres were found to remove up to 90% of 3-methyl-4-nitrophenol with an adsorption reduction capacity of 12% at each cycle of reusability test. The reduction capacity was associated with the chemical interaction of the adsorbate and the adsorbent. this indicated that the nanofibres can effectively remove 3-methyl-4-nitrophenol from water for at least 3 cycles. the adsorption efficiency improved as the degree of cross-linking was reduced and the adsorption mechanism followed the Freundlich isotherm suggesting that the adsorption of 3-methyl-4-nitrophenol occurred in different layers on the surface of the nanofibres. e degree of crosslinking of the electrospun nanobres with glutaraldehyde was found to affect the adsorption capacity. Nanofibres with different degrees of crosslinking were used to study the effect of pH, adsorbent dose, and initial concentration.Keywords: 3-methyl-4-nitrophenol, adsorption, chitosan nanofibres, the degree of cross-linking, removal efficienc

Higher education community engagement as a pathway to developing global citizenship practices in young people : South African perspective

The aim of this study is to discuss how South African higher education (HE) is a mechanism to enable global citizenship. This qualitative secondary analysis study draws on retrospective qualitative case study data generated by multiple partners (parents, teachers, young people, HE students, researchers) in a long-term community engagement (CE) study in a remote high school. Thematic analysis of data sources (verbatim transcriptions of participatory reflection and action discussions, and visual data) enabled in-depth multi-partner descriptions on the utility of CE to address social and cognitive injustices given extreme structural disparity and social disadvantage. It was evident that, across CE partner groups, HE involvement was viewed as a mechanism to promote the positive social development of young people. In particular, when young people were included in CE, their social development was supported as they were afforded opportunities to develop capacity as future leaders and in terms of language development in multilingual spaces. We argue that CE can support progress towards social and cognitive justice by offering alternate views and beliefs to young people that promote their global citizenship practices.http://www.intellectbooks.co.uk/journals/view-Journal,id=1932021-10-01hj2021Education InnovationEducational Psycholog