27 research outputs found
Using a design-based research approach for a supplementary instruction programme: A pedagogical intervention during the COVID-19 pandemic
The study focused on the implementation of supplementary instruction as a suitable and effective pedagogical intervention for assisting at-risk students enrolled in an Advanced Research Methodology core course in one of the South African higher education institutions (HEIs). Supplementary instruction (SI) has been purported to be an effective technique for assisting at-risk students undertaking high-risk core modules. The educational challenge of at-risk students in higher education has been worsened by the emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic where high-risk core modules implementing e-learning posed serious challenges for at-risk students thereby negatively affecting pass rates and throughput. The design-based research (DBR) approach was used to guide the design of the intervention and research its effectiveness. The article reports on the design principles that yielded these results. After one cycle of DBR, it was established that SI had a positive impact on the pass rates of this particular course. The article argues that the use of the proposed designed principles in SI interventions has the potential to increase higher mean grades, lower failure and withdrawal rates, and higher retention rates of students. However, this study recommends that further iterations must be undertaken to refine design principles for an SI programme of this nature. The pedagogical significance of the current study in the prevailing circumstances and post COVID-19 pandemic is implementing a robust SI intervention in all core modules at the University of Technology
Structural performance of a steep slope landfill lining system
The stability and integrity of a landfill barrier, in both the
short and the long term, are vital to performance as a
containment system for leachate and landfill gas, and are
a requirement of the UK permitting process. The
structural performance of steep, non-self-supporting
barrier systems depends in part on the adjacent waste
body for lateral support. This paper presents the results
of an investigation into structural performance during
construction of a typical UK mineral steep slope landfill
lining system. Instrument installation, monitoring and
results are presented. Measurements and observations
have shown shear and overturning modes of clay barrier
failure, leading to loss of integrity. Normal stresses
measured at the waste/barrier interface demonstrate
that waste adjacent to the barrier provides low and
variable lateral support. It is concluded that this has led
to the observed failure mechanisms. Temporary
conditions during phased construction are shown to be
critical. This investigation has demonstrated that current
UK municipal solid waste, placed using standard
practices, cannot by itself provide sufficient support to
ensure the integrity of a clay barrier in a steep slope
lining system. Waste/barrier interaction must be
considered as part of the design process
Pressuremeter tests in municipal solid waste: measurement of shear stiffness
To assess the long-term integrity, and hence adequate
performance, of landfill lining systems the designer must
consider interaction between lining components and the
waste body. Information on typical ranges of waste mechanical
properties is required for use in numerical modelling
of this interaction. This paper presents results from
a programme of pressuremeter testing in municipal solid
waste (MSW) carried out to measure shear stiffness
properties. An optimum procedure has been developed
using a high-pressure dilatometer in a preformed test
pocket. Tests have been conducted in fresh and partially
degraded MSW deposits. Values of shear moduli for
small to intermediate strains have been obtained from
series of unload–reload loops, and these show a strong
relationship between shear modulus and depth. Stiffness
increases with cavity strain owing to drained cavity
expansion. A clear linear relationship has been found
between shear stiffness and stress level. Results for fresh
MSW from two landfill sites show close agreement. Good
agreement has been found between shear stiffness values
calculated for small strain in pressuremeter tests and
shear stiffness values measured using the continuous surface
wave method. They also compare well with the
limited amount of information in the literature
Follow-up and programmatic outcomes of HIV-exposed infants registered in a large HIV centre in Lilongwe, Malawi: 2012-2014.
OBJECTIVE: To assess follow-up and programmatic outcomes of HIV-exposed infants at Martin Preuss Centre, Lilongwe, from 2012 to 2014. METHODS: Retrospective cohort study using routinely collected HIV-exposed infant data. Data were analysed using frequencies and percentages in Stata v.13. RESULTS: Of 1035 HIV-exposed infants registered 2012-2014, 79% were available to be tested for HIV and 76% were HIV-tested either with DNA-PCR or rapid HIV test serology by 24 months of age. Sixty-five infants were found to be HIV-positive and 43% were started on antiretroviral therapy (ART) at different ages from 6 weeks to 24 months. Overall, 48% of HIV-exposed infants were declared lost-to-follow-up in the database. Of these, 69% were listed for tracing; of these, 78% were confirmed as lost-to-follow-up through patient charts; of these, 51% were traced; and of these, 62% were truly not in care, the remainder being wrongly classified. Commonest reasons for being truly not in care were mother/guardian unavailability to bring infants to Martin Preuss Centre, forgetting clinic appointments and transport expenses. Of these 86 patients, 36% were successfully brought back to care and 64% remained lost-to-follow-up. CONCLUSION: Loss to follow-up remains a huge challenge in the care of HIV-exposed infants. Active tracing facilitates the return of some of these infants to care. However, programmatic data documentation must be urgently improved to better follow-up and link HIV-positive children to ART
Retention in care under universal antiretroviral therapy for HIV-infected pregnant and breastfeeding women ('Option B+') in Malawi
OBJECTIVE
To explore the levels and determinants of loss to follow-up (LTF) under universal lifelong antiretroviral therapy (ART) for pregnant and breastfeeding women ('Option B+') in Malawi.
DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS
We examined retention in care, from the date of ART initiation up to 6 months, for women in the Option B+ program. We analysed nationwide facility-level data on women who started ART at 540 facilities (n = 21 939), as well as individual-level data on patients who started ART at 19 large facilities (n = 11 534).
RESULTS
Of the women who started ART under Option B+ (n = 21 939), 17% appeared to be lost to follow-up 6 months after ART initiation. Most losses occurred in the first 3 months of therapy. Option B+ patients who started therapy during pregnancy were five times more likely than women who started ART in WHO stage 3/4 or with a CD4 cell count 350 cells/μl or less, to never return after their initial clinic visit [odds ratio (OR) 5.0, 95% confidence interval (CI) 4.2-6.1]. Option B+ patients who started therapy while breastfeeding were twice as likely to miss their first follow-up visit (OR 2.2, 95% CI 1.8-2.8). LTF was highest in pregnant Option B+ patients who began ART at large clinics on the day they were diagnosed with HIV. LTF varied considerably between facilities, ranging from 0 to 58%.
CONCLUSION
Decreasing LTF will improve the effectiveness of the Option B+ approach. Tailored interventions, like community or family-based models of care could improve its effectiveness
An Interactive Mobile Lecturing Tool for Empowering Distance Learners
Face-to-face learning is most prominent in higher education in developing countries of Africa, where learning is teacher-centred; this type of learning does not promote deep learning. Vodcasts and podcasts are increasingly becoming popular in higher education as a means of enhancing learning especially for part-time students who are separated by distance from their teacher; this mode of teaching is known to entertain some limitations. In this paper we report on MOBLEC, an interactive Mobile lecturing model that removes the limitations of podcasting or vodcasting model and promote deep learning. This model enables students to comment on lecture vodcasts using mobile devices, and aggregated comments become an educational resource. The model was evaluated at the Bindura University of Science Education (BUSE), Zimbabwe. The paper describes an interactive mobile lecturing tool for empowering learners that are separated from their teachers and the evaluation results from BUSE, Zimbabwe
A questioning environment for scaffolding learners' questioning engagement with academic text: a university case study
Access to the textual world of academia requires that learners are familiar with the critical open-ended questioning stance demanded by textuality. Anecdotal evidence suggests that learners registered for the Bachelor of Education Honours degree are unable to generate appropriate questions to interrogate academic text, impacting on their ability to engage effectively with academia. While ample research exists to suggest that face-to-face scaffolding can facilitate learners' access to academic text, this is often a time consuming, repetitive activity, which fails to track learners' questions over time. Given that questioning is one of the most important learning-teaching tools available to both learner and educator, we have created a computer-based scaffolding environment in which students are required to generate questions to interrogate academic texts. Learners have been using this new scaffolding tool this year, and we report on preliminary findings from the study.
South African Journal of Higher Education Vol.17(2) 2003: 139-14
Effects of pre- and post-partum Soya bean (Glycine max L.) meal supplementations on productivity of Angora goats in cummunal rangelands of Molimo Nthuse in Lesotho
No Abstract.URJAST Vol. 9 (2) 2006: pp. 125-13