A Geographical Overview Of The Soils Of Zimbabwe And Their Agricultural Potential

A Geographical Education Magazine Article.Zimbabwe is endowed with a wide range of soils. The soils vary considerably in their age and degree of development, physical, chemical and mineralogical composition and, therefore, also in their land use potential. To a very large extent, their distribution is closely related to the nature and distribution of geological materials. Spatial variations that occur within a given area of parent material are then the result of the influence of the other soil-forming factors, especially climate and topography. In order to fully appreciate the variations in the distribution of soils, it is generally useful to examine the factors that have contributed to the development of the soils and then review the soil patterns in that context. In the sections that follow, such an approach will be adopted

Philosophies and pedagogies that shape an integrated engineering programme

Accredited engineering degrees call upon students to develop a wide range of knowledge and skills. These range from technical, scientific and mathematical knowledge, through to transferable skills such as communications, teamwork, business acumen and critical analysis. Through a faculty-wide curriculum development programme we have sought to implement cross-department teaching framework whereby a range of pedagogies are employed to deliver against core philosophies for a new way of teaching aimed at developing students’ knowledge, skills and attitudes while meeting a diverse range of learning outcomes. We argue that is it vital that learning takes place in the context of authentic engineering problems and processes. In this paper, we look at the philosophies, pedagogies and outcomes of an educational-based project which creates a connected curriculum that joins distinct disciplines at key points during the students’ education to provide preparation for, and experience of, professional engineering. It describes the motivation for change and described the implementation and impact of these approaches

Faculty wide curriculum reform: the integrated engineering programme

Many traditional engineering schools are struggling to balance the calls to provide an innovative engineering education that meet the demands of graduates and their employers with the constraints and momentum of their existing curriculum. In this paper we present the conceptual design behind a framework that integrates existing discipline-specific content with threads of professional skills and design through a backbone of problem-based learning experiences. This framework creates a student-centred pedagogy that has been implemented across eight departments of a large engineering school in a research-intensive university

The UCL Integrated Engineering Programme

In 2014, the UCL Faculty of Engineering Sciences introduced the Integrated Engineering Programme – a revision of eight existing degree programmes across a range of engineering disciplines. Centered on a thread of authentic project-based activities, the programme aimed to enhance the students’ understanding of key theoretical concepts and heighten the development of key professional skills. This paper provides an outline of the rationale for the various project-based activities implemented, details their key features and described the impact these activities have had on the students’ development of key skills

A meta-analysis of long-term effects of conservation agriculture on maize grain yield under rain-fed conditions

Conservation agriculture involves reduced tillage, permanent soil cover and crop rotations to enhance soil fertility and to supply food from a dwindling land resource. Recently, conservation agriculture has been promoted in Southern Africa, mainly for maize-based farming systems. However, maize yields under rain-fed conditions are often variable. There is therefore a need to identify factors that influence crop yield under conservation agriculture and rain-fed conditions. Here, we studied maize grain yield data from experiments lasting 5 years and more under rain-fed conditions. We assessed the effect of long-term tillage and residue retention on maize grain yield under contrasting soil textures, nitrogen input and climate. Yield variability was measured by stability analysis. Our results show an increase in maize yield over time with conservation agriculture practices that include rotation and high input use in low rainfall areas. But we observed no difference in system stability under those conditions. We observed a strong relationship between maize grain yield and annual rainfall. Our meta-analysis gave the following findings: (1) 92% of the data show that mulch cover in high rainfall areas leads to lower yields due to waterlogging; (2) 85% of data show that soil texture is important in the temporal development of conservation agriculture effects, improved yields are likely on well-drained soils; (3) 73% of the data show that conservation agriculture practices require high inputs especially N for improved yield; (4) 63% of data show that increased yields are obtained with rotation but calculations often do not include the variations in rainfall within and between seasons; (5) 56% of the data show that reduced tillage with no mulch cover leads to lower yields in semi-arid areas; and (6) when adequate fertiliser is available, rainfall is the most important determinant of yield in southern Africa. It is clear from our results that conservation agriculture needs to be targeted and adapted to specific biophysical conditions for improved impact

THE POTENTIAL FOR COMMERCIAL MILK GOAT PRODUCTION IN THE ARID EASTERN CAPE REGIONS: ECONOMIC ANALYSIS OF THE PERFORMANCE INDICATORS

Dairy goats appear to be the most suitable milk producing animal species for the arid parts of the Eastern Cape Province. Dairy goats fetch high net returns to a small-scale farmer. A study was carried out to evaluate the long-term economic viability of investments in dairy goats, in the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa. Results of the study show that commercial production of dairy goats, together with a milk processing plant in the region, would be profitable and would have benefits from both economic and social points of view as well as for the environment. With a discount rate of 15%, the Net Present Worth (NPW), Benefit/Cost ratio (B/C) and Internal Rate of Return (IRR) were found to be R4.3 million, 1.44 and 54% respectively. Further, a sensitivity analysis to changes in benefits and costs of inputs was conducted. This found the above proposal to be viable, even when benefits are reduced by 25%. The project proposal was still viable when cost of inputs was inflated by 25%. In both cases, the Benefit/Cost ratio is greater than 1 and IRR is greater than the current market rate of interest. However, the combined effect of reducing the benefit by 25% and inflating costs by 25%, would result in negative NPW. Results from a survey carried out further show the possibility and viability of producing satisfactory levels of milk from dairy goats in the Eastern Cape