Does Conservation Status Matter if You’re Ugly? An Experimental Survey of Species Appeal and Public Support

Wildlife conservation is of the utmost importance to the preservation of a healthy planet, with the extinction of wild animals increasing at previously unseen rates. However, conservation is also becoming increasingly difficult without strong public support, and this often varies in extent and success when it comes to different species and taxa. There is considerable research investigating how the physical characteristics of species affect public support of their conservation. Results suggest species seen as more charismatic, or even more likeable, are more likely to gain support for their conservation, regardless of conservation status. This study aimed to identify whether conservation status, and concern for it, is as important of a consideration for endangered species that are not seen as simply likeable or appealing, or whether this tends to be more ignored for such species. We found that for the treatments/species we chose in our experiment, and in the context we distributed the survey in, their conservation status was a more significant factor than their perceived appeal when it came to public support for their conservation. These results have implications for wildlife conservation efforts, as it shows that appeal is not always the most important factor when attempting to garner support, and that influencing the perception of concern for certain species may be a more effective avenue than relying on appeal for successful wildlife conservation

The Art of Audiencing: Visual Journaling as a Media Education Practice

Using qualitative methods with an action research design, the author investigates uses of visual journaling as a media production opportunity in an undergraduate media literacy class. Through visual journaling as an arts-based inquiry process, students engaged in production, creating and sharing graphical representations of their emerging media literacy knowledge and perspectives. Findings illuminate visual journaling as a way of audiencing that cultivates agentive knowledge building, active negotiation of learning, and student-centered expression in the context of media literacy education. Visual journaling as a method of production results in a manageable and creative maker experience that augments learning, inviting students to synthesize physical materials and nonlinear digital content as a contemporary literacy act. Visual journaling has implications not only as a literacy exercise, but also as an anti-oppressive and democratic teaching and learning practice

Making sense of narrative constructions of child sexual exploitation in England: a qualitative study of how they impact on lived experience, from the perspectives of adult female survivors, non-abusive parents and professionals

Recent years have seen a shift in structural narratives of how ‘child sexual exploitation’ (CSE), a distinct and complex form of child sexual abuse, has been perceived and responded to in discourse and policy. What is currently identified as ‘child sexual exploitation’ used to be labelled ‘child prostitution’. The overarching purpose of this thesis is twofold: to examine the narratives, and narrative shifts, determining dominant understandings of CSE and their impact on policy and agency responses; and how these directly inform and shape the nature of lived experiences of CSE.This thesis stems from a qualitative study which utilised narrative interviews to capture personal experiences of adult survivors’ of CSE and non-abusive parents whose child is sexually exploited outside the family. The two groups are unrelated. The aim is to develop an understanding of how both groups made sense of their respective experiences, how it impacted on them, and how they perceived and experienced responding agencies. A further group of professionals, conceptualised as conduits of the structural narratives and discourse of CSE, were also interviewed, providing rich contextualisation of the survivors’ and parents’ experiences.Thematic analysis of the narratives shows that how CSE is constructed, particularly on a structural level, has a direct impact on the personal experiences of those involved, often through the enactment of professionals’ practices and attitudes. Both groups reported that their experience of CSE was often made worse by responding agencies and systems. Victim-blaming narratives of CSE and parent-minimising discourse were the most common, and shaped and exacerbated the participants’ experiences. However, victim-centred and parent-focussed narratives had a more positive impact.CSE does not exist in a vacuum and ending the sexual exploitation of young people involves tackling other pervasive narratives that facilitate sexual violence. Some agencies and professionals need to develop their response to both victim/survivors and non-abusive parents in order to improve their experiences and meet their support needs

The Pedagogy of Critical Enjoyment: Teaching and Reaching the Hearts and Minds of Adolescent Learners Through Media Literacy Education

While there is consensus regarding the definition of media literacy, classroom-based studies of media literacy education in action are few and research that investigates how teachers implement media literacy in practice are needed, including information about why it is taught, what is taught, and how it is taught. Through a purposefully selected case of media literacy at the middle level, this study analyzes three veteran teachers’ media literacy practice identifying critical enjoyment as a pioneering approach to media literacy education that moves beyond the purposes of protection, preparation, and appreciation

Media Literacy as Mindful Practice for Democratic Education. A Response to “Transaction Circles with Digital Texts as a Foundation for Democratic Practices”

This essay is a response to Brown’s (2015) article describing her strategy of transaction circles as a student-centered, culturally responsive, and democratic literacy practice. In my response, I provide further evidence from the field of media literacy education (MLE) that serves to enhance Brown’s argument for using transaction circles in order to promote democratic discourse, specifically augmenting her ideas by connecting the purposes and processes of transaction circles with key implications of media literacy pedagogy. I invite Brown to consider how her concept of transaction circles may be extended in three ways: (a) through acknowledging the indispensable role of the teacher, not the media or technology, in cultivating powerful learning opportunities for students; (b) through the inclusion of the broader contexts of message construction, language, ownership, and dissemination as part of critical media literacy; and (3) through the integration of media production as an essential aspect of media literacy. I conclude by proposing new questions related to critical media literacy education

Measuring Media Literacy Inquiry in Higher Education: Innovation in Assessment

The ability to critically access, analyze, evaluate, and create media messages is crucial in the process of becoming an informed and engaged citizen throughout life. Asking critical questions is not only a valuable dimension of media literacy, but also an indispensable aspect of participating in a democracy. Yet, measuring the effectiveness of media literacy is still a major challenge for the field. It is unclear to what extent people of all ages may engage in critical questioning habits with regards to media. To address this gap, we studied the changes in critical questioning habits for college-aged students enrolled in media literacy courses. To measure students’ media literacy inquiry, we evaluated the questions they posed in response to viewing an advertisement. We analyzed questions by media literacy concept and by level of complexity before and after their participation in the media literacy courses. Findings revealed that after the media literacy courses, students’ inquiries were more complex and involved more attention to key concepts related to production techniques and representations. Our study is significant as it reflects an innovative approach to media literacy assessment and a fresh perspective for examining the impact of media literacy on cultivating complex, critical thinking skills that could be applied with learners of all ages

Creativity and arts-based expression: Building resilience in the pandemic and beyond

This poster reports on our continuing work with arts-based pedagogy. Though our work in this area began long before the 2020-2021 pandemic, we discovered during the early stages of the pandemic that “providing students with opportunities for creativity and arts-based expression lead to a welcome and positive disruption of traditional teaching and learning; increased student engagement, meaning-making, and real-word connections; and collaborative risk-taking that decenters traditional pedagogical systems” (blinded for review). In such abnormal circumstances, this creative decentering was a welcome change for students who were often struggling to keep up in classes with more traditional pedagogical strategies. The continuation of the pandemic and the need for alternative modes of instructional delivery support the need to foster and maintain resilience in our pedagogy and in our students. Creativity and arts-based expression offer a way to do just that by focusing attention not only on the curriculum, but also on students’ affective processes. Students bring their whole selves to the classroom (whether virtual or in-person) and creative activities offer them the opportunity to engage fully with course content. Our poster will offer examples of how we have incorporated creativity and arts-based practices into our courses

Cultivating Creative Inquiry in Higher Education

Incorporating media in our disciplines “entails a form of ‘critical framing’ that enables learners to take a theoretical distance from what they have learned, to account for its social and cultural location, and to critique and extend it” (Buckingham, 2007, p. 45). However, traditional teaching modes that prioritize print-based literacy continue to dominate (Rhodes & Robnolt, 2009) despite being restrictive and limiting access for diverse learners to engage in meaning making. Visual journaling transforms pedagogy by supporting critical and diverse ways of learning and expressing knowledge. Students are invited to process knowledge and generate new understandings in reflexive ways that move beyond the uniform experiences of traditional classrooms. Visual journaling as a strategy for inviting creative inquiry and learning may also facilitate the development of democratic classrooms that extend pathways for inclusion and equity. This poster reports on the preliminary results of an exploration of visual journaling as a teaching and learning strategy to cultivate creative inquiry in higher education. The authors prompted students to use multiple media to engage with, reflect on, and synthesize course materials

Attainability of Accurate Age Frequencies for Ocean Quahogs (Arctica islandica) Using Large Datasets: Protocol, Reader Precision, and Error Assessment

Ocean quahogs (Arctica islandica) are the longest lived bivalve on Earth. Individuals on the deep continental shelf off Georges Bank can survive for centuries, and in the colder, boreal waters of Iceland, ages over 500 y can be reached. Ocean quahog landings in the United States represent a $24 million industry, yet assessment models operate with no age data because of the substantial sample size required to develop adequate population age distributions for such a long-lived species, the unknown error associated with age estimates, and the extensive time and financial investment required to create production-scale age datasets. Inclusion of age data for this species requires precision metrics to evaluate aging uncertainty such as percent agreement, percent error, coefficient of variation, and tests of bias. To move forward using error-validated age-composition data, a 3-fold error protocol was developed using a large dual-reader dataset (n = 610) from Georges Bank. First, a proxy age-validation study was performed to corroborate an aging method, followed by error evaluation in the context of age-reader bias, precision, and error frequency. Error thresholds were established for each of the three error methods. Georges Bank samples ranged from 33 to 261 y of age and met the predetermined error thresholds for bias (conditionally because of significant and nonsignificant results), precision (average coefficient of variation less than 7%), and error frequency (less than 10%). Consequently, age estimates were deemed acceptable to support age frequency analyses. Precision and bias error were greatest for the youngest animals and, in the context of age-reader bias, error rates were higher for young male ocean quahogs than for young females. Improved age validation of young, sex-differentiated A. islandica will constrain aging error and guide refinement of both aging and age-error protocols

Are You AI Ready? Investigating AI Tools in Higher Education via the Co-development of Interdisciplinary Student-Partnered AI Training Resources

[EN] This study explores the integration of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in higher education, focusing on its implications for teaching and learning. With AI tools rapidly gaining traction, the research emphasises the necessity of developing proficient AI literacy skills among faculty and students. Employing focus groups and thematic network analysis, the study uncovers faculty and student perspectives on AI’s role in education, with both groups recognising its potential to positively impact all aspects of higher education, while also emphasising concerns about credibility and reliability of AI tool outputs, potential for bias, impact on academic integrity and assessment, as well as concerns about inclusivity. A significant outcome is the development of an AI capabilities matrix, tailored to align with the DigComp 2.2: The Digital Competence Framework for Citizens. Overall, it contributes to the discourse on AI's integration in higher education, setting a foundation for integration and further research on this topic.   Daly, O.; Fogarty, L.; Furlong, E.; Vasquez Del Aguila, E.; Farrell, R.; Morton, S.; Woods, A.... (2024). Are You AI Ready? Investigating AI Tools in Higher Education via the Co-development of Interdisciplinary Student-Partnered AI Training Resources. Editorial Universitat Politècnica de València. https://doi.org/10.4995/HEAd24.2024.1710