Leading the transformation of learning and praxis in science classrooms

Individual science teachers who have inspired colleagues to transform their classroom praxis have been labelled transformational leaders. As the notion of distributed leadership became more accepted in the educational literature, the focus on the individual teacher-leader shifted to the study of leadership praxis both by individuals (whoever they might be) and by collectives within schools and science classrooms. This review traces the trajectory of leadership research, in the context of learning and teaching science, from an individual focus to a dialectical relationship between individual and collective praxis. The implications of applying an individual-collective perspective to praxis for teachers, students and their designated leaders are discussed

High flux ultrafiltration based on charged membranes: Background and data from the field

Commercial-scale charged membranes have been developed and applied to protein concentration in the dairy industry. The charged membranes are based on functionalization of polyethersulfone membranes with sulfonated polystyrene grafts. Membranes have been produced at the industrial scale and tested as flat-sheet and as spiral elements. Small-scale testing of the membrane was performed with skim milk on an Amicon stirred cell. The stirred cell results showed a significant difference between pure water flux and process flux for skim milk, and confirmed the fallacy of using pure water flux to predict process flux. They also demonstrated the importance of cross-flow in protein concentration. Two field trials were performed on dairy streams, including: skim milk, whole milk, and whey. The trials were performed with 4 inch and 6 inch spiral elements. A standard 10K MWCO polyethersulfone membrane was used as the control. The data show a dramatic increase in process flux for the charged membrane. Skim milk permeate fluxes were 20% higher than the control. Whole milk permeate fluxes were 40% higher than the control. The whey protein tests showed the greatest advantage, with up to 70% higher process flux compared to the control. In all cases, there was no significant difference in the permeate quality. Given the consistency of performance in the field, these functionalized membranes have the potential to revolutionize the application of UF in the dairy industry and beyond

Promoting resilience and well-being for indigenous adolescents in Canada: connecting to the good life through an outdoor adventure leadership experience

Background: Promoting mental health for Indigenous youth in Canada is a well-documented priority. Indigenous approaches to health promotion share similarities with the holistic process in outdoor adventure and experiential education contexts. The purpose of this study was to develop, implement, and evaluate an Outdoor Adventure Leadership Experience (OALE) for Indigenous adolescents from one First Nations community in Northeastern Ontario, Canada. Methods: Principles of community-based participatory research were used to guide this mixed method study that included three phases. Phase 1 involved the development of a culturally relevant OALE intervention. The intervention was available to adolescents, aged 12-18 years, living in Wikwemikong Unceded Indian Reserve. Phase 2 consisted of a quantitative evaluation of the effectiveness of the OALE, based on participant self-report. It focused primarily on assessing resilience using the 14-Item Resilience Scale (RS-14). Using an ethnographic approach, Phase 3 comprised a qualitative evaluation of the ways in which the OALE promoted resilience and well-being. Results: Phase 1 occurred over a period of 10 months (September 2008 to June 2009), and it resulted in the development of an intentionally designed 10-day OALE program. The program was implemented in the summer of 2009 and 2010 with 73 adolescent participants, aged 12-18 years. Results from Phase 2 revealed that there was a 3.40 point increase in mean resilience for the adolescent participants at one month post-OALE compared to one day pre-OALE (n=46, p=.011), but the improvement was not sustained one year later. Phase 3 results revealed that the OALE facilitated the development of resilience and well-being by helping the adolescents connect to Anishinaabe Bimaadziwin, an Ojibway concept that can be translated as the Good iv Life. Connecting involved an external experiential process of connecting with various aspects of creation and an internal reflective process of connecting within to different aspects of self. Conclusion: The OALE appears to be a program that helped the adolescents: (1) become more resilient in the short-term, and (2) become more aware of Anishinaabe Bimaadziwin (the Good Life) by providing opportunities for connecting with creation and self through a variety of experiences and reflections that were unique for each youth.Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in Rural and Northern Healt

The effect of NOM characteristics and membrane type on microfiltration performance

Efforts to understand and predict the role of different organic fractions in the fouling of low-pressure membranes are presented. Preliminary experiments with an experimental apparatus that incorporates automatic backwashing and filtration over several days has shown that microfiltration of the hydrophilic fractions leads to rapid flux decline and the formation of a cake or gel layer, while the hydrophobic fractions show a steady flux decline and no obvious formation of a gel or cake layer. The addition of calcium to the weakly hydrophobic acid (WHA) fraction led to the formation of a gel layer from associations between components of the WHA. The dominant foulants were found to be the neutral and charged hydrophilic compounds, with hydrophobic and small pore size membranes being the most readily fouled. The findings suggest that surface analyses such as FTIR will preferentially identify hydrophilic compounds as the main foulants, as these components form a gel layer on the surface while the hydrophobic compounds adsorb within the membrane pores. Furthermore, coagulation pre-treatment is also likely to reduce fouling by reducing pore constriction rather than the formation of a gel layer, as coagulants remove the hydrophobic compounds to a large extent and very little of the hydrophilic neutral components

Outdoor Education Fatalities in Canada: A Comparative Case Study

The recent criminal negligence case against an Ontario teacher in the death of a student identified pertinent outdoor education administration and policy issues. This comparative case study examined this case and two additional high profile Canadian outdoor education fatalities, identifying common factors and issues. Using Accimaps to illustrate the multiple contributing factors for each event, the case studies all exhibited contributory administrative factors of undefined risk tolerance, risk creep, lack of oversight, and issues regarding parental consent. Conclusions were drawn as preventative lessons that can inform school or board-level outdoor education policy and practice

Modeling behavior of charged high flux ultrafiltration membranes for dairy applications

Charged membranes on a commercial scale have been developed and applied to milk and whey concentration. The charged membranes are based on polyethersulfone membranes containing sulfonated polystyrene grafts. The membranes have been produced at the industrial scale and tested both as a flat-sheet and as spiral elements. The modeling work was focused primarily on membrane flux decline. Various models for flux decline were developed using linear regression of the experimental data and models from literature. Small scale experiments were performed in a stirred cell with skim milk, and two field trials were performed on skim milk, whole milk, and whey feed streams. The field trials were performed with 4 inch and 6 inch spiral elements, and a standard 10K MWCO polyethersulfone membrane was used as the control. Data were collected over many months of operation. The membranes were cleaned every two days, and then tested for pure water flux. The results will be presented on linear regression and on models from literature. We will also show results for a theoretical membrane with a well-defined and regular structure. The variables for the model included the pore size and the charge density of the membrane

The Role of Families in Youth Sport Programming in a Canadian Aboriginal Reserve

Background: There has been a recent push in the sport psychology literature for sport participants to be approached based on their cultural backgrounds. However, there are few examples where a cultural approach is considered, such as a culturally reflexive version of participatory action research (PAR). In the current study, the role of family is considered in relation to the sport engagement of Canadian Aboriginal youth. Methods: Mainstream researchers teamed with co-researchers from the Wikwemikong Unceded Indian Reserve for 5 years. Community meetings and talking circles were employed as culturally sensitive data collection techniques to uncover how to encourage youth participation in Wikwemikong’s sport programs. The overarching methodology for the project is PAR. Results: Themes and subthemes were determined by community consensus with terms indigenous (ie, culturally relevant) among the local Aboriginal culture. Family was considered important for youth involvement in Aboriginal community sport programs. Parents were expected to support their children by managing schedules and priorities, providing transportation, financial support, encouragement, and being committed to the child’s activity. Aunts, uncles, cousins, siblings, grandparents, and the family as a whole were seen as sharing the responsibility to retain youth in sport through collateral support (ie, when gaps in parental support arose). Conclusions: Suggestions are proposed regarding how families in Aboriginal communities can collaborate to facilitate sport and physical activity among their youth. Further suggestions are proposed for researchers engaging in culturally reflexive research with participants and coresearchers from oppressed cultures

NW UK continental margin : chronology and isotope geochemistry

Until recently, a significant proportion of the crystalline basement from the NW UK continental shelf was virtually terra incognita in comparison with similar rocks on the mainland. A significant increase in the geological understanding of this region’s crystalline rocks is provided by new data from 42 boreholes, some of which were only drilled in 2001. The samples are from a ~550 km long transect of the UK continental shelf, extending from ~50 km west of Shetland in the northeast to Stanton High, south of the Outer Hebrides and westward to include Rockall High. Petrography and geochemistry show the main lithologies are amphibolite to granulite facies amphibolites and gneisses, and include classic Archaean TTG’s, metabasic rocks, granite (s.s), and granitic pegmatites. A long history of crustal growth is indicated by U-Pb zircon ages and Nd model ages. Archaean gneisses that developed in two main episodes dominate much of the study area. The older gneisses (c. 2.8 Ga) represent new continental crust while genesis of the later gneisses (c. 2.74-2.70 Ga) involved crustal recycling. Both groups are very similar to onshore Lewisian gneisses. Important areas of known Proterozoic crust were also characterized, confirming the results of previous studies. Geochemistry and Nd isotope systematics of Stanton High documents extensive Archaean crust re-working in the Proterozoic, as well as addition of new continental crust. Stanton High U-Pb zircon ages (1799-1791.5 Ma) are similar to the Rhinns terrane (c. 1800 Ma). Westward, Rockall High borehole samples yield a 1744.9 Ma U-Pb age, distinct from Stanton High – Rhinns rocks. Nd data indicate addition of mantle-derived juvenile crust, as previously noted elsewhere on Rockall High. An isolated granulite facies metabasic rock on the NE portion of the Hebrides shelf was dated at 1633.5 Ma, also representing a new addition of crust. The new data provide important constraints for regional correlations and palaeotectonic reconstructions. The Archaean rocks are almost certainly related to the Lewisian: given current models, they probably also correlate to the Nagssugtoquidian in Greenland, while the Rockall and Stanton Highs, together with the Rhinns terrane, have affinities to the Ketilidian of Greenland and the Svecofennian of Scandinavia