Transforming pre-service teacher curriculum: observation through a TPACK lens

This paper will discuss an international online collaborative learning experience through the lens of the Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge (TPACK) framework. The teacher knowledge required to effectively provide transformative learning experiences for 21st century learners in a digital world is complex, situated and changing. The discussion looks beyond the opportunity for knowledge development of content, pedagogy and technology as components of TPACK towards the interaction between those three components. Implications for practice are also discussed. In today’s technology infused classrooms it is within the realms of teacher educators, practising teaching and pre-service teachers explore and address effective practices using technology to enhance learning

Working collaboratively on the digital global frontier

An international online collaborative learning experience was designed and implemented in preservice teacher education classes at the University of Calgary, Canada and the University of Southern Queensland, Australia. The project was designed to give preservice teachers an opportunity to live the experience of being online collaborators investigating real world teaching issues of diversity and inclusivity. Qualitative research was conducted to examine the complexity of the online collaborative experiences of participants. Redmond and Lock’s (2006) flexible online collaborative learning framework was used to explain the design and the implementation of the project. Henri’s (1992) content analysis model for computer-mediated communication was used for the online asynchronous postings and a constant comparative method of data analysis was used in the construction of themes. From the findings, the authors propose recommendations for designing and facilitating collaborative learning on the digital global frontier

Empowering learners to engage in their authentic online assessment

The purpose of this chapter is to share an assessment practice that utilized an authentic online activity as both a learning activity and an assessment item. The assessment required students to identify their best contributions in the learning activity and submit those items for assessment. This shift in assessment required students to reflect on their learning, to identify evidence of their learning, and fostered further develop their metacognition skills. Gulikers, Bastiaens and Kirschner’s (2004) five-dimensional framework for authentic assessment was used to examine how authentic instruction and authentic assessment were aligned in the online activity. Three recommendations for research and practice are presented

Comparative study regarding the influence of phytobiotcs as feed additives on biochemical composition of Oreochromis Niloticus meat

The aim of this research was to evaluate the biochemical composition of the Nile tilapia meat in conditions of five phytobiotics administrated in feed. This experiment was performed in duplicate. The experimental variants were: V1 – control variant, V2 – 1% chilli pepper (Capsicum annuum) / kg feed, V3 – 1% black pepper (Pipper nigrum) / kg feed, V4 – 1% onion (Allium cepa) / kg feed, V5 – 1% goji fruits (Lycium barbarum) / kg feed and V6 – 1% basil (Ocimum basilicum) / kg feed. For biochemical analysis from muscle tissue, the sampling was performed at the beginning and at the end of the experiment from fresh meat. The results showed a significant differences (p<0.05), between variants in which were administered phytobiotics compared with the control variant, in case of the protein content (%), moisture content (%) and dry matter (%). Also, in this paper are presented the dynamics of the nutrient retention efficiency (PER-g/g, PUE-%, RP-g/fish and RLg/ fish) in the muscle tissue of the Nile tilapia. The best results were obtained in the case of the V3 variant regarding to retained protein (RP), PER and PUE and in V5 variant regarding to retained lipid (RL). In conclusion, the use of these phytobiotics in a concentration of 1% / kg feed in the Nile tilapia diet, led to significant changes (p <0.05) in the positive sense of the percentage moisture, protein and dry matter from muscle tissue and has contributed to the increasing the nutritional value of fish

Water quality evaluation of cyprinid pond based production system effluent

Aquaculture is the fastest growing food production sector, according to FAO report. Romanian aquaculture has an estimated production of 10000 tones per year, most of it being provided by cyprinids pond aquaculture production systems. However, pond aquaculture rises certain problems regarding the sustainability, as large concentrations of nitrogen and phosphorus may be recorded in effluents. Therefore, the aim of our study is to evaluate the sustainability of a single pond based cyprinids production system, situated in Galaţi - Romania, by analysing the water quality of the effluent. Water samples were collected from the pond effluent and the following analysis were determined: temperature (T°C), dissolved oxygen (DO), pH, nitrites (NO2), ammonia (NH3),orthophosphates (PO4),total zinc (Zn) chlorides (Cl-), bicarbonates (HCO3-), electro conductivity (EC) and total dissolved solids (TDS).The results were compared to the present national legislation (HG no. 202/2002) regarding the water quality in cyprinid farming and also to water quality criteria for aquaculture. Statistical analysis included normality test Kolmogorov Smirnov in order to determine the distribution of the registered data and Pearson correlation coefficient was applied for the analyzed parameters. The main conclusion of this research was that the technological water of the studied fish pond is suitable for fish rearing and sustainable for the environment, in terms of temperature, DO, pH, Cl-, HCO3-, Zn, EC and TDS. However, NO2, NH3 and PO4 concentrations were above the admissible limit imposed by the romanian legislation. Therefore, in order to improve sustainabily it is recommended that various modern multi-trophic technics should be applied, so that phosphorus and nitrogen compounds are valorized at maximum capacity

Clinical progression and outcome of dysphagia following thermal burn injury: A prospective cohort study

The objectives of this study were 1) to establish clinical profiles of dysphagic and nondysphagic individuals following thermal burn injury and 2) to provide a clinical profile of the progression and outcome of dysphagia resolution by hospital discharge for a dysphagic cohort. A total of 438 consecutively admitted patients with thermal burns were included. All patients underwent a clinical swallowing examination. Medical parameters regarding burn presentation and its treatment and speech-language pathology specific variables from admission to discharge were collected for each participant. Dysphagia was identified in 49 patients via clinical assessment, and their course of recovery was followed up until the point of dysphagia resolution or discharge. No significant difference was observed between the dysphagic and nondysphagic groups in age, gender, and injury etiology. However, the dysphagic cohort was significantly different from the nondysphagic group in all variables pertaining to injury presentation and medical management. Individuals with dysphagia took significantly longer to start, and maintain, oral intake and required nonoral supplementation for three and a half times longer than those who were nondysphagic. Length of speech-language pathology intervention averaged 1 month for the dysphagics and increased with dysphagia severity. Return to normal fluid consistencies occurred in >75% of dysphagic individuals by week 7 after injury, although resumption of normal diet textures was more protracted, with 75% resuming normal oral intake by week 9. Dysphagia had resolved in 50% of the cohort by week 6, and by hospital discharge, 85% of the dysphagic individuals had resumed normal oral intake of thin fluids and a general diet. This is the first large prospective cohort study to establish clinical profiles of dysphagic and nondysphagic cohorts and document the nature of dysphagia and patterns of recovery within the thermal burn population. These current data will assist the allocation and planning of speech-language pathology services and provide baseline data on the course of dysphagia resolution in the adult thermal burn population

Ethanol‐Lock Therapy for the Prevention of Central Venous Access Device Infections in Pediatric Patients With Intestinal Failure

Peer Reviewedhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/141158/1/jpen0067.pdfhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/141158/2/jpen0067-sup-0001.pd

Physiological characteristics of dysphagia following thermal burn injury

The study aim was to document the acute physiological characteristics of swallowing impairment following thermal burn injury. A series of 19 participants admitted to a specialised burn centre with thermal burn injury were identified with suspected aspiration risk by a clinical swallow examination (CSE) conducted by a speech-language pathologist and referred to the study. Once medically stable, each then underwent more detailed assessment using both a CSE and fiberoptic evaluation of swallowing (FEES). FEES confirmed six individuals (32%) had no aspiration risk and were excluded from further analyses. Of the remaining 13, CSE confirmed that two had specific oral-phase deficits due to orofacial scarring and contractures, and all 13 had generalised oromotor weakness. FEES revealed numerous pharyngeal-phase deficits, with the major findings evident in greater than 50% being impaired secretion management, laryngotracheal edema, delayed swallow initiation, impaired sensation, inadequate movement of structures within the hypopharynx and larynx, and diffuse pharyngeal residue. Penetration and/or aspiration occurred in 83% (n = 10/12) of thin fluids trials, with a lack of response to the penetration/aspiration noted in 50% (n = 6/12 penetration aspiration events) of the cases. Most events occurred post swallow. Findings support the fact that individuals with dysphagia post thermal burn present with multiple risk factors for aspiration that appear predominantly related to generalised weakness and inefficiency and further impacted by edema and sensory impairments. Generalised oromotor weakness and orofacial contractures (when present) impact oral-stage swallow function. This study has identified a range of factors that may contribute to both oral- and pharyngeal-stage dysfunction in this clinical population and has highlighted the importance of using a combination of clinical and instrumental assessments to fully understand the influence of burn injury on oral intake and swallowing

Stroke in women — from evidence to inequalities

Stroke is the second largest cause of disability-adjusted life-years lost worldwide. The prevalence of stroke in women is predicted to rise rapidly, owing to the increasing average age of the global female population. Vascular risk factors differ between women and men in terms of prevalence, and evidence increasingly supports the clinical importance of sex differences in stroke. The influence of some risk factors for stroke — including diabetes mellitus and atrial fibrillation — are stronger in women, and hypertensive disorders of pregnancy also affect the risk of stroke decades after pregnancy. However, in an era of evidence-based medicine, women are notably under-represented in clinical trials — despite governmental actions highlighting the need to include both men and women in clinical trials — resulting in a reduced generalizability of study results to women. The aim of this Review is to highlight new insights into specificities of stroke in women, to plan future research priorities, and to influence public health policies to decrease the worldwide burden of stroke in women

Designing flexible learning: learning with each iteration

This paper describes the three iterations of an innovative cross institutional initiative within teacher education. Through an international project pre-service teachers, in-service teachers and teacher educators engaged in a rich exploration of educational topics such as inclusivity and information and communication technology integration. The goal of this learning experience was to promote higher order thinking and collaboration while embedding and fostering authentic dialogue between and among pre-service teachers and experts. Siemens' (2005) five stage learning development cycle has provided a framework for analysis of the three iterations of this online international collaborative project