‘Did anyone think the trees were students?’ Using poetry as a tool for critical reflection

The practice of reflection in teacher education is a contentious area. Debates have focused on the nature of reflection and how to evidence that it is taking place. Students training to be teachers in the UK are expected to be taught about reflection and incorporate it into their practice. This qualitative study took place in response to difficulties trainee teachers had in grasping abstract concepts. The study explores the use of reading poetry as a tool for facilitating reflection. Data were gathered by observing groups at work with the poems and by interviewing the participants. The findings were that poetry particularly encourages students to venture to areas that they may not address unprompted. It also encouraged a particular form of reflection, to do with the nature of teacher identity and the value of teaching. We suggest that further studies with larger sample groups could be carried out to test these findings

On the school beat: police officers based in English schools

Concerns about youth violence and the radicalisation of pupils have contributed to the deployment of onsite police officers in schools in England. Little is known about the work these officers do. This article firstly outlines the policy background that led to police in schools, and then, with a focus on the schools in London that have onsite officers, data obtained from a Freedom of Information request are combined with school characteristics data to show that officers are more likely to be based in schools with high levels of pupils from disadvantaged backgrounds. Foucault’s work on surveillance is explored in theorising police presence on school sites. The relevance of Agamben’s State of Exception is examined in relation to the school-to-prison pipeline in the United States. The article highlights the need for more empirical work in schools to research the impact of onsite police

Provision for additional learning needs: the views of children and young people with developmental coordination disorder

This study was undertaken in partnership between NCB (National Children's Bureau) adn Bridgend County Borough Council(BCBC). The aim of this project was to raise awareness of the importance of listening to children with additional learning needs(ALN) about the support and services they receive in school

Special educational needs and disability : Understanding local variation in prevalence, service provision and support

There is a growing recognition of the variation between local authorities in the proportions of children with SEN, the apparent composition of these groups, and the nature and quality of services provided to support them. Local area data collected on children with SEN, particularly the termly School Census and the annual SEN2 return by local authorities, show differences in the number of children with SEN, the nature of their recorded conditions and the Code of Practice level of support they are receiving. This variation was highlighted by the House of Commons Education and Skills Select Committee which commented on a ‘postcode lottery’ or a ‘lottery of provision’, and reports by the Audit Commission and Ofsted which also highlighted variation in provision and standards

Projections of emissions and removals from the LULUCF sector to 2050

Summary for policy makers: • The UK reports projections for the Land Use, Land Use Change and Forestry (LULUCF) sector to inform policy concerning domestic and international climate change commitments. The full projections data are available on the NAEI website (http://naei.defra.gov.uk/reports/reports?report_id=927) • LULUCF activities can result in net annual emissions or removals of greenhouse gases, and changes in carbon stocks in the pools associated with LULUCF. This report provides projections at the UK and Devolved Administration (DA) level, with separate estimates for Scotland, England, Wales and Northern Ireland, which are summed to give the UK totals. The results presented here are based on the reporting conventions of the UNFCCC. They are not presented as potential future accounted emissions and removals under the Kyoto Protocol which are calculated formally at the end of each commitment period. • LULUCF is divided into six land use types: Forest Land (4A), Cropland (4B), Grassland (4C), Wetlands (4D), Settlements (4E), Other Land (4F). Carbon stock changes from Harvested Wood Products are reported in an additional category, Harvested Wood Products (4G). The code refers to the IPCC (2006 Guidelines) inventory category of LULUCF. There is a separate inventory sector – not presented here – dedicated to other emissions, mainly methane and nitrous oxide, from agricultural activities. • Projections are made for net emissions and removals of greenhouse gases to 2050, arising from LULUCF activities reported in the latest (1990-2014) greenhouse gas inventory, for the DAs and the UK excluding Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. • Five scenarios (Baseline 1, Baseline 2, Central, Low and Stretch) have been described. The scenarios were developed by BEIS, Defra and the Forestry Commission and have been updated in 2016 following discussions with all of the UK administrations. The scenarios take account of current land use policies and aspirations. The Baseline scenarios are based on climate change-related and forestry policies extant in July 2009. • The main results are: At a UK level, the LULUCF sector has been a net sink since 1990 and is predicted to remain so under all scenarios until at least 2050, although at a declining level from the mid-2020s onwards (depending on the scenario). At a DA level, England and Scotland remain net sinks under all scenarios Wales is a small net sink under the Stretch scenario, but will become an increasing net source under the other scenarios between 2034 and 2049. Northern Ireland is a small net source (except in 1998 and 1999) under the Baseline and Central scenarios, but will become a small net sink from the late 2030s onwards under the Stretch and Low scenarios. The LULUCF sector in the UK and in each of the DAs is dominated by CO2 emissions and removals, although N2O emissions also make a significant contribution. The Forest Land, Cropland and Grassland categories determine the trend in the UK and DAs. The main changes in the projections since the 1990-2013 projections are: Forestry - a methodological revision of the forest carbon accounting model CARBINE to assign carbon stock changes to the correct reporting year, and the inclusion of the National Forest Inventory data (including, for the first time, small woods between 0.1 and 0.5 hectares in size) increasing tree cover and forest carbon stocks (this differs from the submitted 1990-2014 inventory). Grassland - the revision of the emission factor used for grassland on drained organic soils has reduced the size of the grassland sink

Common activation of canonical Wnt signaling in pancreatic adenocarcinoma.

Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDA) is an extremely aggressive malignancy, which carries a dismal prognosis. Activating mutations of the Kras gene are common to the vast majority of human PDA. In addition, recent studies have demonstrated that embryonic signaling pathway such as Hedgehog and Notch are inappropriately upregulated in this disease. The role of another embryonic signaling pathway, namely the canonical Wnt cascade, is still controversial. Here, we use gene array analysis as a platform to demonstrate general activation of the canonical arm of the Wnt pathway in human PDA. Furthermore, we provide evidence for Wnt activation in mouse models of pancreatic cancer. Our results also indicate that Wnt signaling might be activated downstream of Hedgehog signaling, which is an early event in PDA evolution. Wnt inhibition blocked proliferation and induced apoptosis of cultured adenocarcinoma cells, thereby providing evidence to support the development of novel therapeutical strategies for Wnt inhibition in pancreatic adenocarcinoma

Mapping greenhouse gas emissions & removals for the land use, land-use change & forestry sector. A report of the National Atmospheric Emissions Inventory 1990-2021

Prepared by the UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology for the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero. This report describes the method used to spatially disaggregate the emissions and removals in the Land Use, Land-Use Change and Forestry (LULUCF) sector to enable the compilation of LULUCF estimates for Local Authorities (LAs) as part of the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero's assistance to LAs in tracking progress on decarbonisation

Qualitative study of barriers to clinical trial retention in adults with recently diagnosed type 1 diabetes

Objectives. Regular physical exercise may preserve β cell function in newly diagnosed adults with type 1 diabetes (T1D). However, clinical trials to test this theory require the recruitment and retention of adults with new-onset T1D, which can be challenging. We sought to determine the overall experiences of newly diagnosed adults with T1D in an exercise study, to understand issues that influence the retention of trial participants in such studies. Design. Qualitative methodology using individual face-to-face (n=6) and telephone interviews (n=14). Interview transcripts were thematically analysed using the framework method. Setting. The study took place at five participating UK hospitals. Participants. Twenty participants, aged 19–55 years, in the Exercise for Type 1 Diabetes study were interviewed to explore their study experiences and identify motivators and deterrents towards the study. Participants in control and intervention arms were interviewed, as were people with T1D who had completed (n=16) and withdrawn (n=4). Results. Participants revealed barriers and facilitators to retention; the majority were generalisable to clinical trials of people with newly diagnosed T1D. Coming to terms with a diagnosis of T1D, lack of time, work pressures, level of health professional support, volume, clarity and consistency of information and feedback and a desire for knowledge about their condition were all cited as influencing factors to trial retention. Conclusions. To our knowledge, this is the first qualitative study to examine the experience of being involved in an exercise trial by people with T1D. Findings suggest appointments could be shorter, available outside of working hours and planned longer in advance; study information should be clear, consistent and in electronic and paper formats; questionnaires need minimising; healthcare support and feedback needs providing regularly; thought is required around how to support non-exercising arm participants. These considerations may improve participant retention rates in new-onset T1D studies

Certified to make a difference’: the motivation and perceptions of newly qualified early years teachers in England

The last 20 years have brought numerous workforce reforms to the early years sector, enacted in the name of professionalisation, including the recent introduction of a new postgraduate qualification, the Early Years Teacher Status. This article features data from interviews with 22 participants who had just completed this award and situates their views in the relevant policy context and alongside a discussion of what it means to professionalise the early years sector and create a graduate led workforce. The data support findings from similar studies of Early Years Professionals, namely that the interviewees are passionate about working with young children. They view the sector as in need of change, and themselves as potential leaders and agents of change. The participants endorse the view that up-skilling the workforce is essential to the professionalisation of the sector and improving the quality of early years educatio