Developing teaching and learning programmes for new lecturers in higher education to allow for exploration of the link between research and teaching: a collaborative UK/Canadian project

This is an ESCalate development project led by Lisa Lucas of the University of Bristol and completed in 2009. It looks at teaching and learning programmes for new lecturers in the UK and Canada, specifically the link between research and teaching. The aim of this project was to develop innovative materials and activities, and collect best practice examples that focus on the link between research and teaching that can be utilised within university Teaching and Learning in Higher Education programmes for new lecturers. A comparison between the UK and Canada was taken in order to provide an international perspective on this issue and to help develop materials that would be relevant in different national contexts. It looks at the policy contexts in the UK and Canada, reviews some example teaching and learning programmes and explores the views of early career academics in terms of linking teaching and research. It includes a final project report and colloquium paper, both presented as PDF file

Profiling Precursor Lipids for Specialized Pro-Resolution Molecules in Platelet-Rich Plasma Following Fish Oil and Aspirin Intake

Background: Unfavorable outcomes following periodontal surgeries can be attributed to impaired resolution mechanisms likely due to decreased levels of specialized pro-resolution molecules (SPM). The current study investigates if SPM substrate pools in platelet-rich plasma preparations (PRP) can be increased by essential fatty acid (EFA) and / or aspirin supplementation. Methods: Nineteen healthy volunteers were randomly assigned to take i) aspirin; ii) EFA; iii) aspirin and EFA. Four hours after intake, the lipid precursor pools in PRP were quantified using combined Liquid Chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) and the data statistically analyzed using ANCOVA. Results: Of the 77 metabolites screened, only FFA (18:3) showed a significant interaction effect (p=0.019). By itself, neither EFA (p\u3e0.9) nor aspirin (p\u3e0.4) showed any difference (P\u3e0.4). Multiple comparisons could not identify the differences between groups. Conclusions: There is inadequate data to support oral supplementation of EFA and /or aspirin to increase SPM levels in PRP

Examining Social Emotional Learning for Gifted Students

The purpose of this intrinsic qualitative study was to investigate the use of universal social emotional learning (SEL) curricula as a primary means for supporting the social and emotional developmental needs of gifted students in a large school district in the western U.S. The District, or case for this study, was not using any specific systemic social and emotional programming for their identified gifted learners. Through a constructivist social cognitive theoretical lens, the efficacy of universal curricula for gifted learners was explored. The increasing use of SEL in school reform efforts to improve academic success has provided much research on SEL curricula (Durlak et al., 2011; Elias et al., 1997; Zins et al., 2007). The goal of this study was to provide educational leaders a way to examine universal SEL programs’ efficacy for the affective programming needs of gifted learners. The large school district setting yielded participants purposively chosen to include one class in each of three elementary schools (n = 3) where gifted learners were included in regular education classrooms using three different universal SEL curricula – Well-Managed Schools, Second Step, and Conscious Discipline. A multi-step process was used to create an evaluation tool, the Social Emotional Learning for Exceptional Children’s Thinking and Emotional Development (SELECTED) Rubric™ (2017) with categories and sub-categories based on analysis of research-based best practices for supporting the social and emotional needs of gifted learners. Resources and references came from the National Association for Gifted Children’s (NAGC) standards, the state’s Department of Education, and others (e.g., Eckert & Robins, 2017; Neihart et al., 2016a; Robinson et al., 2007; Rogers, 2002; VanTassel-Baska et al., 2009). Data were collected via document analysis, 30-minute semi-structured interviews of the teachers and two district administrators, and the evaluation of the three universal curricula via the Rubric. The results of this study indicate that although teachers had various levels of knowledge about the affective needs of gifted students, they all saw weaknesses in their SEL interventions for meeting their gifted students’ needs. The findings of the study are based on a small sample size, yet the use of universal SEL curricula was not substantiated by these findings as an effective way to meet the unique affective needs of gifted students

Topological mechanics of gyroscopic metamaterials

Topological mechanical metamaterials are artificial structures whose unusual properties are protected very much like their electronic and optical counterparts. Here, we present an experimental and theoretical study of an active metamaterial -- comprised of coupled gyroscopes on a lattice -- that breaks time-reversal symmetry. The vibrational spectrum of these novel structures displays a sonic gap populated by topologically protected edge modes which propagate in only one direction and are unaffected by disorder. We present a mathematical model that explains how the edge mode chirality can be switched via controlled distortions of the underlying lattice. This effect allows the direction of the edge current to be determined on demand. We envision applications of these edges modes to the design of loss-free, one-way, acoustic waveguides and demonstrate this functionality in experiment

COVID-19 and the impact on the student delivery of exercise physiology services: a mixed method study.

Introduction: The COVID-19 pandemic has impacted the face-to-face delivery of exercise with social distancing restrictions preventing close contact between client and exercise professional. Additionally, exercise physiology students have had to adapt to these changes and use telehealth to achieve their learning outcomes. This study aimed to explore client and student perspectives of their experience with face-to-face exercise delivery prior to COVID-19 restrictions and telehealth during restrictions. Methods: Clients and students were invited to complete an online survey exploring their experience with student-led exercise services prior to COVID-19 restrictions and during restrictions. Likert-scale questions were compared using a Wilcoxon test and open-ended responses were thematically analysed. Results: Prior to COVID-19 restrictions, all students (n = 7) reported that providing face-to-face exercise physiology services resulted in positive learning experiences and clients (n = 12) were satisfied with their experience. During the restrictions, the client satisfaction with exercise delivery via telehealth remained high, however, students’ learning experience was hindered by the restrictions. Discussion and conclusion: For clients, satisfaction with the exercise delivery remained high and the convenience of telehealth were useful during a pandemic. For students, their exercise prescription and ability to assess and monitor their clients were impacted by using telehealth

In Pursuit of Indigenous Intellectual Justice: The Cultural and Health Institutional Review Boards of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians

Since the inception of Cultural and Health Tribal institutional review boards (IRBs) for the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians (EBCI) in 1998, formal proposals for academic research among the Tribe has averaged about 50 per year. The EBCI needed a formal process to accomplish three things: 1) review requests to protect the Tribe’s interests, 2) ensure the research was culturally appropriate and respectful, and 3) to ensure data control by the Tribe, exercising their right to intellectual sovereignty. Also, this formal review process was necessary due to receipt of federal grant funds to conduct research involving human subjects. It is expected by the IRB members that researchers whose research has been approved by the respective EBCI IRB would fully comply with tribal expectations that reflect the goals of sovereignty and self-determination

Comparing Linkages Between Descriptive Norms and Current and Intended Outdoor Water Conservation

The study presented here was used for evaluating how theory of planned behavior variables (attitude, perceived behavioral control, subjective norms) and perceptions of others\u27 outdoor water conservation (descriptive norms) related to individuals\u27 own conservation and intent to conserve. The theory of planned behavior predicted current and intended conservation similarly. Descriptive norms from close-peer and state referent groups improved predictions of current practices but not behavioral intentions. Descriptive norms may be more influential when Extension clients are establishing routines pertaining to outdoor water conservation (e.g., installing a new landscape). Extension professionals should strategically communicate a conservation norm at similar opportune times

Bioresorbable Film for the Prevention of Adhesion to the Anterior Spine After Anterolateral Discectomy

Background context The development of scar tissue and adhesions postoperatively is a natural consequence of healing but can be associated with medical complications and render reoperation difficult. Many biocompatible products have been evaluated as barriers or deterrents to adhesions. Purpose To evaluate the efficacy of a bioresorbable polylactide film as a barrier to adhesion formation after anterolateral discectomy. Study design Experimental study. Methods Seven, skeletally mature female sheep underwent a retroperitoneal approach to the anterolateral lumbar spine. A discectomy was performed at two levels with an intervening unoperated disc site. One site was treated with a polylactide film barrier (Hydrosorb Shield; MacroPore Biosurgery, San Diego, CA) affixed with tacks manufactured from the same material. The second site was left untreated. Treatment and control sites were randomly assigned. Postmortem analysis included scar tenacity scoring on five spines and histological evaluation on two spines. Results The application of the Hydrosorb film barrier allowed a definite dissection plane during scar tenacity scoring and there was a significant difference in the development of adhesions to the disc between the control and treated sites. Histological evaluation revealed evidence of barrier formation to scar tissue and no significant adverse inflammatory reactions. Conclusions Hydrosorb Shield appears to be an effective postoperative barrier to scar tissue adhesion after anterolateral discectomy. The use of polylactide tacks was beneficial to affix the barrier film in place. Safety issues associated with delayed healing or adverse response to the film or tacks were not observed. Hydrosorb film may be useful as an antiadhesion barrier facilitating dissection during surgical revision in anterior approaches to the spine. Further studies are indicated to evaluate the performance of the bioresorbable material as an antiadhesion barrier in techniques of spinal fusion and disc replacement

Inference and decision making in large weakly dependent graphical models

This thesis considers the problem of searching a large set of items, such as emails, for a small subset which are relevant to a given query. This can be implemented in a sequential manner – whereby knowledge from items that have already been screened is used to assist in the selection of subsequent items to screen. Often the items being searched have an underlying network structure. Using the network structure and a modelling assumption that relevant items and participants are likely to cluster together can greatly increase the rate of screening relevant items. However, inference in this type of model is computationally expensive. In the first part of this thesis, we show that Bayes linear methods provide a natural approach to modelling this data. We develop a new optimisation problem for Bernoulli random variables, called constrained Bayes linear, which has additional constraints incorporated into the Bayes linear optimisation problem. For non-linear relationships between the latent variable and observations, Bayes linear will give a poor approximation. We propose a novel sequential Monte Carlo method for sequential inference on the network, which better copes with non-linear relationships. We give a method for simulating the random variables based upon the Bayes linear methodology. Finally, we look at the effect the ordering of the random variables has on the joint probability distribution of binary random variables, when they are simulated using this proposed Bayes linear method

Design, Implementation, and Evaluation of an Elder Financial Abuse Program

Financial exploitation of elders is the fastest growing crime in America, with telemarketing schemes being the prime methods used. The authors developed the Striking Back program, which includes a Leader\u27s Guide, videotape, practice scenarios, and handouts, to make elders aware of the problem and provide strategies for dealing with solicitors. Pre/post knowledge tests were used to determine if learning occurred as a result of the educational program, and a 6-week follow-up evaluation was conducted to determine whether elders had adopted key practices that deter telemarketers. This article presents the program design and implementation strategies as well as evaluation results