Mobilising spatial risks: reflections on researching Venezuelan and Australian fairground people's educational experiences

[Abstract]: One approach to conducting educational research is to strive for ‘risk minimisation’. This is presumably on the assumption that risk is always and inevitably dangerous and harmful (see also McDougall, Jarzabkowski, Mills & Gale, Moore, Danaher and Walker-Gibbs, this volume), and to be avoided at all costs. Following the theme of celebrating ‘strategic uncertainties’ (Stronach & MacLure, 1997), we prefer a different approach, one grounded in the recognition of risk as the prerequisite of new conceptual, methodological and empirical understandings. Rather than being minimised or avoided, risk should be mobilised and enthusiastically pursued – carpe diem transposed to an educational research framework. Our conviction of the utility, even the necessity, of mobilising risk derives in part from our ongoing research into the educational experiences of Venezuelan and Australian fairground people (Anteliz & Danaher, 2000; Anteliz, Danaher & Danaher, 2001). In multiple ways, the fairground people routinely enter the spaces of permanently resident communities, and in so doing they challenge the stereotypes attached to mobile groups (McVeigh, 1997). From this perspective, their physical mobility becomes allied with their mobilisation of spatial risks in order to earn their living and to sustain their cultural heritage. We see this process of mobilising spatial risks as potentially both a template and a metaphor for educational researchers. Space can be conceptualised as the site of multiple and often conflicting beliefs, discourses and values. In the context of an educational research project, space can indeed be risky and unpredictable, yet it can also become the place in which transformational educational practices are conceived and developed. This is precisely why spatial risks need to be mobilised – and why ‘strategic uncertainties’ need to be celebrated

Derrington, C. & Kendall, S. (2004). Gypsy traveller students in secondary schools: culture, identity and achievement. Stoke on Trent, UK and Sterling USA: Trentham Books (ISBN 1 85056 320 8) [Book review]

Review of C. Derrington & S. Kendall's 2004 publication, Gypsy Traveller Students in Secondary Schools: Culture, Identity and Achievement. Stoke on Trent, UK and Sterling USA: Trentham Books. (ISBN 1 85056 320 8). The book is concerned with English Gypsy Travellers (although six participants were Irish Travellers), as opposed to fairground or circus people and new age travellers

Guest editors' introduction to special theme issue [of Teaching and Teacher Education]: marginalised pedagogues?

[Background and Rationale]: Writing in the International Handbook of Teachers and Teaching, Good, Biddle and Goodson (1997) referred to “the recent flowering of works on the lives of teachers” (p. 672). Although this “flowering” can be traced to earlier publications (see for example in the Australian context Connell, 1985 and Turney, Eltis, Towler & Wright, 1986), its existence is reflected in the creation and expansion of Special Interest Groups in various Educational Research Associations: Lives of Teachers in the American Educational Research Association; Teachers’ Work and Lives in the Australian Association for Educational Research; Primary School Teachers’ Work in the British Educational Research Association; and Continuing Professional Development for Teachers and Leaders in Schools in the European Educational Research Association. In addition, there is the publication of texts such as the 2 collections edited by Goodson and Hargreaves (1996) and Tattam (1998), entitled respectively Teachers’ Professional Lives and Tales from the Blackboard; books like Huberman with Grounauer and Marti’s The Lives of Teachers (1993) and Muchmore’s A Teacher’s Life: Stories of Literacy, Teacher Thinking and Professional Development (2004); and texts written by authors who have contributed to this volume, including June A. Gordon’s The Color of Teaching (2000) and Beyond the Classroom Walls: Ethnographic Inquiry As Pedagogy (2002). There are also the cinematic representations of educators’ lives, from Robin William as John Keating in Dead Poets Society (1989) to Julie Walters’ memorable portrayal of Dame Marie Stubbs in Ahead of the Class (2005). These developments are manifestations of the recognition of the crucial links between what educators do and who they are – that is, between their work and their identities. Given the “flowering” noted by Good and his colleagues (1997), it is timely to interrogate those links in relation to a particular topic: the impact on educators of teaching so-called ‘minority’ learners. By this term we mean the diversity of individuals and groups who by one measure or another are defined as ‘different’ from the ‘mainstream’, including on the basis of age, ethnicity, gender, location, political and/or religious affiliations, and socioeconomic position. Given that ‘difference’ often shades into ‘deficit’ and ‘discrimination’, it is necessary to consider the extent to which educators teaching these learners see themselves as ‘marginalised’ – and/or perhaps as ‘privileged’ to be working with these learners, as ‘innovators’ because they are away from the surveillance directed at ‘mainstream’ education and so on. Through a close examination of several incarnations of this ‘difference’, we have sought to explore in this special theme issue of Teaching and Teacher Education the character and existence of “marginalised pedagogues” through posing such questions as the following: What attracts educators to teaching learners who are ‘different’ or ‘minority’? What distinctive challenges and opportunities for the educators’ work arise from their interactions with ‘minority’ learners? What are the effects of such interactions on the educators’ identities? What are the implications of these international studies for extending understandings of both educators’ lives and the education of ‘minority’ learners? The aims of the special theme issue have been as follows: to represent a broad diversity of international studies of the work and identities of educators teaching ‘minority’ learners to investigate whether and how these educators construct themselves as ‘marginalised’ and/or as other kinds of pedagogues to link that investigation to the broader literature on educators’ lives and the education of ‘minority’ learners

Promoting lifelong learning partnerships, pathways and andragogies: issues in evaluating and redesigning the postcompulsory teacher education professional experience at The University Of Southern Queensland

[Abstract]: Drawing on criticality, critical theory and the humanist tradition in education, the authors explicate several issues in evaluating and redesigning the postcompulsory teacher education professional experience at USQ. The challenge rests with developing partnerships, pathways and andragogies that simultaneously fulfil stakeholder expectations and promote lifelong learning for all participants

The microphysics and micropolitics of microscopic meanings: situated ethics and professional workplace pedagogy and learning in Venezuelan and Australian universities

ract]: A crucial challenge confronting contemporary workplaces is finding meaningful ways to facilitate ongoing workplace learning. This is certainly the case in universities, where competing pressures on academics and managers require the learning of new roles such as social entrepreneurs (Anteliz & Danaher, 2004). These pressures reflect the ongoing need for attentiveness to the microphysics and micropolitics of university workplaces if such professional workplace learning is to be effective, efficient and equitable. That attentiveness reinforces the situated and politicised character of such learning; it also raises questions about appropriate forms of pedagogy to accompany and enable such learning. One potentially useful conceptual tool in articulating meaningful professional workplace pedagogy and learning in contemporary universities is situated ethics (Piper & Simons, 2005; Simons & Usher, 2000). Situated ethics eschews adherence to a timeless and universal code in favour of understanding ethical practice as contingent and located in the specific power grids of particular institutions. From this perspective, the ethical dimension of pedagogy and learning in relation to academics and managers must engage explicitly and hopefully productively with the aspirations and interests of members of the institutions in which their roles are performed. This paper illustrates this argument by reference to the authors’ reflexive accounts of the dilemmas and strategies informing their efforts to participate in ongoing professional workplace learning. These dilemmas and strategies are framed by global, national and regional developments in socioeconomic policymaking, yet also enacted in contexts shaped by the microphysics and micropolitics of meaning making in their particular workplaces. The authors elaborate and apply selected features of situated ethics that underpin their respective and shared pedagogical approaches to facilitating their colleagues’ and their own professional workplace learning

Early career teachers’ intentions to leave the profession: the complex relationships among preservice education, early career support, and job satisfaction

This paper investigates the complex factors that lead to early career teachers (ECTs) deciding to leave the profession. It extends prior studies to show the associations that different elements of preservice education (PSE), early career support, and on-the-job satisfaction have with the intention to leave the profession. The study uses data from 2,144 Australian ECTs to explore these relationships. Results highlight the importance of teachers’ collegial relationships with their peers, and replicate prior findings showing the significance of mentoring and induction programs. Results show that elements of job satisfaction are strongly associated with intention to leave the profession, leading to a number of implications for achieving the twin goals of higher teacher retention and job satisfaction

Rapid Determination of Macrolide and Lincosamide Resistance in Group B Streptococcus Isolated from Vaginal-Rectal Swabs

Objective. Our objective was to assess the ability of real-time PCR to predict in vitro resistance in isolates of group B streptococcus (GBS). Methods. The first real-time PCR assays for the genes known to confer resistance to erythromycin and clindamycin in GBS were developed. Three hundred and forty clinical GBS isolates were assessed with these assays and compared with conventional disk diffusion. Results. The presence of an erythromycin ribosome methylation gene (ermB or ermTR variant A) predicted in vitro constitutive or inducible resistance to clindamycin with a sensitivity of 93% (95% CI 86%–97%), specificity of 90% (95% CI 85%–93%), positive predictive value of 76% (95% CI 67%–84%), and negative predictive value of 97% (95% CI 94%–99%). Conclusion. This rapid and simple assay can predict in vitro susceptibility to clindamycin within two hours of isolation as opposed to 18–24 hours via disk diffusion. The assay might also be used to screen large numbers of batched isolates to establish the prevalence of resistance in a given area

Computational approaches to support comparative analysis of multiparametric tests: Modelling versus Training.

Multiparametric assays for risk stratification are widely used in the management of breast cancer, with applications being developed for a number of other cancer settings. Recent data from multiple sources suggests that different tests may provide different risk estimates at the individual patient level. There is an increasing need for robust methods to support cost effective comparisons of test performance in multiple settings. The derivation of similar risk classifications using genes comprising the following multi-parametric tests Oncotype DX® (Genomic Health.), Prosigna™ (NanoString Technologies, Inc.), MammaPrint® (Agendia Inc.) was performed using different computational approaches. Results were compared to the actual test results. Two widely used approaches were applied, firstly computational "modelling" of test results using published algorithms and secondly a "training" approach which used reference results from the commercially supplied tests. We demonstrate the potential for errors to arise when using a "modelling" approach without reference to real world test results. Simultaneously we show that a "training" approach can provide a highly cost-effective solution to the development of real-world comparisons between different multigene signatures. Comparisons between existing multiparametric tests is challenging, and evidence on discordance between tests in risk stratification presents further dilemmas. We present an approach, modelled in breast cancer, which can provide health care providers and researchers with the potential to perform robust and meaningful comparisons between multigene tests in a cost-effective manner. We demonstrate that whilst viable estimates of gene signatures can be derived from modelling approaches, in our study using a training approach allowed a close approximation to true signature results

Urease and Nitrification Inhibitors—As Mitigation Tools for Greenhouse Gas Emissions in Sustainable Dairy Systems: A Review

peer-reviewedCurrently, nitrogen fertilizers are utilized to meet 48% of the total global food demand. The demand for nitrogen fertilizers is expected to grow as global populations continue to rise. The use of nitrogen fertilizers is associated with many negative environmental impacts and is a key source of greenhouse and harmful gas emissions. In recent years, urease and nitrification inhibitors have emerged as mitigation tools that are presently utilized in agriculture to prevent nitrogen losses and reduce greenhouse and harmful gas emissions that are associated with the use of nitrogen-based fertilizers. Both classes of inhibitor work by different mechanisms and have different physiochemical properties. Consequently, each class must be evaluated on its own merits. Although there are many benefits associated with the use of these inhibitors, little is known about their potential to enter the food chain, an event that may pose challenges to food safety. This phenomenon was highlighted when the nitrification inhibitor dicyandiamide was found as a residual contaminant in milk products in 2013. This comprehensive review aims to discuss the uses of inhibitor technologies in agriculture and their possible impacts on dairy product safety and quality, highlighting areas of concern with regards to the introduction of these inhibitor technologies into the dairy supply chain. Furthermore, this review discusses the benefits and challenges of inhibitor usage with a focus on EU regulations, as well as associated health concerns, chemical behavior, and analytical detection methods for these compounds within milk and environmental matrices.Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Irelan

Immune profiling of pre- and post-treatment breast cancer tissues from the SWOG S0800 neoadjuvant trial

Abstract Background How the immune microenvironment changes during neoadjuvant chemotherapy of primary breast cancer is not well understood. Methods We analyzed pre- and post-treatment samples from 60 patients using the NanoString PanCancer IO360™ assay to measure the expression of 750 immune-related genes corresponding to 14 immune cell types and various immune functions, and assessed TIL counts and PD-L1 protein expression by immunohistochemistry. Treatment associated changes in gene expression levels were compared using t-test with Bonferroni correction. TIL count, PD-L1 protein and immune metagenes were compared using Wilcoxon test. Baseline immune markers were correlated with pathologic complete response (pCR) using estrogen receptor and treatment arm adjusted logistic regression. Results At baseline, high TIL counts and high expression of chemoattractant cytokines (CCL21, CCL19) and cytotoxic T cell markers were associated with higher pCR rate. High expression of stromal genes (VEGFB, TGFB3, PDGFB, FGFR1, IGFR1), mast and myeloid inflammatory cell metagenes, stem cell related genes (CD90, WNT11, CTNNB1) and CX3CR1, and IL11RA were associated with residual disease (RD). After treatment, in cases with pCR, TIL counts and most immune genes decreased significantly. Among RD cases, TIL counts and PD-L1 expression did not change but cellular stress and hypoxia associated genes (DUSP1, EGR1), and IL6, CD36, CXCL2, CD69 and the IL8/VEGF metagene increased. Conclusions Activated T cells in the tumor microenvironment are associated with pCR whereas stromal functions are associated with residual disease. Most immune functions decrease during neoadjuvant chemotherapy but several immunotherapy targets (PD-L1, IL6, IL8) remain expressed in RD suggesting potential therapeutic strategies.https://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/148572/1/40425_2019_Article_563.pd