Review of "Teaching Pluralism in Economics"

Review of 'Teaching Pluralism in Economics' by John Groenewegen

Pluralism and Economic Education: a Learning Theory Approach

Preparing students to participate in social and economic life after graduation is a widely held goal of economics instructors. How that goal is achieved and interpretations of what is a relevant skill, however, are a source of debate, covering both content coverage and pedagogical practices. This paper argues that a more pluralistic approach to both course content and pedagogy is fundamental for better preparing economics students for the world, and that learning theory is an integral component of understanding how to design practices to achieve desired outcomes.

APPLYING GLADUE PRINCIPLES REQUIRES MEANINGFUL INCORPORATION OF INDIGENOUS LAWS AND PERSPECTIVES, INCLUDING CONSIDERATION OF COMMUNITY-BASED ALTERNATIVES TO INCARCERATION

This thesis considers Canadian criminal sentencing laws and the implications of such upon Indigenous people.1 In particular, this thesis advocates for the immersion of Indigenous means of justice, including community-based solutions, into mainstream justice. Indigenous communities and people carry their own laws and legal systems to deal with criminal behaviour, including sanctions to manage behaviour. If Canada is serious about creating a justice system that works for Indigenous people in this country, Canadian laws ought to incorporate Indigenous laws. The Supreme Court of Canada decision, R v Gladue,2 interprets the Canadian Criminal Code sentencing provision, s 718.2(e), which requires sentencing judges to consider all available sanctions, other than imprisonment, for all offenders, with particular attention to the circumstances of Aboriginal offenders.3 Gladue provided a two prong consideration for sentencing judges to follow when coming to their ultimate decision: A) The unique systemic or background factors which may have played a part in bringing the particular aboriginal offender before the courts; and B) The types of sentencing procedures and sanctions which may be appropriate in the circumstances for the offender because of his or her particular aboriginal heritage or connection.4 Gladue does not create an Indigenous legal system within Canadian law however Gladue creates a passage way for Indigenous understanding to be incorporated into mainstream criminal law. Indigenous ways of justice ought to be considered during the application of Gladue. This thesis focuses on the means available to properly consider the second prong of Gladue, including community alternatives available other than incarceration. As is examined in this thesis, if sentencing judges fail to meaningfully consider the second prong of Gladue an error of law has occurred, as s 718.2(e) of the Criminal Code has not been properly applied. To avoid such error, Gladue reports and therapeutic courts assist sentencing judges, encouraging proper application of Gladue. 1 Please note throughout this thesis the term Indigenous will be used to describe the first peoples within the land mass known as Canada. Aboriginal is the term often used in Canadian law. For the purposes of this thesis, the reader should consider Indigenous and Aboriginal as interchangeable terms. Please, also note that “Canada” is a colonized title. The descriptor of Turtle Island is used to describe the land mass known commonly as Canada. 2 R v Gladue, [1999] 1 SCR 688, 171 DLR (4th) 385 (SCC). [Gladue] 3 Criminal Code, RSC 1985, c C-46, s 718.2(e). [Criminal Code] (emphasis added) Please note throughout this thesis when referring to section 718.2(e) of the Criminal Code the short form, s 718.2(e), will be used. 4 Gladue, supra note 2 at para 66

Using the Transtheoretical Model in Primary Care Weight management: Tipping the Decisional Balance Scale for Exercise

Changing or modifying a behavior that is addictive or potentially harmful is difficult for most people. The Transtheoretical Model (TM) (Prochaska, Norcross, & DiClemente, 1994) incorporates a compilation of previous theories, providing a framework for the stages of progression when deciding to change a problematic behavior. The stages include: Precontemplation, Contemplation, Preparation, Action, Maintenance, and Termination. Other constructs of the model, some adapted from previous models, include the Decisional Balance (Janis & Mann, 1977), Self-efficacy (Bandura, 1977) and the Processes of Change (Prochaska, Norcross, & DiClemente, 1994, Velicer, Prochaska, Fava, Norman, & Redding, 1998). Traditionally, examining the stages of change was in the domain of psychology; more recently it has been adapted for use in the primary care arena for various chronic conditions (Boudreaux, et al.,2003, Jimmy & Martin, 2005) as well as the basis for new models in primary care (Katz, 2001). One such chronic condition, leading to other co-morbidities and a factor in early death (LaViest, 2005), is overweight and/or obesity which leads to the challenge of weight management. Overweight patients desire direction with weight management issues (Potter, Vu, & Croughan-Minihane, 2001) yet primary care providers often express an inability to assist with meaningful treatment options other than eat less and move more (Bardia, Holton, Slezsak, & Thompson, 2007). The utility of the TM makes it well suited for use when tailoring healthy lifestyle information for patients during brief visits in primary care. Nurse Practitioners (NP) are trained to coach, teach, and support patients (Hayes & Kalmakis, 2007). Using the TM as a basis to determine the patient’s readiness to change and the construct of Decisional Balance, NPs, through coaching strategies, can be available to assist patients with behavior change

Significant Learning and Civic Education: Shifting Frameworks for Teaching in Light of Learning about the Financial Crisis

The recent financial crisis has motivated economic educators to rethink what economics should be taught, acknowledging disconnects between classroom content and real world events. We introduce a learning theory approach that is broader, one that goes beyond such context specific discussions of foundational knowledge and application (i.e., teaching about this specific crisis) and provide a framework to address the broader issue of how teaching practices can, by their very nature, minimize such disconnects and provide more effective processes for teaching about current economic conditions. The theory of significant learning (Fink 2003) is presented as a model of how experiences can be used to develop a deep approach to learning, learning that lasts. Experiential learning pedagogies are timeless in that they can be readily modified to promote deeper understanding over a wide range of economic environments. Focusing on one category of significant learning, the human dimension, and one component of the financial crisis, unemployment, examples which modify existing experiential learning practices are described to demonstrate how such pedagogic practices can be readily adapted to teaching and learning about current economic conditions. In short, we demonstrate that incorporating student experiences into pedagogic practice provides a natural alignment of teaching content and real world events, regardless of how those change over time

Wildland Fire in Ecosystems Effects of Fire on Air

This state-of-knowledge review about the effects of fire on air quality can assist land, fire, and air resource managers with fire and smoke planning, and their efforts to explain to others the science behind fire-related program policies and practices to improve air quality. Chapter topics include air quality regulations and fire; characterization of emissions from fire; the transport, dispersion, and modeling of fire emissions; atmospheric and plume chemistry; air quality impacts of fire; social consequences of air quality impacts; and recommendations for future research

Parentage of Hydatidiform Moles

We were presented with the STR (short tandem repeat) profiles from two separate paternity trios. Each trio consisted of a mother, an alleged father, and products of conception (POC) that contained a hydatidiform mole but no visible fetus. In both cases, antecedent pregnancies had followed alleged sexual assaults. Mole classification and pathogenesis are described in order to explain the analyses and statistical reasoning used in each case. One mole exhibited several loci with two different paternal alleles, indicating it was a dispermic (heterozygous) mole. Maternal decidua contaminated the POC, preventing the identification of paternal obligate alleles (POAs) at some loci. The other mole exhibited only one paternal allele/locus at all loci and no maternal alleles, indicating it was a diandric and diploid (homozygous) mole. In each case, traditional calculations were used to determine paternity indices (PIs) at loci that exhibited one paternal allele/locus. PIs at mole loci with two different paternal alleles/locus were calculated from formulas first used for child chimeras that are always dispermic. Combined paternity indices in both mole cases strongly supported the paternity of each suspect.Peer Reviewedhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/155886/1/jfo14291.pdfhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/155886/2/jfo14291_am.pd

Risk Factors for End Stage Renal Disease in Non-WT1-Syndromic Wilms Tumor

PURPOSE: We assessed risk factors for end stage renal disease in patients with Wilms tumor without known WT1 related syndromes. We hypothesized that patients with characteristics suggestive of a WT1 etiology (early onset, stromal predominant histology, intralobar nephrogenic rests) would have a higher risk of end stage renal disease due to chronic renal failure. We predicted a high risk of end stage renal disease due to progressive bilateral Wilms tumor in patients with metachronous bilateral disease. MATERIALS AND METHODS: End stage renal disease was ascertained in 100 of 7,950 nonsyndromic patients enrolled in a National Wilms Tumor Study during 1969 to 2002. Risk factors were evaluated with cumulative incidence curves and proportional hazard regressions. RESULTS: The cumulative incidence of end stage renal disease due to chronic renal failure 20 years after Wilms tumor diagnosis was 0.7%. For end stage renal disease due to progressive bilateral Wilms tumor the incidence was 4.0% at 3 years after diagnosis in patients with synchronous bilateral Wilms tumor and 19.3% in those with metachronous bilateral Wilms tumor. For end stage renal disease due to chronic renal failure stromal predominant histology had a HR of 6.4 relative to mixed (95% CI 3.4, 11.9; p<0.001), intralobar rests had a HR of 5.9 relative to no rests (95% CI 2.0, 17.3; p=0.001), and Wilms tumor diagnosis at less than 24 months had a HR of 1.7 relative to 24 to 48 months and 2.8 relative to greater than 48 months (p=0.003 for trend). CONCLUSIONS: Metachronous bilateral Wilms tumor is associated with high rates of end stage renal disease due to surgery for progressive Wilms tumor. Characteristics associated with a WT1 etiology markedly increased the risk of end stage renal disease due to chronic renal failure despite the low risk in non-WT1 syndromic cases overall