Teaching and cognitive outcomes in A-levels and Advanced GNVQ's: Case studies from Science and Business Studies Classrooms

The purpose of the paper is to demonstrate how a research diary methodology, designed to analyse A-level and GNVQ classrooms, can be a powerful tool for examining pedagogy and quality of learning at the level of case study. Two subject areas, science and business studies, are presented as cases. Twelve teachers and thirty-four students were studied over a four-week period in May 1997 and contrasts were drawn between lessons from three A-level physics teachers/three Advanced GNVQ science teachers and two A-level business/economics teachers/four Advanced GNVQ business teachers. Lessons were analysed within a cognitive framework which distinguishes between conceptual and procedural learning and emphasizes the importance of metacognition and epistemological beliefs. Two dimensions of lessons were identified: pedagogical activities (e.g. teacher-led explanation, teacher-led guidance on a task, question/answer sessions, group discussions, working with IT) and cognitive outcomes (e.g. structuring and memorizing facts, understanding concepts and arguments, critical thinking, problem-solving, learning core skills, identifying values). Immediately after each lesson, teachers and students (three per class) completed structured research diaries with respect to the above dimensions. Data from the diaries reveal general and unique features of the lessons. Time-ofyear effects were evident (examinations pending in May), particularly in A-level classrooms. Students in business studies classes reported a wider range of learning activities and greater variety in cognitive outcomes than did students in science classes. Science students self-rating of their ability to manage and direct their own learning was generally low. The phenomenological aspects of the classrooms were consistently linked to teachers' lesson plans and what their teaching objectives were for those particular students at that particular time of the year.

A simple chemical free arsenic removal method for community water supply - A case study from West Bengal, India

This report describes a novel technology for arsenic removal from groundwater. The work was carried out in India in collaboratio with three Indian and three European partners. European partners include Leiden University of the Netherlands and Stuttgart University of Germany. The work was funded by The World Bank.

Combined R-matrix eigenstate basis set and finite-difference propagation method for the time-dependent Schrodinger equation: The one-electron case

In this work we present the theoretical framework for the solution of the time-dependent Schrödinger equation (TDSE) of atomic and molecular systems under strong electromagnetic fields with the configuration space of the electron’s coordinates separated over two regions; that is, regions I and II. In region I the solution of the TDSE is obtained by an R-matrix basis set representation of the time-dependent wave function. In region II a grid representation of the wave function is considered and propagation in space and time is obtained through the finite-difference method. With this, a combination of basis set and grid methods is put forward for tackling multiregion time-dependent problems. In both regions, a high-order explicit scheme is employed for the time propagation. While, in a purely hydrogenic system no approximation is involved due to this separation, in multielectron systems the validity and the usefulness of the present method relies on the basic assumption of R-matrix theory, namely, that beyond a certain distance (encompassing region I) a single ejected electron is distinguishable from the other electrons of the multielectron system and evolves there (region II) effectively as a one-electron system. The method is developed in detail for single active electron systems and applied to the exemplar case of the hydrogen atom in an intense laser field.

Alternative method to evaluate discharge coefficients. Part 2: case study

The purpose of this article is to apply an alternative method whereby discharge coefficients can be estimated for the flow through a poppet valve at various lifts. Presented is the development of an operational quasi-steady flow rig. An engine cylinder head poppet valve was used as the case study. The requirement to directly measure mass flowrates using a standard conventional steady flow apparatus has been eliminated. Transient mass flowrates, pressures and temperatures of air during an inflow test for a poppet valve at various lifts were measured. Mass flowrates were also calculated from measured cylinder gas pressures and corrected for heat transfer. Using both methods to determine the mass flowrates, isentropic discharge coefficients were calculated and shown to compare within +/- 4.0 per cent of steady flow data. A computational fluid dynamics (CFD) validation of the quasi-steady flow rig is also presented.

Evaluation of the contribution of theatre attendance to medical undergraduate neuroscience teaching - a pilot study.

Introduction: Medical students often attend the neurosurgical theatre during their clinical neurosciences attachment. However, few studies have been performed to objectively assess the value of this theatre-based learning experience. The main aim of this study was to explore student perceptions on the contribution of neurosurgical theatre attendance to clinical neuroscience teaching.

Materials and Methods: Third-year medical students undergoing their 2-week clinical neurosciences rotation at the Royal Hospitals Belfast were invited to participate in this study. A multi-method strategy was employed using a survey questionnaire comprising of closed and open-ended questions followed by semi-structured interviews to gain a greater 'in-depth' analysis of the potential contribution of neurosurgical theatre attendance to neuroscience teaching.

Results: Based on the completed survey responses of 22 students, the overall experience of neurosurgical theatre-based learning was a positive one. 'In-depth' analysis from semi-structured interviews indicated that students felt that some aspects of their neurosurgical theatre attendance could be improved. Better preparation such as reading up on the case in hand and an introduction to simple theatre etiquette to put the student at ease (in particular, for students who had never attended theatre previously), would improve the learning experience. In addition, having an expectation of what students are expected to learn in theatre making it more learning outcomes-based would probably make it feel a more positive experience by the student.

Conclusions: The vast majority of students acknowledged the positive learning outcomes of neurosurgical theatre attendance and felt that it should be made a mandatory component of the curriculum.

Intra and Interorganizational Learning Networks and the Implementation of Quality Improvement Initiatives: The Case of a Portuguese Teaching Hospital

Learning has an important position in the development of employees and their expertise. This article focuses on the role and utilization of intra and interorganizational formal and informal learning within different types of learning networks. Specifically, we investigate different types of networks (inter- or intraorganizational) and different types of learning (formal or informal) that can occur within such networks. Our qualitative case study is based on 46 expert interviews involving 49 interviewees, through which we explore how formal and informal learning was used in the development and implementation of quality improvement initiatives at a large public teaching hospital in Portugal. Our analysis suggests that formal and informal learning can take place within different types of learning networks that draw on internal resources as well as on the collaboration with external entities. The article argues that it is important for HRD managers, seeking to support organizational learning, to understand how different types of learning take place, and which features of learning networks support these processes.

Operationalizing the Comparative International Human Rights Law Method: A Case Study of CEDAW in National Courts

In this chapter, I focus on how the example of CEDAW illustrates the methodological and conceptual difficulties that future work in comparative international human is likely to encounter. Despite the challenges, I suggest that the worked example of CEDAW has raised interesting lines for empirical analysis, and additional perspectives which may enrich normative inquiry, sufficient to justify comparative international human rights law being regarded as likely to give rise to insights that might not otherwise have emerged, and therefore to be as an approach worth pursuing in the future.

How using Technology Enhanced Learning could help modernise traditional large group teaching or Lecturing.

The efficiency of lecturing or large group teaching has been called into question for many years. An abundance of literature details the components of effective teaching which are not provided in the traditional lecture setting, with many alternative methods of teaching recommended. However, with continued constraints on resources large group teaching is here to stay and student’s expect and are familiar with this method.

Technology Enhanced Learning may be the way forward, to prevent educators from “throwing out the baby with the bath water”. TEL could help Educator’s especially in the area of life sciences which is often taught by lectures to engage and involve students in their learning, provide feedback and incorporate the “quality” of small group teaching, case studies and Enquiry Based Learning into the large group setting thus promoting effective and deep learning.

The Teaching Space Allocation Problem with splitting

A standard problem within universities is that of teaching space allocation which can be thought of as the assignment of rooms and times to various teaching activities. The focus is usually on courses that are expected to fit into one room. However, it can also happen that the course will need to be broken up, or ‘split’, into multiple sections. A lecture might be too large to fit into any one room. Another common example is that of seminars or tutorials. Although hundreds of students may be enrolled on a course, it is often subdivided into particular types and sizes of events dependent on the pedagogic requirements of that particular course. Typically, decisions as to how to split courses need to be made within the context of limited space requirements. Institutions do not have an unlimited number of teaching rooms, and need to effectively use those that they do have. The efficiency of space usage is usually measured by the overall ‘utilisation’ which is basically the fraction of the available seat-hours that are actually used. A multi-objective optimisation problem naturally arises; with a trade-off between satisfying preferences on splitting, a desire to increase utilisation, and also to satisfy other constraints such as those based on event location and timetabling conflicts. In this paper, we explore such trade-offs. The explorations themselves are based on a local search method that attempts to optimise the space utilisation by means of a ‘dynamic splitting’ strategy. The local moves are designed to improve utilisation and satisfy the other constraints, but are also allowed to split, and un-split, courses so as to simultaneously meet the splitting objectives.

Disabled Children Negotiating School Life: Agency, Difference and Teaching Practice

This paper explores the school experiences of seven 11–14 year old disabled children, and focuses on their agency as they negotiated a complex, changing, and often challenging social world at school where “difference” was experienced in negative ways. The paper draws on ethnographic data from a wider three-year study that explores the influence of school experiences on both disabled and non-disabled children’s identity as they make the transition from primary to secondary school in regular New Zealand schools (although the focus of the present paper is only on the experiences of disabled children). The wider study considers how Maori (indigenous people of Aotearoa/New Zealand) and Pakeha (New Zealanders of NZ European descent) disabled children and their non- disabled matched peers (matched for age, gender and classroom) understand their personal identity, and how factors relating to transition (from primary to secondary school); culture; impairment (in the case of disabled children); social relationships; and school experience impact on children’s identities. Data on Maori children’s school experiences is currently being collected, and is not yet available for inclusion in this paper. On the basis of our observations in schools we will illustrate how disabled children felt and were made to feel different through an array of structural barriers such as separate provision for disabled students, and peer and teacher attitudes to diversity. However, we agree with Davis, Watson, Shakespeare and Corker’s (2003) interpretation that disabled children’s rights and participation at school are also under attack from a “deeper cultural division” (p. 205) in schools based on discourses of difference and normality. While disabled students in our study were trying to actively construct and shape their social and educational worlds, our data also show that teachers and peers have the capacity to either support or supplant these attempts to be part of the group of “all children”. We suggest that finding solutions that support disabled children’s full inclusion and participation at school requires a multi-faceted and systemic approach focused on a pedagogy for diverse learners, and on a consistent and explicitly inclusive policy framework centred on children’s rights.