The bees of Niagara: a test of the intermediate disturbance hypothesis /

This study examined the bee fauna of the Carolinian Zone in Ontario, Canada. In 2003, 15687 individuals from 152 species of bees were collected. Tliere were many rare species but few abundant species. There were three distinct bee seasons. The Niagara bee assemblage was less diverse compared to other Carolinian Zone assemblages and types of landscapes. This study also examined how anthropogenic disturbance affects the diversity of bee assemblages. The intermediate disturbance hypothesis (IDH) was tested by selecting field sites subject to low, intermediate, and high disturbance. Intermediate disturbance had the highest species richness (SR=1 15) and most bees (N=556I), followed by low disturbance (SR= 100, N=2975), then high disturbance (SR=72, N=1364), supporting the IDH. Increased species richness in areas of intermediate disturbance was due to higher abundance, possibly because more blooming flowers were found there. Bees were larger in high disturbance areas but smaller in areas of high and intermediate disturbance.

The generation effect and word learning: a test of the effect of the language experience approach versus the text approach in the acquisition of new reading vocabulary

A class of twenty-two grade one children was tested to determine their reading levels using the Stanford Diagnostic Reading Achievement Test. Based on these results and teacher input the students were paired according to reading ability. The students ages ranged from six years four months to seven years four months at the commencement of the study. Eleven children were assigned to the language experience group and their partners became the text group. Each member of the language experience group generated a list of eight to be learned words. The treatment consisted of exposing the student to a given word three times per session for ten sessions, over a period of five days. The dependent variables consisted of word identification speed, word identification accuracy, and word recognition accuracy. Each member of the text group followed the same procedure using his/her partner's list of words. Upon completion of this training, the entire process was repeated with members of the text group from the first part becoming members of the language experience group and vice versa. The results suggest that generally speaking language experience words are identified faster than text words but that there is no difference in the rate at which these words are learned. Language experience words may be identified faster because the auditory-semantic information is more readily available in them than in text words. The rate of learning in both types of words, however, may be dictated by the orthography of the to be learned word.

Valuing and encouraging critical reflection in pre-service teacher education

This qualitative study was designed to investigate aspects related to valuing and encouraging critical reflection in pre-service teacher education. An examination of the place and function of practicum logbooks as used at Covenant Canadian Reformed Teachers' College, a small private college which offers pre-service teacher education formed the core of the research. An analysis of the practicum logbooks written by five student teachers during three different practicum placements was performed at two levels. First, a content analysis served to identify general and specific categories within the practice teaching contextas a learning experience. Secondly, in-depth intuitive and thematic analyses of the entries which related specifically to reflection as a learning experience gave rise to critical questions. Throughout the process, the five participants formed an active and involved group of co-researchers, adding their voices to the narrative of the learning experience. Variables such as personality type, learning style and self-directedness added a dimension which deepened and emiched the study. The result of the study suggests that practicum logbooks form a valuable base for valuing and encouraging critical reflection in pre-service teacher education. The results also suggest that not all students appear to be equally capable of critical reflection. Recognizing that teacher education exists as a continuum appears to support the findings that in their journey along this continuum, student teachers not only move from reflection-on-action to reflection-in-action, but also from content to process to premise reflection. An awareness of contributing factors such as personality type, degree of risk-taking, preferred learning style and self-directedness on the part of teacher-educators will serve to create a climate of trust in which student teachers can safely develop critical reflection, using practicum logbooks as one possible medium.

An unusual postharvest spotting disease of the comercial mushroom, Agaricus bisporus, caused by a novel pathovar of Pseudomonas tolaasii

An unusual postharvest spotting disease of the commercial mushroom, Agaricus bisporus, which was observed on a commercial mushroom farm in Ontario, was found to be caused by a novel pathovar of Pseudomonas tolaasii. Isolations from the discoloured lesions, on the mushroom pilei, revealed the presence of several different bacterial and fungal genera. The most frequently isolated genus being Pseudomonas bacteria. The most frequently isolated fungal genus was Penicillium. Of the bacteria and fungi assayed for pathogenicity to mushrooms, only Pseudomonas tolaasii was able to reproduce the postharvest spotting symptom. This symptom was typically reproduced 1 to 7 days postharvest, when mushroom pilei were inoculated with 101 to 105 cfu. Of the fungi tested for pathogenicity only a Penicillium sp. and Verticillium fungicola were shown to be pathogenic, however, neither produced the postharvest spotting symptom. The Pseudomonas tolaasii strain isolated from the postharvest lesions differed from a type culture (Pseudomonas tolaasii ATCC 33618) in the symptoms it produced on Agaricus bisporus pilei under the same conditions and at the same inoculum concentration. It was therefore designated a pathovar. This strain also differed from the type culture in its cellular protein profile. Neither the type culture, nor the mushroom pathogen was found to contain plasmid DNA. The presence of plasmid DNA is therefore not responsible for the difference in pathogenicity between the two strains.

An examination of how youth understand their rights during the criminal process

In order for young people to meaningfully participate in the criminal justice system they must possess an understanding of their rights and legal procedures. To examine their understanding, 50 young people between the ages of 13-17 who received an extrajudicial sanction or were sentenced to probation, were recruited from the Finch Courthouse in Toronto, Ontario. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with participants regarding their understanding of their due process rights and their rights under the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child. Youth who indicated involvement in plea bargaining were also asked about their experiences during this procedure. In addition, the present study examined youths' perceptions of power differences in their interactions with criminal justice officials working within an institution that has tremendous control over offenders' lives. The results indicate that while youth seem to have some understanding oftheir rights and legal procedures, they nevertheless feel ill-equipped to invoke their rights in an adult-led criminal justice system. Furthermore, while past literature has often conceptualized youth understanding based on age (e.g., Crawford & Bull, 2006) the findings of the present study demonstrate that while age plays some role, the lack of power experienced by youth vis-a-vis adults, and specifically criminal justice professionals, has the most bearing on the inability of youth to exercise their rights.

Lived Experiences: An Exploration of Teachers' Thoughts and Feelings While Implementing an Antibullying Initiative

This qualitative case study explored elementary school teachers' lived experiences and perceptions surrounding the implementation of an antibullying program within the public school system. The purpose of this study was to share the individual stories of teachers who have implemented an antibullying initiative and how their journey into the bullying phenomenon changed their personal beliefs, their students, and their school climate. Five elementary school teachers (3 female, 2 male) from 5 different public schools in a southwestern region of Ontario completed 8 closed-ended questions and participated in l-on-l semistructured interviews. All 5 teachers had implemented the "Imagine ... A School Without Bullying" initiative or were involved with its predecessor the "Good Kid Sid" pilot project. The interviews were audiotaped and transcribed. The data were coded, and broad themes were reduced to a smaller number of topics where a more in-depth analysis occurred. Findings showed that reports of bullying existed at each of the schools. All 5 teachers felt their initiative was making a positive difference in their school; however this did not come without some resistance from staff. A common finding heard from all of their stories was the need for more time. Implications for antibullying initiatives are discussed, and advice to anyone beginning an antibullying initiative is offered by each of the 5 teachers involved in this study.

A Qualitative Study of the Professional Experiences of Teachers With Mobility Challenges and Their Self-Perceptions of Professional Success

This qualitative investigation explored the professional experiences of 3 Ontario teachers who have mobility challenges. The study’s participants (2 male and 1 female) were Ontario teachers who have permanent physical disabilities that challenge their means of mobility. Each participant has an Ontario Certified Teaching License and has either taught or is currently teaching in an Ontario school. My primary source of data collection was a semi-structured face-to-face interview with each participant. The focus of the interview was participant perspectives. Data analysis was accomplished in 3 phases. Data analysis generated 5 prominent themes of commonality among participants: (a) independence and sacrifice, (b) living with pain, (c) barriers and obstacles, (d) the importance of communication, and (e) professional benefits and personal rewards.

Genetic and Electrophysiological Correlates of Self-Regulation in Adolescence

Self-regulation is considered a powerful predictor of behavioral and mental health outcomes during adolescence and emerging adulthood. In this dissertation I address some electrophysiological and genetic correlates of this important skill set in a series of four studies. Across all studies event-related potentials (ERPs) were recorded as participants responded to tones presented in attended and unattended channels in an auditory selective attention task. In Study 1, examining these ERPs in relation to parental reports on the Behavior Rating Inventory of Executive Function (BRIEF) revealed that an early frontal positivity (EFP) elicited by to-be-ignored/unattended tones was larger in those with poorer self-regulation. As is traditionally found, N1 amplitudes were more negative for the to-be-attended rather than unattended tones. Additionally, N1 latencies to unattended tones correlated with parent-ratings on the BRIEF, where shorter latencies predicted better self-regulation. In Study 2 I tested a model of the associations between selfregulation scores and allelic variations in monoamine neurotransmitter genes, and their concurrent links to ERP markers of attentional control. Allelic variations in dopaminerelated genes predicted both my ERP markers and self-regulatory variables, and played a moderating role in the association between the two. In Study 3 I examined whether training in Integra Mindfulness Martial Arts, an intervention program which trains elements of self-regulation, would lead to improvement in ERP markers of attentional control and parent-report BRIEF scores in a group of adolescents with self-regulatory difficulties. I found that those in the treatment group amplified their processing of attended relative to unattended stimuli over time, and reduced their levels of problematic behaviour whereas those in the waitlist control group showed little to no change on both of these metrics. In Study 4 I examined potential associations between self-regulation and attentional control in a group of emerging adults. Both event-related spectral perturbations (ERSPs) and intertrial coherence (ITC) in the alpha and theta range predicted individual differences in self-regulation. Across the four studies I was able to conclude that real-world self-regulation is indeed associated with the neural markers of attentional control. Targeted interventions focusing on attentional control may improve self-regulation in those experiencing difficulties in this regard.