The effectiveness of interpretive methods in informal educational facilities : an experimental study with reference to marine parks

Interpretation has been used in many tourism sectors as a technique in achieving building hannony between resources and human needs. The objectives of this study are to identify the types of the interpretive methods used, and to evaluate their effectiveness, in marine parks. This study reviews the design principles of an effective interpretation for marine wildlife tourism, and adopts Drams' five design principles (1997) into a conceptual framework. Enjoyment increase, knowledge gain, attitude and intention change, and behaviour modification were used as key indicators in the assessment of the interpretive effectiveness of the Vancouver Aquarium (VA) and Marineland Canada (MC). Since on-site research is unavailable, a virtual tour is created to represent the interpretive experiences in the two study sites. Self-administered questionnaires are used to measure responses. Through comparing responses to the questionnaires (pre-, post-virtual tours and follow-up), this study found that interpretation increased enjoyment and added to respondents' knowledge. Although the changes in attitudes and intentions are not significant, the findings indicate that attitude and intention changes did occur as a result of interpretation, but only to a limited extent. Overall results suggest that more techniques should be added to enhance the effectiveness of the interpretation in marine parks or self-guiding tours, and with careful design, virtual tours are the innovative interpretation techniques for marine parks or informal educational facilities.

Exploring the events that engage graduate students in transformative learning /

This research explored the events that engaged graduate students in transformative learning within a graduate program in education. This context was chosen because one objective of a graduate program is to facilitate critical thinking and transformative learning. The question ofhow adult learners perceive and experience learning steered the direction ofthis study. However, the purpose ofthis research was to study critical incidents that led to profound cognitive and affective changes as perceived by the graduate students. Specifically, the questions to be answered were what critical incidents happened to graduate students while in the Master ofEducation program, how were the incidents experienced, and what transformation resulted? The research design evolved over the course of a year and was highly influenced by previous empirical studies and criticisms oftransformative learning theory. The overall design was qualitative and phenomenological. A critical and interpretive approach was made to empirical data collected through a critical incident questionnaire and in-depth interviews. Inductive analysis allowed theory to be built from the data by making comparisons. New questions emerged and attention was given to social context, the passage oftime, and sequence ofevents in order to give meaning and translation ofthe participants' experiences and to build the interpretive narratives. Deductive analysis was also used on the data and a blending ofthe two forms of analysis; this resulted in the development ofa foundational model for transformative learning to be built.The data revealed critical incidents outside ofthe graduate school program that occurred in childhood or adult life prior to graduate school. Since context of individuals' lives had been an important critique of past transformative learning models and studies, this research expanded the original boundaries of this study beyond graduate school to incorporate incidents that occurred outside of graduate school. Critical incidents were categorized into time-related, people-related, and circumstancerelated themes. It was clear that participants were influenced and molded by the stage oftheir life, personal experiences, familial and cultural conditioning, and even historic events. The model developed in this document fiom an overview ofthe fmdings identifies a four-stage process of life difficulty, disintegration, reintegration, and completion that all participants' followed. The blended analysis was revealed from the description ofhow the incidents were experienced by the participants. The final categories were what were the feelings, what was happening, and what was the enviromnent? The resulting transformation was initially only going to consider cognitive and affective changes, however, it was apparent that contextual changes also occurred for all participants, so this category was also included. The model was described with the construction metaphor of a building "foimdation" to illustrate the variety of conditions that are necessary for transformative learning to occur. Since this was an exploratory study, no prior models or processes were used in data analysis, however, it appeared that the model developed from this study incorporated existing models and provided a more encompassing life picture oftransformative learning.

Identification and description of the development of the relationships between mentor and mentee teachers in the Halton Board of Education "Partners in the Classroom" Program

Fifteen mentoring pairs of teachers were randomly selected from each group of teachers that had participated in the Halton Board of Education "Partners in the Classroom" program during 1988/89, 1989/90, and 1990/91. Each teacher was personally interviewed. Interviews were recorded, transcriptions were prepared and examined and analyzed. During the first part of the interview questions were asked regarding personal and professional demographics. The purpose of the second part of the interview was to gain information relating to the development of the relationships, over a three-year period, between mentor and mentee teacher participants in the "Partners in the Classroom" program. The analysis of the data suggest that there are identifiable changes in the development of the relationship between the mentor teacher and the mentee teacher over time. Implications from the study results that could enhance the induction program for new teachers are discussed.

A qualitative journey into cyberspace /

Educators should movefrom teacher-centered learning to student-centered learning, from isolated work to collaborative work, andfromfactual knowledgebased instructions to critical thinking and informed decision-making. The high tech classroom should be more interactive and encourage active, exploratory, inquiry-based learning, as opposed to the didactic mode in which teachersfeed students information. (Valenti,2000, p. 85) The influence of technology in schools is growing as quickly as the students it impacts. As a pioneer in an e-leaming high school, I hoped to better understand the effects and influences of this learning tool in the English classroom. Using interpretive ethnography as my main frame of reference, I examined the role of technology in a grade 9 Academic English class environment. My role was participant observer as I worked with 4 students in the Laptop Program at St. Augustine Catholic High School. Through interview, observation, joumaling, and thick description, I undertook a journey into cyberspace. I documented the experiences, the frustrations, and the highlights of being in e-leaming along with my students. In this study, I specifically considered the issues of teacher training, administrative support, technology support personnel, resource availability, the role of the teacher in a constructivist classroom, and the benefits of the laptop computer as a learning tool in classroom and school.

The wonders of Niagara : a visit to America's greatest cataract with a description of the points of interest in a region of scenic grandeur and beauty.

Cover title.

Tunis's topographical and pictorial guide to Niagara : containing, also, a description of the route through Canada, and the great northern route, from Niagara Falls to Montreal, Boston, and Saratoga Springs. Also, full and accurate tables of distances on all railroads running to and from Niagara Falls. --

Cover title: Tunis's guide to Niagara and traveller's companion, illustrated.

A New guide to Niagara Falls and vicinity : giving a full and complete description of Niagara Falls, suspension bridge, Buffalo, Rochester, Ontario beach, Toronto, Lockport, Tonawanda, Lewiston, Niagara-on-the-Lake, Chautauqua, and other places of interest. --

Cover title: Illustrated guide to Niagara Falls and vicinity.

Old and new views of Niagara Falls : with short description /

On cover: Niagara.