The impact of a digital children's literature program on primary students' reading motivation

This qualitative study stemmed from a concern of the perceived decline in students' reading motivation after the early years of schooling, which has been attributed to the disconnect between the media students are accustomed to using outside the classroom and the media they predominantly use within the classroom. This research documented the effectiveness of a digital children's literature program and a postreading multimedia program on eight grade 1 students' reading motivation, word recognition, and comprehension abilities. Eight students were given ten 25-minute sessions with the software program over 15 weeks. Preprogram, interim-program, and postprogram qualitative data were collected from students, teachers, and parents through questionnaires, interviews, standardized reading assessment tools, classroom observations, field notes, and student behaviour observation checklists. Findings are summarized into 3 themes. The motivational aspects and constructivist styles of instruction in the digital reading programs may have contributed to 5 student participants' increased participation in online storybook reading at home. Qualitative data revealed that the digital children's literature program and multimedia postreading activities seemed to have a positive influence on the majority of grade 1 student participants' reading motivation, word recognition, and listening comprehension skills. These findings suggest the promise of multimedia and Internet-based reading software programs in supporting students with reading andlor behavioural difficulties. In keeping with current educational initiatives and efforts, increased use of media literacy practices in the grade 1 curriculum is suggested.

Experiences with cultural capital in education : exploring the educational life stories of first-generation postsecondary students

This study used a life history research design to explore first-generation university students' educational life stories and experiences with cultural capital. The project sought to examine how 3 first-generation university students experience cultural capital that is privileged in Ontario's education system and how the interactions between capital acquired through experiences within the home and school and capital privileged by the education system affect these students' educational experiences and perceptions. Using Pierre Bourdieu's (1984; 1986) theory of cultural capital as a framework, 3 firstgeneration, first-year university students participated in two 1- to 2-hour interviews. A focus on each participant's experiences with culture, capital, and education revealed themes corresponding to navigating, utilizing, and confronting familial, institutional, economic, and embodied forms of cultural capital. The study highlights the importance of recognizing how cultural capital influences the education system and how firstgeneration students can recreate normative pathways and achieve academic success despite challenges posed by the cultural capital privileged within the education system. Given cultural capital's effect on academic success, understanding first-generation students' educational life stories sheds light on the complex challenges facing students who confront and deal with privileged culture in the education system.

Ties From My Father: Personal Narrative as a Tool for Engaging Teenagers and Social Service Practitioners

The purpose of this project is to provide social service practitioners with tools and perspectives to engage young people in a process of developing and connecting with their own personal narratives, and storytelling with others. This project extensively reviews the literature to explore Why Story, What Is Story, Future Directions of Story, and Challenges of Story. Anchoring this exploration is Freire’s (1970/2000) intentional uncovering and decoding. Taking a phenomenological approach, I draw additionally on Brookfield’s (1995) critical reflection; Delgado (1989) and McLaren (1998) for subversive narrative; and Robin (2008) and Sadik (2008) for digital storytelling. The recommendations provided within this project include a practical model built upon Baxter Magolda and King’s (2004) process towards self-authorship for engaging an exercise of storytelling that is accessible to practitioners and young people alike. A personal narrative that aims to help connect lived experience with the theoretical content underscores this project. I call for social service practitioners to engage their own personal narratives in an inclusive and purposeful storytelling method that enhances their ability to help the young people they serve develop and share their stories.

Joanna E. Wood short stories, 1898-1900

Joanna Ellen Wood (1867-1927) was an acclaimed Canadian author who wrote several novels and short stories. Wood was born in Scotland, but emigrated to Canada with her family in 1869. In 1874 her father purchased a farm overlooking the Niagara River at Queenston. It is believed she was supported by her brother William, who encouraged her writing. She was based in New York City from 1887-1901, using William’s business address there to receive correspondence while she traveled or spent time in Queenston. Around 1906, Wood moved with her mother to Niagara-on-the-Lake, where she joined the Niagara Historical Society. By 1914, she was living in Buffalo, but later spent time at her sisters’ homes. It was at her sister’s home in Detroit where she suffered a stroke and died in 1927. Wood’s literary career was short-lived. She published her first novel, The Untempered Wind , in 1894, and a second novel, Judith Moore …, in 1898. Both novels received critical acclaim, and a third novel, Farden Ha', followed in 1902. Unfortunately the majority of Wood’s numerous and award-winning writings cannot be found. Her career peaked in 1901, when she was the highest paid Canadian fiction writer. For unknown reasons, her career abruptly ceased in 1902, with no further publications or mention made of her in the Canadian Magazine.

Adult Learning in the Transformational Environments of the Digital Revolution: Connecting Theory and Practice

The purpose of this study was to investigate the learning preferences and the post-secondary educational experiences of a group of Net-Gen adult learners, aged between 18 and 35, currently working in the knowledge economy workplace, and their assessment of how adequately they were prepared to meet the requirements of the knowledge economy workplace. This study utilized an explanatory mixed-method research design. Participants completed a questionnaire providing information on their self-reported learning style preferences, their use of digital tools for formal and informal learning, their use of digital technologies in postsecondary educational experiences, and their use of digital technologies in their workplace. Four volunteers from the questionnaire respondents were selected to participate in interviews based on the diversity of their experiences in higher education, including digital environments, and the diversity of their knowledge economy workplaces. Data collected from the questionnaire were analyzed for descriptive and demographic statistics, and categorized so that common patterns could be identified from information gathered from the online questionnaire and interviews. Findings based on this study indicated that these Net-Gen adult learners were fluent with all types of digital technologies in collaborative environments, expecting their educational experiences to provide a similar experience. Participants clearly expressed an understanding that digital/collaborative aptitudes are essential to successful employment in the knowledge economy workplace. The findings of this study indicated that the majority of participants felt that their post-secondary educational experiences did not adequately prepare them to meet the expectations of this type of working environment.

Métis or Moniyâw: Explorative stories of decolonizing my Métis identity

This thesis explores my emergent processes of identifying as a Métis person through autoethnographic narratives. I provide an overview of Métis history, identification, and decolonization, especially written by and for Aboriginal peoples. Using a decolonizing framework of Indigenous métissage (Donald, 2012) – which brings together complex, and nuanced influences to build knowledge – and an autoethnographic methodology, I explore cultural knowledges through critical self-reflection. I collected autoethnographic data in the form of personal journals and family artifacts; additionally, I shared conversations with other Métis peoples, which I used to further inform my own processes of identification and decolonization. The study results are presented as narrative vignettes, offering conclusions about: a) cultural ambivalence; b) privilege; c) language and music reclamation; and d) building relationships with both people and land. This research builds upon literature by, about, and for the benefit of Aboriginal peoples and settlers and offers considerations relevant to decolonization and identification.

Stories of Informal Mentorship: Recognizing the Voices of Mentees in Academic Libraries

Based on the 2014 OLA Super Conference session “Mentorship in Academic Libraries: A Universe of Possibilities,” this article explores the benefits of informal mentorship in its various forms and how librarians are embracing a new way of thinking about mentorship both individually and organizationally. The lived experiences of two professional academic librarians are shared as they argue that informal mentorship offers the opportunity to co-create a meaningful mentorship experience by recognizing the importance of the mentee’s voice. This paper will discuss the value of informal mentorship and how, when certain elements are present within it, this model can allow us to reimagine mentorship in academic libraries. Concepts such as “accidental” mentorship, “purposeful” mentorship, mentorship “network,” and “peer” mentorship are discussed.

QUANTIFICATION AND EXTRACTION OF SURFACE FEATURES FROM DIGITAL TERRAIN MODELS

Digital Terrain Models (DTMs) are important in geology and geomorphology, since elevation data contains a lot of information pertaining to geomorphological processes that influence the topography. The first derivative of topography is attitude; the second is curvature. GIS tools were developed for derivation of strike, dip, curvature and curvature orientation from Digital Elevation Models (DEMs). A method for displaying both strike and dip simultaneously as colour-coded visualization (AVA) was implemented. A plug-in for calculating strike and dip via Least Squares Regression was created first using VB.NET. Further research produced a more computationally efficient solution, convolution filtering, which was implemented as Python scripts. These scripts were also used for calculation of curvature and curvature orientation. The application of these tools was demonstrated by performing morphometric studies on datasets from Earth and Mars. The tools show promise, however more work is needed to explore their full potential and possible uses.