Tacit Pedagogical Knowing: At the Core of Teacher's Professionality

The purpose of this research was to examine class teachers' interactive pedagogical thinking and action, in other words their tacit pedagogical knowing. Tacit pedagogical knowing was defined as a process in interactive teaching situation, through which a teacher finds solutions to surprising and challenging situations, pedagogical moments, so that the lesson continues. Teachers are able to describe their tacit pedagogical knowing afterwards and also find some reasons for it as well. More specifically, the aim was to study, 1) how does a class teacher's tacit pedagogical knowing appear in teacher's actions, and 2) what kinds of contents include in class teacher's tacit pedagogical knowing. The research material was gathered from four class teachers by videotaping their lessons and by stimulated recall interviews. In addition to this, the researcher spent a relatively long time in the research participants' classrooms. She conducted initial interviews and orientating observations by means of participant observation in order to get to know the participants and their contexts better. A phenomenologically oriented approach, which proceeded by following abductive logic, was used in the analysis procedures of the videotaped and stimulated recall data. In addition to this, correlation examinations were used in the validation of stimulated recall data analyses. The appearance of the tacit pedagogical knowing was observed in the videotaped data. The contents of tacit pedagogical knowing were defined by the analyses of stimulated recall data. According to the research results, a class teacher's tacit pedagogical knowing appears in the maintenance of the pedagogical relation, the teacher's relation to content, and the didactical relation. The contents of class teacher's tacit pedagogical knowing were many sided. The maintenance of the pedagogical relation, the teacher's relation to content, and the didactical relation were elements of the contents as well. In addition to these, the maintenance of teacher's pedagogical authority, the maintenance of the student's role or pedagogical authority, and the awareness of the nature of the content of instruction are included in the contents of teacher's tacit pedagogical knowing. The phenomenon of tacit pedagogical knowing was observed to be clearly a process-like and relational phenomenon. Based on the research results, a model of teacher's tacit pedagogical knowing was developed. Using the model, it is possible to illustrate the factors that are at the core of teacher's professionality. This model could be used in the context of teacher education, supervision, or in-service training.

Social Influence and Blood Donation: Cultural Differences Between Scotland and Australia

People can be motivated to carryout behaviours which contribute to improvement of quality of life for reasons driven by cultural norms. There is a common perception that people within a cultural cluster, particularly one with a common language such as English, will exhibit similar consumer behaviours. However there is an emerging field of research investigating intra-cultural differences in marketing that challenges this perception. In particular, the role of peers and norms as drivers of altruistic behaviours that benefit society may differ between these countries. Altruism is an important motivation for pro-social behaviours such as blood donation, water conservation and peer counselling for health problems. Understanding the social influences for these behaviours assists marketers to develop programs that meet the needs of donors and potential donors. An ongoing foundation of altruistic consumers is essential for delivering services that improve quality of life for people. Without blood donors, there would be no blood products for cancer sufferers or accident victims, without a sufficient water supply the quality of life for residents would be compromised and without breastfeeding peer counselling, new mothers and their babies would have reduced quality of life. This chapter reports the findings of two online surveys with Scottish and Australian blood donors and demonstrates differences in the way social norms influence donation behaviour, and importantly different impacts of cultural factors in the two populations.

Weed eradication - an economic perspective

There has been recent interest in determining the upper limits to the feasibility of weed eradication. Although a number of disparate factors determine the success of an eradication program, ultimately eradication feasibility must be viewed in the context of the amount of investment that can be made. The latter should reflect the hazard posed by an invasion, with greater investment justified by greater threats. In simplest terms, the effort (and hence investment) to achieve weed eradication comprises the detection effort required to delimit an invasion plus the search and control effort required to prevent reproduction until extirpation occurs over the entire infested area. The difficulty of estimating the required investment at the commencement of a weed eradication program (as well as during periodic reviews) is a serious problem. Bioeconomics show promise in determining the optimal approach to managing weed invasions, notwithstanding ongoing difficulties in estimating the costs and benefits of eradication and alternative invasion management strategies. A flexible approach to the management of weed invasions is needed, allowing for the adoption of another strategy when it becomes clear that the probability of eradication is low, owing to resourcing or intractable technical issues. Whether the considerable progress that has been achieved towards eradication of the once massive witchweed invasion can be duplicated for other weeds of agricultural systems will depend to a large extent upon investment (. $250 million over 50 yr in this instance). Weeds of natural ecosystems seem destined to remain more difficult eradication targets for a variety of reasons, including higher impedance to eradication, more difficulty in valuing the benefits arising from eradication, and possibly less willingness to pay from society at large.

Poor adoption of ley-pastures in south-west Queensland: biophysical, economic and social constraints.

The present review identifies various constraints relating to poor adoption of ley-pastures in south-west Queensland, and suggests changes in research, development and extension efforts for improved adoption. The constraints include biophysical, economic and social constraints. In terms of biophysical constraints, first, shallower soil profiles with subsoil constraints (salt and sodicity), unpredictable rainfall, drier conditions with higher soil temperature and evaporative demand in summer, and frost and subzero temperature in winter, frequently result in a failure of established, or establishing, pastures. Second, there are limited options for legumes in a ley-pasture, with the legumes currently being mostly winter-active legumes such as lucerne and medics. Winter-active legumes are ineffective in improving soil conditions in a region with summer-dominant rainfall. Third, most grain growers are reluctant to include grasses in their ley-pasture mix, which can be uneconomical for various reasons, including nitrogen immobilisation, carryover of cereal diseases and depressed yields of the following cereal crops. Fourth, a severe depletion of soil water following perennial ley-pastures (grass + legumes or lucerne) can reduce the yields of subsequent crops for several seasons, and the practice of longer fallows to increase soil water storage may be uneconomical and damaging to the environment. Economic assessments of integrating medium- to long-term ley-pastures into cropping regions are generally less attractive because of reduced capital flow, increased capital investment, economic loss associated with establishment and termination phases of ley-pastures, and lost opportunities for cropping in a favourable season. Income from livestock on ley-pastures and soil productivity gains to subsequent crops in rotation may not be comparable to cropping when grain prices are high. However, the economic benefits of ley-pastures may be underestimated, because of unaccounted environmental benefits such as enhanced water use, and reduced soil erosion from summer-dominant rainfall, and therefore, this requires further investigation. In terms of social constraints, the risk of poor and unreliable establishment and persistence, uncertainties in economic and environmental benefits, the complicated process of changing from crop to ley-pastures and vice versa, and the additional labour and management requirements of livestock, present growers socially unattractive and complex decision-making processes for considering adoption of an existing medium- to long-term ley-pasture technology. It is essential that research, development and extension efforts should consider that new ley-pasture options, such as incorporation of a short-term summer forage legume, need to be less risky in establishment, productive in a region with prevailing biophysical constraints, economically viable, less complex and highly flexible in the change-over processes, and socially attractive to growers for adoption in south-west Queensland.

Domestication for Conservation of an Endangered Species: The Case of the Wollemi Pine

A small population of tall slender conifers was discovered in 1994 in a deep rainforest canyon of the Wollemi National Park, New SouthWales, Australia. The living trees closely resembled fossils that were more than 65 million years old, and this ‘living fossil’ was recognised as a third extant genus in the Araucariaceae (Araucaria, Agathis and now Wollemia). The species was named the Wollemi pine (W. nobilis). Extensive searches uncovered very few populations, with the total number of adult trees being less than 100. Ex situ collections were quickly established in Sydney as part of the Wollemi Pine Recovery Plan. The majority of the ex situ population was later transferred to our custom-built facility in Queensland for commercial multiplication. Domestication has relied very heavily on the species’ amenability to vegetative propagation because seed collection from the natural populations is dangerous, expensive, and undesirable for conservation reasons. Early propagation success was poor, with only about 25% of cuttings producing roots. However, small increases in propagation success have a very large impact on a domestication program because plant production can be modelled on an exponential curve where each rooted cutting develops into a mother plant that, in turn, provides more rooted cuttings. An extensive research program elevated rooting percentages to greater than 80% and also provided in vitro methods for plant multiplication. These successes have enabled international release of the Wollemi pine as a new and attractive species for ornamental horticulture.

Why are students choosing STEM and when do they make their choice?

BACKGROUND OR CONTEXT The higher education sector plays an important role in encouraging students into the STEM pipeline through fostering partnerships with schools, building on universities long tradition in engagement and outreach to secondary schools. Numerous activities focus on integrated STEM learning experiences aimed at developing conceptual scientific and mathematical knowledge with opportunities for students to show and develop skills in working with each other and actively engaging in discussion, decision making and collaborative problem solving. (NAS, 2013; AIG, 2015; OCS, 2014). This highlights the importance of the development and delivery of engaging integrated STEM activities connected to the curriculum to inspire the next generation of scientists and engineers and generally preparing students for post-secondary success. The broad research objective is to gain insight into which engagement activities and to what level they influence secondary school students’ selection of STEM-related career choices at universities. PURPOSE OR GOAL To evaluate and determine the effectiveness of STEM engagement activities impacting student decision making in choosing a STEM-related degree choice at university. APPROACH A survey was conducted with first-year domestic students studying STEM-related fieldswithin the Science and Engineering Faculty at Queensland University of Technology. Of the domestic students commencing in 2015, 29% responded to the survey. The survey was conducted using Survey Monkey and included a variety of questions ranging from academic performance at school to inspiration for choosing a STEM degree. Responses were analysed on a range of factors to evaluate the influence on students’ decisions to study STEM and whether STEM high school engagement activities impacted these decisions. To achieve this the timing of decision making for students choice in study area, degree, and university is compared with the timing of STEM engagement activities. DISCUSSION Statistical analysis using SPSS was carried out on survey data looking at reasons for choosing STEM degrees in terms of gender, academic performance and major influencers in their decision making. It was found that students choose their university courses based on what subjects they enjoyed and exceled at in school. These results found a high correlation between enjoyment of a school subject and their interest in pursuing this subject at university and beyond. Survey results indicated students are heavily influenced by their subject teachers and parents in their choice of STEM-related disciplines. In terms of career choice and when students make their decision, 60% have decided on a broad area of study by year 10, whilst only 15% had decided on a specific course and 10% had decided on which university. The timing of secondary STEM engagement activities is seen as a critical influence on choosing STEM disciplines or selection of senior school subjects with 80% deciding on specific degree between year 11 and 12 and 73% making a decision on which university in year 12. RECOMMENDATIONS/IMPLICATIONS/CONCLUSION Although the data does not support that STEM engagement activities increase the likelihood of STEM-related degree choice, the evidence suggests the students who have participated in STEM activities associate their experiences with their choice to pursue a STEM-related course. It is important for universities to continue to provide quality engaging and inspirational learning experiences in STEM, to identify and build on students’ early interest and engagement, increase STEM knowledge and awareness, engage them in interdisciplinary project-based STEM practices, and provide them with real-world application experiences to sustain their interest.

Teologian opiskelijoiden henkilökohtaiset projektit ja opintomenestys

Motivation and personal goals play an important role in the ways in which people direct their behavior. Personal goals are closely connected with well-being but they also relate to how people perform in different achievement domains. Many studies show that evaluating study-related goals as important, easy to attain and non stressful, predict better academic achievements than evaluating them as non attainable and stressful (Salmela-Aro & Nurmi, 1997b). The aim of this study was to describe motivational factors among theology students. They form an interesting group in terms of exploring connections between motivation, spiritual goals and academic achievements. The average duration of graduation at the Faculty of Theology is among the highest at the University of Helsinki. On the other hand, it may be assumed that many theology students have spiritual goals which affect their studies. A special focus was paid on the different evaluations of study-related personal projects and how they are related to academic achievement. A methodology of personal projects (Little, 1983) was used to study what kind of personal goals theology students are engaged in during their studies. In the first part of the questionnaire the subjects (N=133) were asked to describe important personal projects. They were given four numbered lines for their written responses. In the second part the subjects were asked to rate projects concerning their studies according to 13 dimensions using a 7-point Likert-scale. Three subgroups were formed on a K-Means Cluster Analysis on the basis of evaluations of the study-related projects. The groups were named committed, self-fulfillers and non-committed according to their evaluations of their study related projects. Academic achievements among the different groups varied substantially. After two years of studying the students who were in the committed group had completed on an average twenty study credits more than those who were in the non-committed group. Self-fulfillers placed in the middle of the three groups. Committed and self-fulfiller students also reported higher levels of intrinsic reasons for striving towards study-related goals. The results indicate that goals reported at the beginning of studies predicted academic achievement later on. The results also showed that different evaluations of goals have long lasting connections to progress in studying. Implications for student well-being and how these results can be utilized for student counseling are discussed.

Erityisopetus muutoksen kynnyksellä - tilastollinen kuvaus erityisopetusjärjestelmästä ja sen määrällisestä kehityksestä 1970-luvun lopulta vuoteen 2008

The number of Finnish pupils attending special education has increased for more than a decade (Tilastokeskus 1999, 2000, 2001, 2003, 2004, 2005a, 2006b, 2007b, 2008b, 2008e, 2009b; Virtanen ja Ratilainen 1996). In the year 2007 nearly third of Finnish comprehensive school pupils took part in special needs education. According to the latest statistics, in the autumn of 2008 approximately 47 000 pupils have been admitted or transferred to special education and approximately 126 000 pupils received part-time special education during the 2007 - 2008 academic year. (Tilastokeskus 2008b, 2009b.) The Finnish special education system is currently under review. The Reform, both in legislation and in practice, began nationwide in the year 2008 (e.g. Special education strategy document, November 2007 and the development project Kelpo). The aim of the study was the statistical description of the Finnish special education system and on the other hand to gain a deeper understanding about the Finnish special education system and its quantitative increase, by analysis based on the nationwide statistical information. Earlier studies have shown that the growth in special education is affected by multiple independent variables and cannot be solely explained by the pupil characteristics. The statistical overview and analysis have been carried out in two parts. In the first part, the description and analysis were based on statistical time series from the academic year 1979 -1980 until 2008. While, in the second, more detailed description and analysis, based on comparable time series from 1995 to 2008 and from 2001-2002 to 2007-2008, is presented. Historical perspective was one part of this study. There was an attempt to find reasons explaining the observed growth in the special needs education from late 1960s to 2008. The majority of the research was based on the nationwide statistics information. In addition to this, materials including educational legislation literature, different kind of records of special education and preceding studies were also used to support the research. The main results of the study, are two statistical descriptions and time series analysis of the quantitative increase of the special needs education. Further, a summary of the plausible factors behind the special education system change and its quantitative increase, is presented. The conclusions coming from the study can be summarised as follows: the comparable statistical time series analysis suggests that the growth in special education after the year 1999 could be a consequence of the changes in the structure of special education and that new group of pupils have been directed to special needs education. Keywords: Special education, comprehensive school, description, statistics, change

Unpredictability, invisibility and vulnerability: Unaccompanied asylum-seeking minors’ journeys to Australia

This qualitative study investigated the refugee journey of 17 males who arrived in Australia as unaccompanied asylum-seeking minors between 2009 and 2013, and were granted protection visas. The paper focuses on the four conceptual challenges of refugee journeys, as identified recently by BenEzer and Zetter: temporal characteristics; drivers and destinations; the process/content of the journey; and the characteristics of the wayfarers. The findings indicate that their mental journey has not yet ended and transcends the physical departure-arrival voyage. Although the primary drivers for the refugee journey were protection reasons, their desire to find a “better life” free from violence and exclusion also played an important role. The irregular character of the journey made it highly unpredictable, exposed these minors to extreme levels of vulnerability and the need to remain invisible, prompted short lived friendships with other asylum seekers, and created a pervasive feeling of mistrust towards smugglers and other people they met along the way. The study has highlighted the need for interventions to protect unaccompanied minors during their refugee journey.

Amenity grasses for salt-affected parks in coastal Australia

In February 2004, Redland Shire Council with help from a Horticulture Australia research project was able to establish a stable grass cover of seashore paspalum (Paspalum vaginatum) on a Birkdale park where the soil had previously proved too salty to grow anything else. Following on from their success with this small 0.2 ha demonstration area, Redland Shire has since invested hundreds of thousands of dollars in successfully turfing other similarly “impossible” park areas with seashore paspalum. Urban salinity can arise for different reasons in different places. In inland areas such as southern NSW and the WA wheatbelt, the usual cause is rising groundwater bringing salt to the surface. In coastal sites, salt spray or periodic tidal inundation can result in problems. In Redland Shire’s case, the issue was compacted marine sediments (mainly mud) dug up and dumped to create foreshore parkland in the course of artificial canal developments. At Birkdale, this had created a site that was both strongly acid and too salty for most plants. Bare saline scalds were interspersed by areas of unthrifty grass. Finding a salt tolerant grass is no “silver bullet” or easy solution to salinity problems. Rather, it buys time to implement sustainable long-term establishment and maintenance practices, which are even more critical than with conventional turfgrasses. These practices include annual slicing or coring in conjunction with gypsum/dolomite amendment and light topdressing with sandy loam soil (to about 1 cm depth), adequate maintenance fertiliser, weed control measures, regular leaching irrigation was applied to flush salts below the root zone, and irrigation scheduling to maximise infiltration and minimise run off. Three other halophytic turfgrass species were also identified, each of them adapted to different environments, management regimes and uses. These have been shortlisted for larger-scale plantings in future work.

Sugarcane smut after three years: a policy retrospective.

The detection of sugarcane smut disease (Ustilago scitaminea) in the Bundaberg-Childers region of eastern Australia in 2006 triggered a comprehensive and united response from BSES Limited, Queensland Government and CANEGROWERS. The response to sugarcane smut in the Bundaberg-Childers area was the first test for the Emergency Plant Pest Response Deed, an agreement between Australian governments and plant industries to facilitate a response to a plant pest incursion. As part of this response and the subsequent inquiry, economic models of the likely pattern of spread and cost of the smut epidemic were prepared. This paper reviews the predictions of those models in the light of the subsequent three years' experience. It examines reasons for divergence from the modelled outcomes, some of which were good approximations of actual experience.

Demokratiaa luokkahuoneessa : Toimintatutkimus kolmasluokkalaisten osallistamisesta päätöksentekoon

The crucial questions that define democracy relate to its depth and width: who can participate in decision making and what kind of things can be commonly decided? Theories deeper than representative democracy emphasize discussion, in which by evaluating justifications it is possible to achieve consensus in ideal situation. The aim of my research is to develop tools for promoting the participation of third graders in decision making in the classroom. In addition I study the development of depth and width of democracy in the classroom, the development of skills and competencies in the decision making and the challenges of the project. My research method is participative action research. I collected my data between October 2007 and March 2008. I used videos and observation diaries as my primary data. Additional data consisted of the interviews of the students, the conversations between the adults and the material produced by the teacher. Since we discussed the matters students had highlighted in specific lessons, my analysis proceeds according to these lessons constructing a general view of the process. The width and depth of classroom democracy are difficult to define. Though the system we had created enabled third graders to discuss matters they found important the participation was unequal: some of the students couldn’t among other things give justifications for their opinions. This poses challenges for models that emphasize deliberation since these theories presuppose that everyone has concordant competencies. But then again only critical citizens who are able to make justifications and to evaluate them are able to oppose indoctrination. This makes teaching these competencies justified. Different decision making procedures define the classroom democracy. Deliberation doesn’t necessarily provide deeper information about the preferences of the participants than mere voting. But then again voting doesn’t express the reasons which support one’s preferences. Structured conversation can equalize the time used for every participant’s opinions, but doesn’t solve the challenge of unequal competencies. Children’s suggestion box diversified the possibilities to participate, and also the silent ones used it during the research. The asymmetry in deliberation might also be caused by the social structure of the students. Teacher’s directing and participation encouraging role in deliberation was significant. Diversifying the participation by different roles could equalize the asymmetry in participation.

The use of temperate species in the Australian subtropics.

Temperate species and tropical crop silage are the basis for forage production for the dairy industry in the Australian subtropics. Irrigation is the key resource needed for production, with little survival of temperate species under rain-grown conditions except for lucerne. Annual ryegrass (Lolium multiflorum), fertilised with either inorganic nitrogen or grown with clovers, is the main cool season forage for the dairy industry. It is sown into fully prepared seedbeds, oversown into tropical grasses, especially kikuyu (Pennisetum clandestinum) or sown after mulching. There has been a continual improvement in the performance of annual and hybrid ryegrass cultivars over the last 25 years. In small plot, cutting experiments, yields of annual ryegrass typically range from 15 to 21 t DM/ha, with equivalent on-farm yields of 7 to 14 t DM/ha of utilised material. Rust (Puccinia coronata) remains the major concern although resistance is more stable than in oats. There have also been major improvements in the performance of perennial ryegrass (L. perenne) cultivars although their persistence under grazing is insufficient to make them a reliable forage source for the subtropics. On the other hand, tall fescue (Festuca arundinacea) and prairie grass (Bromus willdenowii) cultivars perform well under cutting and grazing, although farmer resistance to the use of tall fescue is strong. White clover (Trifolium repens) is a reliable and persistent performer although disease usually reduces its performance in the third year after sowing. Persian (Shaftal) annual clover (T. resupinatum) gives good winter production but the performance of berseem clover (T. alexandrinum) is less reliable and the sub clovers (T. subterraneum) are generally not suited to clay soils of neutral to alkaline pH. Lucerne (Medicago sativa), either as a pure stand or in mixtures, is a high producing legume under both irrigation and natural rainfall. Understanding the importance of leaf and crown diseases, and the development of resistant cultivars, have been the reasons for its reliability. Insects on temperate species are not as serious a problem in the subtropics as in New Zealand (NZ). Fungal and viral diseases, on the other hand, cause many problems and forage performance would benefit from more research into resistance.

Simple software processes and tests improve the reliability and usefulness of a model.

Models are abstractions of reality that have predetermined limits (often not consciously thought through) on what problem domains the models can be used to explore. These limits are determined by the range of observed data used to construct and validate the model. However, it is important to remember that operating the model beyond these limits, one of the reasons for building the model in the first place, potentially brings unwanted behaviour and thus reduces the usefulness of the model. Our experience with the Agricultural Production Systems Simulator (APSIM), a farming systems model, has led us to adapt techniques from the disciplines of modelling and software development to create a model development process. This process is simple, easy to follow, and brings a much higher level of stability to the development effort, which then delivers a much more useful model. A major part of the process relies on having a range of detailed model tests (unit, simulation, sensibility, validation) that exercise a model at various levels (sub-model, model and simulation). To underline the usefulness of testing, we examine several case studies where simulated output can be compared with simple relationships. For example, output is compared with crop water use efficiency relationships gleaned from the literature to check that the model reproduces the expected function. Similarly, another case study attempts to reproduce generalised hydrological relationships found in the literature. This paper then describes a simple model development process (using version control, automated testing and differencing tools), that will enhance the reliability and usefulness of a model.

Losing the rural nursing workforce: Lessons learnt from resigning nurses

Background Australian workforce planning predicts a shortfall of nurses by 2025 with rural areas being most at risk. Rural areas have lower retention rates of nurses than metropolitan areas, with remote communities experiencing an even higher turnover of nursing staff. There have been few studies that examine the impact of nurse resignations on rural nursing workforces. Objective This paper is abstracted from a larger study into the reasons why nurses resign from rural hospitals and explores the resignation period. Design A qualitative study using grounded theory methods. Following in-depth interviewing and transcription, data analysis occurred with the assistance of NVivo software. Setting Rural NSW. Participants Twelve registered nurses who had resigned from rural NSW hospitals and not for reasons of retirement, maternity leave or relocation; two participants were re-interviewed. Results While the overall study identified a grounded theory which explained rural nurses resign from hospitals due to a conflict of values, three additional themes emerged about the resignation practices at rural hospitals. The first theme identified a ‘window period’ which was an opportunity for the nurse to be retained. The second theme identified that nurses who had resigned were not involved in formal exit processes such as exit interviews. The third theme captured the flow-on effect from rural nurse resignations resulting in nurses leaving the profession of nursing. Conclusion To facilitate nurse retention, it is important that rural hospitals manage nurse resignations more effectively. This includes re-examining resignation procedures, how nurses are treated and collecting meaningful data to inform retention strategies.