Accommodating College ESL Learner Communication Needs: Perceptions, Policies, and Practices

The purpose of this qualitative inquiry was to determine how the Practical Nursing and Pharmacy Technician programs in one southern Ontario community college could more effectively accommodate ESL learners' communication needs. The literature review examined (a) linguistic issues, such as language testing and second-language learning theories, (b) organizational matters, such as ESL curriculum and teacher training, and (c) affective issues, such as motivation for second-language learning, learning styles, and the student-teacher relationship. I gathered perceptual data from the programs' administrators, faculty members, and ESL learners. Eleven participants took part in individual interviews or a focus group session. The results suggest that ESL learners need assistance with discipline-specific vocabulary and cultural nuances. College ESL learners' weak communicative competence, together with misleading acceptance standards for ESL learners and limited support available to faculty members and to students, decrease opportunities for successful completion of the programs. The results point to re-assessment of the college's admission policies and procedures, program evaluation practices that consider the needs of ESL learners, discipline-specific language support, and strategies to enhance the ESL student-teacher relationship. The study highlights theory relating to ESL learners' self-perception and engagement, as well as the importance of including the voice of college ESL learners in educational research. The results suggest that despite ESL learners' perseverance in completing their studies, power imbalances remain. The college has yet to implement organizational strategies such as discipline-specific communications and ESL courses and extended language support that could meet the communication needs of ESL learners in the two programs.

Understanding the Cultural Health Beliefs in Diabetes Education Amongst the Aboriginal Population within a City in the Southern Region of Ontario

This study examined the cultural health beliefs in diabetes education amongst the Aboriginal population within a city in Southern Ontario. The purpose was to contribute to the development of a culturally relevant diabetes handbook as well as to delivery styles within current diabetes education programs. To this end, a focus group was conducted with Aboriginal men and women between the ages of 18-70 years with type 2 diabetes. Participants were recruited from 2 Aboriginal community centres and an Aboriginal health centre in a city in Southern Ontario. Themes were drawn from the analysis of the focus group transcripts and combined with the findings from the research literature. The major themes that merged were drawn from Eurocentric and Aboriginal theories. The results were a set of recommendations on the type of format for diabetes educational programs such as traditional group activities, variety of electronic format, and culture specific educational resources. The emergent results appear to provide some important insights into program planning for diabetes education centres within Aboriginal communities.

Developing an Understanding of Cultural Diversity: How an Experience Living in a Multicultural Nation and an Experience Teaching Abroad Contribute to Southern Ontario Teachers' Identities

This is a narrative design study focusing on the understandings that a group of 6 Southern Ontario teachers have of cultural diversity and how these understandings integrated into their development of teacher identity. Given the high culturally diverse population of Canada and its national multicultural values, conducting this study on Canadian pre-service and in-service teachers offers an interesting contribution to the field. In efforts to explore the participants’ understandings, the research examined a teaching abroad experience. The aim was to investigate how these participants gained insight from their experiences with cultural diversity and whether these insights stimulated a greater culturally conscious teacher identity. Narratives provided a description of the lived experiences of these 6 teachers and identified meanings made from these experiences. Participants included 2 pre-service teachers who were in a teacher education program at the time of the interview, and 4 certified teachers who graduated from a teacher education program within the past 5 years. One on one interviews focused on lived experiences within a participant’s home, school community, and teaching abroad. The researcher used grounded theory during the data analysis to assist in identifying themes, and then compared these themes among participants. Overall, this study suggests that even though these participants live in a multicultural nation, experiences varied greatly based on contributing factors such as heritage and exposure to cultural diversity through their home and school life. Despite their varying level of cultural competence, all participants gained insight from their teaching abroad experience, contributing to a teacher identity that considered inclusive practices. This study suggests that there are some important factors to consider when preparing teachers to teach in a multicultural society.

The relationship between socioeconomic status, schools and bone health among adolescent females in Southern Ontario

We studied the association between socioeconomic status (SES), school attended and bone health measured by bone speed of sound (SOS) among adolescent females in Canada. 412 participants from six randomly selected schools in Southern Ontario were examined. Bone SOS was measured by quantitative ultrasound. Participant’s school and aggregate area-based census-derived (AABCD) SES were evaluated as predictors. Mean participant age was 15.7 (SD 1.0) years. Average median family income was $68,162 (SD $19,366). Median family income was non-linearly associated with bone SOS and restricted cubic splines described the relationship. Univariate regression, accounting for clustering of participants in schools, revealed a significant non-linear association between AABCD-median family income and non-dominant tibial SOS (LRT p = 0.031). Multivariable regression revealed school to have a significant impact (LRT p = 0.0001). High schools had a strong influence on the bone health of female students and this effect overrode the effect of SES.

Restoration and succession of a bee community in southern St. Catharines, Ontario, within a ten-year study period

A wild bee community in southern St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada, was studied from 2003 to 2012 to analyze the effects of primary succession on abundance and diversity. At a former landfill site near Brock University, which previously contained no bees, the number of bees and bee species was expected to increase rapidly following measures to restore the site to grassy meadow habitat. The Intermediate Disturbance Hypothesis (IDH) states that over time, succession occurs. Abundance and diversity increase initially and peak when pioneers coexist with specialized species, then decline because of competitive exclusion. Alternatively, abundance and diversity may continue to increase and stabilize without declining. Bees were sampled repeatedly among years from newer restoration sites (revegetated in 2003), older restoration sites on the periphery of the former landfill (revegetated in 2000), and nearby low disturbance grassy field (i.e. control) sites. In the newer sites, bee abundance and diversity increased then decreased while in older restoration and control sites mainly decreased. This pattern of succession matches the general predictions of the IDH, although declines were at least partially related to drought. By 2006, total bee abundance levels converged among all sites, indicating rapid colonization and succession, and by 2012 diversity levels were similar among sites as well, suggesting that the bee community was fully restored or nearly so within the ten-year study period.

Pay roll voucher #14 from the Engineer Department of Port Dalhousie and Thorold Railway Extension for the Southern Division for the month of April, 1857 approved by F. Shanly, chief engineer and Francis A. Doyle, assistant engineer, April 28, 1857

Pay roll voucher #14 from the Engineer Department of Port Dalhousie and Thorold Railway Extension for the Southern Division for the month of April, 1857 approved by F. Shanly, chief engineer and Francis A. Doyle, assistant engineer, April 28, 1857.

Pay roll voucher #18 from the Engineer Department of Port Dalhousie and Thorold Railway Extension, for the Southern Division approved by F. Shanly, chief engineer and F.A. Doyle assistant engineer, May 31, 1857

Pay roll voucher #18 from the Engineer Department of Port Dalhousie and Thorold Railway Extension, for the Southern Division approved by F. Shanly, chief engineer and F.A. Doyle assistant engineer, May 31, 1857.

Pay roll voucher #21 from the Engineer Department of Port Dalhousie and Thorold Railway Extension, for the Southern Division approved by F. Shanly, chief engineer and Francis A. Doyle, assistant engineer (copy) June 29, 1857

Pay roll voucher #21 from the Engineer Department of Port Dalhousie and Thorold Railway Extension, for the Southern Division approved by F. Shanly, chief engineer and Francis A. Doyle, assistant engineer (copy) June 29, 1857.

Pay roll voucher #26 from the Engineer Department of Port Dalhousie and Thorold Railway Extension, for the Southern Division, for the month of July, 1857 approved by F. Shanly, chief engineer and Francis A. Doyle (copy), July 28, 1857

Pay roll voucher #26 from the Engineer Department of Port Dalhousie and Thorold Railway Extension, for the Southern Division, for the month of July, 1857 approved by F. Shanly, chief engineer and Francis A. Doyle (copy), July 28, 1857.

Pay roll voucher #30 from the Engineer Department of the Welland Railway for the Southern Division for the month of August, Aug. 31, 1857

Pay roll voucher #30 from the Engineer Department of the Welland Railway for the Southern Division for the month of August, Aug. 31, 1857.