Using discussion to inform action: Formative research on nature-based physical activity as a means of fostering relatedness for girls in physical and health education

The long-standing challenges and issues associated with girls’ disengagement from secondary school physical and health education (PHE) are serious and well documented. This disengagement has provided the incentive for the examination of alternative strategies to facilitate girls’ engagement in PHE. This paper discusses the first phase in a formative research process designed to develop a resource manual to help teachers utilize nature-based physical activity (NBPA) as a means of fostering relatedness for girls in PHE. Participating teachers collaborated and generated specific NBPA ideas and pedagogical strategies during an all-day planning session. Four focus groups with the teachers ( N = 20) were used to identify ways to develop NBPA interventions. Five broad topics are reported: (a) defining NBPAs, (b) specific NBPAs to use in PHE, (b) how NBPA can foster relatedness, (d) how NBPA in PHE differs from outdoor education, and (e) barriers to implementing NBPA in PHE. This paper emphasizes the valuable contribution of formative research to the integrity and fidelity of an intervention as well as to quality practice in the implementation of theory-based PHE initiatives.

A System for Measuring Water Levels in Open-Air Irrigation Canals

The measurement of the water level in a canal allows us to know its flow. This information is essential for the correct administration of the water resource. Manual quantification can be replaced by micro controlled systems with an internet connection. Thus, the measurement and recording of water levels in open canals in real time is achieved. The chosen micro controlled system was based on ultrasonic instrumentation with GPRS communication. It had a wide cellular network to achieve an effective connectivity in rural areas, a power system combining solar energy with pollutant free batteries and the capacity to store data. The obtained percentage and average errors were lower than the permissible error specified in the requirements. Consequently, the evaluated measurement system is reliable for the evaluation of canals in a real-world setting.

Teaching Animal Genetics and Breeding: What are the resources available to instructors?

The dynamism of education requires that teaching and learning follow suit. The globalization of education community has made materials for teaching and learning easily accessible but sometimes being aware that these resources exist is challenging. The present resource manual attempts to address this by highlighting some of the teaching and learning resources that are available to the instructor in animal genetics and breeding. The availability of the Internet has improved the access to teaching resources that will be of assistance to teachers and learners. Taking cognizance of this rich resource, a teaching resource portfolio relevant to the animal genetics and breeding has been developed. The portfolio includes some textbook resources for improvement of general teaching skills and course development; educational visual resources such as videos and internet sites: publishing companies that provide teaching texts as well as ancillary teaching resources; some journals relevant to animal genetics and breeding; and brief descriptions of the items contained in the portfolio. Some recommended articles focusing specifically on current issues in teaching that facilitate the process of learning for students as it may pertain to the animal genetics and breeding classroom as well as online sites of relevant humor content resources are provided. As such, this teaching resource manual is timely in providing instructors in animal genetics and breeding with the links to important teaching resources.

Assessing competence of undergraduate paramedic student practice: a preliminary evaluation of the Australasian Paramedic Competency Assessment Tool

Introduction With the recent introduction of registration for paramedics, and an absence of assessment tools that align undergraduate paramedic student practice to competency standards, this pilot study undertook to develop and evaluate a competency assessment tool designed to provide a standardised approach to student competency assessment. This paper reports the first part of a two-part enquiry evaluating the efficacy of the Australasian Paramedic Competency Assessment Tool (APCAT) to assess the practice competency of undergraduate paramedic students. Methods With a focus on gathering professional opinion to evaluate the usability of the tool and inform its development, a mixed methods methodology including a survey and open-ended questions were used to gather data from paramedic educators and on-road assessors in Australia and New Zealand. Data were analysed using descriptive statistics and content analysis. Results The outcome of the evaluation was positive, indicating that 81% agreed or strongly agreed that the tool was user-friendly; 71% believed that expectations of student performance and the grading system was clear; 70% found year level descriptors reflected practice expectations; and 66% believed that the resource manual provided adequate guidance. Conclusion The APCAT is simple and aligns student practice expectations with competency standards. Results indicate the support for a consistent approach for assessment of undergraduate paramedic student competence. Further research will be undertaken to determine the efficacy of using this tool to assess students in the clinical setting.

Critical Reflections on the Process of Developing a Resource Manual for Service Providers Working with Immigrants & Refugees with Disabilities

This paper presents critical reflections on the process of developing a resource manual for service providers who work with immigrants/refugees with disabilities. The development of this manual gave us insight into existing programs which address the intersection between immigration and disability, as well as the paradigms that guide services which target immigrants/ refugees with disabilities. We approached the manual through a postcolonial disability framework which facilitated a critical examination of the operation of ableist and neocolonial discourses within and through settlement practices. The main findings highlight the “siloed” nature of service delivery for immigrants/refugees with disabilities. Findings also illustrate how relevant provincial strategies do not address the intersection between immigration and disability, but rather focus on using immigration to reach other provincial targets. These findings add to the body of existing, albeit scarce, literature which focuses on the immigration-disability nexus and provide important implications for policymaking and service delivery for a largely hidden population of immigrants in Canada.

Armed Groups Human Resource Manual

Using criteria that she developed and elaborates, the author classifies rebel groups on a continuum from extreme to moderate. She shows that extreme Islamist groups were able to attract fighters away from initial moderate groups because they had better internal organization, took better care of fighters (physically and monetarily), and experienced less internal corruption. The author explains how extreme groups benefited from Islamist ideology, which helped ensure, among other things, that only the most dedicated fighters joined their ranks. However, one unforeseen side effect of using ideology as a central factor was attracting fighters more interested in Islamic ideology than fighting. With time, such individuals wasted group resources and caused internal splits and power struggles over the goals of the conflict. For ISIS, handling these issues became a major part of their decline.

Exploring the Relationship Between Organizational Culture and WLB

The objective of the chapter is to investigate the relationship between organisational culture and work-life balance Questionnaires for organisational culture and work-life balance were developed and tested and the relationship between the two explored. The main findings were 1) organisational culture has a significant impact on work-life balance, and 2) more than rewards, it is support in terms of resources, roles, and empathy that have a significant impact on WLB of an individual. It is the prevailing culture that determines whether an employee does or does not take the benefit of existing family-friendly or work/life policies. While the organization may include policies related to work/life in its human resource manual, it is the culture of the organization that instills confidence in the individual to make use of the offered options. The chapter highlights the issues arising when organisational culture lacks empathy.