Adventures with the globe: Early childhood geography

Do you know which continent looks like an ice cream cone, a capitalA, or a frowning face? Just ask the four-year-olds at the West Virginia University Nursery School, and they'll tell you. Learning the names and shapes of the continents was part of their studies about the globe.     

‘Power to empower’: conceptions of teaching and learning in a pedagogical co-design partnership

ABSTRACT

This study is an autoethnographic reflection on power and expertise in an evolving student/staff partnership. The partnership was initiated as pedagogical co-design in the development and implementation of a peer-assisted learning programme. Through a process of critical reflection that linked our partnership experience with themes from relevant literature, we (the staff and student authors) became co-researchers of our practice. The evolution of the partnership provided a unique perspective from which to compare our experiences of power and expertise across both contexts. We characterised our pedagogical co-design partnership as a shift from the more traditional ‘power over’ model of delivery towards ‘power to empower’ where both student and staff partners had agency and voice. Key to this important transition was a shared philosophy of student-centred teaching. As the partnership transformed from co-teaching to co-researching we needed to re-negotiate power dynamics; while our different pathways had converged on a common view of student-centred learning, our research expertise remained disparate. We were able to negotiate this challenge by drawing on our existing relationship based on respect, reciprocity and responsibility, reinforcing views of partnership that value equality of opportunity and a focus on learning and process, rather than equality of contributions and outcomes.     

La formation des enseignants au Portugal

The author analyses the current situation of teacher education in Portugal. The structure of the education system is described, as is the training of teachers for the compulsory secondary cycle, special education, technical and vocational education and Higher education. The author then goes on to recall the changes which took place during the 70s and the context of discussion and reform of that time.

Changes in the school population have brought about an imbalance between pupil numbers and the availability of properly trained teachers. Untrained teachers have been recruited on a massive scale. Special measures have had to be taken in respect of teacher education, particularly for Secondary level. The article focuses on a recent and innovatory change model originally based on an inservice training model.

Despite current developments, it is the view of the author that a great deal remains to be done.     

School Resources in Teaching Science to Diverse Student Groups: An Intervention’s Effect on Elementary Teachers’ Perceptions

Elementary school teachers’ perceptions of school resources (i.e., material, human, and social) for teaching science to diverse student groups were examined across three school districts from one state. As part of a 3-year curricular and professional development intervention, we examined the effect on teachers’ perceptions after their first year of participation. The study involved 103 fifth-grade teachers from 33 schools participating in the intervention and 116 teachers from 33 control schools. The teachers completed a survey at the beginning and end of the school year. As a result of the intervention, teachers in the treatment group reported more positive perceptions of school resources than teachers in the control group.     

Evaluation and management of leukolysis-mediated pseudohyperkalemia in paediatric leukemic samples

IntroductionLeukolysis-related pseudohyperkalemia due to preanalytical procedures may lead to erroneous (or absence of) treatment based on an invalid lab test result. We aimed to obtain a leukocyte threshold above which leukolysis-related pseudohyperkalemia becomes clinical relevant. Secondly, temporal dynamics of treatment-induced leukocyte decrease were studied to allow tailored implementation of laboratory information system (LIS) decision rules based on the leukocyte threshold to avoid leukolysis-related pseudohyperkalemia.Materials and methodsPotassium results of AU5811 routine chemistry (Beckman Coulter, Brea, California, USA) and iStat point of care (POC) (Abbott Diagnostics, Chicago, Illinois, USA) analysers were compared, the latter method being insensitive to leukolysis caused by pre-analytical procedures. Potassium results were combined with leukocyte counts obtained using a Cell-Dyn Sapphire haematology analyser (Abbott Diagnostics, Santa Clara, California, USA), resulting in 132 unique data triplets. Regression analysis was performed to establish a leukocyte threshold. The Reference Change Value (√2 x Z x √(CV_a² + CV_i²)) was used to calculate maximum allowable difference between routine analyser and POC potassium results (delta_max + 0.58 mmol/L). Temporal analysis on the treatment-induced leukocyte decrease was performed by plotting leukocyte counts in time for all patients above the threshold leukocyte count (N = 41).ResultsEstablished leukocyte threshold was 63 x10⁹/L. Temporal analysis showed leukocyte counts below the threshold within 8 days of treatment for all patients.ConclusionsBased on performed analyses we were able to implement LIS decision rules to reduce pseudohyperkalemia due to preanalytical procedures. This implementation can contribute to a reduction in erroneous (or absence of) treatments in the clinic.