Reciprocal learning: One teacher’s narrative

This paper is a personal narrative from the perspective of one teacher in Toronto who participated in the Canada–China Reciprocal Learning in Teacher Education and School Education Partnership Grant Project. I took part in a Sister School partnership between 2013 and 2017. Over the four years, I came to understand relationships in an international professional learning community. Participating in the project gave me the benefit of seeing my practice through an international lens. For my students, it offered a global citizenship experience. Although there are numerous professional development opportunities in Toronto, this partnership extends beyond a lunch and learn, or a full day professional learning. The commitment to my partners has fueled my desire to incorporate new teaching ideas and has required ongoing reflection on my own teaching practice. In this article, I will explain some of the challenges, stages of development, reciprocal learning, and implications for future international professional learning communities.     

Immune response to n-terminal and c-terminal deletion mutants of Aspergillus fumigatus major allergen ASP F 3

The ubiquitous fungus Aspergillus fumigatus causes allergic rhinitis, asthma, sinusitis and allergic bronchopulmonary aspergillosis. A number of major allergens from A. fumigatus are purified, but their structure-function role in the pathogenesis of disease is not known. Such information is essential for devising alternative therapy of fungal allergic diseases. In the present study, N-terminal and C-terminal deletion mutants ofAsp f 3 were constructed and their immunopathological responses studied in a mice model of allergy. Three mutants viz,Asp f 3 (aa 33–168), (aa 1–142), and (aa 23–142) were made by deleting certain amino acids from epitopic regions of full lengthAsp f 3, a major allergen of A. furnigatus. TheAsp f 3 and three mutated proteins were expressed in pET vector. The C-terminal deletion mutantAsp f 3 (aa 1–142) induced elevated IFN-γ but low levels of IL-4 by spleen cells. This mutant also showed significant downregulation of peripheral blood eosinophils and lung inflammation in immunized mice. The N-terminal deletion mutantAsp f 3 (aa 33–168) also exhibited an immuno-suppressive effect in terms of IgE production and induction of Th2 cytokine. The results indicate thatrAsp f 3 and its deletion mutants induced distinct immune-inflammatory responses in mice on challenge with these proteins. The non-IgE binding deletion mutants ofAsp f 3 (aa 1–142 and aa 33–168) could deviate Th2 immune response with a concomitant reduction in airway inflammation and infiltration of inflammatory cells.     

Graduate identity and employability

This paper develops the concept of graduate identity as a way of deepening the understanding of graduate employability. It does this through presenting research in which over 100 employers in East Anglia were asked to record their perceptions of graduates in respect of their employability. The findings suggest a composite and complex graduate identity, depending on employer size and sector. There is no one fixed identity for graduates. Nevertheless, certain themes emerged that seriously put into question the traditional model of graduate employability comprising skills, competencies and attributes. What emerges is a four‐stranded concept of identity that comprises value, intellect, social engagement and performance. Thus, when assessing the potential of graduates, performance is not the only criteria that employers take into account. Moreover, the four elements of identity are by no means independent of each other but are expected to interpenetrate producing a composite identity, with different employers emphasising different facets of this identity.

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Peer assessment accounting for student agreement

Peer assessment has been gaining significant ground as a means of fostering an environment of accountability and responsibility for group projects in higher education. A popular peer assessment method assigns individual grades via a linear relationship to peer assessment scores. Using this method, a group member who receives his or her group’s average peer assessment score is assigned the instructor‐given group grade; the group member who receives a total peer assessment score of zero is assigned an individual grade of zero. Unfortunately, applying this method often requires time‐consuming exploratory data analysis because of the potential for the method to yield a high spread of grades, including grades over 100%. The present study proposes a modification, which accounts for the degree of student agreement. When the modified procedure results in a change from the group grade, the direction of change is always the same, but with smaller magnitude, requiring less subsequent data analysis and instructor time demands. Easy‐to‐modify SAS code for applying the method is presented in the Appendix.     

Development of the Design Thinking and Instructional Lessons (DTAIL) model: a creative approach for teachers

Educational technology research and development - The educational landscape continues to become increasingly complex, which suggests a need for a teacher-driven creative approach to developing...     

Developmental factors influencing exceptional status at age six years

A multivariate analysis of exceptional states in 384 children aged 6 years is presented. Predictors were six items of information in the domain of child development, four items were in the domain of social factors, and three items were maternal traits. Criteria were six of nine exceptional states on which there were enough cases for multivariate analysis. The AID-4 interaction regression method was the technique of analysis applied to data gathered by prospective longitudinal study. No consistent sets of predictors were found for the criteria. However, Coddington's Life Changes scores were frequently observed as prime sources of variance. Social class scores were also important influences on criteria of exceptionality.