Living with a disability that others do not understand

Last year, Martyn Rouse organised a project focused on inclusive education for the British Council. As part of the link between the University of Cambridge, the Ministry of Education in Kenya and Kenyatta University, your editor was lucky enough to be invited to visit Kenya. Martyn and I spent much of our time running workshops and attending meetings, but we were also able to visit some schools in far-flung rural areas. I recall walking into one village where a group of school children were walking down the street in an orderly line. When they saw us, their curiosity and excitement overtook them and they started to call out: 'mzungu! mzungu!', which means 'white man'. They laughed and waved and it was an unusual, and rather pleasant, feeling for me to be regarded as something so exotic and rare. But when I met Alex Munyere, at a workshop on inclusive education in Nakuru, I came to see another side to the experience of being perceived as different. Alex has albinism, which means that he has blond hair and white skin and experiences some difficulties with his sight. He is also a member of the Maasai community, who traditionally live under the broad, tropical skies of the heartlands of Kenya. In this article, Alex Munyere recalls his childhood and his life at school. He provides a fascinating first-hand account of the experience of living with a disability. Alex is now a respected professional who works with children with special educational needs in the assessment centre in Kajiado district in Kenya. He is a quiet and dignified man but he is passionately committed to the development of inclusion in his country. These qualities are evident in the thoughtful reflections he provides here on the relationships between specialist provision and the development of an inclusive society. I suggest that Alex's story can be instructive for us all.     

Individual action planning: a case of self‐surveillance?

The authors explore the Foucauldian concept of self‐surveillance in the context of the use of Individual Action Planning (IAP) as a central process of a 1‐year teacher training course. Drawing on work that examined whether IAP was experienced by student‐teachers as empowerment or control, the article postulates that Action Planning can be seen as a central technique of a system of self‐surveillance. The effect of IAPs in creating self‐surveillance is investigated empirically, utilizing an original and non‐Foucaldian pre–post questionnaire technique, in order to attract the widest possible audience to the idea of self‐surveillance as a key process of governance in advanced liberal societies. The findings support the idea that self‐surveillance is one of the outcomes of the IAP process, but also finds Foucauldian ‘resistances’ among the cohort investigated.     

The role of hypothetico-deductive reasoning and physical analogues of molecular interactions in conceptual change

Two hypotheses about theoretical concept acquisition, application, and change were tested. College biology students classified as intuitive, transitional, or reflective (hypothetico-deductive) reasoners were first taught two theoretical concepts (molecular polarity and bonding) to explain the mixing of dye with water, but not with oil, when all three were shaken in a container. The students were then tested in a context in which they misapplied the concepts in an attempt to explain the gradual spread of blue dye in standing water. Next students were taught another theoretical concept (diffusion), with and without the use of physical analogues. They were retested to see which students acquired the concept of diffusion and which students changed from use of the incorrect polarity and bonding concepts (i.e., the misconceptions) to use of the diffusion concept to correctly explain the dye's gradual spread. As predicted, the experimental/analogy group scored significantly higher than the control group on a posttest question that required the definition of diffusion. Also as predicted, hypothetico-deductive reasoning skill was significantly related to correct application of the diffusion concept and to a change from the misapplication of the polarity and bonding concepts to the correct application of the diffusion concept to explain the gradual spread of the blue dye. Thus, the results support the hypotheses that physical analogues are helpful in theoretical concept acquisition and that hypothetico-deductive reasoning is needed for successful concept application and change. Educational implications are drawn.     

University intramural sport administrators' perceptions of gender modifications in intramural coed flag football

Coed sport environments can be paradoxical settings where pre-existing gender biases influence participants' enjoyment and success. Furthermore, gendered messages and stereotypes as well as low expectations for females within coed sports can create participation barriers by reducing feelings of confidence and performance. Within university intramural sport programs, administrators have a significant role in determining participation opportunities and experiences. From a critical perspective, this investigation examined administrators' perspectives about coed intramural flag football gender modifications. Specifically, four research questions guided this study: (1) How do intramural sport administrators view coed flag football gender modifications? (2) To what extent do intramural sport administrators perceive gender modifications to impact coed flag football environments? (3) What level of awareness do intramural sport administrators have about the gendered messages of coed flag football gender modifications? and (4) To what extent are intramural sport administrators willing to modify their perceptions of the rules in light of critical questioning? Qualitative interviews were used to obtain the perspectives of 12 intramural administrators from across the USA. Administrators reported that coed gender modifications impacted perceptions about female ability, often by sending messages of inequity. Moreover, administrators revealed that the modifications created competitive strategy that often diminished the integrity of the game and undermined perceptions of female ability. Findings also indicated that administrators were highly influenced by previously existing gender stereotypes, leading to an endorsement of the modifications. Endorsements were accompanied by questioning of the rules but reluctance to enact changes. These findings elucidate the importance of scrutinizing the existence and application of coed gender modifications. Furthermore, engaging flag football participant feedback on the specific attributes of the coed modifications is important to better understand the needs of female populations. Lastly, eliminating modifications may help diminish the gendered messages that currently exist within coed flag football.     

Simulation of gait asymmetry and energy transfer efficiency between unilateral and bilateral amputees

Efficient walking or running requires symmetrical gait. Gait symmetry is one of the key factors in efficient human dynamics, kinematics and kinetics. The desire of individuals with a lower-limb amputation to participate in sports has resulted in the development of energy-storing-and-returning (ESR) feet. This paper analyses a case study to show the effect of symmetry and asymmetry as well as energy transfer efficiency during periodic jumping between simulated bilateral and unilateral runners. A custom gait analysis system is developed as part of this project to track the motion of the body of a physically active subject during a set of predefined motions. Stance and aerial times are accurately measured using a high speed camera. Gait frequency, the level of symmetry and the non-uniform displacement between left and right foot and their effects on the position of the Centre of Mass (CM) were used as criteria to calculate both peak energies and transformation efficiency. Gait asymmetry and discrepancy of energy transfer efficiency between the intact foot and the ESR are observed. It is concluded that unilateral runners require excessive effort to compensate for lack of symmetry as well as asymmetry in energy transfer, causing fatigue which could be a reason why bilateral amputee runners using ESR feet have a superior advantage over unilateral amputees.     

How less is truly more: Merging library support services

ABSTRACT

In the summer of 2010, to provide a “one-stop shop” service point to Woodruff Library patrons, the Circulation, Reference, and Learning Commons (LC) desks merged into the unified Library Service Desk (LSD) under Access Services. Last year, due to organizational changes in the library and IT, and anticipated support needs of the new LC spaces and technologies, Student Digital Life opened a separate LC Technical Support desk. The lessons of the year of the two desks, funding considerations, and the persistent goal to streamline the experience of our patrons resulted in transitioning the functions of the LC desk to LSD, thus evolving it to new organizational and operational levels.     

Do conservators dream of electric sheep? Replicas and replication

The paper crosses the boundaries between different genres, drawing on key material and emphasising the philosophical challenges around decision-making and values in relation to replication and replicas. In 1968, Philip K. Dick wrote the book Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? which became the inspiration for the 1982 film Bladerunner. The book is set in Los Angeles in a post-apocalyptic future where mankind has left Earth, resulting in androids being created to develop new ‘off-world’ colonies. The book and film create a novel and interesting framework to discuss the subject of replicas and replication within contemporary conservation practice. Key themes are decay promoting replication, original versus replica, creating empathy in replication. The debate focuses on the case study of Naum Gabo's Construction in Space (Crystal) of 1937–39; which was the sculpture replicated in the most recent replication project at Tate, completed in July 2015.     

Framing attrition in higher education: a complex problem

This study situates student attrition within the strategic framework of Australian public universities. It draws on organisational theory to describe higher education within a bureaucratic framework. The study uses a quantitative approach to undertake a content analysis of attrition and retention policy statements from all Australian universities. This reveals that Australian universities, and the higher education sector as a whole, are attempting to address attrition within their existing bureaucracies. Attrition however is a wicked problem that includes many variables outside the influence of universities, which limits the potential of strategic approaches to problem solving. The practical implications of these findings are that current approaches to attrition are likely to fail. The wicked nature of the attrition problem needs to be taken into account when developing strategies or policies within higher education.