Innovations online

The St. Albans Primary Care Information Service (STAPCIS) is a database of locally focused information designed to be of use for GPs and the Primary Care team as a whole in a particular area. It is currently being used by practices in the St. Albans, Dacorum and Watford & Three Rivers Primary Care Groups. STAPCIS developed from a project initiated in late 1997 to pilot the use of the WAX software to improve access to directory‐type and full‐text material needed for easy access by primary care staff and traditionally difficult to manage. The database is updated centrally by the STAPCIS Librarian who distributes the new editions to the practices. The WAX software itself was developed by the Cambridge Centre for Clinical Informatics. ^* * The Cambridge Centre for Clinical Informatics no longer deal with the software, a new company (WaX Info Ltd.) is now marketing the new version of WaX. The Cambridge Centre for Clinical Informatics Web site is still available for those needing information about the older version < http://www.medinfo.cam.ac.uk/wax/Default_old.asp >
STAPCIS contains locally and nationally produced relevant information from a variety of sources, including full‐text clinical guidelines and directories of Trusts. Decisions on new content are made by a Steering Group and the GPs and Primary Care teams are particularly encouraged to make suggestions regarding new content. The service is financially supported by the three primary care groups. The STAPCIS Librarian is project‐managed by the Library & Information Development Unit (North Thames < http://www.nthames‐health.tpmde.ac.uk/rliu/ntrliu.htm >), which also provides additional equipment and expertise. A new software company, WaX Info Ltd (< http://www.waxinfo.com/ >), will soon be releasing a new version of the software, WaX. WaX consists of a WaX client and WaX ActiveLibrary server software. With the new version, the ‘books’ of information will still be stored on the user’s PC, retaining the speed of access, but the server will enable users to ‘borrow’ books from remote locations and will provide automatic updates of all books. The new software will improve the management and distribution processes of STAPCIS once all of the practices have Internet connectivity.     

A multi-year study of pre-service teachers’ literacy practices in the content areas: time epistemologies and indicators of stasis and growth

This three-year study focuses on 42 pre-service teachers’ perspectives on integrating literacy into their content area teaching. Pre-service teachers described time as an influential factor shaping their teaching practices, and, we found, that perceptions of time influenced pre-service teachers’ reported ability and willingness to plan for and enact the implementation of literacy strategies as part of content area lessons. While we noted a number of factors related to time, we were particularly drawn to three time-related factors that signified for pre-service teacher participants’ active roles and agency in how they were enacted in the classroom. Identifying temporal concerns about curriculum, learner response to literacy practices, and use of classroom time to scaffold learning allowed us to specify aspects of participants’ pedagogical content knowledge (PCK) development as well as facets of limited PCK growth. Using time as a theoretical lens to view pre-service teachers’ accounts of literacy practices, we suggest, provides insights into their PCK, specifically indicators of stasis and growth, and understanding about pre-service teacher resistance or acceptance to the infusion of literacy into content area teaching.