Farmers’ Visions on Soils: A Case Study among Agroecological and Conventional Smallholders in Minas Gerais,Brazil

Abstract

Purpose: Why do farmers not take better care of their soils? This article aims to give insight into how farmers look at soil quality management.

Design/methodology/approach: It analyses diverse land management practices and visions on soils and soil quality of ten agroecological and 14 conventional smallholder farmers in Araponga, Minas Gerais, Brazil. As agroecological farming (that is, managing soils with minimum use of external inputs) requires more complex knowledge, it is assumed that agroecological farmers would be more knowledgeable on soils compared to conventional farmers. This case study tests the hypothesis that differences in land management practices between agroecological and conventional farmers can be explained by differences in their knowledge on soils.

Findings: The hypothesis turned out to be faulty: agroecological and conventional farmers do not differ in what they know about soils, but how they use their knowledge in their farming strategy. Both groups of farmers have different but rational farming strategies.

Practical implications: Designing policies and measures to make farming more environmentally friendly and more sustainable as two-way knowledge exchange between farmers and science (and not as one-way knowledge transfer from science to farmers), to benefit from vital and context-based farmers’ knowledge and to ensure successful implementation of more sustainable land management practices.

Originality/value: By analysing farmers’ visions on soil quality management and farming strategies, this study shows that farmers’ knowledge is valuable for farmers, for scientific knowledge on soil quality management and for policies which are to be effective and adapted to the local environment.     

Educational choice in secondary school in Flanders: the relative impact of occupational interests on option choice

The present study aims at unravelling the myriad of student-level (i.e., gender, socioeconomic status [SES], academic self-concept, achievement, ability, and occupational interests) and school-level (i.e., gender composition, maths composition, and SES composition) determinants of option choice in the academic track of secondary school in Flanders. We focused on 2 decisional thresholds in Flemish secondary education, namely, the transition from Grade 8 to Grade 9 (N = 2518) and from Grade 10 to Grade 11 (N = 2871). Data were analyzed through multinomial multilevel analysis. Our results strongly confirm Lent's (2005) jigsaw puzzle metaphor in that different factors go into a complex and dynamic interplay. Especially in the first grades, prior achievement is a major predictor of option choice in secondary education, whereas in the last years occupational interests become increasingly important. From a gender perspective, boys rather choose math/sciences-oriented options than girls. Option choice is mainly determined by student-level rather than school-level predictors.     

A comparison between children's physical activity levels at school and learning in an outdoor environment

Physical activity levels were measured with an accelerometer in a case study including 19 children, from nine to ten years of age, in a Danish primary school. The teachers conducted their teaching in a forest every Thursday from 2000 to 2003. The purpose of this study was to measure the students' activity levels during outdoor learning days in the forest and compare them with a traditional school day on the one hand, and a traditional school day including two physical education lessons, on the other. The mean activity levels were more than twice as high on the forest days measured on two occasions. Expressed in percentages, winter (2000) measurements were 106% (range 14–194%), and summer (2001) measurements were 113% (range 41–224%) higher compared to traditional school days. Furthermore, in 2002 the mean activity level measured on a day including two physical education lessons was equal to a day in an outdoor environment. In conclusion, this case study demonstrates a significantly higher level of physical activity when indoor and outdoor learning contexts are combined. From a physical health perspective outdoor learning is recommended in the folkeskole.     

A comparison of childrens’ statements about social relations and teaching in the classroom and in the outdoor environment

Two teachers from a school in Copenhagen were allowed to move their third grade teaching into a forest every Thursday for three years. Thus 20% of the class's regular teaching took place in an outdoor environment. The purpose of the present study was to ask the children how they experienced lessons in the classroom and the forest settings. Therefore, two almost identical questionnaires including a total of 26 statements adjusted to each context were completed by the children four times from 2000 to 2003. Further, in the forest questionnaire three specific statements were added about the outdoor environment plus one question about their choice of playmates during breaks at school and breaks in the forest. Ten statements were categorized as ‘social relations’, 14 statements as ‘teaching’ and finally two related to ‘self-perceived physical activity’. A significant difference (p < 0.001) was found between the school/classroom and the outdoor environment when scores from all four questionnaires (2000–2003) were summed. The categories ‘social relations’ (p < 0.001), ‘teaching’ (p < 0.001) and ‘self-perceived physical activity’ (p < 0.001) all showed significant differences. It is concluded from the present case study that the combination of classroom and outdoor teaching, over a three-year period had a positive effect on the children's social relations, experience with teaching and self-perceived physical activity level.     

The Structure of Attitudes Towards Israel‐Diaspora Relations Among Diaspora Youth Leaders: An Empirical Analysis

The goals of this study are to describe the motivations and aims of young Israelis for choosing Reform rabbinical studies and to explore how the Israeli and Reform contexts are manifested in students’ motivations and aims. This question was examined by a study of the personal background, the decision-making process, and the motivations of 10 students in the Reform rabbinical program at the Jerusalem campus of Hebrew Union College (HUC). Though most of the students’ exposure to Reform Judaism occurred following an encounter with North American Reform Jewry, the choice of rabbinical studies was described by most of the participants as the result of a sense of incongruity between the personal, cultural, and professional dimensions of their lives.     

国外社会养老服务体系对我国的启示

随着我国老龄化程度的加深,建设社会养老服务体系成为了政府和社会关注的焦点。分析我国社会养老服务的发展历程,可见目前还存在法律和政策不健全、专业化程度低以及总量投入不足等问题。国外社会养老服务有多种先进模式,借鉴国外的经验,我国应当完善相关法律框架、建立多级别的养老护理服务并发展养老服务产业。     

中国军队的“以礼治军”时代

礼是中国上古神权时代最根本的思想观念,"以礼治军"是上古时期社会政治、军事发展的必然要求。三代以来"以礼治军"的战争实践充分证明了其历史的必然性。成书于西周初年的《军礼司马法》,就是"以礼治军"的理论总结。春秋时期,以礼治军的理论原则仍然在一定程度上得到人们的认可。春秋中期的宋楚泓水之战,则在事实上宣告了"以礼治军"时代的终结。     

健全高校内部审计质量控制的措施与思考

文章分析了高校内部审计质量控制的内涵和影响因素,针对高校内部审计现状,从完善审计基本质量、内审项目主要环节和质量考核与评价的控制措施方面探讨了健全高校内部审计质量控制。     

Deafness and attention in deaf children

The study shows the differences between hearing parents and deaf instructors interacting with deaf children and directing their attention. Data were collected at home and at a service for special needs in Bristol, England. The mother or instructor was asked to play naturally with the child with the toys provided. When the child's attention was focused during their play, the mother or instructor had to try to direct the child's attention to each of the toys. The results suggest that both groups (mothers and instructors) were effective in directing attention to objects not in the immediate area of play; however, hearing mothers were more successful than deaf instructors.     

A pilot project of a cancer patient library in Italy: results of a customer-satisfaction survey and its products

AIMS: The purpose of this study is to determine the degree of satisfaction of users of the Cancer Information Point section of the Library for Patients (CIP-LP), active since 1998 at the National Cancer Institute of Aviano, Italy. The CIP-LP is based on a skilled intermediary, adequate informative material and a specific location, within the Scientific Library of the Institute. PATIENTS AND METHODS: A survey was developed to assess service functionality and quality from the users' viewpoint. During a 6-month period, a questionnaire was mailed to 194 patients and relatives who previously used the CIP-LP; 113 (58%) were returned and processed. RESULTS: Of the respondents, 91% were pleased with the CIP-LP and 95% would recommend the service to other people. The information obtained contributed to a clearer understanding of the illness and treatment (45% as first answer) and a better control of the situation (33%). Fifty-one per cent evaluated the information received as 'good', 42%'excellent' and 4%'of sufficient quality'. CONCLUSION: This survey shows the appreciation and usefulness in the users' perception of a specific hospital library for cancer patients and their relatives, providing an information service supplementary to doctor-patient communication.