Online searching for human nutrition: an evaluation of databases.

This study compares six databases which contain information on applied and clinical human nutrition: AGRICOLA, BIOSIS, CAB ABSTRACTS, EMBASE, MEDLINE, and SCI-SEARCH. Five research questions were searched, and the results were compared to identify the database of first choice and to determine the degree of overlap among the databases. Results indicate that for most of the human nutrition questions searched, MEDLINE was the most productive database. However, MEDLINE alone only uncovered 24% to 69% of the citations available. A combination of MEDLINE and at least one other database is recommended. The results of this study suggest that for most human nutrition questions, AGRICOLA is the best file to complement MEDLINE.     

Teaching narrative writing using comics: Delainey and Rasmussen,the creators of Betty,share their composing strategies as rich literacy resources for elementary teachers

The author explores how comics texts and writing practices are rich literacy resources for educators. Few studies report on how teachers explore such texts and practices in their classrooms. The author examines how drawing improves students' narrative writing and presents findings from a 7‐month case study of Delainey and Rasmussen's collaborative composing routines. Delainey and Rasmussen are the creators of the daily syndicated comic strip, Betty, an internationally published family comic strip that has been in newspapers for 20 years. The author explores Delainey and Rasmussen's collaborative routines and composing practices and provides parallel suggestions for classroom work.     

Benchmarking administration: University s experience in student an Australian

The article explores the role of the Registrar (Chief Operating Officer) in a university, and the ways in which we value the contributions of professional, managerial and administrative (PMA) staff. It assesses the conditions in which PMA staff work and describes the professional development opportunities they enjoy. The article goes on to analyse some of the challenges which PMA staff face, and ends by detailing fifteen recommendations for action. It concludes that valuing PMA staff is a complex, multi-dimensional and dynamic issue, but one which universities can ill afford to neglect.     

‘Sod ‘em,sod ‘em like there's no Gomorrah’: comparing sexualities education for teachers,doctors and clergy in the UK

In the context of changes in UK public discourse concerning sexualities over the last decade, this paper compares education in the field of sexualities equality, enquiring how teachers, doctors and clergy are being prepared for their professional lives. Data from a qualitative study using questionnaires and semi-structured interviews are analysed to reveal that although in many outward respects teaching and medicine reflect recent legislative and cultural changes and the church does not, in more subtle ways these three professions share a common theme of disjunction between policy and practice. There is also some evidence that certain subsections of these professions offer differential degrees of welcome to gay and lesbian individuals. Behind this empirical study lies the theoretical question of the way in which historically these professions have enmeshed together to structure a dominant heteronormativity. Evidence from this research points to some loosening of these historic ties.     

From values to virtues: an investigation into the ethical content of English primary school assemblies

School assemblies are unique and important events in the lives of schools. They are an opportunity for a head teacher to shape and celebrate the ethos and priorities of a school. However, the discussion of assemblies has stagnated because it is mired in the debate about legal compliance to the 1988 Education Reform Act and its interpretation in circular 1/94. This article reports on a research project which investigated the ethical ideas communicated in primary school assemblies. It is found that almost all assemblies sought to communicate a form of virtue ethics. We observed the promotion of courage, kindness, loyalty and responsibility. Further, different virtues were emphasised in different schools depending on their social location. For example, perseverance and resilience were often stressed in a school from a low socio-economic area. The article concludes with an examination of the implications of our findings for the discussion of legal compliance to the 1988 Act.