Pedagogy and practice in STEM field experiences: intersections of student and mentor identity and impacts upon student outcomes

Practicums, internships and field experiences are essential components in many fields. These varied experiences embed both students and their mentors in immersive experiences. Such immersive experiences are essential for STEM students preparing for future jobs, yet little is known about how these research-intensive and immersive experiences impact the practice of teaching in the natural sciences. In order to evaluate the impact, opportunities and challenges associated with such experiences, our team collected and analysed end-of-semester reflections from five students and their faculty mentor. Thematic analysis related to inferences and implications about the impacts of the experience showed a need to formalize and further develop an understanding of both students’ self-identity and the cultural attitudes of the students and the mentor.     

Penguin Promises: encouraging aquarium visitors to take conservation action

This study investigates the impact of an innovative conservation action campaign called Penguin Promises implemented at uShaka Sea World in Durban, South Africa. Communication tools included interpretive signage, exhibits with and without animals, presentations, and personal interactions, along with a specially designed postcard, on which visitors could write a promise (pledge) to make a change in their daily lives to become more environmentally responsible. Visitors who completed a card were contacted a year or more after their visit and asked about the outcomes of their promise. The results (N = 316) showed that 49.4% of respondents could give an example of something positive they had done for the environment, that they attributed to the campaign. Based on the study, recommendations are provided for the design of effective visitor conservation action campaigns.     

Towards an understanding of dynamics among teachers,teacher leaders,and administrators in a teacher-led school reform

A substantial amount of professional development and implementation has moved towards teachers and teacher leaders in recent years. Previous works have examined how teachers, teacher leaders, or administrators perceive teacher leadership in school reforms, but few have advanced all three perspectives simultaneously. Drawing upon over 200 interviews, we examine how leadership is distributed and the tensions and dynamics arising among these three groups in a teacher-led school reform. Two main themes emerged from our analysis: minimizing conflicts with teachers was important to teacher leaders, and the distribution of leadership between administrators and teacher leaders changed the status and normative roles of teacher leaders.     

Running economy,mechanics, and marathon racing shoes

ABSTRACT

The choice of marathon racing shoes can greatly affect performance. The purpose of this study is to metabolically and mechanically compare the consumer version of the Nike Vaporfly 4% shoe to two other popular marathon shoes, and determine differences in running economy. Nineteen subjects performed two 5-minute trials at 4.44m/s wearing the Adidas Adios Boost (AB), Nike Zoom Streak (ZS), and Nike Vaporfly 4% (VP) in random order. Oxygen uptake was recorded during minutes 3–5 and averaged across both shoe trials. On a second day, subjects wore reflective markers, and performed a 3-minute trial in each shoe. Motion and force data were collected over the final 30 seconds of each trial. VP oxygen uptake was 2.8% and 1.9% lower than the AB and ZS. Stride length, plantar flexion velocity, and center of mass vertical oscillation were significantly different in the VP. The percent benefit of the VP over AB shoe was predicted by subject ground time. These results indicate that use of the VP shoe results in improved running economy, partially due to differences in running mechanics. Subject variation in running economy improvement is only partially explained by variation in ground time.     

Equivalent Estimates of Borderline Group Performance in Standard Setting

The purpose of this study was to determine if a linear procedure, typically applied to an entire examination when equating scores and reseating judges' standards, could be used with individual item data gathered through Angoffs standard-setting method (1971). Specifically, experts estimates of borderline group performance on one form of a test were transformed to be on the same scale as experts' estimates of borderline group performance on another form of the test. The transformations were based on examinees' responses to the items and on judges' estimates of borderline group performance. The transformed values were compared to the actual estimates provided by a group of judges. The equated and reseated values were reasonably close to those actually assigned by the experts. Bias in the estimates was also relatively small. In general, the reseating procedure was more accurate than the equating procedure, especially when the examinee sample size for equating was small.     

Uncertain pathways: foundation skills tutors and marginalised students in neoliberal times

This article deals with the work of polytechnic tutors on adult foundation programmes and describes how their work has been affected by the current neoliberal climate in the education sector. Inclusive neoliberalism is characterised by heightened regulation, reduced support for the public sector and a greater requirement for individual responsibility. The push to improve skills to meet labour demand is promoted as addressing social needs. Policies devised to promote these neoliberal values have led to numerous and far-reaching changes in adult education. In this study 73 foundation skills educators drawn from 8 institutions were interviewed to gain their insights into the effects of these policies. The article discusses three types of detrimental effects: the growing distrust between teaching staff and management; unsettling changes to institutional policy and its effects on staffing issues; and threats to the professionalism of teaching staff, the delivery of foundation studies, and the students themselves. Finally, the article suggests alternative possibilities for addressing these issues.     

Reimagining the role of mentor teachers in professional experience: moving to I as fellow teacher educator

New accreditation requirements for Australian initial teacher education programs require that universities and schools establish quality partnerships to ensure strong links between pre-service teachers’ university-based learning and school-based professional learning experiences. This paper focuses on the shifts of identity, thinking and practice that occurred for five school-based mentor teachers as they co-created new professional experience practices alongside university-based teacher educators in a Teaching Academies of Professional Practice (TAPP) project. Interview data was analysed through the theoretical framework of Dialogical Self Theory to examine how the repositioning of mentor teachers as fellow teacher educators allowed for expansion in the understanding and enactment of their role. The findings of this study suggest that partnerships between schools and universities can enhance learning opportunities for all participants when commitments are made to creating collaborative and dialogical spaces to support new approaches to teacher education.