‘Beyond 2015’, within the modern/colonial global imaginary? Global development and higher education

Efforts to emphasize higher education’s role in development have grown in recent years, but important questions remain about the motivations and effects of these initiatives. In this paper, we employ the concept of a ‘modern/colonial global imaginary’ to consider the impact of the enduring power relations and uneven politics of knowledge in the relationship between higher education and development. Specifically, we consider the Association of Commonwealth Universities’ (ACU) ‘Beyond 2015’ campaign, which was launched in anticipation of the new UN Sustainable Development Goals. We argue that despite the ACU’s intention to provide ‘a platform for diverse voices, particularly from the global South’, the campaign was structured in a way that discouraged dissenting perspectives. More broadly, we consider available possibilities and limitations for challenging mainstream development agendas.     

Aesthetic experiences in the Cerrado (Brazilian savanna): contributions to environmental education practice and research

In this paper, we reflect on a study in Brazil’s Cerrado that attempts to address a lack of attention to an aesthetic dimension in environmental education practice and research. We start by tracing this lack to the overvaluing of the cognitive sphere in the educational process, noting its echo in the low aesthetic value attributed to the Cerrado biome. Then, through reflecting on an empirical, interview based study of sensations, perceptions and feelings evoked by aesthetic experiences in the Cerrado, we draw on insights from a hermeneutic phenomenological approach to identify key themes for environmental education research and practice in this regard. These include: recognising the singularity of experience; attending to the qualities of experience; acknowledging the value/s of ‘lighter’ and ‘darker’ experiences; and deepening emotions and verbal communication. In our final considerations, we discuss the limitations of the study, alongside new directions in studies of perception, experience, aesthetics and pedagogy that may also advance attention to an aesthetic dimension in environmental education practice and research.     

The curriculum as a tool for inclusive participation: Students’ voices in a case study in a Portuguese multicultural school

Portuguese schools in urban areas became multicultural during the 90s. Some students are quite distanced from the school culture. Many repeat grades. The curriculum emerges as a means of (re)organizing school practice, so that it is designed to foster inclusion. It is a tool for social mediation between the culture and knowledge of teenagers, and academic ones. It shapes the interactions between participants, cultural tools and knowledge. The principles of inclusive schooling promote the respect for diversity, underlining the need to listen to all voices of a learning community. According to the sociocultural approach appropriating knowledge and developing competencies is a complex process. Interactive practices shape students’ academic performances. Collaborative project work has been used to promote students’ engagement. This action-research project developed an alternative curriculum in a class (grades 5 and 6) from a poor and multicultural school in Lisbon. A follow-up investigated the impact of the educational changes on the learners’ participation in school and in social practices, and on their future life. We aim at analyzing this alternative curriculum process by focussing on students’ narratives. Results highlight improvements in students’ academic and social competencies. Changing practices during compulsory education facilitated achievement and resulted in a better socialization.     

Cultural and socio-political influences on counseling and career guidance: The case of Arabs in the Jewish State

Conclusion Counseling in Arab schools in Israel is part and parcel of the whole Arab educationsystem. Like the system itself, counseling is also an object of many socio-politicalfactors which influence it negatively in such a status of affairs. However, unlikeother components of the system and due to its very nature, it is more susceptibleto these influences superimposed upon it. Its weakness is readily observable, morethan that of any other educational delivery service This weakness is due to itshigh level of susceptibility stemming from its nature as a reflector of both themacro and micro problems of education and society, to its being an object ofdifferent factors of cultural restraints since it is a super modern service plantedinto a traditional setting, to the lack of strong leadership and backing, and finally,at as due to the tact that at is at the cross-roads of conflicting political forces stemmingfrom the authonty's expectations on the one hand and from the community onthe other.Even though counseling and career guidance are found to be under varyingcultural and socio-political constraints in the Arab educational system in Israel,it is nonetheless a most meaningful educational service. Its meaningfulness isrecognized beyond its micro level of functioning (i e helping students in personalproblems, family issues and learning difficulties and/or guiding a student more orless successfully into a suitable career ). Its meaningfulness is notable also inthe following contributions.Firstly, it has a modernizing effect on the total educational system. It is aninnovation which Arab schools have had to cope with as they absorbed it. It createdpositive orientation towards innovations, especially those aiming at the well-beingof students. Secondly, counseling as a reflector of micro and macro problems hasuncovered those problems and brought them to the attention of students, teachers,authorities and communities. Thirdly, the introduction of counseling services intoArab schools opened a whole new path of vocational choice in that it familiarizedArab youth with a new area of vocations, namely the helping services in theirmodern sense. Finally, its introduction into the Arab educational system hassensitized students in particular, and the wider community an general, to look forprofessional help. Especially under conditions of cultural transition, this contributionis of special significance. Traditional ways of providing help to people haveeither vanished or become outdated and unsatisfactory.     

A Conceptual Model (The Six Mirrors of the Classroom) and It’s Application to Teaching and Learning About Microorganisms

In this paper a conceptual model of instruction “the six mirrors of the classroom” used as a frame for teaching a learning topic, the microorganisms are depicted. The paper consists of four sections: (a) the six mirrors of the classroom model (SMC); (b) the SMC as implemented in the expository and cooperative modes of instruction in classrooms and results; (c) a “Journey of Inquiry into the Wonderful World of Microorganisms” (JIWWM), developed according to the Science–Technology–Environment–Peace–Society (STEPS) approach; and (d) teaching and learning the JIWWM, in ninth-grade classes, within the SMC model. The results show that science topic can be taught in the frame of the mirrors of the classroom. When the instructional goals of the teachers used the mirror “1, classroom organization” and mirror “6, pupils’ social behavior” and the third ring around the all six mirrors cooperative skills were practiced, academic outcomes were achieved, and attitudes toward environmental preservation and peace improved. The SMC model can serve as a valuable tool for teachers, since it can design their teaching and learning settings in a more controlled environment, in terms of objectives, teachers’ and students’ social behaviors, and academic outcomes.     

How do teachers reason about their practice? Representing the epistemic nature of teachers’ practical knowledge

The present study focused on the epistemology of teachers’ practical knowledge by addressing the following research question: how do teachers attempt to reason about their practices and their practical knowledge? The results indicated that teachers supported their practical knowledge claims using the “practical argument”. Within this conceptual framework, they relied on contextual grounds that call for the fact that something should or should not be “done”, rather than something is “true” or “false”. Contextual grounds, then, were found to be backed up by two significant types of warrants: moral ethos, and “what works” notion. Depending on what kind warrants they used, teachers’ practical knowledge was interpreted to be based on two different epistemic statuses: “practicable” knowledge and “praxial” knowledge.     

Protective effects of photobiomodulation against resistance exercise-induced muscle damage and inflammation in rats

We investigated whether low-level laser therapy (LLLT) prior to or post resistance exercise could attenuate muscle damage and inflammation. Female Wistar rats were assigned to non-LLLT or LLLT groups. An 830-nm DMC Laser Photon III was used to irradiate their hind legs with 2J, 4J, and 8J doses. Irradiations were performed prior to or post (4J) resistance exercise bouts. Resistance exercise consisted of four maximum load climbs. The load work during a resistance exercise bout was similar between Control (non-LLLT, 225 ± 10 g), 2J (215 ± 8 g), 4J (210 ± 9 g), and 8J (226 ± 9 g) groups. Prior LLLT did not induce climbing performance improvement, but exposure to 4J irradiation resulted in lower blood lactate levels post-exercise. The 4J dose decreased creatine kinase and lactic dehydrogenase levels post-exercise regardless of the time of application. Moreover, 4-J irradiation exposure significantly attenuated tumor necrosis factor alpha, interleukin-6, interleukin-1β, cytokine-induced neutrophil chemoattractant-1, and monocyte chemoattractant protein-1. There was minor macrophage muscle infiltration in 4J-exposed rats. These data indicate that LLLT prior to or post resistance exercise can reduce muscle damage and inflammation, resulting in muscle recovery improvement. We attempted to determine an ideal LLLT dose for suitable results, wherein 4J irradiation exposure showed a significant protective role.