Additive effects due to biochar and endophyte application enable soybean to enhance nutrient uptake and modulate nutritional parameters

We studied the effects of hardwood-derived biochar (BC) and the phytohormone-producing endophyte Galactomyces geotrichum WLL1 in soybean (Glycine max (L.) Merr.) with respect to basic, macro- and micronutrient uptakes and assimilations, and their subsequent effects on the regulation of functional amino acids, isoflavones, fatty acid composition, total sugar contents, total phenolic contents, and 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH)-scavenging activity. The assimilation of basic nutrients such as nitrogen was up-regulated, leaving carbon, oxygen, and hydrogen unaffected in BC+G. geotrichum-treated soybean plants. In comparison, the uptakes of macro- and micronutrients fluctuated in the individual or co-application of BC and G. geotrichum in soybean plant organs and rhizospheric substrate. Moreover, the same attribute was recorded for the regulation of functional amino acids, isoflavones, fatty acid composition, total sugar contents, total phenolic contents, and DPPH-scavenging activity. Collectively, these results showed that BC+G. geotrichum-treated soybean yielded better results than did the plants treated with individual applications. It was concluded that BC is an additional nutriment source and that the G. geotrichum acts as a plant biostimulating source and the effects of both are additive towards plant growth promotion. Strategies involving the incorporation of BC and endophytic symbiosis may help achieve eco-friendly agricultural production, thus reducing the excessive use of chemical agents.     

Impact of teachers’ professional development on school improvement—an analysis at Bangladesh standpoint

This study seeks to describe the teachers’ professional development activities in Bangladesh and explores the hypotheses about the relationship between teachers’ traditional professional development activities and school improvement. Data from a representative sample of City secondary schools from Bangladesh (n = 127) were gathered through questionnaires from 127 principals and 694 teachers. Hierarchical multiple regression analysis was used in this research. This study found significant impacts of some of teachers’ professional development activities on school improvement. Also found that the maximum school improvement can be achieved if schools put more emphasis on teachers’ collaboration, in-service training and classroom observation and less emphasis on individual action enquiry. The findings of this study provide important information for the policy makers, educational managers and especially for the headmasters and teachers concerned with the improvement of teachers’ quality in secondary schools of Bangladesh. This study adopts a concurrent approach of data collection and analysis.     

Grappling with ‘Natural Selection’ — Experiences of a Teacher

Since evolution forms the core of modern biology, teaching about natural selection is extremely important as this equips the student to frame the ‘why’ questions properly and, at the same time, sharpens their understanding about a host of issues pertaining to behaviour, diversity and genetics.     

Strategies for effective faculty involvement in online activities aimed at promoting critical thinking and deep learning

Highly-traditional education systems that mainly offer what is known as direct instruction usually result in graduates with a surface approach to learning rather than a deep one. What is meant by deep-learning is learning that involves critical analysis, the linking of ideas and concepts, creative problem solving, and application (Harvey & Kamvounias, Higher Education Research & Development, 27(1), 31–41, doi: 10.1080/07294360701658716 2008)- all of which prepare graduates for life in the 21st Century. It is precisely this kind of deep learning that the current national educational reform initiatives in Bahrain are trying to promote, in contrast to what has usually been offered historically. Unfortunately, this noble aim is not always achieved and teaching methods need to be examined and developed, since there definitely are a lot of alternatives to stereotype lecturing in academic institutions (Annerstedt, Garza, Huang-DeVoss, Lindh & Rydmark, Journal of the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning, 10(2), 107–127, 2010). One such alternative suggested in this paper is that of increasing faculty involvement with students in online contexts, as a means for promoting critical thinking and deep learning.     

Changes in the level of biogenic amines in cerebrospinal fluid of suicidal attempt cases

The levels of norepinephrine (NE), dopamine (DA) serotonin (5-HT) and its metabolite 5-hydroxyindole acetic acid (5-HIAA) have been determined in the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) of normal (n=25) and suicidal attempt cases (n=30). A significant decrease in the level of NE (p<0.01), 5-HT(p<0.001) and 5-HIAA (p<0.001) in the CSF of suicide attempt cases were observed as compared to normal controls. It is concluded that CSF 5-HIAA level which is drastically depleted may be used as an early biochemical indicator of suicidal attempt so that it may be treated by the drugs which can enhance the suppressed neurotransmitter activity.     

Contextual influences on sources of academic self-efficacy: a validation with secondary school students of Kerala

This study investigates the theorized sources of Academic Self-Efficacy among the higher secondary school students of Kerala, India. Mastery Experience in the form of Academic Achievement, vicarious experience in the form of School Image and Social Persuasion in the form of Parental Encouragement are included as the predictor variables of Academic Self-Efficacy. Participants in the present study were 700 higher secondary school students of Kerala, selected using stratified random sampling. The findings of the study confirm the theorized correlation of Academic Self-Efficacy with previous achievement, vicarious experience (school image) and persuasory information (parental encouragement). In the total sample, the percent of variance in Academic Self-Efficacy that is predictable by the three-predictor variables is nearly one quarter (23.83?%). School Image is the best contributing variable (9.42?%) followed by Mastery Experience (8.67?%) and then by Parental Encouragement (5.74?%). The findings shows that apart from cultural differences, locale and gender difference also exist in sources of Academic Self-Efficacy. The superiority of School Image over Mastery Experience in predicting Academic Self-Efficacy is different from that found in the West, theoretically and empirically. In India, self-efficacy beliefs of youngsters continue to depend more on social and domestic factors than personal experience and mastery.     

A Novel Approach to Investigate the Impact of Mindset and Physiology on the Choice to Invest Effort During an Arithmetic Task

Growth mindset, the belief that personal attributes such as intelligence are malleable, has previously been related to more effort investment. Here, we investigated how undergraduates' mindset (N = 114) relates to the choice to invest effort during an arithmetic task, indexed by whether they make low vs. high effort-related choices. Social cognitive theory suggests that past performance experiences (mastery vs. failure) and physiological state are important sources for competence self-evaluations. Therefore, in addition to mindset, we also investigated how effort-related choices are influenced more dynamically, by failures and physiological responses during the task. Growth mindset and physiological effort mobilization did not predict effort-related choices but making mistakes did predict lower effort choices in the subsequent round. This study further supports the importance of mastery experiences for effort investment and provides a novel approach for integrating different levels of influence on effort-related choices during an educationally-relevant task.     

Facilitating debate in networked learning: Reflecting on online synchronous discussion in higher education

Small-group collaborative learning in whichstudents have opportunity for criticaldiscussion is a key element of effectiveteaching and learning in Higher Education. Providing this sort of education throughNetworked Learning (NL) is challenging. Research in Computer Mediated Communication(CMC) is revealing that facilitating effectiveuse of these tools depends on encouragingstudents to take many different dialogue roles.Our hypothesis was that asking post-graduatestudents to reflect on the kinds of role theyshould take in synchronous online discussionwould encourage adoption of such roles. A``role-play' activity was introduced topost-graduate students who used a VirtualLearning Environment (VLE) as part of theircourse. Initial results showed that bothdistance and face-to-face students, nativespeakers (NS) and non native speakers (NNS),working collaboratively on the same coursethrough the VLE, had comparable outcomes onessay assignments and that NNS and distancelearners slightly outperformed face-to-facestudents in their group work. Moreover, therewas evidence that the facilitation technique ofraising student awareness of roles waseffective in helping (at least some) studentsmanage synchronous online discussion moreeffectively, improving the overall coherence,focus and depth of discussion.     

Children’s conceptions of bullying and repeated conventional transgressions: moral,conventional, structuring and personal-choice reasoning

This study examined 307 elementary school children’s judgements and reasoning about bullying and other repeated transgressions when school rules regulating these transgressions have been removed in hypothetical school situations. As expected, children judged bullying (repeated moral transgressions) as wrong independently of rules and as more wrong than all the other repeated transgressions. They justified their judgement in terms of harm that the actions caused. Moreover, whereas children tended to judge repeated structuring transgressions as wrong independently of rules (but to a lesser degree than when they evaluated bullying) and justified their judgements in terms of the disruptive, obstructive or disturbing effects that the actions caused, they tended to accept repeated etiquette transgressions by arguing that the acts had no negative effects or simply that the rule had been removed. The findings confirm as well as extend previous social-cognitive domain research on children’s socio-moral reasoning.