Farmers' Adoption of Soil Conservation Technologies: A Case Study from Osun State,Nigeria

Abstract

The main objective of this study was to determine the attitude of farmers towards erosion and the adoption of appropriate soil conservation technologies (SCTs). For the survey, farmers were selected from the communities Esa Oke, Elwure and Owode-Ede and Akoda in Osun State in Nigeria. In the first three communities farmers did receive training on soil conservation, in the fourth not. About 60 farmers were interviewed to obtain information on personal and socio-economic characteristics, awareness of environmental problems, attitude towards erosion control and experiences with SCTs. Statistical data analyses (analyses of frequencies, correlation, t-test, χ²-test) were made to examine possible relationships among parameters and the influence of factors on adoption.

Most respondents were advanced in years, responsible for large households and characterized by low levels of income and literacy. Soil erosion was seen as a problem confronting agricultural production only to a small extent. The adoption rate of SCTs was low, as only mulching, cover cropping, contour tillage and cut-off drainage were practised and often rejected. Low labour-demand, the availability of common equipment, low costs of application, ease of practice and compatibility with the existing farming system influenced adoption.

The observed positive correlation between level of education, knowledge of appropriate technologies, farming experience and the number of SCTs adopted emphasizes the importance for farmers of education and training. Strengthening agricultural extension agencies for capacity building is an important tool for improving soil conservation in Nigeria.

The paper clarifies with specific examples the causes of the low rates of adoption of available technologies, with a reduced impact of research and of efforts to achieve food security and sustainable production at village level.     

Faculty integration of technology in teacher preparation: outcomes of a development model

This article reports on a faculty development model that uses a variety of approaches and strategies to help faculty restructure their curricula and effectively model technology integration for their students. A multifaceted model, funded in part by the Preparing Tomorrow’s Teachers to Use Technology (PT3) initiative, was implemented at The University of Tennessee, Knoxville. The model included training, technical and collegial support, access, and incentives. Questionnaires and qualitative data indicated substantive changes in faculty expectations and assumptions regarding technology as well as increases in faculty and student technology skills and the degree to which faculty members integrate technology into their curricula. The model helped to facilitate the collaborative efforts of a cadre of faculty to model and integrate technology throughout their teacher preparation programs.     

The Influence of Criminal Justice Major on Punitive Attitudes

Students majoring in criminology and criminal justice are assumed to have more detailed and accurate knowledge about crime, criminal justice, and punishment practices than peers majoring in other disciplines. The purpose of this study was to examine if criminology/criminal justice majors were more or less punitive than students pursuing other majors at three universities using standard predictors of punitiveness that have not been consistently examined in previous research. The results indicate that criminology and criminal justice students are more punitive in the combined three‐campus sample and in two of the three‐campus samples considered separately.     

The “Crime file” drug videotape series

Critics and proponents alike have voiced concerns about the difficulties of practicing multiculturalism in today's criminal justice classrooms. In this essay we present strategies for using the lived experiences of students as a tool for discovering diversity inside the classroom, as well as for finding value in it. We then use our students' discourse to talk about the impact these strategies can have. Our experiences, as well as those of our students, suggest that principles of multiculturalism can be achieved without having to sacrifice the core curricula; and that one of the more valuable resources for teaching multiculturally is the lived experiences that students, teachers and guests bring into the classroom.     

Developing sociopolitical consciousness at Freedom Schools: implications for culturally responsive teacher preparation

This article describes the programmatic ways in which the Children’s Defense Fund Freedom Schools® program develops culturally responsive teaching practices?amongst its summer interns, particularly in the area of developing sociopolitical consciousness.?This paper places specific focus on the role that historical knowledge, the acknowledgement of a ‘we’ discourse and instilling a lifelong commitment to service plays in cultivating teacher sociopolitical consciousness. The research reported here aims to serve as a case for lessons to be learned by traditional, university-based teacher education programs committed to preparing teachers to teach in culturally responsive ways.     

Teaching gender and sexuality diversity in foundations of education courses in the US

This article is a summary of comprehensive units on gender and sexuality diversity that the authors have used in teacher education courses in undergraduate and graduate social foundations of education classes over several years. The course lesson plan includes a five‐part analysis of the following categories: biological sex; gender identity/sexual identity; gender roles; sexual behavior; and sexual orientation. The authors have experienced much success and positive student evaluation by using this approach. This is true even in religiously and politically conservative universities. The authors introduce the complexity of biology, gender roles, and gender identity, before addressing human sexuality. This helps to diffuse many stereotypes and misconceptions in the initial lessons.     

Classroom behaviour management content in Australian undergraduate primary teaching programmes

The ability to differentiate classroom behaviour management (CBM) strategies is an important skill for novice teachers in increasingly diverse classrooms. Worldwide, little is known about the curriculum content offered to pre-service teachers in the area of CBM. This article reports the findings from the first nationwide survey of Australian primary pre-service teacher educators coordinating units and programmes with CBM content. Twenty-five Australian tertiary institutions with primary programmes participated, providing information on 102 of the 118 units with CBM content. Stand-alone units were offered in 68% of programmes and embedded in 96% of programmes. Unit coordinators included a mean of 8.3 approaches/models per unit. They commonly included applied behaviour analysis, decisive discipline, positive behaviour intervention and support, and choice theory/reality therapy, among the 36 approaches/models listed. More than half (57.9%) of the stand-alone units and only 20% of embedded units were coordinated by an academic with a stated CBM research interests. Units coordinated by an academic with CBM research interests contained more hours/model and included research-based models more often than those without CBM research interests, although they still included non-research-based models.     

Populist linguistic tone in recent U.S. presidential campaign discourse: a DICTION analysis

ABSTRACT

This study analyzed the tone of public campaign remarks of right- and left-wing populist (Donald Trump and Bernie Sanders, respectively) and right and left-wing non-populist (Mitt Romney and Hillary Clinton, respectively) U.S. presidential candidates using DICTION 7.0. Findings suggest that populists tended to use a linguistic tone that is high in pessimism, group abstractness, and exclusion. Pessimism and group abstractness were positively associated with immigration language in right-wing populist speech. Commonality and “we-ness” were positively associated with populist language in left-wing populist speech.     

The art and artifice of early sports photography

Abstract

The rise of modern sport in the mid-nineteenth century coincided with the emergence of photography as a new image-making medium. Thus, both practices developed in parallel. Notably, many early photographers turned to sport as a subject for their work, despite the early technological limitations of the medium. Histories of photography have, however, tended to overlook this. Similarly, sport historians have tended to regard these early photographs simply as illustrative material rather than important innovations in the formation of new visual conventions for the representation of sport. This paper seeks to redress this by exploring, in close detail, examples of sports photography produced in the mid- to late-nineteenth century. More importantly, it examines the visual vocabularies deployed by these early photographers within the context of contemporary art practices, demonstrating how artistry and artifice were deployed in the production of some of the earliest, and finest, examples of sports photography ever produced.