Planning agricultural education in India

Abstract

The study is an attempt to report the growth and status of agricultural education in India and to project a future scenario. The forecast made for trained agricultural manpower is based on socio-economic considerations which are then converted into an educational plan. Issues relating to educational policy to achieve supply-demand adjustments are subsequently discussed. Three main recommendations have emerged from this study. First, the number of diploma holders at the lower end of the professional ladder needs to be increased to cater for the social demand for more trained and readily available manpower to help clientele (farmers) to enhance the level of their awareness concerning technological developments in agriculture. Second, the number of specializations at postgraduate level needs to be decreased and agricultural education needs to be more broad based in commensuration with occupational demands. This would allow skilled and qualified manpower to be directed into areas of employment where they are needed most. Third, the participation of the private sector in the institutionalization of agricultural education may offer healthy competition to state supported agricultural universities and inculcate better entrepreneurship. Finally, recommendations pertaining to the job preferences of graduates and remedies to certain internal inconsistencies such as inbreeding in the system are also made.     

Profile of scientific staff in agricultural universities in India

Abstract

A brief profile of scientific staff in the State Agricultural Universities (SAUs) in India is described. The data collected through a survey sketches the scientific staff background, age, gender, education, mobility, career details and time spent on various activities. Interesting differences were found in the activities of scientific staff of different grades. The findings show certain positive and negative features. The positive features are: scientific staff spend time on all four activities of SAUs, namely, research, teaching, extension and administration; increase in the number of scientific staff from urban background; increase in female scientific staff, and satisfactory career growth. Negative features are: lack of training opportunities; senior scientific staff in management grade spend more time in administration at the cost of teaching and research, and scientific staff selection becoming more localised. Amongst the scientific staff, readers are relatively more associated with academic activities, whereas professors are more associated with administration.     

Classroom

In this article, I present arguments in support of teaching biology as one of the integrating natural science domains at the higher secondary school and the undergraduate levels and not as phylogenic group-based subdisciplines like botany, zoology and microbiology or functional subdisciplines like genetics and biochemistry. This is possible only if we conceptualize biology and try to understand its philosophical underpinnings.     

Knowledge transfer challenges and mitigation strategies in global software development—A systematic literature review and industrial validation

Context

In this article we considered knowledge transfer (KT) in global software development (GSD) from two perspectives, state-of-the-art and state-of-the-practice, in order to identify what are the challenges that hamper the success of KT in global software teams, as well as to find out what are the mitigation strategies that can be used to overcome such challenges.

Objectives

The overall aim of this work is to provide a body of knowledge for enabling successful KT in GSD settings. This is achieved by an in-depth understanding of KT challenges and mitigation strategies, both from the perspective of literature and industry. It also identifies the similarities and differences in challenges and strategies gathered from literature studies and industrial experts.

Methods

In order to fulfill the aim of the research, we collected data through a systematic literature review (SLR) and conducted interviews with industrial experts. Through the SLR we found 35 primary studies relevant to our objectives. We also conducted eight interviews of experienced industrial professionals from eight different multinational companies world-wide. For analyzing the data we used grounded theory and cross-case analysis.

Results

In total, 60 different challenges and 79 unique mitigation strategies are identified from both SLR and interview results. The challenges and mitigation strategies are grouped into three core categories of personnel, project and technology factors, thus giving rise to a conceptualization called as 2PT factors. There are greater numbers of challenges and mitigation strategies in the project and personnel factors, highlighting the complex interplay of project-related and human-intensive issues in GSD projects, while the technology factor plays the role as facilitator in transferring knowledge. The study also maps the mitigation strategies to challenges, which can guide practitioners in their selection of strategies to use for overcoming KT challenges in GSD.

Conclusions

We conclude that effective management of project and personnel factors, facilitated by technological factors, are crucial for a successful transfer of knowledge in GSD projects. Thus in future, the researchers and practitioners need to focus on the 2PT factors for ensuring effective KT in GSD settings.     

A preliminary study of protein thiols and serum cholinesterase in assisted reproduction

In this study we sought to investigate the levels of serum protein thiols and cholinesterase levels before and after intrauterine insemination (IUI).We observed 68% patients showed a decrease in protein thiols and 63% showed a decrease in serum cholinesterase levels after insemination as compared to their respective pre procedure levels. The fall in thiols was statistically significant (p=0.021) indicating there is increased oxidative stress after the procedure. However, we could not comment on any reason for the fall in cholinesterase. Whether the changes in above parameters may have some implication on the overall success rate of IUI is yet to be ascertained.     

Biochemical characterization of an immunodominant allergen/antigen ofAspergillus fumigatus

An 18kDa protein was identified as a major immunodominant allergen/antigen secreted by a wild type isolate and various clinical isolates ofA. fumigatus. The protein was purified to homogeneity and the N-terminal amino acid was found to be alanine. The N-terminal 20 amino acid sequence of 18kDa was found to be similar to restrictocin, a cytotoxin secreted byAspergillus restrictus. Mass spectroscopic analysis of the purified allergen revealed a molecular size of 17.01 kDa. Immunoreactivity of the purified allergen with monoclonal antibodies and specific IgG and IgE antibodies of the patients of aspergillosis confirmed that this protein is Asp fl.     

The role of language in science education: Some reflections from Fiji

One of the issues identified in a recent study of science teaching and learning in Fiji's primary and secondary schools was the problems faced by students in coping with scientific terminology, and in expressing ideas in their own words (Muralidhar, 1989). In this paper, some examples from the study are used to illustrate the extent of the problem and to discuss the implications for teaching and learning science. It is argued that the quality of communication is an important factor in promoting the understanding of science, especially when the main sources of information for the majority of students are the textbook and the teacher. Specializations: Science teacher education, curriculum in action, problem solving, curriculum evaluation, naturalistic research.