980 research outputs found
Sort by
Capturing the struggle: understanding the metacognitive strategies for academic writing of mature, work-based learners at university
No full textThis longitudinal, qualitative, practitioner research study investigated the metacognitive strategies that twelve adult, work-based learners studying on a foundation degree used to undertake academic written assignments. The research
lens of complexity and transformational theory provided a unique conceptual and methodological framework to explore the learning experiences of the participants over the two year period of their degree. Data were gathered from ‘feedforward’ tutorials with the learners and their assessment grades. The study articulates the challenges, evident in the learners’ narratives, as struggles. These struggles were aligned with concepts of emergence within a complexity framework and a key finding from the data is the importance of these in relation to transformational learning. Where transformational learning was evident this extended beyond the cognitive, to include emotional and social dimensions. Powerful emotional responses surrounded
the struggles experienced by the learners. The study focused on professional, personal and academic identities and on the interconnectedness of nested realities where each
interacts dynamically for these learners. Concepts of self-belief, self-efficacy and agency were central to this investigation into the metacognitive awareness of adult
learners where motivation and purpose for learning presented as critical factors for undertaking the Foundation Degree. Academic writing strategies and the individual approaches to undertaking written assignments were analysed to explore implications for practice within universities to meet the complex learning needs of non-traditional, adult learners. The findings have informed a proposed model for an architype tutor who is specifically able to provide the particular conditions to foster transformational learning and who addresses equity and power between the adult, work-based learner and the academy
The Sidaskipti, Iceland's change of fashion
No full textIn 1550 the last Catholic bishop in Iceland was executed by Icelandic Lutherans and their Danish governors. After this event the country on the outer fringes of the Danish kingdom yielded to a Reformation that had already been established in the other territories of Denmark and Norway. This chapter examines contemporary sources and modern scholarship in order to demonstrate that the success of the new movement was based on two principal factors. Firstly, this was a Reformation that was deliberately light on theology, a sidaskipti or ‘changing of fashions’ as it came to be known in Icelandic. Secondly, it was an inevitable consequence of the growing national strength of the state of Denmark that was keener to establish a tighter grip on its territories than it had ever had before
Revisiting the Santa Barbara sense of direction scale, mental rotations, and gender differences in spatial orientation
No full textAngular direction estimation to landmarks of varying distance in the physical environment was utilised to investigate the ecological validity of the Santa Barbara sense of direction scale (SBSOD). Two- and three-dimensional MR measures were included to enable further the scale applicability. Results showed a moderate correlation between SBSOD and angular deviation from landmarks in the immediate landscape, but not with local or distant landmarks. Moreover, the findings suggest that skills which underlie three-dimensional MR better relate to pointing accuracy (PA) of distant landmarks and the cardinal direction, North. Results also showed a gender-related systematic biases in landmark estimation
Impacting trainee teachers’ self-efficacy with BAME pupils through real-world teaching resources
No full text“There are limits to being helpful”: student engagement from the perspectives of Social Scientists at a post-92 university in the UK
No full textThis primary research paper synthesises responses from lecturers at a post-92 university in the Midlands, UK, with existing literature on the contested concept of ‘student engagement’. Through thematic analysis, key themes include conceptualising student engagement, perceived barriers to such readings of student engagement, and potential strategies to improve it. Key findings are that the dialectical relationship between academics (providers) and student (receivers) under neoliberal conditions of Higher Education (HE) provision in the UK highly compromises enacting progressive readings of student engagement. Strategies to address this range from pedagogies of care to punitive measures, with the impact of dwindling student participation upon academics’ self-concept made apparent. This paper will be of interest to academic staff working within the Social Sciences (and wider disciplines) in the marketised context of UK HE. The paper concludes by calling for further research into academics’ self-concept and self-efficacy
Systematic review of the effectiveness of stage based interventions to promote smoking cessation
No full textObjective: To evaluate the effectiveness of interventions using a stage based approach in bringing about positive changes in smoking behaviour. Design: Systematic review. Data sources: 35 electronic databases, catalogues, and internet resources (from inception to July 2002). Bibliographies of retrieved references were scanned for other relevant publications, and authors were contacted if necessary. Results: 23 randomised controlled trials were reviewed; two reported details of an economic evaluation. Eight trials reported effects in favour of stage based interventions, three trials showed mixed results, and 12 trials found no statistically significant differences between a stage based intervention and a non-stage based intervention or no intervention. Eleven trials compared a stage based intervention with a non-stage based intervention, and one reported statistically significant effects in favour of the stage based intervention. Two studies reported mixed effects, and eight trials reported no statistically significant differences between groups. The methodological quality of the trials was mixed, and few reported any validation of the instrument used to assess participants' stage of change. Overall, the evidence suggests that stage based interventions are no more effective than non-stage based interventions or no intervention in changing smoking behaviour. Conclusions: Limited evidence exists for the effectiveness of stage based interventions in changing smoking behaviour
Am I unwanted? Working with unhappy children who are experiencing bullying
No full textChildhood bullying is a major risk factor for health, educational attainment and social relationships. Bullied children are twice as likely as non-victims to suffer from psychosomatic problems, such as headaches, abdominal pain, sleeping problems, poor appetite and enuresis. They are at increased risk of psychiatric disorders including depression, eating disorders, self-harm and suicidal behaviour. They also have high rates of poor academic performance resulting from absenteeism and worries at school. Experience of bullying victimization is one of many possible determinants of suicidal ideation and suicide-related behaviours. Bullying – an aggressive behaviour that is intentional, repeated, and involves a power imbalance – is a major public health concern. Despite the efforts of schools to prevent or stop bullying, bullying is still highly prevalent worldwide
RAF Stanbridge, Leighton Buzzard, Bedfordshire:Desk Based Assessment
No full textIn January 2011, English Heritage's Archaeological Survey and Investigation team (Cambridge) carried out a desk based assessment of RAF Stanbridge. RAF Stanbridge was constructed in 1939 to act as the RAF's main wireless receiving station for all overseas traffic. By the 1980s, the station housed the RAF's main logistics computer which controlled all overseas operations. Currently, part of RAF Stanbridge is on the Defence Estate's disposal list