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Exploring High Impact Practice through an International Field School Lens
No full textHigh Impact Practices (Kuh, 2008) are included as one of the cornerstones of a successful education in the new General Education plan at Thompson Rivers University. Field School experiences generally include several of the learning activities that lead to High Impact Practices (HIPs). The TESL field school to Vietnam that was launched in December, 2019 involved a 3-week teaching practicum at a college in Ho Chi MInh City for a group of students teachers in the Teaching English as a Second Language program. This field school incorporated four of ten HIPs: common intellectual experiences, learning communities, diversity/global learning, and internships. This presentation will define HIPs, present some of the research related to the effectiveness of HIPS, and use reflections from students and instructor from the TESL field school to demonstrate how the experience impacted learning. Tips for integrating HIPs into both on campus and off campus activities will be presented. Kuh, G. D. (2008). High-impact educational practices: What they are, who has access to them, and why they matter. Washington, DC: Association of American Colleges and Universities
The Politicizing of ESPN: A Content Analysis of Its Perceived Partisanship
Get PDFSince the 2016 presidential election, there has been the perception that politics has not only taken the forefront in news, but in sports as well. After then NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick took a knee to protest social injustice, ESPN’s protest coverage became a source of debate as various media outlets accused the network of exhibiting partisan coverage with a liberal bias. Sports journalism has historically suffered with issues of credibility, especially ESPN because of the blurring of the lines between information and entertainment. Through a content analysis of the sport site’s Facebook comments, this study found that espn.com users were more likely to be uncivil towards other commenters and were less concerned with a perceived bias by the site. This, however, is not conclusive evidence that espn.com does not have some sort of bias but does indicate that the assumed commenters of sports sites are similar to those of hard news sites, often using its platform for their own political messaging and attacking other users who have different views
A Consolidation Algorithm for Fractionated Genomes Without a Reference
No full textAfter a genome duplication event, genes are deleted essentially at random from duplicated regions in a process called fractionation. This fractionation of the genome can lead to overestimation of the evolutionary distance between species. Software to identify these regions and correct for the distortion caused by fractionation is available, but it relies upon an ancestor genome which did not experience a duplication event for reference. This means that the distortion cannot be corrected for some species when a reference genome is not available. To gain a better understanding of the evolutionary history of these species, we are developing software to identify fractionated regions with a consolidation algorithm that does not require a reference genome
Good City Principles: A Case Study of the Mission Hill Neighbourhood in Vernon, BC
No full textThis presentation reports on results from ongoing research seeking to answer the following two research questions: First, what are the key planning principles proposed in the sustainability, livability, age friendly and smart growth literature that should be adopted in order to enhance the physical and mental well-being of suburban residents? Second, how does the Mission Hill neighbourhood located in Vernon, BC – a typical, mature, suburban community, fare with regard to those “good city” principles?
The complex nature of the socio-economic composition and behavioural organization of the Mission Hill neighbourhood is captured through the analysis of key indictors from the 2006 and 2016 Canadian census, and through observations conducted at various times over three days of field work. Following the comparison of the outcome from the empirical analysis with the list of good city principles, preliminary results reveal that access to public transit; walkability and other mobility issues; housing affordability, quality and diversity; the quality of the physical and social environment; and perceptions of safety, are some of the key issues facing residents in this neighbourhood. Five recommendations are proposed to address these concerns
Theoretical Study of the Iron Complexes with Lipoic and Dihydrolipoic Acids: Exploring Secondary Antioxidant Activity
No full textFollowing a recent theoretical study of the secondary antioxidant activity of the deprotonated forms of lipoic and dihydrolipoic (DHLA) acids through their formation of complexes with copper,1 the present work focuses on the complexes that these species can form with iron. To this effect, the thermodynamics of the formation equilibria of twenty Fe(III) complexes was studied at the M06/6-31++G(d, p) level of theory combined with the SMD continuum solvation model in water under physiological pH conditions at 298.15K. Fifteen of these complexes were selected to explore the kinetics of their reduction to Fe(II) complexes with , the first step of the Haber-Weiss cycle (see eq (1)). The second step of this cycle (called the Fenton reaction, see eq (2)), leads to the formation of biochemically harmful ·OH radicals. A compound is found to have secondary antioxidant activity if its complex with Fe(III) (or with Cu(II)) is able to slow down the first step of the Haber-Weiss cycle.
(1) [Fe(H2O)6]3+ + O2·- ---\u3e [Fe(H2O)6]2+ + O2
(2) [Fe(H2O)6]2+ + H2O2 --\u3e [Fe(H2O)6]3+ + OH- + ·OH
The three most thermodynamically stable complexes calculated contain doubly deprotonated DHLA coordinating to Fe(III) with one or both carbonyl oxygen atoms and the deprotonated sulfur. Two of these complexes were found to have antioxidant activity as they seem to be able to reduce by up to 30 times the rate constant of the first step of the Haber-Weiss cycle. Similar Cu(II) complexes lead to a much larger rate constant reduction, of up to 217 times, at the same level of theory.
1 R. Castañeda-Arriaga, J. R. Alvarez-Idaboy, N. Mora-Diez, RCS Adv., 2016, 6, 107924-107932
Bicycling in Colombia: The Development of a National Passion
Get PDFThe introduction of the bicycle to Colombia in the 1890s provided a new method of transportation and quickly became the foundation of a new sport, road racing. Over the last fifty years, Colombian bikers have successfully competed in national and European bicycle races such as the Vuelta de Colombia, Giro de Italia, and the Tour de France. After reviewing current historiography on Colombian cycling, this essay traces the history of the bicycle’s introduction into the country and explores the reasons why it has become, after fútbol, Colombia’s most popular sport
Effects of Imagery and Mindfulness on Anxiety, Confidence, Mental Well-Being, and Performance in Shot Putt Throwers: A Case Study
Get PDFThe purpose of the present study was to introduce imagery and mindfulness to athletes as tools to help deal with competition anxiety, and improve confidence, mental well-being, and performance. Two female varsity level throwers (Mage = 20) met individually with the researcher twice a week during the competitive season (25 weeks). Athletes were introduced to breathing and relaxation techniques, followed by basic imagery scripts and mindfulness. Results revealed that both athletes decreased their anxiety levels, while increasing their self-confidence, mental well-being, and performance. The findings highlight the positive effect of employing a combination of imagery and mindfulness in sport life
‘The Highest Form of Patriotism:’ Toward an Understanding of First Amendment Precedents and NFL Protests
Get PDFReflecting on and Showcasing TRU OER Development Projects
No full textOver the past few years, a growing number of TRU faculty members have worked various Open Educational Resources (OER) development projects. At TRU, the adoption, adaption, creation, and use of OER by TRU faculty will impact numerous students with potential savings of over $500,000 per year. In this session, we will first provide a brief overview of OER project development and available supports and grants on campus (and beyond) as well as the the implementation and relevance of OER in higher education. Following this, panelists will showcase some of their material and reflect on their experience in developing OER. OER can enhance teaching and learning through the incorporation of interactive features, time savings, relevant contextualization, and reducing barriers to access such as through cost. This panel will consider the motivations and steps involved in four distinct open education projects at TRU. If you are interested in developing a proposal for funding, would like to learn more about the work of some faculty at TRU, or are interested in learning about OER and open education practices. Panelists will share their reflections on aspects including their unique motivations, challenges, what they gained, and advice for future OER developers
Co-teaching: a model for enriching students\u27 learning
No full textThe term co-teaching refers to the practice of two or more teachers teaching together for the benefit of students. It has been used in a host of different contexts for a variety of purposes such as: to bring specialist knowledge to students; for teachers to share their different areas of expertise with students; and for teachers\u27 to gain situated professional learning in new methods of teaching. We have been studying co-teaching for a number of years through video-recording and micro-analysis. In this session we will share some of our findings about effective ways teachers teach together in co-teaching. The aim of the session is to share our knowledge in ways that can support teachers who would like to try co-teaching in their courses