38139 research outputs found
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"Don't stand up on unlevel ground": Care leavers' experiences of out-of-home care
No full textBackground: Children and young people in contact with child protection services often experience poorer life outcomes compared to their peers. Limited research exists on the reasons behind this disparity from the perspective of those with direct lived experience. Objective: To explore and amplify the voices of care leavers (adults formerly in care) and understand their unique experiences and perspectives on the benefits and challenges of being a child or young person in care. Participants and setting: Seven care leavers aged 19–69 years (three Australian Aboriginal, four non-First Nations), participated in a semi-structured, open-ended interview. Methods: Founded in exploratory and participatory methodology, interviews were examined using qualitative thematic analysis to identify patterns of meaning connected to the research question. Findings: Six themes were identified: 1) Care can be good…but it is luck of the draw; 2) Care is conditional; 3) Don't stand up on unlevel ground; 4) OOHC is not my identity (an identity to be hidden, yet a desire to be known); 5) Not my real family or my real home (the desire to belong and be at home); and 6) Kept in the dark - seen but not heard (powerless and uninformed). Conclusion: Care leaver's stories challenge assumed narratives about Out-Of-Home Care, highlighting how short-term, inconsistent care undermines children's need for stability, participation and meaningful relationships. Findings contribute theoretically by examining intersectionality in care contexts and practically by advocating for relational continuity as well as child-centred, participatory, culturally responsive models of care
Vehicle-to-grid technology for load balancing and energy management: A comprehensive review of technical, economic and environmental perspectives
No full textThe large-scale integration of vehicle-to-grid (V2G) technology presents both opportunities and challenges for power grid energy management. When effectively implemented, V2G technology can balance grid demand, lower energy costs, improve load factors, and facilitate renewable energy integration. To achieve these benefits through V2G, the paper presents a comprehensive review of global research and pilot projects, analysing algorithmic approaches and artificial intelligence-based methods for intelligent scheduling and energy optimization, mathematical and decision models for cost-efficient dispatch and system planning, and market-oriented strategies for managing uncertainty and enabling economic participation. It also examines advanced control and communication infrastructures essential for real-time energy management and secure bidirectional power exchange. The study also identifies key challenges such as the limited scalability of current optimization models, difficulties in capturing correlated uncertainties, heavy reliance on accurate forecasting within energy management systems, poor coordination between control layers, misalignment with real market behaviours, and constraints in communication and cybersecurity. To address these challenges, it proposes various solutions, including hybrid optimization frameworks, adaptive and self-correcting energy management system, chemistry-specific battery degradation models, coordinated hierarchical dispatch, behavioural-economic integration, multi-service market platforms, and standardized secure communication protocols © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved
Strategies of Health-Focused Narratives to Develop Coping and Growth for Young People: A Thematic Analysis of the Literature
No full textWhile there are many approaches in the use of narratives for children and young people as symbolic forms of real-life education, this article specifically investigates the use of narratives as a public health communication and intervention strategy for young people. This strategy foregrounds imaginative stories based on health education messaging that are told from patient perspectives. Through a thematic analysis of 57 research articles, the article explores the themes and discursive strategies of narrative-based health communication, including digital storytelling, in supporting young people to develop coping and resilience skills. The article identifies five interrelated themes, revealing that narratives are not only effective tools for conveying health information but also foster psychosocial support, patient empowerment, and social connection. Such narratives serve as tools for facilitating change and informing decision-making across various stages of health engagement, including prevention, promotion, and management of chronic conditions. These narratives are socially transformative: in assisting young people; they also educate clinical professionals and organizations and thereby inform public health practice at large. In this way the article both consolidates and clarifies the field of literature concerned with the use of story as a health communication strategy for children and young people
The longitudinal qualitative research design in nursing, health, and social care research: philosophy, methodology, and methods
No full textBackground
The longitudinal qualitative research (LQR) approach is an emerging design in nursing research which focuses on examining changes in experiences over specified timepoints. While some authors have tied this approach to a specific qualitative tradition such as phenomenology and case study, other authors have associated it with two or more qualitative methodologies. Yet, others have also argued it is untied to a specific qualitative tradition. Thus, there is palpable confusion regarding whether it is a methodology or merely a method. Additionally, its guiding paradigm or philosophical/ theoretical foundations remain poorly articulated or loosely defined within the broader qualitative research tradition.
Objective
This methodological discussion paper sought to examine the guiding paradigm/ philosophical underpinning, methodology, and methods unique to LQR to ground it within the broader qualitative research tradition. A secondary goal, perhaps more nuanced, is to generate further scholarly discussions regarding LQR and its application to nursing, health, and social care research.
Design
Methodological discussion
Findings
When the term “longitudinal” is applied to a qualitative methodology, the emphasis is on repeated data collection informed by that methodology’s theoretical perspective. However, when LQR is used, then it is to be considered as a methodology characterised by a focus on change, meaning, and time grounded in context, an emphasis on participants’ own reflections of their subjective experiences and the researchers understanding of them. LQR emphasises reflective, second-order perspective (the world as experienced and perceived/ understood). With the need to uncover change across time, its dynamics, and mechanisms, LQR is argued to be potentially underpinned by the critical realist theoretical/ philosophical stance. Methodologically, LQR lends itself to methodical flexibility and pluralism. Despite its strengths, some challenges are noteworthy including attrition, time and resource demands, data management, ethical considerations, researcher bias, analytical complexity, contextual changes, and issues of transferability.
Conclusions
LQR is a methodology fit for uncovering meaning, dynamics, and mechanisms of change over time and bound to specific contexts albeit its conduct requires careful planning and availability of adequate resources
Addressing ocean noise pollution in the artificial intelligence era: Regulatory challenges and future responses
No full textThe accelerating advancement of artificial intelligence (AI) is reshaping approaches to ocean governance, offering novel opportunities to address one of the ocean’s most pervasive and underregulated threats - anthropogenic noise pollution. This paper examines how AI technologies are being applied to identify, monitor, and mitigate ocean noise, and explores the regulatory, ethical, and institutional challenges that accompany their use. It argues that while AI can enhance the precision and efficiency of marine monitoring - through automated noise classification, predictive mapping, and real-time data analytics - its deployment also exposes significant governance gaps within the existing international legal framework. These include issues of data sovereignty, accountability, transparency, and equitable access to technology. Drawing on developments under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), and recent International Maritime Organization (IMO) guidelines, the paper proposes a coherent regulatory strategy grounded in algorithmic accountability, ethical oversight, and global cooperation. It concludes that AI should be governed as a public-interest technology within ocean governance, reinforcing rather than undermining the international rule of law and environmental justice in the marine domain
Covariability in Large-Scale Climate Modes: Implications for Australian Precipitation Variability
No full textThis study uses a novel approach to investigate the covariability among key modes of climate variability, El Niño–Southern Oscillation (ENSO), Indian Ocean dipole (IOD), and Southern Annular Mode (SAM), and quantifies their impact on Australian precipitation variability. Unlike traditional approaches that treat these climate modes indepen- dently, we apply principal component analysis to the indices of these climate modes to better understand their covariability and independence. We also use cross validation to validate and improve our estimates of the individual and collective im- pact of these climate modes on Australian precipitation. The first and third principal components, which collectively ex- plain ;50% of the variance across climate modes, correspond to ENSO variability and a large fraction of IOD variability that is coherent with ENSO. The second principal component, explaining ;20% of the variance, represents SAM. While much of the IOD signal covaries with ENSO, we identify a component of IOD variability that is independent of ENSO and has a modest but discernible impact on southern Australian precipitation variability during austral winter. When acting in concert, these climate modes explain up to 40%–45% of precipitation variance in local parts of eastern Australia during spring. These findings offer new insights for climate model evaluation and demonstrate the value of jointly considering the covariability and independence of climate modes to improve the interpretation and communication of seasonal forecasts that consider these climate modes
Whole-school relational pedagogy: establishing the climate for effective student engagement
Full text linkRelational pedagogies attend to considerations of emplacement and context by asking how education might most effectively motivate rich forms of pedagogical encounter in light of student and teacher positionality. However, missing from the scholarly literature are substantive accounts of the ways relational pedagogies inform school renewal initiatives. Using experiences gleaned from a school-wide renewal initiative enacted in a secondary school in Queensland, Australia, this paper explores how the convictions and practice of teachers aligned with a renewal agenda that was designed to reconceptualise teaching and learning under a ‘relational’ lens. This paper reports that the conditions within a school prescribe how relationality (as both concept and practice) mandate particular practice frameworks, which in turn influence the ways that students and teachers experience teaching and learning. The analysis outlined in this paper finds that relational pedagogical approaches that are not supported by commensurate school policy enactments risk becoming redundant, overlooked, or altogether proscribed when attempts towards relationality are translated into practice
Creating Trauma-Informed Classrooms: A Compassionate Approach to Supporting Students and Educators
No full textThis transformative guide empowers educators to create a compassionate and nurturing environment for students impacted by trauma, presenting teachers with the knowledge and practical strategies to support their students' emotional well-being and academic success.
Understanding the effects of trauma on students' learning and behaviour is essential. To achieve this, this book places emphasis on empathy, understanding, and resilience as the cornerstones of trauma-informed care. The chapters show educators how to promote emotional regulation, foster resilience, and celebrate students' unique strengths. From building positive teacher-student relationships to implementing mindfulness practices and restorative techniques, the author provides practical tools and reflective exercises to create an inclusive and safe classroom environment. Through heart-warming stories and expert insights, teachers can gain a deeper understanding of their students' experiences, enabling them to respond with compassion and sensitivity. The book also encourages reflective practice and collaboration with families and communities, ensuring educators receive ongoing support in their journey to provide trauma-informed care.
Whether a seasoned educator or a new teacher, this handbook equips educators to make a profound difference in their students' lives and ensures that all students feel seen and valued in the classroom
Open letter: A global call to strengthen national soil biodiversity action through coordination and harmonization
No full textMechanistic insights into singlet‑oxygen-driven Fenton-like system using 2D/2D MXene/ZnFe-LDH heterostructure for ciprofloxacin removal
No full textTo address the widespread occurrence of ciprofloxacin (CIP) in water, which poses serious risks to both public health and environmental safety, a novel and environmentally benign MXene with ZnFe-LDH (MX@LDH) 2D/2D heterogeneous catalyst was developed for activating peroxymonosulfate (PMS). First, we developed the MXene preparation method, including nitric acid treatment, to remove the fluorine residuals caused by the conventional hydrochloric acid and lithium fluoride method and to introduce oxygen vacancies. Subsequently, ZnFe-LDH was successfully immobilized onto the MXene surface via a co-precipitation method, enabling the formation of a 2D/2D heterostructure. MX@LDH provided more active sites for PMS activation with improved electron transfer. MX@LDH-4 (34.3 % MXene) exhibited 96.7 % CIP removal and 75.8 % TOC removal within 90 min under conditions of 40 mg/L CIP, 4 mM PMS, and pH = 6. MX@LDH maintained stable catalytic performance between pH 4 and pH 10. The singlet oxygen (1O2) and superoxide radicals (·O2−) were the main reactive oxygen species, and singlet oxygen could be produced by the radical pathway, as well as mediated electron transfer. The calculated mutagenicity and bioaccumulation factor of transformation products detected by liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometer were lower than those of CIP, implying the effectiveness of the MX@LDH/PMS system in reducing the ecotoxicity of CIP. Owing to the high resistance to inorganic ions and humic acid, the outstanding catalytic performance toward various pharmaceuticals, even in real water, stable chemical structure, and recyclable features, the 2D/2D heterogeneous MX@LDH/PMS system could be utilized for the decomposition of organic pollutants in water