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1 – 10 of over 2000Brent M. Swallow and Thomas W. Goddard
This paper aims to track the development of climate policy in the province of Alberta, Canada, particularly the province’s unique greenhouse gas emission offset mechanism. The…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to track the development of climate policy in the province of Alberta, Canada, particularly the province’s unique greenhouse gas emission offset mechanism. The analysis shows how the policy has influenced, and been influenced by, policy processes at the national and international levels.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper begins with an analytical framework that recognizes different types of influence between international, national and provincial climate policy processes. That framework is used to structure a review of four historical periods of climate policy change: prior to 1992, 1992 to 2002, 2002 to 2012 and between 2012 and mid-2015.
Findings
The analysis illustrates the interplay between the Alberta approach to climate policy and the international and national policy contexts. A period of intense policy conflict between Canada’s federal and provincial governments led to a situation in which the Alberta Government sought to lead rather than follow national policy. Subsequent periods have seen the Canadian national government oscillate between following the lead of Alberta or the USA.
Research limitations/implications
Rather than national and international policies simply setting the context for Alberta’s policy, the paper identifies multiple flows of influence between the three levels of governance. The results illustrate the need to consider forward and backward flows of influence between the different levels of government that set climate change policies. Elements of several models of policy change are supported.
Practical implications
The Alberta climate mitigation policy has many elements that can be effective in reducing carbon emissions in a way that is both flexible and predictable. These elements are of interest to other jurisdictions. Other elements of the current policy, however, limit its effectiveness in reducing emissions. More concerted policy action is needed to mitigate carbon emissions in Alberta for Canada to meet its agreed targets.
Originality/value
No other paper has tracked the historical evolution of climate policy at the provincial/state level in a way that clarifies the forward and backward linkages with national and international policy.
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This chapter offers a brief overview of the ways in which death has been addressed in children’s picture books in a playful or light-hearted manner. The books here are a small…
Abstract
This chapter offers a brief overview of the ways in which death has been addressed in children’s picture books in a playful or light-hearted manner. The books here are a small purposive sample showing the ‘ordinary’ way, in which death can be dealt with in picture books rather than looking at books with a specific therapeutic intent. The concepts of ‘playfulness’ and also ‘carnival’ are explored before four books are analysed.
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Tanya Chichekian and Bruce M. Shore
This chapter overviews the articulation of inquiry in the three International Baccalaureate (IB) levels, Primary Years (ages 3–12), Middle Years (11–16), and the Diploma Program…
Abstract
This chapter overviews the articulation of inquiry in the three International Baccalaureate (IB) levels, Primary Years (ages 3–12), Middle Years (11–16), and the Diploma Program (16–18) that is widely accepted by universities for matriculation. It reviews inquiry-based instruction in the publicly available IB research literature. The IB advocates inquiry as its pedagogical approach. We identified empirical classroom research involving IB teachers or students from four databases; 35 reports matched inclusion criteria and 31 of these had appeared in gifted-education journals. The IB’s inquiry philosophy, interdisciplinary emphasis, and specific elements in the Diploma Program such as the Theory of Knowledge course, a program entitled Creativity, Action, and Service, and the Extended Essay, comprise qualities that should inform higher education. There has been disproportionate attention to the planning part of inquiry (e.g., generating worthy questions and deciding how to answer them) versus enactment or reflection; this leaves room for other research input about enacting inquiry in university instruction that creates a cycle of creative engagement. Successful IB experiences, through some of the IB pedagogy and content, raised learners’ expectations about their higher education learning experiences. However, as one moves from the Primary Years through to the Diploma Program, students report increasing “teaching to the test” and content-coverage that constrain inquiry opportunities students value. The importance of providing detailed, supportive, step-by-step introductions to inquiry, and attending to the social and emotional correlates of the substantive learning, were highlighted.
Aleksei V. Bogoviz, Tatiana V. Skryl, Irina S. Ferova, Anna A. Burdina and Aigul Sultanguzhiyeva
The purpose of this chapter is to study the American practice of implementing the model of information economy as an example to the leading countries of the American region of the…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this chapter is to study the American practice of implementing the model of information economy as an example to the leading countries of the American region of the global economic system and to compile a conceptual model of formation and development of information economy in modern America.
Methodology
For provision of compatibility of data on different regions of the global economic system, the research is performed on the basis of the previously used methodology and information platform. The values of the indicators of technosphere, sociosphere, economic sphere, and target result in information economy’s formation in American countries and are compared to determine their variation from direct average; subsequently, they are compared with the global values for evaluation of percentage deviations. The research concerns countries such as USA, which is a leader in the American region with regard to the global economic system, Canada, which is the country closest to the level of economic development by the region’s leader, and Brazil, which is the foremost leading country among the developing countries of the American region. The data from 2017 is used in the study.
Results
The authors conclude that the US economy is not a deviant economic system but a true leader of the American region with regard to the the global economic system. That is, the USA shows higher level and rate of information economy’s formation, but applied that for the same conceptual model as other countries of the American region. The most vivid uniqueness of the American model of establishment and development of information economy is the stage-by-stage character of the noosphere pyramid, which is manifested by vivid reduction of the area of its structural elements, the most massive of which is technosphere, which corresponds to the indicators that are standard for the leading countries of the world.
Recommendations
The offered conceptual model is recommended for studying the formation of information economy in the America region and compare this process in other regions of the world.
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There is a growing demand in industry for engineering graduates who can think “sustainably.” However, there are many barriers to developing assessment that fosters sustainability…
Abstract
There is a growing demand in industry for engineering graduates who can think “sustainably.” However, there are many barriers to developing assessment that fosters sustainability learning in engineering classrooms. There is no consensus on the definition of sustainability and its key competencies and teaching resources are limited.
Staff are unclear about what to teach, how to teach, and how to assess learning. Assessment is an integral part of teaching and learning and should be planned from the earliest stages, but this is rarely done. Engineering relies heavily on traditional assessments such as tests and examinations, but these are known to encourage surface learning. Sustainability is complex, multidisciplinary, and needs context, which requires higher-order thinking characteristic of deep learning.
Current assessment types for sustainability include examinations, case study, concept maps, and project-based learning. However, more research is needed to develop best practice assessments. Recommendations for teaching approach are to use a rigorous approach to instructional design, use a systems approach, and use a teaching model that promotes deep learning, incorporates context, and promotes alignment of learning objectives and assessment. Community-oriented assessments are recommended that feature the interdisciplinarity and complexity of sustainability and promote higher-order thinking.
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Matthew David Phillips, Rhian Parham, Katrina Hunt and Jake Camp
Autism spectrum conditions (ASC) and borderline personality disorder (BPD) have overlapping symptom profiles. Dialectical behaviour therapy (DBT) is an established treatment for…
Abstract
Purpose
Autism spectrum conditions (ASC) and borderline personality disorder (BPD) have overlapping symptom profiles. Dialectical behaviour therapy (DBT) is an established treatment for self-harm and BPD, but little research has investigated the outcomes of DBT for ASC populations. This exploratory service evaluation aims to investigate the outcomes of a comprehensive DBT programme for adolescents with a diagnosis of emerging BPD and a co-occurring ASC diagnosis as compared to those without an ASC diagnosis.
Design/methodology/approach
Differences from the start to end of treatment in the frequency of self-harming behaviours, BPD symptoms, emotion dysregulation, depression, anxiety, the number of A&E attendances and inpatient bed days, education and work status, and treatment non-completion rates were analysed for those with an ASC diagnosis, and compared between those with an ASC diagnosis and those without.
Findings
Significant medium to large reductions in self-harming behaviours, BPD symptoms, emotion dysregulation and inpatient bed days were found for those with an ASC diagnosis by the end of treatment. There were no significant differences between those with an ASC and those without in any outcome or in non-completion rates. These findings indicate that DBT may be a useful treatment model for those with an ASC diagnosis, though all results are preliminary and require replication.
Originality/value
To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first study to report the outcomes of a comprehensive DBT programme for adolescents with an ASC diagnosis, and to compare the changes in outcomes between those with a diagnosis and those without.
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Gerry Rayner and Peter Corkill
Partnerships between universities and secondary schools are highly valued for a range of pedagogical, transition and outreach benefits to students, teachers and more broadly…
Abstract
Partnerships between universities and secondary schools are highly valued for a range of pedagogical, transition and outreach benefits to students, teachers and more broadly, society. Teachers in schools provide a rich insight into how university teaching staff can better engage students and provide them with deeper learning experiences. Universities can provide on-campus student incursions for learning activities, work experience opportunities, research projects with academics and lectures by specialist researchers. This chapter describes the range of benefits arising from a partnership, established in 2009, between the John Monash Science School (JMSS) and Monash University, co-located in outer suburban of Melbourne, Australia. The JMSS–Monash partnership has generated a number of innovative and dynamic educational programmes, which have positively impacted the learning and engagement of students across geographic divides. The partnership is rich, and has broadened and deepened as the partners have learned more about each other’s capacities, and envisioned what is possible in an educational landscape bereft of innovation and challenge to existing norms. By thinking creatively and acting bravely, the partners have shone a light on a brighter future in science for Australian students.