Audio and screen visual feedback to support student learning

Feedback has been highlighted as the most powerful influence on student achievement, but students are often less satisfied with feedback than with other aspects of the student experience. It is hence important that ways of offering feedback are found that are useful both for improving learning and for gaining student satisfaction. This ongoing study was designed to explore and to improve feedback in a variety of differing contexts, two of which are reported here: i) audio feedback on a first year undergraduate written assignment in Geography (product-oriented feedback); and ii) video feedback from ongoing laboratory sessions with first-year Biosciences students (process-oriented feedback). These contexts have been selected as offering different ways of working and for highlighting a number of issues and areas for further development. Student and staff views have been gained via surveys, focus groups, individual interviews and ‘stimulated recall’ sessions. Findings suggest that students have high expectations in relation to feedback; many anticipate the kinds of individual face-to-face interaction they experienced in school and are not easily satisfied by other ways of working. In addition, offering audio or video feedback that is supportive to learning in both affective and cognitive terms is not necessarily easy. In the context of written assignments there is still much to be learned about appropriateness of length, tone, the register of language, the balance between praise and criticism, and the best contexts and timing for audio feedback. In the context of large classes for laboratory sessions, further research is needed on how lecturers and demonstrators can give ongoing feedback that is useful when captured for replay in video form, and also about how effective video taken in class might be then used for training purposes in order to enable student demonstrators to be more effective and knowledgeable when offering feedback to student

Do we really make a difference? A case study on the value of taught environmental sustainability postgraduate programmes within geography

Purpose: The purpose of this research was to discover the impacts of taught environmental sustainability-focused geography postgraduate programmes on student attitudes, behaviours and practices in relation to environmental awareness within two research-intensive universities in the UK. Design/methodology/approach: A case study involved online surveys to measure environmental attitudes, behaviours and practices at the start and end of four taught geography postgraduate programmes. Findings: There was widespread attitudinal change and an increasing prioritisation of environmental issues reported among participants after they had completed their programme. However, behavioural change was limited, and there was little evidence of greater awareness being translated into changed practices. The learning benefits included a greater focus on interdisciplinarity, holistic thinking and critical self-reflection. Practical implications: The findings demonstrate that postgraduate taught (PGT) programmes in sustainability improve student awareness and concern about environmental issues but do not necessarily lead to widespread behavioural change. This raises questions for programme convenors about how education for sustainability can be truly transformational and avoid leading students to develop eco-anxieties over the scale of change required. Originality/value: There is a lack of research engaging with students on PGT programmes, especially in understanding their impacts on environmental attitudes, behaviours and practices. The research provides an evidence base for understanding the effects of PGT programmes in challenging student values, attitudes and practices and by implication knowledge transfer post-graduation, with the potential to help protect the environment and identify ways of living better with the ever-changing planet.</p

Decolonising Environmental Risk Assessments of Potentially Polluting Wrecks:a Case Study of the Wreck of the USS Mississinewa in Ulithi Lagoon, Federated States of Micronesia

Millions of tonnes of oil lie entombed within wrecks from two world wars which, when released, can cause environmental devastation. Wrecks are predominantly risk assessed by the Global North Nations responsible, resulting in an epistemology that separates human from nature. This research aimed to decolonise risk assessments to capture the spatially heterogeneous nature of human vulnerability to oil pollution. Triangulation analysis of interviews and official reports relating to the USS Mississinewa oil spill identified three Global South issues a Eurocentric risk assessment failed to capture: region-specific meteorological conditions causing the leak, remoteness making external resources slow to arrive, and the impact of the fishery closure on traditional subsistence lifestyles. A vulnerability assessment is proposed to prioritise wrecks in susceptible locations. Recommendations are made for a collaborative approach to wreck management by including local voices, resisting the Global North assumption of generality, and recognising the priorities of those living with wrecks

Towards improved cost estimates for monitoring, reporting and verification of carbon dioxide removal

Alongside actions to rapidly reduce greenhouse gas emissions, carbon dioxide will need to be removed from the atmosphere if the world is to meet the Paris Agreement climate goals. The proliferation of net zero targets, and by extension the use of carbon dioxide removal (CDR), has led to increased attention on the governance of CDR. Monitoring, reporting and verification (MRV) is a central component of the governance architecture. This report examines the cost of MRV for different CDR methods, the extent to which the cost of MRV for different methods is perceived as a barrier to their upscaling, where opportunities lie to reduce the cost of MRV and what factors influence the choice of MRV protocol. It provides recommendations for the UK government but which are more widely applicable

The challenges of OER to Academic Practice

The degree to which Open Educational Resources (OER) reflect the values of its institutional provider depends on questions of economics and the level of support amongst its academics. For project managers establishing OER repositories, the latter question - how to cultivate, nurture and maintain academic engagement - is critical. Whilst participating in the HEFCE funded institutional OER programme (2009-10), the team at the University of Exeter encountered a range of academic opinions on OER, and followed many as they rode the peaks and troughs of opportunities and challenges that this kind of work entails. This paper discusses the potential motivators for academics in providing OER material, as an understanding of these is helpful when introducing the subject to new contributors, and when informing planning decisions - both procedural and financial - so that key incentives are protected. We will also look at the reasons for some academic scepticism surrounding OER and how these views can be - if not tempered - then at least understood with a view to informing future policy.The enthusiastic advocacy that some academics possess in relation to OER is borne of their vision of its use. It is important to ensure that the high priority objective of obtaining academic support does not overlook instances where there is tension between this vision, and what can be achieved with available resources. We will discuss the key information that OER managers need in order to mitigate this scenario. OER projects do not work in isolation from internal competition and it has been essential to be sensitive to the conflicting pressures that academics have to contend with in their work profile. We will discuss the value of establishing where an OER project sits within an institution&rsquo;s educational and research strategies, and its financial framework, the questions to ask and the signs to spot to obtain this information, and how managers can use this knowledge to make decisions, avoid pitfalls and garner support.&nbsp; This will involve addressing academic initiatives and reward schemes, including a discussion of how IPR and copyright can not only present challenges but also play an important role in motivating and demonstrating academic engagement. This paper draws upon formal and informal engagement with a range of stakeholders who have been involved in the project, including the many colleagues who attended several staff development sessions

A review of the impacts of degradation threats on soil properties in the UK

National governments are becoming increasingly aware of the importance of their soil resources and are shaping strategies accordingly. Implicit in any such strategy is that degradation threats and their potential effect on important soil properties and functions are defined and understood. In this paper, we aimed to review the principal degradation threats on important soil properties in the UK, seeking quantitative data where possible. Soil erosion results in the removal of important topsoil and, with it, nutrients, C and porosity. A decline in soil organic matter principally affects soil biological and microbiological properties, but also impacts on soil physical properties because of the link with soil structure. Soil contamination affects soil chemical properties, affecting nutrient availability and degrading microbial properties, whilst soil compaction degrades the soil pore network. Soil sealing removes the link between the soil and most of the ‘spheres’, significantly affecting hydrological and microbial functions, and soils on re-developed brownfield sites are typically degraded in most soil properties. Having synthesized the literature on the impact on soil properties, we discuss potential subsequent impacts on the important soil functions, including food and fibre production, storage of water and C, support for biodiversity, and protection of cultural and archaeological heritage. Looking forward, we suggest a twin approach of field-based monitoring supported by controlled laboratory experimentation to improve our mechanistic understanding of soils. This would enable us to better predict future impacts of degradation processes, including climate change, on soil properties and functions so that we may manage soil resources sustainably

A review of life cycle assessment methods to inform the scale-up of carbon dioxide removal interventions

Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) methods are increasingly used for policy decision-making in the context of identifying and scaling up sustainable carbon dioxide removal (CDR) interventions. This article critically reviews CDR LCA case-studies through three key lenses relevant to policy decision-making on sustainable CDR scale-up, namely comparability across CDR assessments, assessment of the climatic merit of a CDR intervention, and consideration of wider CDR co-benefits and impacts. Our results show that while providing valuable life cycle understanding, current practices utilize diverse methods, usually attributional in nature, which are CDR and time-specific. As a result, they do not allow comprehensive cross-comparison between CDRs, nor reveal the potential consequences of scaling up CDRs in the future. We suggest CDR LCA design requires clearer definitions of the study scope and goal, the use of more consistent functional units, greater comprehensiveness in system boundaries, and explicit baseline definitions. This would allow for robust assessments, facilitating comparison with other CDR methods, and better evidencing net climate benefits. The inventory should collect time-dependent data on the full CDR life cycle and baseline, and report background assumptions. The impact assessment phase should evidence the climatic merits, co-benefits, and trade-offs potentially caused by the expanding CDR. Finally, to ensure a sustainable scale-up of CDR, consequential analyses should be performed, and interpretation involves the comparison of all selected metrics and the permanence of carbon storage against a baseline scenario.</p

A Review of Life Cycle Assessment Methods to Inform the Scale-Up of Carbon Dioxide Removal Interventions

Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) methods are increasingly used for policy decision-making in the context of identifying and scaling up sustainable carbon dioxide removal (CDR) interventions. This article critically reviews CDR LCA case-studies through three key lenses relevant to policy decision-making on sustainable CDR scale-up, namely comparability across CDR assessments, assessment of the climatic merit of a CDR intervention, and consideration of wider CDR co-benefits and impacts. Our results show that while providing valuable life cycle understanding, current practices utilize diverse methods, usually attributional in nature, which are CDR and time-specific. As a result, they do not allow comprehensive cross-comparison between CDRs, nor reveal the potential consequences of scaling up CDRs in the future. We suggest CDR LCA design requires clearer definitions of the study scope and goal, the use of more consistent functional units, greater comprehensiveness in system boundaries, and explicit baseline definitions. This would allow for robust assessments, facilitating comparison with other CDR methods, and better evidencing net climate benefits. The inventory should collect time-dependent data on the full CDR life cycle and baseline, and report background assumptions. The impact assessment phase should evidence the climatic merits, co-benefits, and trade-offs potentially caused by the expanding CDR. Finally, to ensure a sustainable scale-up of CDR, consequential analyses should be performed, and interpretation involves the comparison of all selected metrics and the permanence of carbon storage against a baseline scenario

Delivering Greenhouse Gas Removal in the UK: Priorities for the government

Greenhouse gas removals (GGR) will play an increasingly important role in reducing net zero emissions in the near term, counterbalancing residual emissions to achieve net zero by mid-century, and achieving net-negative emissions in the long term. To realise these critical roles, a global GGR industry needs to be scaled up from the current low level of activity, but not at the expense rapid emissions reductions. This policy briefing sets out the recommended actions for the new government to put the UK on track to scale GGR in a sustainable, credible and timely way, in order to achieve legislated climate requirements alongside meeting broader goals. The recommendations include: 1. Take a strategic approach to Greenhouse Gas Removal (GGR) to maximise opportunities for the UK and manage risks: Develop a strategy for GGR Be outward facing in the UK’s approach to GGR Address the institutional arrangements needed to develop and deploy GGR technologies Keep options open, monitor progress and adapt. 2. Put public engagement at the heart of GGR policymaking: Embed public engagement into decision-making through mandating a Citizens’ Assembly that goes beyond purely determining ‘acceptability’ Develop best practice methods and guidance on community engagement and mechanisms for embedding it into governance Communicate GGR responsibly. 3. Harness the potential for the UK to lead on aligning climate and broader sustainability goals: Embed GGR into broader strategies for sustainable development and vice versa Develop governance frameworks that ensure genuine sustainability and social responsibility at project level and as GGR scales Play a leading role in developing standards and rewards systems that create a level playing field across technologies and incentivise multiple outcomes. 4. Create robust and flexible routes for GGR scale-up that build investor confidence: Take a holistic approach to policymaking by developing and testing policy ‘bundles’ that work across the full system of supply, demand and the enabling environment Develop flexible policies that reflect the diversity of GGR method Support local authorities to deliver GGR approaches and solutions