Search

The combination of language policies, the global testing industry, and the role of STEM subjects in school systems have been shown to undermine the inclusion of all pupils, especially with regard to language backgrounds. This lack of inclusion shows signs of developing into a point of systematic exclusion for those students. In this article we will consider the language policies in two national contexts, the Swedish and the Luxembourgish ones, and specifically examine issues of in(ex)clusion in relation to multi-lingualism in STEM teaching. This study analyzes policy documents on (1) inclusion, (2) language use, and (3) STEM teaching at school in the two national contexts, using a methodology that builds on Popkewitz's (2013; 2014) approach to politics of schooling. Our results show, first, that different policies on language and multilingualism become visible in policy documents for primary school teaching in Sweden and Luxembourg. Secondly, this article discusses what impacts these policies may have on matters of inclusion, exclusion, or abjection in STEM teaching contexts at primary schools.

The combination of language policies, the global testing industry, and the role of STEM subjects in school systems have been shown to undermine the inclusion of all pupils, especially with regard to language backgrounds. This lack of inclusion shows signs of developing into a point of systematic exclusion for those students. In this article we will consider the language policies in two national contexts, the Swedish and the Luxembourgish ones, and specifically examine issues of in(ex)clusion in relation to multi-lingualism in STEM teaching. This study analyzes policy documents on (1) inclusion, (2) language use, and (3) STEM teaching at school in the two national contexts, using a methodology that builds on Popkewitz’s (2013; 2014) approach to politics of schooling. Our results show, first, that different policies on language and multilingualism become visible in policy documents for primary school teaching in Sweden and Luxembourg. Secondly, this article discusses what impacts these policies may have on matters of inclusion, exclusion, or abjection in STEM teaching contexts at primary schools.

Fire is a powerful tool for conservation management at a landscape scale, but a rigorous evidence base is often lacking for understanding its impacts on biodiversity in different biomes. Fire‐induced changes to habitat openness have been identified as an underlying driver of responses of faunal communities, including for ants. However, most studies of the impacts of fire on ant communities consider only epigeic (foraging on the soil surface) species, which may not reflect the responses of species inhabiting other vertical strata. Here, we examine how the responses of ant communities vary among vertical strata in a highly fire‐prone biome. We use a long‐term field experiment to quantify the effects of fire on the abundance, richness, and composition of ant assemblages of four vertical strata (subterranean, leaf litter, epigeic, and arboreal) in an Australian tropical savanna. We first document the extent to which each stratum harbors distinct assemblages. We then assess how the assemblage of each stratum responds to three fire‐related predictors: fire frequency, fire activity, and vegetation cover. Each stratum harbored a distinct ant assemblage and showed different responses to fire. Leaf litter and epigeic ants were most sensitive to fire because it directly affects their microhabitats, but they showed contrasting negative and positive responses, respectively. Subterranean ants were the least sensitive because of the insulating effects of soil. Our results show that co‐occurring species of the same taxonomic group differ in the strength and direction of their response to fire depending on the stratum they inhabit. As such, effective fire management for biodiversity conservation should consider species in all vertical strata. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Context: Native mammals continue to suffer widespread and severe declines across northern Australia's tropical savannas. There is an increasing body of evidence that the primary driver of these declines is predation by feral cats (Felis catus) and that this is exacerbated by high-severity disturbance regimes (frequent high-intensity fires, and grazing and trampling by exotic megaherbivores) that simplify habitat, thereby increasing hunting efficiency. The large islands off the northern Australian coast – where some threats are either reduced or absent – provide a means of testing the conceptual model's predictions. Aims: To compare the trajectory and distribution of native mammal populations on two large, adjacent islands with markedly different disturbance regimes. Methods: In 2020 and 2021, we resurveyed 111 historical sites across the two largest of the Tiwi Islands, Bathurst Island (42 sites) and Melville Island (69 sites) that were previously surveyed between 2000 and 2002. The Melville Island sites had also been resurveyed in 2015. We used the same live trapping method used in 2000–2002, supplemented with camera trapping. Key results: On Bathurst Island, feral cats are rare, and we found no significant decrease in native mammal trap success or species richness, and the threatened brush-tailed rabbit-rat (Conilurus penicillatus melibius) appears stable. Conversely, cats occurred at relatively high abundance on Melville Island, and there was a 52% decline in trap success, a 47% reduction in species richness, and a 93% decline in trap success for the brush-tailed rabbit-rat over the 20-year period. The highest decreases in native mammal abundance and richness were in areas that were frequently burnt and had higher activity of feral cats. In contrast, in the absence of cats on Bathurst Island, native mammal abundance increased in frequently burnt areas. Conclusions: While Bathurst Island remains one of Australia's most important refuges for native mammals, neighbouring Melville Island is experiencing severe and ongoing mammal decline. We contend that this pattern primarily reflects the high abundance of cats on Melville Island compared to Bathurst Island. Implications: Native mammal decline in northern Australian savannas is associated with abundant feral cats, but the relative contribution of disturbances in driving cat abundance remains less clear. An improved understanding of the constraints to feral cat populations in tropical savannas could enhance conservation management. Two of northern Australia's largest islands, Melville and Bathurst, were used to explore the drivers of native mammal decline in this region's tropical savannas. By comparing both islands' mammal population trajectories over two decades, Bathurst Island's national significance as a refuge is highlighted, and insights are provided into the link between disturbance regimes, feral cats, and their contributions to mammal declines. This study also provides one of the first examples of a stable native mammal assemblage, a unique and important finding. Photograph by Georgina Neave. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Task orientation is currently a prominent concept under discussion in primary school didactics. It focuses on tasks along which pupils acquire competences on distinct levels of competence. The qualitative empirical study TAPSE (Textbook Analysis in Primary Science Education) pursues the question which conception of task orientation is present in current textbooks in primary science education. The study follows two foci: (a) The introduction of a new category system for the analysis of the task-orientation potential of tasks, based on the further development of existing category systems for analyzing tasks; and (b) the analysis of 994 task statements in science textbooks with respect to the didactic quality of their task orientation. The sample included nine primary science textbooks, four from Germany, and five from Luxembourg. Textbooks were selected from the most frequently sold series in the respective country. All tasks of the textbooks were analyzed deductively and inductively by four coders in three steps: (a) Identifying tasks with task-oriented potential; (b) itemizing different types of task-orientation potential; and (c) comparing the textbooks with respect to country- and period-specific manifestations of task orientation. Analysis indicated that (a) there are few tasks which meet the criteria of task orientation; (b) distinct types of task orientation can be generated, among which implicit forms dominate; and (c) differences occur in the characteristics of task orientation between older and newer textbooks as well as between German and Luxembourgish ones. Central points of discussion ensue from this: The need to develop models for social and cognitive activation for tasks, challenges for professional development for teachers, and support for pupils--in particular high achieving heterogenization.