Search

This is a composite article which brings together the international perspectives of the editorial board of the Journal of Adventure Education and Outdoor Learning to explore the impacts of artificial intelligence (AI) on the field of adventure education and outdoor learning (AE/OL). Building on the AE/OL profession's response to the impacts of COVID-19 on outdoor and environmental education in 2020, this article includes authors from 10 countries including Australia, Brazil, Canada, England, Japan, Kenya, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, and Wales. The statements discuss the impacts and opportunities of AI for the AE/OL professions, researchers, the nature of being in and with the outdoors, and Indigenous knowledges. The intention of this article is not to present a definitive summary of the state of the profession, but to provide examples of the ways in which diverse people are responding to the challenges and opportunities of AI. By sharing these views, and identifying some commonalities, we hope that AE/OL educators, practitioners, researchers and managers can creatively and cautiously seize the opportunities of this technological revolution.

Since the 1990s, enrolment in postgraduate programs has increased significantly in Canada. In more recent years, this has led to concerns regarding overproduction and the labour market outcomes of those with postgraduate education. Women have played an important role in this growth, but questions remain as to whether women's progress into the highest levels of education has helped ameliorate their wage disadvantage relative to men. Using the 2011 National Household Survey, this study finds large wage premiums for completing master's and doctoral degrees for both men and women, especially in younger cohorts; however, there are important differences by field of study. The gender wage gap is smaller for women with master's degrees than for those with bachelor or doctoral degrees. Occupational differences account for more of the gender wage gap than field of study, suggesting that after degree completion, university-educated women sort into occupations that are lower paid than their male counterparts'.

Uptake of new scopes of practice by pharmacists has been slow and inconsistent, which the literature suggests may be related to disconnects between pharmacists' established professional identities and the identities needed to adopt these new practices. This study evaluated the use of coaches to help pharmacy students during their cooperative education work terms develop professional identities more aligned with the new scopes of practice. In this longitudinal cross sectional survey, trained pharmacist coaches met individually and in groups with students in the intervention arm of the study. Students and coaches in the intervention arm completed reflective questions and student intervention and control groups completed a self-assessment survey. Reflective comments indicated that both students and coaches identified student gains in career and professional planning, workplace navigation skills, ability to reflect on professional development topics, and contextualizing classroom learning within practice. Work-integrated learning combined with coaching can contribute to students' career and professional identity development.

The convenience and flexibility of online learning clearly make it an attractive option for learners in professional development contexts. There is less clarity, however, about how it fares as a vehicle for enabling the applied, practice-oriented outcomes typically associated with professional development learning. This paper presents a case study describing how transfer-of-learning strategies were employed in a continuing professional education (CPE) course developed for practicing pharmacists, called ADAPT (ADapting pharmacists' skills and Approaches to maximize Patients' drug Therapy effectiveness). To gain insight into the extent to which learning was transferred to practice as a result of participation in the course, qualitative data were collected over a 12-month period from participants of the 2010 pilot offering of ADAPT. Participants reported making changes to their practice as a result of participating in the course, and they identified three course features as being particularly useful in facilitating practice transfer: providing learners with (i) a "vision" of targeted outcomes and skills, (ii) "support" to enable them to attain targeted outcomes and skills, and (iii) explicit "preparation for action."

The purpose of this study was to determine the health-related impact service-learning interventions had upon university students. College students from The University of Toledo were trained to conduct five, one-hour, sessions of Transmissive Reminiscence Therapy (TRT) with non-institutionalized senior adults within their community. Another group of university students made five, one-hour, informal visits with non-institutionalized senior adults within their community. These groups were compared to a group of university students that did not carry out any form of service-learning. A sample of 89 university students completed the SF-36 health survey instrument at pretest and at posttest; 32 from the TRT group, 27 from the visitation group, and 30 from the control group. The analyses revealed significant positive change on 4 variables among students assigned to the therapy group, on 1 variable among students assigned to the visitation group, and on 2 variables among students assigned to the control group. Significant negative change was detected on 1 variable among students assigned to the visitation group, and on 1 variable among students assigned to the control group. The TRT form of service-learning proved to be the more effective of the two interventions aimed at impacting student health perceptions in a positive way.

Two studies examined whether females exhibited greater discomfort than males when competing directly with same-sex peers. In the first study, 40 same-sex groups of 4 children from kindergarten or grade 4 were asked to choose a group leader. The second study involved competitive games in pairs separated by a barrier. Both studies found greater discomfort among females. (Author/KK)

We unite two interrelated bodies of work – a growing literature on sexual orientation earnings gaps and a rich tradition of research on intragenerational career trajectories – to examine how labor markets and life courses interact to produce gender and sexual orientation inequalities over time. We use the 1982–2019 Canadian Longitudinal Administrative Databank, a unique longitudinal database constructed from tax records, to answer core questions about the mechanisms that underlie sexual orientation earnings inequality. Growth curve models reveal how sexual orientation earnings gaps evolve over time spent in the workforce, and how they relate to differences in demographic and work characteristics for those in same- and different-sex couples at various points in the life course. We find that sexual orientation earnings gaps converge and diverge at unique career stages for men and women, and at each stage relate to unique mechanisms, especially work characteristics and family status. We find little significant variation in average earnings trajectories by sexual orientation across cohorts who were subject to differing legal and social environments surrounding sexual orientation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Lindane (γ‐hexachlorocyclohexane [γ‐HCH]) is used as an insecticide in many countries. Concentrations of γ‐HCH have been found in air, water, soil, snow, and tissue samples throughout the world and concerns have been raised for its potential effects on human and ecosystem health. In Canada, γ‐HCH is primarily used as a treatment on canola (Brassica napus L) seed with an estimated 455.3 Mg applied in 1997 and 510.4 Mg in 1998. The purpose of this study was to measure γ‐HCH volatilization from fields planted with treated canola seed. Atmospheric dry and wet deposition and soil samples were collected for two growing seasons (1997 and 1998) from a canola field planted with treated seed. Atmospheric concentrations as high as 16.1 and 7.4 ng m−3 were measured at 1 m above the canola field compared with maximum concentrations of 2.9 and 2.7 ng m−3 measured above a grass field located 2 km away (1997 and 1998, respectively). On the basis of measurements made in this study it was estimated that between 12 and 30% of the γ‐HCH applied as canola seed treatment may volatilize and be released to the atmosphere. This would create an atmospheric loading of 66.4 to 188.8 Mg for the 6‐wk period following planting, estimated from the quantity of seed sown on the Canadian prairies in 1998. Dry deposition rates and rain concentrations as high as 2203 ng m−2 d−1 and 170 ng L−1 were measured adjacent to the canola field. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Despite the availability of free and accessible influenza vaccine to all Ontarians, uptake has remained suboptimal. Although reasons to not receive the vaccine vary widely, health care provider recommendations remain the most effective strategy to positively influence vaccination decisions.Objectives: This study aimed to predict the relative quality of life, costs, and cost-effectiveness of introducing a remunerated community pharmacist consultation service on influenza vaccination for Ontarians aged ≥ 65 years.Methods: A cost-utility analysis was performed from a third-party public payer perspective over 1 year. The delivery of consultation services by community pharmacists on influenza vaccination, billable at CAD $15 was compared with current standard practices (absence of remunerated consultations). Model inputs were derived primarily from existing literature. The impact of parameter uncertainties was assessed through deterministic and probabilistic sensitivity analyses.Results: The provision of influenza vaccine consultation services was predicted to prevent 2407 cases of mild influenza and 3 influenza-related deaths at an additional cost of CAD $2.03 per person over current practices. The incremental costs per quality-adjusted life-year (QALY) gained for the enhanced care strategy compared with standard care was CAD $2087. The interpretation of the base-case result was found to be robust across all sensitivity analyses. The projected additional costs of implementing pharmacist consultations in Ontario was estimated at CAD $1.15 million per year, and the anticipated benefits included a gain of 507 QALY per year.Conclusion: Pharmacist-delivered consultation services on influenza vaccination are cost-effective and lead to improved clinical outcomes for Ontario seniors. Introduction of such services offers a promising strategy to address challenges related to poor vaccine uptake in this group. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]