Developing trainee teacher practice with geographical information systems (GIS)

There is general agreement that geographical information systems (GIS) have a place within the geography classroom; they offer the potential to support geographical learning, exploring real-world problems through student-centred learning, and developing spatial thinking. Despite this, teachers often avoid engaging with GIS and research suggests that the lack of GIS training in initial teacher education is partially to blame. In response to this, this article explores how 16 trainee geography teachers were supported to develop their use of GIS across a one-year, postgraduate teacher training course in England. The project, an interpretive case study underpinned by a constructivist epistemology, used questionnaires and interviews to elicit trainees’ understandings of the nature of GIS, and to explore their engagement with it across their training year. Results suggest a programme of embedded training developed in trainees a more nuanced understanding of the value of GIS for supporting geographical learning and, thereby, increased self-efficacy towards and engagement with it in their teaching practice. However, not all trainees embraced GIS as a pedagogical tool and the study raised several key issues for geography teacher education, including the knowledge culture within schools in the teacher training partnership, and the importance of trainee self-efficacy towards GIS.     

'Real Services': A Re-appraisal

This paper deals with 'real services' to manufacturing companies, nowadays an integral part of the toolbox of industrial policies in all advanced countries, both at regional level and within major nationwide programmes. Policy relevance is indeed the main criterion to identify concretely those services, based on their capacity to trigger learning processes and to have positive 'externalities of consumption'. The paper discusses the main problems concerning the management and evaluation of real services and outlines the key issues for the policy agenda (selection, coordination and networking; the transfer of success models; the practice of subsidiarity between different levels of government). The paper concludes by arguing the undiminished relevance of real services for contemporary industrial policies, notwithstanding the growing awareness of their limited impact.     

'Stop la Violence': Responses to delinquency and urban violence in contemporary France

AGER, D. Francophonie in the 1990s: Problems and Opportunities Multilingual Matters, 1996 215 pp., £13.95, ISBN 1 85359 323 0

BLANCHOT, M. The Most High translated and with an introduction by Allan Stoekl University of Nebraska Press, 1996 254 pp., £32.95, ISBN 0 8032 1240 2

BLOCH‐LAINÉ, and GRUSON, C. Hauts fonctionnaires sous l'Occupation Odile Jacob, 1996 284 pp, 130 ff., ISBN 2 7381 0419 3

BORREL, M. Conflits du travail: changement social et politique en France depuis 1950 L'Harmattan, 1996 266 pp., 133 F., ISBN 2 7384 4429 5

BROERS, M. Europe after Napoleon MUP, 1996 £14.99, ISBN 0 7190 4723 4

BURCH, N. and SELLIER, G. La drôle de guerre des sexes du cinéma français (1930–1956) Nathan, 1996 400 pp., no price indicated, ISBN 209 190778 2

CAWS, M. A., GREEN, M. J., HIRSCH, M. and SCHARFMAN, R.(eds) Ecritures de femmes: nouvelles cartographies Yale University Press, 1996 413 pp., £20.00, ISBN 0 300 06412 8

CHARON, J.‐M. La presse quotidienne La Découverte, 1996 126 pp., 49 F., ISBN 2 7071 2535 0

CHATEAUVALLON Pour une utopie réaliste. Autour d'Edgar Morin Arléa, 1996 228 pp., no price indicated, ISBN 2 86959 319 8

CHOINEL, A. and ROUYER, G. Le Système bancaire français PUF, 1996 127 pp., 42 F., ISBN 2 13 047826 3

COMITÉ D'HISTOIRE DU MINISTÈRE DE LA CULTURE Les Affaires culturelles au temps d'André Malraux 1959–1969 La Documentation Française, 1996 508 pp., 140 F., ISBN 2 11003674 5

CORRÉARD, M.‐H. and GRUNDY, V. (eds) The Concise Oxford‐Hachette French Dictionary Oxford University Press/Hachette Livre, 1995 1447 pp., £15.99, ISBN 0 19 864329 2

DJIAN, J.‐M. La Politique culturelle Marabout/Le Monde Éditions, 1996 282 pp., 38 F., ISBN 2 501 02451 6

DOMPNIER, N. Vichy à travers chants Nathan, 1996 160 pp., no price indicated, ISBN 2 09 177833 8

FERRET, J. Paroles d'élus, le travail politique au quotidien Erès, 1996 243 pp., 100 F, ISBN 2 86586 409 X

FISHMAN, S. Femmes de prisonniers de guerre 1940–1945 L'Harmattan, 1996 280 pp., no price indicated, ISBN 2 7384 4051 7

FREREJEAN, A. and HAYMANN, E. Les Maîtres des forges: la saga d'une dynastie lyonnaise, 1736–1886 Albin Michel, 1996 363 pp., 130 F, ISBN 2 226 08478 9

GAILLARD, J‐M. L'ENA, miroir de l'Etat: de 1945 à nos jours Editions Complexe, 1995 239 pp., no price indicated, ISBN 2 87027 563 3

GORDON, C. The Business Culture in France Butterworth‐Heinemann, 1996 172 pp., No price indicated, ISBN 0 7506 1832 9

GUINNOT, C. (préface by Pierre Rosanvallon) L'Apprentissage de la politique moderne; les élections municipales sous la monarchie de juillet L'Harmattan, 1997 326 pp., 170 F., ISBN 2 7384 5151 9

HAWKINS, R. and TOWELL, R. French Grammar and Usage Arnold, 1996 425 pp., £17.99, ISBN 0 340 59142 0

HIGGINS, L. A. New Novel, New Wave, New Politics. Fiction and the Representation of History in Postwar France University of Nebraska Press, 1996 260 pp., £38, ISBN 0 8032 2377 3

IRIGARAY, L. (translated from the French by Alison Martin) I Love to You: Sketch of a Possible Felicity in History Routledge, 1996 150 pp., £10.99, IBSN 0 415 90733 0

JONES, M. A. Foundations of French Syntax Cambridge University Press, 1996 259 pp., £17.95, ISBN 0 521 388058

JUES, J.‐P. L'emploi des jeunes en France PUF, 1996 127 pp., 45 F., ISBN 2 1304 75876

KEENOY, L., LALUYAUX, L. and STAN‐TON, G. The Babel Guide to French Fiction in Translation Boulevard, 1996 252 pp., £9.95, ISBN 1 899460 10 1

KEIGER, J. F. V. Raymond Poincaré CUP, 1997 413 pp., £60, ISBN 0 521 57387 4

LEFEBVRE, D. L'Affaire de Suez Bruno Leprince, 1996 175 pp., 98 FF., ISBN 2 909634 13 2

MAYEUR, J.‐M. and CORBIN, A. (eds) Les Immortels du Sénat 1875–1918. Les cent seize inamovibles de la Troisième République (Publications de la Sorbonne, 1995) 512 pp., 150 F., ISBN 2 85944 273 1

MERMET, G. Tendances 1996. Le nouveau consommateur Larousse, 1996 286 pp., no price indicated, ISBN 2 03 504095 7

MORRIS, A. Patrick Modiano Berg, 1996 228 pp., £14.95, ISBN 1 859730 043

NOIRIEL, G. Sur la ‘crise’ de l'histoire Belin, 1996 343 pp., no price indicated, ISBN 2 7011 1799 2

OXENHANDLER, N. Looking for Heroes in Postwar France: Albert Camus, Max Jacob, Simone Weil University Press of New England, 1996 234 pp., $24.95, ISBN 0 87451 731 1

PAPAYANIS, N. Horse‐drawn cabs and omnibuses in Paris. The idea of circulation and the business of public transit Louisiana State University Press, 1996 218 pp., £47.50, ISBN 0 8071 2043 X

PFAFF, F. Conversations with Maryse Condé University of Nebraska Press, 1996 189 pp., £32.50 hbk, ISBN 0 8032 3713 8; £14 pbk, ISBN 0 8032 8743 7

PHILPOTT, W.J. Anglo‐French Relations and Strategy on the Western Front, 1914–18 Macmillan, 1996 227 pp., £40, ISBN 0 312 12944 0

PINOL, J.‐L. Atlas historique des villes de France Hachette, 1996 318 pp., 395 F., ISBN 2 0123 5192 1

REED‐DANAHAY, D. Education and Identity in Rural France: the Politics of Schooling CUP, 1996 237 pp., £37.50, ISBN 0 521 48312 3

SARTRE, J.‐P. and LÉVY, B. (translated by Adrian van den Hoven, with an Introduction by Ronald Aronson) Hope Now. The 1980 Interviews University of Chicago Press, 1996 141 pp., £15.95, ISBN 0 226 47630 8

SAY, J.‐B. Cours d'économie politique et autres essais Flammarion, 1996 450 pp., 60 F., No ISBN available

SHERZER, D (ed.) Cinema, Colonialism, Postcolonialism. Perspectives from the French and Francophone Worlds University of Texas Press, 1996 257 pp., $20, ISBN 0 292 77703 5

SINGLY, F. De Modern Marriage and its Cost to Women, a Sociological Look at Marriage in France University of Delaware Press, 1996 246 pp., £30, ISBN 0 87413 572 9

STARR, P. Logics of Failed Revolt: French Theory after May ‘68 Stanford University Press, 1995 268 pp., no price indicated, ISBN 0 8047 2445 8

TACKETT, T. Becoming a Revolutionary. The Deputies of the French National Assembly and the Emergence of a Revolutionary Culture (1789–1790) Princeton University Press, 1996 355 pp., £29.95, ISBN 0 691 04384 1

TURCEY, V. Le Prince et ses Juges—Vers un nouveau pouvoir judiciaire Editions Plon, 1997 243 pp., 125 F., ISBN 2 259 18676 9

URFALINO, P. L'Invention de la politique culturelle La Documentation Française, 1996 361 pp., 120 F., ISBN 2 11 003600 1

WIEVIORKA, M. Commenter la France Editions de l'Aube, 1997 190 pp., 130 F., ISBN 2 87678 320 7

WOLIKOW, SERGE Le Front populaire en France Editions Complexe, 1996 320 pp., 115 F., ISBN 2 87027 628 1     

How an integrated diagnostic approach can help in a correct evaluation of the state of preservation of waterlogged archaeological wooden artefacts

Artefacts made of wood coming from archaeological excavations provide insights into human cultural behaviour of the past. They show how man utilised natural resources and how the development of woodworking techniques and artistic endeavour were developed. Within archaeological contexts, waterlogged anaerobic conditions generally preserve the appearance of artefacts, although wood is subject to severe decay processes. The said conditions can transform the original material into a new one, thus demonstrating specific differences from those of the “fresh” wood of the same species. In order to assess these new properties correctly, an integrated diagnostic approach is needed, one which includes a multidisciplinary (micromorphological, physical and chemical) evaluation of the state of preservation.     

Element localization in archaeological bone using synchrotron radiation X-ray fluorescence: identification of biogenic uptake

Trace element analysis related to archaeological bone is viewed as one way to determine levels of element exposure in past populations. This area of research is complex because there is the potential for the incorporation of trace elements from the burial environment into archaeological bone. We tested the hypothesis that matching the spatial distribution of trace elements within cortical bone with the biological structures would provide evidence of biogenic uptake. We examined samples from a non-segregated Royal British Naval cemetery (1793–1822) in Antigua, West Indies. A key historical question related to this population was the extent of exposure to lead and the resulting health effects. Images from conventional light microscopy (histological) analysis of the bone samples were matched with elemental maps of calcium, strontium, and lead that were created through the use of synchrotron radiation X-ray fluorescence (SR-XRF). Biogenic uptake of both strontium and lead was indicated based on the localization of these trace elements within discreet microstructural elements. The successful integration of histological information with XRF data is a powerful technique for the interpretation of past biological events through trace elements.     

Encouraging play in the natural environment: a child-focused case study of Forest School

There is concern that children are becoming disengaged from the natural environment and are not being afforded the opportunities to play in such environments. To examine children's perceptions, knowledge and experiences of play in the natural environment, 17 children from one school participated in small focus groups before and after a 12-week Forest School that took place within a school woodland area. Using two qualitative approaches, we found that Forest School had a positive influence on children's natural play and their knowledge of the natural world around them.     

Pewter Funerary Chalices and Patens from York Minster

IT HAS BEEN accepted for many years that, unlike their silver counterparts, pewter chalices and patens found in priestly burials continued largely unchanged in form throughout the medieval period; this means that the presence of a pewter chalice or paten does not in itself currently offer any reliable dating of a related burial beyond a broad 13th–16th-century timeframe. Pewter chalices and patens recovered from 25 burials within York Minster between 1966 and 1973 are thought to represent the largest collection found within one church in England, and initial assessment of this collection and its related excavation data indicated that it offered the possibility of providing findspots for some of the vessels from recorded burials or dated archaeological sequences, and thus to provide more examples of tightly drawn dating. In the event, it has been possible to assign a single chalice and paten set to a recorded individual, and to provide others with periods within which, or after which, burial occurred. Scrutiny of the objects also resulted in the identification of two distinct forms of paten, one of which was shown in seven instances to bear incised motifs which had not been noted or commented upon previously.