Digital Commons Network^™

Retrieval Practice And Student-Centered Learning: Instructional Strategies For Engaging University Classrooms, Carla Williams, Angela Danley

Journal of Excellence in College Teaching and Learning

This paper examines how retrieval practice and student-centered learning—core principles of the Science of Learning—can transform university instruction. Grounded in the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning, the manuscript describes instructional strategies implemented in a redesigned teacher preparation course, including exit tickets, Frayer models, literature circles, choice boards, and collaborative teams. Each strategy operationalizes key learning mechanisms such as retrieval, feedback, reflection, and cognitive load reduction, shifting cognitive effort from instructor to learner. The findings highlight how retrieval-based, student-centered routines enhance engagement, retention, and transfer, offering adaptable approaches for faculty across higher education disciplines.

Presence And Characteristics Of Plastics And Microplastics On The Seabed Of The Western English Channel, Faye Read, Andrew Turner

School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences

Little is known about the presence, distribution, origins and characteristics of plastic litter and microplastics on the ocean floor. In this study, plastics trawled from the bed of the western English Channel have been categorised and analysed by a variety of optical and spectroscopic techniques. A total of 90 plastic samples were classified, in descending order of abundance, as food-drink packaging, unknown, homeware, military and fishing. Most samples showed varying degrees of weathering (e.g., discolouration, distortion, cracking, fragmentation) and were visibly fouled by calcareous deposits. The majority of samples were constructed of polymers of negative buoyancy (e.g., polyamides, polyethylene terephthalate …

Enhancing Monitoring In Protected Areas: Evaluating Mobile Apps As A Tourism Proxy, Jorge Costa, Alberto Gomes, Martin Stokes, Miguel Saraiva

School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences

Crowdsourced data, such as that from mobile fitness apps (MFAs), has the potential to transform tourism research. This opportunity is particularly valuable as tourism to protected areas (PAs) increases, making it more difficult to manage their environmental impacts. However, such data sources come with challenges. Therefore, their representativeness should be carefully evaluated, particularly as their use continues to grow. We use the Paiva Walkways (Portugal) to assess MFAs as a tourism proxy using Spearman’s rank correlation, to evaluate kernel density and fishnet methods for spatialising visitor movements, and to analyse the visitors’ spatiotemporal behaviour using GIS, kernel density estimation, and …

Enhancing Market Transparency Through Co-Creation Of Csr And Sustainability Ratings Between Firms, Rating Agencies And Customers, Christopher Agyapong Siaw

Plymouth Business School

No abstract provided.

All Life As Witness: Developing A Mode Of Investigation Into Political Disappearance In 1960s Venezuela Reframed By Skinner Releasing Technique And Indigenous Knowledge, Livia Daza-Paris

School of Art, Design and Architecture Theses

This practice-based research develops Ecologies of Poetic Forensics, an investigative mode for approaching political disappearance as a felt, ongoing condition that also reverberates across worlds beyond the human. Focused on my father's disappearance during Venezuela's 1960s revolutionary movement, the research follows relational dynamics within the personal, political, ecological ‘many worlds’ (Indígena Zapatistas 1996) shaped by state violence, including those of campesinos (land-based workers) in Cocorote, Lara State. The inquiry unfolds across Venezuela, Canada, and the United States, tracing territory that exceeds state borders.

The research brings the Skinner Releasing Technique, a movement practice oriented by poetic imagery and embodied …

The Persistent Shock Of The Old: Making The Case For The Responsive Development Of Artwork Deploying Historical Museological Display Techniques., Duncan Cameron

School of Art, Design and Architecture Theses

My sculpture work and thesis investigate the potential of historical museological practices—particularly Victorian and Edwardian display technologies—in contemporary art-making and sculptural practice. I ask three central questions: how can the collection and display of natural history materials be ethically defended in the present day; how might traditional exhibition orthodoxies be reconfigured to privilege the prosaic, domestic, and handmade over the novel and precious; and what role does the idiosyncratic and beautiful play in narrating material stories within an ethical, Anthropocene-aware framework?The study employs a practice-led methodology combining iterative art-making, critical reflection, and active fieldwork. Working from a studio in Somerset, …

Planetarity And Relation: Ecology As Method, Ashish Ghadiali

School of Art, Design and Architecture Theses

The List of Works submitted comprises research through film, text, exhibition, performance and policy engagement, developed during a three-year period from 2021 to 2024 in the site-specific location of Southwest England. This multi-modal and interdisciplinary practice is framed in response to the question of how art and cultural strategy can, in the contexts of climate breakdown and global racial inequity, be conceived of as agency for environmental justice. In this integrative summary, I present a theoretical framework where ecology, in response to conditions of environmental crisis, is understood not only as a subject of inquiry but also as method. In …

Feminism, Domestic Abuse And The Singer-Songwriter, Kathryn Ferguson

School of Art, Design and Architecture Theses

This project explores how feminism and domestic abuse can be articulatedthrough songwriting. Research in music therapy, sociology and popular musicincreasingly speaks to the value of songwriting as a tool for personal andcommunity empowerment, but there is space to actively use songwriting toexplore feminist issues independently of the traditional commercial context ofpopular music. Existing feminist music has been deemed as at its mostsuccessful when it is linked clearly to social change in our communities(Greene, 2017, p.8). Modern popular feminist songwriting has been criticised fornot going far enough in deconstructing systemic patterns of patriarchy (Tong,2024, p.9). Considering this, engaging with academic research …

The Development Of Collaborative Relationships Between Disaster Relief Ngos: Barriers And Solutions, Christopher Phillips

Plymouth Business School Theses

Collaborative responses amongst disaster relief NGOs can be more effective in delivering aid when compared with responses conducted individually. Collaboration enables the sharing of resources, expertise, personnel, and funding, resulting in more efficient aid distribution in the wake of natural disasters. However, current research highlights that it is often challenging for NGOs to establish and sustain collaborative relationships due to different barriers. The challenges these barriers cause have been explored in previous research, but limited attention has been given with respect to how these can be addressed. Additionally, there is a lack of understanding of the relationships between these barriers, …

Analysis Of Volatility Between Macroeconomic Variables And Busan Port Cargo Throughput According To Global Risks, Sang Ho Cho

Plymouth Business School Theses

This study investigates how container (BPC) and non-container (BPB) cargo throughput at Busan Port responds to structural shocks in global and domestic macroeconomic variables, and how their relative importance changes over time. The selection of variables was based on a combination of a Systematic Literature Review (SLR) and semi-structured interviews (SSI). The econometric analysis applied a stepwise framework, employing cumulative Impulse Response Functions (IRF) and Forecast Error Variance Decomposition (FEVD) based on Vector Error Correction Model (VECM) estimations, as well as Historical Decomposition (HD) for specific crisis periods. While IRF and FEVD were used to capture dynamic properties under general …

Driving Venture Success: A Collaborative Framework For The Consumer Goods Industry, Mohammad Alhusaeini Mohammad

Plymouth Business School Theses

This thesis addresses the persistent gap between the strategic promise of external corporate venturing (ECV) and its frequently disappointing outcomes in the global consumer goods industry, with a specific focus on the non-durable consumer goods sub‑sector. Despite ECV’s recognised importance for innovation—particularly in a sector characterised by rapid consumer preference shifts, tight margins, and complex supply chains—collaborations with external start-ups are often undermined by cultural misalignment, strategic ambiguity, and ineffective performance measurement. Through an abductive, mixed-methods research design within an interpretivist paradigm—integrating archival analysis, six in-depth corporate case studies (P&G, PepsiCo, Unilever, Danone, Henkel, and L’Oréal), and 32 interviews with …

Using Data To Identify Gaps And Improve Institutional Collecting In Public University Archives, Hannah Pryor

Faculty and Staff Scholarship

This article describes a project undertaken to assess the university records held by Archives & Special Collections at the University of Louisville. The intention was to identify potential gaps in permanent university records and other university records that fall under relevant collection policies, such as those documenting faculty, staff, and student life. This project included generating a report of accession records in ArchivesSpace, conducting data cleanup, coding qualitative data, creating visualizations, and analyzing findings, with the aim of prioritizing outreach to university units and assisting with future backlog processing and reappraisal. The findings identify ways to improve records management and …

Words That Heal Or Harm: A Narrative Review On Language Use In Nursing Care.", R. Sudha, A.S. Neya

Manipal Journal of Nursing and Health Sciences

No abstract provided.

Challenges In Implementing Digital Health Solutions For Pressure Ulcer Management: A Narrative Review, Shreenidhi Jogi, Elsa Sanatombi Devi, Vishal Shanbhag

Manipal Journal of Nursing and Health Sciences

Background: Digital pressure ulcer care solutions are both accurate and well-developed in terms of technology. However, a gap remains between available digital solutions and their use in everyday pressure ulcer care practices. This review aims to summarize the technical, human, and system-level challenges that restrict the effective application of digital health solutions in pressure ulcer management.

Methods: The search was conducted in CINAHL, PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, and EMBASE. Studies that reported implementation challenges in their findings were included.

Results: Infrastructure barriers were about more than just having internet access. Issues such as inconsistent system performance and hardware malfunctions …

The Connectedness Between Awareness And Practice Of Waste Control And Recycling In Urban Villages: A Cross-Sectional Community-Based Study., Nelifer Shreya Ammanna, Jeenal Valine Mendonca, Chethan Kunder, Sushwetha Poojary, Swagath Nayak, Ansuya Ansuya, Mitchelle Shilpa Lewis

Manipal Journal of Nursing and Health Sciences

Introduction: Waste management is an increasing problem that occurs globally due to expanding population around the globe. Researchers worldwide are working towards ending this problem that impacts the environment and people's health. The knowledge of the wastes produced and how we manage them is vital for the population to understand; knowing about it and practicing the same will create a ripple effect on the waste generated by the people.

Objective: To determine the condition of the urban villages in terms of awareness and practice of waste management, and to know whether these are interrelated.

Methods: A quantitative approach with …

Knowledge Regarding Cervical Cancer Among Adults Studying In A Selected Institution In Mandya District, Karnataka: A Descriptive Study, Megha Maria Joy, Nikitha R, Anitha Victoria Noronha

Manipal Journal of Nursing and Health Sciences

Introduction: Cervical cancer remains a major public health concern, particularly in low- and middle-income countries. Adequate knowledge regarding cervical cancer, its etiology, prevention, and screening is essential for early detection and reduction of disease burden. Objectives: This study aimed to assess the knowledge regarding cervical cancer among adults studying in a selected institution in Mandya District, Karnataka, and to determine the association between knowledge levels and selected demographic variables. Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional design was adopted among 60 adults selected through simple random sampling. Data were collected using a validated structured knowledge questionnaire administered through Google Forms. …

Attitudes Of Nursing Students Towards Paediatric Clinical Learning Experiences, Mamatha S Pai, Sangeetha Priyadarshini, Anusuya Prabhu, Yashoda Satish, Edlin G Mathias

Manipal Journal of Nursing and Health Sciences

Background: Clinical practicum is an important component of pediatric nursing education that helps students integrate theoretical knowledge with practical skills. Nursing students’ attitudes toward clinical learning influence their competence and overall learning experience. Factors such as supervision, clinical environment, and staff support play a major role in shaping these attitudes.

Objectives: This study aimed to evaluate the attitudes of nursing students toward pediatric nursing practice during their clinical placements. Method: A quantitative, cross-sectional study was conducted involving 261 nursing students (175 pursuing a bachelor’s degree and 86 pursuing a diploma) from a College of Nursing in Manipal, India, between 2018 …