title: Assessment in schools – Technology education and ICT

authors: Jones, Alister

subjects: Classroom interactions

abstract: People use technology to intervene in the world to expand their possibilities, applying both intellectual and practical resources. It encompasses more than information and communication technologies (ICTs). Technology is included as a curriculum area in many countries where increasing the levels of technological literacy is seen as of intrinsic value. Effective assessment in technology, both formative and summative, needs to accommodate the multifaceted and multimodal nature of technology. ICTs have the potential to enhance classroom assessment practices through the provision of additional modes of representing, recording, and reviewing information on student learning process and products.

text: Assessment in schools – Technology education and ICT People use technology to intervene in the world to expand their possibilities, applying both intellectual and practical resources. It encompasses more than information and communication technologies (ICTs). Technology is included as a curriculum area in many countries where increasing the levels of technological literacy is seen as of intrinsic value. Effective assessment in technology, both formative and summative, needs to accommodate the multifaceted and multimodal nature of technology. ICTs have the potential to enhance classroom assessment practices through the provision of additional modes of representing, recording, and reviewing information on student learning process and products.

year: 2010

title: Landfill leachate treatment: Using sequencing batch reactor technology to remove high ammonium concentration

authors: Lu, Philip Andrew

subjects: landfill leachate

abstract: Landfilling requires various consents and regulations in order to operate most effectively and cause minimal environmental issues to its immediate surroundings. The contaminated liquid produced from precipitation seeping through the layers of waste in landfills are generally called landfill leachate or leachate. Sequencing batch reactors (SBR) are fill-and-draw activated sludge systems that facilitate wastewater treatment in a singular reactor, while utilizing a sequence of different phases to create aerobic, anoxic, and sometimes anaerobic conditions. Multiple studies have been done that demonstrate the capacity of SBRs to treat wastewater for varying strengths of wastewater and concentration of contaminants, including ammonium. The objectives of the research are to: 1. run a lab-scale sequencing batch reactor to treat ammonium concentrations similar to that of landfill leachate; 2. design a full-scale sequencing batch reactor for landfills based on the bench-scale reactor’s ammonium removal potential; and 3. analyse the viability and economic feasibility of a SBR for treating landfill leachate.

Two lab-scale SBRs are used in the experiment. SBR 1 was run for 250 days of operation, while SBR 2 was run for only 130 days. These achieved ammonium removal at influent ammonium loading as high as 720 mg/L, and the SBR achieved ammonium removal efficiency of 90% to 100% with a TSS of 17 to 18 g/L during this most stable period of operation. pH control was required at higher influent ammonium loadings above 300 mg/L. Removal rates over the stable periods of operation are calculated to be at 1.65 and 1.55 mg NH4+ removed/g TSS/ per cycle for SBR 1 and 2, respectively. An ammonium removal rate of 0.0508 mg NH4+/L/min is calculated based on measurements using an ammonium ISE probe. Inhibition in ammonium removal due to low pH is observed. With extended aeration and pH control the ammonium removal continued as long as pH is maintained above 6.5. The oxygen consumption rate is also found to be at 0.01 mg DO/L/min, while the average mass transfer coefficient of O2 at 0.0144 min-1, and the percentage of oxygen transferred from gas to the mixed liquor calculated to be at 14.8%.

The full-scale SBR design is based on rates calculated from the experimental set-up and approximate leachate flow rate, based on precipitation, in the Waikato region. An area of 49 hectares landfilled is considered, which is similar to one of the class 1 municipal sanitary landfills in the region. A landfill leachate ammonium concentration range of 600 to 1500 mg/L is considered for the full-scale SBR design. The full-scale SBR is calculated to require a working volume of 8168 m3. The capital and operating cost of which shows high economic feasibility, and is estimated to be cost-effective compared to the cost of offsite treatment.

text: Landfill leachate treatment: Using sequencing batch reactor technology to remove high ammonium concentration Landfilling requires various consents and regulations in order to operate most effectively and cause minimal environmental issues to its immediate surroundings. The contaminated liquid produced from precipitation seeping through the layers of waste in landfills are generally called landfill leachate or leachate. Sequencing batch reactors (SBR) are fill-and-draw activated sludge systems that facilitate wastewater treatment in a singular reactor, while utilizing a sequence of different phases to create aerobic, anoxic, and sometimes anaerobic conditions. Multiple studies have been done that demonstrate the capacity of SBRs to treat wastewater for varying strengths of wastewater and concentration of contaminants, including ammonium. The objectives of the research are to: 1. run a lab-scale sequencing batch reactor to treat ammonium concentrations similar to that of landfill leachate; 2. design a full-scale sequencing batch reactor for landfills based on the bench-scale reactor’s ammonium removal potential; and 3. analyse the viability and economic feasibility of a SBR for treating landfill leachate.

Two lab-scale SBRs are used in the experiment. SBR 1 was run for 250 days of operation, while SBR 2 was run for only 130 days. These achieved ammonium removal at influent ammonium loading as high as 720 mg/L, and the SBR achieved ammonium removal efficiency of 90% to 100% with a TSS of 17 to 18 g/L during this most stable period of operation. pH control was required at higher influent ammonium loadings above 300 mg/L. Removal rates over the stable periods of operation are calculated to be at 1.65 and 1.55 mg NH4+ removed/g TSS/ per cycle for SBR 1 and 2, respectively. An ammonium removal rate of 0.0508 mg NH4+/L/min is calculated based on measurements using an ammonium ISE probe. Inhibition in ammonium removal due to low pH is observed. With extended aeration and pH control the ammonium removal continued as long as pH is maintained above 6.5. The oxygen consumption rate is also found to be at 0.01 mg DO/L/min, while the average mass transfer coefficient of O2 at 0.0144 min-1, and the percentage of oxygen transferred from gas to the mixed liquor calculated to be at 14.8%.

The full-scale SBR design is based on rates calculated from the experimental set-up and approximate leachate flow rate, based on precipitation, in the Waikato region. An area of 49 hectares landfilled is considered, which is similar to one of the class 1 municipal sanitary landfills in the region. A landfill leachate ammonium concentration range of 600 to 1500 mg/L is considered for the full-scale SBR design. The full-scale SBR is calculated to require a working volume of 8168 m3. The capital and operating cost of which shows high economic feasibility, and is estimated to be cost-effective compared to the cost of offsite treatment.

year: 2024-02-20

title: Diversity in Aotearoa New Zealand picturebooks published between 2021 and 2022

authors: Daly, Nicola

subjects: Design

abstract: It is widely accepted that diversity in the literature read by and with children is of great importance, both for ensuring all children see themselves in the stories they share and in ensuring children are aware of lives and experiences outside their own. There is a growing body of international literature critically exploring the diversity present in English-language children’s literature, but to date very little analysing diversity in Aotearoa New Zealand. This study examines 90 picturebooks published between 2021 and 2022 in terms of representations of ethnicity, skin colour, gender, disability, family structures, and language use. Findings indicate similar representations of gender, disability, and family structure to those found internationally but higher representation in relation to the ethnicity and skin colour of primary and secondary characters. New findings in relation to language use are presented. Future research concerning the details of representation in picturebooks and other formats of children’s literature in Aotearoa New Zealand is called for.

text: Diversity in Aotearoa New Zealand picturebooks published between 2021 and 2022 It is widely accepted that diversity in the literature read by and with children is of great importance, both for ensuring all children see themselves in the stories they share and in ensuring children are aware of lives and experiences outside their own. There is a growing body of international literature critically exploring the diversity present in English-language children’s literature, but to date very little analysing diversity in Aotearoa New Zealand. This study examines 90 picturebooks published between 2021 and 2022 in terms of representations of ethnicity, skin colour, gender, disability, family structures, and language use. Findings indicate similar representations of gender, disability, and family structure to those found internationally but higher representation in relation to the ethnicity and skin colour of primary and secondary characters. New findings in relation to language use are presented. Future research concerning the details of representation in picturebooks and other formats of children’s literature in Aotearoa New Zealand is called for.

year: 2025