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This study examined the effect of in-situ biosparging on pentachlorophenol (PCP) degradation and bacterial communities in PCP contaminated groundwater. Bacteria were identified by sequencing the 16s rDNA fragment from DNA extracted from groundwater cultures and comparing those sequences to a database using a basic local alignment search tool, BLAST. The PCP-degraders Burkholderia cepacia and Flavobacterium (Sphingobium) chlorophenolicum were identified in multiple wells, as were the 4-chlorophenol degrader Herbaspirillum sp., and the common soil bacteria Pseudomonas sp., Aquaspirillum sp., and Rhodocista sp., among others. Numerous bacterial samples also appeared in the results as “uncultured”. Bacterial community changes were observed using terminal restriction fragment length polymorphism (TRFLP) analysis to identify operational taxonomic units of bacteria at various locations inside and outside the biosparging zone of treatment over time. Diversity measures including species richness, Simpson’s and Shannon’s indices, and species evenness were calculated from operational taxonomic unit results for each well at each sampling point in order to better understand changes in the bacterial community. Species richness tended to be higher at wells further away from the biosparging line, while diversity and evenness varied throughout the area. Correlations between PCP concentration, operational taxonomic units, and distance from biosparging wells were determined by Pearson’s product-moment correlation and Spearman’s rank correlation. Positive correlations were found between distance from biosparging wells and PCP concentration, species richness and distance, and to a smaller degree, diversity and distance. Biosparging remediation has a significant impact on the types of PCP-degrading bacteria within the groundwater matrix, and installations of this type of treatment should be applied to maximize the use of the native bacteria to assist in degradation of the contaminant.

One of the main goals of ecological research is to understand the factors that determine how communities are structured over both space and time. However, our understanding of any system is largely a function of the scale at which we make our observations. Thus, the mechanisms that determine patterns in community structure are likely to change depending on the scale of observation. This thesis explores how environmental variability affects community structure and species performance, and how the resulting patterns change as a function of scale. Specifically, I asses the role of variability in temperature, oxygen, pH, and chloride, on species richness, abundance, diversity, and species performance, at three observational scales: micro-spatial, local temporal, and landscape-temporal scales, in 49 natural erosional rock pool microcosms, located on the northern coast of Jamaica. I found that while environmental variability was not a primary determinant of species richness or abundance, it did play a role in determining species compositions in the pools. I also show that community patterns are strongly affected by the scale of observation. Recognizing scale-dependent changes in community patterns is a prerequisite for predicting the consequences of changes in ecological systems induced by variability in abiotic factors. / Thesis / Master of Science (MS)

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No / Using a critical political economy approach and the concept of labour precarity, the international dive tourism industry in Sabah, Malaysia and its workers’ vulnerabilities are interrogated. Fieldwork data highlights dive tourism’s socio-economic impacts and the precarity of labour within the international tourism sector and also critiques it as a development strategy for a peripheral region. The paper challenges the optimistic views of labour precarity found in the existing political economy literature. Rather than identifying labour empowerment, evidence demonstrates significant worker vulnerability, uncertainty, and contingency – especially among ethnic minorities – resulting from Malaysia’s state-led rentier economy. / British Countil PMI2 (R18)

The retention of special education (SPED) teachers is problematic throughout the United States. Many SPED teachers are leaving education due to burnout which can be caused by feeling isolated and having a lack of collegial support. Studies suggest that collegial support is a main contributor to the retention of SPED teachers. Induction programs, mentoring, and professional learning communities (PLC) have been widely used; however, there is not much research showing how professional learning communities impact the retention of special education teachers. The purpose of this qualitative study was to identify novice elementary school SPED teachers' perceptions regarding PLCs. Specifically, this study examined how elementary school SPED teachers' perceptions of PLCs affect the retention of this group of teachers. Themes from this study may indicate what schools can do to make their PLCs more meaningful for the SPED teachers participating in them. The study was guided by the following research question: What are the perceptions of novice SPED teachers regarding professional learning communities and their impact on teacher retention? Twenty SPED teachers with between 0 – 5 years of experience participated in online focus groups. Data from the focus groups were analyzed and themes were developed. The results of this study indicated that SPED teachers stay at their current schools due to support provided by colleagues such as SPED teachers, general education teachers, and reading and mathematics specialists. In addition, SPED teachers are more likely to stay at their current schools if the PLCs they attend are relevant and are more likely to leave when they miss instructional time with their students due to attending mandatory PLCs. The results from this study may help school and division leaders implement PLC support for SPED teachers that will positively impact the retention of SPED teachers. / Doctor of Education / The purpose of this qualitative study was to identify novice elementary school special education (SPED) teachers' perceptions regarding PLCs. Specifically, this study examined how elementary school SPED teachers' perceptions of PLCs affect the retention of this group of teachers. Themes from this study may indicate what schools can do to make their PLCs more meaningful for the SPED teachers participating in them. The study was guided by the following research question: What are the perceptions of novice SPED teachers regarding professional learning communities and their impact on teacher retention? Twenty SPED teachers with between 0 – 5 years of experience participated in online focus groups. Data from the focus groups were analyzed and themes were developed. The results of this study indicated that SPED teachers stay at their current schools due to support provided by colleagues such as SPED teachers, general education teachers, and reading and mathematics specialists. In addition, SPED teachers are more likely to stay at their current schools if the PLCs they attend are relevant and are more likely to leave when they miss instructional time with their students due to attending mandatory PLCs. The results from this study may help school and division leaders implement PLC support for SPED teachers that will positively impact the retention of SPED teachers.