Poor water quality (high concentrations of nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), suspended solids (SS), and faecal bacteria) in Waiokura Stream, southern Taranaki, New Zealand, is attributed to diffuse and point source (PS) inputs from dairy farming. Trend analysis of concentration timeseries data (2001)(2002)(2003)(2004)(2005)(2006)(2007)(2008) and annual yields (i.e., stream load divided by catchment area) showed that significant improvements occurring since 2001 may be attributed to changes in farming practices and riparian management. Yields of filterable reactive P, total P and SS declined by 25-40% as a result of increased riparian protection, a reduction in dairy shed effluent (DSE) pond discharges from 8 to 6 with conversion to land irrigation, and a 25% reduction in the average application rate of P fertiliser. Median annual Escherichia coli concentrations declined at a rate of 116 per 100 ml per year, as a result of fewer PS discharges and improved riparian management. Thus, improvements in stream water quality were attributed to adoption of on-farm best management practices, fewer DSE discharges and riparian management involving permanent livestock exclusion from stream banks and riparian planting to mitigate runoff from pasture. During 2001-06, N fertiliser use increased by 30% and, with a 130% increase in supplementary cattle feed during 2003-08, led to an increase in average milk solids production 1021 to 1262 kg ha -1 during 2001-06 with the increased production likely associated with increased N leaching losses. Total N and nitrate-N concentrations and yields increased during 2001-07 as a result of the intensification in land use and increased N cycling. Stream invertebrate surveys using the macroinvertebrate community index (MCI) metric showed little improvement in MCI during 2002-07, probably because of the relatively short timeframe of this study and because water temperatures were not a limiting factor for invertebrate communities. The absence of native forest streams in the proximity of Waiokura Stream that might act as sources of sensitive species to recolonise the restored stream should also be considered as a constraint to improvements in biological community structure.

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From March 2020, the Mathematics Support Centre at University College Dublin, Ireland, and the Mathematics Education Support Hub at Western Sydney University, Australia, moved wholly online and have largely remained so to the point of writing (August 2021). The dramatic and swift changes brought on by COVID-19, in particular to fully online modes of teaching and learning including mathematics and statistics support (MSS), have presented students and tutors with a host of new opportunities for thinking and working. This study aims to gain insight both from students and tutors about their experience of wholly online learning and tutoring in the COVID-19 era. In this sense, it represents a ‘perspectives’ study, the idea being that before we examine specific aspects of this experience, it would be best to know what the issues are. Employing a qualitative analysis framework of 23 one-on-one interview transcripts with tutors and students from both institutions in Australia and Ireland, we identified five key themes as central to the shared experiences and perspectives of tutors and students. In this study, we discuss three of these themes in relation to the new normal with the intention of supporting MSS practitioners, researchers and students going forward. The themes describe the usage of online support, how mathematics is different and the future of online MSS.

The dramatic changes brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic have changed the way in which mathematics and statistics support is offered. Students and staff have been presented with new opportunities and challenges. One-on-one interviews were conducted late in 2020 with 23 students and staff who had experience with fully online mathematics and statistics support. The interviewees were from University College Dublin, Ireland, and Western Sydney University, Australia. Utilising thematic analysis, five themes around online mathematics and statistics support common to both universities were identified. In this paper the three themes related to connection are explored; they are pedagogical changes, social interaction, and appreciation of mathematics and statistics support. These themes highlight the need felt by both students and staff for mutual connection. The paper concludes with a discussion on the repercussions of this study for future considerations of effective online mathematics and statistics support.

Students in many Australian universities start their studies mathematically underprepared as there are no prerequisites for mathematics, and assumed knowledge requirements are often overlooked. Many degrees include at least one statistics subject for which students require a reasonable level of mathematical ability to successfully complete. Students’ efforts to grasp quantitative skills often lead to feelings of anxiety, stress, and lack of self-confidence. The Mathematics Education Support Hub (MESH) at WSU provides free support in mathematics and statistics to all students, both undergraduate and postgraduate, to increase their engagement, understanding, and abilities in statistics as well as to overcome their anxiety. In this paper we focus on the drop-in consultation service, which provides “just in time” help in campus libraries. Data is collected for every consultation, which enabling an investigation in relation to the mathematics background of students and the problematic topics in statistics. Text mining is used to examine students’ queries to identify the topics in statistics subjects that students struggle most with. Outcomes of this analysis can be used by statistics instructors and mathematics support centres to improve students’ experience in learning and to help to reduce statistics anxiety in future generations of statistics students. First published February 2020 at Statistics Education Research Journal Archives