Evaluating the impact of an environmental education programme: an empirical study in Mexico

This study draws on information from 11 in‐depth interviews, two focus groups and 72 written questionnaires to evaluate an extra‐curricular environmental education programme on forestry designed for preparatory school students from a small rural community in Mexico. Specifically, the study assessed the impact of the programme on the ecological knowledge of 72 students. Qualitative feedback suggests that students learnt about forestry, acquired greater awareness of the importance of conservation for the local environment and enjoyed the participatory teaching methods used in the programme. Quantitative results show a positive and significant association between the number of times a student participated in the programme and the student’s ecological knowledge. Students who participated in the programme once had a 16.3% higher knowledge on ecological concepts and knew, on average, 1.5 more local forest plants than students who never attended it (p<.001). Findings suggest that the inclusion of participatory environmental education programmes in preparatory schools would improve the acquisition of ecological knowledge. Further research could consider the consistency of the findings by replicating participatory methods presented here and by using an experimental research design.     

Physical literacy: Answering the call for quality education and sustainable development

PROSPECTS - This introductory article explores the concept of physical literacy. It begins by discussing the current defining aspects of physical literacy and provides a pragmatic solution for...     

Intercultural bilingual education in Nicaragua: Contextualisation for improving the quality of education

For the past 35 years, various models of intercultural bilingual education (IBE) have been implemented in Latin American schools and adult education. While Spanish is the official language in Nicaragua, many indigenous languages, such as Miskito and Sumo-Mayangna, are also spoken ?C especially in the Atlantic coastal region. The Nicaraguan Ministry of Education, Culture and Sport recognises the need for a flexible curriculum that reflects individual local and regional linguistic and socio-cultural characteristics, through the use of mother tongue and second language learning. The contextualisation model applied in the Atlantic coastal region of Nicaragua is therefore based on the use of a languages strategy in preparing textbooks and basic technical materials with an IBE approach, as part of the process of improving the quality of education. Thus intercultural communication is enhanced, and the need to strengthen the systematic teaching of languages, differentiating between mother tongue, second language and foreign language, is recognised. As well as explaining the contextualisation process in detail, this article discusses the conceptual differences between intercultural bilingual education (IBE) and bilingual intercultural education (BIE). The paper concludes with several recommendations for the further development of BIE in Latin America.     

《优质教育资源在协同教育中的应用》研究

目前。我们幼儿园、中小学校的每个班级中存在许多不协调的因素。因幼儿在各年龄段的学习态度、智力水平、行为习惯等差异,导致儿童、学生学习成绩差距拉大,影响到儿童、学生的均衡发展。再就是有的班级老师和家长关系紧张,     

提升普惠性幼儿园过程性教育质量的建设路径研究

随着国民生活水平的大幅提升,民众对幼儿教育、义务教育乃至高等教育等民生问题的关注度普遍提高。提升普惠性幼儿园过程性教育质量,对促进幼儿健康成长、家园深度合作、公共服务体系优质建设具有重大意义。面对当前普惠性幼儿园教育课程、师资素质、安全机制等不同程度阻碍过程性教育质量提升的现实困境,可通过课程改革、家校合作、改进评价模式等创新方案提升普惠性幼儿园过程性教育质量,以便为学前教育高质量发展贡献智慧,加速具有中国特色的普惠性学前教育公共服务体系建设。     

高等教育大众化与提高教育质量

我国高等教育现已基本达到了国际公认的大众化标准,应把提高高等教育质量摆在突出的位置。在高等教育大众化、全面推进素质教育、建设学习型社会的时代背景下,高等教育应当被赋予新的内涵。当前应在体制和政策上为提高高等教育质量努力创造条件。     

Approaches to Learning of Medical Students and Practising Physicians: some empirical evidence and its implications for medical education

This paper is a review of a sustained research effort in the field of learning styles and approaches to learning. In particular it focuses on how various aspects of the medical school environment (teaching, curriculum, assessment) effect students approach to their learning. It also shows that the more desirable ‘deep approach’ to learning is not as apparent in conventional medical schools as in the innovative problem‐based medical schools. The implications of these findings for undergraduate, postgraduate and continuing education are explored. Finally, there is an attempt to identify individual students who have learning problems and, thus, are at risk of academically underachieving.     

对提高普通高校英语教育质量问题的思考

本文笔者经过多年的研究,从新时期普通高校英语教育质量标准的定位、树立整体教育观念,重新构造英语教育体系、创设课堂教学情景,营造良好的英语教育氛围、注重实用性英语,提高学生的英语应用能力四个方面来进行对提高普通高校英语教育质量问题的思考。     

On the distributional impact of public education: evidence from Greece

Household budget survey data and public budget consolidated data for 1987/88 are combined to yield a non-estimation based measure of the benefit of public education outlays in Greece. As expected for a country where education services are provided free of charge and the role of private education is limited, transfers in the fields of primary and secondary education contribute strongly to a decline in inequality. The distributional impact of tertiary education subsidies is shown to be negligible, although indirect evidence suggests that this could well be regressive. [JEL I21, D31]     

Teachers and teacher education: a call for a renewed sociological research agenda

This article provides an overview of the main sociological approaches applicable to the study and analysis of teaching, teachers and teacher education. Analytical perspectives from sociology are then compared to research on teachers from two other disciplines, education economics and educational psychology, which have produced the lion’s share of recent research on teachers. In the article’s final section, recent results are reported from surveys of student teachers and teachers in two Nordic countries, Denmark and Finland, to exemplify the importance of institutional and other contextual variables for the study of teachers and teaching. The article ends with a plea for a renewed sociological research agenda that studies teachers and teacher education.     

Assessment policy in post-apartheid South Africa: challenges for improving education quality and learning

The South African education system has witnessed significant changes since 1994 when the democratically elected government began the process of dismantling the inherited apartheid order. The primary focus of the transformation process was to address the twin imperative of equity and quality in education, particularly for the historically marginalised black population. A key aspect of this transformation process remains the development of alternative assessment policies. This paper reviews the changes focusing on the stated rationale as well as their underlying assumptions and implications for practice. It argues that the changes have in many respects addressed the most obvious effects of the previous apartheid systems. However, it notes that, notwithstanding the policy intentions, assessment policy since 1994 has favoured a measurement focused-approach in the classroom, which has hindered a shift towards an assessment for learning approach. This, it argues, is partly fuelled by the abiding belief in and commitment to classroom testing and examinations as well as external national assessments as the key criterion for reforming learning and teaching practices in the classroom.     

从环境教育到可持续发展教育

作为人类赖以生存与发展的基础 ,地球环境长期没能受到人类应有的尊重与爱护 ,导致当前人类面临的环境危机。而危机的解决 ,需要人类对现行生产与生活方式全面地反思并进行根本性地改变。教育作为转变思想的工具 ,其作用无可替代。环境教育被看好能承担这样的任务促进这种转变 ,但 30年来的环境教育却被认为是场失败的革新。是现代教育助长了当今的环境问题 ,成为不可持续发展的“贡献者”。在我们目前的状况下 ,可持续发展教育可能是回到那些内在自由、进步的价值观的惟一途径 ,这些价值观曾经是我们教育系统的基础。可持续发展教育是将要改变的教育模式的关键 ,这种教育模式和社会经济组织变化与可持续发展暗含的思想是相和谐的。主流教育观点认为 ,可持续发展教育深深地根植于环境教育之中。目前可持续发展教育的理论和实践都还未完善 ,尚处在探索阶段。在我国新一轮基础教育课程改革中 ,环境教育正在和当前的整体教育改革结合起来 ,推动我国教育的生态化或绿色化 ,使教育成为促进和支持我国可持续发展的基本力量     

德国中小学教育标准与教学质量监测:聚焦教育质量提升

文章从分析德国中小学研制教育标准、实施教学质量监测的背景入手,指出德国基础教育由20世纪强调学科内容标准的投入型教育质量控制转向21世纪强调学科能力标准的产出型教育质量控制,德国各州的教育和文化事务部长常设会议(KMK)将其工作重点放在制定和推出帮助改善和确保德国教育体系质量的国家教育标准,并成立了国家教育质量研究所(IQB),负责定期监测德国中小学实现教育标准的程度,支持联邦德国16个州教育系统的质量提高与保障,提高德国各州教育的均衡性。德国中小学教育标准与教学质量监测正是在欧盟核心素养框架背景下,通过反思基础教育教学质量问题,聚焦教育质量提升,强调学科能力标准的产出型教育质量控制,建构"标准—计划—培训—教学—管理—监测"循环改进系统,保障了学生学业质量与教师教学质量的不断提升。     

引入ISO9000标准提高教育教学质量

2000年版ISO9000族明确提出了质量管理八项原则，本文对照ISO9001标准的条款，试将八项质量管理原则引入高等职业学校的质量管理，有助于提高高等职业学校的质量和效益，提高高等职业学校的国际竞争力。     

完善现代教育体系 提高人才培养质量

中国高等教育已进入大众化、普及化阶段,各类高校本科教育要找准自身的定位,普通高校本科教育应将培养面向创新型国家建设的复合型、应用型创新人才作为目标。近年来我校本科教育由以扩大规模为重点的外延式发展向以提高质量和水平、突出优势和特色的内涵式发展转变。本科教学工作重点是以扩大规模、整合资源、优化配置、提高质量、突出特色为主线,以人才培养为中心,加强创新环境和条件建设,完善现代教育体系,着力培养学生的实践能力、创新能力和可持续发展能力。