Consulting with groups of teachers. Evaluation of a pilot project in Ireland

This article reports on a two year project in which educational psychologists offered consultation to groups of teachers, to help them find solutions to school-based problems. Teachers were drawn from within individual schools and from across a number of schools. Typically, teachers were trained by educational psychologists in group consultation processes. Group consultation sessions were usually offered on a termly basis (three times per year). The group consultation sessions were facilitated by two psychologists. A formal process was followed, using a problem-solving structure. A pilot project ran for two years and was evaluated using quantitative and qualitative methods. Data were collected from teachers, school principals and psychologists. Findings indicate that group consultation is an effective method of service delivery, particularly for clusters of small, rural schools. The evaluation considers aspects of group consultation that could be further developed and new directions for this model of working.     

Staff support group on a cancer ward: a pilot project

Despite strong evidence of high stress among oncology nursing staffs, few empirical intervention studies have been attempted. This study involved a pilot project to combine two anxiety-reducing aids--group support and the provision of pertinent information--into a single format for maximum stress reduction. Weekly groups producing both support and information lasted 8 months and covered a wide range of topics. Both unstructured and didactic sessions were used. Pre- and postquestionnaires were distributed to each participant to assess ward atmosphere, attitudes about cancer, and level of stress. Participants expressed great satisfaction with the project, but their enthusiasm was not supported by statistical evaluation. Various methodological and programmatic aspects that may account for the discrepancy between anecdotal and statistical results are discussed.     

Asynchronous access to conventional course delivery: a pilot project

This study describes a technological pilot project providing 160 graduate students with asynchronous access to the ongoing proceedings of a lecture‐based course. Exactly half of the students spoke the language of instruction, English, as a second language (ESL). While the asynchronous video‐on‐demand service proved popular overall, ESL students were markedly heavier users of the system and reported most enthusiastically on its benefits. Asynchronous access was valued as much for empowering the learner with control of the lecture as it was for the issue of convenience. Furthermore, the medium of video capture was found to create an impression of intimacy simultaneously cleansed of environmental distractions, an experience not necessarily consistent with live attendance. These findings became the foundation of a course distribution system now providing lectures to over 1,500 undergraduates each semester, yet many of the observed benefits remain to be confirmed by future research.     

集中性实践教学环节的教学改革研究

在与企业的交流中发现,学校的实践教学获得的认同度并不高。考察高等院校的教学活动,对于学生,本质上是一种基于资源的学习;对于学校,师资建设、实验室与实习基地建设等,本质上是一个教学资源的建设。工科学生实践教学环节训练乏力的问题,实际是一个实践教学资源缺失的问题。对于实践教学的重点部分如集中性实践教学环节,其教学资源建设的重点在于拓展与企业的合作渠道,把教学环境转移到企业现场,并结合CDIO大纲和企业培训纲要来指导教学,使得实践教学环节尽可能映射工程实践。介绍了基于上述思考的教学改革试点工作。     

The Renewal of Science Teachers’ Knowledge: a pilot professional development project

This paper describes a pilot project for the professional development of science teachers, a major aim of which was to update teachers’ science content knowledge. The paper focuses on the rationale and background of the project, the model of inservice education, the arrangements for credentialling and recognising participating teachers, and the findings of the external evaluation of the initial stages of the project. It concludes with a summary of the features of the project which appear to be facilitating the achievement of its aims.     

Constructing a patient education system: A performance technology project

The purpose of the patient education system described here was to distribute patient education material to and within medical practices managed by a small medical practice management company. The belief was that patient education opportunities improved health care outcomes and increased patient participation in health care decisions and compliance with health care plans. This tool reinforced medical practices' commitment to having patients participate actively in their treatment, differentiated them from other practices, and contributed to the generation of new patients.     

Regional networks in education: a case study of an Austrian project

This case study presents the development of networks in education, using the Austrian IMST (Innovations Make Schools Top) project as illustration. The regional networks are coordinated in every Austrian federal province by groups made up of teachers, representatives of the educational authorities, and members of academia. In the framework of the IMST project, all networks are monitored by a team of the Institute of Instructional and School Development at the University of Klagenfurt. This article presents theoretical concepts, network structures and network activities, as well as evaluation data. The overall challenge in trying to enable sustainable development of learning of those involved might be described as keeping momentum between network structures and network processes or, in other words, between stability and flow.     

Of myths and monitoring: learner-centred education as a political project in Scotland

ABSTRACT

Prevalent constructions of best practice at the global level include learner-centred education as an emancipatory and holistic approach across the life course. However, competing discourses of standardisation and preparation for the workforce are also at play. As a small state constructing an image and role for itself on a global stage, Scotland draws aspirationally on learner-centredness in its current Curriculum for Excellence governing education in schools, and in the Statement of Ambition for Adult Education, aligning it with apparently indigenous ideas of good practice in education while distancing it from prevalent patterns in neighbouring England. However, in operationalising these, competing agendas and versions of best practice interrupt these policy narratives and prove difficult to resist. Using a combination of document analysis, observations of consultation processes, and interviews with policy actors, this article explores these tensions in policy content and process.     

围绕"人才培养模式改革和开放教育试点"项目做好党的工作

开展“人才培养模式改革和开放教育试点”项目研究是电大教育面向新世纪,寻求新发展的重大举措。校党委紧紧抓住这一契机,带领全体教职员工统一思想、转变观念,理清思路、突出重点,深化改革、建立机制,为试点工作提供了动力和保证。     

Instructional systems development in a large-scale education project

The Mission of Botswana's Junior Secondary Education Improvement Project is to expand the country's junior secondary education program, which is roughly equivalent to the junior high school level in the United States. An instructional systems design (ISD) model was used in the design of the project. As such, the project has provided an opportunity to study the practical use and implementation of an ISD approach to a sector-wide education intervention within the setting of a developing country. In this article, issues pertaining to sectorwide planning strategies of educational development are explored. Particularly stressed is the importance of conducting a contextual review at the outset of a large-scale educational project. Note: In 1984, USAID began a ten-year project called “Improving the Efficiency of Educational Systems” (IEES) that has provided technical assistance to a number of countries around the world through a consortium of institutions including Florida State University, the State University of New York at Albany, and the Institute for International Research. The Junior Secondary Education Improvement Project (JSEIP) in Botswana has been one of the IEES projects.     

Dangerous liaisons: Reflections on a pilot project for state-mandated outcomes assessment of written communication

This study details the development and results of a campus-based writing assessment plan that was mandated by a state-wide university system in order to explore the “value-added” from a writing program curriculum to undergraduate students’ competence with written expression. Four writing samples (two timed essays and two conventional essays) that are produced before, during and at the close of enrollment in the writing program are scored for critical thinking, genre knowledge, rhetorical skills, and mechanics. The results indicate that local campus student achievement related to writing is comparable with performance captured by nationally normed technologies and larger assessment projects at similar state universities. The data also suggest significant performance difference related to the institutional position of students’ instructors as well as students’ own enrollment status. The article concludes that while the data produced by this research project are compelling, the policy and political implications of the undertaking suggest greater sensitivity to the institution's culture and program direction as well as its impact on instructor morale, student learning environment and the place of composition studies in the university.     

Artful Dodgers: an arts education research project in early education settings

Artful Dodgers is an arts education project developed by two artists and delivered in two early years settings located in two areas of urban disadvantage. It is a music and visual arts programme designed and implemented with early years teachers of children aged 3–5 years. It explored whether the provision of high-quality arts experiences could enhance children’s emerging literacy and numeracy. A novel ‘artist in(formed) residency’ model was developed within a unique arts education research design. Piloting a tripartite relationship between researchers, artists and early years teachers, this study was situated within a qualitative action research paradigm, with both artists located in both services weekly over a 12-week period. The evaluation of the programme indicates changes in pedagogical planning and style in the early years teachers over the period of the artists’ residency. Their language became more reflective and their practice incorporated a wider and richer range of materials; there was greater evidence of more child-led activities and unstructured play opportunities over the duration of the study. The data suggest that children’s social, cooperative and communication skills were enhanced. Recommendations have implications for the professional development of artists and teachers working in early years settings.     

Ways in which Governing Bodies Contribute to School Improvement: Findings from a pilot project

ABSTRACT

Legislation over the last 10 years has increased considerably the responsibilities of school governors but there has been little research into their role in bringing about school improvement. This paper reports upon a pilot project designed to set the parameters and criteria for a more detailed and extensive study into this area. Based upon the data gathered, it is possible to suggest some ways in which governing bodies can enhance the conditions for improvement.     

"研究生创新实验中心"建设探索与思考--教育部"研究生教育创新工程"建设项目

借助教育部启动“研究生教育创新工程”的契机,西北工业大学立项启动了“研究生创新实验中心”项目,有效地建设人力资源孵化器,积极鼓励研究生从事“自选项目、自主设计、自己动手、自由探索”原则下的独立创新活动,深入地探索全面免费开放的实验室建设模式,积累了一些经验和体会。     

The inclusive practice project in Scotland: Teacher education for inclusive education

While differences in national contexts are associated with variations in how teachers are trained and school systems are organised, the conceptual and philosophical problems of equity and inclusion in schooling are shared concerns. This paper describes how the structure and content of an initial teacher education programme for primary and secondary teachers has been revised to ensure that social and educational inclusion is addressed within the core programme. A rationale is presented for the development of ‘inclusive practice’, followed by a discussion of the reforms and an outline of the effects that are expected in the classroom practices of teachers in schools.