Revolutionising engineering education in the Middle East region to promote earthquake-disaster mitigation

Due to the high market demands for professional engineers in the Arab oil-producing countries, the appetite of Middle Eastern students for high-paying jobs and challenging careers in engineering has sharply increased. As a result, engineering programmes are providing opportunities for more students to enrol on engineering courses through lenient admission policies that do not compromise academic standards. This strategy has generated an influx of students who must be carefully educated to enhance their professional knowledge and social capital to assist in future earthquake-disaster risk-reduction efforts. However, the majority of Middle Eastern engineering students are unaware of the valuable acquired engineering skills and knowledge in building the resilience of their communities to earthquake disasters. As the majority of the countries in the Middle East are exposed to seismic hazards and are vulnerable to destructive earthquakes, engineers have become indispensable assets and the first line of defence against earthquake threats. This article highlights the contributions of some of the engineering innovations in advancing technologies and techniques for effective disaster mitigation and it calls for the incorporation of earthquake-disaster-mitigation education into academic engineering programmes in the Eastern Mediterranean region.     

The transition from higher education to employment in Europe: the analysis of the time to obtain the first job

This paper investigates the determinants of the transition from higher education to work across Europe using various specifications of duration models and a one-time multi-country survey of university graduates from nine European countries. Results point to differences between the North and South of Europe in the difficulty of getting a first job. They confirm that individual characteristics such as the field/level of studies or the socioeconomic background, and individual job search bear a significant relationship to the probability of finding a job. Evidence of unobserved heterogeneity is also found.     

高职IT专业就业形势分析与思考

高职IT专业毕业生数量急剧增长,毕业生供大于求,就业压力日趋严重.原因在于高职毕业生技能不突出,毕业生就业期望过高,受传统思想束缚,就业地点过于集中于大城市.为此,学校应修订人才培养方案,充分考虑企业的实际需求,定期举办专题讲座,对学生进行就业技巧等方面的教育.     

Youth transition to employment in Vietnam: a vulnerable path

Literature suggests that educational attainment is one of the significant factors affecting youth transition to work. The process of capital accumulation through education is suggested as the key marker of social inclusion and exclusion. This paper compares the educational attainment among youth in Vietnam with their status in employment. It uses the data from the school-to-work transition survey of the International Labour Office with 2722 youth participants aged 15–29 in different geographical areas in Vietnam. The findings indicate that Vietnamese youth have to face many challenges when negotiating their transition to work, especially when the educational attainment of the majority youth is low. A wide gap between education and learners’ needs and interests, the economic burden many young people had to bear and the low level of development of the economy with a large proportion of the informal sector are the main reasons for youth in Vietnam to leave school early and to accept low quality work to earn their living. These problems need to be solved to help youth in Vietnam approach better jobs in the market.     

From opportunity to reality: transition into engineering education,trauma or transformation?

ABSTRACT

Transition into university can prove to be a challenging time for young people entering engineering education, irrespective of previous educational experience or demographic background. It is such challenges that this article considers. Commencing by looking at the pragmatic issues associated with transition, the question of whether starting university is a time of transformation or trauma for new engineering students is discussed. Following this, a conceptual framework grounded in the authors previous work depicts a tripartite approach to transition, identifying three interlinked phases that new students typically encounter. The conclusion suggests that through the introduction of realistic and socially relevant engineering activities, transition into engineering education is the ideal time to turn opportunity into reality for new students.     

高职院校工科学生择业心理分析与对策

通过调研发现目前高职院校工科生普遍存在自身定位不准确导致心理期望落空,对专业兴趣不足或成绩不好导致就业情绪低落,不善于与人交往和沟通带来的内心封闭和孤独等心理障碍,针对这些问题,我们提出了一些解决方案以促进学生正确认知自我、主动适应社会的能力。     

高等教育大众化背景下的大学生职业生涯教育影响因素解析

大学生职业生涯教育是我国快速实现高等教育大众化过程中应运而生的教育新理念,也是借鉴西方发达国家经验积极化解大学生就业困难以及提高人才培养质量所主动进行的实践探索。在我国高等教育大众化的发展进程中,大学生职业生涯教育的影响因素主要有：社会经济发展方面的动力因素、政府推动方面的主导因素、高校自身发展方面的关键因素和学生成才就业方面的主体因素。     

我国高校工程训练中心的建设与发展

工程训练中心是在工科高校内实施工程实践教学的基础性平台,是中国高等教育改革发展中出现的一个新事物,近10年来得到快速发展。基于国家级工程训练示范中心的相关数据统计,对工程训练中心的发展历程及其建设现状进行了介绍和分析。     

浅析高职学生就业观中的德育教育

由于多年的扩招,当前大学生就业形势严峻,特别是高职高专生就业矛盾更加突出。大学生就业矛盾的解决,有赖于社会经济的发展和国家对大学生就业政策的扶持,很大程度上还取决于学校的就业指导。在教育部把就业率和招生数及专业相挂钩的今天,每一位高校教师都有义务关心学生的就业情况。政治课教学应从市场经济、法律法规、职业道德及心理方面对学生进行职业指导和创业教育,帮助他们树立正确的职业理想,转变就业观念,增强在社会人才市场上的竞争力,顺利实现就业。     

工科院校人文素质教育的实践启示

人文素质教育在培养适应时代发展的全面的高素质人才方面有不可或缺的重要作用,但在高等院校特别是工科院校中却较为薄弱。本文简要分析了工科院校人文素质教育的现状和原因,并结合具体的实践案例,探讨了加强人文素质教育的有效途径。     

地方高师院校转型过程中的教师教育发展策略

地方高师院校正处于向综合化发展的转型过程之中,这也是教师教育发展的必然趋势。为此,地方高师院校要创新办学理念、明确目标定位;优化培养模式,保证培养质量,坚持师范与非师范专业协调发展;注重教育学科教师队伍建设,以科研促进教学水平提高等。     

浅谈高职毕业生就业指导工作

面对日趋严峻的就业形势,高职院校应建立一支高素质毕业生就业指导队伍,不断创新,为毕业生提供优质服务,提升毕业生就业率。     

从科学方法论谈高校工科教学改革

通过对波普尔科学方法论的认识，指出其假说模式对于培养高校工科创新型人才具有积极意义，结合教学实践给出了教学改革的几点建议。     

理工科高校人文教育课程的构建

长期以来,我国理工科大学生人文教育的状况不尽人意。许多高校尤其是理工科高校的人文教育课程在总体上受到轻视,由此制约了大学生人文素质的培养,制约了大学生综合素质的提高。本文分析了大部分理工科高校的人文教育课程设置的现状,分析对比了国外人文教育课程设置特点,尝试性的对建立适合我国理工科高校的人文教育课程体系提出了一些建议。     

Gender stereotypes among women engineering and technology students in the UK: lessons from career choice narratives

In the UK, women remain under-represented in engineering and technology (E&T). Research has, therefore, investigated barriers and solutions to women's recruitment, retention and progression. Recruitment into the sector may be supported by exploring the career decisions of women and men who have chosen to study E&T. Triangulating quantitative and qualitative data from E&T students at a UK university, this paper examines the gendered nature of career choice narratives. It finds that women often maintain contradictory views; upholding gendered stereotypes about women's suitability for the so-called masculine work, yet also subscribing to ideals that the sector is accessible to all who wish to work in it. This is explained using an individualist framework in which women construct an autonomous sense of self, yet are also shaped by a gendered self. Women's discourse around career choice, therefore, reveals the problematic nature of gender norms for achieving gender equity in E&T.     

论传统文化教育对理工类高校思政工作的意义

本文首先对传统文化教育在理工类高校思政工作中存在的主要问题进行了简要分析,然后对传统文化教育对理工类思政工作的意义进行了阐述,最后提出了理工类高校思政工作中加强传统文化教育的相关策略,旨在与同行共同探究、交流,不断促进我国理工类高校的发展,为培养出适应当代社会发展需要的理工类人才做出积极的贡献。     

我国幼小衔接教育政策的演变与反思——基于对1949~2019年相关政策文本的分析

从新中国成立至今,我国就幼小衔接教育工作相继出台过一系列教育政策,经历了从幼儿园单向执行主体时期(1949~1988年)到幼儿园和小学双向执行主体时期(1989~2009年)再到多元利益相关者执行主体时期(2010年至今)的演变过程。本研究采用由政策工具和幼小衔接生态系统维度构成的分析框架对这些教育政策进行分析,结果发现其使用的政策工具趋于多元化,但各类政策工具的组合配置仍缺乏系统性;幼小衔接生态系统趋于综合化,但各子系统的具体内容仍不够全面;政策总体趋于科学化,但在幼小衔接关键问题上仍不够科学;中央政府与地方政府颁布的相关政策一致性较高,但在互补性上仍有待提高。政策工具的特性、政府的偏好、幼小衔接生态系统的复杂性及相关研究的滞后是影响我国幼小衔接教育政策的主要因素。未来在完善幼小衔接教育政策时,应注意中央政府与地方政府相关政策的衔接和互补;根据政策问题的性质选择恰当的政策工具,优化政策工具之间的组合配置;合理利用激励性工具和能力建设工具,提升幼小衔接教育政策的可行性;全面剖析幼小衔接生态系统中的各方利益诉求,统筹配置相关政策工具;加强幼小衔接关键问题研究和政策转化,促进幼小衔接教育政策科学发展。     

A self-assessment of the propensity to obtain future employment: a case of final-year engineering students at the University of Botswana

The article provides a self-assessment by final-year engineering students at the University of Botswana regarding the propensity to get employment. Students rated which employability attributes are important, the level of attainment and the sources that have facilitated the development of the attributes. Results indicated that students identified the most important attributes as management of time; possessing a high level of technical skills, meeting deadlines and creating viable solutions for solving a problem. They also indicated that they have weaknesses in managing time, meeting deadlines and creating viable solutions (attributes critical to the engineering profession). Students reported that their strengths were in having a positive attitude, orderly physical presentation, adaptation to new environments and willingness to learn new ideas. Students further noted that they developed the attributes from the university academic system followed by their own private activities. The study concludes that students lacked some of the critical attributes of engineering. They therefore, need to be explicitly and holistically sensitised as to how the attributes relate to their profession, employment and career development. As part of the review of the engineering programmes, sensitisation could be included in the induction process at enrolment.     

Civic education and visions of war and peace in the Spanish transition to democracy

Abstract

This article explores visions of war and peace in the education system during the Spanish transition to democracy. During those years, the Spanish state was faced with the challenge of leaving its authoritarian political past behind and forging a democratic civic culture. As the concepts of war and peace are inextricably linked to those of state and citizenship, they are a useful tool with which to examine changes in civic education. A wide variety of educational sources has been explored, with particular attention to the emotional nature of the depiction of both war and peace. This study reveals two opposing styles. The official discourse demonstrated a factual treatment of war and a tendency to concentrate on international bodies and their actions, when it came to fomenting peace. The treatment of peace in the circles of teachers’ local initiatives was different. First, peace was defined not only as the absence of war but also in terms of social equality and solidarity. Second, there was a conscious effort to get the students involved in opposing war, reinforced by emotionally charged messages regarding its horrors.     

育人工作在工科院校艺术团建设中的实践探索

本文介绍了普通高校大学生艺术团建设的现状和存在的问题,从育人工作以及工科院校大学生艺术团建设的特点出发,对育人工作在工科院校大学生艺术团建设中的具体体现进行了分析。并通过笔者自身的实践探索,提出育人工作与工科院校艺术团建设相互渗透的优势,以育人促进工科院校大学生艺术团的健康发展,使其在高校素质教育中充分发挥应有的作用。