Education for work: Reflections towards a theory of vocational education

By integrating aspects of a philosophy of work and a sociology of work, this article draws conclusions relevant to framing a theory of vocational education. Education for work is accepted in this paper as the common central meaning of the term vocational education. The two concepts, education and work, are first examined separately: work is seen to include recreational and occupational work, while occupational work is seen to fall on a continuum ranging from constrained to unconstrained occupational work. Education and training are distinguished. After a discussion of the conceptual links which might be drawn between education and work, recommendations are made about the aims, the place, and the curriculum of vocational education within the general institution of education.

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Zusammenfassung Durch die Integration von Aspekten einer Philosophie der Arbeit und einer Soziologie der Arbeit kommt der Verfasser dieses Artikels zu Schlußfolgerungen, die eine Theorie der Berufsbildung entwickeln. Bildung für die Arbeit wird in diesem Artikel als die allgemeine, zentrale Bedeutung des Begriffes Berufsbildung verstanden. Die beiden Begriffe Erziehung, und Arbeit werden zunächst einzeln untersucht: Arbeit umfaßt hier Freizeit- und Berufsarbeit; Berufsarbeit ist ein Kontinuum von mehr oder weniger vorgegebener Tätigkeit. Es wird zwischen Bildung und Ausbildung unterschieden. Im Anschluß an eine Diskussion über begriffliche Gemeinsamkeiten zwischen Erziehung und Arbeit werden Vorschläge über Ziele, Einordnung und Curriculum der Berufsbildung innerhalb des allgemeinen Systems der Erziehung unterbreitet.

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Résumé En intégrant des aspects d'une philosophie et d'une sociologie du travail, cet article tire des conclusions pertinentes pour l'élaboration d'une théorie de l'éducation professionnelle. L'éducation pour le travail est prise dans cet article au sens commun central du terme éducation professionnelle. Tout d'abord, on examine séparément les deux concepts éducation et travail: on considère que le travail inclut les occupations récréatives et professionnelles alors que le travail professionnel est vu en tant qu'un continuum allant du travail professionnel contraint au travail non contraint. On distingue l'éducation de la formation. Après une discussion sur les liens conceptuels qui pourraient être établis entre l'éducation et le travail, des recommandations sont faites sur les objectifs, la place et le contenu de l'éducation professionnelle au sein de l'institution générale de l'éducation.

     

Challenges to successful quality management implementation in higher education institutions

This article discusses the key challenges to successful quality management implementation in higher education institutions identified by 160 colleges and universities at various stages of quality management practices. Survey findings suggest that there are five key challenges that affect the successful implementation of quality management practices in colleges and universities: organizational culture, senior leadership commitment, faculty support, implementation time, and training.Julie E. Horine, Ph.D. (The Florida State University) is Assistant Professor of Organizational Behavior in the Department of Educational Leadership at the University of Mississippi. Her areas of professional expertise include quality management and the use of the Baldrige criteria as a diagnostic tool for organizational improvement. Julie is a two-year Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award Examiner and an evaluator of the Baldrige Education Pilot Criteria. William A. Hailey, DBA (University of Kentucky), is Professor of Operations Management and Information Systems and holder of the H.E McCarty Chair in the Else School of Management at Millsaps College in Jackson, Mississippi. He is recognized as a Fellow, Certified Quality Engineer, and Certified Quality Auditor by the American Society for Quality Control. His areas of professional expertise include strategic quality planning, quality management training, and designing information systems for implementing continuous improvement principles.     

早期教育阶段幼儿舞蹈课程的实施准则

随着我国文化教育体系日趋成熟,早期教育有了多方面的教学保障,促进了幼儿阶段教育体制的深化改革。为幼儿塑造良好的知识学习环境,不仅拓宽了其对外在事物的认知水平,也使其产生了浓厚的学习兴趣。舞蹈是激发幼儿学习思维的常用方式,借助舞蹈教学可以提升幼儿思维及活动能力。本文从舞蹈编创、教学模式、辅导方法等三个方面,分别介绍了早期教育阶段幼儿舞蹈课程的实施准则,强调了和谐性、有序性、多样性等准则要求。     

远程教育的均等理论——来自美国的远程教育理论

本文分析了远程教育均等理论产生的背景和主要思想,并对构成均等理论的关键要素进行了详细的介绍。均等理论在界定了均等、学习经验、有效应用、学生和学习成果等五个关键要素的基础上,提出了远程学习者在学习中获得的学习经验与常规学习学生在学习中获得的经验越相等,则他们所取得的学习成果也越接近。这一理论对于我国现正进行的基于现代信息技术的远程教育理论研究和实践探索具有一定的启发意义。     

Formative assessment in higher education: Moves towards theory and the enhancement of pedagogic practice

The importance of formative assessment instudent learning is generally acknowledged, butit is not well understood across higher education.The identification of some key features offormative assessment opens the way for adiscussion of theory. It is argued that thereis a need for further theoretical developmentin respect of formative assessment, which needsto take account of disciplinary epistemology,theories of intellectual and moral development,students' stages of intellectual development,and the psychology of giving and receivingfeedback. A sketch is offered of the directionthat this development might take. It is notedthat formative assessment may be eitherconstructive or inhibitory towards learning. Suggestions are made regarding research intoformative assessment, and how research mightcontribute to the development of pedagogicpractice.     

Innovations of education socialisation in Vietnam: from participation towards privatisation

Abstract

Education reforms worldwide, in both developed and developing countries, address the content of education programmes and/or changes education systems. There are different paths, and different socioeconomic contexts, for those nations which pursue education reform, and Vietnam makes for an instructive example. The country’s socioeconomic renovation, known as Doi Moi since the late 1980s, has put forward the discourse of socialisation, which generally advocates greater public participation in all areas of society. Although socialisation has been the central ideology of the Doi Moi process, there is still a dispute about its meaning and implications. This paper contributes to debates about reforms by examining the discourse of socialisation in Vietnam through analysis of government documents and public opinion in various media. These secondary documents on education socialisation in Vietnam, highlight the institutionalisation of education socialisation in an apparent movement from general public participation to a form of privatisation. This institutionalisation has dramatically transformed the conditions of people’s access to education in Vietnam.     

Intake assessments for alternative teacher education: moving from legitimation towards predictive validity

There is little empirical evidence concerning the predictive validity of indicators used in intake assessments for alternative teacher education programs. However, pinpointing potentially successful candidates requires predictors of teacher competence, which may be used to assess candidates’ dispositions, knowledge and skills. Available evidence regarding six possible predictors of teacher competence is examined and their limitations and possibilities are pointed out. Recommendations and methodological guidelines are given for developing and using these indicators in valid and reliable ways. Directions are explored for instrument development and assessment practice.     

Challenges and opportunities in efforts towards inclusive education: reflections from India

ABSTRACT

Across the globe, the Salamanca Statement has provided the strongest impetus for drawing attention to the education of some of the most marginalised groups. In India, it has had a significant and specific impact on the provision of schooling opportunities for children with disabilities. This paper provides a critical analysis of key developments in national policies and programmes and how these have shaped provision at the classroom level. Drawing on Nancy Fraser’s conception of justice as an analytical tool, efforts towards inclusive education in India are explored through the interlinked ideas of redistribution, recognition and representation. Over the last two decades, there has been a significant increase in the numbers of children with disabilities being enrolled in schools, driven by factors including, positive legislation and the increased provision of aids and appliances, etc. However, little attention has been paid to the quality of teaching and learning, experienced by children with disabilities. Instead, efforts remain focused on assimilation into a mainstream system fraught with different challenges. Despite these issues, India is a powerful example of how the vision of inclusive education, as outlined in the Salamanca Statement, is feasible, especially if efforts build on contextual realities.     

The significance of theory in the implementation of curriculum change in religious education

A new study in Melbourne, Australia, has investigated curriculum change in religious education against the background of literature on curriculum change in education in general. Amongst its several findings, it was ascertained that clear information and theoretical understanding about a curriculum change in religious education is just as important as it is in any other field of study. In the absence of such information and understanding the leaders who were responsible for implementing the curriculum change in religious education made certain curriculum accommodations, and emphasised particular professional development activities for teachers that were not in keeping with the theoretical underpinning of the change. The implications for ‘top down’ curriculum change, such as those mandated by Church authorities or state authorities, are significant.     

Increasing participation of adults in higher education: factors for successful policies

This article contains an analysis of policies aimed at increasing the participation of adults in higher education (HE) in seven countries (NL, DK, SE, UK, BE Flanders, DE and the state of California in the USA). In order to maintain their economic competitiveness, many countries have developed policies to increase the participation of adults in HE. However, the effectiveness of these measures has not been studied to any significant degree as yet. Therefore, the focus of this article is to assess the effectiveness of these measures within their particular context. For this purpose, the research team carried out an international comparative study based on desk research, case studies and interviews with both policy makers and academic researchers in the seven countries. The study shows that there are common ingredients for effective learning environments, such as a high degree of flexibility of HE provision. In short term, in rationalising policies there are a number of issues that need to be addressed, e.g. the issue of what is the primary objective for increasing participation. In the long run, one needs to reconsider broader HE structures within a lifelong learning perspective towards a fundamental revision of the current systems. This is both necessary in combating crises and in dealing with problems encountered by ageing societies.     

The Delors Report: a guide towards education for all

The Delors report remains a timely and challenging agenda for shaping education from the earliest years. This article reviews the status of basic education, defined as a passport to life in the report. Despite progress toward universal primary education and gender parity, countries are still far from education targets adopted in 2000. Lack of care and education programmes for young children, of literacy and life skills programmes for youth and adults, and poor education quality are undermining progress towards education for all. The article stresses the importance of building inclusive systems that reach all learners regardless of their background and circumstances and provide appropriate conditions for learning. It reviews UNESCO's actions in education, emphasising the necessity of a rights-based, holistic vision as an imperative for reducing poverty and promoting sustainable development.     

Visualising expertise: towards an authentic pedagogy for higher education

The development of expertise is seen as a crucial element in higher education, but the nature of expertise has been clouded by assumptions of the centrality of intuition and tacit knowledge. In this paper the authors contend that much knowledge that has been described as tacit can be surfaced for examination through the application of concept mapping techniques. This approach allows experts to articulate their practice in a way that is transparent, making it available for scrutiny by students. Expertise is described here as connecting the chains of practice that denote competence with the underlying networks of understanding that are required to support academic development. This occurs across the academic disciplines with various degrees of subtlety. It is described in the context of clinical teaching as it is in this context that the separation of chains of practice from underlying networks of understanding is most pronounced.     

Higher education learner identity for successful student transitions

Student success in higher education (HE) is dependent on the possession of a positive learner identity, the development of which is a complex longitudinal process of change. Exploring the growth of learner identity within the transition between school and university is therefore apposite, especially for learners from disadvantaged backgrounds who may not have sufficient cultural capital to make an easy intellectual transition from school pupil to university student. Learner identity is positively linked with both the academic and social context of learning as well as with concepts of engagement and a sense of belonging in HE. This article explores the findings of a Scottish study involving 30 students who took part in a unique widening participation model based on immersing learners in the university environment whilst still at school. Findings include evidence of the development of a transformative HE learner identity which is enabled by an immersive experience of university prior to entry. A model for HE learning identity formation is suggested. In the context of the current dialogue on fair access and widening participation to HE internationally, findings point policy makers to the benefits of long-term immersion in HE prior to entry for successful transition to university.     

African philosophy for successful integration of technology in higher education

Due partly to the multimodal and multiscalar nature of technology applications, there lacks theories to explain successful technology integration in teaching and learning in higher education. Such multidisciplinary theories developed primarily within Western contexts as behaviourism, cognitivism, constructivism, connectivism, collaborationism, TPACK framework and authentic learning theory have been used to underpin technology-enhanced teaching and learning globally. However, their primary focus on basic education and their sensitivity to contextual reality seem to restrict their salience and fecundity to successfully explain technology integration in higher education in the Global South, including Africa. For more contextual relevance and significance, the embodiment in curricula and pedagogy of African knowledge systems and emerging societal needs and challenges is thus critical. Drawing on Asabiyya and Ubuntu humanistic philosophies respectively from Northern and Southern Africa and Yoruba empiricist and Zara Yacob rationalist epistemologies from Western and Eastern Africa, this study proposes African philosophical perspectives to underpin technology integration in higher education. The epistemologies define the nature of student and faculty engagements and strategies, whereas the humanistic philosophies offer values that could guide ethical technology use and engagement. Technologies are conceived alternatively as knowledge banks, communication media and cognitive tools to think through and with. Implications for further research and practice are identified.

Practitioner notes

What is already known about this topic

• Multidisciplinary theories developed primarily within Western contexts are used to underpin technology-enhanced teaching and learning globally.
• Their primary focus on basic education and their sensitivity to socio-cultural and economic contextual reality restrict their salience and fecundity to successfully explain technology integration in teaching and learning in higher education in the Global South, including Africa.
• African philosophical, theoretical, conceptual and methodological thinking is critical for successful technology integration.

What this paper adds

• This study interrogated how African philosophies of humanity and knowledge could support successful technology integration in teaching and learning in Africa.
• Drawing on Asabiyya and Ubuntu philosophies, respectively, from Northern and Southern Africa, the study proposes strategies for making the oppressive faculty–student relationships rampant in African campuses more humane and emancipatory.
• Drawing on Yoruba empiricist and Zara Yacob rationalist epistemological orientations from Western and Eastern Africa, this study proposes strategies for supporting truly engaging and empowering pedagogies within technology-enhanced spaces.

Implications for practice and/or policy

• The purpose of education in successful technology-enhanced spaces needs to aim at improving student capacities and skills for further learning and to ensure full participation in practice communities within and outside higher education.
• The content of education or curriculum needs to primarily embody African/local philosophical, theoretical, conceptual and methodological thinking, as well as emerging community needs and challenges.
• The method of education and student assessment need to support and promote the cultivation of student skills and capabilities as well as values and ethics highly needed in their communities and beyond.

     

Distance education in mixed institutions: working towards parity

The ‘distance’ in distance education (DE) is no longer necessarily great. DE is no longer a makeshift second best to be used only where the face‐to‐face mode is geographically impossible. The parity of esteem which the DE mode already deserves, for mature students, has not yet been achieved, but the trend is in the right direction.

The organisational structure of Deakin University [a mixed institution that teaches both on campus and off campus] is described, emphasising how intimately DE is integrated with other university functions. In comparing DE with the face‐to‐face mode, I argue that distance educators should not be too much on the defensive and list some advantages of DE.

I predict that DE will continue to rise in status and expand in scale, because of its particular suitability for adult students and because of foreseeable developments in technology, especially in microcomputers. My view is that it should regard itself not as a minor speciality but as a leading edge of progress for higher education as a whole.