A University-Based Literacy Service-Learning Program for Youthful Offenders on Probation: A Preliminary Study of the Program’s Development,Implementation and Feasibility

This article reports on the development, implementation and feasibility of a mid-Atlantic university-community service-learning literacy program for youth on probation. Undergraduate teacher candidates served as literacy instructors for the youth. We focus on benefits and administrative challenges of developing and implementing a preliminary service-learning program for probated youth living in the community. We analyzed focus group data collected from special education undergraduate instructors, interview data collected from probated youth and their case managers, pre-post literacy assessments administered to the youth, the youths’ court files and data maintained by the community-based agency. We conclude that our model of a university-community literacy partnership has the potential to raise reading performance of youth, motivation, and promote prosocial behaviors. Addressing the educational needs of youth on probation, however, is complex and multifaceted. We find that success requires consistent communication among all stakeholders, adequate funding for leadership, organization and curricula, and ongoing assessment and evaluation.     

Working independently on the dissertation proposal: experiences of international Master’s students

Abstract

This article explores the experiences of international students as they engage in independent learning through formulating dissertation proposals. It contributes new insights by focusing on the ‘pre-supervision’ stage, where students formulate a research project and write a proposal independently. The analysis draws on questionnaire and focus group data from a large cohort of international taught postgraduates in business disciplines at a UK university. Two types of experience become apparent: one in which students work through the challenges presented by more independent learning, and the other where difficulties in ‘getting started’ present a barrier to progress. The article concludes by proposing a scaffolding approach, through which students can practise and complete key independent learning tasks involved in writing a dissertation proposal.     

Vietnamese Students’ Learning Motivations for Master’s Programmes: Implications for Curriculum Development and Pedagogical Practice

Abstract

The number of students who enrol in Master’s programmes has significantly increased in recent years; however, their learning motivations have not been adequately investigated, especially those from developing countries. This article reports a two-phased study that investigated Vietnamese students’ learning motivations for attending Master’s programmes. Qualitative content analysis of 10 open-ended questionnaires as well as exploratory factor analysis of 202 survey responses showed that students were inspired by 14 learning motivations related to employment, knowledge and skills, new adventure and some miscellaneous motivations. Independent samples T-tests results indicated significant differences in the learning motivations between student groups with different age ranges, work experience, nature of their work, targeted Master’s programme (local or international) and sources of funding of their studies. The study also found that their learning motivations were closely related to the Confucian educational and cultural values. This article discusses implications for curriculum development and pedagogical practice for effective Master’s programmes.     

Postgraduate taught students and preparedness for Master’s level study: polishing the facets of the Master’s diamond

Transitions are increasingly recognised as difficult, and less has been written about transitions to postgraduate taught programmes than about transitions into undergraduate or doctoral study. A Scotland-wide project found that new taught Post-graduate (PG), and staff teaching them, can be unclear about what is expected at Master’s level, and proposed a framework of seven facets that indicate how students are expected to engage with Master’s study. The facets and accompanying resources were designed to be discussion tools, to promote staff and student discussion of what is expected in their programme and subject. In a follow-up project at one university, a questionnaire was designed and distributed to postgraduate students asking them to rate their current level of ability against the skills and capabilities identified as facets for Master’s level study. The project found students felt ill-prepared for particular aspects of Master’s level study, with sub-group differences between disciplines. Master’s courses are intensive and fast-moving, so this has implications for students’ preparedness for successfully navigating through their programmes. Some suggestions on how students can be better briefed on what to expect are made.     

Learning to become an intercultural practitioner： The case of lifelong learning intensive programme Interdisciplinary Course of Intercultural Competences

This paper dates back to 2009 （it was first presented at the CRLL Conference at Stirling University） and deals with the advances in lifelong learning introduced by an ERASMUS LLP--IP named Interdisciplinary Course of Intercultural Competences （ICIC）. The programme, that involves academic and non-academic institutions concerned with higher education of six different European countries, worked out an intensive international learning pathway aimed at developing intercultural competences in three professional fields： education, social work and health care. The paper focuses on the programme＇s innovative combination of formal and informal learning as a strategic lever to： （1） enhance a holistic concept of ＂competence＂ that puts human relationship at the centre of professional skills; （2） assume intercultural competences as key competences transversal to different professions; （3） introduce social skills and reflection as key factors for developing a transformative model of lifelong learning （Jarvis, 2005） that able to match the needs of the current complex, ever-changing societies; and （4） develop experiential learning without giving up to a strong theoretical framework of reference. The programme introduces an educational model that matches the main goals of higher educational priorities started by Bologna Process and relies upon a solid theoretical framework developed in the field of intercultural research at a sociological, socio-psychological and pedagogical level （Bennett, 1993; Gudykunst ＆ Ting, 2002; Camilleri ＆ Cohen, 1989; Hall, 1959; Hofstede 2001; Beck ＆ Grande, 2006; Farr, 1984）, as well as in one of the lifelong learning （Le Boteurf, 1997; Illeris, 2005; Jarvis, 2005; Schon, 1983）.     

Influence of Self-Regulation on the Development of Children’s Number Sense

The present study examined predictive power of behavioral self-regulation, family and child characteristics on children’s number sense. The participants consisted of 101 kindergarten children. A subsample of 30 children was randomly chosen for the reliability procedures of Assessing Number Sense and Head, Toes, Knees and Shoulders instruments. Thus, data from 71 children were used for further analysis. Multiple regressions using stepwise method were computed for determining whether self-regulation, family income, parents’ level of education, gender, and age related to and were predictive of scores on number sense. Results of the study indicated that behavioral self-regulation, mothers’ education level, gender and age are significant predictors of number sense, and behavioral self-regulation was the most influential predictor, followed by mothers’ education level, gender and age. Findings are discussed in terms of influential factors of number sense in early childhood.     

Applying the Science of Learning to the Learning of Science: Newton’s Second Law of Motion

Science teaching and learning require knowledge about how learning takes place (cognition) and how learners interact with their surroundings (affective and sociocultural factors). The study reported on focussed on learning for understanding of Newton’s second law of motion from a cognitive perspective that takes social factors into account. A cognitive refinement instructional approach (CRIA) was used to organise and sequence learning activities, while students were engaged through inquiry and group work. Students’ real-life experiences were used as starting point of the learning sequence. The efficiency of the sequence was determined with the aid of the Force Concept Inventory (FCI) and complemented with the students’ reflections on the sequence, showing their epistemological preferences. The results indicated that a CRIA aided in constructing more coherent scientific knowledge and enhanced understanding, while reducing misconceptions on the topic. In their reflections, the students acknowledged that experiential and experimental evidence, as well as guided formation of a scientific explanatory framework, are foundational for a deeper understanding of the challenging topic.     

A Perspective of Group Size on Children’s Conditions for Wellbeing,Learning and Development in Preschool

This study explores how group size influences children’s conditions for wellbeing, learning and development in preschool in relation to the intentions in the revised (2010) Swedish preschool curriculum. The study is based on qualitative methods generated from interviews and open-ended questions in a questionnaire. Group size is dependent on three dimensions of preschool teacher’s experiences of group size, constituted of various aspects: preschool teacher qualifications and competence, physical indoor and outdoor environment and the composition of the child group. The dimensions and aspects affect the critical number of children for it to function in a qualitative good manner. If these dimensions and aspects do not interact constructively, teachers and children experience the group as large.     

Development of Graduates’ Attributes in Chemistry within an Open Distance Learning (ODL) Environment: Unisa’s Experience

Discipline-specific knowledge and associated technical skills as well as generic skills have represented distinct and separate aspects of chemical sciences in university studies (linear training). In addition to technical skills gained through laboratory training, employers now require a soft skill set such as strengths in analytical thinking, problem-solving, written and oral communication, and collaboration. These skills require further integration with the human qualities needed to remain resilient to changing conditions and they do not come naturally, but through training. Since community engagement forms an integral part of tuition or learning and research, the the Department of Chemistry at the University of South Africa (UNISA) needed to blend these components to enhance and strengthen the requisite graduate attributes. The authors discuss the strategies employed by the department on how to inculcate these graduate attributes into modern-day chemistry students within an open distance learning (ODL) context.     

The Effective Research-Based Characteristics of Professional Development of the National Science Foundation’s GK-12 Program

This study investigates the effective research-based characteristics of professional development (ERBCPD) of the National Science Foundation’s GK-12 Program—a program which partners institutions of higher education with local school districts and places science, technology, engineering, and mathematics graduates in the K-12 classroom with teachers. Final evaluations of 26 GK-12 sites were analyzed with a priori and emergent content analyses, which included rigorous inter- and intra-reliability testing. The results of the a priori analysis demonstrated that the GK-12 program incorporates all ERBCPD, but to drastically varying degrees (76–5%). The a priori characteristics that appeared most often were “Treats Fellows as professionals,” and “Professional development is on-going.” The two emergent characteristics included “Improves communication skills” and “Has real world application.”     

On the Development of Students’ Intercultural Communicative Competence in College English Classes

More frequent international contacts require culture teaching to be incorporated into college English classes so as to develop students’ intercultural communicative competence. English culture is different from Chinese at linguistic and pragmatic levels and in nonverbal communication as well. To make students engage in intercultural communication successfully, teachers should first develop their "critical cultural awareness".Meanwhile, they need to try flexible ways of culture teaching and create an authentic learning environment for the students. Opportunities should also be created for the students to communicate in the real context. Students’ autonomy to learn the language and its culture should also be nurtured.     

The Master’s in Teaching and Learning: expanding utilitarianism in the continuing professional development of teachers in England

The article focuses on the policy rhetoric of the Masters in Teaching and Learning (MTL). This is a new degree being launched in the summer of 2010 aimed, initially, at teachers who have just joined the profession. The degree presages the aspiration for a Master’s level teaching profession in England. Professional development as conceived in the MTL is continuous rather than continuing and permeating the vision is the language of ‘personalisation’. Teachers will be accompanied on the journey by an ‘in-school coach’. These notions suggest a highly tailored approach to continuing professional development (CPD), with careful attention to the identification of teachers’ needs and close support from a colleague. The article argues that, contrary to this impression, the MTL marks a new and significant step in expanding the utilitarianism of the English education system. The MTL represents a deepening hold on education by the state and a growing scepticism about the value of higher education in the CPD of teachers. It also aspires to a changing culture in schools as the workplace becomes the locus for the CPD of teachers. As other authors have described, the national character of education systems in Europe and in the Americas, Australia, New Zealand and Asia reflect an increasing instrumentality. The MTL, then, can be seen as part of a global phenomenon; in this case the policy lever of CPD is employed to support performative and audit policy agendas via a rigid accountability system. The MTL also represents a particular form of neo-liberal governmentality where increasing centralisation is ‘masked’ by a ‘simulacra of care’.     

Learning from children’s voice in schools: Experiences from Ireland

In Ireland there is progressive legislation on children’s participation in the education system. The Education Act 1998 advocates that school boards should involve students in the school and establish student councils in second-level schools. Since the publication of this legislation progress on realising students’ participation in schools has been slow. In 2006 the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child recommended that Ireland strengthen its efforts to enable children to express their views in schools and other educational institutions. The National Strategy on Children and Young People’s Participation in Decision-making (2015), the first to be produced internationally, commits to facilitating children and young people’s voice in the development of education policy, the running of schools and in other areas of school policy. This paper presents and discusses the results of qualitative participatory research with children and young people aged between 7 and 17 years, teachers and school principals, and parents, on their attitudes towards and opportunities for participation by students in schools in Ireland. The data reveal that students are keen to participate in school but recognise that their opportunities to do so are inadequate, that teachers understand participation very differently from students, and that parents have little knowledge of their children’s participatory experiences in school. It concludes that effective participation in schools requires policy, practical and cultural change.     

A Simple Study of the Teacher’s Influence on Students’ Psychology in English Learning

This paper analyzes the teacher’s influence on students’psychologyin English learning from two aspects and emphasizes the importance of English teachers’role in helping students establish healthy psychology in English learning.     

A Study on the Applicability of Bacon＇s Thoughts on Learning

This paper has discussed Bacon's thoughts that refer to education and their applicability to modern education in China. This paper focus on the four points which have been picked up from Bacon's works: empirical philosophy, learning with a right aim, suitableness, and the relation between custom and education。     

Evaluating South Korea’s Introduction of an Income Contingent Loan Program

Research in Higher Education - In 2010, South Korea introduced a new student loan program that was income contingent (ICL). One of the main expected outcomes of the new loan program was to provide...     

Learning ‘about’ and ‘from’ religion: phenomenography,the Variation Theory of Learning and religious education in Finland and the UK

The paper addresses the relationship between the twin tasks of enabling pupils both to learn about and learn from religion in the state education systems of Finland and the UK. Recognising that the relationship between these two tasks is the subject of considerable confusion, it is argued that the most appropriate way to view the connection is fundamentally ontological. In a plural society in which there is no basic agreement about the ultimate meaning and purpose of life, there nevertheless remains a common concern to enable pupils to live flourishing lives in harmony with the ultimate order‐of‐things. The paper draws on phenomenography and the Variation Theory of Learning to unpack the pedagogic implications of this argument.     

Predictors of children’s achievement: analysis of the Australian National Numeracy Assessment Program

In this study, we examine children’s National Assessment Program—Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN) achievement predictors, which may enable or limit their numeracy performance and assess the relative importance of the predictor variables. Our data source was the NAPLAN numeracy results of Queensland schools from 2014 to 2017. Years 3 and 5 children’s NAPLAN numeracy scores were analysed using a hierarchical multiple regression model. We examined eight variables grouped into four themes to determine their predictive value for children’s numeracy performance in NAPLAN. Findings from this study indicate that parent’s educational level, parent’s occupation and indigenous status variables accounted for 10–11% of the total variance, while geolocation and sector type contributed an additional 0.2–0.4% of the variance. Gender and language background other than English (LBOTE) contributed 0.1–0.4% of the variance. These results were consistent across levels (Years 3 and 5) and test years (2014–2017). When these predictors were controlled, the influence of parent’s post-school education and LBOTE status were less and non-significant. Previous NAPLAN numeracy results for Year 5 children were found to be very large in its predictive value (R²?=?0.50). The implications of these results for teachers, parents and researchers are described.