Preparing for educare: student perspectives on early years training in Northern Ireland

Preschool provision in Northern Ireland is government funded and quality assured in all statutory sector settings (nursery schools and units) and in many voluntary/private sector settings (playgroups and daycare facilities). However, three unresolved policy issues continue to divide the sectors: the choices between a teacher or pedagogue role model, graduate or vocational level training, and a competency or reflective model of training. This paper aims to explore the reflections of a sample of students from both graduate and vocational early years training courses on the content and effectiveness of their training in order to inform the broader early years professionalism debate. The design of the research combines quantitative and qualitative approaches, with the data collection methods consisting of questionnaire survey (n = 282) and semi‐structured interviews (n = 22). Findings reveal broad agreement on the part of students, literature and government policy on the essential elements of early years training content; however, weaknesses in all training courses are detected in regard to preparation for significant areas of professional practice.     

The effects of case‐based learning on early childhood pre‐service teachers' beliefs about the pedagogical uses of ICT

The study examined the extent to which case‐based learning could have an effect on pre‐service teachers' beliefs about the pedagogical uses of ICT in the classroom. One hundred second year early childhood pre‐service teachers enrolled in an ICT course participated in the study. Research data were collected with a questionnaire, reflection papers, course evaluations and focus interviews. The findings showed that initially the majority of pre‐service teachers had negative beliefs and certain misconceptions regarding the pedagogical uses of ICT and that case‐based learning effected their beliefs and conceptions. Future research studies should examine the extent to which a case‐based learning approach for the teaching of ICT in pre‐service teacher training can actually have an effect on appropriately integrating ICT into real classroom practices.     

International Research Projects in Early Childhood Development in Australia,Malaysia and Singapore: Pertinent Issues from Three Studies

The field of early childhood education has been the focus of increased research and public concern in recent years. This paper highlights three research projects funded by the Bernard van Leer Foundation in the eighties in Australia, Malaysia and Singapore. It focuses on four research issues raised from these three studies which span three diverse communities and cultures. In particular, the question of a single integrative approach towards early childhood development programmes, the intersecting needs of children and women, the range of training and dissemination systems to be made available, the role of the different forms of fundamental partnerships in early childhood research and the strengthening of the research-to-policy link will be discussed.     

Not Yet Identified: The knowledge,skills, and training needs of early years professionals in relation to children's speech and language development

This article draws on a research project, funded by the Nuffield Foundation, looking at early years professionals' knowledge about speech and language development and their confidence and skills in assessing normal and delayed language development. Key findings, based on 829 questionnaires and 50 interviews, reveal very limited training in speech and language difficulties as part of initial training and low levels of post-qualification training in children's speech and language. Practitioners are aware of the need for early identification of children's communication difficulties but lack the tools with which to perform this identification. In order to provide a context for these results, a content analysis of the curricula from a variety of initial training routes explored the extent to which there was a focus explicitly on assessment and identification of children with speech and language difficulties. The role of professional journals and key texts in supporting practitioners in making judgements about children's language development was also investigated. The access to, and provision of, post-qualification training to support the assessment process is identified as a key area for development.     

Working with schools in identifying and overcoming emotional barriers to learning

This paper reports a case study on working closely with a secondary school, to enhance understanding of disruptive behaviour, through the use of bespoke Continuing Professional Development (CPD) materials. This project evolved from the researchers’ previous research on the extent to which teachers believe disruptive pupils can control their behaviour. A notable finding was the sizeable minority of teachers in both primary and secondary schools who appear to be unaware of the psychological underpinnings of disruptive behaviour. That is, that such behaviour frequently communicates unresolved emotional needs, rather than wilful defiance. The current project aims to develop, implement and evaluate CPD resources developed by the researchers, for a one-day staff training day at a secondary school in north England. Prior to training, school staff completed a questionnaire to “audit” their perceptions of disruptive behaviour in school. Following evaluation, the CPD materials will be made available to other schools. It is anticipated that the materials will enable greater mutual understanding and respect for the ways in which disruptive behaviour is perceived by practitioners and school staff. Moreover, they will provide an urgently needed means of facilitating a shared knowledge base and a shared language for addressing emotional barriers to learning.     

Early years practitioners’ knowledge of early signs of autism in England

This research explores early years practitioners’ knowledge and ability to recognise the signs of autism and provide appropriate support. It was carried out using semi-structured interviews with six UK-based early years practitioners who have worked with children with autism. The findings highlighted that early years practitioners are aware of autism but have a limited understanding of the early signs of the condition. Furthermore, there are inconsistencies in training and collaboration in early years settings. All these factors influence whether the practitioners are able to recognise the early signs of autism and provide appropriate support. This study highlights the need to address the issue of training provided to early years practitioners.     

Increasing employability by implementing a Work-Integrated Learning partnership model in South Africa – A student perspective

In South Africa, 70 per cent of the population is under 35 years old. South Africa has a vision to increase youth employment by focusing on education, training and skills development that will promote employment opportunities. A work-integrated learning (WIL) partnership model was developed to provide students with work experience and to increase their employability. this article presents the research on the perspectives of students subsequent to their WIL experience. the research method consisted of a structured questionnaire with both closed and open-ended questions. The study findings indicated that students were capable of seeking their own WIL placement and that over 90 per cent of students experienced WIL as rewarding, with multiple opportunities for employment. the article adds theoretical value by increasing the WIL body of knowledge from a student perspective, as well as strategic and practical value by presenting the WIL partnership model that may easily be implemented by lecturers in various disciplines across the continent of Africa and beyond to enable students to enter the workplace with confidence.     

Organisational and training factors affecting academic teacher training outcomes

University teacher training has become an important topic in recent years due to the curricular and methodological reforms introduced by the Bologna process. Despite its acknowledged importance, evaluations have been limited to measures of participants’ satisfaction, and little is known about its impact on teaching practices. This study seeks to analyse the effects of the different delivery methods used during workshops that aim to enhance academic teachers’ pedagogical competence and teaching practices. Moreover, the study analyses to what extent individual characteristic and job requirement also have an effect on training outcomes. The study draws on data collected through a self-reported questionnaire administered to academic teachers two years after they participated in training workshops at a Spanish university (n?=?204). The results show that specific delivery methods have a significant effect on the outcome variables, especially those related to the design of learning activities and assessment tools.     

Teaching Assistants Talking

Local Authorities (LAs) in Britain traditionally employ Visual Impairment (VI) teams as integrative statutory Special Educational Needs and Inclusion (SENI) provision. Teaching Assistants (TAs) work alongside Qualified Teachers (QTs) in VI teams to support children and young people (CYP) with VI. The VI TA has a broad role in covering early years, primary, secondary and special school settings and their key duties can include implementing visual targets, providing sensory support, delivering touch typing lessons, to name a few. Based on systemic and work‐based learning theories, this article explores the learning stories of seven VI TAs who volunteered to participate in professional development focus group discussions between September 2014 and November 2015. The seven participants all work in the VI team of one LA in Cambridgeshire. The focus of the fortnightly focus group discussions were to explore the impact which eye conditions had on the education and learning of CYP. Participants were encouraged to engage in reflective writing about their new knowledge and how this may have changed their VI practice. Findings from qualitative data generated for analysis and interpretation demonstrated that most participants did improve their knowledge and understanding of specific eye conditions. Some participants benefited and changed their practice based on their newly acquired knowledge whereas some were not aware of any impact on their practice. Themes also highlighted constructive comments on how future professional learning for TAs can be improved. There are currently no mandatory training requirements for specialist VI TAs.     

‘THOMAS’ Training: An early years intervention for children with an autistic spectrum disorder (ASD)

The ‘THOMAS’ course (The Hampshire Outline for Meeting the needs of under fives on the Autistic Spectrum) is a four‐day training programme to enhance the learning of young children with impairments in social understanding, communication and play by increasing the use of appropriate interventions. It has been supporting families and professionals in the early years settings for over five years and feedback has been exceptionally positive. This article reviews the extent to which training skills have been embedded in the long‐term. Results indicate that the training is still as effective a year on, with many techniques, including visual structure and behaviour management, seen as highly effective interventions. Furthermore, there is an indication that course participants may experience an increase in confidence that enables them to become more independent and generate their own solutions as skills and knowledge become embedded over time.     

Does speed-reading training work,and if so,why? Effects of speed-reading training and metacognitive training on reading speed,comprehension and eye movements

Background

Commercial speed-reading training programs are typically marketed with the promise to dramatically increase reading speed without impairing comprehension. From the perspective of reading psychology, it seems quite unlikely that speed-reading training can indeed have such effects. However, research on the effectiveness of modern speed-reading training programs on reading performance in typical readers is sparse. The present study had two goals. First, we sought to extend prior research on speed-reading by assessing the effects of a speed-reading application on reading performance in a pre-training and post-training design with a control group. Second, we aimed to identify the mechanism underlying speed-reading training programs.

Methods

We assessed reading speed, comprehension and eye movements of 30 German-speaking undergraduates (M_age = 22.77 years, SD_age = 3.41 years) before and after they received a commercial, app-based speed-reading training, a metacognitive training or no training.

Results

Results revealed higher reading speed in the speed-reading condition and metacognitive condition compared with the control condition, although not to the extent claimed in the application. Eye-movement data indicated that the increase in reading speed was due to fewer and shorter fixations in measures reflecting late but not early lexical processing. No differences in comprehension performance were observed between the three conditions.

Conclusions

We discuss our findings in support of the idea that the increase in reading speed was not caused by a change in basic characteristics of participants' reading behaviour, but rather by an increase in their awareness of their own reading process. Further research is needed to investigate whether the observed effects are maintained over time.

     

Availability and use of educational media in secondary schools in Ondo State

The author reports on a pilot study aimed at identifying what items of educational media were available in selected schools in Ondo State, Nigeria, and the extent of their use. A twenty-eight item questionnaire was used to assess availability. use, attitude of principals and support for instructional media. Seventy-seven schools from different parts of Ondo State participated in the study. The results showed that these secondary schools were generally very poorly equipped with educational media and that the level of use was very low. The reasons for this are fourfold: economic, political, the lack of training and the lack of co-ordination among the agencies responsible. Recommendations include the rationalisation of small schools, a programme of workshops and seminars and the involvement of classroom teachers in the planning and production of educational broadcasts.     

African Higher Education Research Development and Training: Cross‐cultural Perspectives among African and Israeli Social Scientists

The extent of congruence that exists among university‐based African and Israeli social scientists regarding the importance of selected social research issues and the extent of behavioural response needed to address research and training through higher education are examined. The analytical construct used was formulated on the basis of the behaviour‐intention theory. Data were collected during the summer of 1997 by means of a questionnaire mailed to the study subjects who included twenty African and seventeen Israeli researchers. The results revealed no significant differences of opinion between the two groups in terms of the importance of the social research issues to be addressed. A number of significant differences were identified, however, in terms of the perceived extent of education and training needed for African university personnel. The findings tended to support the contention that there is a marked imbalance between developing Third World institutions of higher education and northern external institutions of higher education tending to induce the latter, having a wealth of resources, to slip into a role of deciding what, how, and when certain activities should be undertaken in higher education in developing countries.     

The educational quality of early school leavers and the cross-national variation of their income disadvantage

The average quality of available educational resources varies significantly across Europe. This not only affects school success and failure but also subsequent labour market outcomes. The main research question in this paper is to what extent this compositional variation among early school leavers (ESLrs) in particular can account for the cross-national variation of their income disadvantage relative to higher educated individuals. Findings from 3 consecutive years of cross-sectional data (EU Statistics on Income & Living Conditions [EU-SILC], 2005–2007) show that, controlling for the influence of other important country-level indicators, both educational expenditure and a country's mean PISA achievement test score interact with the effect of early school leaving on gross personal income. The income disadvantage of ESLrs is smaller in countries where the average quality of available educational resources is higher. Furthermore, this also applies to educational resources currently available to ESLrs, with the prevalence of lifelong learning yielding the same moderating effect on the income disadvantage of ESLrs.     

Current status of educational technologies at Omani higher education institutions and their future prospective

The purpose of this research was to address the current and prospective views on educational technology (ET) in order to discover the difficulties and develop its utilization in Omani higher education. The main instruments used to carry out this research were two questionnaires: the faculty members’ questionnaire, and the technical/administrative staff questionnaire. One hundred and fifty-nine participants were involved in the study. They represented all educational technologists who have been with the public and private Omani higher education institutions. The findings show a tendency for future expansion with less expensive technologies and the need for training. Some impediments of ET use were also found. Important recommendations from this study include: the need to support Omani higher education institutions with technical and human resources to increase and activate the use/number of new instructional media and equipment.     

Perpetuating gender stereotypes in the classroom: a teacher perspective

This paper discusses findings from a study funded by the Equality Commission for Northern Ireland (NI) to explore the promotion of gender equity in the classroom and the extent to which initial teacher training and in-service courses address gender issues. Data from a questionnaire survey of 344 teachers and the qualitative dimensions of the study suggest that teachers are generally aware of gender stereotypes in the classroom and that, despite their lack of training in gender issues, where appropriate, most attempt to challenge this type of behaviour. Concern was expressed with the role of teachers in unconsciously perpetuating stereotypes and the extent to which equality issues are directed more towards girls than boys.     

Quality in early years settings: Government,research and practitioners’ perspectives

This article begins by outlining the UK Government policy context, offering a brief critique before moving on to summarise recent research into ‘quality’ in the early years. The main body of the article locates the perspectives of early years practitioners within this context, drawing on data from an Economic and Social Research Council‐funded study of 18 early years settings, including interviews and focused group discussions with 165 practitioners. The findings reveal that practitioners’ understandings of ‘quality’ are influenced by government discourses but appear to be linked to the context of their setting together their personal and professional histories. In discussing the nature of ‘quality’, the authors focus on tensions inherent in the government discourses and draw out the implications for children's experiences and the training and development of early years practitioners.     

Training with ICT for ICT from the trainee’s perspective. A local ICT teacher training experience

The introduction of ICT (Information and Communication Technologies) presents new challenges for teachers and often meets with their belief that ICT, as well as other changes present a factor, which can cause several changes in school. Although there have been many education reforms regarding teachers’ training policy in recent years and the number of training programs has been increased, they have not been able to satisfy teachers’ needs to a substantial degree. In this research the results from an exploratory study conducted within the framework of a national training programme in Greece on ICT known as "In-service teacher training in the use of ICT in Education" are presented. Based on a specially constructed questionnaire intended for the educators, this research elicits teachers’ attitudes towards this programme. Some of the main results point out the preparedness of these teachers to use ICT in the daily school practice. Furthermore, they expressed their wish for further in-training programmes concerning the pedagogical development of the ICT use in class practice.     

Is There a Link Between Teachers' Beliefs and Behaviors?

This study examined the link between beliefs and behaviors for early childhood teachers. Currently, consensus has not been reached regarding the belief-practice relationship for early childhood educators due to inconsistent attention to measurement specificity, perceived ability to practice beliefs, and strength of teacher training. The participants in this study were 47 early childhood educators. Teachers were primarily female and all worked with children aged 3-5. Teachers had worked with children aged 3-5 an average of 7.6 years (range = 0-30). Many teachers had training in early childhood. Twenty-nine had majored in early childhood and 26 held teaching certificates. Teaching beliefs were measured with a self-report questionnaire. Teaching actions were assessed with four observational measures via videotape. The results showed that there was not a relationship between teachers' beliefs and actions. In addition, the results indicated that when teachers had more experience with children they were less sensitive and that early childhood teaching certification held was a positive predictor of high level involvement and verbalizations.     

Is There a Link Between Teachers' Beliefs and Behaviors?

This study examined the link between beliefs and behaviors for early childhood teachers. Currently, consensus has not been reached regarding the belief-practice relationship for early childhood educators due to inconsistent attention to measurement specificity, perceived ability to practice beliefs, and strength of teacher training. The participants in this study were 47 early childhood educators. Teachers were primarily female and all worked with children aged 3–5. Teachers had worked with children aged 3–5 an average of 7.6 years (range = 0–30). Many teachers had training in early childhood. Twenty-nine had majored in early childhood and 26 held teaching certificates. Teaching beliefs were measured with a self-report questionnaire. Teaching actions were assessed with four observational measures via videotape. The results showed that there was not a relationship between teachers' beliefs and actions. In addition, the results indicated that when teachers had more experience with children they were less sensitive and that early childhood teaching certification held was a positive predictor of high level involvement and verbalizations.