Supporting computer-mediated learning: A case study in online staff development and classroom learning environment assessment

The rapid growth of online learning has led to the development of staff inservice evaluation models that are geared towards improving degree programs. Based on best practices in student online assessment, the Online Faculty Development and Classroom Learning Environment Assessment course was designed to serve the dual purpose of staff development and classroom learning environment assessment. Results of analyses showed that the course maximised the potential of online staff development for encouraging staff to reflect on Curriculum and Teaching Capacities (CTC). Implications are discussed in terms of emphasising the process of online CTC learning and incorporating perspectives to capture a comprehensive view of staff teaching attitudes and their association with student perceptions of the classroom learning environment.     

An activity theory approach toward teacher professional development at scale (TPD@Scale): A case study of a teacher learning center in Indonesia

Asia Pacific Education Review - Continuous teacher professional development (TPD) ensures that teachers have the capacity to continually plan and implement quality teaching and learning that...     

Informal Learning in the Workplace: A case study of new teachers

This paper focuses on the learning of new teachers in England where all such teachers have to complete a statutory induction year, with a particular emphasis on the part that may be played by non-formal or informal learning. Drawing on the work of Eraut, and Guile and Griffiths, it uses interview and survey data from work with new teachers to identify three aspects of work-place learning which, it is suggested, may not be best accommodated within current induction arrangements. Concluding that much of new teachers' professional learning is informal rather than formal, reactive rather than deliberative and collaborative rather than individual implications for the ongoing improvement of induction practice are considered.     

A study of curriculum development in a new special school

Anne Maddison is deputy headteacher, with responsibility for curriculum, at the Milestone School, a special school created recently after the amalgamation of three smaller schools. In this article, she describes the development of an outcomes-based curriculum for pupils with a range of learning difficulties aged from two to 16 years. Anne Maddison sets out the rationale for her work in the context of a need to promote shared approaches to teaching and learning at this newly formed school.
The curriculum development project described here was evaluated using questionnaires, interviews and the analysis of documents and practice as part of a case study in school-based enquiry. Anne Maddison used the outcomes of these processes as part of her Doctor of Education (EdD): Educational Leadership course at Lincoln University.
Since this article was written, the Milestone School has undergone its first Ofsted inspection. The report noted that teaching at the school is 'of very high quality' and the curriculum 'is very good'. Inspectors noted that 'the planning of schemes of work, which are being developed with different subjects being focused on each year, is exemplary, with clear outcomes for pupils of different abilities'. While Anne Maddison's article details the experience of one school, her analysis may be of interest to other school managers, teachers, governors or advisers who are seeking to promote the development of a more inclusive curriculum.     

A project-based learning approach: a case study in China

The goal of higher education is to cultivate graduates’ creative capability, critical thinking skills, and other professional qualities. This paper describes a project-based course and its application in graduate-level education. This course is to improve students’ creative capability, collaboration capability, and self-direction. It includes many new elements such as project-oriented, up-to-date textbooks and research results, and peer-review grading systems. Compared with conventional courses, the evidence suggests that the project-based learning approaches used in this study will be quite successful for providing postgraduate students with more autonomy and creative learning experience.     

System learning in an urban school district: A case study of intra-district learning

This paper presents evidence from a unique reform model that allowed teachers and other educators in a large urban district to collaborate with one another in the development of an innovation meant to improve student ownership and responsibility. In this longitudinal case study, we describe school stakeholders’ learning about the design, the process of knowledge-transfer to school teams, and how school teams shared their ongoing learning with one another. School implementation teams were initially reluctant to share their learning with one another. By engaging in a shared innovation development process with structures for routine sharing, over time, implementation team members were increasingly interested in sharing their learning with one another. We discuss the implications for school improvement efforts.     

Teacher development under curriculum reform: a case study of a secondary school in mainland China

In 2003, a curriculum reform of education was initiated in mainland China to improve the quality of senior secondary education. The major purpose of this reform was to move from a teacher-centred to a student-centred approach in teaching. In order to find out how teachers coped with the challenges of the reform and how their work was affected, an in-depth study was conducted at a senior secondary school in City B, Guangdong, using qualitative research. While the curriculum reform was found to offer teachers an opportunity for re-professionalisation, teacher development in the sample school was revealed as having changed towards an assigned professionalism. In addition, teaching research officers limited themselves to instruction on practical teaching techniques. Furthermore, the existence of teacher leadership on a subject panel was heavily dependent on the panel head’s leadership style. On the whole, the tendency was for teachers to be explicitly instructed to partake in contrived collegiality and imposed reflection.     

Teacher development under curriculum reform: a case study of a secondary school in mainland China

International Review of Education - In 2003, a curriculum reform of education was initiated in mainland China to improve the quality of senior secondary education. The major purpose of this reform...     

Consumer learning for university students: a case for a curriculum

This article indicates how the application of a simplified version of the analytical abstraction method (AAM) was used in curriculum development for consumer learning at one higher education institution in South Africa. We used a case study design and qualitative research methodology to generate data through semi‐structured interviews with eight learning facilitators at the Cape Peninsula University of Technology. This data set forms the basis of the reported research. Application of basic‐ and higher‐level analysis resulted in the identification of patterns that confirmed the need for consumer learning and informed the situation analysis with regard to a ‘readiness climate’ at the institution. We also gained insight into aspects that need to be considered during curriculum development for consumer learning as the AAM has proved to be a useful guiding tool in developing a structured explanatory framework for curriculum development. The article concludes with the view that the promotion of consumer learning in university curricula has been under‐researched and that, despite current efforts, university curricula are slow to adopt consumer learning as a critical learning outcome. We suggest several possibilities that might assist in overcoming this inertia.     

古村落文化与地方课程的开发

古村落是中华民族文化的根,蕴含丰富的文化内涵.古村落文化也有地方性特点·具有深层的教育价值,是一类重要的地方课程资源.对古村落文化进行地方课程的开发应兼顾上位文化的意志和地方人的需要,秉持双重眼界,运用田野工作、深度描写和理论思辨等方法,彰显实践性课程的品格,完成从古村落文化通及民族主流文化、再回到古村落地方问题这样一个往复循环的地方课程体系的建构.     

Informal learning in the workplace

This paper focuses mainly on theoretical frameworks for understanding and investigating informal learning in the workplace, which have been developed through a series of large‐ and small‐scale projects. The main conclusions are included but readers are referred to other publications for more detailed accounts of individual projects. Two types of framework are discussed. The first group seeks to deconstruct the ‘key concepts’ of informal learning, learning from experience, tacit knowledge, transfer of learning and> intuitive practice to disclose the range of different phenomena that are embraced by these popular terms. The second group comprises frameworks for addressing the three central questions that pervaded the research programme: what is being learned, how is it being learned and what are the factors that influence the level and directions of the learning effort?     

基础教育校本课程开发刍议

虽然我国在基础教育中推行了“国家课程”、“地方课程”、“校本课程”三级课程管理体制,但校本课程开发仍很薄弱。究其原因,人们对校本课程实施意义的认识不到位,对校本课程开发的基点把握不准是重要方面。必须高度重视校本课程的开发,把我国基础教育课程改革引向深入。     

Leadership of vocational high school principals in curriculum reform: A case study in Taiwan

This research attempts to comprehend the traits and behaviors of vocational high school principals in implementing curriculum reform. In-depth interviews with experienced principals of three vocational high schools sought to identify the leadership roles and tasks that led to successful curriculum reform for vocational high school programs.