Total Quality Management,the Learning Organisation and Post‐compulsory Education

Abstract

The turbulence confronting educational Institutions In the United Kingdom has led to the suggestion that any attempt to respond using established management principles and processes is likely to be dysfunctional. Total quality management (TQM) has been advanced as a strategy that will enable educational institutions adapt to the greater market orientation and transform them into learning organisations. The paper identifies the key principles of TQM, critically reviewing the literature that examines their application in education and focusing on the post‐compulsory sector. Secondly, selected linkages between the key principles and other approaches to the study of organisational behaviour, including aspects of open systems theory, leadership, teamworking, training and staff development, and organisational culture, are examined. The concept of the learning organisation is outlined and its relationship with TQM examined. The paper concludes that TQM treats organisational change issues in educational institutions and the concept of the learning organisation as unproblematic, Ignoring Issues of power, authority, resistance to change and double‐loop learning.     

SOAP in practice: learning outcomes of a cross‐institutional innovation project conducted by teachers,student teachers,and teacher educators

This paper reports on a case study investigating learning outcomes at the individual and organisational level of a cross‐institutional innovation project based on the SOAP approach. SOAP integrates Schooling of teachers, Organisational development of schools, Action‐ and development‐oriented research, and Professional development of teachers. The innovation project was aimed at combining teachers, student teachers, and teacher educators in an alliance to design and develop new competence‐based vocational educational arrangements for pupils. An inductive qualitative analysis of 37 semi‐structured interviews among the participants revealed seven main categories of individual learning outcomes: attitudes, project design and management, collaboration, action theory, teaching practice, educational principles, and developments within secondary vocational education. Three main categories of organisational learning outcomes were identified: institution‐level learning, project‐level learning, and combining institution‐level and project‐level learning. A tension was identified between the participants’ individual interests in learning and personal development, and the need for organisational learning aimed at improving organisational processes.     

区块链技术下我国学分银行建设的思考

区块链技术具有去中心化、无法篡改、可追溯和高度可信任等特点,建立基于区块链技术的学习成果发布平台,可以为社会高效准确地提供居民的学习经历和学习成果。目前各地学分银行建设的主要工作是学习成果认证与存储,有了基于区块链技术的学习成果发布平台,这项工作将失去存在的必要,因此,地方学分银行的建设面临变革。我国正在建设的学分银行体系,是国家地方两层架构,应尽快建立国家学分银行,开展顶层制度设计,研制和管理基于区块链的学习成果发布平台;地方学分银行要转变职能,主要致力于推动和服务地方终身教育事业发展。     

Investigating the structural relationships among organisational support,learning flow,learners' satisfaction and learning transfer in corporate e‐learning

E‐learning in corporate training has been growing rapidly because of the pursuit of time and budget efficiency in course development and delivery. However, according to previous studies, efficiency does not always guarantee training effectiveness, which is the major concern of human resource development. It is therefore necessary to identify the factors influencing the effectiveness of e‐learning courseware and understand their interrelationships. The purpose of the study is to investigate the structural relationships among organisational support, learning flow, learners' satisfaction and learning transfer. The study participants were 379 learners who completed an e‐learning courseware at a large Korean company and responded to an online survey. Based on the results of structural equation modelling, the findings suggest that organisational support and learning flow have direct effects on learning transfer and learners' satisfaction, while learning flow mediates organisational support and learners' satisfaction.     

以技术文化的视角考察远程教育

远程教育研究领域一直有着技术分析的传统,技术作为远程教育的文化组成,虽不是远程教育存在的决定因素,但却是最深刻的影响因素.在远程教育中.技术不仅体现"物的文化",同样也是"人的文化",技术的选择和改变是一个文化逐步积累的过程.技术文化直接影响着远程教育对技术的选择和使用,同样也深层次影响着学习文化的变迁.在实践中,需要克服工具理性的片面思维,以"教育学"而不仅是"技术学"的观点来解决教育问题.     

Lesson study in teacher development: A paradigm shift from a culture of receiving to a culture of acting and reflecting

This article describes how lesson study creates a process of teacher learning whilst developing student learning through collaborative planning, guided observation and reflection. It presents a framework for conducting lesson study in a teacher development programme in Lower Austria. The role of knowledgeable others in the development of ownership for educational change towards competence‐oriented teaching and learning is explored and an overview of the organisational requirements and practical effects in the implementation of professional learning communities is given. In doing so, the article sheds light on training strategies and material development. Thus, insights on a paradigm shift in teacher development towards learning focused on discourse and reflected action are presented.     

The pedagogic signature of special needs education

The goal of the following study is to identify a pedagogic signature, according to LS Shulman, for working with students who have special educational needs. Special educational needs are defined as significant limitations in personal development and learning which require particular educational measures beyond regular education. The development of a pedagogic signature should create an identity and provide guidance, particularly for teachers who are working in the context of inclusive schools with no prior knowledge or training in this regard. The study is carried out against the background of the structural uncertainty of the teaching profession and takes into consideration existing normative, theoretical and empirical approaches in education. Existing research regarding demands is largely theoretical, while empirical research is rudimentary. The present study used a multi-method approach to identify demands for working with students with special educational needs. Experts in the areas of learning disabilities and emotional/behavioural disorders completed an instrument from the field of industrial and organisational psychology, quantifying and weighting professional demands on teachers according to their importance. The results were added and validated through group discussions, creating a demand profile. By combining the results with the dimensions of a signature pedagogy, according to Shulman, it is apparent that surface structure and deep structure play a minor role in the perceptions of special needs teachers. The central importance of the implicit structure is characteristic of the pedagogic signature. This importance is represented by the target group’s emphasis on demands such as having an appreciative leadership or authenticity. An even greater emphasis is placed on the aspect of attitude – this is having a humanistic ethos. The demand profile and the resulting consequences for the practice of teaching will be considered with a view towards current problems and questions in research and practice, and particularly with regard to inclusion.     

Impacts of organisational culture on academic efficiency and productivity in selected private universities in the Niger delta region of Nigeria

Organisational efficiency is a consistent quality that derives more from and thrives on strong internal culture than on isolated instances of timely and effortless accomplishments by corporate systems. This study sought to evaluate the relationship between organisational culture and enhanced productivity and efficiency among members of five universities in the Niger Delta region of Nigeria, which with its peculiarities provided a unique context for the study. The quantitative and qualitative methods were used for data collection among 104 respondents. Faculty were assessed on the direct impacts of their organisations' culture on their research and publication, creativity and innovativeness, among others, while students were assessed on learning, career prospects and others. The study suggested that most of the five universities had no well-articulated organisational culture. This significantly compromises their unique value addition to the educational system, implying that they risk losing their relative advantages unless they fortify their organisational cultural frontiers.     

基于学习者学习风格资源库的构建策略

学习者是学习的主体,不同的学习者在学习过程中呈现不同的学习风格．对于不同学习风格的学生,要使他们获得最佳的学习效果,应该有与之学习风格匹配的学习资源库．现在的学习资源库大部分是从传授者角度建构的,从学习者角度构建的比较少,本文在阐述学习资源库管理与现状的基础上,讨论构建从学习者角度进行学习资源库的方法．     

Integrating the Educative Functions of Information and Communications Technology (ICT) in teachers' and learners' toolboxes: a reflection on pedagogical benchmarks for ICT in teacher education

Abstract

The big question about pedagogical benchmarks for information and communications technology (ICT) in teacher training is whether they can be transferred to contexts other than the ones in which the benchmarks have been developed. In this article we reflect on the chances that the benchmarks presented will become really integrated within the heart of the learning and teaching process of teacher training programmes. To understand that process better, we reflect on the concept of professional learning and what that concept has to say about organisational learning and about how the integration process could be further developed. We propose a broad framework for actions of all actors involved: teacher training institutes, their partners (professional development schools), research and development agencies, the teacher trainers, the students, teachers in practice and their pupils. Only a concerted action of collaborative experimenting and professional learning on ICT integration in the learning and teaching processes can lead to the use of ICT as a catalyst for implementing learning arrangements that fit the expectations of the twenty-first century and its youth.     

高校新型教育技术培训课程设计

教育部各高等院校的教育技术培训中心已经成为各高校教师教育技术水平及应用能力提升的有生力量,但随着教育技术发展的日新月异,原有的培训体系和内容已经无法满足现实的需求,而各院校零散的认识又不能促进这一事业的整体发展。本文试图梳理当前较为成熟的理论、方法及工具,据此设计新型的培训课程,以便教师能够用更新的教育思想、教学理念以及教学模式指导教学。     

对"十一五"时期福建高职教育发展的思考

“十一五”期间,福建高职教育要以科学发展观为指导,密切结合海峡西岸经济区产业发展形势调整专业设置,积极探索产学研结合的办学模式,进一步优化高职教育环境,为提升海峡西岸经济区区域竞争力发挥作用。     

思维教学研究百年回顾

提升学生的思维能力是教育教学的核心目标之一。作为思维能力培养重要手段之一的思维教学于20世纪初在美国萌芽,经历50-60年代的蓄势,70-80年代开始受英美两国思维教学运动的影响,从“潜学”成为“显学”,得到研究者和实践者越来越多的关注。教育哲学层面的理论关注、认知心理学的研究成果以及包括教育在内的实践领域的迫切需求是推动思维教学向前发展的三股核心力量。从思维教学的实践取向来看,思维教学起源于“授之以竿”的“思维技能”教学,发展于“授之以饵”的“思维倾向”教学,回归于“授之以渔”的“知识理解”教学。三种取向的思维教学并没有明显的界限,他们之间是相互重叠的。回归“知识理解”的思维教学并不意味着回归知识的机械学习,而是在提供娴熟思维技能和培育良好思维倾向的基础上,促进对知识的深度理解。我国要实现课程教学的实质性变革,思维教学不仅是有效手段,也是必经之路。如何学习、吸收、应用、创新国外思维教学研究成果,有效发挥后发优势是我国教育界需要认真思考的问题。     

Sustaining change in a learning organization

Abstract

This article looks at how the application of the concept of a ‘learning organisation’ can be used at a specific organisation in South Africa to change the work performance of its employees. We do this by exploring different theories, models and definitions of organisational learning, learning organisation, organisational knowledge and knowledge management in the field, and against this background examine the perceptions of employees at a South African Organisation. The article underpins this approach by uniquely balancing conceptual rigour with practical experiences of employees at this institution. The view is taken that organisations are living systems that have the capacity to renew themselves by continuously reflecting on their practices and thereby create new knowledge, share and leverage it. Knowledge acquisition and sharing is closely linked to the core values of the organisation in order to achieve business competitiveness, set goals, efficiency, and overall strategic success. The purpose of this article is to understand how an organisation's training department could use the concept of a learning organisation within the South African context to sustain change. To achieve this objective we (the researchers) used a qualitative research paradigm. A phenomenological design presented the research with opportunities to analyse, interpret, and describe the perceptions, feelings and experiences of the participants at the organisation. Eight semi-structured individual interviews provided data for the purposes of this research. The data was analysed to identify categories, themes and sub-themes. The five main themes discussed are organisational learning, organisational culture, organisational change, globalisation and knowledge management and these were linked to the theory of learning organisations and were based on the findings.     

论信息技术对教育发展的革命性影响

信息技术正在对教育发展产生革命性影响:教育信息资源建设从"校校建信息资源库"到"区域内共建共享、区域间共享互换";教育信息资源利用从静态的"单一获取"到动态的"利用、建设";教师资源配置从"实地挂职支教"到"异地网络支教";在职教师培养从"集中观摩课教研活动"到"异地网络教研互动";网络教学从"基于资源的网络教学"到网络"多终端同步视频互动教学";终身学习从固定时间地点的"在线学习"到脱离时空限制的"泛在学习"。     

中国校长培训研究二十年：研究数量和主题的变化分析

校长培训研究是当前国际教育行政管理与领导学领域的新兴焦点。校长培训研究的发展说明学校领导培训及其领导力发展已经逐步从传统的经验总结与师徒传承,走向以知识与理论研究为实践提供更多学术性的总结与指导。本文以1989年至2008年间中国大陆学术期刊所发表的有关中小学校长培训的文章为研究对象,描述了二十年来中国校长培训研究的数量及主题的变化,结合中国校长培训的特点以及国际研究的趋势进行分析,为未来校长培训研究提供参考。     

The Purpose and Functions of Budgets – Some Theoretical Perspectives for Education Managers

While educational leadership and management has experienced impressive development over the last three decades the fact that a robust comparative branch of the field has failed to emerge is equally conspicuous. This article builds a case for comparative and international educational leadership and management, arguing that the development of conceptual frameworks and instrumentation are imperative if the field is to keep abreast of globalisation of policy and practice. Accordingly, a conceptual framework is described and justified based on a cultural and cross-cultural approach focusing on the school level as the baseline unit for analysis. Specifically, the proposed framework is architectured around the interrelationship between two levels of culture, societal and organisational, and four elements comprising schooling and school-based management, namely, organisational structures, leadership and management processes, curriculum, and teaching and learning. Finally, limitations and implications of the model are discussed, including the need for the framework to be operationalised by developing appropriate research instruments.     

继续教育学分银行的差异性定位、痛点和路径借鉴

开放大学(电大)建设运行的学分银行有着其他学分银行不具备的时代特质,应是发展继续教育的重要抓手,然而它当前也正面临着如何认证非正式学习成果和如何建构转换标准体系这两个痛点。我国实施学分银行制度的时间较短,继续教育学分银行可借鉴国际继续教育领域学分银行制度的运行机制和功能设置。未来继续教育学分银行长期深耕于对工作和生活中获得的非正式学习成果的认证以及履行畅通不同类型教育之间转换通道的基础职责,从而为推进国家学分银行建设贡献改革经验实属必要。     

An inquiry into the delivering of a British curriculum in China

This paper reports a qualitative inquiry on teaching a British undergraduate management programme to Chinese students in China. The research objectives were to develop a deeper understanding of challenges students face in their academic learning within an English speaking and study environment, and to enhance organisational learning through developing practical pedagogical techniques to improve classroom interactions. A longitudinal participatory action research strategy was employed. The subjects were second and third year undergraduate students who were studying for dual-degrees in international tourism management at a Sino-Foreign educational institute. The inquiry found that various instructional techniques could help the students engage with fellow students and the lecturer in the classroom setting. We conclude that, in addition to linguistic factors, normative values of education in Chinese culture ought to be appreciated so that Chinese students’ learning needs can be better served.     

远程教育教师专业发展研究

随着社会的发展、科学技术的进步,终身学习理念日益深入人心,远程教育逐渐成为与传统教育并驾齐驱的一种教育模式,然而,远程教育专业人员的缺乏和远程教师队伍的能力现状却影响着人才的培养和理论的深入研究。因此,探讨远程教育教师的能力结构、教师扮演的角色以及对教师角色的定位认识,探讨远程教育教师专业发展的对策就显得十分必要。