LIKE THE PHOENIX FROM ITS ASHES: THE INTER‐UNIVERSITY CENTRE OF DUBROVNIK

This article traces the efforts of the Inter‐University Centre of Dubrovnik (Croatia) to cope with the destruction of its building in December 1991 and in general with the war in former Yugoslavia and the political changes in Europe as a whole since 1990. Some idea of the history of the Centre is given, its course offerings, and its hopes for the future.     

THE CHANGING FACE OF THE UNIVERSITY AND THE INTERNATIONALIZATION OF TEACHING AND RESEARCH

As everyone knows, the aims and the goals of university life are quite frequently contradictory. This characteristic is no less true of the internationalization of higher education by means of various forms of international co‐operation: faculty and student exchanges and the like. Often the universities of given nations will engage in such ventures so that they and their backers, specific national enterprises, can gain a competitive edge, one over the other, in areas that produce short‐term wealth for specific interests rather than long‐term solutions to such vital world problems as the destruction of the ozone layer, air and water pollution, and the depletion of vital natural resources. Academics who are true internationalists will see to it that solutions for these and for other “real” problems of mankind are given first priority.     

What's worth talking about? Meaning‐making in toddler‐initiated co‐narratives in preschool

To elaborate narratives, toddlers are dependent on adult co‐construction. Both children and teachers make meaning and learn together. This article examines what themes toddlers introduce in mealtime conversations in preschool. The object of analysis is 39 toddler‐initiated co‐narratives constructed by toddlers and teachers in 15 videotaped meals during a case study in Norway in 2003/2004. (In Norway children from one to six years old attend preschool.) The results unfold variations of co‐narratives about important life themes. Emotions not only influenced what was said and how it was said, they also constituted issues in children's lives. The stories were about anger, fear, loss and desire. The utterances and voices in the co‐narrations bear a polyphony of cultural meaning.     

Educational Interventions to Improve Dental Anatomy Carving Ability of Dental Students: A Systematic Review

This systematic review aimed to identify the level of impact of educational strategies for teaching tooth carving on the carving ability of undergraduate dental students. The PubMed-NCBI, Cochrane-CENTRAL, LILACS, Ibecs, BBO, Web of Science, and Scopus databases were searched in May 2019, for randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and two-arm non-randomized studies of interventions (NRSI) addressing educational interventions toward the dental carving of undergraduate students. Studies from the year 2000 until the search date, written in English, Portuguese, and Spanish were included. Study screening and data extraction were performed in duplicate and blinded. The data were presented narratively, considering the dental carving ability of students the primary outcome. The risk of bias was assessed using the RoB tool 2.0 and ROBINS-I, and the level of evidence was determined with GRADE. Of 3,574 studies, 6 were included, with 3 RCTs and 3 NRSIs. Very low level of evidence was provided from the NRSIs that flipped classroom (1 study; n = 140) and a student-driven revised module (1 study; n = 264) improved the carving ability of students. Additionally, there was moderate evidence of online complementary material (1 RCT; n = 30) and reinforcement class improving the carving ability of students (1 RCT; n = 29). The replacement of traditional classes by an instructional DVD (1 RCT; n = 73) and assessment of carving projects through digital systems (1 NRSI; n = 79) did not enhance the carving ability of students. Study design, risk of bias, and imprecision downgraded the level of evidence. There was a very low to moderate evidence on the effectiveness of student-driven educational approaches and complementary classes of dental anatomy in improving the dental carving ability of students.     

Researcher development through doctoral training in research integrity

ABSTRACT

The article explores research integrity training for PhD-students as a site of production of academic cultures and researcher development. Based on ethnographies of four courses in research integrity, conducted in four faculties of a large comprehensive Danish university, the article explores the vital role of academic developers, teachers, and course participants in the active translation of institutional, national, and international policies into research practices. We argue that doctoral training in research integrity does not entail the direct implementation of policy and codes from above; rather, it is a site for the development and negotiation of the meaning of research integrity in disciplinary cultures and standards, and, critically, for the responsibilisation of individual researchers in policy enactment. We show how doctoral training has become a key site for the emergence of research integrity as a field. It is also a privileged site for researching contested and multidirectional processes of policy formation and implementation.     

Close encounters of the digital kind: A research agenda for the digitalization of public services

This paper contributes to e-government research by presenting a review and discussion on how digitalization of public services has affected the interaction between citizens and government. We argue for a conceptualization and critical reflection on the nature of the underlying interaction between citizens and public officials - the public encounter - that digital public services are developed to support. We apply a qualitative and hermeneutic approach and illustrate that digital public services change public encounters concerning when, where, and how interactions occur, what each actor does, and the skills required of them. By relating these changes to emerging digital technologies (e.g. data mining, machine learning, sensor technology, and service automation), we illustrate that while these new technologies carry the potential to further digitalize service provision and fulfill the democratic goals of digital government, authorities can apply the same technology to restrict, control, and surveil citizens. Based on a critical discussion on what digitalization might entail for society, we identify problem areas arising from this development and propose a research agenda for understanding this phenomenon further. We raise questions and ethical concerns regarding accountability and reskilling of citizens and public officials as public service provision becomes citizen self-service.     

Science Teachers’ Meaning-Making When Involved in a School-Based Professional Development Project

A group of teachers?? meaning-making when they are collaboratively analyzing artifacts from practice in local science classrooms in a school-based professional development (PD) project is examined through repeated interviews and represented as meaning-making maps. The interpretation of the teachers?? meaning-making includes both their reference to outcomes from the project and their expressed ideas about teaching and learning of science. All four teachers refer to experiences from experimenting in their classrooms and interpret the collected artifacts in relation to students?? learning. Furthermore, they all felt encouraged to continue collaboration around science. During the interviews, the teachers emphasize various elements apparently connected to concrete challenges they each experience in their professional work. Implications in relation to the design of PD are discussed.     

Effect of Dental Course Cycle on Anatomical Knowledge and Dental Carving Ability of Dental Students

This study assessed the effect of the course cycle on theoretical knowledge of dental morphology and the dental carving ability of dental students. Thirty-two dental students from the third semester (initial cycle) and 30 students from the eighth and tenth semesters of the dental course (end cycle) had their theoretical knowledge on dental morphology assessed using a questionnaire with ten closed questions. Their dental carving ability was also assessed using wax carvings in macro models of plaster (for the third [S3] and eight [S8] semesters) and natural-sized artificial teeth (for the tenth [S10] semester). The teeth chosen for the dental carving activity were #16 and #47. The scores were statistically analyzed using the t-test, Kruskal–Wallis test, and Mann–Whitney test (α = 0.05). Students from the initial cycle presented better theoretical knowledge than the other groups did (P < 0.007). No significant differences in carving score were found between the initial and end cycles (P > 0.05), although S10 students obtained a higher score for teeth #16 and #47 (P < 0.05). Natural-sized artificial teeth received a higher evaluation score in dental carvings than the macro models (P < 0.001). Within the limits of this study, it was possible to conclude that students from the initial cycle (S3) presented higher theoretical knowledge, whereas no difference in carving ability was observed between the initial and end cycles. The tenth semester (S10) students performed dental carvings with better quality. Furthermore, carvings in natural-sized artificial teeth presented better quality compared with the macro models.     

Negative student emotions and educator skill in experiential education: a taxonomy of classroom activities

Higher Education - Experiential teaching practices can provide transformative learning opportunities for students. However, thus far the experiential education literature considers...