Technical college teachers sharing their knowledge: does leadership,institutional factors or barriers predict their practices?

This study determines the preferable leadership practised by colleges’ directors, institutional factors and challenges encountered in knowledge sharing in Malaysian technical higher learning institutions (HLIs). Using a pragmatic mixed-method strand, we obtained 212 teachers and instructors’ viewpoints on knowledge sharing factors and barriers. The study also interviewed four teachers in exploring college directors’ leadership practices and issues faced while sharing their knowledge and experiences with their colleagues. The findings revealed that technical college teachers favoured enabling others to act as a preferable leadership practice that empirically supports their knowledge sharing practices. Thus, reward system and culture were antecedents and significant predictors for teachers’ knowledge sharing practices in technical HLIs compared with their colleges directors’ transformational leadership practices. Teachers also highlighted that their directors provide affirmative responses concerning the knowledge sharing activities; thus, practising their roles as a knowledge sharing catalysts. However, lack of support from the management, micro-politics and teachers’ own negative perceptions were identified as challenges and constraints teachers encountered while sharing their knowledge with their peers. The findings put forward some suggestions for improvement on technical college’s knowledge sharing practices.     

The Impact of Differentiated Instruction on Students’ Reading Comprehension Attainment in Mixed-Ability Classrooms

Interchange - This explanatory sequential quasi-experimental study investigated the impact of differentiated instruction on reading comprehension attainment in mixed-ability classrooms. Fifty-four...     

Working commitment among trainee teachers： A meta evaluation approach

The main aim of the study was to evaluate trainee teachers working commitment in their teaching practicum. There were seven component teaching practices and eleven demographic factors. The instrument of the study was extracted from various sources to suit the research design based on Units, Treatments, Observing, and Surveying （UTOS） model modification. The reliability index obtained for both research instruments were reasonably good ranging from 0.7030 to 0.9053. A total of 276 trainee teachers who were doing their practical teaching in one of the state in Malaysia （Kelantan）. Stratified random sampling was used. They made their self-assessment by using the working commitment instrument. At the same time, their teaching processes were guided through conferences, observations and finally evaluations to get their comparative scores of teaching performance. The data were analyzed by using statistical multiple regression at significant ofp 〈 0.05. As a result, a linear equation of trainee teachers＇ commitment comprises contribution of work load, work satisfaction, study opportunities, teachers＇ prospect, marital status, teaching practices, planning and preparation teaching procedure, and religious studies. Furthermore the findings of this study led to some suggestions for future teachers development and become more efficient and adaptive.     

Utilising a capability maturity model to optimise project based learning – case study

The application of Capability Maturity Models (CMM's) is recognised throughout diverse organisations in different domains as a route to achieve strategic schemes and continuously improve organisational competitiveness of the implementing entity. This paper shall look into the development and implementation of a specific Project Based Learning Capability Maturity Model (PBLCMM) for the systematic evaluation and improvement of the capability of an institutional Project Based Learning (PBL) model to enhance the learning of students. It shall also highlight the development phases of the model to improve the students’ experience and education in a Higher Education Institution, based on a literature review, expert interviews and two case studies to verify the model's ability to incrementally enhance the capability of the utilised PBL model. The case studies prove the validity and effectiveness of the PBLCMM in identifying the potential for improvement, and educators and educational institutions may want to consider using the presented approach to optimise the effectiveness of their PBL model.     

Issues of cross-contextual information quality evaluation—The case of Arabic, English, and Korean Wikipedias

An initial exploration into the issue of information quality evaluation across different cultural and community contexts based on data collected from the Arabic, English, and Korean Wikipedias showed that different Wikipedia communities may have different understandings of and models for quality. It also showed the feasibility of using some article edit-based metrics for automated quality measurement across different Wikipedia contexts. A model for measuring context similarity was developed and used to evaluate the relationship between similarities in sociocultural factors and the understanding of information quality by the three Wikipedia communities.     

An analysis of legal issues relating to the least restrictive environment standards

The lack of clear language in the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), which is the federal law that governs the provision of special education and related services to children with disabilities in the USA, has led to inconsistencies in school districts' decisions regarding the least restrictive environment (LRE). This uncertainty in determining an appropriate LRE has become a significant obstacle to educating students with disabilities. Therefore, this paper examines a number of court cases that have challenged school districts to provide the LRE for students with disabilities and have handed down decisions that define specific standards that are useful for school teams to implement the mandate of the LRE. Through the synthesis of these cases, the author provides criteria for determining the LRE for students with disabilities that could enhance inclusive education for these students. Finally, the author suggests that legislators should reconsider the language of LRE, make it more specific regarding the determination of LRE, and apply the standards defined in these cases and others to state a clear formula for developing LRE that could be utilised in school districts throughout the country.     

Harsh corporal punishment of Yemeni children: occurrence, type and associations

OBJECTIVE: To examine the occurrence, type and associations of harsh corporal punishment in Yemen. METHODS: Caregiver and teacher reports were obtained on 1,196 Yemeni 7-10-year olds obtained by systematic random sampling of children in the 1st to 4th grades of urban and rural schools. Caregivers (86% mothers) reported on disciplinary practices, socio-familial background, and child psychopathology. Teachers reported on school performance and child psychopathology. RESULTS: More than half of the rural caregivers and about a quarter of the urban caregivers reported using harsh corporal punishment (hitting children with implements, tying them up, pinching them, or biting them). Harsh corporal punishment was significantly associated with poor school performance and both behavioral and emotional difficulties. The socio-familial factors that were independently associated with harsh corporal punishment were: rural area, male gender of the child, low maternal education, and large family size. CONCLUSION: Harsh corporal punishment is very common in Yemen. International findings suggest that the association with school failure and psychological maladjustment may well be causal. Promoting parental use of effective and non-violent disciplinary methods should be a public health priority. Practice implications: Yemen urgently needs to develop and evaluate programs that teach parents how to use culturally appropriate rewards and non-abusive sanctions to shape children's behavior without stunting their academic and emotional development. Persuading parents to adopt such approaches may need programs that focus not just on techniques but also on attitudes, e.g. challenging the commonly held belief that children will not develop properly unless they are beaten when they do wrong.     

Investigating Omani Science Teachers’ Attitudes Towards Teaching Science: the Role of Gender and Teaching Experiences

A 30-item questionnaire was designed to determine Omani science teachers’ attitudes toward teaching science and whether or not these attitudes differ according to gender and teaching experiences of teachers. The questionnaire items were divided into 3 domains: classroom preparation, managing hands-on science, and development appropriateness. The questionnaire was administered to 139 randomly selected science teachers who teach science in grades 5–10. The sample consisted of 72 male teachers and 67 female teachers, 57 teachers with teaching experience between 1 and 5 years and 82 teachers with teaching experience of 6 and more years. The sample was selected from 7 schools in 1 Educational Governorate in the Sultanate of Oman. The questionnaire reliability was calculated by an internal consistency method, using Cronbach’s alpha, which gave the value of 0.73 for all the items. The findings indicated that science teachers’ attitudes toward teaching science were positive. Furthermore, the results showed that there were statically significant differences in teachers’ attitudes due to gender in favor of the female teachers and in teaching experience in favor of teachers with long experience. The study proposed some recommendations to improve the science teachers’ attitude, especially male teachers towards science teaching. Paying more attention to in-service professional development programs, encouraging new teachers to attend some classes to observe experienced colleagues, and finally rewarding teachers morally, socially, and financially are some of these recommendations.     

So,are early career researchers the harbingers of change?

This article provides the final results of a 3‐year study that sought to discover whether early career researchers (ECRs) were the harbingers of change with respect to scholarly communications. Over a hundred science and social science ECRs from seven countries, spanning three continents, were depth‐interviewed annually for 3 years (2016–2018) about their attitudes and behaviours with respect to 23 scholarly issues and activities (aspects). In order to provide an accessible overarching assessment of an extremely large and complex dataset, the interview data were categorized according to the strength and direction of change exhibited and the trends and points of interest raised. Results show that all ECRs have changed in one way or another, and a small minority has changed greatly in both attitude and practice and that collaboration and research impact are the scholarly aspects where most changes have occurred, and the greatest cause of change is not so much new technology as a change of jobs.