Religious schools in London: school admissions,religious composition and selectivity

While policy makers and school effectiveness researchers often insist that schools can make a substantial difference to student achievement, it is less clear whether school staff themselves really believe this. This paper draws on qualitative research in New Zealand schools where teachers, principals (heads) and trustees (governors) were asked how accountable they felt school staff could actually be for student outcomes. In contrast to official discourses about the responsibilities of teachers, the often complex responses of those interviewed illustrated relatively modest expectations of the ability of schools to affect student outcomes. The findings suggest that school staff have yet to take to heart the school effectiveness research catchcry that ‘schools can make a difference’ but that they also struggle to avoid a deficit approach without a stronger sociological understanding of the reasons for student failure.     

The Contribution of Completing Degree Studies to Teachers' Professional Development in Israel

This study examined an empirical model for predicting reported contribution of continuing education for teachers returning to college to complete academic degrees. Predictor variables included motives to resume degree studies, reasons for course selection and satisfaction with studies. Data are reported from 124 certified teachers enrolled in BEd degree programmes at an Israeli teachers college. The level of teachers' satisfaction could directly predict the degree to which they felt studies had contributed to their professional development. Reasons for course selection were indirectly related to contribution through their effect on satisfaction, whereas motives to study were not statistically related to other variables.     

Quo Vadis Doctoral Education? New European Approaches in the Context of Global Changes

The first part of the article provides an overview of the changing policy contexts in Europe and North America in which doctoral education and training are embedded and points out the similarities and differences of the ongoing debates and concerns about doctoral education in the two world regions. The second part provides some insight into the differentiation of motives and purposes of doctoral education which has led to a differentiation of the models for doctoral education based on a clearer distinction between a research and a professional doctorate. In the third part, a number of networks, projects and initiatives concerned with reforming doctoral education are introduced to serve as an illustration of the direction current changes are taking. The last part draws some conclusions, emphasising in particular the fact that knowledge production has become a strategic resource in the emerging knowledge economies and thus an object of policy-making and institutional management. This development tends to lead to a concentration of research and research training in fewer institutions.     

Self-Regulated Learning and Open Writing

In our study, we describe a situation where students take ownership of their learning and, on their own initiative, use digital tools actively in their learning activities. In our research we were interested in students who used weblogs and in the dynamic relationship between students and the weblogs they create. In particular, we were interested in how self-regulated learning was facilitated both by the technology that enables the creation of the weblogs, and in the content, or open writings, that are posted on the weblog.
The article begins with an introduction to weblogs. We then present the results of the analysis of the affordances of weblogs to facilitate self-regulated learning. We used a category system developed by experts from the universities of Aalborg, Amsterdam and Bergen to structure our study of the weblogs which we received from Bergen students. One of our most interesting findings was that students' reflection on both their own learning and access to other's reflections on their learning was a powerful tool to collectively develop a conceptual understanding of a topic. We could call this collective self-regulation.     

Ethical Practices of Licensed Professional Counselors: A Survey of State Licensing Boards

The authors report results of a survey, conducted in 1986 by the Association for Counselor Education and Supervision (ACES) Ethics/Professional Practices Interest Network, of licensing boards in the 10 states that had enacted professional counselor licensure laws by the end of 1984. Data are reported regarding the number of counselors licensed in each state, the nature and extent of ethical violations claimed, dispositions of the complaints by the boards, the applicants' performance on ethics sections of licensure examinations, and the levels of concern expressed by board representatives regarding the ethics preparation and ethical practices of licensees. Implications of findings for counselor educators and supervisors are discussed.     

Assessing the Teaching Quality of Accounting Programmes: An evaluation of the Course Experience Questionnaire

In recent years, measuring the efficiency and effectiveness of higher edu cation has become a major issue. National governments are now demanding greater public accountability for funds invested in the sector, resulting in the emergence of various performance indicators relating to both teaching and research. The Course Experience Questionnaire (CEQ) was developed to measure the perceived quality of teaching in degree programmes. It evolved from research that identified curriculum, teaching and assessment as key determinants of students' approaches to learning and, in turn, the quality of their learning outcomes. The CEQ data are intended for use in making comparisons within fields of study over time and/or across institutions. However, no European study has reported on its suitability to evaluate teaching within an accounting programme. This paper outlines the development of the CEQ and confirms its reliability and construct validity for use in the accounting discipline in an Irish context.