Digital learning and teaching: Evaluation of developments for students in higher education

Whilst there has been a great deal of activity in the exploration of learning situations, especially with the development of computer-aided learning, the introduction of holistic views of learning situations can be useful. In particular, one current approach is that of supported web-based learning systems to complement traditional teaching. This paper focuses on recent work at Liverpool John Moores University (JMU) for one undergraduate module, which with one other has served to provide a rationale for a web-based teaching, learning and support environment for academic staff and students. The approach has enabled researchers at JMU to explore module/programme support development possibilities on the web from academic, quality and commercial perspectives as well as the cybernetic and evolutionary nature of learning. It has also enabled an exploration of student attitudes and perceptions to the technology, insights into the learning strategies adopted by students and their relation to student learning styles. The emphases in studying this system are appropriateness in terms of pedagogy, quality of content, presentation and technology fit. The innovation has appeal with students, it has flexibility as a delivery platform and there are cost benefits and external commercial possibilities. The development process for academics has been mapped and cost benefits of the web site gauged, in order to develop the strategy of a quality-based web-supported teaching and learning environment, coupled with a suitable support mechanism and evaluation model, for staff and students at JMU.     

Report on the ‘European exchange of experiences in school integration’: the intercultural comparison of the quality of life of children and youth with handicaps in Arhus (Denmark), Arezzo (Italy), Greenwich (London,UK) and Reutlingen (Germany)

ABSTRACT

This article describes some aspects of a multi‐disciplinary exchange and research programme involving communities in Denmark, Germany, Italy and the United Kingdom. The major focus of the programme has been on the integration of children with special educational needs into mainstream settings in schools and communities with a specific reference to decision making processes. The point at which extra resources are given by the state and its agencies to an individual in need provides the unifying intercultural point of departure. Local cultures, including legislative and social imperatives, and their implications for research activity are discussed. Common themes in the transition and transformation of the various forms of welfare state provision within the member countries are identified and analysed. The relationship between different forms and levels of service provision and the practice of integration are discussed.     

Book reviews

There are signs that teams are becoming more popular in ethnographic research. New technology and, in the UK, the Research Assessment Exercise have facilitated the establishment and continuance of teams. In this paper, the authors discuss their experiences in one particular research team in recent years. Securing adequate funding has been the essential structural prerequisite. The authors distinguish among project, federated, and whole teams, depending on function and level of analysis. They consider team structure, approach, business, and processes, and the relationship between individual and team. Teamwork has enabled a wider and deeper coverage of work, a broader comparative base, and multiple researcher triangulation. The team provides a forum for the discussion of ethical issues, an immediate supportive reference group. It has opened up horizons, and promoted individual change and development. It has aided analysis and writing, and promoted clearer and more robust arguments. The article concludes with some caveats.     

Learning to Teach About Ideas and Evidence in Science: The Student Teacher as Change Agent

A collaborative curriculum development project was set up to address the lack of good examples of teaching about ideas and evidence and the nature of science encountered by student teachers training to teach in the age range 11–16 in schools in England. Student and teacher-mentor pairs devised, taught and evaluated novel lessons and approaches. The project design required increasing levels of critique through cycles of teaching, evaluation and revision of lessons. Data were gathered from interviews and students’ reports to assess the impact of the project on student teachers and to what extent any influences survived when they gained their first teaching posts. A significant outcome was the perception of teaching shifting from the delivery of standard lessons in prescribed ways to endeavours demanding creativity and decision-making. Although school-based factors limited newly qualified teachers’ chances to use new lessons and approaches and therefore act as change-agents in schools, the ability to critique curriculum materials and the recognition of the need to create space for professional dialogue were durable gains.