Changes in Academy/Industry/State Relations in Canada: The Creation and Development of the Networks of Centres of Excellence

The Networks of Centres of Excellence programme is perhaps Canada's most dramatic science policy innovation since theFirst World War. This article traces its development, using documentary analysis and interviews with the policy actors responsible for conceiving and implementing the programme.Established in 1989, the networks were explicitly designed to change the norms of science. The intention was to instil an approach to long-term fundamental research that considered possibilities of use from the start. Of equal importance was the idea that management was essential to produce knowledgein a network structure.     

Together yet Apart: perceptions of communication in the cross‐cultural context of a Papua New Guinean tertiary institution

A genuine debate on the Melanesian Way ... is a debate that requires a systematic, reflective and intellectual rigour. It is a task which Melanesian scholars must live with .... The vital contribution that is yet to be made toward rational discussion of Melanesian world‐view in all its aspects, is being delayed by the almost non‐existence of the rigour of an academic forum which would conceptualise Melanesian values. (Olea in Narokobi, 1988, p. 185)     

Relationship between perceived and observed student-centred learning environments in Qatari elementary mathematics and science classrooms

Recently, Qatar established educational reform in charter (independent) schools focusing on curriculum standards, student-centred teaching, standards-based assessment, English as the language of instruction, and extensive professional development. A primary area of emphasis was the creation of student-centred mathematics and science classrooms characterised by inquiry and active student participation. The purpose of this study was to investigate differences in the learning environments of Qatari mathematics and science classrooms at two levels: in higher- and lower-performing Qatari schools implementing the recent Education for a New Era reform elements; and in classes of teachers who experienced professional development focused on student-centred teaching strategies and those who did not. Participants included teachers and students in 47 grade 3 and 4 mathematics and science classrooms. Classroom observations were conducted and student learning environment surveys were administered at the beginning and end of the semester. Results indicated low levels of student-centred instruction, despite significant improvement over time. Few differences by level of school performance or professional development participation existed. However, Personalisation emerged as a key learning environment variable related to teachers’ implementation of student-centred instruction.     

A Library Compliance Strategy for Regional Accreditation Standards: Using ACRL Higher Education Standards with NEASC Standards

The Commission on Institutions of Higher Education (CIHE) of the New England Association of Schools and Colleges (NEASC) standards places less emphasis on quantifiable and arbitrary inputs and more emphasis on institutional effectiveness and assessment of student learning. NEASC includes the library throughout the standards and also has a long section specifically for the library. The authors advocate use of the ACRL (Association of College and Research Libraries) Standards for Libraries in Higher Education alongside the NEASC standards to ensure a focus on outcomes and assessment of libraries in the context of other areas of the institution. An effective strategy for streamlining the assessment of library resources and services is provided.     

PAINTING THE ROSES RED: VOLUNTEERING IN THE COMMUNITY

To most of us engaged in higher education, volunteering is an activity confined to those moments outside work where one is found organising activities with the guides or running the local jumble sale; at Edge Hill Learning Services, however, staff took a fresh look at this community role and decided to bring it in from the cold and develop the concept.     

The Rise and Fall of Swedish Educational Technology 1960–1980

In Sweden educational technology (EdTech) prospered during the 1960s and 1970s inspired by US experiences from primarily programmed instruction. The Departments of Education at the universities started different activities of research and other bodies developed EdTech products for commercial use. In some business firms in‐service training of staff was organised and managed according to the rational ideas that were the basis of EdTech. Public education from elementary to university level was also influenced by EdTech and in the National Board of Education particularly the section responsible for developing teaching–learning aids ran its work guided by EdTech principles in a broad sense of rational and systematic planning. In the 1970s the peak of EdTech withered, to almost disappear towards 1980. This article describes the development in Sweden with the aim of understanding both the rise and fall of EdTech. The rise is understood in relation to the modernisation of Swedish society with reforms of education and trust of science and technology. The fall is understood in terms of the change of values and conception of democracy taking place around 1970 (1968).     

Changing boundaries—Shifting identities: Strategic interventions to enhance the future of educational research in Australia

This paper reflects on the geography of Australian educational research in the context of the ERA 2010 and 2012 assessments results. These results reflect significant changes to the nature of educational research over the past decades, where this research is conducted and by whom. We recap the historical changes to the formation of educational institutions and their impact on research outputs to demonstrate that interdisciplinary work is growing in a context where there has been a shift in research outputs away from the traditional area of school education. The ERA results demonstrate a high level of research activity in the intersections between previously distinct discipline areas, particularly in the scholarship of teaching and learning. The future of ERA itself is addressed in order to propose interventions that might make a difference to an ecology that is anchored in traditions and tends towards inertia. Finally, we argue that efforts by universities to build research capacity are likely to continue to be competitive, to focus on the individual rather than on departments and schools, and to be subject to an increasingly pervasive culture of accountability. Against this discourse of accountability, and an accompanying loss in autonomy and creative ‘think-time’, we propose that academics in education actively engage in a community of research. We conclude with interventions designed to build a high-quality, analytical and theoretically intensive research culture to underscore educational research in Australia.     

Education research in Australia: where is it conducted?

Research assessment exercises aim to identify research quantity and quality and provide insights into research capacity building strategies for the future. Yet with limited knowledge of the ecology of Australian educational research, there is little chance of understanding what research audits might contribute towards a capacity building agenda for such a complex field. This paper draws on secondary data analysis of research outputs submitted by 13 Australian higher education institutions to the Excellence in Research for Australia (ERA) 2010 and 2012 national research assessment exercises, to show where Australian educational research is conducted. Findings offer a profile of education researchers by location in academic organisational units within universities. By analyzing data not accessible through reported ERA data we were also able to present information about appointment profiles, specifically levels and type of appointment within universities, as well as data on institutional and geographic region, and patterns associated with type of outputs (books, book chapters, journal articles, conference papers and other outputs) and field of research. Analysis of the data reveals definitive shifts in the nature of the published outputs and in employment profiles of researchers and their location across university and regional groupings. Research audits are administrative processes that reshape institutional and disciplinary governance structures, policies, individual outputs, work practices and careers, but they are not the sum total of the field per se.     

Capacity-Related Innovations Resulting From the Implementation of a Community Collaboration Model for School Improvement

A new genus of district and school improvement models entails partnerships with other organizations and new working relationships with families, community leaders, and youths. The Ohio Community Collaboration Model for School Improvement (OCCMSI) is one such model. It enables partners to leverage family and community resources for learning, healthy development, and overall success in school. This study presents qualitative research findings about the key capacities developed by 6 schools and 6 districts piloting the OCCMSI. Process and product innovations, as well as facilitators and barriers, were tracked as these sites progressed with their implementation efforts. Implications are drawn in relation to how these new and expanded capacities might be prioritized by district and school leaders, consultants, and other professionals involved in partnership-centered models of school improvement.     

The labour of learning to reflect

This article presents a polyphonic narrative of reflection in action across two institutional contexts; a university and a primary (elementary) school. It traces an honours student’s research on reflection and her supervisor’s reactions as reader. Both engage in construction and reconstruction of their basic beliefs about reflective practice as they engage with each other and these contexts. This research resulted in both people accepting that reflection is a public text with a specific genre to be mastered. Issues of power surround what can be shared with whom within the institutions as political sites. Students engage in strategic compliance whether to attract teachers’ attention or to avoid it. Notions of trust and openness often mask power. This article poses that learning to reflect is hard labour.