Comparative higher education studies: The perspective from the policy sciences

The article explores the historical background of comparative policy studies. These studies are traced back to the comparative approaches in political science and public administration. Following a discussion on the methodological aspects of the comparative approach, an overview and assessment of a number of recent comparative policy studies in higher education is presented.     

Is there really an eccentric action of the hamstrings during the swing phase of high-speed running? Part II: Implications for exercise

We have previously argued that there may actually be no significant eccentric, but rather predominantly an isometric action of the hamstring muscle fibres during the swing phase of high-speed running when the attachment points of the hamstrings are moving apart. Based on this we suggested that isometric rather than eccentric exercises are a more specific way of conditioning the hamstrings for high-speed running. In this review we argue that some of the presumed beneficial adaptations following eccentric training may actually not be related to the eccentric muscle fibre action, but to other factors such as exercise intensity. Furthermore, we discuss several disadvantages associated with commonly used eccentric hamstring exercises. Subsequently, we argue that high-intensity isometric exercises in which the series elastic element stretches and recoils may be equally or even more effective at conditioning the hamstrings for high-speed running, since they also avoid some of the negative side effects associated with eccentric training. We provide several criteria that exercises should fulfil to effectively condition the hamstrings for high-speed running. Adherence to these criteria will guarantee specificity with regards to hamstrings functioning during running. Practical examples of isometric exercises that likely meet several criteria are provided.     

Learning entrepreneurs as experts

This paper concerns agricultural entrepreneurs involved in organizing their learning towards developing innovative and learning enterprises. In high-tech sectors, such as Dutch agriculture, this learning and innovative capacity is particularly essential for economic survival. Reviewing the literature we concluded that innovation can be seen as informal learning processes, in which social networks play an important role. Workers learn by sharing knowledge in the working team, and employers learn by creating networks of colleagues and advisors. The results of three research projects teach us that interactive learning and innovation should be analyzed from a perspective of uncertainty. Learning skills for interactive innovation, as part of the entrepreneurial craft, should comprise the capability of selecting impulses and combining newly selected impulses with existing skills and routines. Paradoxically, entrepreneurs need new impulses from weak, unknown networks to be continuously innovative. Innovative learning involves balancing the chaos of uncertainty and the old grooves of experience. Knowing how to escape this paradox forms the core competence of innovative entrepreneurship. In short, we conclude that agricultural entrepreneurs have to develop flexible expertise, based on a complex worldview to meet the demands of innovation in a changing world. Entrepreneurs should particularly be able to detect the irregularities in the world around them and to balance stability and flexibility.     

Fostering teacher community development: A review of design principles and a case study of an innovative interdisciplinary team

To deal with recent reforms and the accompanying complexity of work in secondary education, ongoing collaboration between teachers has become more important. A community is seen as a promising learning environment to support and embed collaboration into the culture of the school. However, community theory for the design of teacher communities seems underdeveloped. Therefore, this study aims to formulate a set of design principles to foster the development of teacher communities in secondary education. The set of design principles is based on a review of literature, as well as on a best-practice case. The case study was used to validate design principles from the literature in the target context. The resulting design principles were based on context-intervention-mechanism-outcome logic that takes into account the context-dependency of interventions as well as the mechanisms that help with understanding of how interventions produce certain outcomes. Implications for practice relate to ownership and co-design of the arrangement. The set of design principles provides a practical basis for teachers and administrators aiming to facilitate community building in their school. Future research is recommended on testing the effectiveness of the arrangement in the target context by means of a multiple case study.