Gerontological Education in Undergraduate Nursing Programs: An Australian Perspective

Literature reveals difficulties in preparing nurses to care for older people. This article reports a study that aimed to facilitate positive changes in gerontological education in an undergraduate nursing program by identifying barriers and effective actions. A critical research approach was applied to the study. Data were mainly collected through focus groups. A total of five barriers were identified in gerontological education in an undergraduate nursing program. Actions which may address these barriers were explored. Critical reflection on educational practice based on partnerships between education and service sectors has the potential of leading an educational reform in gerontological nursing.     

论外语教学行动研究的重要性

This article mainly gives a brief introduction to the general idea of Action Research and the wayshow it can be applied in the foreign languages teaching. A very practical teaching approach can be derived fromthe study of Action Research,and so we can do something better to manage how to teach to learn and how tolearn to teach well in the real situation.     

The adjustment of national education systems to a knowledge‐based economy: a new approach

In his article ‘Globalisation, the Learning Society, and Comparative Education’, Peter Jarvis recommends lifelong learning in the period of globalisation as a topic ripe for scholarly research. In particular, he argues for the examination of the extent of lifelong learning around the world and its relation to different levels of employment. This article contributes to this line of inquiry by analysing how education policies facilitate adjustment to economic change and examining how advanced industrialised countries (AICs) compare in their promotion. Principal component analysis is used to construct indices for education systems that reflect these two objectives, and the results reveal considerable cross‐national variation. The Nordic countries appear well‐positioned to cope with changed skill needs. A closer look at the cases of Denmark and Italy portrays how a national education system can facilitate or hinder adaptation, respectively.     

Preschool Directors’ Attitudes Towards the Integration of Children with Disabilities Into Regular Preschools in New South Wales

THE ATTITUDES of preschool directors in New South Wales towards the integration of children with disabilities were surveyed using a questionnaire that had been developed in early studies in this area. Analysis of data showed that directors were most positive about children with mild impairments, for whom they felt they had appropriate training and resources. They were least positive about children who required additional help that was outside their regular duties. Skills required by teachers and directors involved in integration included general competence, knowledge of specialised techniques that are required and an ability to work with therapists, special advisors and other support staff. Directors who had postgraduate qualifications and those from community preschools tended to be more positive about integration than other groups. Overall, it was concluded that integration is most likely to be successful if children are placed in centres where staff are positive and feel they have the necessary skills.     

Student Teachers’ Beliefs and a Changing Teacher Role

This article discusses the encounters between the changing expectations on the teacher role, teacher education and Swedish student teachers’ beliefs about their role as teachers, with special emphasis on the socialisation process of the pupils and the teacher's possible influence on it. The discussion is based on two empirical studies among Swedish compulsory school student teachers (M. von Wright, (1996) Propedeusis? Om motet mellan lärarstuderande och lärarutbildningen, in: Grundskollärarutbüdningen 1995. En utvärdering. Högskoleverkets rapportserie 1996:1 R.; M. von Wright (1997) Socialisationsprocessen. Metaforer och synsätt hos blivande lärare. Licentiatuppsats. Lärarhögskolan i Stockholm). The results show that student teachers when they enter their education on the one hand tend to carry with them explicit expectations which strongly reflect the values of what is considered pedagogically correct. At the same time students express implicit beliefs and underlying conceptions of human development, which in many cases are incoherent. During teacher education the pedagogically correct beliefs might become replaced, but implicit beliefs as affinity to certain pedagogical discourses are not changed or brought to awareness unless they are seriously challenged and problematised. Yet these beliefs direct the students’ attention. Changing demands on the teacher role bring about expectations on a shift in thinking about teaching and learning. Teacher education and educators can play important roles in making the students aware of their everyday beliefs and eventually change them.     

A meta‐analytic review of the cover‐copy‐compare and variations of this self‐management procedure

Studies that examined copy‐cover‐compare (CCC) and variations of this procedure were reviewed and analyzed. This review revealed a substantial number of studies that validated the use of CCC across spelling and math skills and across students with and without disabilities. A meta‐analysis of findings indicated that CCC and variations of this procedure were effective for helping students acquire and become fluent in academic skills. The strongest effects were evident when CCC and variations of this procedure were combined with other evidence‐based instructional components. Limitations, future directions for research, and recommendations for practice are offered. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Teacher education in the United Kingdom post devolution: convergences and divergences

This paper examines the roles of research in teacher education across the four nations of the United Kingdom. Both devolution and on-going reviews of teacher education are facilitating a greater degree of cross-national divergence. England is becoming a distinct outlier, in which the locus for teacher education is moving increasingly away from Higher Education Institutions and towards an ever-growing number of school-based providers. While the idea of teaching as a research-based profession is increasingly evident in Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales, it seems that England, at least in respect of the political rhetoric, recent reforms and explicit definitions, is fixed on a contrastingly divergent trajectory towards the idea of teaching as a craft-based occupation, with a concomitant emphasis on a (re)turn to the practical. It is recommended that research is urgently needed to plot these divergences and to examine their consequences for teacher education, educational research and professionalism.