Reflection as a core student learning activity in higher education - Insights from nearly two decades of academic development

ABSTRACT

Experiential learning (EL) has great potential to prepare students to work on interdisciplinary and global challenges across traditional boundaries, as well as support them in the development of reflective skills. In this study, we explore reflection as a central element for EL in the university wide interdisciplinary course Experts in Teamwork (EiT). Based upon 17 years of experience with the development of EiT, perspectives from the literature, and critically analyzing current practices, we describe two key findings from this ongoing exploration: the need to develop a framework for such a course and the need for training of teaching staff.     

Correction to: The role of self-efficacy for self-regulated learning,achievement goals,and engagement in academic cheating

European Journal of Psychology of Education - This study examined the relationships between motivational beliefs, defined as self-efficacy for self-regulated learning and achievement goals,...     

Use of dissection-related courseware by low-ability high school students: A qualitative inquiry

This article reports on a naturalistic study conducted with 24 low-achieving high school Biology students. Observations and interviews were used to determine how the teacher and students used two different computer-based instructional programs on frog anatomy and dissection, and how students conducted a subsequent dissection. Student and teacher opinions were solicited about the different computer-based programs and the dissection laboratory. Findings suggest that dissection can be a valuable learning experience for low-achieving Biology students when they are engaged in group cooperation and interaction and receive adequate instructional preparation. Results also point to the motivation these students exhibit toward computer use, to the importance of balancing learner and program control, and to the value of considering the teacher as a possible source of both interaction and structure during courseware use. Recommendations based on these and other findings are offered for educators and instructional developers. As participating teacher in this research, Mrs. Foss' integral and enthusiastic involvement is recognized with co-authorship of this article. She has asked to be identified by name rather than by a pseudonym. The paper on which this article was based was presented at the annual meeting of the American Educational Research Association (AERA) in April 1993. The authors thank Mary Catherine Ellwein and an anonymous reviewer for their valuable comments on an earlier draft. Correspondence may be directed to Mable Kinzie at the Department of Educational Studies, Curry School of Education, University of Virginia, 405 Emmet Street, Charlottesville, VA 22903-2495.     

Drawing in Preschools: A Didactic Experience

To be understood, visually, often depends on how skilled one is in catching form and translating it into a two‐dimensional surface. This is a challenge we are confronted with early in life. Children's learning strategies in drawing are not always understood or encouraged. This article presents a socio‐cultural analysis from Norway of a pedagogical practice that attempts to shed light on the question, How does the preschool teacher support 3–5 year old children when they are drawing something they see, and how do children in this age group respond to this support?     

Brand equity of academics: demystifying the process

The current study endeavours to find out whether there is a relationship between university academics’ competence and their customer-based brand equity from the perspective of students. It also seeks to investigate the mechanism of the proposed relationship through trust, likability, and commitment. Data were collected from 384 postgraduate students in Malaysian universities using a structured questionnaire. Results of analysis using Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modelling (PLS-SEM) revealed there is a significant relationship (total effect) between academics’ competence and customer-based brand equity. We found that the path from competence to brand equity goes through trust, likability, and commitment. Given the growing popularity of higher education in the new millennium and important role of academics in leading students to success, findings of the present study can enhance our understanding of academics’ branding and universities’ overall image. The implications and contributions of the study to university administrators and academics are discussed.     

“职教20条”背景下高职社会服务能力提升路径

社会服务是高职院校的四大职能之一,诸多院校发挥自身优势,为地方经济社会发展都做出较大的贡献。《职业教育改革实施方案》的颁布,既为高职院校现阶段改革提供了政策支撑,也为其社会服务能力提升指明了改革方向。随着社会经济发展,高职院校的社会服务领域、范围发生了变化,社会服务手段也更为丰富,在发展进程中,高职社会服务能力与社会服务需求未能同频共振等问题也逐渐显现出来。文章探讨在《职业教育改革实施方案》背景下高职院校立足社会需求,多方争取政府部门和企业的支持,增强高职院校服务社会的使命感,深化校企合作,校企政协同育人,形成人才的多样化发展。最终实现社会服务能力提升,推进高职教育高质量发展,深化高职内涵建设。     

Paulo Freire’s critical and dialogic pedagogy and its implications for the Bahraini educational context

Abstract

This paper is a conceptual analysis in methodology. The purpose it fulfils is that of analysing the critical and dialogic pedagogy of Paulo Freire, to arrive at implications of Freire’s philosophy and approach for the current educational context of the Kingdom of Bahrain. The Bahraini context is currently one of major economic, social, and educational reforms. Despite several reform initiatives, however, schools in Bahrain are still not advancing as they should be and deficiencies continue to exist in students’ development of higher-order thinking skills, such as critical thinking, problem-solving, and analysis. Among the implications made by this study are ones related to: teaching and learning practices within a classroom, cultivation of 21st Century skills, curriculum development and planning, and the role played by the teacher. The paper ends with a number of significant recommendations for teachers and policy-makers, which can enhance education in Bahrain and help it progress faster. These recommendations can also prove to be useful to other parallel contexts regionally and internationally.     

The tutor-student instructional interaction

Tutors who provide remedial language training to learning-disabled adolescents analyzed videotapes of over one-hundred tutorial sessions, using a protocol which they developed to facilitate recording their observations. The tutors’ purpose was not to conduct a controlled research study; but, rather, to observe closely in order to gain understandings about the interpersonal interactions between tutor and student which might result in improved instruction. As a result of this process, they identified factors—in the structure of the setting, in the use of routinized procedures, and in the manner and approach of the tutors—which both significantly affected the students’ learning and were common to almost every interaction. They also identified patterns of behavior which students characteristically showed in their responses to certain learning situations.