From solo-run to mainstream thinking: project-based learning in engineering design

The paper begins with an overview of project-based learning (PBL) teaching and assessment methods that have been developed as an integral part of a 4-year undergraduate engineering degree programme in Galway, Ireland. The course described was first introduced as a ‘solo-run’ by the author in 1989. The paper goes on to describe comprehensive changes affecting higher educational establishments in Ireland and, in particular, those changes currently taking root in Galway. One such change is the encouragement to introduce a variety of teaching and assessment methods, including PBL. From ‘solo-run’ towards accepted mainstream thinking—interesting times!     

The film of the picture book: Raymond Briggs's ‘The Snowman’ as progressive and regressive texts

He has contributed to theChildren's Literature Association Quarterly, and his work relating critical theory to experimental texts for children will appear in the forthcomingChildren's Literature: Contemporary Criticism, edited by Peter Hunt.     

Cross-national perspectives on the role of assessment in counselling: A preliminary report

This preliminary report examines the role of formal assessment in the counselling process from a cross-national perspective. Counsellors and counsellor-educators from twenty countries were surveyed to determine the extent to which they use formal assessment procedures in counselling and the types of assessment instruments being used. Results indicated that many, but not all, counsellors use assessment instruments. In non-North American countries, there is some tendency to use instruments developed in the North American context, with or without modifications to test content and norms. This preliminary study suggests a perceived need for development of culture-specific assessment tools, and the implications for counsellor training of developing counselling and assessment skills with cross-cultural relevance.     

The Use and Abuse of a Competency Standards Framework in Australia: a comparative perspective

National skill formation strategies based on competency standards are a recent feature of the Anglo‐American economies. These strategies reflect a response to the widespread evidence of market failure in training in these economies. This article explores the similarities and important differences in standards frameworks between Australia, the United Kingdom and New Zealand.     

Student reactions to courseware: gender differences

The primary aim of the study was to investigate student reactions to the use of courseware as a learning tool in the classroom, particularly the effect of gender. The study involved young school students in a systematic and documented courseware review process. Students as a whole were enthusiastic about using courseware as a tool for learning in the classroom, with a large majority of students endorsing both its motivational appeal and its educational value. Despite this overall positive attitude, however, the data showed important differences between the reactions of male and female students to courseware, male students being more confident about using computers as a learning tool than female. The major implication for educational practice is that teachers, while trying to instil a confident attitude in all their students towards using courseware, should be aware of the particular need to build confidence among female students.     

Social Theory and Education Policy: the legacy of Karl Mannheim

This paper looks back at the career of the sociologist Karl Mannheim, who died 50 years ago. It considers how far Mannheim's work remains relevant and discusses what lessons it may still have to offer. Quoting Sir Fred Clarke as saying that educational theory and education policy that took no account of changes in the wider social order would be not only blind but positively harmful, the paper suggests that a similar case applies today. It therefore remains essential that Mannheim's legacy is preserved and that the sociological imagination is exercised in relation to contemporary education policy and education research. In the light of Mannheim's own shift from diagnosing the crisis to prescribing the remedies, the paper also reflects on how far it is legitimate for sociologists of education to make such a move. Finally, the paper considers how Mannheim's notion of planning for democracy might be superseded by more genuinely democratic forms of education policy‐making in the aftermath of current neo‐liberal policies of deregulation.     

Understanding the role cumulative exposure to highly qualified science teachers plays in students' educational pathways

Years of experience, education level, and subject matter expertise are three measures of teacher qualification that are employed widely in contemporary educational policies including tenure, salary, and hiring, despite significant questions about their effectiveness at predicting student performance. These questions reveal a critical gap in the literature, concerning, in particular, the enduring impact of teachers' qualifications on students' educational experiences, and they ways in which related research has traditionally been framed and conducted. Specifically, studies examining these predictors have focused almost exclusively on investigating the role that an individual teacher's qualifications have on students' performance. In schools, however, students are exposed to different teachers every year, and those teachers often have differing qualifications. This study explores the impact of teacher qualification from a cumulative perspective by examining the relationship between cumulative science teachers' qualifications (measured by years of experience, education level, and subject matter expertise) and students' educational success (academic achievement, college enrollment, and decision to major in a Science, Technology, Engineering, or Mathematics field). The study found that students taught by science teachers who—as a group—were cumulatively more highly qualified, tended to have higher achievement, as well as better educational pathways and outcomes in STEM. Given that students are taught by teachers from across a broad spectrum of qualification throughout their schooling, findings from this study could have important implications, not only for research and practice, but also for education policy.     

Understanding the experience of non contributory online participants (readers) in National College for School Leadership online communities

This study explored the range of participation taking place in the National College for School Leadership (NCSL) online communities and focussed on participants who defined themselves as not actively contributing to the online discussion. We called these non-contributory participants “readers” Whilst we recognised that an individual community member’s degree of participation might simply reflect their choice, we wanted to ensure that where fuller active participation was sought, there were no system or personal barriers to prevent it. A literature review with a dual focus was therefore made, the first element being factors in the online environment that might affect participation, and the second being personal motivation where we drew especially on dynamic motivation theory. A questionnaire was constructed based on this dual review. This had questions that generated both numerical and text based responses. After a pilot study, alterations in the questionnaire were made and the revised version was sent to 2,600 recently active community members. Over 750 replies were received yielding qualitative and quantitative data. Of these, 587 identified themselves as “readers” and only their responses were analysed for this paper. Analysis produced a very rich picture of motivational factors affecting participation in online communities. Benefits of various types of online interaction were put forward and suggestions about barriers to online interaction were made. This paper suggests that online participation may be seen as a continuum and that non contributory online participants (readers) are a far from homogeneous group ranging from those who experience technical and personal barriers to those who value and gain much from readership. Suggestions are made to assist readers who would like to take further scaffolded steps towards the role of contributor     

Activity Theory to Investigate the Implementation of ICTE

The purpose of this pilot study was to examine how one primary school implements Information and Communication Technologies in Education (ICTE). The principal, IT coordinator and two class teachers were interviewed to determine their views of how ICTE was being implemented. Activity theory was used as a means of analysing the data. The findings suggest a range of views about ICTE existed within the school. The implications suggest it is important for schools to recognise the different views of ICTE existing in their communities and to take cognisance of this when, for example, planning professional development. The study also suggests that more sensitive analytical approaches need to be developed to enable more critical evaluations of ICTE's implementation within schools to be made.     

Active Learning and Teaching through Digital Technology and Live Performance: ‘Choreographic Thinking’ as Art Practice in the Tertiary Sector

This article is an interdisciplinary reflective response to an intensive studio learning and teaching experience involving artists, academics and postgraduate students. The authors of this article teach, research and practise in coding, digital design, dance, and virtual and live performance. As lecturers and students we reflect upon and propose future approaches to art practice in tertiary education informed by live performance, performance capture and studio‐based responses to digital and virtual platforms. We reflect on an innovative contribution to the field of research–teaching nexus as informed by digital and virtual data capture identifying the key element of immediacy in live performance and choreographic improvisation with systems. We reflect on practice‐based inquiry via the Choreographic Coding Lab (CCL) model – a dialogical negotiation between capture technology and interdisciplinary artists in industry and academia. How can we encourage potential studio inquiry as an adapted model in tertiary learning and teaching? Our interdisciplinary voices, presented as authors’ reflections, provide suggestions for future studio‐based, active learning contexts.