Public Sector Research: A Growing Role in Innovation Systems

This essay highlights three converging trendsexperienced by `public sector research' duringthe past decade. Looking especially at France,our discussion draws attention to the new rolesof universities, the blurring of relationshipsbetween types of research institutions andresearch activities, and the development of`research collectives' as an organizationalfeature now emerging throughout Europe.     

Instructional Goals: determination and specification

This paper develops the argument that the form in which instructional goals are specified should depend on the nature of the knowledge underlying the particular instruction being developed. It examines the two central issues of goal determination (how goals are derived) and goal specification (how they should be represented) in order to counter the assumption that one type of goal formulation (be it via behavioural objectives, work models, or cognitive objectives) is optimal for instruction.     

Environmental education in Latin American and the Caribbean: the challenges and limitations of conducting a systematic review of evaluation and research

Abstract

This systematic review extends the boundary of prior reviews in the environmental education (EE) field by analyzing publications focused on Latin America and the Caribbean (LATAM). We examined peer-reviewed literature and dissertations/theses in four languages (English, French, Spanish and Portuguese) published between January 2000 and February 2018 to examine outcomes of EE interventions occurring in both formal and nonformal settings among LATAM youth up to age 18 years. Our findings reflect recurring critiques of EE, such as the field’s limited empirical research and a bias toward measuring knowledge gain. Our findings also highlight themes specific to LATAM, related to issue-based EE programs, EE versus Education for Sustainable Development, barriers to EE implementation and potential challenges posed by bias, privilege and power in LATAM-based EE research. Access to potentially appropriate publications was limited by weaknesses in search databases. Only a small selection of LATAM countries is represented in publications that met the search criteria, limiting our capacity to draw stronger conclusions about the region as a whole.     

Autopsy-Based Learning is Essential But Underutilized in Medical Education: A Questionnaire Study

To this day, autopsies and dissections have been essential in medical education, but declining autopsy numbers have endangered this long-standing tradition. Students' perceptions of these teaching methods should be constantly updated to help educators understand how to achieve their teaching goals. The purpose of this study was to explore the state of autopsy- and dissection-based teaching in two Finnish universities based on the experiences of the students, survey their perceptions of such teaching, and to compare the Finnish situation with students' perceptions in other countries as it emerges from medical literature. A questionnaire went to 859 second-, fourth-, and sixth-year medical students. The questions concerned dissection and autopsy classes these students had attended, the views of the students in regard to the number of classes, and the benefits of and attitudes towards autopsy teaching. An open question of how to improve autopsy teaching was included. The response rate was 19.4%. Most respondents requested more autopsy and dissection classes, especially practical education. They found autopsies most beneficial in learning anatomy and dealing with one's own emotions related to death. Their experiences proved least beneficial for interaction with the relatives of a deceased patient and for people skills. Integrational methods and focusing on the main learning outcomes were suggested as improvements. Overall, students found dissection and autopsy teaching important, but felt concerned about the diminishing autopsy numbers. Focusing on main learning objectives and better integration of autopsies in the teaching of different specialties could help to utilize autopsies to a greater extent.     

Analysis of a multifaceted interactive pedagogy program in an upper limb anatomy course: A time series study

Many new methods have contributed to the learning of anatomy, including several interactive methods, increasing the effectiveness of educational programs. The effectiveness of an educational program involving several interactive learning methods such as problem-based learning and reciprocal peer teaching was researched in this study. A quasi-experimental before–after study on three consecutive groups of second-year students at the Grenoble School of Medicine was conducted. The lectures were replaced by an educational program based on the problem-based learning method and reciprocal peer teaching. The first session was dedicated to reading clinical cases illustrating the medical concept, so that the learning objectives for the second session could be set. Then, after viewing digital courses, the second session was dedicated to a synthetic presentation by the students themselves, followed by an interactive summary with the teacher. The analysis of 630 students showed a significant increase in the theory test results for those who took part in the intervention: 9.71 versus 9.19 (β = 0.57, P = 0.036). Moreover, satisfaction was high after the intervention (mean = 4.5/5), and when comparing the two pedagogical approaches the students showed a clear preference for the program implemented with the concepts highlighted such as interactivity, in-depth work, group work, and autonomy. A multifaceted interactive pedagogy program could have a significant impact on the results of the theoretical concepts presented and on satisfaction as well as increased investment by students in learning anatomy.     

Research on illustrations in text: Issues and perspectives

So many studies have failed to show significant effects for illustrations in texts and teaching materials that, the author remarks, if the research is taken at face value, it is not difficult to begin believing that illustrations really are not very important in assisting learning. However, he concludes, their value has been confirmed by a sufficient number of studies to support intuitive beliefs and researchers now must move on, using new frameworks to study the reasons illustrations can aid learning.     

“Compulsory Schooling” Despite the Law: How Education Policy Underpins the Widespread Ignorance of the Right to Home Educate in France

ABSTRACT

Everyone in France takes for granted the existence of compulsory school attendance (“école obligatoire”) while home education remains very exceptional. Yet school attendance is not, and has never been, legally compulsory in France. How can one explain the fact that the right to home educate is little known and practiced? This article researches how public policies may foster this widespread ignorance. Drawing mainly on archival records of French Parliament debates about compulsory instruction in 1882, 1936, and 1998, it depicts various ways for lawmakers to contribute to this ignorance.     

Victimization and problems of behavior. Two components of profile types of runaway adolescents

OBJECTIVE: This study examines the relationship between two explanatory factors connected to the phenomena of runaways and the homeless among adolescents: behavioral problems of youths and parental violence to which they are subjected. The study demonstrates that these two factors are independently related to the different categories of homeless and runaway adolescents. METHODOLOGY: The data was collected from 130 adolescents (12 to 17 years of age) who were runaways for short periods on a recurring basis. Two subgroups were formed: Group A consisted of 79 adolescents who did not exhibit behavioral problems; Group B consisted of the other 51 who did exhibit them. The two groups had certain similar family characteristics (income levels, parents' occupations, structure and stability of the family). RESULTS: The bivariate analyses reveal significant differences between the two groups of runaways relating to: (1) gender, (2) a diagnosed conduct disorder, (3) affiliations with deviant peers, and (4) experiences of parental violence. The discriminant analysis demonstrates that these four variables clearly differentiate the two groups of runaways and predict the appropriate group membership for 84% of the cases. Therefore, the members of Group B have a higher probability of being diagnosed as having a conduct disorder, being male, and associating with delinquent peers. This group had not experienced a higher level of parental violence. The opposite is true for the members of Group A. CONCLUSION: Our study demonstrates that parental violence and behavioral problems are variables that are independently related to the defined categories of runaways. Therefore, these variables do not constitute, as some thinkers have claimed, the components of a unique dynamic able to explain the phenomenon of the runaway. Our results vitiate the doubts sometimes expressed by researchers about the importance of parental violence to the phenomenon of adolescent runaways.     

Universities’ Autonomy in Times of Changing Higher Education Governance: A study of the Swiss academic labour market

Although eternally debated, the issue of autonomy in higher education is rarely analysed in its complexity. To address this issue, this article uses an analytical matrix which combines the distinction between substantive and procedural autonomy and the distinction between HEI governing bodies, academic professions and individual academics. This framework allows for analysing—by the example of the Swiss academic labour market—how changes in national steering can lead to the redistribution of autonomy between the mentioned actors. Further insights relate to the observed higher education system’s decentralised character. Empirical findings—based on the examination of three special programmes initiated by the federal government—indicate that HEI actors lose some substantive autonomy in favour of the Confederation, and—against the general tendency induced by New Public Management to reinforce HEI governing bodies—procedural autonomy is rather redistributed to individual academics and academic professions.