A Comparative Exploration of the Pedagogical Quality of Parent-Led Child Care Centers and Regular Child Care in The Netherlands

Research Findings: This small-scale study features the 1st comparative exploration of the pedagogical quality of parent-led child care and regular child care in The Netherlands. The quality of the interaction skills and the affective relationships between adults and children was evaluated and compared with those of regular child care centers. On average parents in parent-led child care had interactions with adequate to good sensitive responsiveness, respect for autonomy, structuring and limit setting, and verbal communication. Developmental stimulation and fostering positive peer interactions proved to be weaker areas. Parents’ perceptions of the affective relationship with children in the group were characterized by a high level of closeness and a low level of dependency and conflict. Parents experienced a greater degree of closeness but also more conflict and in particular greater dependency with their own children than with the other children. A comparison between parent-led centers and regular urban child care centers revealed some small but significant differences in pedagogical quality. Practice or Policy: Parents can play a more active role in both the design and implementation of child care. It seems interesting to pilot new child care formats in which parents and professional staff collaborate more closely.     

Conceptualizations of Competence and Culture: Taking Up the Postmodern Interest in Social Interaction

To advance the multicultural counseling (MCC) movement counselors and theorists have explored how postmodern concepts might offer meaningful new directions. To expand on these discussions this paper considers what ethnomethodology (EM), an approach that has contributed to the postmodern interest in social interaction, has to offer debates around how to conceptualize competence and culture. This goal is realized by reviewing how culture and competence have been historically conceptualized in the MCC movement and articulating the challenge posed when one takes up an EM lens. Questions are generated from this perspective and consideration given to how close examinations of counselor/client interactions provide a means for answering such questions.     

Evaluation of treatment effect estimates in single‐case experimental research: comparison of twelve overlap methods and visual analysis

The purpose of this study was to compare 12 commonly‐used nonoverlap methods with each other and with the results of visual analysis. Data were obtained from 25 studies focused on embedded instruction and schema‐based instruction and included a total of 101 graphs. Treatment effect estimates using 12 nonoverlap methods were calculated for each graph by hand or using an online calculator. Five experts conducted visual analysis of each graph. Results showed that strong agreements existed between visual analysis and PND, Tau_NOVLAP and Tau‐U when raw data were analysed, and PND, PNCD and PEM‐T when categorised data were analysed. Of the 12 methods investigated, PND had the highest agreement rate with visual analysis, followed by PEM‐T, PAND, PNCD, IRD, NAP and Tau_NOVLAP. Overall, visual analysis appeared to be more conservative, as most nonoverlap methods overestimated the treatment effect. Additional research is needed to replicate and potentially validate the findings of this study.     

The impact of school culture on schools’ pupil well-being policy-making capacities

Pupil well-being has been an important topic in educational research for some time. Differences between schools in their influence on the well-being of their pupils are attributed to the policy-making capacities of the school. Little is known about schools’ policy-making capacities with regard to pupil well-being, and the impact of school culture on these policy-making capacities. This study addresses these questions using a quantitative research approach. The results show that teachers rate the policy-making capacities of their school, with regard to pupil well-being, in largely positive terms and that these policy-making capacities are mainly affected by flexible perspectives of effectiveness within the culture of schools.     

Lehrerbildung und Praxiserfahrung im ersten Berufsjahr und ihre Wirkung auf die Unterrichtskompetenzen von Studierenden und jungen Lehrpersonen im Berufseinstieg

This contribution looks at the competency development during teacher training and entry into work. The multi-perspective research design makes it possible to collate data at five stages within this transition process: at the start (t₁), in the middle (t₂) and on completion (t₃) of teacher training for primary school level (year 1–6) student teachers in two education colleges in Switzerland, as well as novice teachers at the start (t₄) and on competition (t₅) of their first year of work. The data covers eleven topic areas. This paper will present findings of data analysis for two of these topic areas for all five stages of measurement: (a) knowledge of lesson planning was captured using case vignettes and (b) teaching practice during the study program and in the first year of work was recorded on video. The same data was collated from the teaching staff involved in the practical training of the student teachers. The statements on the case vignettes were studied using content-analysis. The lesson videos were analyzed using low-inference coding for the visible occurrences during teaching and with a high-inference rating on the quality of the lessons. The results, including those for a comparison of student teachers and novice teachers with practical teacher training staff, give insights into the effectiveness of teacher training and the impact of practical experience in the first year of work on knowledge of how to plan lessons and on the form and quality of teaching. Overall, the new training at both education colleges can be given a pleasingly positive appraisal in terms of professionalization. It is, however, also possible to recognize where and to what extent a need for further developing the standard of professionalization of teaching still exists.     

The subjective well-being of first-year tertiary students during an induction programme

This article describes the perceptions of first-year students’ subjective appraisal of ttheir wellbeing before, during and after participation in an induction programme at a higher education institution (HEI). Twenty-two first-year students participated in focus group discussions (FGDs) and semi-structured individual interviews. Thematic and interpretative analyses suggested shifts in the students’ levels of well-being: high before, low during, and increased after the induction programme. Low levels of well-being were linked to experiences of fear, feeling disrespected, and disillusionment with university life, leaders, and a perceived loss of autonomy, independency and social-relatedness. An increase in well-being was associated with social integration, support, the ability for self-reflection and perspective taking. Wellbeing is a relational and collective matter which is embedded in broader contexts. Therefore, historical legacies of oppression and inequality should be challenged through constructive debate, involving previously neglected voices intentionally; and creating opportunities for the expression of students’ needs and growth potential     

Personal Digital Assistants as Point-of-Care Tools in Long-Term Care Facilities: A Pilot Study

This study used both survey and interview questionnaires. It was designed to assess the feasibility, usability, and utility of two point-of-care tools especially prepared with information relevant for dementia care by staff nurses in a small, a medium-sized, and a large nursing home in Florida. Twenty-five LPN or RN nurses were recruited for the study of their use of one of the tools—either a set of pocket cards (used by the control group) or a pocket PC (used by the experimental group). The findings of our study indicate that personal digital assistants (PDAs) can potentially improve long-term care clinicians' effectiveness and efficiency at work, resulting in better patient care for nursing home residents.     

A private matter? Religious education and democracy in Indonesia and Israel

The article examines state-supported religious education and its consequences for civic attitudes in Indonesia and Israel, two democracies that grant religion a prominent place in the public sphere, particularly in education. The comparison reveals that while in Indonesia the state was able to gradually introduce a secular curriculum in religious schools and establish an accreditation system by which it could exert influence on the way religion is taught, in Israel, by contrast, state-funded religious schools over time became increasingly opposed to a mandatory ‘core curriculum’ of general studies. The comparison further suggests that in Indonesia the inclusion of a secular curriculum in religious schools in the 1970s should be seen as one of the factors promoting the production and dissemination of ‘rationalist approaches to religion’ and brought religious actors on board of democratisation, while in Israel the exclusion of a secular curriculum from religious schooling has undermined civic commitments among ultra-Orthodox Jewish citizens and as such weakened Israeli democracy. The article is based on public opinion data, data from the Ministries of Religion and Education, and court decisions in both countries.     

Navigating Uncharted Waters: Study Abroad Predeparture Activities and the 2-Year-College Student

ABSTRACT

Study abroad programs typically reveal issues that are not commonly found in classes on the home campus. At University of Cincinnati Blue Ash College (UCBA), a 2-year regional campus of University of Cincinnati, we offer three short-term summer study abroad programs each year. Students in these programs have traditionally participated in social gatherings and orientations that include information on culture, behavior, travel logistics, program itineraries, and course curricula prior to travel. To identify student concerns about travel abroad and to measure the effectiveness of how well predeparture activities prepare our students, we administered open-ended student surveys, one predeparture and one posttravel, in our three programs. Using open and axial coding and contrastive analysis, we found that students express a variety of concerns in the areas of behavior and group dynamics, friendship and bonding, and academics and course-related issues. Moreover, posttravel surveys indicate that most of our early preparations positively affected students’ experiences abroad. Our findings suggest that well-planned predeparture activities are essential to study abroad program success with 2-year-college students.