British teachers’ transnational work within and beyond the British Empire after the Second World War

Focusing on British graduates from Gipsy Hill Training College (GHTC) in London, this article illustrates transnational history’s concerns with the reciprocal flows of people and ideas within and beyond the British Empire. GHTC’s progressive curriculum and culture positioned women teachers as agents of change, and the article highlights the lives and work of married and single graduates overseas after the Second World War. Some migrated to the dominions of Australia, Canada and New Zealand, while South Africa and Southern Rhodesia (Zimbabwe) were popular destinations for short-term teaching contracts. A few graduates went to the colonies as missionaries and colonial servants, and a handful taught in extra-imperial sites. Wherever they were located, these British women promulgated the college’s progressive ideals and shared their experiences with people at home in Britain, thereby shaping understandings of the Empire and constructing a world that was differentiated by class, gender, race and nation.     

A thousand words are worth a picture: a snapshot of trans* postsecondary educators in higher education

Abstract

Trans* is becoming a buzzword and trans* celebrities have become increasingly visible. On college campuses, trans* students have also become more visible and advocacy for them continues to be extremely important. To support these claims, some literature has emerged regarding trans* college students’ identity development and experiences on campuses, including their perceptions of campus climate. However, higher education scholars and professionals know virtually nothing about the lived experiences of trans* educators working in colleges and universities. Extending on the importance of scholarship regarding trans* college students, trans* educators’ experiences are important because these educators are in positions of influence as mentors, advisors, and role-models to students and colleagues, and perhaps knowing their journey and how they can better be supported will allow their contributions on campuses to become more visible. Additionally, these educators are in positions of power in the university and encourage all people invested in higher education environments to advocate for increased notions of gender and inclusion in their offices, departments, units and the university as a whole. Through the use of portraiture methodology, with semi-structured interviews and a participant-observation as methods the purpose of this study was to help make more visible the lives and experiences of trans* postsecondary educators, while expanding notions of gender in higher education.     

Fostering teacher educators’ professional development in research and in supervising student teachers’ research

Most teacher educators who work at institutes for higher vocational education have faced a new role since the European Community aimed to upgrade the general quality of education. Research tasks have been added as a new important core business for institutes that used to be mainly focused on education. Teacher educators therefore have to become familiar with research knowledge and skills, and with the skills to supervise student teachers in conducting research. Professional development activities have been set up to prepare them for it. In this explorative study, we investigated the extent to which four different professional development activities within three Dutch institutes for teacher education contributed to the knowledge and skills needed for these new tasks. We gathered data by interviewing 12 teacher educators. In addition to some striking differences, we found corresponding positive experiences in all four activities. Exchanging experiences and discussing issues with colleagues was perceived to be the most outstanding part of each activity. This research has yielded necessary insights into constructing professional development activities. It is clear that any professional development activity about research should be consistent with teacher educators’ daily practices and concerns.     

What Does the No Child Left Behind Act Mean to Early Childhood Teacher Educators?: A Call for a Collective Professional Rejoinder

This article is a call to become more critically aware of the new law commonly referred to as No Child Left Behind Act, which was put into effect in 2002 in the United States. The article is also an invitation to early childhood educators worldwide to engage in a dialogue that raises several questions: (a) How does such legislation affect early childhood educators and teacher preparation programs?; (b) How might teacher educators react and respond to the new law as they continuously practice informed decision-making about teacher preparation that is socially responsible? In view of these questions, it is a hope that we can see the initiation of nationwide dialogue regarding the issue of the No Child Left Behind Act. Primarily, how does the new law affect teacher educators and teachers? It is inevitable for us to be united and politically informed to prevent further scrutiny of questionable politically and economically driven educational practices in the United States, not to mention “test-heavy” evidence-based education reform.     

Supporting university content specialists in providing effective professional development: the educative role of evaluation

Evaluation of professional development (PD) has traditionally been composed of summative and formative feedback, and has focused on assessing the extent to which the PD impacts participating teachers’ knowledge, beliefs, and practices. This study establishes an additional purpose for PD evaluation – as educative opportunities for professional developers, particularly for PD providers who are university-level content specialists (e.g. scientists, mathematicians, statisticians, engineers). Through analysis of data collected as state-wide evaluators for one US Midwest state’s Improving Teacher Quality Grant PD programs, and utilizing an analysis methodology which we term ‘recommendation traces,’ we examine formative evaluation recommendations that we made to four different PD projects over three years. Findings from this study shed light on how content specialists who work in PD projects can learn about effective PD through project evaluation efforts.     

Combining the ‘why’ and ‘how’ of teaching sustainability: the case of the business school academics

Abstract

Faculty are key to bringing about ‘bottom-up’ change for sustainability education. Yet, research is still needed on the backgrounds and experiences of change agents in universities and the challenges they face. This study focuses on the marketing discipline, a field fraught with epistemological tensions in seeking to integrate sustainability, mainly revolving around profit maximisation and continuous consumption while living on a planet with finite resources. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with sustainability marketing academics in Australasia, Europe and North America. The contribution of this paper lies in the development of a sustainability educator typology linking why and how integration occurs. The sustainability ‘transformer’ wishes to engage in transformational learning, changing student mindsets, the ‘thinker’ wants to encourage critical thinking to bring about the discussion of worldviews, while the ‘actioner’ hopes ‘learning by doing’ (community projects) will provide an appreciation for sustainability. We discuss implications for those disciplines which struggle with philosophical tensions and colleague resistance to the integration of sustainability in the form of suggestions for professional development (i.e. creation of positive nature experiences) and pedagogical approaches (critical, transformative and community-service learning).     

Master in oral biology program: A path to addressing the need for future dental educators

In dental education, the anatomical sciences, which include gross anatomy, histology, embryology, and neuroanatomy, encompass an important component of the basic science curriculum. At Creighton University School of Dentistry, strength in anatomic science education has been coupled with a solid applicant pool to develop a novel Master of Science in Oral Biology, Anatomic Sciences track degree program. The program provides a heavy emphasis on developing teaching skills in predoctoral students as well as exposure to research processes to encourage the cohort to pursuing a career in academic dentistry. The individuals considered for this program are applicants for admission to the School of Dentistry that have not been accepted into the entering dental class for that year. The students undertake a two year curriculum, studying anatomic sciences with a special emphasis on teaching. The students also must complete a research project that requires a thesis. The students in the program are guaranteed acceptance to dental school upon successful completion of the program. After six years, the first ten students have received their Master of Science degrees and continued in dental school. The program is favorably viewed by the faculty and participating students. It is also considered successful by metrics. Nine of the ten graduates have said they would like to participate in academic dentistry in some capacity during their careers. Anat Sci Educ 10: 607–612. © 2017 American Association of Anatomists.     

Maternal-infant attachment, naturally

In answer to a reader's question about the necessity of prenatal sonograms, this column asserts that, unl there is a serious medical problem, mothers should depend less on technology and more on their natural abilities to foster the all-important bond with their babies.     

学生事务管理者的新转型——从批判性文化观点的视角分析

学生事务管理者向新的角色转型是提高学生管理水平、培养高素质人才的重要途径。以女权主义、批判性理论、后现代主义和多元文化主义为基础的批判性文化观点对学生事务管理者的新转型具有重要的影响。于是，从强调民主、平等、关爱和多元文化的批判性文化观点入手，为分析学生事务管理者为何转型、向哪转型以及如何转型提供了一个新的视角。     

Educators‘ perceptions of an in-service training programme

Abstract

In-service training programmes for educators (INSET) in South Africa have a common objective, namely to support unqualified or underqualified educators to teach their subjects well. The Science, Technology, Environmental and Mathematics Education (STEME) outreach programme is an initiative of the University of South Africa to support these educators with skills and knowledge to teach these subjects efficiently. This article reports on an INSET programme for science teachers who took part in STEME and serves as a case study to investigate educators’ perceptions of the programme. The study, which involved a total of 13 educators, had two phases which were conducted during and after the INSET programme respectively. A focus group interview was conducted in the first phase while individual interviews were conducted in the second phase at the participants’ schools. Participants valued facilitators’ knowledge, continuous support and demonstration of new skills in practical real-life situations. Their main concern was applying the skills at their schools within present circumstances. This case study can serve to inform other service providers on what educators expect from INSET programmes.