The crucial role of theoretical scholarship for learning design and technology

Educational technology research and development -     

Extended teams in vocational education: collaboration on the border

ABSTRACT

Extended Teams (ETs), in which teachers and workplace supervisors are jointly responsible for the quality of education, were established to solve problems concerning school–workplace connections in vocational and professional education. Six ETs were investigated during their 1st year of collaboration. In addition to recordings of ET meetings, questionnaires, focus groups, and interviews yielded triangulation of data pertaining to dimensions of team work and professional growth of individual team members. Five of the 6 teams showed marked changes for team functioning, especially with regard to social ties and intellectual building as well as needs for new knowledge. Analysis of individual professional growth indicated that working in an ET contributed to understanding the other context, and altering views of what can be achieved by and for students. We conclude that ETs hold potential for strengthening school–workplace connections, but note that they did rely heavily on external support.     

Research–practice interactions as reported in recent design studies: still promising, still hazy

This study portrays recent research?Cpractice connections found in 18 design research reports focusing on the creation of instructional solutions. Solutions in different stages of development varied greatly in duration, ranging from one lesson to a whole year curriculum, spanned all levels of education, many subjects (science, math, language, culture, teacher education, etc.). Close collaboration between researchers and practitioners was prominent in all of the 18 projects studied. Participants in primary and secondary education projects have quite distinct roles regarding the teaching and researching, but they design their instruction solutions often collaboratively. Nearly all projects reported on how designed solutions were anchored in research, either from literature or from in-house project data. All articles indicated that research fed (re-)design, but few specified how. Based on our findings, we call for increased research and reporting on the specific strategies employed by design research participants to facilitate the production of new theoretical understanding through design of instructional solutions.     

Designing educative curriculum materials in interdisciplinary teams: designer processes and contributions

Instructional Science - Educative curricula support teacher learning as well as the learning of students. High quality educative curricula contain features that help teachers customize learning...     

Computer support for curriculum developers: CASCADE

This paper examines research on a family of computer-based tools, CASCADE (Computer ASsisted Curriculum Analysis, Design and Evaluation), designed to assist in the complex task of curriculum development. It begins with discussion of curriculum developers and their activities, followed by examination of how the computer can offer support for their tasks. The main elements of four related systems for computer supported curriculum development are discussed and approaches to designing tools of this nature are considered. Following an overview of main findings, this article concludes with thoughts on fruiful directions for research on computer supported curriculum development, emphasizing the need for increased attention to implementation and impact studies.     

Work-Based Curriculum to Broaden Learners’ Participation in Science: Insights for Designers

Research in Science Education - Around the globe, science education during compulsory schooling is envisioned for all learners regardless of their educational and career aspirations, including...     

Linking research and practice through teacher communities: a place where formal and practical knowledge meet?

This study characterises the links between research and practice across 12 projects concerned with the collaborative design of lesson plans by teacher communities (TCs). Analyses focused on sources of knowledge used to inform lesson design, participants’ roles and knowledge generated by the teacher community. Three patterns emerged pertaining to the sources of knowledge informing lesson plans: design guided by formal and practical knowledge, by classroom-data and practical knowledge or by a combination of all three. Findings further suggest that the emphasis given to the use of formal knowledge over classroom-data or vice versa restrains the full accomplishment of research and practice links. Across the projects studied, university researchers contributed to linking research and practice by directly or indirectly supporting community activities. Surprisingly, the role of teachers in the generation and dissemination of formal knowledge was limited. Further research should explore the effects of collaboration within TCs on researchers and policy-makers.     

The Effects of Training and Performance Feedback During Behavioral Consultation on General Education Middle School Teachers' Integrity to Functional Analysis Procedures

Gickling's model of curriculum-based assessment (CBA) has been linked to problem identification and intervention development and is used in several school consultation approaches. This article uses Ellis's (2001) three levels of research criteria to examine the use of CBA in a school consultation model. Aside from the need for more psychometric data, available research has consistently supported the theoretical soundness and demonstrated the effectiveness of CBA. However, there is evidence that CBA lacks widespread and consistent implementation. Areas for future research and implications for practice are included.     

The physical placement of classroom technology and its influences on educational practices

The purpose of this study was to gain deeper insights into how technology restructures the classroom as a spatial setting and how the positioning of these technologies can be associated with educational practices. The research includes a photographic and schematic representation of 115 classrooms in 12 primary schools in Belgium, resulting in a typology based on structural features of the classrooms. Based on the typology derived and the specific positioning of technology, nine teachers were purposefully selected and interviewed regarding their perceptions concerning the link between the use of technology and the classroom layout. The results indicate that (1) the positioning of technology can be related to specific types of technology use; (2) the classroom layout is in transition from one central display to multiple screens; and (3) because of physical access to technology, the educational practice of individual classes is spatially dispersed over different locations within the school.