Serbia Faculty Research Articles

The Relationship between the Level of Religiousness of the Christian Orthodox Female Students of Teachers’ Education Faculties in Serbia and Their Attitudes towards Orthodox-Moral Issues

Religion is a complex construct that defines not only the historical and social identity of a nation, but also the personal identity of an individual. The attitude towards religion can be conditioned by tradition, political ideology, true faith, education, etc. In our research, we have tried to establish the level of religiousness of the female students of teacher education faculties in Serbia, belonging to the Orthodox Christianity as the dominant confession in Serbia. We examined their attitudes towards some of the moral challenges encountered by believers, including abortion, prostitution, same-sex marriages, the use of cannabis, and euthanasia. Using a snowball non-discriminative online sample of 336 female Orthodox students, we found that the students assessed themselves as above-average religious and that out of three dimensions of religiousness measured in the questionnaire, the lowest scores were recorded for the dimension of the effect of faith on their behavior. The study showed that the level of religiousness is a good predictor of attitudes towards abortion, prostitution, and same-sex marriages, but not towards the use of cannabis. Moreover, religiousness and attitudes towards prostitution are positively correlated, which is directly opposite to religious teachings. This is why a question arises as to whether we can speak about a return to faith or merely a return to the traditional model of manifesting the religious as an antipode to the secular organization in force until 1989. The results of our research point to the latter conclusion.

Confessional Instruction or Religious Education: Attitudes of Female Students at the Teacher Education Faculties in Serbia

This paper presents an empirically study on the attitudes of female university students at all Teacher Education Faculties in Serbia (TEFS). For the purposes of this study, a survey was prepared to be completed by students online, and virtual exponential non-discriminative snowball sampling was applied. The independent variables were religion, major subjects, year of study, age, the completion of secondary schooling, whether an optional subject was studied during previous schooling, and whether female students were employed. The dependent variables were the respondents’ attitudes to religious instruction and civic education. The sample included 372 students from all TEFS, and the research was conducted in the period from 15 May to 8 June 2022. The data were processed with the aid of nonparametric statistics. The results showed that religion did not contribute to differences in students’ attitudes and opinions regarding the method of performing religious instruction and civic education, but that some other factors contributed to it, such as previous experience with these subjects and whether the respondent had completed secondary schooling. These results may be interpreted in the light of the weaknesses of the confessional model, that is, the lack of knowledge regarding the basic paradigms of other confessions, which is of great importance for countries such as Serbia which have numerous national minorities and religious communities.

Učenje i podučavanje o Holokaustu - perspektiva studenata nastavničkih fakulteta u Srbiji

Holocaust, defined as the process of suffering of 6 million Jews, organized by the Nazi Germany during the World War II, is a topic that does not lose its relevance. Teaching about the Holocaust should be aimed at students' understanding of historical facts, and it is also necessary to point out the importance that this part of the past has for the modern world and current social problems. In the teaching process, attention should be paid to preserving the memory of the lives of the Jews and the Jewish community in Europe before the war in order to highlight their rich cultural heritage. The paper presents the results of an empirical research aimed at analyzing the challenges in the process of learning and teaching about the Holocaust in formal and informal education. Using a close-ended questionnaire, the perspective of the students of teacher education faculties in Serbia was investigated, and the sample included 741 respondents. The results indicate a varied understanding of the term Holocaust, with the prevailing understanding that the process included a wide range of victims. Students find this topic emotionally taxing and very disturbing, and they identify this as one of the biggest obstacles encountered in teaching about the Holocaust. The obtained results can serve as a platform for creating implications for educational policies and formulating recommendations for the improvement of the school practice with the aim of deepening and expanding knowledge on this topic, but also with the aim of developing intercultural competences, reflective dealing with stereotypes and prejudices, and fostering a culture of remembrance.

Burnout Among Students of Technical Faculties in Serbia – A Case Study

Even though university students are not employees of the faculties, their academic duties (attending classes, taking exams, writing term papers and essays, and so on) can be considered as forms of work, whereby they engage socially with their teachers and other students, which is why student burnout has come into increased focus of numerous studies. The aim of this paper is to examine the relationship between gender, tuition fee status, and year of study and burnout among the students of basic academic studies at one of the public faculties in southern Serbia (N=194) using the School Burnout Inventory (SBI-U 9). The obtained results indicate that moderate exhaustion, cynicism, and the feeling of inadequacy are related to moderate burnout of the majority of the students. It has been determined that gender influences one burnout dimension – exhaustion, while the students’ tuition fee status is related to cynicism and inadequacy, as is their year of study. This study also found that high degree of burn-out increases with the years of study.

Attitudes of students of teacher education faculties in Serbia on the concept of quality school

In order to answer the question of how to make education better in the society of the digital era, it is important to consider the attitudes and opinions of student teachers towards the characteristics of a quality school. For that purpose, the research was conducted whose goal was to determine the attitudes of students of teacher education faculties, student teachers, on the concept of a quality school as well as on the emancipatory role of students and teachers necessary for the work in a quality school. The research was conducted on a sample of 1,044 students of teacher education faculties in Serbia. The Likert scale of attitudes was applied in the research. The paper presents the results of research on the concept of a quality school that would lead every student to success. It was determined that the emancipatory role of students is best seen through the extent to which they are actively engaged in their own evaluation of their achievements; how much they prepare during their studies to accept the features of a more efficient conception of a school in which every student will succeed. The results provide a very reliable basis in modeling a quality school and effective teaching that would encourage students and lead them to success according to their individual abilities.

Stavovi učitelja i studenata pedagoških/učiteljskih fakulteta o obeležjima uloga učitelja u heurističkoj nastavi u prvom ciklusu osnovnog obrazovanja i vaspitanja

Heuristic instruction is one of the less researched and used teaching models. Although it has a long history, as a special teaching model, it started to develop several decades ago. In this research, we are interested in the roles of teachers in heuristic instruction, though we cannot neglect their roles in traditional teaching as well because it is dominant in schools. The aim of the research is to examine the attitudes and opinions of primary school teachers and students of pedagogical/teacher education faculties about the roles of teachers in heuristic lessons. The research is based on descriptive scientific research method. In addition, the method of theoretical analysis was used. The research showed the opinions of 336 teachers from the territory of Belgrade and 433 students of the third and fourth-year of teacher education/pedagogical faculties in Serbia, and a list of teacher roles was determined, which, according to the respondents, are key in the efficient organization of heuristic teaching and are based on independent and creative research work of students. The obtained results indicate that the respondents take a very positive attitude towards the roles of teachers in heuristic teaching, which indicates the importance and a need for practical application of this form of teaching in our schools in the first cycle of primary school education.

University classes during the state of emergency in Serbia introduced after the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic crisis: Students’ attitudes

The state of emergency was declared in Serbia in the spring of 2020 due to the pandemic of the new disease, COVID-19. As a result, distance learning was introduced for the first time at Serbian universities - online learning in utterly specific crisis circumstances caused by the outbreak of the pandemic of a completely unknown infectious disease. This model of learning was adjusted to that fact in the form of emergency remote teaching. The paper presents the results of examining the attitudes of female students of teacher education faculties in Serbia regarding the efficiency and sustainability of the distance learning model in which they gained experience. The sample included 399 female students, who completed an online survey designed for the purposes of this research. The results of the survey showed the strengths and weaknesses of distance learning as a formerly untapped potential in higher education in Serbia, which specifically refers to the teaching model applied during the state of emergency introduced due to the crisis caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Also, the differences in the knowledge of digital technologies by the professors came to the fore in terms of the methods that the professors used in their work. The results suggest that distance learning can be a useful tool in the process of knowledge transfer in higher education, but that final year students are most affected by the inability to acquire knowledge in practice that cannot be virtually compensated, which is a very important step in their work training, as well as the pronounced general problem of lack of social interaction and meeting social needs, arising as a result of the pandemic. In contrast, increased leisure time and health reasons stand out as the main advantages of the new teaching model, which is significantly characterized by the crisis environment.

Pedagogical-Psychological Subjects in Teacher Education Faculties in Serbia: A Proposal of the Core Curriculum

Pedagogical-Psychological Subjects in Teacher Education Faculties in Serbia: A Proposal of the Core Curriculum

ABOUT THE IMPORTANCE OF STUDYING (EUROPEAN) MONETARY LAW AT DOMESTIC LAW FACULTIES

This paper points to the real and logical need for academic studying of the positive law discipline of (European) Monetary law at Law Faculties in Serbia. This branch of law is necessary for the optimal legal regulation of monetary policy, state monetary conduct and preserving monetary stability as an important public good for every monetary jurisdiction in the world. The introduction of Jean Monnet Module for European Monetary Law at the Faculty of the Law, University of Niš, is a very important step in academic teaching and scientific research on the legal regulation of public monetary affairs. The authors conclude that lawyers must have specialist knowledge from this branch of law, considering the frequency of monetary disputes and implication of monetary stability on living standards of monetary habitats and their rights to have healthy and solid currency.

Preduzetnički potencijal, individualna preduzetnička orijentacija i preduzetničke namere studenata u Srbiji

In this paper are given the findings of the research of the effects of five variables on the dimensions of the enterprise potential, individual entrepreneurial orientation, the Theory of Planned Behaviour (TPB) and dimension entrepreneurial intention, by students. The effects of the following variables are observed: Gender, One of my parents has a private business, The year in which the student is studying, Student success in learning and studying and The financial opportunities to start a new business. The respondents are studying at seven faculties in Serbia. The sample included 488 respondents. The most influential variable on the dimension entrepreneurial intentions is the financial opportunities to start a new business. Also, men have more pronounced entrepreneurial intentions. Success in studies positively influences entrepreneurial potentials and proactivity, while the possession of finance positively influences entrepreneurial intentions and risk readiness. In cases of successful studies and the possession of finance, women are more motivated, more determined, and have more pronounced entrepreneurial intentions (especially in the case of having financial resources). Although men may show a more preference to become entrepreneurs, women approach entrepreneurship more realistically and decisively.

Review of research in the function of structural engineering development in Serbia

Research at faculties in Serbia after WWII, even though they were fruit of individual efforts, resulted in significant theoretical contributions. Organized, mostly applied research was conducted within institutes with participation of scholars and researchers of the faculties. Since 1952, the Association of Yugoslav Laboratories (AYL) consolidated the research, thus providing a considerable contribution to the structural engineering in Serbia. This contribution in the field of theory and practice was the basis for the notable achievements that glorified our structural engineering worldwide. Theoretical contributions contained in the doctoral dissertations in the field of Theory of structures and Geotechnics are significant, so they were listed in the paper. Majority of these studies became a part of research project as late as in 1976, and they are briefly presented in the paper. The synthesis of project results from fundamental and technological development research was published in numerous monographs, articles, papers and proceedings of scientific and professional meetings and some of them are commented in this paper. The necessity to introduce technical regulations which have already been adopted in the EU countries EN 1990 to 1999, i.e. the Eurocode, was emphasized. There is a brief discussion of several research directions which are topical nationwide as well as worldwide.

A standstill continuing medical education in Serbia 2011-2017

Introduction/Objective. Continuing Medical Education (CME) is a crucial element to keep the level of professionalism in the three key fields of medical education: pre-clinical, clinical, and public health. The profile of CME in Serbia has been analyzed for the 2011?2017 period. Methods. Between 2011 and 2017, 11,557 courses of CME have been submitted for accreditation, described by 26 variables. Due to the predominance of nominal data, we employed a principal component analysis (PCA) using the nonlinear iterative partial least squares algorithm (PCA/PLS) to arrange the 16 variables with complete information in such a way that most influential factors could be displayed and ranked. The analysis was done with TIBCO Statistical Software. Results. The Faculty of Medicine of Belgrade takes the top position among the medical faculties in Serbia with 569 courses or 47.9% (n = 1187; 2011?2017), whereas non-educational institutions with 86.2% of all courses (n = 11,514) are the most dominant providers. Clinical topics dominate the thematic spectrum with 59.7%. Between 2012 and 2017, the total number of courses offered diminished by 16.9%. A PCA of 16 potential determinants of CME reveals that the most relevant ones are duration, credit points, price, and number of lecturers. Conclusion. For the last decade, a standstill or even a regression in the development can be observed. Especially the faculties of medicine in Serbia, as well as other major providers, should reconsider the entire structure of their administrative organization and initiate innovative development.

Marketing Mix Instruments as Factors of Improvement of Students’ Satisfaction in Higher Education Institutions in Republic of Serbia and Spain

This paper explores the impact of marketing mix instruments on the students’ satisfaction in faculties in the Republic of Serbia and Spain, with the aim of determining how significant the effects of each marketing mix tool and their combinations are in relation to satisfaction of students in Higher Education Institutions (HEIs). The detailed literature review is provided in the theoretical part, which contributes to a better understanding of terms like marketing in higher education, marketing mix instruments in higher education and students’ satisfaction. Data were collected from 896 respondents, who are all students at the faculties in Serbia and Spain, and were obtained using the questionnaire purposefully composed for this research. The methods used to highlight any gaps in this marketing mix practice and the relative customer–student satisfaction in HEIs are statistical analyses (descriptive analysis, correlation analysis, multiple regression analysis and t-independent samples tests), leading to the general conclusions regarding the following: by improving marketing mix instruments (service, distribution, human factor, physical evidence, service process) we can, and by improving (price, promotion) we cannot, improve students’ satisfaction in higher education institutions. The general conclusions clearly highlight what needs to be improved in practice in higher education institutions to improve students’ satisfaction, especially students’ loyalty, students’ choices, students’ satisfaction with the quality of the marketing mix instruments at the faculty, students’ satisfaction with expectation which they had upon enrolment and student satisfaction with the public image of the faculty, which is the main goal of these institutions.

Fractures of the acetabulum - surgical treatment and complications

Acetabular fractures represent severe injuries that mostly occur in car accidents, or after falling from greater heights, most often in the working male population. Acetabular fractures are present in our clinical practice and their treatment requires good education and surgical training. Surgical experience is one of the prerequisites for achieving good treatment results, since these fractures are accompanied by numerous complications. In order to acquire knowledge and skills in this field of surgery, it is necessary to have a national center for education at one of the medical faculties in Serbia. All dislocated acetabular fractures (? 2 mm) require early surgery, anatomical reduction, and stable internal fixation of acetabular fracture. Acetabular fracture-dislocation requires urgent reduction of the dislocated femoral head. The anatomic reduction of the fracture is related to the time of definitive bone fixation of the fracture. Fourteen days after the fracture, anatomic reduction is more difficult to achieve. In addition to the factors that positively affect the results of treatment, there are negative factors as well, which result in poor outcomes. They are directly correlated to the initial trauma that occurs at the time of injury. Fracture comminution, large dislocation (> 20 mm), injury of the femoral head, posterior dislocation of the hip, impaction, traumatic or iatrogenic sciatic nerve palsy ? these are all factors that negatively affect the outcome and are responsible for complications, as opposed to positive factors.

Violence against women and teaching at higher education institutions in Serbia

The paper has two aims. It aims to present first steps in introducing the topic of violence against women in higher education institutions in Serbia as well as to present results of exploratory research about the current situation regarding the place that violence against women as a topic has in teaching at the selected higher education institutions in Serbia. In the first part of the paper, the first time inclusion of this topic in one criminology textbook and the syllabi at the Law Faculty (University of Nis) in 1998, and later (2004) at the Faculty for special education and rehabilitation - FASPER (University of Belgrade) is described. The importance of the cooperation of the author of this paper and professor Slobodanka Konstantinovic Vilic, persons and circumstances that were beneficial for their ideas to be realized, as well as further development of teaching about violence against women at these faculties is emphasized. In the second part of the paper current state of teaching about violence against women at the Law Faculty (University of Nis) and FASPER is examined within a larger context of the situation at similar faculties in Serbia. The analysis is focused on the visibility of the violence against women topic in the syllabi of the faculties of three state universities: University of Belgrade, University of Nis and University of Novi Sad. Apart from the Nis Law Faculty and FASPER, the analysis included the law faculties of the University of Belgrade and University of Novi Sad, as well as Special education and rehabilitation studies at the Faculty of Medicine in Novi Sad. The analysis is based on the data contained in the syllabi (undergraduate, master and doctoral level) that were available online on the internet sites of the given faculties in October 2018. Qualitative analysis of the syllabi was performed. It included the following data: course title, goals, outcomes, content and reading materials. The results suggest that violence against women topic is included in teaching at the majority of the faculties encompassed by the study, while at the same time there is inconsistency in dealing with different forms of violence. The topic of domestic violence is the most common, while sexual violence and trafficking in people (women) are less present. Some faculties have courses specifically dealing with either domestic violence or trafficking in people. Other forms of violence against women, such as stalking, work-related abuse and violence against women in general, are rarely present in syllabi, i.e. only at certain faculties. We can assume that these topics are only sporadically taught, or are not taught at all. The topic of violence against women is most prominent in undergraduate level syllabi, while it is somewhat less represented on the master level and in doctoral studies. However, on the other side, some master courses are completely or largely devoted to topics related to violence against women (e.g. courses called Domestic violence and Trafficking in people). The main weakness is the fact that most of the courses that have violence against women as a part of their syllabi are optional courses, which means that all students are not educated for adequate dealing with violence against women in their future practical work. Based on the study results, the author concludes that the current situation regarding the inclusion of the violence against women topic is better than twenty years ago. However, it is necessary to conduct larger and more detailed study in order to give reliable estimation of whether education that future professionals obtain at faculties in Serbia is appropriate to assure adequate social response to violence against women in terms of its suppression, prevention and victims support.

Strani jezik struke i profesionalni razvoj vaspitača i učitelja

The difference between general foreign language learning and learning foreign languages for specific purposes (including foreign languages for academic purposes) constitutes the theoretical basis of this paper. The author also looks at the significance and role of the foreign languages for specific purposes in the context of developing modern-day professional competencies of primary and preschool teachers. In an attempt to provide answers to the questions what kind of foreign language knowledge teachers need today and what curricula and materials should be developed to meet this need, we analyse two phases that we consider relevant for developing these curricula and materials: 1) the analysis of the target group and its needs, wishes, and expectations; 2) collecting and analysing the materials to be used in teaching. Using descriptive method, the author points out the most important needs of our students, pre-service primary and preschool teachers (involving mostly the need to use professional literature and to be able to participate in international programmes of student mobility that are becoming increasingly frequent) and proposes the ways for approaching the matter of curriculum and materials development. The paper offers a comparative analysis of the current foreign language curricula at teacher education faculties in Serbia and suggests in the conclusion several possible ways of improvement. The aim is to demonstrate that a foreign language in the subject-specific academic courses is not only a means of communication, but also a medium for conveying scientific and professional information, an instrument for developing teachers' cultural and professional competencies.

Akademski studijski programi i školovanje za profesiju sport, zanimanje sportski trener

This paper was made on the basis of three cognitive steps of inductive and deductive reasoning in order to confirm the status of sport as a significant factor of the social reality in this century, to identify problems in the field of sports profession and occupations and to propose measures and activities which would set up a logical strategic baseline for defining the criteria when formulating the profession and determining sports occupations. Within the first cognitive step, the views on the mission of sports, which has been assessed to be of an immediate and utmost importance for complementing ontological and body-related study on sports in this century, have been pointed out. Within the second step, the causes leading to the fact that the profession of Sports and sports occupations are inadequately recognized, both at the national and international level, have been considered. The problems observed in the area of the academic study programs at the faculties in Serbia were analysed and correlated with the trends in education (education and training) for the sports coach occupation. Within the third step, the elements of the affirmation strategy for the profession of Sports have been proposed. The purpose of this paper should be understood as a step further in the civilization's confirmation of the importance and role of sports, as well as in providing a framework for strategic actions for the benefit of the profession, as well as the existing and new occupations in sports. In this paper, it was equally important to identify and point out the barriers found in the academic programs of Serbian faculties that need to be overcome in order to achieve the desired affirmation and progress of Physical Education and Sport Science.

ДРУШТВЕНЕ МРЕЖЕ У ОБРАЗОВАЊУ: СТАВОВИ И ОЧЕКИВАЊА СТУДЕНАТА/SOCIAL NETWORKS IN EDUCATION: ESTIMATES AND EXPECTATIONS OF STUDENTS

The paper, in theoretic terms deals with the phenomena of social networks and points out the possibility of their use as a technology innovation in university teaching. The central part of the empiric relations of the paper, them being the main purpose of this research, is the orientation of the students of teacher training faculties in Serbia towards social networks and their use in university teaching. The research was performed in the academic year 2012/13 on an appropriate and stratified sample of 208 students of the first and fourth year of Bachelor Academic studies and students of Master studies of teacher training faculties in Belgrade, Užice and Vranje. Besides the student preference of the use of social networks in education, the variables of the research are the year of studies and their attitude towards the use of social networks in teaching. The data was gathered through the survey and scaling techniques, and processed by the SPSS software package. The instruments used were a questionnaire and the Likert scale. Descriptive method was used to interpret the acquired data. The result of the research shows that the students of teacher training faculties have different opinions towards the use of social networks, and they have different attitudes towards the use of social networks in university teaching. One half of the surveyed students support and advocate this technology innovation, while the other half is against it or has no attitude whatsoever on the matter, which indicates that this phenomenon must be addressed with significantly more attention.

Quality and directions of development of scientific research at teacher-training faculties in Serbia

By applying descriptive methods an analysis of the quality and potential development of scientific-research work at teacher's training faculties in Serbia in the period from 2009 to 2013. The results of performed comparative analyzes indicate that teacher's training faculties in Serbia are uniform in terms of the considered indicators of the quality of scientific-research work and the rising trend in the analyzed period. They identified differentiated lines of improving the quality of scientific-research work on teacher's training faculties.

Law in accredited tourism curricula at higher education institutions in Serbia

Tourism is relatively new but still a very complex industry, which creates the necessity for legal regulations of different relations in tourism. Quite often, the relations are completely new to the existing legislation and legal practice. On the other hand, it is relatively easy to find appropriate examples for many of them in existing law of obligations, ownership, civil and other laws. The course of Law in Tourism is necessary for educating and training students in order to introduce them to legal disciplines and institutions regulating social relations relevant to tourism industry. It includes relations between a company (entrepreneurs) and the state, relations between companies in tourism industry and tourism service sector and agents with the direct user - a tourist. The aim of this paper is to attempt to present the updated situation of law courses by analyzing curricula of tourism colleges and faculties in Serbia. Methodology used for data collection is based on desk research with national and international references, mostly from tourism field. Comparison and analysis were mostly used in data processing. The paper consists of two parts. The first part is entitled 'Defining Tourism and Law in Tourism' and the second is 'Representation of Law Courses in Accredited Tourism Curricula at Higher Education Institutions in Serbia'. Based on the curriculum and sylabus analy­sis of tourism higher education institutions, it can be concluded that law courses are inadequately represented with a total of only 3.8%.