Formal Education Sector Research Articles

Multilingualism, language policy and creative writing in Kenya

Language use and creative writing go hand in hand. In the process of exploring language, we also engage in the study of literature. An engagement with literature is, indeed, a continuing process of improving our capacity to use language and refining our sensibility to good language use. In Kenya, there are clearly discernible patterns of creative writing which may be linked to language policies. In this article we trace language policies in Kenya's formal education sector since 1963, drawing parallels between the prevailing policies and the patterns of creative writing. In the first instance it is an overview of literary output in Kenya since 1963. In the process, however, we shall engage in literary appreciation of selected pieces. Our discussion includes creative writing produced locally in English by writers for whom English would not be considered their mother tongue, as well as creative writing in the local languages. The issue of multilingualism and translation is central to our literary appreciation; whether translation is a subconscious activity during the writing process, or is formally undertaken by a different person after the work has been published, or is in the minds of those reading the work.

The Si Huan Playgroup: an initiative to provide non-formal early childhood education experiences to children of migrants in Beijing

This paper is about an experiment in non-formal early childhood education for migrant children in Beijing. The Si Huan Playgroup was set up by a group of volunteers in 2004 and is built on ideas of early childhood pedagogy, equity, life-long learning and non-formal education. Non-formal education has implications for policy makers as this is a model that has the potential to build capacity in disadvantaged communities and provide educational experiences for preschool children. The model, as envisaged by the participants of the Si Huan Playgroup, is a provider of preschool education, operates on a volunteer basis that aims to be an educational experience for both the volunteer parents and the children. The playgroup operates alongside existing preschools in the formal education sector. Policy makers in Beijing can see tensions around the growth of a sector that is developing outside regulatory and legislative guidelines. The Si Huan playgroup has been closed down by the authorities a number of times. In this paper we outline the history and growth of the Si Huan Playgroup, explore the theoretical underpinnings of non-formal education and discuss the problems inherent in such an initiative, as well as commenting on the sustainability of such a model.

RECOGNITION OF PRIOR LEARNING (RPL) AND SUPPORT: ARE THE LEARNING NEEDS OF RPL FIRST-YEAR STUDENTS DIFFERENT?

RPL was first established in the United States during the late 1960s and was initially used in their formal education and training sector (Dyson & Keating, 2005). Certain international higher education institutions (HEIs) have been using Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) for more than 30 years, particularly in the USA, Canada, Northern Ireland, Britain and Australia (Gawe cited in Moore & Van Rooyen, 2002; Geyser, 2001). The origins of RPL in South Africa can be traced to several projects and policy-making structures established by the trade union movement and the ANC in the struggle for liberation in the late 1980s (SAQA, 2002:9). RPL was placed on the South African educational agenda in the early 1990s prior to the birth of South Africa’s new democracy (Breier, 2007). Its establishment was strongly motivated by the trade union movement, for example, the Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU), to recognise the knowledge and skills of millions of previously disadvantaged workers and the movement fought for the rights of workers to gain access to HEIs to improve their chances of promotion and employment. In this context RPL was seen as a mechanism to redress sociopolitical imbalances of the past (Cretchley & Castle, 2001). The proliferation of RPL into HEIs, globally and locally, suggests that using only traditional access as the indicator for access to HEIs and success is “inadequate and outdated” (Kistan, 2002:171).

Education for sustainable development in East Timor

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to explore the relevance of Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) in East Timor and proposes a set of ESD indicators to be implemented in the formal education sector. Design/methodology/approach – A detailed analysis of relevant literature concerning national development plans (Republica Democrática de Timor-Leste, 2011), literature centred in East Timor and international perspectives about ESD principles, policies and values (UN reports) was carried, in order to examine the relevance of ESD in East Timor and to assist the selection of a set of ESD indicators. These indicators are proposed in order to assess and monitor if the current national policies, educational programmes, secondary school content, learning goals and activities in formal education express concerns related with ESD promotion in terms of specific curricular themes, learning characteristics, learning resources, skills, values and attitudes. Findings – This paper argues that the East Timor government has intentions in ESD promotion and implementation. Thus, ESD indicators could be helpful in assessment of new curricular practices. However, even though ESDI may indicate that secondary school programmes, content, learning goals or activities are aligned with ESD principles, it is also important to assess if they then contribute effectively to sustainable development. Originality/value – The case study of East Timor adds to the literature about the current interests of young countries such as this in progressing towards a sustainable future, starting from the selection and implementation of ESD indicators in the current curriculum reform. If it is successful, ESD will contribute to transforming not only education but also the quality of life of the East Timorese.

Conceptualising the learning organisation: creating a maturity framework to develop a shared understanding of the library's role in literacy and learning

Although they sit outside the formal education sector, libraries are intrinsically centres of learning where people can engage with knowledge and ideas and acquire the literacy skills that are essential for active participation in an increasingly digital society. In Australia, National and State Libraries Australasia (NSLA) has acknowledged the need to not only better understand the general concept of ‘the library as a learning institution’, but also to help the individual NSLA libraries specifically identify their capabilities in this arena. The NSLA Literacy and Learning project aimed to improve the members' organisational comprehension and practice as learning institutions and to help them conceptualise their ability to deliver literacy and learning programmes that will benefit their staff and their communities. The NSLA concept of ‘learning institution’ encompassed two discrete lenses: the internal lens of the library's own organisational understanding and practice, and the external lens of the clients who engage in the literacy and learning programmes delivered by the library. The ultimate goal was to develop a matrix which could enable libraries to assess their perceived levels of maturity as learning institutions along a continuum of ‘emerging’ to ‘active’ capabilities. The matrix should also serve as a tool for shared understanding about the NSLA's own strategic directions in the literacy and learning space. This case study documents the evolving process of developing a learning institution maturity framework for libraries that considers individual, team and organisational learning, as well as clients' interactions with the organisation, with the goal of producing a framework that has the potential to measure the value of learning and growth in both the library's staff and the library's communities.

Student Perceptions of Agricultural Education Programme Processes at Selected High Schools in KwaZulu-Natal Province, South Africa

Purpose: This study investigates student perceptions of different aspects of Agricultural Education and Training (AET) programme processes that have been offered in secondary schools by the formal educational sector in the province of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. The study seeks to identify the existing shortcomings in the implementation of the agricultural education curriculum by gathering important information considering three different types of agricultural science schools. The intention of this study is to inform education policy-makers, programme organizers and teachers at all levels and thereby assist them in the identification of those areas in which improvements can be made.Design/methodology/approach: The sample population of 375 pupils was selected from high schools in the province of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. The research was arranged in nested concurrent mixed sampling designs. The response rate for this sample was 97%. The survey was conducted by using a pre-tested structured interview schedule.Findings: The results show that in the teaching and learning process there is sufficient agricultural lesson coverage, notes for each lesson and time compatibilities in covering agricultural textbooks within the allocated teaching times. However, problems do exist, namely, wasted uncovered class lessons, inadequate teaching aids and materials, and a shortage of trained agricultural science teachers. The majority of agricultural science students indicate the unavailability of sufficient infrastructure and support.Practical implications: It is recommended that the responsible bodies should give serious consideration to the improvement of teaching aids and teacher training within the system. Throughout the system, thoughtful consideration should be given to the teacher-student-teaching-learning infrastructure.Originality/value: The article presents actual data collected from the province. Analysing the educational processes and taking appropriate action could help to solve the existing teaching and learning problems in the system.

The Role of Youth in Post Accord Transformation in Northern Ireland

Despite increased international interest in the contribution of education to peacebuilding, there has been a neglect of the role that non-formal youth programming can play in this process. This article examines three such youth programmes in post-accord Northern Ireland through the theoretical lens of their contribution to social, economic and political transformations. Given the sustained context of segregation and limitations of the formal education sector as a mechanism for transformation, the paper argues that the non-formal sector has played an important role in ensuring inclusion of multiple youth perspectives in a divided society. It also raises a number of critical questions regarding the politics of multiple youth representation and the strength of genuine commitment to peacebuilding in terms of conflict transformation.

Attitude of Students in the Formal Educational Sector towards Agricultural Education and Training in South Africa

The purpose of this study was to determine the attitude of students towards agricultural education and training (AET). The sample population of the study was 375 high school agricultural science st...

Turning the digital divide into digital dividends through free content and open networks: WikiEducator Learning4Content (L4C) Initiative

In today’s world, where tuition fees continue to rise rapidly and the demand for higher education increases in both the developing and developed world, it is important to find additional and alternative learning passage ways, learners can afford.
 
 Traditional education as we have known it has begun to change, allowing for new parallel learning opportunities to take shape and avenues to open up.
 
 This paper describes the world’s largest online training initiative in open education, teaching wiki technology online to educators in the formal education sector worldwide but not limited to.
 
 “WikiEducator” founded in 2006, operated with funding support by the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation (WFHF) and under the auspices of the Commonwealth of Learning (COL), an intergovernmental organization created by Commonwealth Heads of Government, to encourage the development and sharing of open learning and distance education knowledge, resources and technology. 
 
 In May 2009, it became its own entity residing under the Otago Polytechnic’s International Centre for Open Education Resources under the auspices of the Open Education Resource Foundation (OERF) in Dunedin, New Zealand, where it is still today.
 
 WikiEducator’s flagship, the Learning4Content (L4C) project builds capacity among global educators by teaching wiki technology to newcomers in open education and experts alike, and asks participant to create open content on WikiEducator, to contribute towards WikiEducator’s strategic objectives, in exchange for the one free training opportunity received. 
 
 The success of the L4C project provided the basis for WikiEducator reaching its target figures of teaching 2500 educators wiki skills in three year, two years in advance and was the reason why large number of newbies and experts alike joined the project.
 
 Even though most learners make users of the offered free learning opportunities through the L4C project, there are learners in today’s world who will never have the opportunity to learn online or even have access to computers. WikiEducator developed a feature called “wiki-to-print” which allows you to select and combine free and open WikiEducator content into a book that can be printed out and used offline. This provides an opportunity to reach the unreached to gain access to knowledge and information.
 
 The paper will take you through the different development stages and outcomes and is the world’s largest attempt to build wiki skills among global educators.

In Transition towards Sustainability: Bridging the Business and Education Sectors of Regional Centre of Expertise Greater Sendai Using Education for Sustainable Development-Based Social Learning

This article discusses a business-school collaborative learning partnership in the Regional Centre of Expertise (RCE) on Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) in Greater Sendai. This partnership is further linked to a broader context of multi-stakeholder public participation in the RCE that was set up to advance the ESD agenda in the region. The authors propose a conceptual framework for multi-stakeholder, ESD-based social learning within the RCE with the aim of enabling the creation of a sustainability-literate society. This proposal is based on the results of students’ prior experience in ESD activities, optimal age for ESD learning and future job choices presented in this paper, together with a reported article that the levels of sustainability of the two sectoral organizations were mixed and hence need improvement. The paper argues that it will be good to focus on bridging the business and education sectors by building ESD capacity of the children and youth in the formal education sector. It contends this could be done through collaborative learning using the government-mandated “Period of Integrated Studies” (PIS) in the Japanese primary and secondary school curriculum. Additionally, it will be appropriate for the RCE Greater Sendai Steering Committee to facilitate and coordinate the learning processes and also promote networking and cooperative interactions among the actors and stakeholders in the region. Recommendations for improvement of the learning partnerships in RCE Greater Sendai are made for consideration at the local and national policy levels.

Diffusing Education for Sustainability into Teacher Education Programme in Nigeria: A Theory in Use

The benefits of integrated understanding of the issues, acquisition of the knowledge and the skills, understanding of the right perspectives, and development of appropriate values in respect of the intertwined actions and reactions of environment, economy and society make Education for Sustainability(EfS) an innovation that must be explored – more importantly for communication within the formal education sector, because such learning may be more sustainable than the one received through the informal system. This paper therefore explores an application of the “Diffusion of Innovation Theory” which identifies information, its communication, the social system and time as the four essential elements involved in the dissemination of information about an emerging problem; and in this context, an education that combines the study of development and environment as the innovation that should be communicated within the formal education sector, using the socially critical orientations and based on negotiations between the teacher and the recipients(learners). The paper thus reflects on the educational implications of the theory and suggests that curriculum of teacher education institutions must be reviewed to accommodate the learning content of EfS (e.g. climate change, green economy, democracy equity and social justice, structural change, reclamation of social bonds, waste disposal/management/recycling) and theorising more on learner -friendly approaches, so as to have a trickle down effects on the younger generation of school children who are the final recipients of environment and development-related education.

Schools together: enhancing the citizenship curriculum through a non-formal education programme

In divided societies education for diversity, often introduced via the combined approaches of civic education, citizenship education and community-relations activity, is advocated as a core element of the school curriculum. Its delivery, through formal and non-formal educational approaches, has been routinely recognised as an opportunity for interactive learning, offering intellectual, social and emotional advantages to all involved. From its roots in the non-formal youth sector, the work of the Spirit of Enniskillen (SOE) Trust now encompasses formal partnerships with schools through a ‘dealing with difference together’ programme involving groups of sixth-form students (17–18 years) in a programme for citizenship education as a complementary and/or supplementary option to the subject area of Local and Global Citizenship. Based on a developmental evaluation of the Schools Together programme, this paper presents a case study of a collaborative schools-based programme for diversity in Northern Ireland. In particular, it outlines the unique characteristics of collaboration between the formal and non-formal education sectors; highlights the intrinsic value of such programmes for capacity-building and sustainability in schools; and identifies the contribution of such initiatives to educational reform and wider social change.

Collaborative Online Learning in Non-Formal Education Settings in the Developing World

In the present knowledge economy, individuals, particularly working adults, need to continuously acquire purposeful knowledge and skills so they can better contribute towards addressing society’s ever-changing developmental challenges. In the developing world however, few opportunities exist for working adults to acquire such new learning experiences through the formal education sector, and this makes it imperative for organizations to develop non-formal education and training programs to help address this need. With the proliferation of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) worldwide, this article recommends the adoption of Collaborative Online Learning (COL) by non-formal learning organizations as a means of helping address the education and training needs of working adults. The article thus provides an overview of COL, and then draws on the research literature on relevant theories to recommend best-practice strategies for designing and delivering effective and workable COL initiatives within non-formal education settings, particularly in the developing world.

Evaluation of the non‐formal forest education sector in the state of North Rhine‐Westphalia, Germany: organisations, programmes and framework conditions

Although a large number of different organisations offer various forest education programmes within Germany, specific information (i.e., sectoral and programme content and provision at a state level) is lacking. This study used a survey of all 61 forest education organisations (43 respondents) in the state of North Rhine‐Westphalia, Germany, to evaluate its forest education sector, with a specific focus on the organisations, demand for its services, forest educational programmes and framework conditions. Input from expert interviews was also used to develop recommendations. The study indicates that, especially with children as the main target group, many non‐formal programmes are offered to support the formal environmental education sector and to promote leisure activities in the forest. Yet, despite a high demand for forest education, low personnel resources restrict the number of visits and activities, principally owing to limited financial resource. We also discuss the provision of innovative new educational programmes and supplementary services, combined with increased quality management, that could be beneficial to the future development of the sector in NRW.

Founders’ human capital and the performance of UK new technology based firms

This paper investigates the role of entrepreneurs’ general and specific human capital on the performance of UK new technology based firms using a resource based approach to the entrepreneurship theory. The effect of entrepreneurial human capital on the performance of NTBFs is investigated using data derived from a survey of 412 firms operating in both high-tech manufacturing and the services sectors. According to the resource based theory it is found that specific human capital is more important for the performance of NTBFs in relation to general. More specifically individual entrepreneurs or entrepreneurial teams with high levels of formal business education, commercial, managerial or same sector experience are found to have created better performing NTBFs. Finally it is found that the performance of a NTBF can improve through the combination of heterogeneous but complementary skills, including, for example, technical education and commercial experience or managerial technical and managerial commercial experience.

The development of ESD-related competencies in supportive institutional frameworks

Although Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) is a matter of global importance, the requirements and needs of people differ according to their regional circumstances. (Not only) in Germany—in keeping with the increasingly international focus of “output” evaluations—one dominant educational debate has centred on effective ways of mapping and understanding pupils’ competencies. This article provides a Model of Competence for ESD in the formal education sector. This model aims to inform the organisation of teaching and to help assess the learning outcomes of pupils who have received instruction in issues relating to ESD. The competence model was developed and extended in connection with two German federal state innovation programmes which aimed to implement the concept of ESD in schools across the country.

Moral spaces, the struggle for an intergenerational environmental ethics and the social ecology of families: an ‘other’ form of environmental education

‘Green families’ in Australia were studied so as to shed light on how a more durable, everyday environmental ethic and ecopolitic might slowly be enacted in the intimacy of the home ‘place’ over an extended period of time in rapidly changing socio‐cultural‐ecological conditions. Of particular interest to this study of the green household, or postmodern oikos, was how its proximal ‘moral spaces’ have been nurtured intergenerationally by family members from within the broader global climate of what Zygmunt Bauman refers to as the ‘moral lag’ of postmodernity. Three layers of interpretive findings about the social ecology and family dynamics of this oikos are presented in an effort to provide detailed understandings about families’ eco being, dwelling and becoming. Implications for education for the environment can be gleaned from the ‘best’ ecopedagogical practices found in the home that are ‘other’ than those occurring in the formal education sector. This study adds to the theorizations of ‘social ecology’, ‘experiential education’, ‘ecopedagogy’ and, more generally, the notion of an everyday ‘ecocentrism’, while providing some clues for how environmental education in schools might mirror pedagogical aspects of the postmodern oikos.

A Process Evaluation of the Mentorship Programme of the University of Education, Winneba

This evaluation of the mentorship programme of the University of Education, Winneba (UEW), is a partfulfillment of the requirements for the completion of a Postgraduate Diploma in Monitoring andEvaluation Methods course undertaken at the University of Stellenbosch, South Africa. The University ofEducation, Winneba (UEW) is a higher education institution mandated by the Act that established it totrain teachers for the country’s formal education sector. In line with this mandate, the University adoptedthe model that is made up of a 3-year on campus theory-based and one-year off-campus school based.The one-year school-based experience is referred to as the Student Internship Programme(SIP). This is an intensive school-based student teaching-learning experience, which provides astructured, supervised and clinical experience for the student-teacher. The conceptual underpinnings ofthis programme is that teachers are supposed to be reflective decision makers who facilitate students’learning by reflecting on their practice, assess and improve their teaching behaviours.

Interrelationships of non-formal mother tongue education and citizenship in Guinea and Senegal

Guinea and Senegal are multilingual countries that use French as a language of instruction in the formal educational sector with some significant exceptions. As in many other African countries, such exceptions in Guinea and Senegal, use local African languages primarily in the non-formal sector for a variety of purposes, such as adult literacy and basic education for youth. In this chapter, we examine mother tongue (MT) education as it contributes to a type of citizenship education, focusing on the ways that MT education can, with varying degrees of effectiveness, redefine local communities and forge alliances with communities of near and distant places and at local, regional, national, and global levels. The two case studies presented here, of the N'KO schools in Guinea and the Ecole Communautaires de Base programs in Senegal, offer examples of different approaches to MT education and its impact prevalent not only in Guinea and Senegal but also other countries in the immediate region of West Africa and beyond.

Civil society, democracy and education

This special issue of Education, Citizenship and Social Justice is based on the 2008 Annual Conference, ‘Civil Society, Democracy and Education’ of the International Centre for Education for Democratic Citizenship (ICEDC), a joint international centre between Birkbeck and the Institute of Education, both University of London. The conference brought together national and international researchers, policymakers and practitioners to debate the contested meanings of civil society, democratic engagement and social justice both in the public and political sphere and as they relate to education and citizenship education. There is growing recognition of the role of civil society as both a normative ideal and also a site of democratic and broadly political engagement for social justice. Across the world, civil society organizations play an important role in raising awareness of issues and in campaigning for equity and greater democratic participation. Within the formal education sector, citizenship education often depends on the inputs of non-governmental organizations (NGOs) for materials, personnel and curriculum development. A wide range of papers were presented at the conference, from across the academic disciplines of politics, sociology and education, including both theoretical and empirical considerations of the issues under question. Papers also included case studies of policies and practices in schools and communities, as well as analyses and interrogation of projects and initiatives at local, regional, national, international and European levels. The papers selected to provide articles for this special issue include keynotes given by Professor Michael Apple, Professor Madeleine Arnot, Professor Mayo and Professor John Annette. In addition, two additional papers (Pykett, Shukla) were selected on merit and which complement the themes addressed by the keynote papers.