Intentional Curriculum Research Articles

Формирование профессионально значимых стереотипов и речевого поведения будущего врача в мультикультурном пространстве вуза

This article examines the process of shaping professional attitudes of future medical specialist within the framework of an open cultural space and the medicalization of culture. Among these attitudes are communicative competence, a tolerant attitude towards patients from diverse cultures, their attitudes towards medicine and health, and their manner of communication with healthcare professionals. The authors emphasize that a medical university serves as a model of an open cultural space, which facilitates the development of necessary attitudes and skills for professional activity. It is demonstrated that within the educational context of a medical university, skills in physician-patient communication must be cultivated. The special role of the university in the development of students’ communicative competence and formation of communicative personality of future medical worker is emphasized. Through intentional curriculum design and experiential learning opportunities, students are empowered to become competent and compassionate medical professionals capable of providing high-quality care to patients from diverse cultural backgrounds. Keywords: professional

Mapping Competencies: A Profound Analysis of Semester 1 Cadets at a Premier Maritime Institute

This academic exploration delves into the nuanced competencies and dynamics shaping the academic journey of Semester 1 cadets at a distinguished Maritime Institute. Focusing on computer literacy, technological proficiency, and sociocultural influences, our qualitative descriptive approach seeks to unveil the intricate dimensions of contemporary maritime education. The assessment of computer literacy reveals varying competencies, urging the need for a tailored curriculum. While basics like office software and digital navigation are strong, disparities in data analysis proficiency call for targeted interventions. The implications highlight the necessity for a stratified curriculum, ensuring a comprehensive skill set in line with modern maritime demands. Cadets overwhelmingly endorse technology's role in enhancing education, signalling a paradigm shift. Positive attitudes towards online resources, digital simulations, and e-learning platforms advocate for an institutional embrace of cutting-edge tools. Recommendations focus on faculty development and increased technology integration, promising an enriched pedagogical landscape. The exploration of sociocultural influences uncovers a delicate balance between tradition and the necessity of English proficiency. Nuanced strategies are essential to integrate diverse cultural backgrounds. Recommendations call for cultural awareness initiatives and language support programs, aligning the institution with the global orientation of maritime education. In qualitative insights, cadets express a collective desire for a more intentional curriculum, particularly in incorporating cultural perspectives. This aligns with the broader scholarly discourse advocating for holistic education. Proposed avenues include workshops, seminars, and collaborations with cultural experts, providing a roadmap for curriculum development congruent with the diverse needs of Semester 1 cadets. This research, rooted in rigorous academic inquiry, serves as a guide for the Maritime Institute, steering its trajectory towards producing technologically adept professionals who are equally culturally astute, ready to navigate the complex global maritime landscape.

A multisite cross-sectional study of intercultural competencies in doctor of physical therapy students

BackgroundPhysical therapists (PTs) work in diverse communities with individuals whose identities and beliefs may differ significantly from their own. Academic institutions must include intentional curriculum aimed at graduating PTs who can skillfully navigate intercultural encounters. Being prepared to engage with difference and demonstrate skills related to intercultural competencies (ICC) will prepare entry-level PTs to provide individualized, high-quality care. Intercultural competencies are essential skills that can reduce healthcare disparities, and promote equitable and inclusive healthcare delivery. This study examined the impact of PT curricula, student demographics, and participation in intercultural learning experiences (ILEs) on students’ development of ICC.MethodsA cross-sectional study of 8 Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT) programs in the United States (US) compared ICC in first-year (F) and third-year students (T), and T who participated in an ILE (T + ILE) to those who did not (T-only). Subjects included 1,038 students. Outcome measures included The Inventory for Assessing the Process of Cultural Competence-among healthcare professionals-Student Version© (IAPCC-SV), and a demographic survey.ResultsIndependent t-tests showed that group T (mean = 64.34 ± 5.95, 95% CI: 63.78-64.90) had significantly higher IAPCC-SV total scores than group F (mean = 60.8 ± 5.54, 95% CI = 60.33-61.27, p < 0.05). Group T + ILE (mean = 65.81 ± 5.71, 95% CI = 64.91-66.71) demonstrated significantly higher IAPCC-SV total scores than group T-only (mean = 63.35 ± 5.8, 95% CI = 62.6-64.1, p = 0.039). A one-way ANOVA and post hoc comparisons showed that the 25 to 34-year age group (mean = 63.80 ± 6.04, 95% CI = 63.25-64.35, p < 0.001) and the ≥ 35-year age group (mean = 64.21 ± 5.88, 95% CI = 62.20-66.22, p < .024) had significantly higher IAPCC-SV total scores, than the 18 to 24-year age group (mean = 60.60 ± 5.41, 95% CI = 60.09-61.11). Students who identified in US census minority ethnic or racial categories (US-Mn) (mean = 63.55 ± 5.78, 95% CI = 62.75-64.35) had significantly higher IAPCC-SV total scores than students who identified in US majority ethnic or racial categories (US-Mj) (mean = 61.98 ± 5.97, 95% CI = 61.55-62.413, p = .0001).ConclusionsResults of the study support the hypothesis that DPT programs can promote the development of intercultural skills in students. The ultimate objective of this academic preparation is to improve the student’s ability to deliver equitable, person-centered healthcare upon entry into practice. Specific ICC for entry-level DPT students are not clearly defined by US physical therapy professional organizations, academic institutions, or accrediting body. Students who participated in an ILE exhibited higher levels of ICC when compared to those who did not. Findings from this study can guide curriculum development, utilization of resources, and outcomes assessment. More research is needed to examine characteristics of an ILE that could inform best practice.

Historias de aprendizaje del profesionalismo en la formación de los médicos de urgencias en Colombia

IntroductionProfessionalism is a multidimensional competence based on attitudinal and cognitive skills that drives to better performances in medical practice, by stablishing effective interprofessional relationships, and offering a humanized and qualified service to the patient. However, the learning process of this competence particularly relevant in emergency rooms has not been formally developed in postgraduate medical training. The study sought to know the experiences of a group of residents and specialists in Emergency Medicine about learning professionalism during their postgraduate training, knowing the notions related to this concept and inquiring about the role model in learning professionalism during their training. postgraduate. MethodsWe developed a qualitative narrative research, with a total of 7 Emergency physicians (residents and emergency physicians) including the main researcher with his own autoethnographic text. Data collection involved narrative and interactive interviews, and reflective autoethnographic texts. A thematic analysis constructed patterns from the data. ResultsFive main themes emerged around the professionalism learning experience of emergency physicians: 1) role model, 2) anti-role model, 3) unsafe environment as a barrier to learning, 4) teaching of professionalism, 5) metacognition in the learning process. ConclusionsTeacher behavior in clinical settings become a role model to follow related to physician-patient relationship, interprofessional communication and teamwork. On the other hand, neglective behavior, missuses of clinical resources, discrimination, harassment, or bullying become anti-rol model behaviors. However, those unwanted behaviors may be learned even though students intend to act otherwise. It is necessary to design intentional curriculum in emergency postgraduate schools which include stablishing institutional cultural norms that do not tolerate aggression or other unprofessional behavior towards patients or students.

Redesigning Literacy: Our Story

This manuscript details efforts to redesign a graduate literacy program guided by two, full-time faculty members to better meet candidates’ needs in an online learning environment supported with relevant and current curricula. Through professional literature, intentional curriculum, and authentic field experiences, program coursework is closely linked, easily allowing candidates to see and experience relationships across course content, better aligning with K-12 instructional practices. As a result of candidates’ completion of this program, they are steeped in best literacy practices and interventions, which equip them to celebrate their autonomy in philosophical beliefs as it relates to their identity as a literacy professional and leader.

Backward Design of Chemistry Laboratories: A Primer

Backward Design is a well-known method for curricular development in which an instructor first identifies desired learning ends and then “works backwards” to determine the necessary means to these ends. Unfortunately, its use in the design of undergraduate chemistry curricular components is not necessarily widespread. This paper will provide a primer on how to use Backward Design to develop chemistry laboratory curricula including learning objectives that go beyond chemistry content. In addition to the foundational steps of Backward Design, curricular considerations will be discussed that address aspects of teaching and learning that are unique to the field of chemistry and facilitate a more inclusive, scaffolded, and intentional curriculum. A “Backward Design of Chemistry Laboratories Quick Guide” is provided in the Supporting Information for this paper to assist faculty in the use of the Backward Design curriculum development method.

Conceptualisations of the social determinants of health among first\u2010year dental students

BackgroundSocial conditions have a significant impact on the health of individuals and populations. While the dental curriculum is focused on teaching students about the diseases that affect the dentition and oral structures from a biomedical perspective, education about the social determinants of health is frequently regarded as less important. Thus, it occupies a smaller and disconnected part of the dental curriculum. The aim of this study was to explore the ways dental students conceptualised the social determinants of health after one year in dental school.MethodsReflective statements written by first year dental students at the end of the first year of study were collected. This qualitative study has an interpretivist basis and a thematic analysis of the reflections was conducted by two researchers. Metzl’s structural competencies were used as a further analytic device.ResultsFour inter-related themes were identified: First, professional attitudes taken up by students influence their conceptions. Second, structural barriers to students understanding social determinants of health generate partial understandings. Thirdly, the social gulf that exists between the student body and people of different circumstances provides context to understanding the student’s perspectives. Finally, we described how students were learning about the social determinants of health over the academic year.ConclusionsDental students face several challenges when learning about the social determinants of health, and translating these learnings into actions is perhaps even more challenging. Metzl’s structural competencies provide a framework for advancing students’ understandings. One of the most important findings of this research study is that coming to an understanding of the social determinants of health requires sustained attention to social theories, practical experiences as well as institutionalised attitudes that could be achieved through an intentional curriculum design.

Connectedness as a Predictor of Academic and Youth Development Outcomes at a Summer Day Camp for Low-Income Youth

Organized camp programs impacted over 10 million youth in the United States in 2019 (American Camp Association, 2019). While residential camp programs have shown ample evidence of their potential to produce opportunities for growth and learning (Garst et al., 2011; Wilson et al., 2019), less is known about the benefits of summer day camp programs. Day camp programs have the potential to serve a more diverse group of campers than residential camps (Kimmelman, 2011), and have become popular formats for summer programs designed to enhance academic skills and prevent summer learning loss. This study sought to understand the factors that influenced self-perceptions of academic attitudes and positive youth development at a summer day camp program offering academic and recreational activities for economically vulnerable fourth to ninth graders (n=240). Specifically, the study was interested in the role that camp connectedness played in influencing perceptions of outcomes (Sibthorp et al., 2011). The study found that campers who participated in a summer day camp program reported that their interest in academic subjects increased over the course of the camp. Campers who had higher levels of connectedness to camp reported significantly stronger academic and youth development outcomes than those who had lower levels of connectedness. The study also found no significant differences in connectedness based on camper characteristics such as gender, age, race, ethnicity, school attended, or language spoken at home, suggesting that these variables were not salient in whether a camper felt connected to camp. These findings provide implications for the design and delivery of academically focused day camp programs to enhance feelings of connectedness, including the importance of using an intentional curriculum, offering a variety of academic and recreational activities, employing trained educators and youth development specialists, and being mindful of class and group sizes.

Undergraduate Rehabilitation Accreditation as a Tool in the Social Justice Movement

Accreditation of undergraduate rehabilitation education (URE) programs is a tool to further the cause of social justice. In addition to supporting this statement, this article explores the relationship between URE, accreditation curriculum, and the training of graduates to facilitate justice for all members of society. The social justice struggle for accreditation equity for URE is reviewed, as well as continued threats to accreditation, and the need for consistent professional identity and nomenclature. The new accreditation curriculum standards and their attention to social justice concepts is discussed. Accreditation advantages and disadvantages as they relate to justice are offered. Advantages include the strength of consistency of curriculum, while disadvantages involve leaning toward homogenization of the course of study, and a threat of return to a paternalistic view of consumers. In addition, financial challenges presented by the pandemic to URE programs is discussed, along with a strategy to address those issues. An analysis of advantages and disadvantages to accreditation as it relates to social justice and consumers reveals that benefits far outweigh potential issues. Further, short-term and long-term strategies to address threats to accreditation, challenges to consistent names for the profession, its graduates and professional scope, and a stratagem to address nomenclature is offered. Finally, strategies to strengthen the new curriculum to reflect current day understanding of social justice are presented. The country has awakened to social justice issues, and is time that intentional curriculum, driven by accreditation, trains graduates to become social justice advocates and allies.

Teaching Ethics in Classroom Settings: Nursing Faculty Perceptions in Baccalaureate Programs.

The complexity of the current health care system has resulted in increasing demands on nurses to act as patient advocates and moral agents. Understanding faculty's experiences teaching ethics is instrumental to deliver ethically competent care. The purpose of this study was to explore the experiences of nursing faculty teaching ethics content in the classroom setting to prelicensure baccalaureate nursing students. This qualitative, descriptive phenomenological design asked 11 nursing faculty with recent experience teaching ethics within prelicensure baccalaureate nursing programs to complete qualitative interviews. Participants expressed the importance of teaching ethics in undergraduate nursing curricula but experienced significant challenges. Three main themes were identified in the data analysis: Lacking Prior Preparation, Difficult Content, and No Place Holder for Ethics Content. Intentional curriculum design incorporating ethics content is necessary for the preparation of prelicensure nursing students, along with formal and informal opportunities for faculty to explore ethics including philosophical underpinnings. [J Nurs Educ. 2020;59(9):506-509.].

Ethical imperatives for legal educators to promote law student wellbeing

ABSTRACT There is currently a debate about resilience and wellbeing of law students and legal practitioners. Tension has developed between a movement promoting the wellbeing of students and those who criticise that movement for individualising responsibility and enabling managers to evade their responsibilities. This article seeks a constructive resolution of that tension. It proposes ethical obligations for intentional curriculum design for the promotion of student well-being and the ongoing well-being of practitioners. In order to do this it explores different theoretical perspectives on ethical practice. It then uses self-determination theory, a theory of positive psychology, as a basis for applying the outcome of this analysis to the task of educating lawyers. Finally, it considers the implications of these analyses for the continuing responsibilities of the relevant communities: legal educators; practitioners, their employers and managers; regulators; and for the individual law student and lawyer.

Evaluating Girls on the Run in Promoting Positive Youth Development: Group Comparisons on Life Skills Transfer and Social Processes

Girls on the Run (GOTR), a physical activity-based positive youth development program, uses running as a platform to teach life skills and promote healthy behaviors. In this companion paper of our comprehensive project, the authors evaluated program impact on positive youth development by comparing GOTR participants to youth in other organized activities (Sport and physical education [PE]) on life skills transfer and social processes. Qualitative methods complemented quantitative data through interviews with GOTR stakeholders. The participants included 215 girls in GOTR and 692 girls in the same grades and schools who did not participate in GOTR (Sport = 485; PE = 207). They completed self-report measures of life skills transfer, peer and coach relatedness, and coach autonomy support at the season's end. GOTR subsamples of girls, coaches, caregivers, and school personnel participated in focus groups. Girls in GOTR compared favorably to the Sport and PE girls on all life skills-managing emotions, resolving conflicts, helping others, and making intentional decisions-and to the PE girls for all 3 social processes. The GOTR and Sport girls did not differ on coach relatedness and autonomy support, but the Sport girls rated teammate relatedness higher. The GOTR girls' scores on life skills transfer remained stable at a 3-month follow-up assessment. Stakeholders in the focus groups shared corroborating evidence that, through participating in GOTR, girls learn skills that generalize to school and home contexts. Using comparison groups, a retention assessment, and mixed methods, the findings provide evidence that GOTR is effective in teaching skills and strategies that generalize to broader life domains. The processes that explain group differences on life skills transfer include GOTR's intentional curriculum of skill-building activities delivered by coaches within a caring and autonomy-supportive climate.

Primary Care Behavioral Health Training in Family Medicine Residencies: A Qualitative Study From a Large Health Care System.

Primary care behavioral health (PCBH) is a service delivery model of integrated care linked to a wide variety of positive patient and system outcomes. However, considerable challenges with provider training and attrition exist. While training for nonphysician behavioral scientists is well established, little is known about how to train physicians to work efficiently within integrated teams. We conducted a case study analysis of family medicine residencies in the military health system using a series of 30 to 45-minute semistructured interviews. We conducted qualitative template analysis of these cases to chart programs' current educational processes related to PCBH. Thirteen individuals consisting of program directors, behavioral and nonbehavioral faculty, and residents across five programs participated in the study. Current educational processes included a variety of content on PCBH (eg, treatment for depression, clinical referral pathways, patient-centered communication), primarily using a mix of didactic and practice-based placements. Resource allocation was seen as a critical contributor to quality. There was variability in the degree to which integrated behavioral health providers were incorporated as residency faculty, such that programs where these specialists were more incorporated reported more intentional curriculum development and health care systems-level content. While behavioral health content was well represented in family medicine residency curriculum, the depth and integration of content was inconsistent. More intentional and integrated curriculum accompanied faculty development and integration of behavioral health faculty. Future research should evaluate if faculty development programs and faculty status of behavioral scientists results in different educational or health care outcomes.

Reflective Writing as a Window on Medical Students’ Professional Identity Development in a Longitudinal Integrated Clerkship

Phenomenon: Integral to the formation of a professional identity is the concept of professional identity construction, an essential part of becoming a competent physician. In this framework, identity is dynamic and shaped by experiences and relationships. Minimal work has addressed the impact that clinical care settings and relationships with patients have in the construction of professional identity for medical students. This study explores how patient interactions and intentional curriculum design support professional identity construction in students participating in a longitudinal integrated clerkship focused on care for the underserved. Approach: This qualitative analysis investigated students’ professional identity construction as detailed in 45 reflective essays from 15 students while enrolled in an 11-month longitudinal integrated clerkship (LIC) in a safety-net hospital system. Researchers used an inductive analytic approach. Findings: Students provided rich and complex descriptions of their experiences. Six themes emerged: care for the underserved; therapeutic alliance; humility and gratitude; altruism; resilience; and aspirations. Insights: Professional identity construction was observable through students’ reflective essays. Student interactions with patients provided rich material for professional identity construction, and role models in patient care enhanced this process. This study suggests that clinical learning in a safety-net hospital system, coupled with an LIC curriculum that prioritizes continuity with vulnerable patients, faculty role models, and ongoing reflection, supported the professional identity construction of students as patient-centered caregivers providing equitable care and advocacy for the underserved, described here as an Equity Identity.

Begin With the End in Mind: Implementing a Series of Integrated Clinical Experience Courses

Background and Purpose. The evolving nature of clinical education requires program evaluation to inform intentional curriculum development. However, descriptions of the application of curriculum development frameworks in physical therapy are sparse. We used the context/input/process/product (CIPP) model to guide a didactic and clinical education curriculum reorganization that included the creation of a series of five integrated clinical experience (ICE) courses threaded throughout the first two years of a Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT) program. Method/Model Description and Evaluation. The CIPP model guided comprehensive program evaluation. Context evaluation summarized strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. Input evaluation of information from multiple stakeholders and external influences, including accreditation standards, practices at other academic institutions, and published literature, was used to guide changes in the clinical education curriculum. Goals, objectives, and themes were developed for intentional alignment of didactic and clinical education curricula, alongside clinical site development and logistical planning. Process evaluation monitored the implementation of the new clinical education program to identify and address problems. The program is currently in the process of detailed product evaluation. Outcomes. ICE courses were initially implemented at eight clinical sites. Course assessments were selected and administered at established intervals. Program outcome measures were identified and administered to 2 control cohorts from the original DPT curriculum, and the first cohort in the new DPT curriculum. Discussion and Conclusion. The process used a structured approach to curriculum development. It emphasized the necessity of engaging multiple stakeholders, developing strong clinical partnerships, and intentional design and placement of courses within the overall curriculum to ensure the quality of ICE courses.

Technology Use in Designing Curriculum for Archivists: Utilizing Andragogical Approaches in Designing Digital Learning Environments for Archives Professional Development

Abstract Technology has a significant impact in archival institutions. The creation and need to preserve digital records require archivists to have the necessary training, and ongoing professional development. In addition, technology is embedded in many archival processes, making knowledge of technology use vital for archivists. While technology may be a challenge for archivists in terms of archival management, it also presents a useful means to support training and professional development. This paper is based on the experimental research conducted by the researchers, as instructors, in developing curriculum based on theories of andragogy for the purposes of developing intentional curriculum for professional development of archivists in digital learning environments. In this article, we will focus on the application of technology for the purposes of training archives professionals. We have explored archives training through the application of andragogy theory in online training through Louisiana State University and Mohawk College. In addition, we will review the literature relating to the use of technology to support both outreach and marketing to educate clients of archival institutions. Social media tools offer a broad means to engage clients, as these platforms already function as “community hubs for activity, featuring many users, regular updates, and active forum discussions” (Terras). The literature suggests that there is have been significant inroads in developing intentional curriculum for digital learning environments.

Direct Measure Assessment of Learning Outcome–Driven Proactive Advising for Academically At-Risk Students

Creating advising curricula through backward design ensures that learning objectives remain central to the process and enables those in advising units to design comprehensive assessment plans for continued curricular improvement. By incorporating measures to observe student learning directly, advisors can evaluate their curriculum objectively to ensure students achieve desired learning outcomes. An advising unit created a proactive advising curriculum for academically at-risk students through backward design that includes multiple assessment measures. Students in four categories of academic risk were targeted for intervention. Through the evaluation of direct-learning evidence gathered through assessment, the advising unit improved the advising curriculum, showing the process for intentional curriculum design and assessment to improve student learning.

A Cohort Model and High Impact Practices in Undergraduate Public Health Education.

Developing curriculum that is more than a collection of courses necessitates articulating philosophy and principles that undergird curricular decisions. While faculty are accustomed to expressing ideas within their realms of content expertise, building consensus around educational philosophy and pedagogy may be less common but equally important to assure coherent curriculum. Such discussions lead to intentional curriculum. When attuned to intent and combined with high impact practices, curriculum is likelier to result in student success and engagement. Since public health by nature entails community interaction, opportunities to think and work in a variety of communities reflects the work in the public health arena. Building a community of learners in the context of a highly diverse urban campus requires very deliberate curriculum planning and design. The likelihood that learning communities will emerge spontaneously is reduced when only a small proportion of students live on or near campus, and most spend considerable time commuting. Virtually all undergraduate public health students have responsibilities beyond academics, including employment, family caregiving, religious obligations, etc. Since most undergraduate students in this setting are first generation to higher education, learning communities and other high impact practices become even more important to provide meaningful baccalaureate education. Such communities evolve most efficiently when integrated into the curriculum design. By implementing a cohort model, not only can faculty participate and facilitate the evolution of a community of learners, they can employ other high impact practices designed to enhance and compound public health content and processes. Undergraduate public health students in this setting take all of their core courses (32 semester hours) together in a prescribed sequence. Faculty have clear understanding about what preceded a course and what follows. Every course entails both individual work and group collaboration. Students come to understand each other's strengths and needs, and with rare exception, they support each other on the journey and share some mutual successes. Both expected and unintended outcomes of this approach are conveyed in this article along with a few cautions for those considering these strategies for undergraduate public health education.

In the company of my sister-colleagues: professional counterspaces for African American women student affairs administrators

ABSTRACTAlthough conceptual models exist that describe the role of counterspaces in promoting well-being among marginalised individuals, not enough is known about the composition of professional counterspaces for Black women employed in higher education. The African American Women’s Summit (AAWS) is a national professional development programme in the U.S. known as a professional counterspace. Semi-structured interviews were used in this study to explore the experiences of seven African American women student affairs administrators who consistently participated in the AAWS between 2006 and 2011. Participants described the AAWS as a culturally homogeneous experience, infused with a variety of culturally responsive resources, that was delivered via a culturally intentional curriculum. Included is a discussion of the characteristics of professional counterspaces situated in Black feminist thought and a Counterspace conceptual model, which are the frameworks that grounded this particular inquiry. Areas of future praxis are also presented.

Book review of "Global innovation of teaching and learning in higher education"

Layne, P.C., & Lake, P. (Eds.) (2015). Global Innovation of Teaching and Learning in Higher Education: Transgressing Boundaries. New York and London: Springer. Pages: 368. Price: USD $129 (hardcover or paper), USD $99.00 (ebook).The purpose of this book is to examine current trends in the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL) and higher education, with a focus on the pedagogical strategies used by instructors worldwide for overcoming challenges in higher education. The general idea is that, in order to maximize students' learning, institutions should follow innovative policies, and instructors have to be collaborative and creative in their teaching practices, for in the present world demands and needs are growing faster than ever and challenges have become far more rigorous.The book is organized into an introduction and five parts. Part I (Chapters 2 to 6) is composed of five chapters and it calls for transforming the in higher education which adheres too much to organizational systems and structures-i.e., based on lecture-style pedagogies and unidirectional transfer of knowledge and related assessment. To be specific, Baun (Ch2) combines accelerated, intensive and immersion learning, and with two case studies points out that concentrated learning can be a feasible method for education. Layne (Ch3) examines some of the creative innovations higher education institutions make around their funding sources, structures and competition, and finds that, even within the context of economic pressures, competition and globalization, students should remain the central motivation in pedagogies, policies and infrastructures. Barnes et al. (Ch4) find that adopting an approach such as the Universal Design for Learning, which aims to facilitate learning for the maximum number of students, would benefit all students, for in such an approach, the variety of skills, cultures, needs, interests and backgrounds are all taken into consideration in learning activities. Burkill (Ch5) discusses the key pedagogic principles and reflects critically on the challenges faced by instructors and students. Nye (Ch6) focuses on stories of assessment and argues that good outcomes in the discipline depend on the inclusion of both traditional and experimental approaches.Part II (Chapters 7 to 9) is composed of three chapters on the experience of theory in solving current problems. Among the global innovations in teaching and learning introduced to readers, theory and practice-based approaches and case studies reveal researchoriented, student-driven experiences where student voices are foregrounded. Roller (Ch7) finds that if pre-service teachers participate in study abroad programs with an intentional curriculum, they are going to become better equipped to work with diverse students in their classrooms, being encouraged to reflect upon culture and pedagogy. Bartzis & Mulvihill (Ch8) find that the benefits of student teaching abroad programmes include increased self-awareness, cross-cultural understanding and the development of cultural empathy in teacher candidates. Hammonds & Oritsejafor (Ch9) argue that educators must take into account the extraordinary amount of time needed for planning, discussion, evaluation, and conceptualization before curriculum design begins.Practical experiences are then introduced in Part III (Chapters 10-13), with focus on the theme of transgressing boundaries using technology. Technology represents the most widely used means of transforming higher education and approaches to teaching and learning, under the influence of the internet. It demonstrates the range of possibilities available to transform teaching and learning in higher education. Morris & Stommel (Ch10) argue that MOOCs do not reveal anything new about education and learning, and they propose to build community in MOOCs. Kulchitsky et al. (Chn) focus on how automating and using feedback/checking of student notes support teaching and learning, and they find that the semantic coherence of student notes to instructor notes is a useful measurement tool of class performance. …