Master's Degree Course Research Articles

An Elective Course as the Part of the Technology for Professional and Pedagogical Competence Formation of the Students of Master Degree Course of Agrarian Specialities

The paper focuses on the technology for professional pedagogical competence formation of the students of master degree course of agrarian specialities. The main purpose of the article is to determine the most efficient technology for the formation of the given competence. The components of the technology are action-oriented, content-oriented, procedural and component of evaluative results. Action-oriented component includes strategic objective, tactical objectives and operative objectives. Content-oriented component reflects interdisciplinary connection of agrarian subjects, elective course, practical training and research scientific work. Procedural component contains forms, methods, techniques of students' training. Component of evaluative results considers control methods and methods of self-control. The author determines the main stages of the technology. Since some curricula of agrarian master degree course in institutions of higher education do not contain pedagogical and psychological disciplines, the implementation of elective courses is the question of vital importance. An elective course ''Professional and Pedagogical Competence Formation of the Future Teachers of Institutions of Higher Agrarian Education'' helps to develop knowledge, skills and personal characteristics necessary for future pedagogical activity of the students. The author gives the description of individual and group tasks for the students involved in elective course training. The main methods used during the programme of the elective course are innovative and active methods. The most efficient methods are case-method, method of pedagogical training, portfolio method. The main aims of the elective course have been determined by the author.

OP127 Analysis Of The Competencies To Be Acquired In Health Technology Assessment

INTRODUCTION:Health Technology Assessment (HTA) is a multidisciplinary activity that systematically examines different dimensions related to the direct and indirect consequences of health technologies when implemented in healthcare systems. HTA is developed by multidisciplinary teams in order to cover all the mentioned dimensions. However, the quality of the processes produced by HTA teams will depend upon the competencies that those teams will acquire and incorporate including knowledge, skills and attitudes (1). The aim of this research was to determine how well these dimensions and competencies are covered in HTA academic Masters degree courses and manuals.METHODS:We analyzed what had been done in terms of competencies definition in HTA: how it has been reflected; theoretically and according to the authors, and how competencies can be structured; know-how and values. We explored HTA manuals and HTA academic Masters degree courses. We searched in Google with specific terms: building capacities, HTA, programs, Masters, diplomas. We used the HTAi vortal and the information related to courses (for example Masters degrees) and HTA agencies and network webpages for programs. The inclusion criteria were formal programs that describe HTA capacity building and not partial teaching of certain aspects of HTA and we excluded non-recognized institutions, or where there was no description of the programs or lack of detail regarding objectives and competencies to be achieved.RESULTS:We found 105 courses or programs and analyzed 8 reports and 3 manuals. The main challenges that we faced were: that information was difficult to retrieve, not similarly structured, difficulties to find key information in webpages, no program description at all in some cases and the need to contact institutions staff or register as a student to receive the information and finally, it was difficult to obtain contact details of key people. We structured the information on competencies in knowledge, skills and attitudes.CONCLUSIONS:The analyzed Masters degree courses and manuals did not cover all of the dimensions of HTA analysis in an equal and standardized way. The ethical, legal, social and organizational aspects were lacking in some of the programs, while, on the contrary, clinical and economic aspects were substantially included. On the basis of the information retrieved it would be good to define core competencies for HTA.

Construction and Practice of Materials Forming and Processing

Material forming and processing course is a master's degree course and a required course for materials processing engineering. The construction and practice of materials forming and processing from teaching outline, teaching content, teaching methods and innovative practice has achieved good results.

Quality evaluation in post-graduate diploma courses from the students' perspective: An exploratory study in Brazil

This article aims to evaluate the quality perceived, from the perspective of students, in post-graduate diploma courses in the Brazilian context. Post-graduate diploma courses in Brazil are called lato sensu courses as opposed to stricto sensu courses, which is a term used for Master's Degree and Doctorate courses. Based on the literature on quality in services, the main constructs regarding quality in this field were addressed, in addition to studies that investigated the quality of services in Higher Education Institutions. A questionnaire with 32 items was applied to 358 individuals at a major university in the northeast of Brazil. By means of exploratory factor analysis and confirmatory factor analysis, five dimensions relating to SERVQUAL attributes were formed: tangibles, reliability, responsiveness, assurance and empathy. As a contribution to the field, this study suggests the validity of quality perception indicators analyzed in the context of Higher Education Institutions (HEI) and their adaptation to the robust SERVQUAL methodology.

La formación gerontológica de posgrado en España: número, características y contenidos impartidos en programas de máster

IntroductionPopulation aging raises the need for specialised professionals to address the needs of the elderly. The aim of this paper is to describe the number, characteristics, and contents of the Master degree courses that are currently offered in Spain. Material and methodsThere were 32 Master degree courses offered in the 2014-15 academic year. These required at least 60 ECTS (European Credit Transfer and Accumulation System). At least half of the course credits were based on contents directly related to old age, older people, or aging. An analysis was made that included, information on the institutional affiliation, official status, academic structure, and contents taught. A content analysis was performed on curriculum subjects, in order to classify the courses into multidisciplinary or specialised (with focus either on health, behavioural, or social sciences). ResultsMost of the courses required mandatory class attendance, and lasted one academic year (60 ECTS). They also included the completion of a final project and a practicum. The majority (59%) of Master degree courses were classified as multidisciplinary. Of the remaining ones, 19% were labelled as specialised in behavioural sciences, 16% in health sciences, and 2% in social sciences. ConclusionsThe field of higher education in gerontology in Spain seems to be consolidated, taking into account indicators such as the number of courses offered, their territorial distribution, or the number of official Master degree courses. While the academic structure of the courses is quite similar, in contrast, their contents and nature are highly diverse, which responds to the different training needs.

Evolución de los modelos docentes de futuros profesores de economía de secundaria, a través de la metáfora

A través de un cuestionario de preguntas abiertas, este estudio analiza la evolución de las metáforas personales de una muestra de profesores en formación de la especialidad de Economía del Máster Universitario en Formación del Profesorado en Educación Secundaria, durante el curso 2012/2013. Para el análisis se han adaptado las cuatro categorías de Leavy, McSorley y Boté (2007): conductistas-transmisivas, cognitivas-constructivistas, situadas y autorreferenciadas. Los resultados indican que la mayoría de los participantes fueron capaces de conceptualizar sus roles en términos de metáforas. Al comparar las metáforas, antes y después de las prácticas de enseñanza, se produce una evolución progresiva de las metáforas conductistas-transmisivas a cognitivas-constructivistas y situadas. Para los profesores en formación, la reflexión sobre sus propias metáforas, se ha mostrado como una buena herramienta para hacerlos conscientes de sus concepciones y de sus roles docentes, y para iniciar cambios en los mismos hacia modelos didácticos más centrados en el alumnado.

Problems of Polish Students with Gaining Professional Experience from the Perspective of Europe 2020 Strategy Goals

IntroductionThe Europe 2020 strategy provides the direction to the development of the EU economies by formulating main objectives which should contribute to smart, sustainable growth fostering social inclusion. One of its dimensions concerns an increase in the employment rate, a reduction in the early school leavers share and raising the percentage of the population with a university degree (Europa 2020). From what has been observed in the Polish labour market, although the educational goals have been accomplished, the employment rate remains alarmingly low. This fact motivates the search for new means of boosting the employment rate. The high percentage of population with university degrees accompanied by a relatively high unemployment rate amongst the university graduates sets the area of study on tertiary education and its adjustment to the expectations of the employers and generally the issue of graduates transition from a university into the labour market.One of the conditions to find a job in a short time is to have practical skills developed from hands-on experience. Research shows that this condition is extremely difficult to meet (Kocor et al., 2012, p. 80; Kocor Strzebonska, 2014, p. 74; Heyler, Lee, 2014). The paper aims to identify the problems with gaining professional experience by students in full-time courses during education at the tertiary level. The issue was illustrated with the example of students in the master's degree course in economics at the University of Economics in Katowice. According to the research presented in this paper, they often try to combine studies with work.University of Economics in Katowice is one of the five public economic universities in Poland. Full-time studies at Polish public universities are free of tuition fees. Relatively low number of hours spent physically at the university and elastic working hours schemes offered by employers give an opportunity to reconcile full-time studies with job, even though it is not an easy task and affects diploma grades.The results of the survey performed provide the arguments for the thesis that students' preferences concerning the means of gaining expertise do not comply with available opportunities and actual career paths, and work during studies hardly ever helps to get the type of professional experience which could be appreciated by a potential employer. The paper consists of four parts. The first part formulates the problem in the context of the Europe 2020 strategy. The second part contains the review of the literature which exemplifies the importance of professional experience for successful transition of university graduates to the labor market. The third part describes the survey performed at the University of Economics in Katowice. The last part presents the outcomes of the survey.1. Problem formulationTwo out of five main goals formulated by the Europe 2020 strategy relate to the labour market. One states that the employment rate of the population aged 20-64 should reach 75%. The other assumes the reduction in the share of early leavers from education and training of the younger generation, aged 18-24, to 10% and the increased share in the population aged 30-34 having tertiary educational attainment to 40% (Europa 2020). The goals concerning education should naturally support the superordinate, employment-related goals. At the stage of formulating the objectives Poland with the indices roughly equal to the EU average had already satisfied the condition referring to early school leavers from education, whereas the tertiary educational attainment goal was reached in 2013 (Eurostat). Therefore, the objectives were adequately modified as presented in Table 1. The rates referring to educational goals were set at a higher level and the expected employment rates were decreased to 71%.Satisfactory outcomes in terms of educational objectives are accompanied by the employment rates explicitly lower than the EU average. …

University economists training under global educational environment: challenges and prospects

Kazan Federal University being the leading one in the Volga region has set a strategic goal of academic reputation and University authority growth to achieve a high level of international recognition. The article describes the measures that were implemented by University management to enter the list of world leading universities. Some tools that accompany and foster necessary transformation are described and the way to align strategic priorities and economists training programs development is analyzed. The paper considers Bachelor and Master Degree courses in Economics and Management reshaping and establishes connection between New Third Generation Educational Standard introduction into the system of higher education and the process of University integration into the global educational environment. The new competence-based paradigm and interdisciplinary approach are both considered as important steps to improve academic and research performance. The “road map” developed and implemented by University management team was used as a platform for content analysis of qualitative data via systematic examination and verification of projected indicators open for public consideration on the official University web-page.

INCREASE OF DEMAND FOR GRADUATES OF HIGHER EDUCATION INSTITUTIONS

Abstract. The aim of the research is identification of the objective and subjective factors influencing professional self-realization of graduates of the field of study «Public and Municipal Administration». Methods. The authors have conducted anonymous opinion survey of prestigious economic universities undergraduates (bachelor and master degree course) and graduates specialized in this sphere. The questions were about correspondence of gained academic qualification and actual occupation, the importance of degree certificate, satisfaction with education quality, attitude to different aspects of studying etc. In order to make relevant conclusions, the authors apply comparative, statistical, eneralization and induction methods. Results. Informants’ answers helped to count out the percentage of graduates whose occupation is connected with public administration, understand the reasons of choosing relevant master course, assess the significance of acquired competence and qualification for job placement at governmental organizations. The main scientific result of the research is working out a system of recommendations aimed at increasing demand for graduates specialized in the sphere of civil service, and, consequently, improving the efficiency of investment in management training. It is specified that the most important issues in this regard are forethought of career choice, students’ vision of academic planning, and approach to teaching, practice-oriented type of education. Scientific novelty. Having organized the data and compared it with previous surveys’ results, the authors reveal the factors essential to professional success and application of knowledge as well as correlation of these factors which means meeting the objective of the research. Practical significance. The presented materials can be used for the further modernization of the process of educational planning and taken into notice while developing academic programs for the direction «Public and Municipal Administration».

Some observations on the Green function for the ball in the fractional Laplace framework

We consider a fractional Laplace equation and we give a self-contained elementary exposition of the representation formula for the Green function on the ball. In this exposition, only elementary calculus techniques will be used, in particular, no probabilistic methods or computer assisted algebraic manipulations are needed. The main result in itself is not new, however we believe that the exposition is original and easy to follow, hence we hope that this paper will be accessible to a wide audience of young researchers and graduate students that want to approach the subject, and even to professors that would like to present a complete proof in a PhD or Master Degree course.

Quo vadis universitas

The article considers the advantages and disadvantages of the European universities that can be explained only by the analysis of their history. In contrast to the conventional theories, the economic enforcement was the driving cause for university formation in the Middle Ages. The guild concept created by Siegfried Bar 15 years ago explains the historical imperative, but also the construction faults of the universities resulting from their specific features essentially the principles of self-autonomy and cooptation. The faults of university organization are the main reasons why nearly all university reforms failed. There does not exist any convincing proof that the introduction of new organization models such as bachelor and master degree courses or excellence clusters are of more efficiency in teaching and research. The international university ranking did not change in recent years; the top ten universities are still located in the USA and Great Britain. The majority of German universities range between the middle and the end of the ranking list. It is demonstrated that the main causes of this discrepancy are the delay of academic qualification, the lack of competition, the dependency of the public policy, and the insufficient financial support. Progress in university research and teaching can be obtained only if these problems can be solved.

Developing Effective Educational Strategies in Kazakhstan

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the current state of business education market in the Republic of Kazakhstan. The research methodology is based on the processing of secondary data that makes it possible to conduct a preliminary analysis of the problems. The author gives an assessment of the current business education system. The conducted study led to the conclusion that contemporary business education in the Republic of Kazakhstan provides rather quality education from an academic point of view, though faces certain problems when focusing on business needs. The author reveals the existing problems and deficiencies of the business education system in the country, as well as identifies key trends and growth options of bachelor and master degree courses, as well as short-term courses in business education system in the Republic of Kazakhstan. DOI: 10.5901/mjss.2015.v6n5s1p54

Mastering social foresight – introduction to the special issue

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is a presentation of the guiding ideas underlining the master degree course in social foresight recently launched by the University of Trento (Italy). Design/methodology/approach – This paper is a reconstruction of the guiding ideas that have been used for designing the social foresight master degree. Findings – Students are exposed to a mix of contributions from futures studies, the human and social sciences (including psychology of decisions, social change, values and secondary analysis techniques) and mathematics (not only statistics, but also system theory and simulation). Originality/value – A unique look at the ideas behind the master degree course in social foresight at the University of Trento (Italy).

Building locally relevant ethics curricula for nursing education in Botswana

Aim The goal of this multi-institutional collaboration was to develop an innovative, locally relevant ethics curriculum for nurses in Botswana. Background Nurses in Botswana face ethical challenges that are compounded by lack of resources, pressures to handle tasks beyond training or professional levels, workplace stress and professional isolation. Capacity to teach nursing ethics in the classroom and in professional practice settings has been limited. Methods A pilot curriculum, including cases set in local contexts, was tested with nursing faculty in Botswana in 2012. Results Thirty-three per cent of the faculty members indicated they would be more comfortable teaching ethics. A substantial number of faculty members were more likely to introduce the International Council of Nurses Code of Ethics in teaching, practice and mentoring as a result of the training. Based on evaluation data, curricular materials were developed using the Code and the regulatory requirements for nursing practice in Botswana. A web-based repository of sample lectures, discussion cases and evaluation rubrics was created to support the use of the materials. Discussion A new master degree course, Nursing Ethics in Practice, has been proposed for fall 2015 at the University of Botswana. The modular nature of the materials and the availability of cases set within the context of clinical nurse practice in Botswana make them readily adaptable to various student academic levels and continuing professional development programmes. Conclusion The ICN Code of Ethics for Nursing is a valuable teaching tool in developing countries when taught using locally relevant case materials and problem-based teaching methods. Implications for Nursing The approach used in the development of a locally relevant nursing ethics curriculum in Botswana can serve as a model for nursing education and continuing professional development programmes in other sub-Saharan African countries to enhance use of the ICN Code of Ethics in nursing practice.

Проблематика «устойчивого туризма» в науке и образовании в России и за рубежом: сравнительный анализ

This article analyzes the current state and prospects of mainstreaming sustainable tourism in the basic educational programs of Russian universities, as well as identifying obstacles to the expansion of research topics in the field of sustainable tourism in Russia. The overview of Russian works in the field of sustainable tourism demonstrates that the most studied are natural, environmental aspects of sustainable tourism development in terms of long-term interests of society, while the social and economic dimensions of sustainable development of tourism are presented by a limited number of fragmented works. This situation in the domestic tourism science greatly contrasts with the ways of international tourism research in this area, where can be found a more balanced mix of studies, as the share of socio-economic research in the total volume of works on sustainable tourism is much higher.
 A significant lack of research on the socio-economic aspects of sustainable tourism development is established by content analysis of domestic and foreign publications, and by their comparative analysis. Thematic focus of international projects on sustainable tourism in Russia is also analyzed to arrive to some indicative conclusions. The only comprehensive project in the field of sustainable tourism is currently under way between the Russian State University of Tourism and Service and Telemark University College (Norway), and in many ways it is still the first and only one. The main reason for the observed bias in domestic research, according to the author, is a strong starting position of natural sciences in comparison to social onesl. Another reason may be the rigidity of domestic tourism researchers of the humanitarian and economic profile in relation to the issues of sustainability, when Russian economists and specialists in humanities are under the influence of more successful researches in natural science and they underestimate the whole palette of concepts and approaches of socio-economic nature, relevant to the issues of sustainable tourism, and that is the reason why they are mentally limited to just the recognition and enumeration of the most obvious and basic socio-economic aspects of sustainable tourism (such as local employment, infrastructure development, replenishment of local budgets, integration into the world economy), and do no not go further, do not proceed with conducting specific studies within broader and more concrete settings of sustainability issues.
 The issues of sustainable tourism in domestic tourist education are even less represented than in science. Over the past few years, only six Russian universities as part of their basic educational programs offered individual subjects to study sustainable tourism. To this can indirectly be added another dozen or so universities that offer disciplines in eco-tourism, and about two dozen universities offering courses on sustainable development, including some problems of tourism development. And only one university in Russia offers modules in sustainable tourism at the Master level, and that institution delivers three subjrects on sustainable tourism. It seems that the main problem in the Russian tourist education in the context of sustainable tourism is in some sense too "respectful" attitude to the subject of sustainable tourism, when it is believed that students should "grow" up to some level to get acquainted with this concept at a Master degree course of studies. In Europe, the concept of susyainable tourism is more culturaland widespread, and it is brought to bachelors just in more simple words and then at the Master level it is just taught with a higher academic rigor. This approach is in general culturally and professionally more productive. The second advantage of the European way of teaching sustainable tourism is that there is a much greater linkage between the concept and the context of small businesses, in other words sustainable developed not necessarily linked to the context of destination development and planning. Therefore, sustainable tourism is quite often studied in business schools.
 In his publication the author tries to draw the attention of the national scientific community to the problem of conceptual and epistemological backwardness of the Russian tourism science in comparison to the international tourism science when it comes to sustainable tourism issues. Present deficiencies in socio-economic research and educational programs can be eliminated within a few years if the national scientific and educational communities duly appreciate the whole range of issues of sustainable tourism and the promising outlook for research and educational programs in this field.

Helping Teachers Align Learning Objectives and Evidence: Integration of ePortfolios in Distributed Learning Environments

ePortfolios are recognized as effective tools for formative assessment. Learn- ing outcomes are demonstrated by a number of work samples, which provide a good overview, not only of the acquired competences, but also of the path followed to get there. However, ePortfolios do no provide means for their automatic integration in Distributed Learning Environments, where the work samples (learning evidence) are scattered across a number of systems, such as Virtual Learning Environments and Web 2.0 tools. This paper proposes a scalable approach to tackle evidence collection in DLEs, by aligning the generated artefacts with the pedagogical purpose the teacher aims at. The proposal takes advantage of Learning Design practices, making alignment explicit to guide the technological infrastructure for the automatic collection and orga- nization of pieces of evidence in an ePortfolio and thus reducing the associated burden on teachers and students. The feasibility of the proposal was assessed by means of an evaluation study, in which a University teacher designed and enacted an authentic collaborative learning situation in the context of a master's degree course.

Building locally relevant ethics curricula for nursing education in Botswana.

The goal of this multi-institutional collaboration was to develop an innovative, locally relevant ethics curriculum for nurses in Botswana. Nurses in Botswana face ethical challenges that are compounded by lack of resources, pressures to handle tasks beyond training or professional levels, workplace stress and professional isolation. Capacity to teach nursing ethics in the classroom and in professional practice settings has been limited. A pilot curriculum, including cases set in local contexts, was tested with nursing faculty in Botswana in 2012. Thirty-three per cent of the faculty members indicated they would be more comfortable teaching ethics. A substantial number of faculty members were more likely to introduce the International Council of Nurses Code of Ethics in teaching, practice and mentoring as a result of the training. Based on evaluation data, curricular materials were developed using the Code and the regulatory requirements for nursing practice in Botswana. A web-based repository of sample lectures, discussion cases and evaluation rubrics was created to support the use of the materials. A new master degree course, Nursing Ethics in Practice, has been proposed for fall 2015 at the University of Botswana. The modular nature of the materials and the availability of cases set within the context of clinical nurse practice in Botswana make them readily adaptable to various student academic levels and continuing professional development programmes. The ICN Code of Ethics for Nursing is a valuable teaching tool in developing countries when taught using locally relevant case materials and problem-based teaching methods. The approach used in the development of a locally relevant nursing ethics curriculum in Botswana can serve as a model for nursing education and continuing professional development programmes in other sub-Saharan African countries to enhance use of the ICN Code of Ethics in nursing practice.

Public health education in South Asia: a basis for structuring a master degree course.

Countries in South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) lack enough public health workforces to address their poor public health situation. Recently, there have been efforts to develop capacity building in public health in these countries by producing competent public health workforce through public health institutes and schools. Considering the wide nature of public health, the public health education and curricula should be linked with skills, knowledge, and competencies needed for public health practice and professionalism. The 3 domains of public health practice and the 10 essential public health services provide an operational framework to explore this link between public health practice and public health education. This framework incorporates five core areas of public health education. A master degree course in public health can be structured by incorporating these core areas as basic and reinforcing one of these areas as an elective followed by a dissertation work.

Real interdisciplinary possibilities in the context of a professional Master's degree course

This editorial presents a reflection on interdisciplinarity in the context of the Professional Master’s Degree in Health Education, aiming to discuss the experience with interdisciplinarity in this program since 2011 to the present day, and its interface with the Public Health System. Our main point is the meaning and preponderance that interdisciplinary training has with regard to health professionals from a reflexive, dialogical, innovative and, above all, engaged professional perspective. We understand that interdisciplinarity while it deepens social relationships, also favors the expression of the uniqueness of individuals in the construction-reconstruction of knowledge and the process of expertise development.

Use of Social Networking Sites by LIS Professionals in Higher Education Institutions in India: A Study

The study investigates how library and information science professionals working in higher education institutions in India integrate social networking sites (SNS) into their routine work. It was revealed through the questionnaire that the majority of respondents are members of the institution's official group on the SNS, whereas only one fifth are members of an unofficial student group. These information professionals use SNS to socialize, keep themselves up-to-date, find jobs, and acquire information about conferences and seminars in their respective fields. Some of the legitimate concerns of library and information science professionals are privacy and cyberbullying. To increase use, social networking applications must be incorporated into the curriculum of master's degree courses for library and information science.