Educational Practice Research Articles

Early STEAM Education Practice: Application of Graph Theory through Teaching Assistants

In the age of Society 5.0, which is the concept of a future society developed by the Japanese government, science, technology, engineering, art, and mathematics (STEAM) human resources with the skills to grasp things from multiple perspectives and solve problems will be required. Furthermore, Society 5.0 indicates that the National Institute of Technology (KOSEN) will become the STEAM center for elementary and junior high school students, as part of the efforts to establish a system that supports STEAM education. Since 2019, we have practiced STEAM education as part of “Liberal Arts Special Lectures” for 4th-year students of the main course (1st year of the undergraduate course). In these lectures, the teachers of liberal arts subjects present themes using their specialties, such as mathematics, debate, and economics. Collaborative learning between students from various departments led them to deep learning, which was a fusion of knowledge and creation. However, there are few opportunities to give back to society, particularly a platform to disseminate the acquired mathematics ability. Therefore, we aim to realize early STEAM education and give back to society by creating STEAM teaching materials on graph theory in open courses for junior high school students between the ages of 13 and 15 with help from teaching assistants who studied graph theory in the liberal arts special lectures. Moreover, through a course on graph theory, the course will not only arouse students' interest in mathematics, but also provide them with clues to develop their multifaceted ideas. Keywords: society 5.0, graph theory, open course for junior high school students, teaching assistants, liberal arts special lecture

Особенности реализации гуманитарной экспертизы в сфере образования

The study delves into the intricacies of implementing humanitarian expertise within the educational realm, particularly focusing on its technologization. By delineating the stages and methods of conducting such expertise, as well as elucidating its objectives and tasks, the article provides valuable insights into the complex process of evaluating socio-cultural aspects in educational settings. An author’s indicative list of questions aimed at identifying the socialization potential of the specified categories within the initial stage of the second phase of conducting humanitarian expertise is presented. Moreover, the emphasis on the dialogical principle underscores the importance of fostering interactive engagement between experts and participants, thereby enriching the quality and depth of the analysis. Additionally, the utilization of a resource-based approach highlights the significance of recognizing the valuable insights provided by individuals intimately connected to the subject of expertise. Overall, the findings presented in this article offer a foundation for further research and exploration in the field of humanitarian expertise in education, contributing to the ongoing discourse on enhancing educational practices and promoting socio-cultural understanding within academic environments.

Problems Encountering Prospect Teachers in the Faculty of Education, Thamar University during Field Application of Practical Education

Problems Encountering Prospect Teachers in the Faculty of Education, Thamar University during Field Application of Practical Education

Critical engagement with digital health: A socio-material analysis of physical education teachers’ digital health mind maps

Objective: This paper forms part of a DigihealthPE project in which we have been working with physical education (PE) teachers to co-create critical and embodied digital health pedagogies. As part of the project, we invited PE teachers to mind map their personal engagements with digital health technologies. We aimed to explore the potential openings and opportunities (and limitations) within these maps for critical thinking and action. Method: Data were generated during a workshop with 12 PE teachers in Scotland. Informed by new materialism, we focus on the human and non-human factors and intra-actions evident within six narrative portraits generated from teachers’ mind maps. Results: Our findings suggest that teachers were engaging complexly and extensively with digital health technologies, which we considered an opening for further critical work. Importantly, experiences of strong (negative) affect had the potential to transform engagements with digital health technologies. Conclusion: We conclude by exploring how the process of mind mapping helped us to see further opportunities for supporting teachers to engage critically with digital health technologies. We also argue that new materialist-informed critical practices in education may have transformative potential for helping teachers and pupils to engage critically with the moving body, technology and health.

Student-centered school, competency development and playful, experiential mathematics learning in Hungary

As colleagues of the Faculty of Culture, Education and Regional Development at the University of Pécs (Hungary), we have been striving for decades to ensure that teachers contribute as successfully as possible to the development of the most important competencies of their students. In our thesis we highlighted three topics (each related to a renowned psychologist) we found important in our teacher training practice. Based on the work of Carl Rogers, the person-centered approach has influenced the mindset of helping professionals worldwide over the past sixty years. In the 80's we started spreading it from the Juhász Gyula Teacher Training College in Szeged, and than from the University of Pécs. John Raven's psychocybernetic approach points out that education is a complex system in which positive changes in one factor can be detrimental to overall performance due to complex interactions. When the University of Pécs awarded John Raven an honorary doctorate, it also wanted to show that we want to build more on his work in teacher education. Zoltán Pál Dienes is considered the most exciting figure in playful, experiential, exploratory mathematics learning/teaching worldwide. In the last years of his life, he also became an honorary doctor of the University of Pécs and we undertook to bring his mathematical games (learning aids) to Hungarian schools. We hope that the "Dienes method" will make everyone like this anxiety-inducing subject, which is still foreign to many students today. The trends presented in this paper can help make our educational practice more child-centered and effective if we continue to make serious efforts.

Predicting the use of chatbot systems in education: a comparative approach using PLS-SEM and machine learning algorithms

AbstractAdopting innovations in educational practice is a challenging task. In order to promote the use of technological innovations, acceptance of the technology by potential users is a prerequisite. Indeed, understanding the various factors that influence technology acceptance is critical for technology acceptance research. The use and acceptance of chatbots in education as a technological innovation is a topic that needs to be investigated. Chatbots, which offer close to human interaction between the user and technology through text and voice, can provide significant benefits in educational environments. The UTAUT2 model (extending UTAUT), which is widely used to evaluate technology acceptance, can serve as a framework for evaluating the acceptance and use of chatbots. This study aims to predict factors influencing students' use of chatbots in education within the UTAUT2 framework. PLS-SEM and machine learning tested the model, involving 926 students. According to the findings of the study, behavioral intentions were influenced by various factors including performance expectations and attitudes. Facilitating conditions and intentions significantly impacted chatbot usage time. Moderator effects were observed with age, gender, and usage experience affecting behavioral intentions. Support vector machine and logistic regression showed high prediction accuracies for behavioral intentions and usage time, respectively. These results provide insights for chatbot designers to meet user needs in educational settings.

Jessica Blanche Peixotto and the Founding of Berkeley Social Welfare

Jessica Blanche Peixotto was the first woman to become a full professor at the University of California in 1918 and yet her role in establishing social welfare studies at Berkeley is mostly untold. A social economist and foremost a scientist, she led efforts to infuse evidence-informed practice in professional social work education in the early 1900s, laying a foundation at Berkeley that is still felt today. Of her many efforts, she established a certificate in social welfare at Berkeley in 1917, the first such training on the West Coast. This article describes her personal and professional life and seeks to establish the importance of her role in establishing social work education at Berkeley and in furthering an evidence-informed approach to our professional work.

Emergency remote teaching amid global distress: how did teacher educators respond, cope, and plan for recovery?

This study explored the emergency remote teaching experiences of Ghanaian teacher educators during COVID-19. The study employed a basic qualitative interpretive approach and purposively interviewed 25 teacher educators from 15 teacher training institutions. Teacher educators in this study reported that emergency remote teaching (ERT) was a learning opportunity and professional capacity-building experience for them to engage in contemporary pedagogical practices. Teachers also indicated that synchronous and asynchronous remote teaching was helpful for their students, as it provided students with the opportunity to engage in self-paced learning due to their access to learning resources at any time. ERT promoted peer teaching, team teaching, and effective collaboration among teacher educators. However, with little preparation and training for remote teaching and learning, both teachers and students struggled with the remote teaching and learning process. A myriad of challenges were identified including the unsuitability and unfamiliarity of online teaching and learning platforms, a high rate of absenteeism and low student engagement, a lack of parental and school support, and inadequate technological resources. The study revealed that mathematics and science teachers needed advanced technological resources to support student learning. Implications for educational policy and practice are discussed.

Exploring the role and purpose of hospitality higher education under neo-liberalism: Perspectives from hospitality academics

This study aims to examine neo-liberalism and its ideological influences in the design and delivery of hospitality higher education in the United Kingdom. The study is underpinned by a qualitative approach, with semi-structured interviews employed as the method for data collection, with thematic analysis as the method for data analysis. Fifty-five hospitality academics working in nine universities were interviewed regarding their perceptions of being a hospitality academic teaching hospitality-related subjects in higher education. Findings were explored and analysed in relation to the broader influence of neo-liberalism on higher education and three key themes emerged, which are: restrictive conception of hospitality as the commercial hotel sector, issue of academic identity, and corporatized institutional leadership. Under the backdrop of neo-liberalism, the higher education sector has prioritized graduate employability as one of its primary responsibilities. Subsequently, hospitality higher education is predominantly viewed akin to a form of professional training programme for the commercial hotel sector, and being a hospitality academic is mainly perceived as an industry mentor, educating students with industry-relevant skills and professional practices. Institutionally, the increasing corporatization of higher education has created an environment which hospitality programmes are positioned to satisfy market demands and secure student recruitment. Informed by these findings, the current study draws the conclusion that there is a strong presence of the neo-liberal ideology reinforcing a vocational ‘filter’ on the design and delivery of hospitality higher education, which legitimizes certain educational values and practices while neglecting and undermining others. This article proposes that greater interdisciplinary engagement with other academic subjects, more recruitment of academics with a broader understanding of hospitality, and institutional leadership that appreciates and encourages alternative pedagogical approaches, are keys to creating possibilities to incorporate a more critical and humanistic underpinning in the academic development of hospitality.

Visual Materials in Classroom Teaching Learning: A Case Study on Nonformal Primary School

The evolution of technology and the paradigm shift triggered by the COVID-19 pandemic have reshaped educational practices, transitioning from conventional to digital mechanisms. The integration of digital learning resources has introduced a new dimension to the classroom environment. This paper aims to investigate the practicality of utilizing existing visual learning materials in non-formal educational settings. The case study focuses on non-formal primary schools operated by the JAAGO Foundation in Dhaka, serving as a representative sample. Data for this study were gathered through semi-structured interviews, focus group discussions, and observation notes from teachers, learners, and experts in the sampled non-formal primary schools. Thematic analysis was employed to analyze and present the collected data. The findings of the study underscore significant positive effects of employing visual learning materials in non-formal primary classrooms. These effects manifest in the areas of motivation enhancement, assessment of prior knowledge, and promotion of active participation, particularly among disadvantaged learners. The study also highlights the effectiveness of visual materials in facilitating clear comprehension, fostering creativity and imagination, enhancing critical thinking skills, and promoting digital literacy as essential 21st-century skills. Moreover, the research reveals that visual learning materials play a crucial role in achieving desired learning outcomes, aligning with both learners' psychology and pedagogical perspectives. However, the study identifies key challenges hindering the effective use of visual materials in non-formal classrooms, including infrastructural inconveniences such as poor projection systems, noisy sound systems, and inadequate seating arrangements for students. In light of these findings, the study recommends the implementation of professional training sessions for educators and emphasizes the need for school authorities to take responsibility in addressing identified challenges. By doing so, the study advocates for the creation of an environment conducive to effective classroom practices utilizing visual materials in non-formal educational settings. Teacher’s World: Journal of Education and Research, 49 (2),37-51

POSITIVE PSYCHOLOGY, POSITIVE SCHOOLING AND RABINDRANATH TAGORE’S EDUCATIONAL IDEAS

The concept of Positive Psychology is comparatively new in the realm of psychology. It is related to the happiness of an individual or a group. Happiness or the frequent positive affective state of mind also impacts mental well-being and, hence, an individuals mental health and development. The educational system developed by Rabindranath Tagore in Santiniketan dated back to 1901 in the form of a Brahmacharya Vidyalaya had the prime aim of joy of mind of the students. Closeness to nature, classes in the open air, multidimensional curriculum were some of the significant principles of the educational institution established by a Rabindranath Tagore. All these principles certainly aim to strengthen the students happiness base. More than a century before, Tagore had applied these principles of positive psychology to his educational experiments. The present study is a humble effort to trace Tagores educational efforts related to happiness, positive psychology, and positive schooling. KEYWORDS: Positive Psychology, Positive Schooling, Rabindranath Tagores educational Practices

Dancing with Buber: an autoethnographic study of inclusion and disability and its ethical foundations

ABSTRACT This autoethnographic study with critical friends explores a teacher’s - commitment to inclusive education in the context of disability. Decades of global developments, advocacy, academic research and legislation to protect the rights of people with disabilities and ensure access to equal education opportunities, whilst reassuring, reveal undeniable challenges and struggles. There is a clear lack of attention to the situatedness and ethical basis of inclusive practices. In this article, we examine the professional practice and pedagogical understandings of the first author, a secondary school teacher, college in Victoria, Australia. Autoethnographic methodology allowed a personal interrogation of episodes of encountering disability and inclusion, as Author 1 explores examples from her own teaching practices. Martin Buber’s notion of ‘I and Thou’ fuels our reflections on the ethical and relational basis of teaching inclusively. Two vignettes reveal lived experiences, used as the ground for a fruitful dialogic exchange. These result in a set of reflexive pieces of writing from the first author and two colleagues. Findings suggest that the relational and ethical basis of educational practices in regard to disability and inclusion need to be re-examined in light of Buber’s relational category of I-Thou, which suggests focus on the person, rather than the label, ‘disability’.

Ideology and Education: Soviet Ideological Educational Practices in the Kyrgyz Territory (1924–1927)

AbstractThis study aims to investigate the ideological propaganda applied by the Soviet Union in schools in Kyrgyzstan during 1924–1925. During these years, propaganda was used in its most widespread form in Kyrgyzstan and education became an ideological weapon. I use the document analysis technique for data collection and collected data by obtaining the necessary permissions from the Kyrgyzstan State Archive. The research focuses on the activities carried out by the Soviet Union to have the Soviet ideology adopted in the old tsarist schools and newly opened schools in Kyrgyzstan after the October Revolution. In addition, this study provides primary sources that are not found in the literature on the ideological educational practices of the Soviet administration in Kyrgyz schools. The Soviet administration prioritized the ideological training of teachers and trained them to transfer the Soviet values to students. The Soviet Union implemented a single educational program prepared by Soviet ideologues in schools throughout its territory. The educational content aimed to eliminate completely the national culture and old beliefs of societies. In addition to the education program, they renamed physical areas, such as school and street names, consistent with this ideology.

Methodological shifts and departures in music education research: embracing complexity with diffraction, intra-action, and agentic assemblages

ABSTRACT In England, music education policy is deeply rooted in neoliberal ideologies, shaping classroom practice and assessments. This paper presents findings from a four-year funded longitudinal project exploring the impact of musical partnerships on young people at risk of educational exclusion. Through a posthuman lens, the researchers made a methodological shift, acknowledging the agency of non-human elements and physical spaces in musical interactions. Posthumanism offered alternative insights, challenging traditional notions of music education practice and extended human-centric perspectives and school assessment metrics. It expanded our understanding of what it means to be a musician and pedagogue. This paper proposes that posthumanism can challenge existing notions of music education practice while simultaneously moving the discussion of important matters in music education research into new areas of thinking, doing, and being.

Experiences of Practical Nurses in Promoting the Rehabilitation of the Elderly and Their Education – A Secondary Publication

The significance of rehabilitation-promoting nursing care is emphasized in aging Finland. According to studies, rehabilitation-promoting nursing care enhances the functional capacity of the elderly. The Elderly Services Act obliges municipalities to create a plan to support the elderly population, emphasizing home care and rehabilitation measures. A large portion of graduated practical nurses will be working with the elderly, so the education of practical nurses must meet the needs of the workforce. The study aimed to produce new information on the implementation of rehabilitation-promoting nursing care in the elderly service system and on the education of rehabilitation-promoting nursing care for the elderly in vocational institutions. The research data was collected in the autumn of 2020 through individual thematic interviews with practical nurse students (n = 8). The data was analyzed using inductive content analysis. Practical nurse students’ experiences of rehabilitation-promoting nursing care for the elderly were related to nurses’ time management, organizational practices, nursing competence, nurses’ attitudes, nurses’ practices, organizational development, implementation and development of practical education, factors affecting the use of aids, and technological aspects of aids in the future. In conclusion, it can be stated that the content of education and practical work life do not align. It is essential to increase competence in rehabilitation-promoting nursing care and to develop organizational practices.

L1 Education in Times of Globalization, Digitalization and Super-Diversity

This introduction first briefly sketches the (history of the) International Mother Tongue Education Network (IMEN). IMEN was founded in 1981 as an information and research network that over the years initiated an empirical-interpretive research program focusing on comparative analyses of the rhetoric and practices of L1 education across a dozen of European countries. Main elements of IMEN’s methodology that will be discussed below were the development of different types of research collaboration, a theoretical framework for comparative analysis, and a method for international triangulation. It then describes how, at the turn of the century, IMEN’s way of doing slow science became increasingly threatened by the requirements of publish or perish mainstream research, and how its research program was confronted with the challenges posed to L1 education by processes of globalization, digitalization, and super-diversity, becoming manifest in the superdiverse nature of student bodies, their sociolinguistic and ethnocultural doings, and the increasingly digitalized modes of teaching and learning they are exposed to. All these elements, in one way or another, also have an impact on the teaching-learning practices in mainstream L1 education and consequently must be addressed by IMEN-like studies. Finally this contribution briefly introduces the contributions to this special issue and suggests that they are a strong argument for a renewed interest in international comparative discussion on and around L1 education and a plea to further collaborative research from an empirical interpretive ethnographic perspective on teachers’ professional practical knowledge and classroom practices that can guide our understanding of the ubiquitous school subject L1 education that aims at preparing students for a global, digital, and super-diverse society.

Secondary teachers’ experiences of presence in teaching: A large-scale investigation using narrative vignettes

This study examined the recognition and perceived significance of presence in teaching among secondary school teachers (N = 258) using a narrative vignettes instrument. Results showed that on average, secondary teachers experience presence in teaching in more than half of their lessons. They consider presence in teaching to be associated with the essence of teaching, and relevant for gratifying teaching experiences and for students’ development as whole persons. This study contributes to refining a conceptualization of presence in teaching grounded in daily educational practice and provides teachers with language and knowledge to use in reflecting on their teaching practice.

EdTechnica: a vision of an educational publishing community of practice that is accessible, flexible, and just

Open Educational Resources (OER) and Open Educational Practices (OEP) have the potential to transform and positively impact individuals, institutions, and society. As educators, we have a unique responsibility to explore opportunities and possibilities afforded by openness enabled by current technologies to reimagine and reshape current educational reality and provide a more hopeful and equitable future for all. EdTechnica is an openly licensed living encyclopedia that provides background information on central topics and theories in the field of educational technology. As an OER, EdTechnica extends the 5Rs of openness—retain, reuse, revise, remix, and redistribute by also attending to the 3Rs of social justice—recognition, representation, and redistribution—bringing about a responsive product that reimagines what encyclopedias should be. Additionally, the governing board enacts principles of openness in its practice, striving for OEP in all its activities. This article explores how EdTechnica promotes knowledge creation and academic discourse by attending to key principles of openness in terms of ensuring accessibility, flexibility, justice, and sustainable generosity. Specific examples of OER/P in the EdTechnica context offer an insight into our practices and ambitions to improve the current educational landscape, illustrating what is possible at the intersection of justice, hope, and educational technology when we strive for openness and are guided by the values of sustainable generosity and sustainable improvement.

Sectoral challenges and negative feelings experienced by Palestinians with disability in besieged Gaza during COVID-19 pandemic

Trying to contribute in promoting social justice, equity and equality in inclusive society, this study explored intersectoral challenges and negative feelings experienced by Palestinians with disability during COVID-19 pandemic in besieged and conflict-stricken Gaza, Palestine. It involved two focus group discussions and six individual interviews that included 45 participants, mainly university students with different disabilities and intersectoral stakeholders representing 15 governmental and non-governmental institutions concerned with policies and practices in education, health and socio-economic sectors. The thematic analysis of the results revealed 22 sectoral challenges and also 16 interrelated negative feelings and emotions caused by these challenges. These findings were discussed in light of pre-existing contextual realities that Palestinians with disability were living through tripled burden contextual realities: COVID-19 pandemic, prolonged siege and 11-day aggression on Gaza. The discussion and conclusion argued for adopting ethical and human right approach that ‘leaves no one behind’ in all life domains.

How to use polarity thinkingTM to manage tensions between accountability and learner agency when using a multipurpose portfolio?

Portfolios are often implemented to target multiple purposes, e.g. assessment, accountability and/or self-regulated learning. However, in educational practice, it appears to be difficult to combine different purposes in one portfolio, as interdependencies between the purposes can cause tensions. This paper explored directions to manage tensions that are inextricably linked to multipurpose portfolio use. We used a systems thinking methodology, that was based on the polarity thinkingTM framework. This framework provides a step-by-step approach to chart a polarity map® that can help to balance the tensions present in specific settings. We followed the steps of the framework to chart a polarity map for multipurpose portfolio use. Based on literature and our prior research, we selected one overarching polarity: accountability and learner agency. This polarity seems responsible for multiple tensions related to multipurpose portfolio use. We formulated values (potential benefits) and fears (tensions that can arise) of the two poles of this polarity. Then, we organised a session with stakeholders who work with the portfolio of the Dutch General Practice speciality programme. Together we formulated action steps and early warnings that can help to balance accountability and learner agency during multipurpose portfolio use. In addition to previous recommendations concerning portfolio use, we advocate that it is important to create a shared frame of reference between all involved with the multipurpose portfolio. During this process, the acknowledgement and discussion of tensions related to multipurpose portfolio use are vital.