Professions Education Research Research Articles

The Inquiry Initiative and “Opportunity Gaps”: Collaborative Research Structures and Challenging Inequities in Teacher Education

ABSTRACT While academic conferences and professional associations were amongst those societal structures that were immediately (and arguably forever) changed by the pandemic , many – including this article’s authors and this special issue’s editors – would argue that long before the pandemic, the static structure of professional conferences had made them decidedly less relevant to their members and their fields. In response, in 2022 the Association of Teacher Educators launched the Inquiry Initiative, aiming to develop a novel form of collaborative research structure, uniting teacher education scholars and practitioners to examine and address “opportunity gaps” in education. In this introductory article to this special issue, we explore these professional association contexts and teacher education research circumstances in an effort to help readers understand the unique set of factors that have resulted in this edition of The New Educator. We share a concise history of academic conferences in the US; we situate this history in a brief literature review on collaborative research structures. We outline the elements of the Initiative as it has been implemented over the course of the last three years, concisely detailing the nature of the “opportunity gaps” focus of the first Initiative, and offering short summaries of the articles in this special issue, considering their connections to the “opportunity gaps” topic. We conclude with a reflection on the nature of academic scholarship in the US and the need for and place of such alternative collaborative structures in the service of these research endeavors.

PEDAGOGICAL CONDITIONS FOR THE FORMATION OF GEOGRAPHY TEACHERSGEOECOLOGICAL COMPETENCE IN THE EDUCATIONAL PROCESS

Today, the formation of competence of geography teachers is an actual task of higher education. To prepare a competitive personality capable of perceiving global problems, to functioning in new socio-economic, socio-cultural conditions, taking into account the modern concept of the joint existence of man and nature. Competence is the ability and knowledge in the field of interaction between geosystems and ecosystems, the influence of human activity on the surrounding nature, as well as the ability to adapt to changing environmental conditions and effectively respond to environmental threats and challenges.The article has an analysis of theoretical and methodological literature, the following concepts are specified and given to the following concepts: “competence”, “competency-based approach”. The pedagogical conditions for the effective formation of the competence of geography teachers in the educational process have been identified and substantiated, and the pedagogical technology for the formation of geography teachers’ competence in the educational process of the university (through the disciplines of the professional cycle, educational and scientific research activity) has been identified.

Professional Educational Researchers in China’s Five-Level Education and Teaching Research System: Their Promotive Roles in Chinese Basic Education Development

Professional Educational Researchers (PER) are a crucial component of China’s Five-Level Education and Teaching Research System (ETRS), which has been of fundamental importance to Chinese basic education development. PERs play a significant role in directing teachers’ professional development, advancing basic education curriculum reform, and supporting educational decision-making. This article explains the concept of the PER in the context of the ETRS, describes the professional criteria for being a PER, and expounds on their significance for basic education advancement.

Designing for justice: How universal design theory could bolster health professional education research

Universal design theory (UDT), emerging from the field of architecture and infused with the politics of the disability rights movement, refers to a way of planning for and responding to diversity that can be harnessed for research design. We argue that UDT is a critical tool for researchers in health professional education (HPE) to realise their obligations for social accountability, justice, equity, diversity and inclusion in HPE. This paper introduces researchers to UDT and demonstrates how it could inform research design in HPE. We provide an in-depth, socio-political explanation of the theory and why it is important for HPE research, and we elucidate ways it can inform HPE research design and process—including the tensions that may arise in activating these principles alongside some research paradigms and conditions of the field. We seek to highlight the potential of universal design to transform research practice to advance justice.

Investment in Teacher-Education Versus Teacher-Educational Research for Effective Teacher-Professional Learning

Purpose: This systematic research paper provides a comprehensive review of studies and literature on three terms i.e., teacher education, teacher professional learning and teacher education research more specifically in the context of the Tanzania education system. One of the most important aspects identified in teacher education in recent years is teacher educational research despite being yet overlooked. Teacher educational research creates a better juncture through which a gap between teacher education and teacher professional learning is bridged and the two present well with one another.
 Methodology: The analysis used 45 articles related to the three aspects, published in ten years between 2012 and 2022. The findings indicate that through teacher education, teacher professional learning is up-to-date and kept on track by equipping and updating teachers with contemporary knowledge and teaching practices.
 Findings: In Tanzania, teacher professional learning is mostly done in form of workshops and seminars that few teachers from various educational institutions are allowed to attend. In addition, the integration of teacher education research content in teacher education is considered one of the approaches to facilitate teachers’ (both pre-service and in-service) capacity to draw on a wide knowledge base through teacher professional learning.
 Unique Contribution to Theory, Policy And Practice: Generally, the main focus of teacher education research should be to understand how teachers develop and acquire knowledge, and investigate the diversity of experiences in learning to teach, thus contributing to teacher professional learning program design.

ENHANCEMENT OF PROFESSIONAL COMPETENCE OF EDUCATIONAL PROFESSIONALS IN THE CONTEXT OF ORGANIZING METHODOLOGICAL SUPPORT

The article is dedicated to the issues of improving the professional competencies of educational professionals through the organization of methodological support within the framework of creating a unified system of professional development and implementing the “Modern School” federal project.
 The authors disclose the specifics of methodological support for educators aimed at identifying professional deficits, employing individual educational route technologies, and developing competence enhancement programs. The authors present a model of organizing methodological support for educational professionals, including a component for future educators, thereby proving the importance of organizing methodological interaction with practicing educators to shape a new type of university graduate capable of continuous professional growth. The authors are convinced that involving educators and students, i.e. future educators, in scientific and methodological events, including joint planning, contributes to the development of analytical skills and methodological culture, enhances professional mastery, fosters the establishment of conscious professional positions, and improves communication formats. Special attention is given by the authors to the application of normative and legal foundations for the organization of a multi-level methodological support system involving various methodological structures, professional communities, and subject associations.
 The article is addressed to the faculty and staff of the supplementary professional education system, research workers, doctoral students, teachers, and students of educational institutions, as well as those interested in educational issues in the field of improving the professional competence of educational professionals.

Recreating the future-Indigenous research paradigms in health professional education research.

Health and self-determination are recognised as universal human rights. Health professional education research and practice hold the capacity to prioritise values, worldviews and agendas that envisage sustainable and equitable futures for the entire community served. This paper explores the need for the co-location of Indigenous research paradigms in health professional education research and teaching. Indigenous communities have a long history of science, research and sustainable living and are holders of ways of knowing, being and doing that can shape actions and priorities in health research that value equity and sustainability. Knowledge construction in health professional education research does not occur in isolation nor is it value neutral. A continued dominance of the biomedical approach to health creates a system of innovation that is unbalanced and unable to deliver health outcomes demanded by contemporary society. As power and hierarchies are embedded in health professional education research and praxis, transformative action is required to bring forth marginalised voices in research processes. Critical reflexivity regarding the ontological, epistemological, axiological and methodological positioning of researchers is an important step towards creating and sustaining research structures that effectively value and co-locate different perspectives in knowledge production and translation. Working towards more equitable and sustainable futures for Indigenous and non-Indigenous communities requires health care systems to be informed and guided by different knowledge paradigms. This can work to avoid the ongoing reproduction of inefficient biomedical structures and purposefully disrupt the status quo of health inequities. Realising this requires the effective co-location of Indigenous research paradigms and ways of working into health professional education research that centre relationality, wholism, interconnectedness and self-determination. This calls for a raising of the critical consciousness of health professional education research academies.

Sharpening reflexive practice in health professional education research

This paper focuses on the methodological practice of reflexivity. It critically explores previous works within and outside the field of health professional education research that seek to guide and inform researchers about reflexivity. Using illustrative scenarios, this paper will describe what reflexivity might look like in practice and ways in which reflexivity may contribute to strengthening future work. To finish, challenges of reporting reflexivity, including achieving a balance of credibility and vulnerability with respect to researcher reflexivity will be discussed. In sum, this work seeks to provide readers who are new to reflexivity, and those with experience, with some new ways of thinking about reflexivity that they might take forward into their research.

Perspectives of culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) community members regarding mental health services: A qualitative analysis.

INTRODUCTION: Victoria is one of the most multicultural states in Australia. Many CALD communities in Victoria may have encountered complicated migration journeys and complex life stressors during their initial settlement, leading to adverse mental health concerns. This diversity necessitates public policy settings to ensure equity and access in health services planning and delivery. While the MH policies and services take cultural diversity into account, there needs to be more implementation of those components of MH policies that relate to the particular needs of various CALD communities in Victoria. Even though mental health services prevent and address mental health issues, many barriers can impair CALD community access and utilisation of mental health services. Furthermore, the recent Royal Commission inquiry into the Victorian Mental Health system drives a renewed policy imperative to ensure meaningful engagement and cultural safety of all people accessing and utilising mental health services (Department of Health, 2023). This study focused on the perspectives of people from CALD communities in Victoria regarding their mental health service needs, understandings of and experiences with mental health services to prepare an education package for mental health nurses as part of a larger multi-method research project. A qualitative descriptive design was used to collect and analyse the perspectives of 21 participants in Victoria, using telephone interviews, followed by thematic analysis. The themes and sub-themes identified were: Settling issues; Perceptions of understanding of mental health issues (help-seeking attitudes toward mental health issues; the need for CALD community education); perceived barriers to accessing and utilising mental health services in Victoria (socio-cultural and language barriers; stigma, labelling and discrimination; knowledge and experience of accessing health facilities); experience with mental health services and professionals. Community participation, mental health professional education and robust research regarding the mental health needs of CALD people are some of the recommended strategies to improve access and utilisation of mental health services in Victoria. The current study can contribute to the existing knowledge, understanding, practice and quality improvement as it vividly portrays the issues of various CALD communities in Victoria. The findings of this study imply that CALD MH service users and their families are likely to benefit in terms of improved service assessment and quality of MH care and equity when MHNs undertake CC training and bring that into their practice.

A reflection on critical reflection in professional education research

The roots of universities of technology can be traced back to technical colleges, which required compliance with industry standards, and the rule of labour markets. Universities of technology thus entered the university space, largely without an established critical tradition in teaching, learning, and research. This is the issue that we address in this paper, which is intended to inform potential authors in technical, vocational, and professional higher education who would like to publish their educational research studies in Critical Studies in Teaching and Learning (CriSTaL). The issue is important as universities of technology in South Africa are increasingly taking on the mantle of professional education, particularly in the fields of health, engineering, and applied sciences. In this paper, we discuss examples of published educational research that critique some of the ‘taken-for-granted’ ideas that have shaped the practices and aspirations of universities of technologies. The examples show that by judiciously drawing on traditions of critical reflective practice, and by bringing new ideas, concepts, and theories into educational research studies, further critical concepts can evolve. These new critical concepts will be of interest to the readers (and reviewers) of CRiSTaL, but more importantly could inspire universities of technology to reaffirm their connection to practice and begin to create a critical space for their own scholarly – and critical – identities.

A reflection on critical reflection in professional education research

A reflection on critical reflection in professional education research

Challenges & Opportunities in New Education Policy in India- A Study

The New Education Policy (NEP) in India has created education sector difficulties and opportunities. This paper examines NEP issues and possibilities and their effects on Indian education. In unpredictable times, education is crucial. The National Education Policy 2020 of India aims to improve education. The plan emphasizes high-quality, multidisciplinary universities and institutions. The findings show NEP implementation problems. Challenges include aligning the curriculum with the new policy, stakeholder resistance to change, resource restrictions, and the need for intensive teacher training and capacity building. Bridging the digital divide and ensuring technology access are also difficult. However, the NEP offers many chances to improve Indian education. A comprehensive and multidisciplinary approach to learning, early childhood education, vocational training and skill development, and digital learning and innovation are these opportunities. The NEP offers teacher professional development and education research. The study finds that NEP issues and possibilities must be addressed. It recommends policy implementation mechanisms, resource allocation, stakeholder engagement, and ongoing monitoring and evaluation to maximize the NEP's benefits and revolutionize the Indian education system. This study's results and recommendations illuminate India's NEP implementation problems and prospects. They help policymakers, educators, and education reform stakeholders implement and improve the NEP's aims and objectives.

Using school–university partnerships as a development tool in low‐income countries: The case of Myanmar

AbstractThis article suggests that creating school–university partnerships is a powerful educational development tool not only in highly developed systems but also in low‐income contexts. Using the example of Myanmar, it presents these partnerships as a multi‐functional tool. This tool supports seven functional areas: teacher learning and professional development, educational research, school improvement, university improvement, curriculum design and reform implementation, generating and spreading educational innovations, and enhancing participation and social dialogue. The article also suggests that international development organizations should consider the creation of school–university cooperation as an effective form of intervention in contexts of underdevelopment.

Contributor biographies

Contributor biographies

Problematising voice in qualitative health professional education research

Qualitative research is inherently relational, thus paying attention to subjectivities is important. As researchers, we are fundamentally entangled in the research through the decisions we make about design, the rapport and shaping of interviews to construct the data and the lenses we bring to interpretation and sense making. This is a multivoiced project, including at the very minimum, the researcher(s)’ voice and those of the participants. And yet we see several practices that either elide our role in the research and/or labour under the misapprehension that only the participants’ voice matters. This paper unpacks common practices that misrepresent the multivoicedness of qualitative research and presents strategies that acknowledge and work with the complexities of representing voice in research. E.B. White aptly said, “I have yet to see a piece of writing, political or non-political, that does not have a slant. All writing slants the way a writer leans, and no man is born perpendicular.”

Possibilities of scientific search in forming the creativity of a future engineer

The purpose of the article: to determine the potential of scientific research in domestic and foreign professional education in the formation of the creativity of a future engineer. Research methods: theoretical analysis of foreign and domestic literature, conversations, analysis of questionnaires, personal experience, assessment and self-assessment of bachelors, generalization and systematization of the data obtained. Research results: the article presents a theoretical analysis and analysis of research results, which allows: to give a formulation and reveal the content of the concept of “scientific search”, to define it as a significant side of the future engineer; identify mechanisms, models, principles and rules and types of scientific research etc. Conclusions: the possibilities of scientific research as a means of shaping the creativity of a future engineer have been determined, the importance of his/her motivational and reflexive position in engineering education has been substantiated.

South African physiotherapists' perspectives on the competencies needed to work in special schools for learners with special needs.

BackgroundInvestigation into, and description of competencies in the various sectors in which the physiotherapy profession is practised, contribute to the standardisation of practice, professional education, and guides research and administration, and is necessary in South Africa.ObjectiveTo identify the competencies implemented by physiotherapists working in an educational setting for learners with special needs and to determine physiotherapists’ opinions on the identified competencies.MethodsA sequential mixed method research design was implemented to explore the competencies that physiotherapists implement during their intervention for children with special needs through focus group discussions (FGDs). A questionnaire based on the statements that emerged from the thematic analysis of the transcribed FGDs, and validated, was implemented in a cross-sectional survey amongst all physiotherapists employed in special schools. SPSS version 24 was used for the analysis of closed responses and thematic analysis was done on open-ended responses (n = 22).ResultsThe respondents’ knowledge and skills regarding physiotherapy theories and implementation ranged from ‘good’ to ‘very good’. However, integration of the therapeutic knowledge and skills in different aspects of the special educational environment, and community integration, were rated ‘poor’ to ‘fair’. Support of physiotherapists to implement policies and procedures, and to attend continuing professional development, ranged from ‘fair’ to ‘poor’.ConclusionLack of knowledge in educational policies and procedures in classroom strategies negatively influence the integration of therapeutic strategies in the special educational environment.Clinical implicationsThe contribution of our study to learners with special needs in schools was outlined.

Facilitating health professional education research development; an action research approach.

Educational research and scholarship can advance teaching knowledge and practices. In the Westmead health precinct, Australia, education research has occurred in isolated pockets, with little professional development support. We developed a course to introduce the practice of educational research to multidisciplinary health professional educators in 2019. We explored how we, as multidisciplinary teacher educators, could enable educators to undertake education research while improving our practice. The course was developed based on Social Development Theory and applied to peer teaching to develop our teacher education capacity. Using action research, we worked together and with learners through repeated planning, observing, reflecting and engaging. We conducted facilitator/learner pre-/post-course and post-workshop surveys, and mid-course facilitator focus group. Data were analysed through theoretical thematic analysis using Guba and Lincoln's evaluation framework and Social Development Theory. Facilitators expected the course would enable novice participants to initiate research. Facilitators and learners reported course content, structure and approach were relevant, accessible and effective; however, limited times and irregular attendance challenged knowledge and skills development, and individual research engagement. Mid-course improvements increased time for application to authentic, collaborative research activities. Facilitators enhanced their teaching through jointly developing the course, reflection and responding to feedback. Through peer teaching, reflection and discussion, we collaboratively created, then improved, a health professional education research course, and developed our capacity as teacher educators. Our need to overcome challenges forced us to reconsider and adjust our approach. Action research benefits learners and teachers by improving teaching practice through a dynamic, cyclical, responsive approach.

Discussion Paper: Conceptual thresholds in health professional education research and scholarship

Healthcare professionals (HCPs) are increasingly undertaking health professional education (HPE) research and scholarship. This discussion paper highlights key transition points experienced by HCPs newly engaging in HPE research and scholarship, using conceptual thresholds as a theoretical lens. The identified thresholds are: (1) recognising limits, (2) navigating discourses and (3) negotiating identities, and our paper evidences the epistemic, discursive and existential repositioning underpinning these thresholds. Supporting HCPs to successfully navigate the rich and vibrant world of HPE research and scholarship requires a multi-faceted strategy involving individual upskilling, co-construction of resources and strategies, and enhancing the invitational quality of HPE research activities, environments and communities.

Observational studies in health professional education research

Observational studies are not uncommon in health professional education and are frequently associated with ethnography as a methodology. This article aims to provide an overview of how observational studies are used in health professional education research. Firstly, we explore some ways in which observational methods can be used in association with a range of qualitative research stances, and then we focus on the practicalities of undertaking observational research. Next, we use two case studies to illustrate some of the key decision points when designing observational research. Finally, we collate resources and consider the implications of contemporary world events on observational research.