Specific Educational Approaches Research Articles

Culinary medicine in type 2 diabetes management: co-designing the Cook2DIAbeat training program

Abstract Background Type 2 diabetes (hereinafter diabetes) stands among the top ten drivers of disease burden. Globally, more than 59 million adults are living with diabetes with a projection of 15% increase by 2045. The Cook2DIAbeat project aims to develop a tailor-made nutrition training program based on culinary medicine, for patients with diabetes to achieve lifelong dietary changes. The aim of the present work was to reveal potential drivers and barriers related to lifelong dietary modifications. Methods The study was implemented in February-July 2023 in Spain, Belgium, Greece, and Cyprus. A mixed-method co-design methodology was conducted: co-creation sessions with individuals with diabetes, family members, and healthcare professionals, and an online survey with patients with diabetes. Results In total, 23 health professionals and 25 patients and family members participated in the co-creation sessions, and 212 patients in the online survey. Patients and health professionals recognized the added value of the culinary approach for diabetes management. The main perceived barriers for changing dietary habits included difficulties accessing reliable and non-conflicting information, lack of time, emotional and psychological issues, and limited social support. Individuals at an advanced age and of low socioeconomic status seem to demand specific educational approaches addressing the actual challenges of their daily life. Conclusions The study indicated that training should provide reliable information and address psychosocial aspects. The translation of the dietary guidelines through the culinary medicine approach seems to be well-received by the target group. Last, the content needs to be tailored to suit the specific age group and socioeconomic background of the patients. Key messages • Reliability, practicability are three key characteristics of a nutrition training program in diabetes management. • Cultural and socioeconomic barriers needs to be taken into consideration.

Pre-service geography teachers’ conceptual understanding of contours on maps: implications for teacher training in cartography

ABSTRACT Developing young people’s understanding of geography concepts requires teachers who have detailed, structured, interconnected, and accurate conceptual knowledge and understanding. Accordingly, this study focuses on pre-service geography teachers’ understanding of the exemplar concept of contours on maps and discusses its implications for teacher training programmes. Data collected using a two-tier conceptual test and a questionnaire in a sample of 127 pre-service geography teachers indicated that pre-service teachers should not be perceived as a homogenous group with identical conceptual understandings and educational needs. The results highlighted the necessity to differentiate between pre-service teachers not only based on their conceptual understanding but also on the non-cognitive dimensions of concepts. Four types of pre-service teachers were identified based on success and certainty rates: successful-certain (SC), successful-uncertain (SU), failing-uncertain (FU) and failing-certain (FC). Both SU and FU types were characterised by low confidence in their related skills and a negative relationship to the concept of contours. The non-cognitive dimension manifested in opposite ways in SC and FC types. The specific educational approach required by each type is discussed, and implications for further research are presented.

Physical activity and its impact on cardiovascular health in pediatric kidney transplant recipients

BackgroundCardiovascular (CV) morbidity after kidney transplantation (KTx) in childhood is of increasing importance. In light of a high prevalence of CV risk factors, protective measures such as physical activity (PA) come into focus. Our aim was to comprehensively assess PA in pediatric KTx recipients and evaluate its impact on CV health.MethodsForty-eight patients were assessed for frequency, duration, intensity, and setting of PA using the “Motorik–Modul” PA questionnaire. Walking-based activity was measured by accelerometer in a subgroup (n = 23). CV risk factors and subclinical CV organ damage were determined. The impact of PA on CV parameters was analyzed using linear regression models.ResultsFifty-two percent of pediatric KTx recipients did not reach WHO recommended PA level; 54% did not engage in PA with vigorous intensity (VPA). Twenty-nine percent indicated an extremely inactive lifestyle (< 120 min/week of moderate to vigorous intensity PA, MVPA). Compared to the healthy German KiGGS cohort, KTx recipients specifically lacked engagement in sport activities (KTx: 129 min/week; 95%CI, 97–162 vs. KiGGS, 242 min/week; 95%CI, 230–253). VPA was associated with lower systolic blood pressure (p = 0.024) and resting heart rate (p = 0.005), MVPA with fewer components of the post-transplant metabolic syndrome (p = 0.037), and better left ventricular diastolic function (p = 0.006).ConclusionsA considerable lack of PA, especially VPA, exists in young KTx recipients. PA was positively associated with important parameters of CV health. While long-term CV protection through PA seems promising in pediatric KTx recipients, specific educational approaches are most likely needed to increase patients’ engagement in sport activities.Graphical abstractA higher resolution version of the Graphical abstract is available as Supplementary information

Universal Design for Learning for Children with ADHD.

Attention Deficit-Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is a psychiatric condition that shows developmentally inappropriate levels of inattention, hyperactivity, or impulsivity. Symptoms begin at a young age and usually include a lack of attention, poor concentration, disorganization, difficulty completing tasks, forgetfulness, and losing things. It is important to diagnose and treat the disorder at a young age so that the symptoms do not persist into adulthood and cause other comorbid conditions. Learning difficulties, motor impairment, anxiety, or depressive disorders may occur with this condition. To improve the academic careers of children with ADHD, we focused on a specific innovative educational approach (Universal Design for Learning) that could improve basic learning skills (reading, writing, and arithmetic skills) to prevent or manage any learning difficulty that could occur with ADHD. The Universal Design for Learning is an individualized approach that combines current neuroscientific knowledge, creating personalized teaching based on the strengths and weaknesses of the student. The goal of this study is to analyze the impact that this approach has on basic learning abilities. We found that both interventions led to improvements in test performance, indicating that interventions were necessary to enhance reading, writing, and arithmetic skills. Furthermore, the group that received an educational intervention based on Universal Design for Learning demonstrated a more significant improvement in these areas. Additionally, we propose that the set of techniques implemented by teachers in the classroom helped children to read, write, and perform math tasks correctly and more fluently.

Counseling students' experiences and interpretations of purpose development

The aim of this study was to explore the lived experiences of counseling students regarding their development of sense of purpose in life and further seek their recommendations for fostering sense of purpose within educational settings. In this study, we have used pragmatism as our research paradigm and Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA) as our data analysis approach to gain deeper insights into the phenomenon of purpose development and further use the findings of this study to suggest specific purpose-strengthening educational approaches. Based on the interpretative phenomenological analysis, we identified five themes that revealed purpose development as a non-linear process that involves exploring, engaging with, reflecting upon, articulating, and actualizing one’s purpose, and is influenced by both internal and external factors. In light of these findings, we discussed implications for counselor education programs that aspire to cultivate counseling students' sense of purpose in life as an important dimension for their personal wellness, which research has shown could further promote their professional development and career success.

Educating non-medical prescribers in the UK – perspectives of programme leads

Objectives Explore the design, delivery and assessment of UK non-medical prescriber (NMP) programmes, and how they prepare prescribers for practice. This was to fill the current gap in knowledge around the specific educational approaches used to train NMPs. Methods A qualitative research design was utilised and 16 programme directors from UK NMP programmes were interviewed through the online Zoom app. Results These were organised into five major themes: taught content (pertaining to prescribing knowledge, safety, communication and continuing professional development); assessment methods of the programme; aims, objectives and goals of the programme; critical appraisals of programme leads on educational approaches and; improving the programme for future cohorts. Conclusions Consideration should be given to adapting the teaching and assessment approaches highlighted by programme leads, particularly towards more interactive, simulated and blended learning approaches.

Let’s read green! A comparison between approaches in different disciplines to enhance preservice teachers’ environmental attitudes

This article examines the effect of different educational approaches to environmental education (EE) in the environmental attitudes of 507 preservice teachers. In one experimental group EE was addressed in a science subject and in other experimental group in a literature subject. The latter integrated content and competences in a transdisciplinary way, overcoming the idea that environmental attitudes should only be addressed in science classes. The analysis of their responses to the Environmental Attitudes Inventory (EAI) in a prestest-postest design show that both approaches were able to increase their pro-environmental attitudes, while the control group showed no significant changes. The educational intervention at the literature subject was able to significantly increase those dimensions related to preserving nature and the diversity of natural species in their original natural state, while the educational intervention at the science subject was also able to significantly decrease those dimensions related to the belief that it is right and even necessary to use and alter nature, natural phenomena, and species for human objectives. Female future teachers had more favorable attitudes towards nature than their male counterparts, but no statistically significant differences were observed according to gender for a specific educational approach.

Does education improve adherence to a training monitoring program in recreational athletes?

Monitoring athletes’ training may help prevent negative consequences such as overtraining and burnout. However, acceptance or willingness of athletes to participate is a barrier to an effective training monitoring program. Educational strategies may potentially increase adherence. Therefore, our aims are to i) assess the impact of training monitoring education on adherence to a monitoring program; ii) determine the effect of the education intervention on burnout, stress, and recovery, and; iii) qualitatively investigate athlete perspectives of the education and training monitoring experience. Recreational athletes (18 male/17 female; age = 42.6 ± 12.0) were randomised to either a control ( n = 19) or education ( n = 16) group and completed daily training monitoring through a smartphone application over 10 weeks. Pre-post assessments using the Athlete Burnout Questionnaire, the Acute Recovery Stress Scale, and a perceived knowledge of training monitoring questionnaire, and semi-structured interviews were performed. Adherence was low, with no differences between the control group ([mean ± SD]; 43.0 ± 38.8%) and the education group (45.8 ± 36.7%). There were also no differences (p &gt;0.05) between the groups on the standardised inventories. There was a significant effect of time (p &lt;0.001) on participant's perceived understanding of training monitoring tools (scored out of 42) at the end of the washout period (Control: 24.4 ± 6.6; Education: 28.5 ± 5.6) and post-study (Control: 32.1 ± 7.5; Education: 35.1 ± 6.0) compared to the pre-study (Control: 21.5 ± 7.3; Education: 21.9 ± 7.7). Interviews revealed participants wanted more education on modifying their training, and feedback on their data. Our findings suggest this specific educational approach was not enough to increase adherence; other aspects of education and individual feedback needs to be further explored.

INTERVENTION APPROACHES IN PHYSICAL EDUCATION IN ORDINARY SCHOOL TO ENHANCE SOCIAL INTERACTION IN A STUDENT WITH AUTISTIC SPECTRUM DISORDER: A CASE STUDY

Co-education of students with Autistic Spectrum Disorder (ASD) during the lesson of Physical Education (PE) in the Greek School constitutes contemporary educational reality. However, its success depends on many factors, with the most important being the effective employment of cooperative physical education methods for students with disabilities or no disabilities. The purpose of this case study was to analyze the impact of a physical education intervention program on the reinforcement of the social interaction of a student with ASD, aged 10, in the ordinary school. The intervention exercise program included the following specific educational approaches and intervention strategies: a) game with the support of an adult (adult support game) b) integrated playgroups with guided involvement (Integrated Play Groups Model) and c) games between peers providing a model to imitate. The duration of the program was eight weeks, with a frequency of three times per week, each lesson of PE (Physical Education) lasting 45 minutes. The data collection tools that were used in the pre-intervention program were the semi-structured interview and the «Autism Social Skills Profile» scale (Bellini &amp; Hopf, 2007), which was adapted in the Greek Language by Syriopoulou- Delli, Agaliotis and Papaefstathiou (2016). It was used before and after the intervention. The results of the research study showed that the student with ASD had positive experiences through his relationship with his classmates, increased his level of participation in the lesson of Physical Education (PE) throughout the implementation of the intervention program, and improved his social reciprocity through interaction and collaboration with his peers, without displaying improper or detrimental social behavior patterns. &#x0D; &#x0D; &lt;p&gt; &lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt; Article visualizations:&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;img src="/-counters-/edu_01/0884/a.php" alt="Hit counter" /&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

Select Teaching: authoring tool for building Learning Objects for language teachers´ training and teaching support

The use of technological instruments in educational environments and contexts was facilitated by the popularization of technology in general, which significantly supported the teaching-learning process. This fact highlights the importance of teachers´ training to use these tools, as well as the presence of softwares and other appropriate tools for specific educational approaches. Thus, the present paper presents the creation of a didactic tool, the "Select Teaching", to be applied in the production of didactic material in the format of electronic handouts with foreign language content. The research is mainly characterized by the feasibility of considering these handouts as Learning Objects to be used by the language teachers of the Federal Institute of Paraná (IFPR) - Campus Assis Chateaubriand. Palavras-chave: Modern foreign language teaching. Digital didactic material. Learning Objects.

Traces of the intersubject? Note-taking within the community of philosophical inquiry

In this paper the question of note-taking is addressed in reference to a specific educational approach, that of the community of philosophical inquiry (CPI) in the tradition of Matthew Lipman and Ann Sharp’s Philosophy for Children (P4C). After emphasizing the pivotal role that this activity plays within a typical session of P4C, its specific status (in comparison with what happens in a classic lecture) is explored, insofar as it could be interpreted as a gesture distributed among and between the teacher and the students. The argumentation is animated and sustained by three intimately interwoven questions: first, how can we construe note-taking in reference to the two philosophical-educational matrices (the Socratic-Platonic and the pragmatist) presiding over CPI? Secondly, who actually takes notes in a P4C session? Could we venture to say that it is CPI as an “intersubject”? And, thirdly, what is the status of the notes taken and written on the flip-chart as a text? Through the analyses developed, note-taking is interpreted as the ‘inscription’ of the co-philosophizing and a kind of self-writing and its significance for the emergence of CPI as such is shown

Joining Informal Learning in Online Knowledge Communities and Formal Learning in Higher Education: Instructional Design and Evaluation of a Blended-Learning Seminar with Learning Analytics Support

The use of online knowledge communities (OKCs) as informal learning environments in connection with formal learning encounters two main issues: the learning guidance issue, and the newcomer integration issue. While the former can be solved by instructional design, the latter is still open and may be solved by Social Learning Analytics (SLA). This paper proposes B-LABS (Blogs and Learning Analytics Based Seminar), a higher education seminar with a formal component as a face-to-face seminar, and an informal component comprising learning in OKCs. B-LABS was carried out with N= 65 undergraduate students. SLA tools were employed to select responsive OKCs that were likely to integrate newcomers. The students successfully followed the B-LABS script; learning outcomes included students’ insight in mathematics didactics, and knowledge of OKC specific educational approaches. Student acceptance of the learning environment was predicted by performance expectancy and perceived social influence. Future development includes refining functions predicting the likeliness of OKC newcomer integration.

Training needs in the field of autism by contemporary Polish teachers in the context of international ASD-EAST project

&#x0D; The paper presents results of the part of international survey on teachers’ opinion on autism characteristics and specific educational approach and treatment. Research was undertaken in Poland under the auspicies of ASD-EAST project using quantitative and qualitative methods. The results showed the significant differences in teachers’ perception on autism regarding to the school settings they worked in. The strong need for special training in the field of ASD was also expressed by teachers.&#x0D;

Impact of creativity in nursing education

Nowadays, the world has changed from a production source to a services-driven force; there are new challenges and shifts towards meaningful learning, together with rapid technological, socio-economic and environmental changes which call for a specific educational approach that learners need to acquire meaningful knowledge while encouraging them to utilise their knowledge in learning process to develop lifelong learning skills in order to prepare them for a complex future. Creativity in nursing education is an essential competence in fostering nursing learners; as both creative and critical thinking skills are needed to identify issues and create critical solutions to improve learners’ cognitive attributes and reflection and engagement in learning by developing assessment strategies and inspiring internal motivation for lifelong learning during various teaching activities. Therefore, nursing programmes must prepare nurses who can successfully perform in an environment that demands innovative problem-solving. In this context, this paper reviews the impacts of creativity in nursing education.&#x0D; &#x0D; Keywords: Nursing education, creativity, creative thinking, strategies of creativity

Transformative Citizenship Education and Intercultural Sensitivity in Early Adolescence

As our world continues to evolve into an increasingly diverse, interconnected, and interdependent global society, it isbecoming more important for tomorrow’s citizens (today’s early adolescent students) to develop the knowledge,skills, and dispositions they will need to understand and communicate with individuals who come from many diversecultural backgrounds. Yet, relatively few researchers have examined the effects of specific curriculum interventions,strategies, and/or educational approaches designed to improve intercultural knowledge, skills, and attitudes duringearly adolescence. In this study, a causal-comparative quantitative research design was used to explore differences inintercultural sensitivity between a group of 4th–6th grade students at a school that embraces a transformativeapproach to citizenship education (School 1), and a group of students at a comparison school (School 2). Anindependent t–test revealed students at School 1 scored significantly higher than students at School 2 on aquantitative measure of intercultural sensitivity (AISI). These results suggest a transformative approach to citizenshipeducation can promote the development of intercultural sensitivity during early adolescence. In light of these results,several key aspects of this particular school’s transformative citizenship curriculum are discussed in detail.

Analyzing Student Contributions to Innovative Start-ups: An Integrated Approach

Abstract This paper aims to provide a new methodological approach in order to conduct a qualitative analysis of the student contribution to the design and implementation process of a vehicle pooling platform. It analyzes Creativity vs Knowledge interaction patterns in the innovation process under the four different perspectives proposed in the theoretical framework of the CKI model (Palmieri & Giglio, 2013; Palmieri & Giglio, 2014 ). It aims to identify determining factors and impacts related to the specific educational approach of the technology platform at urban, regional or national level. This application of the CKI model is geared to prove how its comprehensive slant supports the design, monitoring and assessment of innovation plans.

Development of an educational programme to facilitate critical thinking of student nurses in Namibia

The article focused on the development process of an educational programme to facilitate the development of critical thinking in the students. The study was conducted in four phases, beginning with the needs assessment in phase 1 through which the researcher determine the need of the students in terms of critical thinking. The deductive data analysis of phase 1 served as basis of the conceptual framework for the development of an educational programme. Phase 2 focused on the development of the conceptual framework and it was achieved by utilized a specific educational approaches and philosophical framework were employed. Phase 3 and 4 were conducted simultaneously. Phase 3 focuses on implementation while phase 4 focuses on evaluation. A quasi – experimental design was implemented which focused on active participation by the participants in the programme.

An educational programme to facilitate critical thinking within the nursing perspective

This article is focuses on an educational programme to facilitate critical thinking within the nursing perspective. For the purpose of developing an educational programme; the study was conducted in four phases, beginning with a needs assessment in Phase 1 through which the researcher determined the need of student nurses in terms of critical thinking. The deductive data analysis of phase 1 served as conceptual framework for the development of education programme in phase 2.Phase 2 consisted of the development of educational framework to facilitate critical thinking in student nurses. Specific educational approaches and a philosophical framework were employed during the development of the programme. An expert opinion on the programme was obtained before the implementation could be concluded in phase 3. Phase 3 and 3 of the study were conducted simultaneously. Phase 3 covered the implementation of the educational programme and Phase 4 the evaluation.The process itself includes, the purpose of the development of the programme, conducting a situational analysis; utilization of philosophical approaches, developing the educational programme; content of the programme; educational and curriculum approaches integrated into the development of an educational programme and strategies to overcome obstacles during the implementation of an educational programme.

Improving safety culture: a profession in the fast lane

There is growing evidence to indicate that specific educational approaches and interventions through simulation in the classroom can significantly improve the safety culture in the perioperative environment. In exploring this approach, this article addresses the fact that, by and large, operating department practitioners (ODPs) as a professional group have been absent from this debate. The important, and indeed pivotal, role that ODPs must play in developing such a culture of enhanced patient safety should be recognised. The increased understanding of the significance of addressing practitioners' non-technical skills, such as team-working, leadership and communication, challenges all educationalists to embed these skills and an understanding of human factors into the pre-registration curriculum. This article explores the authors' own unique, innovative response to the challenge of isolating non-technical skills in a simulation context.

The Effect of Manipulative, Movement and Preparatory Sports Games on Correction of Behavior Disorders in Integrated Elementary School Pupils with ADHD

Hyperactivity associated with lack of concentration poses a problem to teachers. This behavioral disorder, which affects school achievement, behavior and social relationships, requires specific educational approach. One of the possibilities of correcting such a disorder is through movement and physical activity, which is important not only for somatic development, but also for social development of children. At present, this issue is being discussed among experts in the field. The research was conducted in the school year 2012/2013. The sample consisted of 46 primary school teachers who taught at the first degree of elementary school. The teachers evaluated 123 integrated pupils aged 6 to 10. To assess behavioral disorders, we used Vanderbilt ADHD Diagnostic Teacher Rating Scale (VADTRS), a diagnostic tool used by teachers to identify children with ADHD. Arousing interest in physical activities, increasing their effectiveness and making these activities more esthetic had positive effect on children as shown by their interest in physical activities. The teachers confirmed improvement in relationships with peers (89.13%), following directions/rules (93.48%) and disrupting classes (86.96%). This study was supported by project VEGA 1/0769/13 “The Effectiveness of Specific Movement Reeducation Procedures on the Correction of Hyperkinetic Disorders of Prepubertal Children”.