Bats and grammar: developing critical language awareness in the context of school reform

2018 ◽  
Vol 17 (4) ◽  
pp. 281-297 ◽  
Author(s):  
Meg Gebhard ◽  
Holly Graham
Keyword(s):  
School Reform ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Student Writing ◽  
Power Dynamics ◽  
Language Awareness ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Teachers And Students ◽  
The Usa ◽  
Critical Language Awareness ◽  
Teachers Professional Development

Purpose This paper aims to analyze how middle schoolers developed a critical awareness of language while participating in a curricular unit informed by systemic functional linguistics (SFL). This unit was developed to understanding and taking action to protect a local bat population in the context of school reforms shaping teaching and learning in the USA. It was designed to support a heterogeneous class of seventh graders in learning to read scientific explanations, write letters to government officials and develop a functional metalanguage to support them in analyzing how language simultaneously constructs ideas, enacts power dynamics and manages the flow of information in disciplinary texts. The questions guiding this study are: How do students use SFL metalanguage in text production and interpretation practices? Do their uses of SFL metalanguage support critical language awareness and reflection? And, if so, in what ways? Design/methodology/approach This study uses ethnographic methods to conduct teacher action research. Data include classroom transcripts, student writing samples and interviews. Findings The findings illustrate how students engaged with SFL, often playfully, to create their own student-generated functional metalanguage in highly productive ways. Research limitations/implications This study contributes to a growing body of scholarship that suggests SFL metalanguage can provide teachers and students with a powerful semiotic toolkit that enables them to navigate the demands of teaching and learning in the context of the Standardization and Accountability movement. Practical implications This study has implications teachers’ professional development and students’ disciplinary literacy development in the context of school reform. Originality/value To date, few studies have explored how students take up and transform SFL metalanguage into a tool for critical reflection, especially adolescents.

Research landscape of smart education: a bibliometric analysis

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Kam Cheong Li ◽  
Billy Tak-Ming Wong
Keyword(s):  
Education Research ◽  
Bibliometric Analysis ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Work Related ◽  
Research Collaborations ◽  
Emerging Trends ◽  
The Usa ◽  
Smart Education ◽  
Smart Technologies

Purpose This paper aims to present a comprehensive review of the present state and trends of smart education research. It addresses the need to have a systematic review of smart education to depict its research landscape in view of the growing volume of related publications. Design/methodology/approach A bibliometric analysis of publications on smart education published in 2011 to 2020 was conducted, covering their patterns and trends in terms of collaboration, key publications, major topics and trends. A total of 1,317 publications with 29,317 cited references were collected from the Web of Science and Scopus for the bibliometric analysis. Findings Research on smart education has been widely published in various sources. The most frequently cited references are all theoretical or discussion articles. Researchers in the USA, China, South Korea, India and Russia have been most active in research collaborations. However, international collaborations have remained infrequent except for those involving the USA. The research on smart education broadly covered smart technologies as well as teaching and learning. The emerging topics have addressed areas such as the Internet of Things, big data, flipped learning and gamification. Originality/value This study depicts the intellectual landscape of smart education research, and illustrated the evolution and emerging trends in the field. The results highlight its latest developments and research needs, and suggest future work related to research collaborations on a larger scale and more studies on smart pedagogies.

Tyfu i Fyny/Growing Up interactive bi-lingual resources to support the delivery of sex and relationships education for students aged 5 to 12 years

2015 ◽  
Vol 115 (1) ◽  
pp. 38-55 ◽  
Author(s):  
Judith Roberts
Keyword(s):  
Teacher Training ◽  
Primary Schools ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Teaching Practice ◽  
Learning Experiences ◽  
Initial Evaluation ◽  
Growing Up ◽  
Web Based ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Teachers And Students

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to describe the development of new interactive, bi-lingual Sex and Relationships Education (SRE) resources called Tyfu i Fyny/Growing Up, suitable for students aged between five and 12 years. It also discusses the evidence used to support the development of the resources, the support provided for teachers and parents and an initial evaluation following their use. Design/methodology/approach – Tyfu i Fyny/Growing Up are interactive bi-lingual (Welsh and English) SRE teaching resources for primary schools suitable for students aged five to 12 years. These resources comprise of two components, an interactive electronic web-based programme and a floor mat illustrating a naked boy and girl. The electronic web-based programme is used to introduce puberty changes, loving relationships, conception, pregnancy and birth and is suitable for students aged nine to 12 years. The floor mat is suitable to be used with students aged between five and 12 years. Teaching activities can include naming body parts, discussing gender differences, personal safety, distinguishing between appropriate and inappropriate touching, discussing puberty changes and other health promotion activities as well as delivering aspects of the National Curriculum for Wales. Findings – The results from the initial evaluation undertaken with year six students and teachers demonstrates how the resources have impacted on the teaching and learning experiences of primary teachers and students. It also demonstrates how the teacher training sessions and using the Tyfu i Fyny/Growing Up resources have increased teachers’ confidence in delivering SRE. Practical implications – The learning experiences of students and their enjoyment of using the Tyfu i Fyny/Growing Up resources were significantly high. The implementation of teacher training improved teaching practice and increased teachers’ confidence in the subject. The resources have facilitated the delivery of effective whole school comprehensive SRE programmes for primary schools. These factors confirm the value of the investment given to their development. The resources could easily be customised in line with diverse ethnic, cultural, linguistic and religious requirements. Originality/value – This paper demonstrates how the Tyfu i Fyny/Growing Up interactive SRE resources have influenced the teaching and learning experiences of primary school teachers and students.

Humanizing practices in online learning communities during pandemics in the USA

2020 ◽  
Vol 5 (3/4) ◽  
pp. 205-212
Author(s):  
Nimo M. Abdi ◽  
Elizabeth Gil ◽  
Stefanie LuVenia Marshall ◽  
Muhammad Khalifa
Keyword(s):  
School Leadership ◽  
Women Of Color ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Lessons Learned ◽  
Leadership Education ◽  
Pedagogical Practices ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Usa ◽  
Learning School ◽  
Reflective Essay

PurposeIn this reflective essay, the authors, four educators of color, explore the relevance of humanizing practices of community in teaching and learning, school leadership and the potential challenges for equity work in education, during the COVID-19 pandemic.Design/methodology/approachThis reflective essay draws on lessons learned from the pedagogical practices of women of color, literature on teachers of color, as well as our experiences as educators of teachers and school leaders, as the authors think about new possibilities and challenges for anti-racist practice and living during the pandemic.FindingsThis essay describes community-oriented practice of women of color educators to be important in orienting teaching and learning toward more humanizing practice. The reflections highlight both possibilities and challenges that can be helpful reimagining the practice in teacher and leadership education, as the authors prepare educators for an uncertain future.Originality/valueThis essay offers valuable lessons from women of color educator practice that can offer humanizing approaches to teaching and learning as well as school leadership education.

Developing critical literacy in science through an SFL-informed pedagogical heuristic

2019 ◽  
Vol 18 (1) ◽  
pp. 4-17 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zhihui Fang ◽  
Brittany Adams ◽  
Valerie T. Gresser ◽  
Cuiying Li
Keyword(s):  
Critical Literacy ◽  
Information Structure ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
School Science ◽  
Language Awareness ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Structure Text ◽  
Present Information ◽  
Critical Language Awareness ◽  
Knowledge Claims

Purpose This paper describes and exemplifies a pedagogical heuristic for promoting critical literacy in science. Design/methodology/approach One way to support critical literacy in science is through a linguistically informed pedagogical heuristic called 5Es – Enquire, Engage, Examine, Exercise and Extend. Findings This paper describes the implementation of 5Es in a four-week middle school science unit on climate change, showing how the heuristic can be used to develop students’ understanding of the varied ways authors use language to present information, structure text, infuse judgment and evaluation, engage with and position the reader and express epistemic commitment to knowledge claims. Originality/value 5Es offer teachers a new heuristic for text exploration that develops students’ critical language awareness, advanced literacy and disciplinary literacy at the same time.

Satisfying the workers who appreciate galloping change

2016 ◽  
Vol 24 (7) ◽  
pp. 35-37
Keyword(s):  
Management Training ◽  
Training And Development ◽  
Relationship Building ◽  
Language Awareness ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Usa ◽  
The Subject ◽  
The Uk ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Equine Assisted

Purpose With organizations striving to attract Millennials into their businesses and ensure that they are entirely engaged, new approaches need to be considered. This paper aims to consider the value of equine-assisted learning (EAL) programs. Design/methodology/approach A literature review examined current research and use of EAL in the field of management training and development. Findings EAL does promote a number of so-called soft skills among employees, including communication, body language awareness, relationship building, and teamwork building. Originality/value EAL is an up-and-coming management training trend, the subject so far of very little research – especially so in the UK, where it has not yet had the impact it is beginning to make in the USA.

scholarly journals What do we mean by “transferable skills”? A literature review of how the concept is conceptualized in undergraduate health sciences education

2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Kristoffer Brix Olesen ◽  
Mette Krogh Christensen ◽  
Lotte Dyhrberg O'Neill
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Literature Review ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Empirical Studies ◽  
Health Sciences ◽  
Health Science ◽  
Health Sciences Education ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Transferable Skills ◽  
Teachers And Students

PurposeDue to rapid changes in the future labor market, transferable skills are recognized as a vital learning outcome for students in undergraduate higher education. However, ambiguities surrounding the concept and content of transferable skills hamper the actual teaching and learning of transferable skills. Consequently, there is a great need for an overview of the literature on transferable skills to qualify and develop the approaches to transferrable skills in higher education. This study aims to outline a typology of how transferable skills are conceptualized in health sciences education, that is, medicine, nursing and related health professionals’ education.Design/methodology/approachThe study was a mixed studies literature review, which included quantitative, qualitative and mixed-methods studies. A seven-stage sequential exploratory synthesis of the included studies was conducted.FindingsThis review showed that transferable skills reflected three main conceptualizations: Program Requirements, Employability and Holistic Development. Overall, the global methodological quality of the empirical studies of interventions to further transferable skills development in health science education was weak.Research limitations/implicationsThis study aids clear conceptualization in future empirical studies.Practical implicationsBy distinguishing between three main conceptualizations of transferable skills, this study's typology supports alignment in transferable skills curricula because conceptually sound learning objectives provide teachers and students in health sciences education with a clear purpose and direct educators' choice of relevant teaching and assessment strategies.Originality/valueThis review – the first of its kind – contributes to conceptualization of transferable skills as the basis for curriculum development and research.

scholarly journals Emotional intelligence testing for headteachers: globalization or lost in translation

2018 ◽  
Vol 3 (3) ◽  
pp. 223-240 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joanne Cliffe
Keyword(s):  
Emotional Intelligence ◽  
Emotional Labor ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Intelligence Testing ◽  
Life Experience ◽  
Emotional Responses ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Post Test ◽  
The Usa

Purpose The emotional labor of headteachers and teachers is complex. The purpose of this paper is to explore the relevance of the use of the Mayer-Salovey-Caruso Emotional Intelligence test (MSCEIT) (Mayer, Caruso & Salovey, 2000) when assessing the emotional intelligence of headteachers as part of an investigation which aimed to reveal the ways in which female secondary school leaders were emotionally intelligent and whether it was possible to test for emotional intelligence. Design/methodology/approach Seven female headteachers’ MSCEIT reports are investigated. Semi-structured interviews were held pre- and post-test to explore the headteachers’ emotional labor. In addition, teachers serving under the headteachers were interviewed. Findings The accuracy of the MSCEIT is questioned, rather than taking the results at face value, attention is given to its content, language and cultural differences. The MSCEIT originates from the USA and is used globally. The findings of this investigation suggest it is possible the MSCEIT represents a deficit model due to the test takers’ interpretation of nuanced language. The findings show a disparity in relation to MSCEIT scores and self-reported emotional responses. Research limitations/implications Although the sample size is small and therefore cannot claim generalization from the findings, the use of emotional intelligence tests should be used with caution. Emotional responses are best understood through life experience as the headteachers attach retrospective meaning to their leadership actions. Originality/value Headteachers’ work is multifaceted because emotion is integral to the processes of teaching and learning. The emotional labor of headteachers and teachers impacts and has relevance to their roles as educational landscapes continue to shift.

Learning processes for interpersonal competence development in project-based sustainability courses – insights from a comparative international study

2021 ◽  
Vol 22 (3) ◽  
pp. 535-560
Author(s):  
Theres Konrad ◽  
Arnim Wiek ◽  
Matthias Barth
Keyword(s):  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Single Case ◽  
International Study ◽  
Competence Development ◽  
Learning Processes ◽  
Interpersonal Competence ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Study Approach ◽  
The Usa

Purpose For professional sustainability work, graduates need to be able to work in teams and collaborate with stakeholders; in other words, they need to have developed interpersonal competence. There is growing evidence that project-based sustainability courses facilitate interpersonal competence development. However, research so far has focused on single case studies and on assessing learning outcomes. The purpose of this study is to deepen the understanding of how graduate students learn interpersonal competence in project-based sustainability courses. Design/methodology/approach This study adopts a multi-case study approach triangulating observations, semi-structured interviews and focus groups supported by Photovoice method. A comparison of three project-based sustainability courses in graduate programs at universities in the USA, Germany, Switzerland and Spain is conducted to gain generalizable insights on how interpersonal competence can be developed through project-based sustainability courses. Findings Receiving inputs, experiencing, reflecting and experimenting are four learning processes supportive of interpersonal competence development. Interpersonal attitudes seem to be mostly learned through a combination of experiencing and reflecting, followed by experimenting; not surprisingly, interpersonal knowledge is mostly developed through a combination of receiving inputs, experiencing and (collective) reflection; and interpersonal skills seem to be mostly learned through a combination of receiving inputs and experimenting, or, more directly, experiencing and experimenting. Practical implications These findings support the unique learning opportunities offered through project-based sustainability courses and can help instructors to better facilitate students’ development of interpersonal competence. Originality/value The value of this study is three-fold: (i) it provides a comprehensive picture of interpersonal competence, including attitudes, knowledge, and skills; (ii) it spells out specific teaching and learning processes; and (iii) it links these to specific interpersonal competence facets and components.

Are we on the same page?

2016 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 109-120 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mina Min
Keyword(s):  
Hong Kong ◽  
National Identity ◽  
Citizenship Education ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Intended Curriculum ◽  
Unique Identity ◽  
Teachers And Students ◽  
Hong Kong Students ◽  
Negative Perceptions

Purpose – Hong Kong is a case that demonstrates the distinctively multi-dimensional nature of citizenship within and in relation to a given nation. The purposes of this paper are to: first, discuss Hong Kongers’ unique identity and the influence of political, historical and economic factors on them in order to show the value of challenging the “national citizenship” approach as a dominant discourse in the intended curriculum of Hong Kong citizenship education; second, analyze the efforts of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) to foster a stronger sense of Chinese national identity in Hong Kong students; and third, evaluate the appropriateness of this nationalistic approach by examining its compatibility with and coherence to in relation to the implemented and attained curriculum. Design/methodology/approach – This study analyzes existing scholarly discussions on the PRC’s emphasis on Chinese national identity in citizenship education and negative perceptions held by teachers and students regarding the approach and presentation of their actual teaching and learning practices for citizenship education with empirical data. Findings – This paper illuminates the mismatch found between the intended curriculum and the implemented and attained curriculum in terms of the viewpoints of good citizens. Originality/value – The notion of “cultural citizenship” is suggested as an alternative approach to developing the curriculum of Hong Kong citizenship education. This paper will be of interest to those curriculum scholars, educational authorities and teachers who are interested in developing and implementing the curriculum of citizenship education.

scholarly journals Real-time learning analytics system for improvement of on-site lectures

2018 ◽  
Vol 15 (4) ◽  
pp. 314-331 ◽  
Author(s):  
Atsushi Shimada ◽  
Shin’ichi Konomi ◽  
Hiroaki Ogata
Keyword(s):  
Real Time ◽  
Learning Analytics ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Feedback System ◽  
Learning System ◽  
Content Type ◽  
New Strategy ◽  
Teachers And Students ◽  
Scale Experiment

Purpose The purpose of this study is to propose a real-time lecture supporting system. The target of this study is on-site classrooms where teachers give lectures and a lot of students listen to teachers’ explanations, conduct exercises, etc. Design/methodology/approach The proposed system uses an e-learning system and an e-book system to collect teaching and learning activities from a teacher and students in real time. The collected data are immediately analyzed to provide feedback to the teacher just before the lecture starts and during the lecture. For example, the teacher can check which pages were well previewed and which pages were not previewed by students using the preview achievement graph. During the lecture, real-time analytics graphs are shown on the teacher’s PC. The teacher can easily grasp students’ status and whether or not students are following the teacher’s explanation. Findings Through the case study, the authors first confirmed the effectiveness of each tool developed in this study. Then, the authors conducted a large-scale experiment using a real-time analytics graph and investigated whether the proposed system could improve the teaching and learning in on-site classrooms. The results indicated that teachers could adjust the speed of their lecture based on the real-time feedback system, which also resulted in encouraging students to put bookmarks and highlights on keywords and sentences. Originality/value Real-time learning analytics enables teachers and students to enhance their teaching and learning during lectures. Teachers should start considering this new strategy to improve their lectures immediately.

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