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2. The Changing Nature and Role of Vocational Education and Training in Europe. Volume 5: Education and Labour Market Outcomes for Graduates from Different Types of VET System in Europe. Cedefop Research Paper. No 69
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Cedefop - European Centre for the Development of Vocational Training, Department for VET Systems and Institutions (DSI)
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This research paper is the fifth in a series produced as part of the Cedefop project The changing nature and role of VET (2016-18). Based on comparative analysis of labour force survey data from 2014, the report analyses the vocational effect on labour market and education outcomes, asking whether any advantages conferred by vocational qualifications in early career would be offset by disadvantages later in life. The report explores the functioning of the safety net and the diversion effects across countries, demonstrating how these vary considerably with the specific institutional structure of schooling and work-based training. The results indicate that VET graduates are potentially sacrificing the longer-term gains associated with further education in favour of short-term benefits. [This research was carried out by a consortium led by 3s Unternehmensberatung GmbH and including the Danish Technological Institute, the Institute of Employment Research (University of Warwick), the Institute of International and Social Studies (Tallinn University) and Fondazione Giacomo Brodolini. The Federal Institute for Vocational Education and Training (BIBB) in Germany is supporting the project as a subcontractor.]
- Published
- 2018
3. The Quality of Lower-Track Education: Evidence from Britain. Working Paper 30174
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National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER) and Clark, Damon
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For much of the 20th century, British students were tracked into higher-track (for the "top" 20%) or lower-track (for the rest) secondary schools. Opponents of tracking contend that the lower-track schools in these systems will inevitably provide low-quality education. In this paper I examine this claim using a 1947 reform that increased the minimum school leaving age from 14 to 15. First, I show that over 95% of the students affected by the reform ("compliers") attended lower-track schools. Second, using new data, I show that for both men and women, the additional schooling induced by the reform had close to zero impact on a range of labor market outcomes including earnings. Third, I show that lower-track schools featured, among other things, large classes and a curriculum that promoted practical education. I conclude that my findings shed new light on the potential consequences of educational tracking.
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- 2022
4. 'Knowledge about Language,' Language Learning, and the National Curriculum. Final Report. Occasional Papers, 19.
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Southampton Univ. (England). Centre for Language Education. and Mitchell, Rosamond
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The report summarizes a British research project, part of a larger initiative on educational quality, concerning the extent of secondary students' knowledge about the nature of language, native and foreign, alongside development of practical language skills. The main study was an empirical investigation of the teaching of English and foreign languages at year 9 in three schools. It documented teachers' beliefs and practices with regard to knowledge about language (KAL) and the current state of year 9 pupils' knowledge in five areas (language as a system, language learning/development, language variation by use and by user, language change). The pupils' use of KAL in language performance and the relationship between their developing understanding of language and language learning were also studied. Results of another study were also re-analyzed for data concerning these issues at year 7. Overall, the project revealed substantial levels of KAL-related activity in English and foreign languages within the schools, and some suggestions of its positive contribution to learning, especially in writing. It is concluded, however, that given the fragmented and episodic nature of mush KAL work, its full potential contribution to pupils' development as language users is not being realized. Suggestions for improvement are made. (MSE)
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- 1994
5. International Perspectives on Education. BCES Conference Books, Volume 10
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Bulgarian Comparative Education Society (BCES), Popov, Nikolay, Wolhuter, Charl, Leutwyler, Bruno, Hilton, Gillian, Ogunleye, James, Almeida, Patrícia Albergaria, Popov, Nikolay, Wolhuter, Charl, Leutwyler, Bruno, Hilton, Gillian, Ogunleye, James, Almeida, Patrícia Albergaria, and Bulgarian Comparative Education Society (BCES)
- Abstract
This volume contains papers submitted to the 10th Annual Conference of the Bulgarian Comparative Education Society, held in Kyustendil, Bulgaria, 12-15 June 2012. The overall goal of the 10th BCES conference is to facilitate discussion of different perspectives on international education providing a forum for scientific debate and constructive interaction in a multi cultural social environment such as Bulgaria. This is a jubilee conference. Ten might not mean too much for large scholarly societies in other countries, especially in the Western world. However, for a small society like BCES, ten means a lot. It means trust, international recognition, constant interest, well-developed academic cooperation, and the most important--it means an established conference tradition. The following papers are included in this volume: (1) Foreword: Remembering the Past--Anticipating the Future: Reflections on the BCES's Jubilee Conference (Karen L. Biraimah); (2) Editorial Preface: An Established Conference Tradition (Nikolay Popov, Charl Wolhuter, Bruno Leutwyler, Gillian Hilton, James Ogunleye, and Patrícia Albergaria Almeida; and (3) Introduction: A Framework for Understanding International Perspectives on Education (Alexander W. Wiseman). Part 1: Comparative Education & History of Education: (4) Also a door to the inside of a new house --yet another use for Comparative Education (Charl Wolhuter); (5) Structures of School Systems Worldwide: A Comparative Study (Nikolay Popov); (6) The Role of Comparative Pedagogy in the Training of Pedagogues in Serbia and Slovenia (Vera Spasenovic, Natasa Vujisic Zivkovic, and Klara Skubic Ermenc); (7) Konstantinos G. Karras & Evanthia Synodi Comparative and International Education and the teaching profession. The case of Marc-Antoine Jullien (Konstantinos G. Karras and Evanthia Synodi); (8) Comparing management models of secondary schools in Tamaulipas, Mexico: An exploration with a Delphi method (Marco Aurelio Navarro-Leal, Concepción Niño García, and Ma. Luisa Caballero Saldivar); (9) Classroom and Socialization: a case study through an action-research in Crete, Greece (Pella Calogiannakis and Theodoros Eleftherakis); (10) E-learning, State and Educational System in Middle East Countries (Hamid Rashidi, Abbas Madandar Arani, and Lida Kakia); (11) Approaches to internal testing and assessment of knowledge in relation to the pupils' achievements in national assessment of knowledge (Amalija Žakelj, Milena Ivanuš Grmek, and Franc Cankar); (12) The Stereotypes in Pupil's Self Esteem (Franc Cankar, Amalija Žakelj, and Milena Ivanuš Grmek); (13) Insecure identities: Unaccompanied minors as refugees in Hamburg (Joachim Schroeder); (14) The origins of religion as an historical conundrum: pedagogical and research methodological implications and challenges (Johannes L. van der Walt and Ferdinand J. Potgieter); (15) A brief overview of the history of education in Poland (Katarzyna Charzynska, Marta Anczewska, and Piotr Switaj); (16) "Everybody is given a chance, my boy … everybody who is willing to work for socialism": An Overview of English Textbooks in the Postwar Period in Hungary (Zsolt Dózsa); and (17) Situated literacy practices amongst artisans in the South West of Nigeria: developmental and pedagogical implications (Gordon O. Ade-Ojo, Mike Adeyeye, and F. Fagbohun). Part 2: Pre-Service and In-Service Teacher Training: (18) Constructivist Foundations of Intercultural Education: Implications for Research and Teacher Training (Bruno Leutwyler, Danijela S. Petrovic, and Carola Mantel; (19) Theory in Teacher Education: Students' views (Leonie G. Higgs); (20) Policy and practice of pre-service and in-service teacher training programmes and facilities in Nigeria (Stephen Adebanjo Oyebade); (21) Student Perceptions of the Distance Education Mode Compared with Face-to-Face Teaching in the University Distance Education Programme (Claudio Rafael Vásquez Martínez, Graciela Girón, and Antonio Ayón Bañuelos); (22) Environmental Education: From the Perspective of Scientific Knowledge for Constructivist Learning (Graciela Girón, Claudio Rafael Vásquez Martínez, Juan Sánchez López, and Antonio Ayón Bañuelos); (23) The Competencies of the Modern Teacher (Olga Nessipbayeva); and (24) Pre-service teacher action research: Concept, international trends and implications for teacher education in Turkey (Irem Kizilaslan and Bruno Leutwyler). Part 3: Education Policy, Reforms and School Leadership: (25) Changing policies changing times: initiatives in teacher education in England (Gillian L. S. Hilton); (26) Dealing with Change in Hong Kong Schools using Strategic Thinking Skills (Nicholas Sun-Keung Pang and John Pisapia); (27) Institutions' Espoused Values Perceived by Chinese Educational Leaders (Nicholas Sun-Keung Pang and Ting Wang); (28) Social Service Community Education as an area of training and participation for social development (Amelia Molina García); (29) English Language Education Policy in Colombia and Mexico (Ruth Roux); (30) Compensatory Programs in Mexico to Reduce the Educational Gap (Emma Leticia Canales Rodríguez and Tiburcio Moreno Olivos); (31) Changing times, Changing roles: FE Colleges' perceptions of their changing leadership role in contemporary UK politico-economic climate (Aaron A. R. Nwabude and Gordon Ade-Ojo); (32) Role perceptions and job stress among special education school principals: Do they differ from principals of regular schools? (Haim H. Gaziel, Yael Cohen-Azaria, and Klara Skubic Ermenc); (33) Multiculturalism: challenge or reality (Olivera Knezevic Floric and Stefan Ninkovic); (34) Privatization of higher education in Nigeria: Critical Issues (Phillips Olayide Okunola and Simeon Adebayo Oladipo); (35) Policies and initiatives: reforming teacher education in Nigeria (Martha Nkechinyere Amadi); and (36) Leadership in Educational Institutions (Esmeralda Sunko). Part 4: Higher Education, Lifelong Learning and Social Inclusion: (37) Validation of skills, knowledge and experience in lifelong learning in Europe (James Ogunleye); (38) Empowering women with domestic violence experience (Marta Anczewska, Joanna Roszczynska-Michta, Justyna Waszkiewicz, Katarzyna Charzynska, and Czeslaw Czabala); (39) Sixty Five Years of University Education in Nigeria: Some Key Cross Cutting Issues (Aloy Ejiogu and Sheidu Sule); (40) Brain Drain in Higher Education: Lost Hope or Opportunity? (George Odhiambo); (41) Searching for the Dividends of Religious Liberty: Who Benefits and Who Pays? (Donald B. Holsinger); (42) More than Mere Law: Freedom of Religion or Belief (Ellen S. Holsinger); (43) Intergenerational Learning in the Family (Sabina Jelenc Krašovec and Sonja Kump); (44) Students' Views on Important Learning Experiences--Challenges Related to Ensuring Quality of Studies (Barbara Šteh and Jana Kalin); (45) Campus life: The impact of external factors on emotional health of students (Dalena Vogel); (46) Education and Lifelong Learning in Romania--Perspectives of the Year 2020 (Veronica Adriana Popescu, Gheorghe N. Popescu, and Cristina Raluca Popescu); (47) Scientific reputation and "the golden standards": quality management system impact and the teaching-research nexus (Luminita Moraru); (48) The implementation of the Validation of Acquired Experience (VAE) in France would be a cultural revolution in higher education training? (Pascal Lafont); (49) Hilary English Transition of students from economically disadvantaged backgrounds to research led Universities (Hilary English); (50) Attitudes of Parents towards Contemporary Female Higher Education (Miss Shamaas Gul Khattak); (51) Structured Peer Mentoring: Enhancing Lifelong Learning in Pakistani Universities (Nosheen Rachel Naseem); (52) The Rise of Private Higher Education in Jamaica: Neo-liberalism at Work? (Chad O. Coates); (53) Educational Developments in the British West Indies: A Historical Overview (Chad O. Coates); (54) Focus Learning Support: Rising to Educational Challenges (Elizabeth Achinewhu-Nworgu, Gertrude Shotte, and Queen Chioma Nworgu); (55) Distance Education in Higher Education in Latvia (Daina Vasilevska); (56) Evidence-based research study of the Russian vocational pedagogy and education motivational potential in the internationalisation projection (Oksana Chigisheva); (57) Healthy lifestyle formation within the extra-curricular activities of students at universities (Saltanat Tazhbayeva) [title provided in English and Bulgarian, abstract in English and paper in Bulgarian]; (58) Management based organisation of school's educational process (Tursynbek Baimoldayev) [title provided in English and Bulgarian, abstract in English and paper in Bulgarian]; (59) Modernization of higher education in the context of the Bologna Process in the Republic of Kazakhstan (Sanim Kozhayeva) [title provided in English and Bulgarian, abstract in English and paper in Bulgarian]; and (60) About the problem of self-definition of personality (G. T. Hairullin and G. S. Saudabaeva) [title provided in English and Bulgarian, abstract in English and paper in Bulgarian]. Part 5: Learning and Teaching Styles: (61) Learning Styles and Disciplinary Fields: is there a relationship? (Patrícia Albergaria Almeida); (62) ICT competences for teachers in 21st Century--a design framework for science primary teacher education courses (Cecília Guerra, António Moreira, and Rui Marques Vieira); (63) Teacher Education in the context of international cooperation: the case of East Timor (Patrícia Albergaria Almeida, Mariana Martinho, and Betina Lopes); (64) How would Virtual Learning Environment (VLE) Enhance Assessment for Learning Mathematics by the Special Education Needs Students (SENs) in Secondary Education Sector (Aaron A. R. Nwabude); (65) A gender perspective on student questioning upon the transition to Higher Education (Mariana Martinho, Patrícia Albergaria Almeida, and José Teixeira-Dias); (66) Student-Centred Learning: A Dream or Reality (Sandra Ozola); (67) Problems of development of E-Learning content in historical education on the Republic of Kazakhstan (Gabit Kapezovich ?enzhebayev, Saule Hairullovna Baidildina, and Tenlik Toktarbekovna Dalayeva) [title provided in English and Bulgarian, abstract in English and paper in Bulgarian]; and (68) The world pedagogical idea in the context of comparison: Confucius--Al Farabi--Ibn Sina--Balasaguni (Aigerim Kosherbayeva, Kulmeskhan Abdreimova, and Asem Anuarbek) [title provided in English and Bulgarian, abstract in English and paper in Bulgarian]. A list of contributors in included. (Individual papers contain references.)
- Published
- 2012
6. The Quest for Quality--Towards Joint European Quality Norms.
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National Careers Guidance Information Centre, Leeuwarden (Netherlands)., Bartholomeus, Yvonne, Bartholomeus, Yvonne, and National Careers Guidance Information Centre, Leeuwarden (Netherlands).
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This book contains the following papers about considerations in developing joint European quality norms for vocational guidance: "Joint Quality Norms in Guidance"; "Careers Guidance in the Information Society" (Frans Meijers); "The Changing Nature of Guidance" (J. Chamberlain); "Quality with Policy: Beyond Calimero?" (Saskia den Broeder); "Ethical Guidelines for Guidance Counsellors. Discussion Paper Draft Version" (Danish National Council for Vocational and Educational Guidance); "Ethics in Careers Guidance" (Frans Meijers); "Internationalisation: Economy and Ecology" (Peter Plant); "Deregulation and Quality" (Frans Meijers); "Quality and Careers Guidance in the UK" (Cliff Spracklen); "Quality Issues for Guidance Counsellors in Ireland: Perspective of the Institute of Guidance Counsellors" (Breeda Coyle); "Quality Management in Vocational Guidance" (Mariet Herle); "ISO [International Standards Organization] 9000 in Vocational Guidance" (Soren Borch); "Quality Improvement and Quality Assurance in Knowledge Intensive Service Organisations" (Eric Mooijman, Ronald Stevens); "Quality Management and ISO Standards in the PMS Centres for Community Education in Flanders" (Anita Faucompret); "Quality Management in a Danish Technical College" (Lisbeth Hojdal); "The Employment Office and ISO Certification" (Frank Witkamp); "Assessing Course Information Material" (Dutch National Careers Guidance Information Centre); "Complaints about Course Information Material"; "A Case Study of Course Information Material--with Transnational Comparison" (John McCarthy); "Quality Norms for Written Information in Denmark" (Ole Dibbern Andersen); "Summary of Contribution to the Enigma Expert Meeting on Quality in Information" (Anne van der Meiden); and "The Enigma [ENhancing the quality of Information and Guidance MAterial] Group." (MN)
- Published
- 1995
7. New Challenges to Education: Lessons from around the World. BCES Conference Books, Volume 19
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Bulgarian Comparative Education Society (BCES), Popov, Nikolay, Wolhuter, Charl, de Beer, Louw, Hilton, Gillian, Ogunleye, James, Achinewhu-Nworgu, Elizabeth, Niemczyk, Ewelina, Popov, Nikolay, Wolhuter, Charl, de Beer, Louw, Hilton, Gillian, Ogunleye, James, Achinewhu-Nworgu, Elizabeth, Niemczyk, Ewelina, and Bulgarian Comparative Education Society (BCES)
- Abstract
This volume contains a collection of selected papers submitted to the 19th Annual International Conference of the Bulgarian Comparative Education Society (BCES) held in June 2021. The 19th BCES Conference theme is "New Challenges to Education: Lessons from around the World." The book includes 40 papers written by 66 authors from 15 countries. The volume starts with an introductory piece co-authored by Zoltán Rónay and Ewelina K Niemczyk. The other 39 papers are divided into 6 parts representing the thematic sections: (1) Comparative and International Education & History of Education; (2) International Organizations and Education; (3) School Education: Policies, Innovations, Practices & Entrepreneurship; (4) Higher Education & Teacher Education and Training; (5) Law and Education; and (6) Research Education & Research Practice. The papers included in this year's conference volume outline a variety of challenges all actors in the education process (students, teachers, administrators, policy decision makers) at all levels of the education systems have recently faced. Readers can find conceptual and empirical studies, quantitative and qualitative methods, descriptive and analytical approaches, and even pessimistic and optimistic authors' views. This volume presents how novel concepts, ironical definitions, and provoking considerations are born in difficult times, when restricted life meets unrestricted spirit. [Individual papers are indexed in ERIC.]
- Published
- 2021
8. Economics in the General Curriculum 14-18. Curriculum Paper.
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London Univ. (England). Inst. of Education., Hodkinson, Steve, and Thomas, Linda
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Intended to introduce educators in secondary schools and colleges to discussion promoting economic literacy for all students, this paper offers a critique of the typical economics curriculum, a rationale for economics education, and a working definition of economic literacy. The first section reviews and critiques current curriculum planning in the United Kingdom's secondary schools, questioning the basis on which some writers have justified the inclusion of economics in the curriculum. In the second section, it is argued that inclusion of economics understanding in "core" curriculum would be too overwhelming, based on the rationale that it is only through an economics perspective that students can achieve sufficient objectivity to ensure realistic scrutiny and evaluation of economic issues, problem experiences, and policies that confront individuals and nations. The third section translates themes from this argument into a working definition of economic literacy. Appendices containing examples of economics reasoning conclude the publication. (LH)
- Published
- 1984
9. Literature in Language Learning in the UK Context: From Current A-Levels to University
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Puig, Idoya
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The aim of this paper is to look at the impact of recent reforms to the General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) and Advanced Subsidiary (AS) curriculum in the UK, which included the teaching of literature in the language classroom in an attempt to make the study of languages more attractive and to better prepare students for university. The delivery of the new GCSEs and A-Levels has served to highlight new challenges, which are hampering the intended purpose of the reforms: language GCSEs and A-Levels are perceived as more difficult than other subjects and severe grading has been confirmed. Moreover, most teachers do not view the compulsory literature element positively. Conversely, academic studies confirm the value of literature in the study of languages and various initiatives demonstrate the attractiveness and effectiveness of literature in terms of increasing motivation and enhancing language skills. In this paper, we suggest some final proposals to improve this situation. [For the complete volume, "Literature in Language Learning: New Approaches," see ED608008.]
- Published
- 2020
10. Education and New Developments 2017
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Carmo, Mafalda
- Abstract
This book contains a compilation of papers presented at the International Conference on Education and New Developments (END 2017), organized by the World Institute for Advanced Research and Science (W.I.A.R.S.). Education, in our contemporary world, is a right since we are born. Every experience has a formative effect on the constitution of the human being, in the way one thinks, feels and acts. One of the most important contributions resides in what and how we learn through the improvement of educational processes, both in formal and informal settings. The International Conference seeks to provide some answers and explore the processes, actions, challenges and outcomes of learning, teaching and human development. The goal is to offer a worldwide connection between teachers, students, researchers and lecturers, from a wide range of academic fields, interested in exploring and giving their contribution in educational issues. We take pride in having been able to connect and bring together academics, scholars, practitioners and others interested in a field that is fertile in new perspectives, ideas and knowledge. We counted on an extensive variety of contributors and presenters, which can supplement our view of the human essence and behavior, showing the impact of their different personal, academic and cultural experiences. This is, certainly, one of the reasons we have many nationalities and cultures represented, inspiring multi-disciplinary collaborative links, fomenting intellectual encounter and development. END 2017 received 581 submissions, from 55 different countries, reviewed by a double-blind process. Submissions were prepared to take form of Oral Presentations, Posters, Virtual Presentations and Workshops. The conference accepted for presentation 176 submissions (30% acceptance rate). The conference also includes a keynote presentation from an internationally distinguished researcher, Professor Lizbeth Goodman, Chair of Creative Technology Innovation and Professor of Inclusive Design for Learning at University College Dublin; Founder/Director of SMARTlab, Director of the Inclusive Design Research Centre of Ireland, Founder of The MAGIC Multimedia and Games Innovation Centre, Ireland, to whom we express our most gratitude. This conference addressed different categories inside the Education area and papers are expected to fit broadly into one of the named themes and sub-themes. To develop the conference program we have chosen four main broad-ranging categories, which also covers different interest areas: (1) In TEACHERS AND STUDENTS: Teachers and Staff training and education; Educational quality and standards; Curriculum and Pedagogy; Vocational education and Counseling; Ubiquitous and lifelong learning; Training programs and professional guidance; Teaching and learning relationship; Student affairs (learning, experiences and diversity; Extra-curricular activities; Assessment and measurements in Education. (2) In PROJECTS AND TRENDS: Pedagogic innovations; Challenges and transformations in Education; Technology in teaching and learning; Distance Education and eLearning; Global and sustainable developments for Education; New learning and teaching models; Multicultural and (inter)cultural communications; Inclusive and Special Education; Rural and indigenous Education; Educational projects. (3) In TEACHING AND LEARNING: Educational foundations; Research and development methodologies; Early childhood and Primary Education; Secondary Education; Higher Education; Science and technology Education; Literacy, languages and Linguistics (TESL/TEFL); Health Education; Religious Education; Sports Education. (4) In ORGANIZATIONAL ISSUES: Educational policy and leadership; Human Resources development; Educational environment; Business, Administration, and Management in Education; Economics in Education; Institutional accreditations and rankings; International Education and Exchange programs; Equity, social justice and social change; Ethics and values; Organizational learning and change, Corporate Education. This book contains the results of the research and developments conducted by authors who focused on what they are passionate about: to promote growth in research methods intimately related to teaching, learning and applications in Education nowadays. It includes an extensive variety of contributors and presenters, who will extend our view in exploring and giving their contribution in educational issues, by sharing with us their different personal, academic and cultural experiences. We would like to express thanks to all the authors and participants, the members of the academic scientific committee, and of course, to our organizing and administration team for making and putting this conference together. [This document contains the proceedings of END 2017: International Conference on Education and New Developments (Lisbon, Portugal, June 24-26, 2017).]
- Published
- 2017
11. The Key Technologies. Some Implications for Education and Training. An Occasional Paper.
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Further Education Unit, London (England)., Engineering Council, London (England)., and Mansell, Jack
- Abstract
National competitiveness depends in large part on the practical application of technologies. Educational planners must, therefore, identify key (newly emerging) topics in science and engineering that are likely to have a major evolutionary effect on industry and incorporate these areas into existing vocational and technical curricula. Because industry adopts new techniques faster than the education system, educational institutions working to prepare students for an uncertain future must teach them fundamental principles, including design, that underpin the development of specialist expertise as well as economic awareness and associated management and business skills. A regular review of technology-based curricula is necessary to ensure that course content and teaching methods are up to date. Each educational institution should, in consultation with its industrial and commercial partners, identify which changing technologies should be incorporated into vocational curricula. Emphasis should be placed on practical examples and on the development of economic awareness in all areas of the curriculum. The key technologies concept is intended to call attention to attitudes toward technology rather than to provide a shopping list" of new technologies. (Appendixes contain discussions of the United Kingdom's import problem, the problem-solving approach, and robotics and advanced manufacturing technology as a practical example of the teaching of a key technology. (MN)
- Published
- 1988
12. Multi-Age Organisation, Complexity Theory and Secondary School Reform
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Barnard, Peter Alexander
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Purpose: At a time when many education systems are grappling with the issue of school reform, there is a concern that traditional UK secondary schools are organised in a way that makes them unable to respond to increasingly complex environmental demands. This research-based paper uses complexity theory to gauge the organisational differences between (1) the traditional model of schooling based on same-age organisation and (2) a form of organisation based on multi-age tutor groups, one that schools call a vertical tutoring (VT) system. The intention is to highlight the organisational changes made by schools that choose to transition from their same-age iteration to the VT system, and expose organisational assumptions in the dominant same-age structure that may account for the failure of reform. Design/methodology/approach: The author's consultancy and research work spans two decades, and includes around 200 UK secondary schools, and others in China, Japan, South Africa, Australia, Qatar, Germany and Colombia. This conceptual paper draws on the recorded discourse and critical reflections of leadership teams during programmes of transformative learning, the process involved in the transition from one system to another. Using descriptions of school organisation abstracted from the complexity literature, differences in the two models not otherwise apparent, come into sharp focus. These not only reveal a substantive connection between organisation, complexity, and individual and organisational learning, but offer insights into the challenge of school reform. Findings: Same-age organisations act in ways that regulate and restrict the agency of participating actors (staff, students and parents). The effect is to reduce a school's learning capacity and ability to absorb the value demand on its system. Such a system is closed and non-complex. VT schools construct an open and fluid learning system from the base, deregulating agency. By unfreezing their structure, they intervene in processes of power, necessitating the distribution of leadership to the organisational edge, a process of complexification. The form of organisation chosen by a school explains the failure of reform. Originality/value: Insights from VT schools cast considerable doubt on the viability of traditional same-age structures to serve complex societies and communities, while highlighting the critical role played by complexity theory in organisational praxis. If correct, the current emphasis on teacher "will and skill", curricular editing, pedagogy and the "what works agenda" will be insufficient to bring about reformational change and more likely to contribute to systemic stasis.
- Published
- 2021
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13. Is This the Culture of Academies? Utilising the Cultural Web to Investigate the Organisational Culture of an Academy Case Study
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Morris, Jonathan Padraig
- Abstract
This paper examines the organisational culture of a comprehensive school that converted to an academy in 2010 by utilising the cultural web model as a tool for analysing an academy's culture. The case study employs a concurrent mixed-method approach of questionnaires for staff with no responsibility (SNR), focus groups for staff with management responsibility (SMR) and interviews with members of the Senior Leadership Team (SLT). The subsequent results are then discussed in relation to three themes, extracted from the cultural web -- 'student-centric', 'staff constraints' and 'leadership issues'. The findings from this research successfully demonstrate the model's ability to afford valuable insight into an academy by offering a depiction of its organisational culture and targets for organisational improvement. In addition, the paper presents a method for the future deployment of the cultural web which enables comparisons of an academy's subcultures.
- Published
- 2020
- Full Text
- View/download PDF
14. Quality, Social Justice and Accountability in Education Worldwide. BCES Conference Books, Volume 13. Number 1
- Author
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Bulgarian Comparative Education Society (BCES), Popov, Nikolay, Wolhuter, Charl, Ermenc, Klara Skubic, Hilton, Gillian, Ogunleye, James, Niemczyk, Ewelina, Popov, Nikolay, Wolhuter, Charl, Ermenc, Klara Skubic, Hilton, Gillian, Ogunleye, James, Niemczyk, Ewelina, and Bulgarian Comparative Education Society (BCES)
- Abstract
The Annual International Conference of the Bulgarian Comparative Education Society is now running in its thirteenth year. From its modest beginnings thirteen years ago, to its impressive size today, a tradition has been the production of a conference book, consistently launched on the first day of the conference each year. This year, Volume 13 of BCES Conference Books is published in 2 parts. Number 1 of the volume contains papers submitted to the XIII Annual International Conference of the Bulgarian Comparative Education Society (BCES), held in Sofia, Bulgaria, 10-13 June 2015. Number 2 of the volume includes papers submitted to the III International Partner Conference of the International Research Centre (IRC) "Scientific cooperation," Rostov-on-Don, Russia. Such a partner conference has been organized as part of the BCES Conferences for the past three years. The XIII BCES Conference theme is Quality, Social Justice and Accountability in Education Worldwide. The book consists of an introductory chapter by J. P. Rossouw and 58 papers written by 91 authors that are grouped into 6 parts. Part 1: Comparative Education & History of Education contains the following: (1) The Crisis in World Education and Comparative Education (Charl Wolhuter, Konstantinos Karras & Pella Calogiannakis); (2) Torsten Husén--A Co-Founder and Chairman of IEA from 1962 to 1978 (Teodora Genova); (3) Comparing Labor Insertion of Graduates from Two Areas of Knowledge in Three Mexican Localities (Marco Aurelio Navarro Leal & Ruth Roux); (4) A (New) Discursive Framework for Dealing with the Problem of Unsafe Schools (Johannes L. van der Walt) (5) Beyond Tolerance: Educating for Religious Respect and Hospitality in Pedagogic-Multilogical Sanctuaries (Ferdinand J. Potgieter); (6) Pedagogy of Discernment, New Wine in Old Skins? A Response to Potgieter (F. J. Nieuwenhuis); (7) A Study on the Type of School during the Dawn of Modern Education in Bhutan (Takehiro Hirayama); (8) Jerusalem and Istanbul: Juxtaposing and Personifying Ancient Cities for a 21st Century Readership (Regan Treewater-Lipes); (9) The Concepts "Benchmarks and Benchmarking" Used in Education Planning: Teacher Education as Example (H. J. Steyn); (10) Understanding Policy Intentions is Critical for Successful Policy Implementation within the Technical and Vocational Education and Training College's Sector (Ntlantla Sebele); and (11) The Quality of Gymnasium Education in the Banal Croatia in the Era of Neoabsolutism (1854-1860) (Arijana Kolak Bošnjak). Part 2: Pre-Service and In-Service Teacher Training & Learning and Teaching Styles, contains the following: (12) Competence-Based Approach in the Education of Pedagogues--Comparative View (Klara Skubic Ermenc & Nataša Vujisic-Živkovic); (13) Educating Teachers for Intercultural Education (Klara Skubic Ermenc); (14) Becoming a Student: The Liminal Experience (Amanda S. Potgieter); (15) Teachers' Perceptions of and Solutions for Student School Failure (Slavica Maksic); (16) Quality through Holistic Simplicity (Johannes A. Slabbert); (17) Has the Change of Educational Paradigm Reached Every School and Every Class? (Sandra Ozola & Inga Riemere); (18) In-Service Training Programmes for Inclusive Education in Serbia--Offer and Implementation (Nataša Matovic & Vera Spasenovic); (19) Obstacles to Special Education for Students with Intellectual Disabilities in Turkey (Bekir Fatih Meral); (20) Coaching Process Based on Transformative Learning Theory for Changing the Instructional Mindset of Elementary School Teachers (Milintra Kawinkamolroj, Charinee Triwaranyu & Sumlee Thongthew); and (21) Development of a Curriculum Management Process by Applying Lean Concept for Waste Elimination to Enhance Curriculum Implementation of Primary School Teacher (Nadrudee Chitrangsan, Wichai Sawekngam & Sumlee Thongthew). Part 3: Education Policy, Reforms & School Leadership contains: (22) School Led Training: An Examination of the School Direct Recent Policy Initiative in England Making Schools Leaders in the Education of Teachers (Gillian L. S. Hilton & Helen Tyler); (23) School Led Training: An Investigation into the New School Direct Initiative for Teacher Education in England, the Experiences of Trainees and Trainers (Gillian L. S. Hilton & Helen Tyler); (24) Current Situation and Reforms Making Way for Future Positive Developments in the National Education System of Bulgaria: An Overview (Teodora Genova); (25) The Quality of Early Childhood Education Curriculum Framework in the Republic of Serbia (Živka Krnjaja); (26) Evaluation of School Education in Serbia (Emina Hebib, Vera Spasenovic & Zorica Šaljic); (27) Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) Quality Standards in the Republic of Ireland and the Republic of Serbia: Two Discourses of Quality (Dragana Pavlovic Breneselovic); (28) Social Justice and Music Education: Toward a Multicultural Concept of Music Education (Snježana Dobrota); (29) Social Justice, Education and School Social Work in Turkey (Ural Nadir & Mehmet Can Aktan); (30) Government Expenditures on Education as the Percentage of GDP in the EU (Fran Galetic); (31) Teaching and Assessment Practices at the National University of Lesotho: Some Critical Comments (Tebello Tlali & Lynette Jacobs); (32) The Flexibility of the Curriculum as a Strategy for Exercising Social Justice in Public Universities (Amelia Molina, José Luis Andrade & Christian Ponce); and (33) Education as an Environmental Tool (Claudio-Rafael Vasquez-Martinez, Clara Gonzalez, Fatima Carrillo, Luis Delgado, Miguel Alvarez, Maria Morfin-Otero). Part 4: Higher Education, Lifelong Learning & Social Inclusion contains: (34) Students' and Teachers' Perceptions of a "Successful" Lifelong Learning Training Intervention--An EMILIA Project Research Report (James Ogunleye, Chris Griffiths & Peter Ryan); (35) Living with Anxiety Disorders--Unemployment as a Barrier to Social Inclusion (Julian Anczewski & Marta Anczewska); (36) Using Contact and Education as a Means of Combating the Stigma of Mental Illness: An Example of a Polish Foundation "EF Kropka" (Anna Chrostek, Janina Sonik, Joanna Krzyzanowska-Zbucka, Piotr Switaj, Izabela Nowak, Marta Anczewska); (37) Recovery-Oriented Services--the Role of Training in Transformation (Izabela Nowak, Piotr Switaj & Marta Anczewska); (38) A Virtual World Case Study --Quality, Social Justice, and Accountability in a Simulation-Based Educational Environment (Susan Stockton & Terry McNeeley); (39) Challenges and Hurdles. Examining VET Transition Systems in Different European Countries--Due to Participation of Vulnerable Groups (Maren Gag & Joachim Schroeder); (40) Social Responsibility and Envy: Multicultural Reflections (Alberto G. Canen & Ana Ivenicki); (41) Education of Students with Special Educational Needs and Their Inclusion in the Community (Gordana Stankovska, Slagana Angelkoska & Svetlana Pandiloska Grncaroska); (42) Children Voices in Research (Tijana Borovac); (43) The Interaction between Higher Education and Labour Market in Changing Economic Environment (Aija Gravite); (44) Neoliberal Values and Disability: Critical Approach to Inclusive Education (Ksenija Romstein); (45) Aging Memory is "Not" a Limiting Factor for Lifelong Learning (Dejan Lalovic & Vasilije Gvozdenovic); (46) Students' Plans for Lifelong Learning and Teaching (Marlena Plavšic & Marina Dikovic); (47) Assessment of the Implementation of the ERASMUS Programme in Turkey through the Experiences of Foreign Students Visiting Turkish HEI's (Sibel Burçer); (48) Teachers' Perceptions of Cultural Differences: Ethnocentric and Ethnorelative Worldview in School Context (Bojana M. Dimitrijevic); and (49) Tutorship and Academic Trajectories in School: Comparative Study in Two Public Universities in Mexico (Emma Leticia Canales Rodríguez & Octaviano García Robelo). Part 5: Law and Education: Legislation and Inclusive Education, Child Protection & Human Rights Education provides the following: (50) What Are the Implications of Tier 4 UK Immigration Rules and Policy for Non-EU Students? The Experiences of Students from Nigeria (Elizabeth Achinewhu-Nworgu, Queen Chioma Nworgu & Helen Ayinde); (51) The Challenges Faced by Eastern European Students within a 16-19 Education Setting in the United Kingdom (Shade Babalola); (52) Doctoral Students' Understanding of Legal and Ethical Obligations in Conducting Education Research (Elizabeth Achinewhu-Nworgu, Queen Chioma Nworgu, Steve Azaiki, Charles Nna Dikeh); and (53) "A Game for All Shapes and Sizes": Safeguarding Children from Sporting Mismatches (Steve Greenfield). Part 6: Research Education: Developing Globally Competent Researchers for International and Interdisciplinary Research provides: (54) Developing Educationists as Globally Competent Education Law Researchers for International Interdisciplinary Research: A South African Perspective (Johan Beckmann & Justus Prinsloo); (55) Understanding the Nature of Structures in Education: Recent Developments (Johannes L. van der Walt); (56) Developing Research Capacity through Professional Training (Lynette Jacobs); (57) Martini Qualitative Research: Shaken, Not Stirred (FJ (Jan) Nieuwenhuis); and (58) Enriching Higher Education Training through Values and Social Engagement (Gustavo Gregorutti). Individual papers contain references. [For "Quality, Social Justice and Accountability in Education Worldwide. BCES Conference Books, Volume 13, Number 2," see ED568600.]
- Published
- 2015
15. Can the Gap Get Any Wider? How the New GCSE Curriculum Will Make Progression to University More Challenging and Less Inclusive
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Cazzoli, Marcela A.
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The latest reforms to the GCSE Subject Content attempt to bring languages in line with other subject areas through a quantification of the material that needs to be learnt and a focus on the linguistic system, to the detriment of the broader communicative aims associated with 'knowing a language'. This article suggests that the reforms expose a lack of understanding of the fact that curricula based on instrumental skills do not prepare students (from state schools, in particular) for the level of reflection and intellectual enquiry that is at the core of university learning. This paper will also argue that an instrumental view of languages creates a wider gap between school and university that perpetuates inequality and that keeps promoting an Anglocentric public idea about languages. In order to mitigate the impact of the latest GCSE reforms, it is proposed that higher education institutions and schools should engage in collaborative work towards an understanding of language education that takes account of some of the principles which now inform languages curriculum reform in higher education in the UK and also in other sectors in Europe via the CEFR.
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- 2022
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16. Comparative Analysis of the 2022 DfE GCSE Subject Content for French, German and Spanish and Its Implications for Schools
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Blow, David and Myers, Helen
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In the high-stakes accountability English educational system, decisions made by government and agencies about curriculum, pedagogy and assessment drive school planning and actions. This paper analyses the drivers for the recent change to French German and Spanish GCSEs and highlights particular areas of the new specification which may damage the experience of language learners in the secondary school environment. After describing the context for the revisions we question why GCSE subject content has been revised when there is no evidence that a revision would improve uptake or grades. Our detailed comparison of the 2015 and 2022 subject content shows how the emphasis has shifted considerably from the requirement to demonstrate skills needed in realistic, authentic contexts, to demonstrating productive knowledge of a tightly prescribed list of vocabulary, grammar and phonics. We then identify the likely impact on schools of the new subject content. While the ostensible justification of change is to make more accessible and motivating, our view is that it will demotivate and will not reward broader skills which the whole spectrum of ability could demonstrate. We conclude by suggesting the real reason for the changes is part of a concerted government policy to reorientate the teaching of languages.
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- 2022
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17. Curriculum Innovation: Difference and Resemblance
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Hanley, Una and Torrance, Harry
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How do teachers respond to a mathematics curriculum innovation? This paper reports some of the findings from a UK Research Council (ESRC)-funded project investigating how teachers in English secondary schools (students aged 12-16 years) responded to innovation. A Gatsby Foundation funded program implemented new materials; the project investigated processes and expectations of implementation. In this paper, we consider the "gap" between innovation and proposed practice from the position of the practitioner, employing the work of Foucault (1995) and Deleuze and Guattari (1998) as a framework for analysis. The paper takes a theoretical position, arguing that teachers construct individual and constantly changing amalgams of practice. These are founded on "difference" and understood in ways, which are shifting, and partial rather than "known" via a sense-making process. Expectations of a strong correspondence between innovation and teacher response have undermined alternative perspectives that regard the interruption and re-routing of innovation as productive of viable outcomes in sites of practice.
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- 2011
18. Changing English? The Impact of Technology and Policy on a School Subject in the 21st Century
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Jewitt, Carey, Bezemer, Jeff, Jones, Ken, and Kress, Gunther
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This paper offers a historically comparative picture of the latest waves of policy and technological changes that have occurred between 2000-2006 and discusses their impact on the practices of secondary school English in the UK. It draws on data from two previous research projects to explore significant moments of micro-interaction in a classroom that can be framed and integrated in the broader macro social and policy contexts of the production of school English. Specifically the paper offers a comparison of two distinct "moments"--2000, when the first data set was collected, and 2006 with a focus on the impact of technological and policy change for English. (Contains 1 table and 2 footnotes.)
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- 2009
19. Teacher Enquiry as a Tool for Professional Development: Investigating Pupils' Effective Talk while Learning
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Wall, Kate, Higgins, Steve, Glasner, Emma, Mahmout, Ulfet, and Gormally, Jane
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The Learning to Learn in Schools Phase 3 Evaluation was a four year project across England exploring the concept of Learning to Learn in 33 primary and secondary schools. The project was funded through the UK based Campaign for Learning. One of the key aims of the project was to ensure that the locus of control in terms of development remains with the schools, who decided on the focus of innovation relevant to them under the umbrella heading of Learning to Learn. A team from the Research Centre for Learning and Teaching at Newcastle University then supported and facilitated the teachers in the systematic evaluation of their experiences. As a result we believe that this process supported meaningful professional development about teaching and learning. This paper exemplifies this process through two professional enquiries into pupil talk in the classroom and how it supported learning. The projects were carried out by teachers in two schools, one secondary (11-18 years) and one primary (4-11 years). Both schools decided that encouraging pupil talk about learning best fit with their priorities and the project aims of exploring Learning to Learn. The paper describes the different research methods and findings of the teachers' research, focusing on the decision making which occurred and how the process of the research has impacted on their professional development. Conclusions are drawn about how the philosophy of Learning to Learn can be as easily applied to the process of professional enquiry through action research and teachers' learning, as to the more traditional domain of students' learning and how this might contribute to the development of a successful Learning to Learn school culture. (Contains 10 figures and 2 endnotes.)
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- 2009
20. Proceedings of the Conference of the International Group for the Psychology of Mathematics Education (30th, Prague, Czech Republic, July 16-21, 2006). Volume 2
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International Group for the Psychology of Mathematics Education., Novotna, Jarmila, Moraova, Hana, Kratka, Magdalena, and Stehlikova, Nad'a
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This document contains the second volume of the proceedings of the 30th Annual Conference of the International Group for the Psychology of Mathematics Education. Conference presentations are centered around the theme "Mathematics at the Centre." This volume features 60 research reports by presenters with last names beginning between Abr and Dri: (1) The Odds of Understanding the Law of Large Numbers: A Design for Grounding Intuitive Probability in Combinatorial Analysis (Dor Abrahamson and Rose M. Cendak); (2) Imaginary-Symbolic Relations, Pedagogic Resources and the Constitution of Mathematics for Teaching in In-Service Mathematics Teacher Education (Jill Adler and Zain Davis); (3) Relationship between Pre-Service Mathematics Teachers' Teaching and Learning Beliefs and Their Practices (Hatice Akkoc and Feral Ogan-Bekiroglu); (4) Teachers' Awareness of Dimensions of Variation: A Mathematics Intervention Project (Thabit Al-Murani); (5) The Student Teacher and the Others: Multimembership on the Process of Introducing Technology in the Classroom (Nelia Amado and Susana Carreira); (6) Improving Student Teachers' Understanding of Fractions (Solange Amorim Amato); (7) Autodidactic Learning of Probabilistic Concepts through Games (Miriam Amit and Irma Jan); (8) Graduate Students' Processes in Generating Examples of Mathematical Objects (Samuele Antonini); (9) Reasoning in an Absurd World: Difficulties with Proof by Contradiction (Samuele Antonini and Maria Alessandra Mariotti); (10) Will Penelope Choose Another Bridegroom? Looking for an Answer through Signs (Ferdinando Arzarello, Luciana Bazzini, Francesca Ferrara, Ornella Robutti, Cristina Sabena, and Bruna Villa); (11) Motivation and Perceptions of Classroom Culture in Mathematics of Students across Grades 5 to 7 (Chryso Athanasiou and George N. Philippou); (12) Deductive Reasoning: Different Conceptions and Approaches (Michal Ayalon and Ruhama Even); (13) The Tendency to Use Intuitive Rules among Students with Different Piagetian Cognitive Levels (Reuven Babai); (14) Coming to Appreciate the Pedagogical Uses of CAS (Lynda Ball and Kaye Stacey); (15) Students' Conceptions of "m" and "c": How to Tune a Linear Function (Caroline Bardini and Kaye Stacey); (16) A Contradiction between Pedagogical Content Knowledge and Teaching Indications (Ibrahim Bayazit and Eddie Gray); (17) Identifying and Supporting Mathematical Conjectures through the Use of Dynamic Software (David Benitez Mojica and Manuel Santos Trigo); (18) Students Constructing Representations for Outcomes of Experiments (Palma Benko and Carolyn A. Maher); (19) Logarithms: Snapshots from Two Tasks (Tanya Berezovski and Rina Zazkis); (20) Trying to Reach the Limit--The Role of Algebra in Mathematical Reasoning (Christer Bergsten); (21) Semiotic Sequence Analysis--Constructing Epistemic Types Empirically (Angelika Bikner-Ahsbahs); (22) Service Teaching: Mathematical Education of Students of Client Departments (Erhan Bingolbali, John Monaghan, and Tom Roper); (23) Students' Thinking about the Tangent Line (Irene Biza, Constantinos Christou, and Theodossios Zachariades); (24) Habermas' Theory of Rationality as a Comprehensive Frame for Conjecturing and Proving in School (Paulo Boero); (25) Extending Students' Understanding of Decimal Numbers via Realistic Mathematical Modeling and Problem Posing (Cinzia Bonotto); (26) Different Media, Different Types of Collective Work in Online Continuing Teacher Education: Would You Pass the Pen, Please? (Marcelo C. Borba and Rubia B. A. Zulatto); (27) Reformulating "Mathematical Modelling" in the Framework of the Anthropological Theory of Didactics (Marianna Bosch, Fco. Javier Garcia, Josep Gascon, and Luisa Ruiz Higueras); (28) Students' Impressions of the Value of Games for the Learning of Mathematics (Leicha A. Bragg); (29) The Transition from Arithmetic to Algebra: To Reason, Explain, Argue, Generalize and Justify (Trygve Breiteig and Barbro Grevholm); (30) Resisting Reform Pedagogy: Teacher and Learner Contributions (Karin Brodie); (31) Manifestations of Affordances of a Technology-Rich Teaching and Learning Environment (TRTLE) (Jill P. Brown); (32) Types of Representations of the Number Line in Textbooks (Alicia Bruno and Noemi Cabrera); (33) Educational Neuroscience: New Horizons for Research in Mathematics Education (Stephen R. Campbell); (34) Variability in a Probability Context: Developing Pre-Service Teachers' Understanding (Daniel L. Canada); (35) Implementing a Reform-Oriented Mathematics Syllabus: A Survey of Secondary Teachers (Michael Cavanagh); (36) Student's Modelling with a Lattice of Conceptions in the Domain of Linear Equations and Inequations (Hamid Chaachoua, Marilena Bittar, and Jean-Francois Nicaud); (37) Using Reading and Coloring to Enhance Incomplete Prover's Performance in Geometry Proof (Ying-Hao Cheng and Fou-Lai Lin); (38) Aspects of Teachers' Pedagogical Content Knowledge for Decimals (Helen Chick, Monica Baker, Thuy Pham, and Hui Cheng); (39) Collaborative Action Research on Implementing Inquiry-Based Instruction in an Eighth Grade Mathematics Class: An Alternative Mode for Mathematics Teacher Professional Development (Erh-Tsung Chin, Yung-Chi Lin, Yann-Tyng Ko, Chi-Tung Chien, and Hsiao-Lin Tuan); (40) Routine and Novel Mathematical Solutions: Central-Cognitive or Peripheral-Affective Participation in Mathematics Learning (Mei-Shiu Chiu); (41) The Role of Self-Generated Problem Posing in Mathematics Exploration (Victor V. Cifarelli and Jinfa Cai); (42) A Longitudinal Study of Children's Mental Computation Strategies (Barbara Clarke, Doug M. Clarke, and Marj Horne); (43) Assessing Fraction Understanding Using Task-Based Interviews (Doug M. Clarke, Michal Sukenik, Anne Roche, and Annie Mitchell); (44) Evaluation of a Teaching Concept for the Development of Problem Solving Competences in Connection with Self-Regulation (Christina Collet and Regina Bruder); (45) Developing Probability Thinking in Primary School: A Case Study on the Constructive Role of Natural Language in Classroom Discussions (Valeria Consogno, Teresa Gazzolo, and Paulo Boero); (46) Collaboration with Teachers to Improve Mathematics Learning: Pedagogy at Three Levels (Tom J. Cooper, Annette R. Baturo, and Edlyn J. Grant); (47) "Aim High--Beat Yourself": Effective Mathematics Teaching in a Remote Indigenous Community (Tom J. Cooper, Annette R. Baturo, Elizabeth Warren, and Edlyn J. Grant); (48) Development of Children's Understanding of Length, Area, and Volume Measurement Principles (Margaret Curry, Michael Mitchelmore, and Lynne Outhred; (49) Mathematics-for-Teaching: The Cases of Multiplication and Division (Brent Davis, Elaine Simmt, and Dennis Sumara); (50) Generative Concept Images (Gary E. Davis and Catherine A. Pearn); (51) Developmental Assessment of Data Handling Performance Age 7-14 (Pauline Davis, Maria Pampaka, Julian Williams, and Lawrence Wo); (52) The Effect of Different Teaching Tools in Overcoming the Impact of the Intuitive Rules (Eleni Deliyianni, Eleni Michael, and Demetra Pitta-Pantazi); (53) Investigating Social and Individual Aspects in Teacher's Approaches to Problem Solving (Fien Depaepe, Erik De Corte, and Lieven Verschaffel); (54) Maths Avoidance and the Choice of University (Pietro Di Martino and Francesca Morselli); (55) Primary Students' Reasoning about Diagrams: The Building Blocks of Matrix Knowledge (Carmel M. Diezmann); (56) Integrating Errors into Developmental Assessment: "Time" for Ages 8-13 (Brian Doig, Julian Williams, Lawrence Wo, and Maria Pampaka); (57) Vygotsky's Everyday Concepts/Scientific Concepts Dialectics in School Context: A Case Study (Nadia Douek); (58) Creating Mathematical Models with Structures (Katherine Doyle); (59) Mechanisms for Consolidating Knowledge Constructs (Tommy Dreyfus, Nurit Hadas, Rina Hershkowitz, and Baruch Schwarz); and (60) Reconciling Factorizations Made with CAS and with Paper-and-Pencil: The Power of Confronting Two Media (Paul Drijvers, Carolyn Kieran, Andre Boileau, Fernando Hitt, Denis Tanguay, Luis Saldanha, and Jose Guzman). (Individual papers contain references.)
- Published
- 2006
21. Some Direction: Towards a C21 Secondary School Curriculum
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McPhail, Graham and McNeill, Jeff
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In this third and final paper from the Delphi study One Direction, we report on participants' responses to four secondary school music curriculum scenarios. These scenarios present four possible directions for a C21 secondary school music curriculum. The scenarios were devised from a combination of ideas derived from the data from the earlier stages of the study (McPhail, G., and J. McNeill. 2019. "One Direction: A Future for Secondary School Music Education?" "Music Education Research" 21 (4): 359-370; McNeill, J., and G. McPhail. 2020. "One Direction: Strategic Challenges for Twenty-first Century Secondary School Music." "Music Education Research" 22 (4): 432-446) and the concept of specialisation from Maton's Legitimation Code Theory. By asking an international panel of leading music education researchers and teachers to respond to the scenarios, we are able to argue that 'one direction' is unlikely to emerge for secondary school music education, but we discuss the responses, and the scenario dimensions regarded as most likely and desirable. What appears certain is that there will be a continuing weakening of the boundaries between types of knowledge and stylistic arenas suggesting a dialectic relationship between the legitimating principles most valued.
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- 2021
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22. Two Views from the Forum Archive
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Martin, Jane
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The following two articles are taken from the FORUM archive. First published in the autumn of 1981, they offer a restatement of comprehensive principles in the context of the educational policies of the incoming Conservative government from 1979. The first thing Margaret Thatcher's education secretary, Mark Carlisle, did was to repeal Labour legislation that required non-selective planning. Bolton, Essex, Kent and Kingston upon Thames withdrew proposals to go comprehensive immediately. For reasons of ideology -- the 1977 green paper Education in Schools made it clear that there was no evidence that education standards had fallen and that more children were better educated than before comprehensive education became national policy -- the 1980 Education Act reflected right-wing desires to return to selective education, to support private education, to introduce market forces into education, via parental choice. It also removed the obligation on local authorities to provide free school milk and meals for children, except for those from families on supplementary benefit, in order to save money. In the face of present realities, the FORUM editorial board felt clarity was needed to provide direction and purpose. This was the backdrop against which Clyde Chitty and Roger Seckington wrote and their words reflect the language of the time. Unequal opportunities and the underachievement of children from racial and ethnic minorities had become a serious policy issue, partly due to race riots, or urban disorders as they were termed, in various parts of Britain, notably Brixton in London and Toxteth in Liverpool in April 1981. [The two articles included in this article: (1) "Why comprehensive schools?" (Clyde Chitty); and (2) "The comprehensive movement" (Roger Seckington).]
- Published
- 2021
23. Autonomy and Accountability in Schools Serving Disadvantaged Communities
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Klein, Esther Dominique
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Purpose: Increased school autonomy and accountability have been a common denominator of national reforms in otherwise heterogeneous governance systems in Europe and the USA. The paper argues that because schools serving disadvantaged communities (SSDCs) often have lower average performance, they are more often sanctioned or under closer scrutiny, but might also receive more additional resources. The purpose of this paper is to therefore analyze whether SSDCs have more or less autonomy than schools with a more advantageous context in four countries with heterogeneous autonomy and accountability policies. Design/methodology/approach: The paper is based on the data from the Programme for International Student Assessment 2012 school and student questionnaires from Finland, Germany, the UK, and the USA. The choice of countries is based on different governance models described by Glatter "et al." (2003). The data are used to identify SSDCs and analyze the reported autonomy in resource allocation and curriculum and assessment. Using regression analyses, patterns are analyzed for each country individually. They are then juxtaposed and compared. Differences are related back to the governance models of the respective countries. Findings: The results indicate an association between the communities the schools are serving and the autonomy either in the allocation of resources, or the curriculum and assessment. SSDCs appeared to have a little more autonomy than schools with a more advantageous context in Finland, Germany, and the UK, but less autonomy in the USA. The comparison suggests that in the USA, autonomy is rather a reward for schools that have the least amount of need, whereas in the other three countries it could be a result of strategies to improve schools in need. The paper discusses possible explanations in the policies and support structures for SSDCs. Originality/value: The effects of increased school autonomy and accountability on student achievement have been discussed at length. How different accountability policies affect the autonomy of schools with the highest needs has so far not been studied. The study can be understood as a first step to unravel this association. Following steps should include in-depth investigations of the mechanisms underlying increased or diminished autonomy for SSDCs, and the consequences for school improvement in these schools.
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- 2017
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24. Skill Needs: Linking Labour Market Analysis and Vocational Training. Report.
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European Training Foundation, Turin (Italy). and European Training Foundation, Turin (Italy).
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This publication contains workshop papers which discuss the link between the labor market and vocational training. Part I provides an overview of the workshop--its objectives, issues, and conclusions. Part II consists of seven country papers. "Labour Market Information (LMI) and Vocational Training Decision-Making in Hungary" (Lazar) outlines types of LMI to help vocational education and training (VET) planning and problems concerning LMI and its use for VET decision-making. "Labour Market Needs in Adult Training Programmes in Hungary" (Fodor) discusses the labor market training system and developing company-specific training programs. "Regional Employment and Training Observatory in France" (Guegnard, Perrier-Cornet) focuses on the observatory in Burgundy, an inter-institutional network. "New Methods for Linking VET with the Labour Market in Poland: The Results of a Pilot Application" (Kabaj) focuses on two methods: monitoring of shortage and surplus occupations and tripartite training agreements. "The Future of Skills and Work: Trends and Forecasts in Germany" (Tessaring) concludes that structural change in industry and society is accompanied by a major increase in the qualification requirements of the workforce. "Challenges of Incorporating Labour Market Requirements in the Vocational Training System: Slovenia" (Kramberger) provides a summary of broader processes that influence reform attempts to improve the VET system. "Linking Labour Market Analysis and Vocational Training in the United Kingdom" (Edgell) covers the sort of analysis undertaken at the national level. Part III has four discussion papers. "The Identification of Relevant LMI for VET" (Meijers) elaborates on the need for LMI in an industrial society and describes a new qualification model. "Labour Market Forecasts on Behalf of the VET System" (de Grip) focuses on the kind of LMI required to improve the transparency of the labor market and reestablish coordination between the labor market and VET system in the former centrally planned economies of Central and Eastern Europe. "Qualitative Information for Curriculum Development" (Dybowski) discusses ways to ensure that curricula remain up-to-date. "Linking Labour Market Analysis to Vocational Training Decision-Making: Dynamics and Mechanisms" (Mozdzenska-Mrozek) presents emerging links between VET and the labor market, institutions collecting and shaping information on the labor market situation in Poland, and VET reform in Poland. Contributor notes are appended. (YLB)
- Published
- 1998
25. Vocational-Technical Education Reforms in Germany, Netherlands, France and U.K. and Their Implications to Taiwan.
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Lee, Lung-Sheng
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Three major models of vocational education and training provision for the 16- to 19-year-old age group have been identified: schooling model, which emphasizes full-time schooling until age 18; dual model, which involves mainly work-based apprenticeship training with some school-based general education; and mixed model. Germany is an exemplar of the dual model; the Netherlands and France provide the schooling model; provision in the United Kingdom (UK) is the mixed model. Although the dual system will continue to dominate the secondary vocational-technical education and training in Germany, German full-time vocational schools may be gradually incorporated into general education. More and more university students in Germany seek two-fold qualification--university studies and practical vocational training--to enhance their job prospects. In the Netherlands, some measures, such as encouraging more employers' organizations, trade unions, and industry involvement, have been taken to reform the senior secondary vocational school system. No significant recent reform efforts are found in France. The former polytechnics in the UK recently changed their name to universities to expand their capacities for student recruitment and program offerings. The implication for secondary and postsecondary vocational-technical education in Taiwan is that it is too school-based to adapt to the labor market and that there is a need for stronger links with the labor market. (Contains 15 references.) (YLB)
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- 1994
26. Psychological Literacy: A Multifaceted Perspective
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Hulme, Julie A., Skinner, Rebecca, Worsnop, Francesca, Collins, Elizabeth, Banyard, Philip, Kitching, Helen J., Watt, Roger, and Goodson, Simon
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The concept of psychological literacy has grown in importance within psychology education at all levels, in the UK and globally, in recent years. Increasingly, psychology educators and policy makers are seeking to emphasise the relevance and usefulness of psychology within everyday life, within the workplace, and as an element of global citizenship. The Division of Academics, Researchers and Teachers in Psychology (DART-P), recognising this recent development, hosted a symposium at the British Psychological Society (BPS) Annual Conference 2015, at which the concept of psychological literacy was explored within the context of higher and pre-tertiary psychology education. The aim of the symposium, reflected in this article, was to explore current thinking, developments and practice within contemporary psychology education, with a view to stimulating critical discussion and reflection on psychological literacy and its delivery within both pre-tertiary and higher education contexts. Ultimately, the symposium, and this article, are intended to facilitate exploration of the opportunities provided by psychology education, at all levels, to develop students as psychologically literate citizens. This article summarises the talks and discussions which occurred during the symposium. Firstly, we introduce the concept and literature surrounding psychological literacy and its importance to modern psychology education. This is followed by a case study illustrating one way in which psychological literacy has been embedded into the curriculum within a university undergraduate programme. We move to consider the development of thinking about psychological literacy in a historical context, linking it to societal benefits and Miller's (1969) concept of "giving psychology away." This raises the question of the extent to which pre-tertiary psychology education can equip students with psychological literacy, and the impact of the growing numbers of people who have studied psychology upon society. In England and Wales, the most popular pre-tertiary psychology qualification is the A level, which has undergone recent revisions, and so we consider the contribution of the new A level psychology specifications to psychological literacy. In conclusion, this paper offers some thoughts about the implications of the growth in emphasis on education for psychological literacy, reflecting the discussions held during the plenary session at the end of the symposium.
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- 2015
27. Learning from Differences: A Strategy for Teacher Development in Respect to Student Diversity
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Messiou, Kyriaki, Ainscow, Mel, Echeita, Gerardo, Goldrick, Sue, Hope, Max, Paes, Isabel, Sandoval, Marta, Simon, Cecilia, and Vitorino, Teresa
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Drawing on evidence gathered as a result of collaborative action research carried out in 8 secondary schools in 3 European countries, this paper proposes an innovative strategy for helping teachers respond positively to learner diversity. The strategy merges the idea of lesson study with an emphasis on listening to the views of students. The research suggests that it is this latter emphasis that makes the difference as far as responding to learner diversity is concerned. It is this that brings a critical edge to the process that has the potential to challenge teachers to go beyond the sharing of existing practices in order to invent new possibilities for engaging students in their lessons. The paper also considers some of the difficulties involved in using this strategy.
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- 2016
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28. Choice and Diversity in English Initial Teacher Education (ITE): Trainees' Perspectives
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George, Rosalyn and Maguire, Meg
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In England, there has been an expansion of different routes into teaching resulting in an increasingly complex and diverse pattern of training provision. This reconfiguration of becoming a teacher is driven by concerns to improve the quality of teachers who are better able to raise standards in schools as well as to ensure a regular supply of teachers for the nation's children. In consequence, there has been a move towards more school-based and school-led programmes set in a market-driven approach to pre-service teacher preparation. A great deal of research has focused on the implications of these structural changes in English teacher education, while much less attention has been paid to the perceptions and experiences of those who enrol on these diverse teacher education programmes. This paper draws on a series of in-depth interviews with twelve trainee teachers following some of the different pathways into teaching in secondary schools. It explores the trainees' rationale for choosing their route and how they describe the advantages and disadvantages of their chosen pathways.
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- 2019
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29. The Rise and Decline of the International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme in the United Kingdom
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Bunnell, Tristan
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The three main programmes of the Geneva-registered International Baccalaureate (IB) have grown substantially worldwide over the past decade, although the programmes have found a natural "home" in the United States. This paper charts the growth of the IB in the United Kingdom (UK) revealing that involvement there, mainly in England and mainly with the original pre-university Diploma Programme (IBDP), peaked at about 230 schools in 2010, but since then the IBDP has begun suddenly to decline. Yet, in no other country has there been a fall in IBDP provision. This paper offers some key explanations for this phenomenon, where a lack of funding and continued lack of university recognition in the face of Advanced Level (A-Level) reform and numerous "baccalaureate" developments has led to many state-funded schools in particular dropping the IBDP. Thirdly, this paper discusses a number of implications, both for the IB itself and education in the UK in general.
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- 2015
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30. The Stem Advisory Forum: A Means of Allowing People to Influence the Government's STEM Initiatives
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Onion, Alice and Follett, Brian
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This paper gives a short overview of the UK government's STEM agenda and then considers one aspect in depth--the STEM Advisory Forum. It explains how the Forum operates to draw together views from across the STEM community through online discussions and face-to-face events. Four examples are given of topics that have been dealt with by the Forum. Firstly the topic of engineering, enrichment and engagement is covered through samples of various events and discussions. A major issue covered is the number of young people taking A Level mathematics. The background to the issue is explained and how views expressed on the Forum might have had some influence upon the Government's advanced level target and may yet impact on admissions behaviour in universities. A third short example of impact on the number of university places for STEM subjects is given and the piece finishes with an example of impact at local level in schools. (Contains 4 figures.)
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- 2011
31. A-Level Psychology: Is There a Way Forward?
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Smith, Marc
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Since its introduction in the early 1970s A-level psychology has grown in popularity to become the fourth most popular A-level. During this time it has also been heavily criticised by the media and higher education for its lack of rigour and practicability. Issues such as the lack of subject specialists, damaging changes made by the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority (QCA) and an arrogant and dismissive attitude shown by universities plus failures by the British Psychological Society to inform decision making, have transformed A-level psychology into the poor cousin of undergraduate psychology and psychology teachers into a form of academic underclass. This paper examines the reasons behind such derision and attempts to offer some solutions in an attempt to get such issues firmly back on the agenda.
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- 2010
32. Selection of Content in High School Mathematics Textbooks: An International Comparison
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Wang, J. and Lu, X.
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As a component of the ongoing development of the mathematics curriculum in China, we compare the country's high school mathematics textbooks with those of several other countries. We base our analysis on the assumption that textbooks, as primary printed teaching resources, are key tools for interpreting educational policy. In this paper, we compare what content is selected and how that content is presented in series of high school textbooks from China, France, Germany, Japan, Russia, the United Kingdom, and the United States according to four core domains: algebra, geometry, statistics and probability, and calculus. We then discuss the implications of the analysis for the reform of the high school mathematics curriculum in China, particularly as it applies to the development of textbooks within that process of reform. The comparative results provide us with the opportunity to recognise the distinguishing features of the content and presentation of the Chinese mathematics curriculum and lead to some suggestions for future curriculum development.
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- 2018
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33. Stereotypes as Anglo-American Exam Ritual? Comparisons of Students' Exam Anxiety in East Asia, America, Australia, and the United Kingdom
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Rappleye, Jeremy and Komatsu, Hikaru
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East Asian dominance in international large-scale assessments is widely known. This is often explained as an outcome of highly competitive, exam-oriented education systems in East Asia, wherein students partake in a fierce competition for limited college entrance. Although achievement scores may be comparatively higher, the argument goes, the relative success comes at a steep price, with the emphasis on high-stakes tests heightening student stress and anxiety. In this paper we refute this persistent and out-dated stereotype by focusing on changes in Japanese education over the past several decades. The two original studies we report herein show that not only do Japanese students feel less school-related anxiety and stress than they once did, but these levels are now comparable to students in America, Australia, and the United Kingdom. In showing that stereotypes do not match empirical realities, we seek to open a richer discussion around East Asian student achievement. We conclude by extending the discussion to recent changes in China, Taiwan, and South Korea. We then raise the possibility that fundamentally different outlooks on the learning process explain both differences in achievement and the persistence of the West's distorted images of Japanese and East Asian education.
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- 2018
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34. Surveillance, Governmentality and Moving the Goalposts: The Influence of Ofsted on the Work Of Schools in a Post-Panoptic Era
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Perryman, Jane, Maguire, Meg, Braun, Annette, and Ball, Stephen
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This paper asks the question: to what extent do inspection regimes, particularly the Office for Standards in Education (Ofsted), influence the work of a school, and how might that influence be conceptualised? It draws on an ESRC-funded study of 'policy enactments in secondary schools', which was based on case-study work in four 'ordinary' schools. Here the data set is re-examined to understand the extent to which Ofsted had an ongoing influence on the work of the leadership, management and teachers in these schools. We undertook a process of secondary analysis of the data from the project and found that the influence of the inspection agenda was strong in the schools, policy decisions were often being made to conform to Ofsted's expectations and the influence on leadership and management was clearly apparent. In resisting this agenda we also found that schools to some extent performed 'the good school' for inspections. Finally, we relate this empirical evidence to conceptions of governmentality and post-panopticism to shed new light on their theoretical relevance to contemporary inspection regimes.
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- 2018
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35. Responding to Reform: How Aware Are Higher Education English Providers of a Level Reforms and How Have They Responded to Them?
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Giovanelli, Marcello, Clark, Billy, and Macrae, Andrea
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This paper reports on the findings from a survey of academics responsible for undergraduate programmes in English and examines the extent to which they were aware of recent reform of A level English and had made, or are making, changes to their courses as a result. Our findings demonstrate that relatively low numbers felt that they had a strong awareness of changes to post 16 curricula and most of the respondents indicated that they had not made and were not making any changes in direct response to the changes at A level to better support transition. The findings raise a number of questions regarding universities' involvement in and knowledge of A level reform, the various ways that schools, colleges and universities can work together to develop effective transition for students, and how government, exam regulators and awarding bodies might best develop effective channels of communication to enable cross-phase dialogue.
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- 2018
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36. Configurations of Multiple Disparities in Reading Performance: Longitudinal Observations across France, Germany, Sweden and the United Kingdom
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Lenkeit, Jenny, Schwippert, Knut, and Knigge, Michel
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Research provides evidence that gender, immigrant background and socio-economic characteristics present multiple disadvantaging characteristics that change their relative importance and configurations over time. When evaluating inequalities researchers tend to focus on one particular aspect and often use composite measures when evaluating socio-economic characteristics. Neither can fully represent the complexity of students' various disadvantaging characteristics, which have autonomous associations with attainment and with each other. This paper investigates how the relative importance and configurations of different disadvantaging factors have changed over time to form educational inequalities and how these changes differ across countries. Data from five PISA cycles (2000-2012) for France, Germany, Sweden and the United Kingdom are used and configurations of gender, immigration background, parents' occupational and educational levels, and the number of books at home evaluated. Results enable us to relate changes (or lack thereof) in configurations of disadvantaging factors to recent reforms targeted at reducing educational inequality after the first PISA results.
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- 2018
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37. Is This Inclusion? Lessons from a Very 'Special' Unit
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Greenstein, Anat
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Debates about the meanings of inclusive education are long-lasting, and the imperative to include disabled students in mainstream schools is currently under threat by the UK government's educational policies. This paper draws on critiques from inclusive education and critical pedagogy literature, as well as on findings from field research in a special unit in a secondary school in the UK, to argue for a thorough change in educational provision that is currently incompatible with notions of inclusion. The paper examines how changing the politics of disability, access and relations of belonging in the context of field research has had a positive impact on educational provision in accordance with critiques of education from disability, feminist and anti-capitalist standpoints. However, while the educational provision in the school's special unit successfully challenged many disabling barriers to education, its lack of engagement with issues of power and wider social structures made it vulnerable to recuperation. The paper points to the relevance of including ideas from critical pedagogy within research and practice in inclusive education, which provide a useful tool for dealing with such issues.
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- 2014
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38. Researching the Interdisciplinary Curriculum: The Need for 'Translation Devices'
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Pountney, Richard and McPhail, Graham
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This paper discusses the conceptual and methodological challenges facing two researchers investigating the development of interdisciplinary curricula in two new secondary schools, one in the UK and one in New Zealand. It is a discussion of research in progress that will be of interest to readers because of both the methodological challenges discussed and the research area itself. The key issue we identify is one for both researchers and teachers: how might the concepts and perspective of one discipline be brought into a relationship with another to enable deep learning? This question in turn highlights a key methodological challenge: developing the means to describe and evaluate new forms of curricular design and implementation where a traditional discipline-based curriculum has been rejected in favour of interdisciplinary ones. The integrative aims of interdisciplinarity are also examined. We employ Bernstein's (2000) concept of "knowledge structures" and "languages of description" to theorise a continuum of approaches to curriculum integration, from "functional" to "principled." This methodological manoeuvre is made possible by the development of a "translation device." This procedural mechanism makes accessible to analysis the organising principles that are in play in the interdisciplinary curriculum design practices we have observed. We conclude with recommendations for the interdisciplinary curriculum researcher.
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- 2017
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39. The Need of Safety-Net Programme for a Mass Education System
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Wong, Edwin K. P., Ngai, Sze Wan Emily, and Lo, King Shuen
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Background: The Project Yi Jin (PYJ), an alternative pathway for secondary school leavers and adults to further their education, has been receiving full support from the government, the Federation for Continuing Education in Tertiary Institutions (FCE) in Hong Kong and the public. Graduates of PYJ have the equivalent academic status of their counterparts in the main stream education. It was first implemented in 2000/01 by the FCE and has been offered to more than 35,000 students by 2006/07. With the success of the programme as a safety-net for a mass education system, it should continue to function more vigorously as new reforms are being implemented in the Hong Kong education scene in the future. The Chief Executive in his 2004 Policy Address has set out the direction to develop a new secondary and university system, i.e., (3+3) for secondary + 4 (tertiary) [the old one is (3+2+2)+3], to be launched in 2010/11, that will effectively prepare the next generation to cope with the challenges of the 21st century and the demands of the rapidly developing knowledge-based society. The new system, together with substantial modified curricula including the newly developed applied learning courses (ApL), is supposed to be able to look after all secondary students. Aims and focus of discussion: This paper aims to argue the necessity of launching a new version of Project Yi Jin (nPYJ) concurrently together with the new 3+3+4 academic system. In light of the contemporary global educational systems as compared to that of Hong Kong, it is postulated that the launching of nPYJ as a continuation of the successful PYJ is both legitimate and indispensable with regard to the carefully observed current global fashion of lifelong learning and continuing education in which diversity, equity, and flexibility are highly valued. Method: A comprehensive comparative review was carried out on eleven selected oriental and occidental countries and regions, namely, Australia, Canada, Germany, Japan, South Korea, United Kingdom, United States, China, Taiwan, Singapore and Macao, focusing on the worldwide trend of constant high school drop-out rate as well as the mentioned countries' respective senior secondary schooling articulation policy leading to higher education, in particular shedding light on the establishment of alternative pathways towards tertiary education alongside the conventional educational track. Conclusion: With the literature backdrop and empirical support, it is shown that high school drop-outs are inevitable no matter how well-defined an education system may be. Thus this is where the "safety-net" contingency plan is found essential. A new version of Project Yi Jin (nPYJ), to be offered in parallel with the Hong Kong's new 3+3+4 secondary academic curricula, is indispensable to the new educational structure in the territory which fundamentally helps transform the conventionally somewhat segregated and elite educational system into a mass one. Regarding the curricular design, both PYJ and nPYJ will focus on generic skills and a wide range of electives will be offered as well to arouse students' interest of study. (Contains 1 figure, 1 table and 5 footnotes.)
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- 2006
40. New Technology in Schools: Is There a Payoff? CEE DP 55
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London School of Economics & Political Science, Centre for the Economics of Education, Machin, Stephen, McNally, Sandra, and Silva, Olmo
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In recent years the role of investment in Information and Communication Technology (ICT) as an effective tool to raise educational standards has attracted growing attention from both policy makers and academic researchers. While the former tend to express enthusiastic claims about the use of new technologies in schools, the latter have raised concerns about the methodological validity of much of the research undertaken. The view that ICT could help to raise educational standards dates back to the Fifties, and builds on some of the original findings by the Harvard psychologist Skinner (1954, 1958). More recently, support for the effectiveness of ICT as a teaching and learning device comes from the educational literature. Yet results are generally inferred from simple correlations between ICT and pupil performance, without taking full account of other factors (such as school characteristics, resources and quality) that may be related to both ICT resources and pupil outcomes. In recent years, and in parallel with the widespread belief that new technologies account for much of the productivity resurgence in workplaces in the Nineties (see Jorgenson and Stiroh, 2000), the UK government has motivated its sizable ICT investment in schools by stressing the importance of ICT in raising educational standards and creating opportunities for every child. The positive rhetoric about ICT in the UK has been backed up by considerable government investment. Starting from 1997, the government has encouraged the widespread use of ICT for teaching and learning in schools: formal plans were set-up under the "National Grid for Learning" in order to equip schools with ICT facilities and train teachers to make an effective use of ICT. Between 1998 and 2002, ICT expenditure in England almost doubled in secondary schools, and increased by over 300 percent in primary schools. In this paper, the authors ask whether this considerable increase in ICT investment has made any difference to educational standards. More specifically, they evaluate whether changes in ICT investment had any causal impact on changes in educational outcomes in English schools over the period from 1999 to 2003. To do this, they mainly rely on administrative data at the level of Local Education Authority. They also make use of detailed information contained in a survey about ICT use in English schools to help interpret their findings. To identify the causal impact of ICT use on pupil achievement, they exploit a policy change that occurred in 2001, using an Instrumental Variable (IV) approach. Specifically, they consider how a change in the rules governing ICT investment in different regions of England led to changes in ICT investment and subsequently changed educational outcomes. In their quasi-experimental setting, they identify the impact of ICT investment using the magnitude of the gain or loss experienced by different LEAs as a result of the change in the funding system. The results should be interpreted as the causal effect of ICT investment on educational outcomes for LEAs that were substantially affected by the change in the funding system over this particular time period (i.e. it is not the average effect of a change in ICT investment for the whole population of schools). Unlike previous economic studies, they find evidence for a positive causal impact of ICT investment on educational performance in primary schools. This is most evident in the teaching of English, where they also show evidence that there is high use of ICT for teaching purposes. They also observe a positive impact for Science, though not for Mathematics. Hence, in this context, there is evidence of a causal link between a substantial increase in ICT investment and a rise in educational standards. Appended are: (1) Is ICT Funding Crowding out other LEA funding?; and (2) Descriptive Statistics and Balancing Properties of the Instrument. (Contains 5 figures, 12 tables and 23 footnotes.)
- Published
- 2006
41. Current Research in European Vocational Education and Human Resource Development. Proceedings of the Programme Presented By the Research Network on Vocational Education and Training (VETNET) at the European Conference of Educational Research (ECER) (3rd, Edinburgh, Scotland, September 20-23, 2000).
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WIFO (Research Forum Education and Society), Berlin (Germany)., Manning, Sabine, and Raffe, David
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These 24 papers represent the proceedings of a program presented by the research network on vocational education and training (VET). They include "School-Arranged or Market-Governed Workplace Training?" (Ulla Arnell-Gustafsson); "Prospects for Mutual Learning and Transnational Transfer of Innovative Practice in European VET" (Alan Brown, Jens Bjornavold); "Powerful Learning Environments in Vocational Education" (Elly de Bruijn, Trudy Moerkamp); "Searching for the Meanings of Learnings at Work" (Kaija Collin); "Induced Labor Mobility Through Continuing Vocational Training" (M'hamed Dif); "Expectancies and Realities--Evaluations and Research on Engineering Students' Experiences of Their First Semesters" (Elinor Edvardsson-Stiwne, Dan Stiwne); "International Dimension in Dutch VET" (Wil Van Esch); "Demand of Education as a Strategic Demand in a Context of Job Rationing and Job Scarcity" (Benedicte Gendron); "Learning and Work Experience" (Toni Griffiths, David Guile); "Alternance and Workplace Training: Interns' Experiences" (Marcelle Hardy, Carmen Parent); "FLEX-VET Project in Finland: Vocational Training Including Mechatronics and the Training Needs of the Finnish Metal Industry" (Lilli Heiskanen, Pauliina Jokinen); "Learner/Manager's Uncertainty of Their Capacity for Innovative Problem Solving: Information-and-Communication Technology Based Solution" (M.E.A. Holmes, S.A. Geertshuis, D. Clancy, A. Bristol); "'Key Qualifications'--A New Framework for Analyzing the Modernization of Vocational Qualifications and Curricula" (Pekka Kamarainen); "What Can We Learn from Dually Oriented Qualifications?" (Sabine Manning); "End User Computing at a South African Technikon" (Cecille Marsh); "New Deal and the Colleges" (Ken Marsh); "International Employees Plead for Education and Assistance in Adjusting to Living in Foreign Cultures" (Jean R. McFarland); "Special Features of the Finnish Labor Market and Challenges for Education" (Anne Rouhelo, Tarita Ruoholinna); "Factors Influencing Learners' Perceptions of the Quality of Computer-Based Learning Materials" (Sally Sambrook); "Exploring Capacity-Building" (Terri Seddon); "European Strategies for Reforming Initial Vocational Education" (Marja-Leena Stenstrom, Johanna Lasonen); "Human Resource Development (HRD) in Learning-Oriented Organizations in Belgium, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom" (Saskia Tjepkema, Martin Mulder); "Factors Influencing Change in a Scope of Individual VET Qualifications" (Petr Vicenik, Maarit Virolainen); and "What Works in Enhancing HRD Effectiveness?" (Ida Wognum). (YLB)
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- 2000
42. Research and the Secondary School Curriculum = La Recherche et le Programme d'Enseignement Secondaire.
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Council for Cultural Cooperation, Strasbourg (France). and Ruddock, Jean
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This paper outlines the diversity of support for educational research and the relatively little influence that educational research has had on recent United Kingdom policy for the secondary school curriculum. The document goes on to describe the major change facing U.K. secondary schools: the introduction of the national curriculum and a related program of assessment. The change, carried in the Education Reform Act of 1988, can be understood only in terms of the broader policy for education that the current Conservative government has in mind. School increasingly is conceived within the framework of a market economy. The dominant system of comprehensive schooling is being diversified to provide choice for parents, and choice is made possible by the provision of public information about the achievement of individual pupils and schools. Traditional local control has given way to centralized control, while "accountability" and "consumerism" distinguish the new system. At the same time, the national curriculum offers teachers freedom to determine their own strategies for teaching and learning, design their own work schemes, and choose their own curriculum materials. The paper indicates some reactions to the reforms and summarizes research resulting from the introduction of the new curriculum and, in conclusion, areas research not so directly linked to the recent reforms. (SG)
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- 1992
43. The 'Patron Saint' of Comprehensive Education: An Interview with Clyde Chitty. Part One
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Benn, Melissa and Martin, Jane
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FORUM invited Melissa Benn and Jane Martin to interview Clyde Chitty, a brilliant and effective classroom and university teacher, one of the most well-known advocates of comprehensive education, a long-standing member of FORUM's editorial board, and for two decades co-editor of the publication. It was Michael Armstrong who called him 'the patron saint of the movement for comprehensive education', in a card written to Clyde when he stepped away from regular duties with the FORUM board. In three 45-minute interviews, conducted at Clyde's home, Clyde shared reflections with us on a working life as a teacher-researcher who notably campaigned for the universal provision of comprehensive state education. In this article, which comprises Part One of the interviews (Part Two will appear in the spring 2018 number of FORUM), Clyde's unshakeable conviction that education has the power to enhance the lives of all is illustrated by plentiful examples from his work-life history.
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- 2017
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44. The Weight of History: Structures, Patterns and Legacies of Secondary Education in the British Isles, c.1200-c.1980
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Richardson, William
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This article serves as context for the other papers in this special issue, all of which deal with developments in UK secondary education since c.1980. The paper comprises a review of selected impulses and imperatives that saw the substantial legacy of medieval and humanist schooling in Britain re-shaped, during the period c.1830-c.1980, into the outline of today's landscape of secondary schooling. Three parallel themes are examined: the influence of universities and examinations in framing the secondary curriculum; the role of ideas about ability in shaping the growth of secondary education; and the place of practical/technical education in the secondary school years. By tracing these themes, an account of the changing patterns of institutional provision across the British Isles is provided that, by 1980, had led to a thriving independent sector of schools for a small minority coexisting alongside the massive enterprise of broadly comprehensive, state-funded secondary education in which significant tensions remained between separate "grammar" and "upper-elementary" traditions. Conclusions are drawn as to significant aspects of this historic inheritance acting on developments in secondary education in the contemporary era.
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- 2011
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45. Conflicting Concepts of Participation in Secondary School Citizenship
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Mead, Nick
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This paper examines a rare response by Ofsted to academics' concerns about a prevailing compliance model of Citizenship in secondary schools. Ofsted's defence of a non-compliance model is then tested against a small sample of Ofsted inspection data. The limited evidence suggests that Ofsted's defence is undermined by the adoption of an instrumentalist approach to participation, driven by the school improvement agenda, and, it is argued, reinforced by the Every Child Matters agenda. The outcome of this approach, which promotes an uncritical concept of participation, is an uncoupling of the political, moral and community that lay at the heart of the Crick Report. Parallels are drawn with the late-nineteenth-century compliance model of Citizenship, which Ofsted claim in their defence is very different from the twenty-first-century participatory model. There follows a review of political change since the Crick Report, which suggests that lack of participation by young people--which is the premise of both that report and Ofsted's depoliticized version of it--is no longer the issue; instead, the question is about whether there should be participation at any cost. To exemplify what this critical concept of participation might look like in a school context, the author draws on his case study of an Iraq war school protest in a fresh start school. It is argued that this example of critical participation maintains the link between the political and moral, and thereby actually makes a contribution to school improvement, by acknowledging staff and pupils' awareness of the complexities, emotions and contradictions of participation. The paper concludes that depoliticized dutiful citizenship will be encouraged if the prevailing concept of participation in schools is an instrumental and uncritical one. This in turn may lead to a widening gulf between the school's and the pupils' understanding of participation, which may eventually impact on sustained school improvement.
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- 2010
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46. Constructing Education for Sustainable Development: The Secondary School Geography Curriculum and Initial Teacher Training
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Firth, Roger and Winter, Christine
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If education is a solution in working toward a sustainable future then initial teacher training (ITT) provides a strategic opportunity for ensuring that all teachers are able to teach for sustainability when they begin their teaching careers. This paper reports on a study of how four Postgraduate Certificate of Education (PGCE) student teachers planned and taught education for sustainable development (ESD) through geography during a school placement. It was carried out to provide exemplification of the nature of student teachers' planning and teaching about ESD in secondary schools in England and to identify ways of improving their PGCE course. The findings are based on interviews with student teachers after the school placement, as well documentary evidence. Policy-driven changes in the provision of both ITT and school curricula and pedagogy in England are an important context for the study. The paper concludes by arguing that ITT faces considerable challenges if it is to be reoriented towards sustainability. A sample of the Class information and scheme of work theme as defined by the student teachers is appended. (Contains 6 notes.)
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- 2007
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47. Education, Neoliberalism and the Consumer Citizen: After the Golden Age of Egalitarian Reform
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Doherty, Robert A.
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In this paper I attempt to explore the implications for education policy arising from aspects of Third Way political thought and its troubled relation to neoliberalism. In particular, the implications for equality arising from Third Way reforms to secondary education are considered. The limits of contestation that mark out the centre ground of UK politics have become increasingly consolidated around neoliberal ideas and principles. I briefly outline a "golden age" of egalitarian reform and its displacement by the emergence of neoliberalism. Neoliberal restructuring is implicated in the emergence of the market state, the establishment of the relation of the individual to the state as one of consumer citizen, the growth of individualism, and a likely increase in competition to fend off downward social mobility. The paper concludes that the future compass for reforms aimed at reducing educational inequality now looks increasingly restricted and narrowed. (Contains 10 notes.)
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- 2007
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48. Across the Great Divide. From a Welfare State to a New Market State: The Case of VET
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Ainley, Patrick
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This paper revisits the crucial period following the Arab oil boycott of 1973, when the welfare state in the UK finally collapsed along with the heavy industrial base upon which it rested. Unlike the post-war welfare-state "settlement", the new post-welfare market state was imposed by Margaret Thatcher's governments. It was marked for vocational education and training by the 1988 Education Reform Act and the 1992 Further and Higher Education Act. This legislation was part of what has been called "a succession of Acts of Parliament...[that] mark the most decisive break in British social policy since the period between 1944 and 1948". The paper revises and refines previous accounts to suggest that this outcome was not inevitable, nor is it sustainable, and that it is best comprehended as a new type of state formation.
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- 2007
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49. Doing Justice to Geography in the Secondary School: Deconstruction, Invention and the National Curriculum
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Winter, Christine
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The subject of geography is declining in popularity at secondary school level and recent developments following the "cultural turn" in Higher Education have had little impact in revitalising it. In this paper I explore the question: is there a problem with the school geography curriculum policy? After briefly sketching the history of the Geography National Curriculum policy (GNC), I focus on Caputo's (1997) commentary on Derrida and the idea of deconstruction and invention to explore the contemporary GNC policy text (1999) programme of study at Key Stage 3.
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- 2006
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50. A Genealogy of an Australian System of Comprehensive High Schools: The Contribution of Educational Progressivism to the One Best Form of Universal Secondary Education (1900-1940)
- Author
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Campbell, Craig and Sherington, Geoffrey
- Abstract
In New South Wales as for other Australian colonies, the achievement of mainly free, compulsory and secular public education systems in the 1870s was a cause of self- satisfaction and a belief that late nineteenth-century Australian public schools were among the best in the world. In this paper, the process by which this self-satisfaction was contested, and eventually turned to the reform of public education, is traced. The tendencies that led to the adoption of the comprehensive secondary school in New South Wales in the mid-twentieth century form the focus of the paper. Issues and events of importance include the critique of public education in New South Wales in 1901 by a professor at the University of Sydney followed by a Royal Commission (Knibbs and Turner) and the progressivism of Peter Board, the Director of Public Education in early twentieth-century New South Wales. His responsiveness to the New Education and the experience of his travels in Europe and North America combined in his efforts to open new free public high schools. The second part of the paper examines the proposals for the reform of secondary education in the context of the New Education Fellowship Conference of 1937. Proposals for progressive pedagogy and new and inclusive visions of secondary education were mainly ineffective as a result of the after-effects of the Great Depression, and the declaration of war in 1939. The frustratingly slow production of ideas and plans for progressive reform in secondary education that characterized the 1920s-1940s was overtaken by the social democratic and postwar reconstruction movements of the 1950s. In New South Wales, as for the United Kingdom, the main difficulty standing in the way of reform was the apparent incompatibility of two versions of progressive reform. One insisted that youth with different abilities and intelligences required different schools for the fulfilling of their potentials. The other argued that a common school was the way forward. This paper shows that the eventual decision to establish comprehensive high schools was very dependent on the debates of the previous half-century. The paper also discusses the character of the dominant form of progressivism as it was experienced in New South Wales. In the secondary area, "administrative" progressivism was far more influential than pedagogic reform. The paper concludes with an assessment of the importance of local and international influences on secondary school reform.
- Published
- 2006
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