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This research paper focuses on the adoption of multi‐perspective theory to study teachers' attitudes and intentions towards using intelligent mixed reality (MR) devices for classroom behaviour analysis. The research model integrates TRI (Technology Readiness Index), IDT (Innovation Diffusion Theory), ECM (Expectation Confirmation Theory) and TAM (Technology Acceptance Model) model. The variable of insecurity is considered to address the concerns regarding information security in the use of artificial intelligence in education. The study identifies that innovation and relative advantage significantly and positively influence teachers' attitudes towards using intelligent MR devices. PeoU (perceived ease of use), however, does not have a significant impact on attitudes, suggesting that teachers prioritize the benefits of enhancing teaching quality over the complexity of the devices. PU (perceived usefulness) emerges as a key variable for teachers' adoption of intelligent MR devices, prompting the need for attention from designers and manufacturers. Regression analysis reveals that gender does not influence the use of new technology, while teachers with more teaching experience and those working in remote areas express greater receptiveness towards utilizing new technology. The paper recognizes the potential of intelligent teaching devices to address educational challenges and promote equity in remote areas by providing auxiliary tools for teachers to improve teaching efficiency and quality. Teacher training and technical support are emphasized as crucial factors for effective use of artificial intelligence teaching devices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Interest in the study of computer technology in schools (often in the form of Computer Science subjects or coding initiatives) is seen to have undergone two waves of interest, one in the late 1970s/early 1980s and the other more recently since about 2010. Through a historical exploration of the rationales for the study of computer technology in schools in both the first wave and the second wave, this paper aimed to explore the various curriculum ideologies underpinning their justification. In doing so, the paper highlights the chameleon‐like nature of this change agenda in aligning with contemporary trends to advance the study of computer technology on the curriculum. The paper argues that current manifestations of the study of computer technology in schools are at odds with broader curriculum reform goals and international policies and raises questions about students' access to such knowledge. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, I discuss the gendered‐racialised interactional and contextual dynamics hindering the socialisation of ethnic minoritised women (EMW) within Belgian higher education. Based on in‐depth interviews, I develop the concept of 'socialisation climates' to explain the key aspects that determine EMW's socialisation process. Three socialisation climates are identified: integration, negotiation and interrogation. Findings show that insiders play a crucial role in hindering or facilitating EMW's socialisation. Developmental relationships are gendered‐racialised relations in which EMW's identity impacts supervisor and peer support. The departmental context in terms of hierarchy, an Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion culture, and team composition is relevant to their socialisation process. EMW are able to socialise rapidly only in a context that is (radically) inclusive which is still rare in academia. This paper informs higher education institutions to be aware of the gendered‐racialised climate and interactions that influence EMW's socialisation and increase the risk of pushing them out. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This systematic review, adhering to the PRISMA framework, investigated the utilisation of ChatGPT, a language model developed by OpenAI, throughout Kindergarten to 12th grade (K‐12) educational settings. The review synthesises findings from 13 selected papers, encompassing the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats (SWOT) analysis of ChatGPT's implementation in K‐12 education, implications for various stakeholders, and practical recommendations. It is highlighted that ChatGPT could empower educators through curriculum, lesson planning, materials generation, differentiation, and optimising student learning experience through personalised learning. However, concerns regarding academic integrity and output quality must be addressed. The paper provides pedagogical recommendations and ethical considerations to utilise ChatGPT better. It contributes to the ongoing discourse about AI, particularly ChatGPT's role in K‐12 education, further inspiring future research and educational practices and facilitating the effective integration of ChatGPT into K‐12 educational settings where collaboration arises as a key role, in particular under the approach of co‐design for learning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents ethnographic work conducted to investigate how notions of culinary capital have the potential to shape the everyday experiences of children during mealtime in school. Children's early experiences with mealtimes and food are critical determinants for eating behaviour over the life course. The paper presents an account of conceptual debates based on longstanding ethnographic work on school food with a particular focus on a case study of Maple Field Academy to frame the research. Research methods used included semi‐structured interviews, fieldnotes and photographs with the aim of capturing a rich picture of the school. This paper introduces Laird's sensory theory to frame the discussion. This research calls for the need to recognise the social good that can be realised from participating in mealtimes and school is a microcosm of society, which means it can function as a driver for social change. The paper calls for more engagement with social theorising on studies which focus on researching food in school. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In an age of innovation and digitalisation, critical thinking has become one of the most valued skills in the labour market. This paper shows how teachers can empower students to develop their students' critical thinking. After recalling why critical thinking matters for democracy and the economy, a definition of critical thinking is outlined. Next, a demonstration is given of how the concept critical thinking can be translated and simplified using teacher‐friendly rubrics that can support the design or redesign of lesson plans, teacher observations and formative assessment—as well as standardised assessments. In conclusion, the paper argues that critical thinking should be mainstreamed in all subjects in school curricula, and that it leads to deeper understanding of subject matter content. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The launch of a Computer Science curriculum specification in upper secondary schools in Ireland in 2018 was a landmark and a historic development in Irish education. Addressing the historical policy decisions adopted towards establishing the specification, this paper presents an analysis of developments from the 1970s as revealed in key policies and other documents. Positioning the policy change within the context of influences, context of policy text production and within the context of practices, the paper presents an overview of the Irish Computer Science specification. Alongside the background to the evolution in computer science education over the period, the article takes into account the national and cultural contexts and narrates the journey travelled to arrive at this pivotal position. Developments in a global context are presented in comparison with curricula in other countries and some similarities and differences identified. The article uncovers consequences of the specification for the national curriculum, key skills integration and computer science teacher preparation. The article provides an important analysis of the policy trajectory of computer science in Ireland based on a visibly relevant corpus of documents tracing the different stages of this policy and comparing it to similar experiences implemented in other European countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Reflexive commitments tend to be lacking, particularly from the perspective of early career scholars. This is particularly true in relation to published research, but evident in doctoral studies exploring teachers work. Using principles of phenomenological reflexivity, this methodological paper explores the critical incidents that have come to shape a qualitative, ethnographical case study before entering the field. Key findings highlight four implications for novice researchers: an engagement with critical independent reflection, critical friendship, skills development through academic modules and reflexive reading, and communities of practice. The paper calls for continued attention to the methodological framing of research, particularly during and after entering the field. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACT The COVID‐19 pandemic has led to a shift towards online and blended learning; however, most students and faculty members still report more challenges in online courses regarding social interaction and engagement. This paper aimed to design an interactive blended course following Merrills' first principles of instruction model to develop students' social and emotional learning skills and engagement in higher education. A mixed‐method design, including questionnaires and interviews, was used with a sample population which consisted of 90 graduate students and divided into two groups, an experimental and a control group. The results showed that there were statistically significant differences between the experimental and control groups in‐terms of social–emotional learning skills and students' engagement due to the high perception of the experimental group. The findings also revealed that the most dominant social–emotional learning skills that appeared to be supported by applying these strategies from the students' point of view were self‐awareness and social awareness. The study also found that instructor presence, effective course design and appropriate use of technology significantly influenced students' engagement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACT This paper analyses the current situation of English as a foreign language (EFL) writing in basic education in mainland China with a focus on the English curriculum standards, instruction and assessment. The National English Curriculum Standards launched by China's Ministry of Education ratified a general framework for EFL writing instruction and assessment in schools while the municipal curriculum guides, such as the one of Shanghai, include more specific writing performance descriptors. Comparisons of EFL curricula with other countries and regions suggest diverse examples and updated resources be added to China's current curriculum standards to improve feasibility and modernity. Moreover, there are discrepancies between the Curriculum Standards and the implementation in the classroom. Sociocultural factors, such as teachers' beliefs, instructional materials and the exam culture, have led to the tension between new pedagogies advocated in the Curriculum Standards and conventional instructional practices. This study further explores the writing section in the large‐scale high‐stake exams, that is, Zhongkao and Gaokao, which have long exerted strong influence on teachers' instruction and assessment practices. Regularising professional training in writing instruction and improving teachers' assessment literacy are thus suggested. Local practitioners' attempts to integrate the process approach into traditional teaching methods and scholars' efforts to develop the writing scales for assessment are discussed to offer policy and pedagogical implications for other education contexts that are faced with similar challenges. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The economic impact of resource investments into higher education has been the focus of considerable research in recent years. Many contributions analyse the strength of the connection between economic development and higher education at the local level and the conditions which make certain systems more effective and efficient than others. In this paper, we provide a systematic bibliometric review of the available literature on the subject, various dimensions of this complex issue, constructing and analysing a map of variables used by selected researchers in the field. A summary of knowledge gaps, research limitations, topics explored and applied methods is provided to envisage future research in this field. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Automatic essay scoring (AES) is an essential educational application in natural language processing. This automated process will alleviate the burden by increasing the reliability and consistency of the assessment. With the advances in text embedding libraries and neural network models, AES systems achieved good results in terms of accuracy. However, the actual goals still need to be attained, like embedding essays into vectors with cohesion and coherence, and providing student feedback is still challenging. In this paper, we proposed coherence‐based embedding of an essay into vectors using sentence‐Bidirectional Encoder Representation for Transformers. We trained these vectors on Long short‐term memory and bidirectional long short‐term memory to capture sentence connectivity with other sentences' semantics. We used two datasets: standard ASAP Kaggle and a domain‐specific dataset with almost 2500 responses from 650 students. Our model performed well on both datasets, with an average quadratic weighted kappa score of 0.76. Furthermore, we achieved good results compared to other prescribed models, and we also tested our model on adversarial responses of both datasets and observed decent outcomes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Whereas hackathons are widespread within and outside academia and have been argued to be a valid pedagogical method for teaching interdisciplinarity, no detailed frameworks or methods are available for conceptualizing and organizing educational hackathons, i.e., hackathons dedicated to best achieving pedagogic objectives. This paper is dedicated to introducing EDUCational Hackathons for learning how to solve Interdisciplinary Challenges (EDUCHIC) through: (1) defining the fundamental principles for framing an activity as an EDUCHIC, integrating principles from pedagogical methods, hackathon organization, and interdisciplinarity processes; (2) describing general properties that EDUCHIC possess as a consequence of the interaction of the fundamental principles; (3) developing operational guidelines for streamlining the practical organization of EDUCHIC, including an exhaustive end‐to‐end process covering all the steps for organizing EDUCHIC and practical frames for carrying the key decisions to be made in this process; and (4) a demonstration of these guidelines through illustrating their application for organizing a concrete EDUCHIC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper aims to explore the perception and usage of epicene pronouns in English among Chinese EFL teachers, as gender fair language becomes increasingly important for promoting inclusion, respect for identity and expression. This study employed a survey of 284 EFL teachers along with a follow‐up written task to assess their views and actual use of epicene pronouns. The results indicate that while English teachers in China are familiar with the increase of they as an epicene pronoun, the use of he or she is their preferred choice in the survey, with generic he being more common in the written task. The study further reveals that the selection of the epicene pronoun is influenced by factors such as the antecedent type, social gender and the teachers' socio‐cultural background. Promoting gender‐fair language in L2 English teaching in China is crucial. Efforts are needed to increase awareness and usage of gender‐neutral language among Chinese English teachers, emphasizing the importance of incorporating actual language use and adapting to grammatical changes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The academic dropout of higher education students represents one of the most significant challenges that university institutions have to face today. This research analysed the university academic trajectory of students who dropped out of university for good. The aim of this paper is to examine in depth the factors that influence the idea of the construction of academic dropout and its relationship with the difficulties of adaptation to the university training system. A qualitative study was carried out in which the interview technique was applied to n = 34 dropout students belonging to three Spanish autonomous communities. The results made it possible to identify and examine students' difficulties in adapting to university studies in greater depth. The interviews revealed contextual and emotional details that contributed to dropout, such as personal and professional challenges and a lack of emotional support. The findings lead to the need to approach the issue from a holistic viewpoint in order to address the different reasons behind university dropouts. This broad view of the academic trajectories of university students who drop out is a benchmark for strategies to improve student retention and success in higher education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Irish higher education sector is undergoing transformation as many Institutes of Technology (IoTs) become Technology Universities (TUs). This paper aims to explore lecturer identity in higher education in the context of recent contract structure recommendations by the Organisation for Economic Co‐operation and Development (OECD) for lecturers in the emerging TU sector. This study is of significant relevance as the OECD recommendations are being used to inform future lecturer contracts. First, theoretical perspectives on identity development are explored, focussing on teacher identity, professionality, professionalism and ideal online teacher identity. Using this theoretical framework, lecturer identity as presented by TU lecturers of education in their public, online biographies is deconstructed. Qualitative, desk‐based analysis of these biographies explores (i) lecturers' imagined audience for their online identity; (ii) projected, ideal lecturer identity, including representations of professionality; and (iii) teaching and research values. By aligning lecturer identity portraits to proposed OECD contract structures, the discussion considers how well‐positioned TU lecturers are to changes across the IoT/TU sector nationally and implications for the sector. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Leadership from a distributed pedagogical perspective involves engaging multiple professionals in implementing shared responsibilities. In educational organizations, leadership responsibility structures have changed, with researchers advancing a more decentralized leadership system for sustainable pedagogical improvement. These global changes in education systems have informed the demand for sustainable quality teaching, the desire for 21st‐century learning skills, and rapid progress in education. As a result, traditional individual ‘heroic leadership’ is no longer tenable in any learning environment that intends to achieve quality pedagogical outcomes. Therefore, this narrative review paper aims to examine the essence of distributing pedagogical leadership responsibilities among multiple professionals to understand how the concept is perceived in diverse educational contexts and settings. This study reviewed relevant empirical research studies conducted to investigate the concept of distributed pedagogical leadership in Finland, Norway and Singapore. The findings revealed some gaps that informed our understanding of the concept and recommended further research studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper focuses on individual responses to education in crisis, with the strategies of students contextualised and examined within a wider multi‐crisis reality. Offering a conceptual framework of social solvation, the proposed model explains how failures in the education system at the macro (state) and meso (institutional) levels translate into young people's behaviours at the individual (micro) level. Based on the analysis of 26 in‐depth interviews with young students, we identify and discuss three main micro‐rational strategies that the interviewees relied upon to navigate their learning during the pandemic: (1) casualisation (2) customisation and (3) contempt towards the broader system. We argue that the already weak Polish education system was further impaired by the COVID‐19 crisis. In response to growing social and educational risks, young people forge and employ highly individualised strategies. As micro‐rational social actions essentially bypass the unwieldy education system in a variety of ways, they have vital implications for educational futures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigates the factors driving the financial literacy of adult population in Spain using a regression count model (specifically the latent class Poisson model). The paper pays special attention to the effect of certain financial attitudes and financial personality traits (such as financial myopia, risk aversion, attitude to financial planning and self‐perception of financial vulnerability) upon financial literacy. The results demonstrate a positive association between the financial skills, the sociodemographic characteristics and the attitudes and personality traits of individuals regarding finances. Furthermore, the analysis permits the conclusion that the effects of the financial attitudes analysed in the study vary among the different population groups, which suggests the need to adapt financial literacy promotional programs to the characteristics of the target group. Findings have implications for financial educators, practitioners and policymakers to help them recognize the proper financial program to be delivered on the basis of the FL levels and the sociodemographic composition of the individuals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Under the pressure of globalisation, both China and Europe have active strategies to internationalise their higher education systems. This paper explores the cultural and institutional constraints of these strategies in both territories, analysing their impact on the cooperation and competition among higher education institutions. The article focuses on the historical and current practices of internationalisation in Europe and China, the strategic goals underlying these practices, and the implications of internationalisation strategies in constraining the choices and actions of academic leaders in Chinese and European higher education institutions. This article contributes to the literature on Chinese and European cooperation in higher education by analysing the points of conflict and opportunities for growth. Despite differences (e.g., centralised vs. decentralised systems, top‐down vs. bottom‐up decision‐making processes, and the roles of leadership in the governance of higher education institutions), there is a common interest in promoting economic competitiveness, developing a knowledge‐based society, advancing research, attracting and retaining talent, and reducing regional inequalities. The paper concludes that cooperation is possible in specific areas in which neither China nor Europe can succeed alone with the same impact that would be possible with cooperation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

From the perspective of historical institutionalism, based on several critical junctures of the past half‐century in China, this paper divides over 40‐year history of China's teacher certification institution into four stages and elaborates on mechanisms and processes of critical junctures that impact even determine teacher certification institution reforms. The features of China's teacher certification institution are as follows: Its examination system is increasingly perfect; its direct accreditation depends more on graduates' quality rather than major categories; its history is a seesaw effect history between pedagogic and academic orientation of teacher education; teacher certification institution and normal specialty students' quality is the bottom line of teacher workforce performance under the open teacher education system; and the intersection between pedagogic and academic orientation of teacher education leads to the standardization and professionalization of teacher education in all respects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Biomedical engineering is critical in improving people's lives through innovative solutions to biological and medical challenges. In the face of today's rapidly evolving climate, the field of biomedical engineering encounters numerous pressures that demand up‐to‐date skills and competencies. The (re‐)development of curricula aligning with industry and societal needs, students' expectations, and academics' expertise while outlining graduates' knowledge (that) and abilities (how) becomes indispensable despite the challenges and complexities presented by conflicting priorities, tight timelines, and scarce resources. This paper presents a qualitative study conducted by a biomedical engineering graduate school at an Australian university. The study engaged four key stakeholders—industry partners, recent graduates, current academics, and students—in a self‐auditing process of an existing biomedical engineering curriculum. This exercise aimed to identify priorities for the future development of the curriculum. The findings reveal the perspectives from the four stakeholder groups, with industry partners and recent graduates focusing on technical and transferable skills and current students and academic staff advocating for breadth and a more practice‐oriented curriculum, where transdisciplinarity should inform biomedical engineering education. We propose that this evidence‐based and bottom‐up approach with multiple stakeholders holds potential implications for fields beyond biomedical engineering education. It provides valuable guidance to educational institutions seeking to (re‐)develop their curricula to align with evolving industry and society demands. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the digital age, Information and Communications Technology (ICT) has enabled learning to happen everywhere, leading to a shift of schooling to the home field and strengthening parents' educational responsibilities. Meanwhile, it may also cause the digital divide and digital reproduction, thereby exacerbating educational inequality. Against this backdrop, this study focused on parental digital involvement in online learning and introduced an emerging concept, digital capital, to understand the differences in parental involvement across socio‐economic backgrounds at the three levels of the digital divide. Drawing from the analysis of 90 Chinese parents' self‐narrated data, this paper identified four types of parental digital involvement according to parents' digital competence and ICT acceptance, and the conversion processes of different forms of capital underlying parental digital involvement were also clarified. The findings from this study expanded the theoretical understanding of inherited cultural capital and social reproduction in online learning in the context of educational digitization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Drawing upon contemporary research, this paper examines whether there is a relationship of STEM (science, technology, engineering and maths) bachelor and master graduates to the gender pay gap (GPG) in the 27 EU Member states in 2013–2020 using a novel cross‐sectional data set based on the 2013 International Standard Classification of Education (ISCED). International panel data were analysed with the dynamic modelling fixed effects method and compared with the results received from the cross‐sectional analysis executed with the help of Bayesian model averaging methods. Our findings suggest that STEM education plays a significant role in forming the GPG. We can see a negative, robust and statistically significant effect of bachelor‐ and master‐level female STEM graduates on the GPG and a positive statistically significant effect of bachelor‐ and master‐level male STEM graduates on the GPG. The permanently lower women‐to‐men ratio in STEM education and those employed in high‐end sectors of science and technology can be one of the drivers of the persistent GPG in developed countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mobile learning (M‐learning), ChatGPT and social media are integral to university education, improving accessibility, personalization and interactive engagement in the learning process. This paper aimed to investigate the role of M‐learning, ChatGPT and social media in university students' academic performance. It was a cross‐sectional quantitative investigation, and data were collected from 600 university students through a self‐developed questionnaire having four subscales (M‐learning, ChatGPT, social media and academic performance). Simple linear regression and process macro were deployed to test study hypotheses. The analysis revealed that M‐learning is a significant contributor to students' academic performance at the university level (β =.460, t(598) = 12.663, p <.001). Social media were found to be significantly mediating the relationship between M‐learning and academic performance with coefficient B =.267, SE =.038, t(597) = 7.08, p <.001, 95% CI [0.193, 0.341]. ChatGPT was significantly contributing to academic performance (B =.288, t(596) = 2.50, p =.013), but the interaction term had an insignificant effect on the relationship between M‐learning and academic performance (β =.292, t(596) = −0.43, p =.668). The study suggests that M‐learning can improve students' performance. The influence of social media and the non‐moderating role of ChatGPT indicate the need for strategic integration of these tools to enhance university students' outcomes. It is recommended that university students should judiciously use social media to enhance M‐learning. In contrast, universities should foster this integration to achieve educational aims and explore how AI tools like ChatGPT can be optimally deployed to improve learning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Drawing on semi‐structured in‐depth interviews with 15 Chinese queer international students from New Zealand's tertiary institutions, this paper explores their motivations to pursue higher education transnationally and unpacks the interconnected power structures underpinning their experiences. We find that despite the imagination and initial perception of New Zealand as one of the most queer‐friendly higher education destinations, Chinese queer international students are confronted by the 'ethnic closet'—a heteronormative power structure simultaneously disciplining racial/ethnic and sexual identities. The interplay between these two key aspects of students' identity has meant that Chinese queer international students, as migrants who occupy disadvantaged positions in local racial power relations, frequently experience heteronormative microaggressions on campus. These students' ethnic identity, which lies in the heart of their social support system, has also become a hindrance in their queer identity development. Our findings challenge the perceived dichotomy between China as homophobic and 'the West' as queer‐friendly, and reveal the need for a more nuanced understanding of queer international students' experiences, in order to better support them in a higher education setting. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Implicit prejudice can be simply understood as any negative feelings or beliefs people hold towards a particular outgroup without being aware of it. One such form is microaggression, which can be defined as everyday verbal or nonverbal subtle, unconscious putdowns, slights, or negative remarks towards members of an outgroup. One of the most common and harmful forms is gender‐based microaggression. Gender microaggression is defined as subtle, unconscious, everyday putdowns, slights, remarks, or insults, whether intentional or unintentional, directed at a particular gender, notably women. Despite a plethora of literature and research on gender microaggression, the focus has predominantly been on understanding microaggressions faced by women in various domains, largely neglecting the experiences of men as victims of microaggression. One such overlooked experience is that of Afghan male students studying in universities in Delhi. Each year, thousands of students from Afghanistan travel to Delhi to pursue higher education, often unaware of the prejudices they may encounter due to associations with terms like 'terrorism' or 'terrorist.' Therefore, this paper aims to understand and study the microaggression faced by Afghan male students by employing the Gender Implicit Association Test on a sample of 103 Indian students studying in universities in Delhi, selected using a snowball sampling technique. This study adapts and modifies the Weapon‐based Implicit Association Test. The goal is to uncover the implicit biases of Indian students towards Afghan male students by examining the association (reaction time) between images of weapons and harmless objects, in conjunction with adjectives related to Afghan males and Afghan females. In other words, words or images that are congruent in our minds should result in shorter reaction times and fewer errors compared to words and images that are incongruent. The results indicate that Indian students were quicker in associating weapon images with Afghan male adjectives (D = −0.64) compared to Afghan female adjectives (D = 0.89). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite steady investment to improve early childhood progammes in recent years, many Jamaican early childhood institutions are ill‐prepared or unable to adequately meet the developmental needs of children for a number of reasons. Such schools are often labelled as failing or low quality. While teachers and schools are often blamed for this, an overlooked consideration in all this however is the preparedness of the existing systems, structures and policies to support the Early Childhood sector to carry out its function. [Corrections made on 30 April 2024, after first online publication: In the preceding sentence, 'systems and policies' has been corrected to 'systems, structures and policies' and 'their function' has been corrected to 'its function' in this version.] This article examines system quality in Early Childhood Care and Education and the implications for policy. System quality is an important yet often overlooked aspect of education. Four aspects of system quality were examined in this paper; the forms and dimensions of ECCE, the financing of ECCE and Laws and Regulations governing the system and current priorities relevant to ECCE. The gaps and strengths in the system are examined as well as implications of these on Early Childhood Care and Education policies are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Participatory design is a well‐known approach that involves stakeholders in designing technologies and other innovations. In education, participatory design is especially advocated for involving students with special needs. However, less attention has been paid to how participatory design can help in collaborations with teachers. This paper presents a systematic literature review of participatory design studies conducted between 2007 and 2017 that involved teachers. A comprehensive compilation of studies was collected from fourteen search engines and databases. Participatory design studies that involved teachers were analysed, organised and synthesised to produce an overview of the studies. The studies were organised into three thematic categories by research topics: (1) environments, (2) practices, and (3) technologies. Studies focusing on environments included for example teacher involvement in designing physical buildings and technologies that were integrated into the environment. Studies focusing on practices considered professional communities, instructional planning, and professional development programmes. Studies focusing on technologies included for example teacher involvement in designing assessment and monitoring tools, educational games, learning and teaching applications, security and safety technologies, and technology for special needs. This systematic literature review provides a solid starting point for future participatory design research involving teachers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents a descriptive analysis of the impact of tuition fee increases in England on the full‐degree mobility of undergraduate students from the European Union. First, we investigated whether the increase in tuition fees reduced the number of EU students in English higher education institutions. Our analysis shows that, on average, English universities suffered a sudden drop in EU enrolments in 2012/13 but recovered and then expanded their pre‐2012 enrolment levels in subsequent academic years. We observe that those English universities regarded as less prestigious experienced the sharpest decline and took longer to recover their pre‐2012 numbers. Second, we examined how changes in enrolment are associated with EU countries' macro‐level characteristics, using the push‐pull model framework. While there was a significant decrease in the number of students from Northern and Western European countries attending English universities after 2012, the tuition fee increase did not impact the number of students coming from Southern Europe. We found an association between EU countries' youth employment rates and higher education system characteristics with changes in enrolment in English universities. By examining the effect of changes in the tuition fee policy on international student mobility, our research provides new evidence on how tuition fee policies might change the behaviour of students. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

After a long period of relative neglect, the mental well‐being and the mental health of researchers and employees in academia are increasingly entering the limelight. The growing body of evidence suggests that a high number of doctoral researchers work under elevated levels of stress and frustration, and that this has a significant impact not only on their personal health and research output, but also on their future career development. In this paper, therefore, we first discuss what a dystopian and a utopian learning journey of early career researchers may look like from a well‐being perspective. Subsequently, and based on extensive dialogues with more than 250 researchers and professionals active in the researcher mental health domain, we highlight a number of key focal points that both early career researchers, their supervisors, and institutions alike should consider when it comes to planning and delivering mental health oriented educational activities for doctoral researchers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In today's age of knowledge and technology, societies are changing fast, on both macro and micro levels. Hardly anyone could have predicted several years ago such an acceleration of change and its impact on society, and in particular, on higher education. In Europe as well as globally, higher education has been undergoing many changes for more than two decades. In many countries, the number of higher education institutions has increased, mass education has replaced more elite systems, universities have adopted different agenda, and research has become more competitive. In this new context, doctoral education has also needed to be redefined in order to better respond to societal and academic challenges. Doctoral education—a crucial segment of higher education and the main link between the European Higher Education Area and the European Research Area—has been receiving continuous attention for more than 15 years. This paper provides an overall view on changes in doctoral education in Europe, the background of this change process, and the context that led to these major changes. The main analysis will be presented from a European academic context perspective, but it will also reflect a global perspective. It will provide an analysis of all the milestones and consider the relevant policies and recommendations on the supranational level and their reflection on the national level. While taking the reader on a 15‐year journey of the doctoral education system in Europe, a brief look to the future of doctoral education will be sketched as well. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A unique model of government and civil society cooperation has emerged in Ukraine since the Revolution of Dignity in 2014 and grew even more important amid the full‐scale invasion of Russia. Recent reforms and teacher professional development in Ukraine build on this model that promotes addressing national‐level challenges in equitable partnerships between government and civil society organisations (CSOs). This paper considers examples and results of their cooperation and draws on: (1) experiences in teacher education—specifically, from the EdWay national platform and the SEE Learning programme, both implemented by EdCamp Ukraine NGO (EdCamp); (2) national sociological studies—specifically, the 2018 study Teach and Learn, and the 2021 Feasibility Study on Opportunities for Social and Emotional Learning in Ukraine; (3) and data from the 2022 case study SEE Learning in Ukraine Through Teachers' Eyes: Before, During, and After the War. Experiences and study data demonstrate the need to support Ukrainian teachers in developing social and emotional skills both for self‐help and for students. These findings align with the requirements of the current New Ukrainian School reform. The authors discuss the potential education CSOs possess in addressing teacher needs for developing emotional and ethical competence and corresponding soft skills. It may be predicted that government and civil sector collaboration will continue to play an important role in the development of education in Ukraine. These expectations are supported by Ukraine's involvement in the 2023 OECD Survey on Social and Emotional Skills where EdCamp is the designated national research centre in Ukraine. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Student borrowing is a major higher education public policy issue, with students in both England and the United States increasingly relying on loans to finance postsecondary education. Our paper examines prospective higher education students' attitudes towards debt in England and the United States. It exploits a unique dataset which allows us to compare students' responses to similar surveys conducted in both countries during the same time period. Our study is the first of its kind to explore how students' borrowing attitudes differ across the two countries. It confirms widespread loan aversion among prospective higher education students in both countries. But students in the United States are more debt averse than their peers in England. These debt averse attitudes also predict lower intentions to pursue higher education, potentially exacerbating existing inequalities in access. We consider how these attitudes to borrowing are likely shaped by each country's distinctive student loan system. We conclude that the design of loans matters. England's income‐contingent loan repayments, in contrast to North America's mortgage style repayments, make borrowing less risky and reduce the impact of loan aversion on participation decisions, while borrowing is more common, and the system less complicated, in England. Thus, there are lessons for other countries considering introducing student loans or reforming their provision. We contribute to the extant literature on the determinants of, and socioeconomic differences in, higher education participation and the overlooked role of student debt aversion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article considers the challenges of using artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) to assist high‐stakes standardised assessment. It focuses on the detrimental effect that even state‐of‐the‐art AI and ML systems could have on the validity of national exams of secondary education, and how lower validity would negatively affect trust in the system. To reach this conclusion, three unresolved issues in AI (unreliability, low explainability and bias) are addressed, to show how each of them would compromise the interpretations and uses of exam results (i.e., exam validity). Furthermore, the article relates validity to trust, and specifically to the ABI+ model of trust. Evidence gathered as part of exam validation supports each of the four trust‐enabling components of the ABI+ model (ability, benevolence, integrity and predictability). It is argued, therefore, that the three AI barriers to exam validity limit the extent to which an AI‐assisted exam system could be trusted. The article suggests that addressing the issues of AI unreliability, low explainability and bias should be sufficient to put AI‐assisted exams on par with traditional ones, but might not go as far as fully reassure the public. To achieve this, it is argued that changes to the quality assurance mechanisms of the exam system will be required. This may involve, for example, integrating principled AI frameworks in assessment policy and regulation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Drawing on data from the 2016 National Assessment of Collegiate Capacity in China, the study on which this article reports explored the value‐added effects of critical thinking capacity in higher education. Specifically, the analysis was developed using the difference in residuals model based on the Hierarchical Linear Modelling approach. The results show that, first, critical thinking capacity is malleable and can be improved through undergraduate education. Second, the results demonstrate that the value‐added effects of undergraduate education on college students' critical thinking capacity are heterogeneous. Only half of the value‐added effects achieved in higher education in China were positive. Third, the size of value‐added effects was not fully aligned with the level of the institutions. High‐ranking universities did not always perform well in achieving high value‐added effects on critical thinking capacity. This study analyses the reasons why some universities in China face insurmountable challenges in efforts to improve college students' critical thinking capacity. Challenges are highlighted from multiple perspectives. Corresponding improvement strategies are proposed in the concluding discussion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The importance of students' learning to learn competence for academic achievement, as well as their well‐being at school and in life, is increasingly emphasised by educators and policy makers in national curricula and educational strategies. In an uncertain and complex world, learners need to become autonomous, be able to analyse challenges and apply knowledge in different contexts, address complex tasks, and create new knowledge. This article explores concepts and approaches to the development of students' learning to learn competence in the context of education in Estonia. First, the conceptualisation, model and dimensions of learning to learn competence are described and related challenges for teachers are analysed. Second, an overview of Estonian teachers' current practices, beliefs, knowledge, skills and occupational standards relevant to students' learning to learn competence is provided. We discuss how Estonian teacher education policy may enhance or inhibit the work of teachers when supporting students to develop learning to learn competence. Future directions for teacher educators and how to prepare teachers to support the development of students' learning to learn competence are suggested. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An important goal of science education is promoting scientific literacy—the competence to interact with science as laypeople to solve problems and make decisions in their personal and community lives. This is made more challenging in an age of increasing science denialism. In this article, we discuss how to design learning environments for science education that can help students attain scientific literacy. We argue that science curricula should encompass lessons with two distinguishable foci. One focus engages students in understanding the reliability of science. The second focus engages students as laypeople interacting with science in the public sphere. We discuss these two curricular foci, presenting examples from our own work on designing and implementing instruction with the first focus. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An introduction is presented in which the editor discusses articles in the issue on topics including "Assessing and developing critical-thinking skills in higher education", and "Fostering and assessing student critical thinking: From theory to teaching practice".

The New Zealand Ministry of Education has included an increase in the expectations of critical thinking for secondary students across curricula. However, New Zealand has a history of inequitable opportunities for minority students to learn critical thinking. This article presents a framework designed for adolescent learners to make critical thinking equitable and accessible through valuing student experiences or Street Smarts. A mixed methods study trialled the critical thinking talk model Street Smarts. There were 33 teacher participants and 824 student participants (average age 15 years). Students identified ethnically as New Zealand European (46.1%), 17.1% as Asian, 10.6% as Pasifika, 5.2% as Māori, and 4.3% as other; and as undisclosed ethnicity (16.7%). Descriptive statistics of all the critical thinking indicators showed that Providing a statement of evidence was the most frequently observed indicator in both 2018 and 2019, followed by Building points and Uptake questions. The deeper cognitive features of High‐level questioning, Recognising power structures in society and developing Situated awareness were observed in classes with high academic ability and far less so in several classes of mixed academic ability and low academic ability. However, where teachers had allowed the opportunity for students identified in the low academic ability group to share their stories and experiences of the controversy, these students demonstrated deeper cognitive features in their discussions. We conclude that more time and opportunity should be given to adolescent students, particularly minority students and students in low ability classes, to share their narratives and stories before discussing controversial topics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The role of universities as the engines of knowledge‐based economies drives global internationalisation of higher education. This contributes to a competitive environment where higher education rankings indicate market value. Even though rankings are influential and are used a lot, ranking systems have been heavily critiqued. One of the problems is that there are few if any external checks on how rankings are created. The purpose of the study on which this article reports was to evaluate ranking systems. Within the scope of the study, we have sought to reveal to what extent current ranking systems comply with the Berlin Principles—prepared to create certain rules for rankings, and to ensure that rankings represent quality. A document analysis of publicly available documents online was carried out together with a review of printed and electronic publications on ranking systems. An evaluation form was prepared and used in this study for field experts to fill in. Findings show that ranking systems comply with the Berlin Principles in terms of methodology, transparency, and acceptability at a level that ranges from moderate to low. Overall, rankings do not consider differences in higher education and are not transparent about the processes by which rankings are developed. Rankings should for this reason be interpreted carefully and methodological weaknesses of rankings that can lead to false inferences should be recognised. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The expansion of higher education resulted in a growing interest in post‐graduation labour market outcomes. Two conflicting narratives are present in the debate. The first focuses on the shortage of skills and the need for further expansion of the sector and seems to pertain mostly to science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). The second revolves around over‐education and mismatch leading to graduate unemployment or underemployment. Such concerns pertain especially to humanities and social sciences. However, in this article, we argue that the STEM versus non‐STEM opposition on which this debate is premised is not adequate for analysing post‐graduation labour market outcomes. We leverage a unique administrative dataset comprising monthly records on the labour market status of the entire population of recent Polish university graduates (N = 161,323) to demonstrate the heterogeneity of the STEM category in terms of labour market outcomes and the limited predictive value of the field of study for those outcomes. We argue that the category is too broad and internally diverse to be used as an overarching category, especially in research meant to inform policymaking. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article analyses the uses and representations of the term "critical thinking" in the social science literature, based on a qualitative content analysis of titles, abstracts and keywords retrieved from the SCOPUS database for Germany, France and Russia over the last two decades. Our analysis focuses on how the use of the term "critical thinking" has increased over time, in which contexts the term is used and in which part of article texts it is used. Our findings are counterintuitive on several levels. First, the term "critical thinking" is seldom used in a pluri‐disciplinary context. More commonly, it is used within specific discourses—notably education. Second, we found that it is mainly used instrumentally, rather than analytically. Third, most of the articles that use the term do not engage in actual critical analysis. There are also important geographic variation in the use of the term. In articles from Germany and Russia the term is used in similar ways—and differently in France. These nuances are difficult to analyse however, due to the different topics addressed, as well as author preferences. The use of the term "critical thinking" is diverse; indeed, at times weak and paradoxical. Finally, we discuss how editorial policy in academic journals possibly influences the discourse on critical thinking. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Schools play a crucial role in preparing students for a technology‐driven world. Although schools incorporate technology for teaching and learning in promising ways, reviewing their organisational strategies would enhance their digital capacity—namely, the effective integration of technology in teaching and learning practices. This article presents insights for improving schools' digital capacity provided by school leaders, teachers, and students from fourteen European countries, through open‐ended questions on the SELFIE online tool for collective reflection. This article presents the thematic analysis conducted on 5247 excerpts collected through SELFIE questionnaires, referring to participants' perceptions of their schools' digital infrastructure, the usefulness of technology for teaching and learning, and the perceived need to make the most of technology. Findings align with international studies, which confirm that schools' digital infrastructure still needs improving, while teachers need more training on embedding technology in their teaching practices. Findings also reveal differences in school leaders, teachers, and students' viewpoints and experiences on technology use in their schools. Comparing viewpoints and experiences regarding a school's digital capacity by using a comprehensive and structured process of collective reflection, the SELFIE tool is unique within the field and can offer insights to school communities, education policymakers and researchers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This scoping review presents the historical, social, and international influences that shaped the gradual move from segregated to inclusive education for all children in the Czech Republic. The introduction of the 2016 amendment to the Education Act marked a decisive paradigm shift in education policy, which formed the legal basis for services and support measures to be made available for all children with special needs in local mainstream schools. We analysed Czech language and English language peer‐reviewed specialist literature to see how these changes have been reflected in current education research. The eighteen studies reviewed provide a complex picture of facilitators and barriers at the level of inclusive culture, policy and practice. Even though progress towards inclusive education in the Czech Republic has been notable, there are still systemic and attitudinal barriers to the education of all children. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the concept of inclusive education, the adjective inclusive stands for a universal vision for education for all students. It stands for the mobilisation of various resources in the field of education, for achieving UNESCO's Education For All agenda. Inclusive education aims to combat discrimination and give meaning to difference; that is to say, to the education of students with disabilities and students with special needs. It must be understood and oriented within the framework of the national education strategy. This article presents an analytical study on the system of itinerant teachers initiated in North Togo by the non‐governmental organisation Humanity & Inclusion. A practical and inclusive pedagogy project is described as an example of the implementation of inclusive education practices in Togo. Inclusive education is not an immutable concept and does not have a single method of implementation applicable to all countries and to all situations of need. This article reflects on the impact of inclusive education as a pedagogy, to contribute to a continued development of practices for the academic and social inclusion of children with disabilities. Specifically, different actors and interventions in the establishment of inclusive education practices in Togo are identified. Necessary and adequate means for the continued development of national inclusive education policies in Togo are proposed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The implementation of inclusive practices in mainstream education remains particularly difficult in the French context and is influenced by various factors including the types of disability labels, and the type of assessment practices that are used. Indeed, how student disability is labelled could impact teacher attitudes by notably disfavouring students labelled with autism. Moreover, normative assessment is strongly linked with selection at schools—a function that works against teacher attitudes towards inclusive education. This article reports on a study in which we examined teacher intentions to use materials accommodated to special educational needs students, as a function of special needs labelling. Specifically, this refers to the use of labels for either a disability or special educational need, in connection to tasks associated with learning or assessment. The results of our study revealed that, for both types of labels, the intentions to use accommodated materials are lower when teachers are asked to assess student competence than when prompted to teach this competence. These findings are discussed with consideration to the incompatibility between selection in schools—which is aligned with the principle of meritocracy—and efforts to promote inclusive education practices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The increased diversity and autonomy of schools calls for a more professional approach to school governance. In response, attention has been directed to the structure of school boards in the Netherlands. However, previous research indicates that the effectiveness of governance is not so much about structure as it is about behaviour. Conflict, in particular, appears to be an important underexposed factor in the effective behaviour of school boards. In a longitudinal research design, a survey using Likert‐scale items was distributed in 2016 and 2017 to executive directors of schools in the Netherlands to gauge their assessment of conflicts within the supervisory school board. Hierarchical regression analyses and moderator analyses were used to test the hypotheses. An increase in task‐related conflicts were found to have a clear positive effect on the task performance of supervisory boards. An increase in numbers of relational conflicts had a negative effect on the control task performance, while an increase in process‐related conflicts had a negative effect on the advisory task performance. The cohesion within a supervisory board proved to be an important moderator of the effect of task‐related conflicts and relationship conflicts on the control task performance. The results from this research underline the need for a multidimensional conceptualisation of conflict in supervisory boards. The need for further research on the interaction between cohesion and conflicts is underscored. Boards should make room for substantive debate and even for the inevitable friction and irritation that is sometimes inherent in being effective in managing schools. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Language experiences and linguistic knowledge of teenage migrants can be valuable resources for their continued language learning. Yet, home languages and existing plurilingual skills are often framed as obstacles to learning that tag young migrants as at risk of school failure in the context of monolingual education systems. This article draws on a comparative education study carried out in Aotearoa New Zealand and France in 2017–2019, observing young migrants' use of their languages in classroom learning. A total of 42 secondary students from a mix of asylum‐seeker, refugee, and migrant backgrounds participated, originating from 22 different countries and speaking 24 different languages. All of the students were in their first year of schooling in New Zealand or France at the time of the study. Findings draw on observations of how students made use of their existing knowledge of languages to (1) access learning in the language‐of‐schooling, (2) learn interactively through their home languages, and (3) navigate unfamiliar styles of teaching and learning, thus engaging with the unknown and developing behaviours for successful learning. Patterns across the cohort show that young migrants are adept at drawing on their existing language resources in learning. This suggests a re‐framing of success at school as not only outcomes, but also as defined by effective learning processes that young migrants put in place. As a result, this study suggests ways that teachers can work inclusively with young migrants through their languages, to support processes of learning that could lead to better educational outcomes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Implementation of any inclusive policy is dependent on longstanding conceptions, beliefs, and public discourses on schooling, learning, and including children in mainstream schooling. The adoption of inclusive education in education policies in France and the United Kingdom requires discursive support to reshape the meaning and content of teachers' work, duties and practices. Although inclusive education is widely debated, analyses of the variations in policy narratives promoting inclusive teaching in Europe are lacking. This article reports on comparative and international analysis of discourses and policies for empowering teachers for continuous professional development and inclusive school practices. The analysis focuses on an exploration of varieties of articulations, resources, and conceptual dynamics in the UK and France. These elements are discussed within the broader scheme of the teaching profession, with reference to the inclusive education paradigm. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]