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The complexity of modern biology poses challenges in fostering interdisciplinary understanding, particularly between practicing scientists and the public. Furthermore, scientists often lack formal training in science communication, despite various motivations to engage the public. The science literacy of the public in the biological sciences can also vary across socio-economic and cultural backgrounds. Leveraging popular culture and informal learning practices to promote active learning offers promising avenues to enhance public understanding of biological systems. Organized sports hold collective recognition across various communities and cultures, serving as a means to bring people together. Notably, the NCAA March Madness event holds widespread national and international popularity, presenting an opportunity to laterally apply this concept to promote science communication within STEM and biology education. An educational social media and web-based contest tool was developed integrating NCAA-inspired brackets with animal biological systems concepts. The tool featured tournament-style matchups based on animal biological systems, interesting animal facts, and a voting system, all housed within a user-friendly interface. To encourage regular user access to the tool, graphic designs were developed for all social media posts to aid in visual recruitment to the voting website. Based on online metrics, the use of social media garnered repeat users across both the public and educators. The latter noted the tool's simplicity and informative content. Application of this social media and web-based bracket contest tool, which leverages informal settings for active learning for use in biology education, can foster science communication to engage audiences, improve comprehension, and promote interdisciplinary biology education.

This study delves into the cultural significance and educational potential of Hua'er folk songs within the Hui ethnic communities of Gansu and Ningxia in northwest China. By positioning Hua'er as an indispensable educational tool in folk song history, the research seeks to safeguard and elevate this revered musical tradition. Employing literature reviews, immersive fieldwork, questionnaire surveys, interviews with four significant contributors, and direct observations, the study sheds light on the importance of Hua'er music as a cultural legacy. These insights offer valuable guidance for educators, cultural institutions, and future research initiatives. Through a detailed exposition of the research methodology, this study enriches our understanding of the diverse landscape of Chinese folk song history, presenting avenues for further exploration and practical application in educational contexts.

English for young learners (EYL) teachers have practiced some creative activities to maintain their pupils' learning with natural exposure to the target language amidst the pandemic. One activity practiced by Indonesian and Korean teachers was an international collaboration to perform a virtual drama of each country's folktale. This phenomenological research aimed at tapping the teachers' perceptions regarding interculturality and world Englishes (WE) in the virtual dramatic play collaboratively conducted and delving into their commitments in honing interculturality and WE. Two Indonesian and Korean teachers were involved in three sessions of in-depth interviews using pre-prepared interview questions. The trustworthiness of the data was achieved by the group discussions allowing the participants to comment on and revise the transcribed data, as well as triangulation by two international collaborators. Thematic analysis was performed to identify emerging themes and to provide novel insights into EYL teachers' encounters with interculturality and WE. The Indonesian and Korean teachers admitted the compatibility between language and culture, the urgency of introducing varieties of English, and the merits of conducting international collaboration to promote interculturality and WE. The teachers are committed to integrate interculturality and WE in their instructions despite some differences in the stipulated curricula.

With the growing importance of the United Nations' SDGs, many EFL textbooks addressing the goals have been developed. However, these textbooks generally discuss the applicability of the SDGs in Global South countries, and for university students in Japan, this has resulted in "SDG burnout," as they study the topic but often fail to find meaningful connections to the materials. This article builds on previous research into the efficacy of culturally familiar materials, and it takes SDG education in a new direction through the creation of materials in dialogue with social justice issues. Four lessons were created by the researchers, and as part of the post-reading assignment, learners had the autonomy to choose between culturally familiar or unfamiliar activities related to either the news or popular culture. A 6-point Likert scale was used to gauge student interest, which indicated that the inclusion of social justice issues may positively affect interest. A series of binomial tests revealed that learners preferred culturally familiar activities and activities related to the news. These findings provide important implications for teaching the SDGs as they suggest learners might be most receptive to culturally familiar materials that are based on the news and connected to issues of social justice.

In the study reported on here we investigated the impact of Ubuntu on learner behaviour and academic achievement in secondary schools in the Gweru district of Zimbabwe. The study participants comprised 38 learners and 7 teachers from 4 secondary schools in the Gweru district. Data were collected through focus-group discussions, semi-structured interviews, participant observations and document analysis. We established that teachers and learners had a satisfactory understanding of how upholding values of Ubuntu contributed to academic achievement among learners. The findings reveal that in addition to other factors affecting academic achievement, like the school and home environment, learners who upheld the values of Ubuntu were disciplined, focused on their studies, and thus attained higher levels of academic achievement compared to learners who lacked Ubuntu and engaged in substance abuse, pre-marital sex, and lacked focus on their schoolwork. Based on the study we recommend that a course on Ubuntu be introduced in teacher training complemented by professional development workshops for teachers in the field to equip them with skills of integrating values of Ubuntu into the curriculum and thus foster the same among learners.

People's lives tend to the outside world, leading to the waning of cultural preservation values due to the ease with which foreign cultural influences enter and threaten the existence of local culture. To avoid the decline of the younger generation's interest in traditional art, it is necessary to carry out an idea of preservation through education, in this case, social studies subjects at school. This study aims to analyze the relationship between traditional art and social studies as a learning resource. The traditional art discussed in this study is panting music which is traditional arts in South Kalimantan. This is done to get a pattern for preserving traditional arts through social studies subjects. The research method used is qualitative. Data collection is done through observation, interviews, and documentation. Informant this research panting music players, and social studies teachers. The various data obtained are then reduced, presented, and then concluded. The researcher triangulated and extended the observations. The study's results confirmed panting music performance activities could be packaged as social studies learning resources. This is done by integrating class VII textbooks on the theme of cultural and ethnic diversity in the Indonesian traditional musical.

With the goal of working towards decolonizing educational practices, this article considers the Indigenous medicine wheel as inspiration for a cyclical model for learning and assessment. Many current assessment practices highlight individual achievement rather than ongoing and relational learning. This article suggests using a "Learning Wheel" as a tool to engage students in conversation about learning and assessment. The purpose of assessment would be to inform students' learning. The goal of learning would in turn equip students to be mindful of learning that engages in real-world issues to partner in God's redemptive work.

For decades, policymakers in the U.S. have leveraged accountability policy as a governing tool to lift school performance and close the achievement gap. Accountability become so widespread that it arguably became a "policy paradigm" with the passage of the federal No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act in 2002. Yet after just 13 years of implementation, policymakers replaced NCLB with the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), which gave states more control over the policy tools and mechanisms to regulate school improvement. This qualitative project captured the evolution of the accountability paradigm by studying the policy ideas and moral narratives of policy elites in California and Tennessee during the transition period between NCLB and ESSA. The study finds that interview participants legitimized the core design features of ESSA, but attached their underlying worldviews and beliefs to the flexible design features, which created unique accountability models with different institutional arrangements.

The Qin Zheng, an ancient Chinese musical instrument, embodies centuries of cultural heritage and artistic expression. Amidst its strings, melodies resonate with stories of ancient China, reflecting the country's rich history and cultural identity. The objective of this study is to analyze the Qin Zheng playing techniques of Zhou Wang in musical literacy development. The research investigates Zhou Wang's historical development, pedagogical approach, and playing techniques through a qualitative analysis. The study focuses on the Xi'an Conservatory of Music as the primary research site, where Zhou Wang has taught and mentored students for over three decades. Key informants include Zhou Wang herself, her students, and colleagues in the field of Chinese musical education. Data analysis involves structured interviews, observations of performances and teaching sessions, and transcription of musical examples. The findings reveal Zhou Wang's mastery of Qin Zheng techniques, including intricate right-hand and left-hand skills, and their significance in fostering musical literacy development. The study highlights the potential benefits of integrating music education, particularly traditional Chinese music like Qin Zheng, into curricula as a means to enrich students' language skills, cognitive abilities, and emotional intelligence.

In 2019 the Budj Bim cultural landscape in south western Victoria was listed on the World Heritage Register. It is significant firstly for the Gunditjmara people as a culmination of regaining control over their traditional lands and international recognition of their unbroken connection with the land extending back tens of thousands of years. It undermines a longstanding distinction made in heritage assessment between tangible (material) and intangible (immaterial) categories by instead seeing these as interdependent and 'constitutive entanglements' of everyday life. The corresponding distinction too often made between the built and the natural environment has resulted in a disproportionate acceptance that associates built environment heritage with European or Western societies and identities natural environmental heritage with Indigenous landscapes. Introducing a socio-material perspective where these formerly separate categories are seen as interdependent enables a new mode of understanding cultural connection to the land that is potentially transforming. Finally, it is significant as an exemplar of Indigenous led heritage work that brings together political struggle and advocacy, history work, and in the process creates new knowledge.

Microorganisms are ubiquitous in nature and are central to human, animal, environmental, and planetary health. They play a particularly important role in the food chain and the production of high-quality, safe, and health-promoting foods, especially fermented foods. This important role is not always apparent to members of the public. Here, we describe Kefir4All, a citizen science project designed to provide the general public with an opportunity to expand their awareness, knowledge, and practical skills relating to microbiology, introduced through the medium of producing fermented food, i.e., milk kefir or water kefir. During the course of Kefir4All, 123 citizen scientists, from second-level school and non-school settings, participated in a study to track changes in the microbial composition of kefirs, by performing and recording details of milk kefir or water kefir fermentations they performed in their homes or schools over the21-week project. At the start of the study, the citizen scientists were provided with milk or water kefir grains to initiate the fermentations. Both types of kefir grain are semi-solid, gelatinous-like substances, composed of exopolysaccharides and proteins, containing a symbiotic community of bacteria and yeast. The experimental component of the project was complemented by a number of education and outreach events, including career talks and a site visit to our research center (Kefir Day). At the end of the study, a report was provided to each citizen scientist, in which individualized results of their fermenting activities were detailed. A number of approaches were taken to obtain feedback and other insights from the citizen scientists. Evaluations took place before and after theKefir4All project to gauge the citizen scientist's self-reported awareness, knowledge, and interest in microbiology and fermented foods. Further insights into the level of citizen science participation were gained through assessing the number of samples returned for analysis and the level of participation of the citizen scientists throughout the project. Notably, the survey results revealed a self-reported, increased interest in, and general knowledge of, science among the Kefir4All citizen scientists after undertaking the project and a willingness to take part in further citizen science projects. Ultimately, Kefir4Allrepresents an example of the successful integration of citizen science into existing education and research systems.

Organizational culture acts as the mortar that connects the bricks. Every institution has its own unique culture which has been adopted and shared by all employees over the years. As establishment stories, ways of doing business, and communication styles change, culture also adopts itself to these in a way that is specific to that organization. Since there is no single understanding of culture covering all types of institutions, research has focused on classifying the concept of organizational culture according to types and concentrated on situational studies. As in for-profit businesses, culture is also significant in organizations that prioritize social goals. In this research, an academic organization within the realm of public institutions is discussed. The purpose of the article is to reveal the functioning of the elements that make up the organizational culture of the Open Education Faculty in the institution and the types of culture that are seen as dominant in the organization. In the case study, semi-structured interviews were conducted with the managers who have taken important roles in the history of the institution, and the documents containing information about the faculty culture were analyzed. The results of the qualitative content analysis revealed that Anadolu University Open Education Faculty has a strong and established culture, and this contributes to the work done and institutional development. Considering the dominant cultural styles in the institution; it is noteworthy that it started as an effective, collaborative, dynamic and work-based culture. With the institutional growth being experienced over time, the faculty culture has evolved towards a more protective, bureaucratic, and analytical one due to the difficulties in the organizational environment and the risks in the decisions taken. However, considering the scope, structural features, and stakeholder diversity of open education at home and abroad, the faculty still maintains a dynamic, collaborative and developmental cultural style with its ability to coordinate between units, its flexibility to respond to environmental changes, and its efforts to take innovative steps.

To overcome the difficulty and unprecedented suspensions due to the COVID-19 pandemic, every organization is required to consider strategic steps to sustain, one of which is by implementing digital transformation and developing leadership capability. This study aims to determine the impact of digital transformation and leadership capability in maintaining the organization, particularly in distance education. This study used questionnaires distributed to 402 students to obtain their opinions on digital transformation, leadership capability, and organizational resilience in Universitas Terbuka, a founder of distance education institutions in Indonesia. Data were analyzed using descriptive and Higher-Order Structural Equation Modeling analysis. Based on the modelling, it is shown that the modelling had a good value of the Goodness of Fit Indicator through a standardized loading factor (SLF) more than the tolerable loading factor limit (>0.50). The Variance Extracted (VE) and Construct Reliability (CR) values also showed that the questions on every indicator used in this study were sufficiently measurable and reliable. The results of hypothesis testing indicated that there was a positive and significant impact of digital transformation and leadership capability on the organizational resilience of Universitas Terbuka.

Educator leaders play a vital role in fostering educators' and students' mental health and wellbeing. Through qualitative research, this paper provides insights from eight education leaders working in State Schools in Malta on their perceptions of, and experiences in, the promotion and support of mental health and wellbeing among educators and students. The objective of the study is to examine how mental health and wellbeing are being promoted, addressed, and supported in schools. Eight semi-structured interviews were conducted with education leaders followed by a reflexive thematic analysis. Four themes emerged from the data, namely school philosophy, ethos, and leadership; mental health and wellbeing in schools; loss and grief; and COVID-19 and its impact on mental health and wellbeing in schools The findings suggest the need for more proactive and supportive considerations of mental health and wellbeing in schools in Malta, along with the implementation and evaluation of mental health and wellbeing whole-school projects in schools.

Open Distance e-Learning (ODeL) is on the rise to cater to non-traditional students. However, the surge in master's and doctoral students opting for ODeL raises concerns about the quality and timely completion of degrees. Existing literature on student attrition in higher education indicates that both student-related factors and institutional variables significantly impact completion rates. Factors such as students' sense of connection or isolation, as well as institutional aspects like supervisor responsiveness to feedback and feedforward, contribute to student persistence. To address this early attrition and extended stays in postgraduate studies, a community of practice (CoP), comprising lecturers and master's and doctoral students was formed. The CoP employed the Social Learning Theory (SLT) approach to initiate collaborative partnerships designed to promote a research culture and explore alternative approaches to curb master's and doctoral late completion and attrition. This paper reports on a study undertaken to explore the experiences, perceptions and insights of master's and doctoral candidates regarding the implementation of innovative multimodal Open Distance e-Learning supervision practices. Grounded in SLT, the exploratory case study employed an open-ended questionnaire to gather data from the students participating in the support programme. The findings revealed the positive impact of innovative practices on candidates' academic development and overall research experience. The findings further demonstrated that virtual communication tools have significantly enhanced collaboration between candidates and supervisors, breaking down geographical barriers and facilitating real-time feedback and guidance. The innovative multimodal OdeL supervision practices gave master's and doctoral candidates flexibility and increased their learning engagement.

The objective of this qualitative research study is to analyze the contemporary transmission methods and educational approaches employed in preserving and revitalizing Chinese Jinghe opera to address current challenges in Hubei Province. The research site, Jingzhou City in Hubei Province, serves as the backdrop for exploring this multifaceted cultural heritage. Nine key informants, including scholars, practitioners, and community members, provide diverse perspectives on Jinghe Opera and its transmission. Semi-structured interviews serve as the basis for data collection, and thematic analysis follows to reveal recurring themes and patterns. The study reveals the historical significance of Jinghe Opera, its evolution, and the critical roles of supporting institutions, such as the Intangible Cultural Heritage Protection Center and Yangtze University. Challenges facing Jinghe Opera, such as a shortage of original works and an aging transmission workforce, are discussed. Proposed solutions include fostering creativity, modernizing education, and establishing institutional support. This research contributes to the broader discourse on cultural heritage preservation and demonstrates the resilience of traditional art forms in a changing cultural landscape.

In this research, it is aimed to make a compilation based on studies in the literature on the reflection of professional loneliness levels of Educational Managers, especially school principals, on their individual and organizational performances, and to raise awareness by drawing attention to the problems experienced. Based on the literature, the variables affecting the professional loneliness levels of school principals are exemplified in the light of studies. Then, the factors affecting the performance of school principals were explained in two dimensions, especially individual and organizational, and attention was drawn to the relationship between professional loneliness levels and these factors. As a result, some suggestions have been made for researchers and practitioners based on these factors.

Oral folklore tradition is a unique phenomenon in West Borneo. This study aims to gain the lecturer's perspectives and reflection toward its implementation as a project-based activity for encouraging university students to transform local folklore into texts in English. It combines Finnegan's instructional procedure, and Gordon's synectic model and the creative state, which has been defined as creative instruction. Multiple observations and an in-depth interview with the folklore lecturer were conducted for this qualitative investigation. The lecturer is recognized as being exceptionally representative of this study employing purposive sampling under lived experience study because of his proficiency and enthusiasm. Having this creative instruction under supervision makes it clear that there is more room for the student's imagination and creativity to grow throughout this project-based activity. It gives them freedom to freely pursue their interests. Without excluding the possibilities of use in areas where there is still local folklore, this creative instruction is specifically suited for regions that are still rich in oral tradition. Further research is essential, nevertheless, as this study does not go into great detail on the perspectives and involvement among various students, the diversity of cultures and geographies, or the advancement of artificial intelligence (AI).

This study examined the dynamic between perceived authoritarian parenting style (PAPS), and subjective wellbeing (SWB) among purposively recruited 423 college students in China. Expectancy value beliefs (EVB), fear of failure (FOF), and competitiveness were taken as mediators. The data were analyzed using Bootstrap method of 5000 sample and 95% confidence interval. The results revealed a significant negative total effect of PAPS on SWB. Additionally, two indirect paths were found to be significant: the mediation of FOF (Path 2) and the serial mediation of FOF and competitiveness (Path 6). These findings suggest that the perception of authoritarian parenting style is a negative predictor of students' happiness, and that FOF and competitiveness played important mediating roles in this relationship. These findings have important implications for educators, parents, and policymakers who aim to promote positive academic and personal outcomes for college students. The results suggest the need for interventions that address the negative impact of PAPS on students' wellbeing, and the importance of fostering positive beliefs about the value of education and academic achievement, as well as reducing FOF and promoting healthy competition.

Digital media provide easy access to media content in multiple languages from local, national, and transnational contexts. This accessibility of diverse content enables young people in the migration society to develop multilingual and transnational media repertoires: they have the option to continuously and strategically navigate between different platforms, between different contexts and multiple languages. In this paper, we discuss how multilingualism and transnationalism can be used as key concepts for understanding the cross-media practices of young people and their participation in the migration society. Based on focus groups with young people living in a culturally diverse and socio-economically disadvantaged neighborhood of Bremen, Germany, we discuss how and why young people choose specific media content in a specific language in their daily media practices. Our discussion of the findings then focuses on the question of how media education in the migration society can take the multilingual and transnational media repertoires into account and benefit from it.

This study aimed to test a multilevel moderated mediation model, where the association between distributed leadership (DL) and collective teacher innovativeness (CTI) was examined, with collectivism (COL) included as the moderator and supportive school culture (SSC) as a mediator. Using data from 829 teachers employed in 61 elementary and lower secondary schools in Turkey, we conducted multilevel structural equation modelling through Bayesian to estimate the structural links between our study variables. Our results showed significant indirect effects of DL on CTI via SSC. The findings also extend the literature by suggesting the significant moderator role of COL on the indirect link between DL and CTI via SSC. We discuss implications for policy and practice.

Building Cultures of Care in schools has profound potential to support students' mental health and academic success. This is critical as students' mental and behavioral challenges are rising, and teachers report stress and burn out. To inform work in other communities, we examine the Culture of Care initiative in a tri-county region of one US state. We take a Developmental Evaluation approach, documenting the journey, including successes, challenges, adaptations, and initial outcomes over 3 years encompassing the COVID-19 pandemic. In Year 1, 12 school district administrators and partners responsible for initiative launch reflected on keys to success, early outcomes, and challenges through interviews. In Year 3, 62 educators, local administrators, and community partners who implemented the initiative participated in open-ended surveys and focus groups. Results from content analysis revealed evidence of a systems approach to integrating multiple components of trauma-informed and restorative school practices into a unified initiative to create educational cultures of care. Strengths stemmed from a regional, relationship-based approach uniting educational leaders and a team of coaches across multiple districts, coupled with tailored strategies for individual schools, and adaptability to emergent needs. Challenges included escalating student needs, difficulty learning new practices, staff turnover, stress and fatigue, variability in buy-in across schools, and challenges to community and family partnerships. Yet, participants consistently pointed to indicators of success, including transformation in staff perspectives and practices, and more positive learning environments. Further research is needed to capture students' and families' perspectives and to examine equitable educational and mental health outcomes for students.

Although the tobacco plant has been employed as a medicinal and sacred herb by Indigenous cultures across the Americas, its usage drastically changed after the 15th-century colonial arrival; its large-scale commodification and global marketing once brought to Europe lead to hedonic and addictive uses harmful to health. As a consequence, tobacco smoking is now one of the largest public health problems worldwide. However, in the Peruvian Amazon, a region of origin of tobacco species, Indigenous healers still know how to use the plant for therapeutic purposes. Due to a general disregard of Indigenous knowledge and stigma, these uses have however not so far been clinically investigated. We hence conducted for the first time a clinical field study assessing a sample of patients treated by a traditional healer specialized in tobacco in the Peruvian Amazon (observational design, pilot study, N = 27). The study was conducted within a transdisciplinary and multi-epistemic medical frame, in close partnership with an Amazonian healer. We used validated self-report scales to quantitatively assess mental health variables before and after the weeklong treatment, and mixed-methods to report experienced effects. Paired-samples t-tests comparing pre- and post-treatment scores revealed significant reductions in anxiety, depression, perceived stress, and general symptom indicators. Experienced effects included initial physical discomfort, followed by psychologically or existentially/spiritually significant insights. Our findings point to a sophisticated therapeutic approach based on Indigenous knowledge of tobacco applications, which should be further investigated. The study also contributes to the burgeoning scientific field on therapeutic uses of contentious psychoactive plants.

Since 1840, Chinese political leaders have struggled to draw effectively from Western culture without abandoning the Chinese essence in their design of higher education. In this paper, we use cultural nationalism as the theoretical framework to examine how Chinese political leaders have responded to this challenge. Our analysis shows that cultural nationalism closely links to politics, and although the form taken by cultural nationalism has varied throughout Chinese history, it has significantly influenced Chinese higher education. In particular, we identify a strong cultural nationalism in today's China, which has already influenced teaching and research in Chinese higher education. Finally, we discuss the implications and limitations of this paper, and call for critical reflections of cultural nationalism and its impact on Chinese higher education.

This experiential exercise is crafted around the classic board game Operation® (Hasbro 2008). Students are instructed that they are members of an emergency room team responsible for curing their patient of their ailments. However, unlike the board game, students in roles of doctors, nurses, and chief of surgery grapple with numerous sources of work-related challenge and hindrance stressors while trying to complete their job duties. In addition, participants are intermittently exposed to various types of work and non-work-related stressors throughout the exercise that cause interruptions to job fulfillment. These various conditions serve to illuminate the sources of job stress as well as the implications of both challenge and hindrance stressors on critical workplace outcomes, such as motivation, satisfaction, and workplace performance. This experiential exercise can be expanded to incorporate several organizational behavior topics, such as justice/fairness, leadership, teamwork, and work redesign.

Popular culture references have demonstrated usefulness as a pedagogical tool as they enhance student engagement and information retention. Use of the American version of the hit mockumentary TV series "The Office" has demonstrated pedagogical effectiveness in management, organizational behavior, and human resources courses. The show uses satire to exemplify ineffective management that demonstrates "what not to do." This resource review suggests the use of video clips from "The Office" to illustrate equity, expectancy, and goal-setting motivational theories, particularly in undergraduate management courses. Students often struggle with the volume of motivational theories, and the use of humorous clips can help them understand and retain key information. This article includes an overview of the show's premise, specific scenes that include motivational concepts, motivational theoretical background, and suggested discussion questions and answers.

For decades, language and literacy scholars working within a sociocultural framework have laboured to bring attention to the strengths of marginalized students in an effort to create more inclusive and equitable learning environments (e.g., Cummins, 2000; Dyson, 1997; González et al., 2005; Heath, 1983). While this work has moved the field forward in invaluable ways, it has not consistently engaged with processes of marginalization as a complex practice, which has produced gaps in our understanding of how we can best address it in research and practice to the benefit of all learners. Drawing on the notions of literacy socialization (Sterponi, 2012) and syncretic literacy (Duranti and Ochs, 1996; Gregory et al., 2013a), in this paper I conduct a close examination of the in- and out-of-school literacy socialization practices of Max Calfu, a seven-year-old Chilean-Canadian boy, over the course of a year-long ethnography that I conducted with his family at their home, at his Spanish-English bilingual public school, and in transit between home and school in a large Western Canadian city. At school, Max's Indigenous identity was regularly rendered invisible by the cultural capital his Chilean-national heritage held within the Spanish bilingual program (Calderón and Urrieta, 2019). Using thematic analysis (Saldaña, 2013), I demonstrate how Max incorporated the wolf figure into his literacy practices over the course of the research year, considering multiple scales of space and time, and in relation to key mediators. My analysis calls attention to the ways in which he drew on his syncretic literacy experiences to author his Indigenous identity in official and unofficial learning spaces. I conclude the paper by arguing that examining syncretism in children's literacy practices can lay the foundation for a more ethically, emotionally, and culturally engaged language education.

Inclusive education in Japan was developed on the foundation of special needs education (SNE), which began in the early 2000s. There are various arguments as to whether the current multi-track system of SNE extending from segregated special needs schools to general education classrooms will lead to inclusive education, which is the goal of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. This study focuses on the movement for system reform of the SNE and examines its current status and challenges. It also discusses recent policy trends in general education classrooms that have affected the promotion of inclusive education. Furthermore, while making a global comparison using Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) data, this paper highlights Japan's advantages and challenges in achieving inclusive education. Finally, it examines the conditions for realizing a new Japanese-style inclusive education.

This article utilizes Black girlhood as a framework in a critical multimodal qualitative inquiry to explore the complexities of representations of Black girls' hair, in picturebooks. Using a data corpus of 55 picturebooks published between 2010-2020, the authors analyzed the multimodal messages embedded in the initial introductions of Black girl protagonists. The findings suggest that contemporary children's literature represents a broad array of Black girls' hair, even when the central message is not about hair, denoting the importance of this cultural representation in assertions of identity. Findings suggest that the theme of elevation was demonstrated across the corpus, and was further expressed in the subthemes of; (1) salience of hair, (2) physical elevation of hair, and (3) importance of hair.

The existing literature in TESOL has revealed the multilayered, dynamic, and situated nature of teacher identity, but how language teachers construct their identities during curriculum reforms receives relatively limited attention, particularly in the context of teaching English for specific purposes (ESP). Theoretically anchored by the notion of contradiction in activity theory, this study investigates an ESP teacher's identity transformation in a Chinese university. Drawing on data from semi-structured interviews, classroom observations, and artifacts (policy documents and course materials), the findings reveal that the participant constructed her identities including "a skiff drifting in the dark," "an optimistic warrior," and "a nonconformist" through the teaching reform mediated by the corporatized culture and accountability system in higher education. The process of identity transformation was accompanied by her identity-driven efforts to resolve various contradictions and seek the delicate equilibrium between her agency and object-oriented reform. The study offers practical recommendations on teacher development and curriculum reforms for both language teachers and other stakeholders (e.g., teacher educators and school leaders) in different educational contexts.

The purpose of this article is to review over three decades of research supporting the organizational communication management theory known as the Theory of Independent-Mindedness. The theory is especially productive in assessing superior-subordinate communication for organizations located within individualistic cultures. The article synthesizes extant research on the Theory of Independent-Mindedness. The research reviewed in this article provides empirical support for the theory's premises in that cultural congruity must be present between the macro-culture (larger culture within which the organization operates) and the micro-culture (the culture developed within the specific organization). Several studies clearly indicate that independent-minded employees report being more satisfied and committed to their organization, and advocate communication skills training for organizational members at all levels.

This study investigated trajectories of ethnic discrimination experiences in school, diversity climates as contextual antecedents, and school adjustment as outcome. Latent-Growth-Mixture-Models of repeated self-reported discrimination over 3 years (2012-2015) by 1445 ethnically-minoritized adolescents of Turkish and Moroccan background in 70 Belgian schools (52.6% boys, M[subscript age] = 15.07) revealed four trajectories: low (72.5%), moderate (16.6%), initially-high (6.5%), or increasingly high discrimination (4.4%). Adolescents who attended schools with more minoritized peers, or schools that valued cultural diversity and equality, were more often in low-discrimination trajectories, which predicted better academic outcomes. Overall, school diversity climates can protect minoritized adolescents from experiencing persistent or initially high discrimination over time. Moreover, high discrimination at any point in schooling--initially or later--is harmful to adolescents' school adjustment.

Healthy Indigenous child development is grounded in Indigenous ways of knowing and being. Attachment theory has been influential in understanding the significance of parenting for infant development in Western science but has focused on child-caregiver bonds predominantly within the parent-child dyad. To bring forth Indigenous perspectives regarding understandings of parenting, the attachment bond, and the well-being of Indigenous children, we conducted semi-structured interviews with 28 members of a Northwest tribal community (21 female) in spring and summer 2020. Themes included Community caregiving, Family value systems, Bonding, Traditional teachings, and Historical trauma. The need to expand the lens of attachment theory beyond the dyad is clear. Implications for improving the child welfare system and prevention programs within Indigenous communities are discussed.

Belonging is personal and political. As a fundamental human need, belonging is about self-acceptance and about feeling "accepted" by others. And yet, this process of acceptance is inextricably tied to structures of power that work to include and exclude. Structures of whiteness within higher education systems, for example, relegate low-income, first-generation-to-college students of color to the margins and undermine their capacity and desire to belong. This makes the task of developing institutional practices that foster belonging complex. Such a task prompts important questions about what "acceptance" looks like. For example, in what ways can practices of acceptance attend to existing power structures? Under what conditions can acceptance occur so as not to solely expect students to assimilate or to silence important parts of themselves? How can practices of acceptance recognize the diverse belonging needs of marginalized students and the politics surrounding those needs? To answer these questions, I utilize frameworks that reveal the paradoxes of belonging--the push and pull of being accepted in spaces that marginalize the self. Specifically, drawing from a "place-belongingness and politics of belonging" framework, I first provide a foundation for understanding the personal and political components of belonging for marginalized students. I then review harmful institutional practices of "acceptance" and discuss more transformative practices that sustain students' cultural identities. Illuminating the personal and political facets of what it means to be accepted provides a pathway for reimaging who can, wants, and gets to belong.

This study examines perspectives of seven Jamaican primary school teachers on the degree to which their principals' leadership behaviours include emphasizes recognition, promotes participation in decision-making, takes account of their diverse skills, and demonstrates openness to criticism. The study further explores whether teachers consider the principal's behaviour as contributing to the culture of the school. The study found that teachers value expressions of recognition and opportunities to participate in decision-making. The study also found that while teachers are consulted, they are of the view that their contributions are not sufficiently considered. Instructively, all respondents held the view that while all members of staff were responsible for shaping the culture of the school, the principal had a leading role to play. The findings of the study suggest the need for post-training executive coaching component be implemented which would involve periodic structured conversations about growth, leadership, interpersonal relationships, and culture leadership, among other issues. This mechanism would allow the principal to reflect critically on how he/she in shaping the culture of the school. This coaching exercise would have an even greater impact if it were reinforced by confidential 360° performance reviews focussing on various aspects of cultural leadership.

The promotion of effective teacher professional development (ETPD) is a critical issue in the field of teacher education. The present study investigated how ETPD is affected simultaneously by teacher- and school-level factors across the United States, China, Finland, and Singapore. The data were drawn from the Teaching and Learning International Survey (TALIS 2018) and analyzed using a hierarchical linear model. Findings showed that scores on social utility motivation to teach, self-efficacy in student engagement, and school participative climate were positively and significantly correlated with scores on ETPD across the four countries. It was concluded that gender, education background, teaching experience, personal utility motivation to teach, teacher self-efficacy in classroom management, and teacher-student relations made significant, yet inconsistent, differences in ETPD in the four countries. Motivating teachers to teach and creating a democratic, participatory, and caring school culture may be important measures to promote effective professional development of teachers globally.

This piece demonstrates a creative practice that invites educators from diverse backgrounds to consider the memories, stories, and cultural histories alive within them. How we carry and know our own stories influences how we can critically and reflexively enact or challenge policies of cultural responsivity in education. Given that the political landscapes in education get remade over and over, the threads of our personal histories remain vital to remember, so they, too, do not move into the realm of forgetting. To connect, in an ongoing way, to our unique heritages and stories is to challenge current policy proposals that intend to privatise historical and cultural education, risking fragmentation and dissociation. This piece uses a diffractive storytelling approach through critical autoethnography to consider how material artefacts are imbued with histories and stories. This article traces my memories as a Pakeha (immigrant of European origin) educator in Aotearoa, New Zealand, from Scotland, through the artefact of a tartan quilt. I demonstrate how educators may use creative practices to remember and trace the threads of their stories through their material artefacts, elucidating the lenses from which they teach so they may equip students with the tools to navigate political influences within their own stories.

Objective: Sleep deprivation is common among children and schools are ideal settings in which to influence children's sleep. Children spend a significant amount of time at school during key developmental periods, and programmes that influence students' well-being also benefit academic achievement. Comprehensive School Health (CSH) is an approach that prioritises school, home and community partnerships by supporting the development of health behaviours. However, sleep is often unaddressed in the school environment. The objective of this study was to integrate multiple partner perspectives to inform how to strengthen school-based sleep promotion using a CSH approach. Design: A secondary qualitative analysis of student aged 9-11 (n = 45), parent/guardian (n = 24) and teacher (n = 19) interviews from participants representing elementary (Kindergarten -Grade 6) schools and communities in Alberta, Canada was conducted. Data were examined using an a priori framework in alignment with the four components of the CSH approach: social and physical environment, teaching and learning, policy and partnerships and services. Inductive content analysis was used to develop categories followed by subthemes within each CSH component. Results: Subthemes identified within each component were as follows: social and physical environment (culture of healthy sleep habits; students influence each other); teaching and learning (formally integrate sleep-specific learning into curricula; school, teacher and parents/guardian collaboration); policy (sleep-positive classroom policies) and partnerships and services (community partnerships; school-home collaboration). Conclusion: This research identifies recommendations from student, parent/guardian and teacher interviews to inform and strengthen school-based sleep promotion when taking a CSH approach. Findings can support school partner efforts to foster a school culture (or ethos) of healthy sleep habits leading to improvements in student sleep behaviours.

The article advances an emergent framework for conceptualizing the relationship between principal leadership and education policy implementation. Based on a qualitative study of school principals and policy implementation in Region X of the Philippines, findings suggested that the way in which policies were interpreted and implemented at the school level was influenced by a variety of intrinsic and extrinsic dynamics and these were shaped in situ by individual, school and community inhibitors and facilitators. These motivations and localized contexts were critical to implementation, and compelled principals to ignore, monitor, or implement education policies as a priority.

This conceptual paper explores the characteristics of education for sustainable development (ESD) within urban secondary schools. Despite the discourse about the importance of sustainability, there has been a lack of research on this topic. The authors employed theory synthesis, which resulted in a concept for Education for Sustainable Development in Urban Contexts (ESDUC). This presents a comprehensive view on the interconnected characteristics that facilitate the successful implementation of ESD in urban secondary schools, (1) developing sustainability competences among both students and teachers, encompassing intercultural competences for teachers and self-regulating skills for students, (2) utilizing teaching methods that are both transformative and culturally responsive, (3) engaging the wider community in the educational process, and (4) shifting the school culture toward embracing diversity and adopting a whole-school approach. This study is valuable for researchers and urban secondary schools seeking to effectively integrate ESD into their educational framework.