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The pandemic vastly disrupted education dissemination worldwide and catalyzed a shift toward online teaching. Hence, this paper aims to describe how professional learning communities (PLCs) in Kuwait's public schools foster successful changes in online teaching during the COVID-19 pandemic, in tandem with the leaders' involvement in PLCs and the challenges confronted as a result. Following the COVID-19 quarantine, qualitative open-ended interviews were conducted with 59 teachers, lead teachers, and school principals upon the reopening of schools. The findings confirm that all participants practiced PLCs through shared values and vision, collective responsibility, professional reflective inquiry, collaboration, individual and group learning, and support relationships, significantly facilitating the transition to online teaching during the pandemic. Principals and department heads engaged in PLCs by providing training, supervision, instructional support, empowerment, and distribution of power. Still, challenges exist in terms of educational resources, Internet coverage, and workload during the pandemic. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Leadership is a topic of vast exploration, with different scholars coming up with various definitions, descriptions and characteristics of effective leadership. The main aim of this qualitative study was to investigate the experiences and perceptions of senior educational leaders working in the Department of Education in Malta. The study was investigated from a constructivist and interpretivist paradigm. The data gathered through in-depth interviews was analysed manually using a hybrid approach method. Amongst various concepts, two salient themes on leadership emerged, namely how these leaders view leadership, and the importance of healthy relationships in leadership. The findings demonstrated that the participants in the exploration have a clear notion of leadership, and they appreciate that for effective leadership, healthy relationship with the stakeholders should be an important aspect. Two important recommendations that were established from this study are organised professional development programmes in leadership, and training programmes focusing on how to build healthy collegial relationships. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The "academic drift" of professional education is an international phenomenon typically associated with the 1960s and 1970s and reflects an approach to problem-solving whereby science is regarded as the single-most important element while solving practical problems. Specifically, we focus on how esthetic school subjects from our media ecology perspective are challenged when some mediations, both theory- and script-based, are rewarded at the expense of action-based knowledge forms. In the study, we consider Official Reports of the Swedish Government (SOU), a type of authoritative policy text intended to influence an activity, but which govern less formally than "governing policy texts", such as bills, which are legislative in nature. Our study shows that scientifically based content obtained greater space in various Techer Education programmes, while at the same time practical issues were theorized and given greater prominence. We conclude that the mentioned reforms have challenged the subject paradigm, and future subject ecology, involving changed recruitment patterns of teacher educators and shorter preparation studies for teacher students in the practical/esthetic subjects but also opportunities to develop new content and new methods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Internationally, support staff with limited teacher training (Teaching Assistants [TA]) are hired to support the mainstream education of children with Special Educational Needs and/or Disabilities (SEND). Meanwhile, teachers instruct the whole class. Although TAs might help children with significant difficulties participating in the classwork (complex SEND), children with milder needs could overly rely on TAs' support to complete classroom tasks, ultimately compromising their thinking and learning. This study was conducted in an insufficiently examined and unique context (Italy), providing support staff (Support Teachers [ST]) with special- and mainstream-pedagogy training and overlapping whole-class responsibilities with classroom teachers. Drawing from classroom observations of an ST and interviews with 31 other STs in Italian primary schools, the findings illustrate that the STs primarily instructed children with SEND despite their level of need. Rarely did they collaborate with teachers in whole-class instruction. The interviewed STs widely associated their 'specialist' role with the broader perceptions that STs are better prepared for SEND support due to their special education training not available to teachers. STs' professional characteristics therefore create imperfect conditions seen elsewhere for the education of children with (mild) SEND. The findings have significant implications for re-thinking ST professional characteristics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Interprofessional collaboration and practice (IPCP) is considered the cornerstone for effective service delivery for children with speech language and communication needs (SLCN). Following Stutsky and Spence Laschinger's framework, we investigated IPCP-related differences between Dutch and Norwegian professionals in a cross-national comparative survey study. The personal relational skills of communication, trust and situational factor support structures were related to interprofessional collaboration in both countries. Trust was a stronger predictor for the Dutch sample than the Norwegian sample. A moderated moderation analysis revealed that the relationship between IPCP and perceived team effectiveness is moderated by trust for the Dutch professionals but not for their Norwegian colleagues. Trust may play a vital role for interprofessional teams in the Dutch context because service delivery is mainly characterised by the pull-out intervention of specialised professionals. In the integrated early intervention context of Norway, emphasis on professional communication skills seems a fruitful strategy to enhance the effectiveness of teams. Early intervention service delivery may be strengthened by structural facilitation and building networks to develop trust across professionals and organisations, which supports the development of professional competence relevant to IPCP in early intervention service delivery. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent decades, neoliberal logics have affected the teaching profession and, consequently, had a direct impact on teachers' professionalism. The aim of this paper was to conduct a literature review to determine the most significant arguments and debates about teacher professionalism in the last 10 years and its relation to a transformative teacher attitude. Therefore, relevant review studies from 2011 to 2021 were analysed in order to respond to the following questions: "how can current scholarly publishing within teacher professionalism inform a transformative vision of education? What are the main themes identified and how do they relate in order to inform teachers' professionalism?". The themes of 'professionalism' and 'agency' are central to the current scientific debate, interconnected with the issues of professional development, leadership, and research. This paper hereby provides insight into alternative paths towards the (re)professionalisation of teachers, which response can be a 'transformative professionalism' framed by the interconnection of professionalism and agency. The process of continuous professional development in the context of autonomy appears as the elected form for this process of re-professionalisation and agency. School leadership and teachers' research emerge as opportunities for professional development with these characteristics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Design thinking has emerged as a method for teacher professional learning and development (PLD). Research commonly focusses on PLD responses to specific priorities, particularly STEM, rather than broader applications. This scoping review examines how and why design thinking is used in PLD and discusses the implications for using design thinking as a method for context-specific, student-focussed continuous improvement. A total of 22 publications, published in English between 2000 and 2022, were reviewed. The findings highlight the range of design thinking models used in PLD, including the similarities and differences, as well as the reported justifications, benefits, and caveats. Design thinking is positioned as a topic of and a process for PLD, and teachers engage in immersion programmes or practice-related projects as either directed participants or co-designers. Analysis indicates when design thinking is a topic of PLD, teachers commonly engage as directed participants in immersion programmes, whereas when it is a process for PLD, the modes of participation and roles are more diverse. The implications of the identified differences and variations will be useful to researchers and practitioners, and PLD policy and practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Learner engagement is essential for deep and sustained learning, yet it is seldom included in empirical frameworks for effective continuing professional development (CPD), which tend to privilege broad design features over learner-centred strategies. In this critical case study, I consider this gap by applying the lens of self-determination theory (SDT) to analyse in depth what one U.S.-based teacher described as a transformational professional learning experience. Observing the ways in which learner engagement and facilitators' pedagogical practices combine to satisfy SDT's basic needs of autonomy, competence, and relatedness and to shape this teacher's practice, I suggest that relational responsiveness – what the focus teacher in this study calls 'regard' – is an important and under-theorised quality in powerful professional learning. I conclude with theoretical and practical implications for the design and study of continuing professional development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Professional development can be used as a tool to increase teacher confidence and competence. Consequently, it may improve the quality of education available to students. Previous research suggests that many teachers lack the confidence to teach health despite it being an area that they are expected to teach. This paper locates and considers the health specific professional development opportunities that exists for primary school teachers internationally. The authors brainstormed a list of search terms and followed the PRISMA guidelines to search EBSCO databases. The findings were screened and sorted. The review found that educators who value and understand health are more likely to teach health related topics. Professional development related to health that was most effective was characterised as being (1) multidimensional, (2) integrated, (3) adaptable, (4) modelled, (5) collaborative, (6) supported by school leadership, and (6) valued. Despite the importance of health, the review found a lack of professional development for teachers. This may in turn create a barrier to students accessing health education. Thus, professional development programmes for teachers that aim to improve their confidence and competence to teach health in the classroom are urgently required. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Every year, significant resources are devoted to the professional development of educators, warranting a closer evaluation of whether professional development is effective and where it can be improved. Focussing on professional development in intercultural and multicultural education, this article presents a scoping study of relevant literature to identify factors that have been highlighted as helpful and hindering for educators. Peer-reviewed journals from the last two decades were scoped for articles about professional development aimed at Pre-K–12 educators. A literature search of four academic databases identified 159 relevant articles which were then qualitatively coded with NVivo. A numerical analysis identified areas of research concentration and those needing research attention, while a thematic analysis yielded four broad areas of results: teacher capacities and dispositions, features of professional development, professional development activities and professional development topics. Discussion is concentrated on the overall state of the field, particularly on features specific to inter/multicultural professional development such as educator resistance and reluctance, content organisation, the under-utilisation of technology, and safe opportunities for discussion, criticality and meta-cognitive reflection. The article presents results that may inform the design of inter/multicultural professional development in education along with suggested areas for future research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The interest in Professional Development (PD) in learning and teaching in Higher Education (HE) has seen an increase in the last few years owing to the evolving role of HE teaching academics in the futures of students and their employment. In Australia, while there is evidence that research in learning and teaching PD is growing, these studies appear sporadic and confined to predetermined disciplinary boundaries. From a practice perspective, the fragmented nature of the literature confounds the issues related to the uptake of learning and teaching PD by academics. It is proposed that a scoping literature review of studies of learning and teaching PD in Australian universities is necessary in identifying attributes within the sector, and will illustrate the gaps in the literature related to professional practice. A typology of the interrelated patterns of the attributes that emerge from the scoping review is presented. This typology has practical implications for both teaching academics and academic developers who respectively engage with and implement PD strategies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The vast literature on teacher professional development (PD) often assumes that the success of a PD programme should be measured by the extent to which the participating teachers accept and adopt, often in a relatively linear chain, the programme of learning, paying insufficient attention to how highly accomplished teachers respond to PD situations. This study investigated the experiences of a group of nine highly accomplished secondary school teachers, who also held leadership roles, following their participation in an intensive PD programme. Using an analytical lens of 'acceptance barriers,' we studied how these teachers interpreted their experiences of the programme and the impact of those experiences on their thinking and practice. Our findings show that teachers experienced the programme as a starting point, not a finished package. We identified a continuum of ways that these teachers applied, adapted and amplified ideas from the programme. We argue that recurring features of PD models such as linearity and implementation fidelity do not recognise teachers as professionals who assert agency over their own practice, and that the design, implementation and evaluation of PD programmes need to address how highly accomplished teachers are likely to respond, balancing fidelity with expectations of agency. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Amidst societal, demographic and educational changes, teachers are expected to engage in professional development and learning (PDL) throughout their careers. This study explores school teachers' mental models about their work in the framework of Senge's learning organisation, aiming to support their PDL during curriculum reform and organisational changes. The study's data comprise 41 semi-structured interviews with each teacher in one school community. These interviews were analysed using qualitative, data-driven yet theory-informed content analysis. In the first analysis phase, fragments of mental models concerning teachers' work and their school community were explored. These fragments included themes such as school rules, principal's role and working with colleagues. The findings show that the teachers' mental models regarding their work and school community can be characterised as contradictory and even opposite. In the second phase, these fragments were brought together to form a systemic, holistic picture of the school community, consisting of mental models on system management, teaching community, classroom, students and leadership. Finally, the teachers' mental models are discussed vis-à-vis their importance in individually and socially supporting teachers' PDL when the school community is undergoing diverse changes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Formal in-service professional development programmes may help novice teachers or those new to a school adapt to targeted teaching approaches in their new workplace. However, the extent to which their practice changes in response to in-service learning may depend on prior beliefs. This longitudinal case study explored in-depth the personal epistemological beliefs of four pre-sessional English language teachers, international and national, in an English-medium university context in Turkey during a year-long, formal in-service teacher education course, and for 6 months after the course. It investigated changes in classroom practice and beliefs about knowledge and knowing, teaching and learning, and professional learning as a result of in-service learning. Interviews, classroom observations and reflective journals underpinned a hermeneutic analysis which compared informants' beliefs and classroom practice over time using an existing theoretical model. Underlying patterns of change in epistemological beliefs show belief type, depth, and sophistication, as well as context, as major factors in the uptake and sustainability of targeted teaching approaches in this context. In-service educators' knowledge of a teacher's epistemological beliefs profile can lead to more effective and sustainable uptake in formal in-service professional learning through differentiated, practice-based interventions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Student mentoring is increasingly visible in professional practice, and in recent years, universities have integrated peer mentoring across different programs. To provide student mentors with appropriate support and contribute to the future development and success of student mentoring, it is necessary to investigate not only the benefits afforded to mentees but also student mentors' perceptions of their experiences. This small-scale action research study was conducted with participants who were recruited from the academic language mentoring program for second language students in a Bachelor of Nursing program in Norway. Multi-stage focus group interviews were used to explore participants' early experiences of being a mentor, mentorship activities, and the impact of mentoring on personal and professional development. The multi-step method is essential in practical action research because it creates both a space for reflection and dialogues on important themes and contributes to joint learning and formation of practical knowledge. Findings suggest that student mentors perceive their experiences as academic and linguistic mentors as highly relevant to their future professional role as nurses and their future role as mentors to colleagues and students. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigates the use of digital transformation for teaching management accounting through the implementation of training with a simulation in an authentic professional environment. Technology makes it possible to bring professional reality into the classroom, thereby enhancing the work-integrated experience of students. The authors present the training developed for third year undergraduates in Management Accounting course and the analysis of how students perceive the learning outcomes of this experiential activity. The study used quantitative and qualitative analysis from a survey of 254 respondents. The findings suggest that learning through tasks simulated in a real workplace positively influences students' perceptions of their readiness for professional activity in terms of their technical, intellectual, organisational, personal, and interpersonal skills. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Accounting graduates progress to hold a variety of roles in society, often comprising positions of leadership. Yet studies continue to show that accounting graduates are underdeveloped in several competencies affiliated with leadership. These competencies are well-aligned with Responsible Leadership (RL) theory, and expectations of accounting education institutions globally. However, curriculum-level guidance targeting RL competency development in accounting students is lacking. The purpose of this study was therefore to identify guidelines for the accounting curriculum that support the development of RL competencies in accounting students. Thirteen interviews were conducted with South African CA leaders, to understand their post-university leadership development experiences and obtain their perspectives on how universities can better prepare accounting students to be responsible leaders. The study developed a model comprising seven core concepts which is named the RESPOND model. This model may assist accounting academics deliberating on adaptations to their curricula to achieve competencies synonymous with RL. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Professional Vision (PV) has been used in teacher education to interpret novice teachers' learning in various educational contexts. To date, research has conceptualized this framework largely from a cognitive perspective of learning, overlooking the affordances of taking a sociocultural perspective. This theoretical paper aims to articulate the affordances of conceptualizing novice science teachers' PV from a sociocultural perspective of learning, specifically drawing from its foundation (Goodwin, 1994). Four central affordances are considered: (a) teacher education pedagogies as supports for novices to develop their PV, (b) discourses as sources of evidence, (c) discursive practices as analytical lenses to study novices' PV development, and (d) material representations as both learning and research objects. We ground our articulation of these affordances in examples of our work with novice science teachers when learning to plan modelling-based investigations (MBIs). We provide new insights into the design and study of learning environments that effectively sustain novice science teachers' professional learning through practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The digital transformation of education is greatly accelerating in various computer-supported applications. As a particularly prominent application of the human-machine interactive system, intelligent learning systems aim to capture users' current intentions and provide recommendations through real-time feedback. However, we have a limited understanding on what is the reality of user feedback for computer-supported adaptive quizzing. This present study proposes formalization for user feedback including engagement and interactions to understand and improve intelligent adaptive quizzing. This work starts by taking individual system's action transition patterns as a temporally evolving action graph and derives patterns in terms of informing future user engagement. Furthermore, considering the student knowledge preference for a certain moment is closely related to personal experience of past learning,a novel framework EICQ (Engagement and Interaction-based Computer-Supported Adaptive Quizzing) is proposed for learning and adapting to students' current preference based on engagement trends and interaction by collecting feedback data in real-time during a learning session. This established framework captures question characters, student dynamic interactions and engagement trends, which yield a better learning experience with adaptive practice question (PQ) recommendations. Finally, much more endeavors have been made to integrate the proposed EICQ into XXXU intelligent learning systems that are co-developed with the YYY Company. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The outbreak of COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020 influenced all aspects of school life. Teaching and learning moved only online, with different software solutions emerging for teachers to make the most of them. These educational platforms provided more than just a traditional teaching which is focused on the transmission and access to information. Their added value is in a student-centred approach which promotes diverse competencies as regarded to be 21st century skills. This study focused on promoting 21st century digital skills using educational platforms in the times of COVID-19 during school lockdowns. It examined teachers' responses about the extent to which this promotion was attained during their online teaching using these technologies. A sample of 667 schoolteachers from Serbia was used and relevant data were collected using an online questionnaire. The analysis showed there were significant differences between these medians of promotion of digital skills for different groups of teachers favouring certain groups. These differences could be explained by the fact that teachers in those favoured groups were more experienced in using educational platforms and arranged teamwork within them more often. Additional analysis showed that experience and teamwork were related and that they jointly contributed to digital skills promotion. Suggestions for practice and research are included. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) are platforms teachers can use to seek guidance on different strategies to update their teaching skills. This study finds the effectiveness of MOOCs in developing professional performance and skills of school teachers. It tries to show the extent to which school teachers can benefit from these courses and how they apply them in their practical teaching. A mixed-method sequential explanatory (following up the quantitative findings with qualitative ones) method by using multiple data sources, including the MOOC system's log files, final grades and the discussion forum, with additional of face to face class snapshots was used. Some of the data were analysed using statistical, correlations and clustering models, with others coded in excel to develop different themes based on reported experiences. Results indicated how TPD core features uncover school teachers' knowledge and skills level through their learning behaviour variables for the MOOC platform, which will help to transform their pedagogical and instructional approaches while shifting their classrooms into 21st Century classrooms. Generally, this study contributes fresh insights into the literature on the importance of MOOCs for teachers' professional growth while sustaining their work and connections for networked learning. Implications for future studies are also discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the development of e-learning mediating tool(s) for an online professional development programme, focusing on sustainability and teacher education, implemented across 11 countries in the southern African region. The paper focuses on how we approached the design and development of an online mediating tool(s) for interactive, situated learning that seeks to support sustainability practices and engagement of teacher educators at a local level while learning together with others across national borders. Using cultural historical activity theory, we elaborate on our understanding of mediation and then focus on the design and the development of the e-learning mediating tool, which we describe as an expansive learning process in our research and practice community. Our main finding is that to establish an interactive learning environment for situated, transformative learning in teacher education settings requires a comprehensive complex process of collaborative learning supported by a range of e-learning mediation tools, that are complemented by on-site engagement and support in communities of practice. We conclude that the successful deployment and use of an e-learning mediating tool depends on interconnected learning systems that is supported by the development of digital literacy skills, continuous online support, and similar communication tools. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores how motivational theories can be utilised to direct impactful conversations for the support of teaching excellence awards (TEAs). The purpose of applying a motivational lens to TEA conversations is to foster positive motivational conditions for award applicants. Outlining this conversational method may inform future research into award applicants' motivations throughout the TEA process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Academics are constantly undergoing identity shifts in response to globalisation, marketisation and the impact of technology on academic work. This study investigates the impact of a Graduate Certificate of Higher Education (GCHE) on academic identity development in an Australian University. GCHE graduates and their educators were interviewed to examine whether such extended and reflective professional development might support the negotiation of complex identity shifts. Findings indicated that academic identity development was enabled through this professional development by re-engaging individual academics in the diverse, traditional components of teaching, research and administration, working against the neoliberal trend of role-compartmentalisation for efficiency. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we describe the underlying mechanisms that both facilitate and limit the formation of successful educational leadership of participants of the 'Senior Fellow Programme': a professional development programme in conjunction with a career track leading up to a teaching-focused full professorship. Based on an analysis of the context-mechanism-outcome (CMO) configuration, we conclude that three interrelated and interacting mechanisms: (1) recognition, (2) reform, and (3) responsibility steer the way in which the participants can shape their teaching-focused leadership role. These findings may provide useful insight into how educational leadership is formed, even in vastly different contexts and institutional cultures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Business education has had limited discussion on professional development for academics. Given the increasing focus on the quality of teaching and learning in higher education, we investigate how academics conceptualise professional development. This has important implications since one's conceptions of a phenomenon can influence subsequent approaches. Few phenomenographic studies have investigated academics' conceptions of professional development. Our study asked business academics a typical phenomenograhic question: what does professional learning and development mean to you? Our participants conceptualised it in four qualitatively different ways: continual growth mindset; student-centric mindset; knowledge-sharing mindset; and purpose-oriented mindset. We discuss the implications of these mindsets for designing professional development in higher education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study outlines an approach that captures the messy landscape of the learning opportunities on which teaching focused academics draw. The Activity Centred Analysis and Design framework was employed to analyse data from a focused ethnographic study of seven TFAs in a research-intensive university. The Activity Centred Analysis and Design framework revealed processes of reconfiguring structures that allow for teaching focused academics to focus on their goals (influencing their peers and being recognized as legitimate academics). This paper offers an avenue for understanding authentic practices of teaching focused academics with broader implications for research into the professional learning of academics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The demand for physiotherapy student clinical placements is increasing in many countries, including Australia, and there is continued reliance on physiotherapists to assume the student clinical educator role. Exploring factors influencing physiotherapists' decision to be involved in clinical education is essential to maintaining and building clinical education capacity for the future. Objective: To explore factors influencing Australian physiotherapists' decision to be involved in student clinical education. Methods: A qualitative study using data collected from a valid and reliable online survey tool. Respondents were physiotherapists representing public and private workplaces across varied geographical settings in Australia. Data were thematically analyzed. Results: Surveys were completed by 170 physiotherapists. Most respondents were employed in hospital (81/170, 48%) and private (53/170, 31%) settings in metropolitan locations (105/170, 62%). Six themes representing factors influencing physiotherapists' involvement in student clinical education were identified, including perceptions of: professional duty, personal benefits or gains, suitability of workplace, support requirements, role related challenges, and readiness to be a clinical educator. Conclusion: Many factors influence physiotherapists' decisions to assume the clinical educator role. This study could assist clinical education stakeholders to provide practical and targeted strategies to overcome challenges, and optimize support, for physiotherapists in the clinical educator role. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The worrying decline in the status of primary school science in schools in England has been linked to low teacher confidence in teaching science and to schools being heavily focused on achievement in English and mathematics. This article reports on a novel professional learning strategy that was provided for 23 primary science leaders over five half-day workshops. Workshops focused on key topics that teachers reported having least confidence in teaching. Through a structured series of learning episodes, each workshop included knowledge and skills acquisition, opportunities to apply new knowledge and skills to primary-focused practicals, the introduction and application of scientific vocabulary, discussion and reflection time. Findings from pre- and post-workshop questionnaires undertaken with all participants and in-depth interviews with eight participants were examined from a phenomenological perspective. Participants reported that the workshops had significant and positive influences on raising their ability to teach science effectively and to build their confidence in leading colleagues. Participants also reported that the status of science in their schools had been improved. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Drawing upon Ahmed's (2006) analysis of how institutional documents become nonperforming, this article argues that teacher education must create opportunities for emerging educators to grapple with the pedagogical consequences of understanding the fourth edition of Developmentally Appropriate Practice in Early Childhood Programs (2022) as a nonperforming text. I contend that as DAP works to moderate universalising developmental knowledges in the name of fostering social justice, DAP reproduces taken-for-granted epistemological relations and hierarchies that maintain dominant understandings childhood and early childhood education. First, I position DAP as a nonperforming text and articulate a mode of nonperformance specific to early childhood education: palatability, built of a rhetoric of childhood innocence and a politics of niceness. I then show how two of DAP's formations of child development enact nonpeformativity through palatability, illustrating how DAP reiterates status-quo connections between child development and early childhood education. To conclude, I propose souring palatability as a proposition that emerging educators might speculate and experiment with while engaging with DAP. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Authorities in China have been actively involved in the high-quality development of libraries, with an emphasis on supporting and extending National Reading. Providing appropriate and successful reading services requires well-prepared reading service librarians, empowered to design and deliver services that make reading enjoyable and accessible for all. Based on competency theory and empowerment theory, this study analyses the competency features of empowered reading service librarians and constructs a competency model based on those features. Through literature analysis and Behavioural Event Interview, a preliminary competency model comprising 16 discriminative competencies and 20 benchmark competencies was constructed, subsequently refined through 4 rounds of expert consultation using the Delphi method and resulting in a model with 11 discriminative competency features and 6 benchmark competency features. A questionnaire survey of reading service librarians and library users was undertaken to extract common factors and develop an iceberg model. The iceberg model comprises 4 dimensions: knowledge, skills, self-concept, and motivation, with 11 discriminative competency traits and 6 benchmark competency traits. The model extends our understanding of the important competencies underpinning the work of reading service librarians and can support developments in their professional education, performance evaluation, recruitment, and selection. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Executing a successful teaching practicum is closely related to effective collaboration between preservice and cooperating teachers. Thus, this study implemented and investigated collaborative inquiry between preservice and cooperating music teachers in Korea. The results showed that the preservice music teachers played an important role in theoretical application based on their recently acquired knowledge, whereas the cooperating music teachers challenged their thinking by offering practical perspectives grounded in their experiences. The different roles enabled the connection of theory to practice in music education and the active participation from both groups. In addition, sufficient time for the preparation of instructional strategies and shared visions positively affected the equally important roles between the preservice and cooperating music teachers, whereas lack of time and opportunities to reflect on teaching practices after lesson implementation hindered collaborative inquiry. These findings support the previous literature, which suggests that collaborative inquiry could be an effective tool for teacher collaboration, by applying collaborative inquiry to the specific context of collaboration between preservice and collaborating music teachers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper reflects on the delivery of Professional Doctorate programmes from a sample of educational (EdD) and sustainable built environment (DSBE) practitioners at a Welsh University in the United Kingdom (UK). The paper explores the 'learner journey' of a sample of Professional Doctorate students as they navigate their studies during COVID-19 pandemic. A qualitative approach was adopted, and semi-structured questionnaires were used to collect data from students on the EdD and DSBE pathways. A thematic analysis was conducted, and the data presented explored how students have navigated their respective pathways and change projects across various modules, during their 'learning journey' and how successful they perceive that journey to be, in relation to a range of factors. The findings from this paper provide a unique insight into the experiences of Professional Doctorate students during a period of significant upheaval. Recommendations are provided for supervisors of Professional Doctorates, Higher Education Managers, as well as Policy Makers in supporting Professional Doctorate students during the studies. Best practice is highlighted with regard to practice-based approaches and demonstrates the differences across two academic disciplines. The use of agile digital and online learning in response to the COVID-19 pandemic further suggests an ongoing model for leadership in Higher Education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research investigated the role of continuing professional development (CPD) in further education (FE) through a small-scale study involving two general FE colleges and two independent training providers (ITP) in England. Teachers' experiences of their continuing development were collected through focus groups. These encouraged the teachers to disclose formal and informal learning, together with development opportunities that they undertook. Analysis of the data revealed that the purposes of these developmental activities could be divided into two categories: organisational and occupational. Organisational training functioned to transmit knowledge linked to externally-driven objectives, whilst occupational development functioned to update vocational subject specialisms and develop classroom pedagogy. Organisational training was college/provider-led, whereas occupational development was teacher-controlled. Essentially, both were needed to support teachers in their full professional roles, but organisational training took precedence. The study will further an understanding of professional development processes and purposes in FE, thereby informing the planning of CPD systems and policy in the sector. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Professionals are increasingly involved in attempts to understand and address problems with wicked tendencies, which require crossing boundaries between disciplines, organisations and stakeholder perspectives. This multiple-case study investigated six higher professional education courses in order to develop better understanding of how teachers foster the development of students' boundary-crossing expertise through enhancing relevant learning processes in courses focussing on wicked-problem-solving in interdisciplinary and multi-stakeholder contexts. We viewed students' relevant learning processes as learning mechanisms that foster boundary awareness (identification and reflection) and boundary work (coordination and transformation) and considered teachers to be enablers of such learning processes. Data came from semi-structured interviews with teachers, students and stakeholders, observations and document study. We identified nine interrelated enabling strategies teachers used. To foster students' observation of wickedness through boundary awareness, they encouraged mutual acquaintance, open exploration, opportunities for learning, and multi-perspectivity. To foster students' action through boundary work, they encouraged initial contact, joint action and multifaceted perspectives on value creation. To foster the interplay between boundary awareness and work, they encouraged successive refinement and structure while embracing wickedness. Balancing the tension that students experience at boundaries when navigating complexity, uncertainty and value divergence was identified as an important element of these enabling strategies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

School leadership plays a crucial role to quality education. Social changes have led to an increase in school principals' competencies, responsibilities, and demands. There are significant gaps in the literature on school leadership and limitations in the study of principals' responsibilities. This study aimed to analyse whether principals consider the competencies assigned to them by educational legislation to be within their scope. Participants were 394 principals from state-owned schools in Andalusia, southern Spain. Quantitative and qualitative data analyses were performed. We identified four competencies that the principals believed they were unable to effectively assume within the Andalusian educational context: (1) awarding contracts for construction, services, or supplies; (2) authorising expenditures, arranging payments, and preparing the school budget; (3) promoting the qualifications and training of teaching staff; and (4) supervising non-teaching staff in the school. This study emphasises the need of a comprehensive reevaluation of how competencies assigned to school principals are managed, highlighting the significance of incorporating principals' perspectives. For future research, we recommend exploring alternative approaches in competency management to enhance their effectiveness and relevance in the educational context. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study delves into the transformative impact of a professional development model (PDM) across three affiliated private schools in Beirut, Lebanon, spanning three years, with a primary focus on nurturing teacher leadership. At the heart of this PDM, teachers assumed the role of trainers, guiding their colleagues during dedicated professional development days. Employing a grounded theory approach, the study conducted semi-structured interviews with 12 teacher trainers and engaged with three school principals. The research reveals five central categories. Two categories revolve around the evidence highlighting the progression of teacher leadership: (1) accessing and utilising research to enhance teaching and student learning, and (2) promoting professional learning for continuous improvement. Additionally, three categories elucidate the elements instrumental in facilitating the PDM's role in cultivating teacher leadership: reciprocal empowerment, conceptual awareness, and collaborative metacognition. This model redefines traditional top-down leadership structures, allowing teachers to actively mold their professional development journey, creating a more collaborative and intentional approach to teacher leadership. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Australian education system is culpable in perpetuating, rather than alleviating, inequitable outcomes for First Nations peoples. To address this, the Culturally nourishing schooling project (2020-2024) involves eight high schools committed to whole-of-school change in four intertwined domains: learning from Country, culture/language programs, epistemic mentoring, and sustained professional learning. In this paper we envision how and why the theory of practice architectures (TPA) may provide a framework for understanding what happens as schools pursue this transformation. We critically examine whether TPA can provide an epistemologically and ontologically appropriate methodology to support change in schools with significant cohorts of First Nations students. A key premise of TPA is to uncover the meanings and impacts of the practices of the people entangled in school sites, and reveal the usually unseen structural arrangements that allow these practices to unfold. We contend that by making these arrangements visible, those involved in schooling are enabled to contribute to the transformative change that will foster culturally nourishing practices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Following the increasing impacts on the value of Western play-based pedagogy, early childhood (EC) teachers in China face developmental challenges related to understanding and implementing play-based mathematical education. The purpose of this paper is to explore Chinese EC teachers' perspectives on play-based mathematics teaching. In this qualitative study, semi-structured interviews and lesson plans are collected from six EC teachers in a Chinese kindergarten. Hedegaard's model is applied to frame analysis for capturing EC teachers' views and practices from a holistic perspective. The findings show that all six EC teachers valued play as a pedagogical tool for teaching mathematics, while their pedagogical decisions in applying play to children's mathematics are determined by the various demands from society, parents and children. The multiple demands from different perspectives result in challenges for teachers in designing collective play. This study revealed that only when play activity caters to the possibility of satisfying those demands can teachers pedagogically implement play for children's mathematical learning. The insights emerging from this study might address the pragmatic challenges that teachers face by enhancing teachers' professional development to support the advance of culturally sensitive play-based mathematics teaching in China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

COVID-19 has affected different aspects of teachers' personal and professional lives, including their teaching skills and their relationships with each other and the children they teach. This study investigated the effects of COVID-19 on preschool teachers' identity in a city in South East Turkey between September and October 2020. It aimed to understand how the teachers coped with the situation and how they feel about their personal and professional lives in the wake of the pandemic. The study was qualitative and used semi-structured interviews as the data collection method. The participants included 29 preschool teachers (one male and 28 female). Three main themes emerged from the data: emotional bonds, improving professional knowledge and taking on more responsibilities. The findings indicated that the participating teachers faced challenges in establishing emotional bonds with children, and they felt that a vital part of their profession was missing. The findings demonstrate that the teachers considered the pandemic as an opportunity to revise and improve their professional knowledge of child development and their use of technology in teaching. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although Chinese early childhood education policies have high expectations for kindergarten teachers' play pedagogy, teaching and play are still discussed as a bifurcation in Chinese kindergartens' daily practice. To support Chinese kindergarten teachers' development of play pedagogy, this study conducted an educational experiment (EE) framed by cultural-historical theory. The study was conducted in a public kindergarten located in the northeast of China. Two teachers and 34 children (4-5 years) were involved in the study. The data were collected using the methods of digital video observation, interviews, and focus group discussions. The findings indicate that EE creates a new social situation that can motivate teachers' development in ways of collaborative teaching. Moreover, the collective reflection and Conceptual PlayWorld (CPW) implementation within the EE amplified teachers' play pedagogy development. We argue that the EE works as a source of teachers' professional development (PD) and builds their identity as experts in creating playful learning environments in a Chinese cultural context. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This case study of classroom practice examined what preservice teachers learned about young children's metacognitive thinking processes and constructivist pedagogy through a classroom project. Thirty preservice teachers engaged in a semester-long metacognitive project in which they conducted four sessions with a group of young children. The project was designed to help preservice teachers to foster young children's metacognitive thinking processes and to become reflective about their roles as constructivist teachers. Their final reflections on the metacognitive project experience were analyzed through the theoretical lens of Kroll and Ammon's dimensions of constructivist teacher education. These preservice teachers demonstrated understanding of the key ideas of metacognition and constructivist teaching, including understanding the role of representation in knowledge construction process, building an autonomous learning community, articulating children's knowledge-building processes, and engaging in the cycle of reflective teaching practices. They understood the importance of children's metacognitive thinking in the construction of knowledge and how to adapt their roles as learning partners. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Researchshows that Professional Learning Communities (PLCs) foster teachers'professional learning. However, there is little knowledge about theirimplementation among early childhood (EC) teachers in Chilean andLatin American contexts. This article seeks to characterize two PLCscomposed of EC teachers and to analyse, from the participants'perspectives, the experience as a professional learning process. Froma qualitative perspective, a multiple case study was developed. 27 ECteachers participated, 12 from PLC 1 and 15 from PLC 2. Datacollection included nonparticipant observations, interviews and focusgroups. Data were analysed by an open coding process based ongrounded theory. The results show that each PLC highlighted differentaspects related to pedagogical practice, self-care practice, trustand close relationships, and institutional validation. From theteachers' perspective, PLCs contribute to professional learning, interms of fostering complex and critical reflective practice, andcollaborative conceptual learning that promotes not only knowledgeacquisition and construction but is also empowering for teachers.Practical and investigative implications are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This longitudinal case study describes a male Korean English teacher's identity development during two years of compulsory military service. An investment and imagined communities framework undergirded the thematic analysis of emails, mobile messaging, and casual conversations. Three recursive themes emerged: English user, researcher, and hyeong (older brother) identities. The findings indicated the following: Jung's English user identity was manifested in the role of someone who was occasionally asked to perform the task of translating for the U.S. and Korean Armies. His researcher identity reflected his eagerness for further study and interest in academic issues, which was sustained through his interactions with colleagues in the academic community and military comrades. His hyeong identity, the counselor, emerged in response to military colleagues' requests for advice on English learning and the importance of English in Korean society. This study shows the need for increased attention to this under-researched population. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

BackgroundObjectivesMethodsResultsConclusionUnderstanding the relationship between self-efficacy and academic and clinical education outcomes may improve professional physical therapist education.To document the longitudinal responsiveness of Self-Efficacy of Physical Therapist Student Outcomes (SEPTSO) scores from a single cohort throughout a three-year professional physical therapist curriculum and also to explore relationships between SEPTSO, grade point average (GPA), clinical education outcomes, and first-time pass rate on the National Physical Therapy Examination (NPTE).Thirty-five Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT) students participated. The SEPTSO was administered electronically during semesters one and nine. The final GPA, Physical Therapist Manual for the Assessment of Clinical Skills (PT MACS), and NPTE outcomes were recorded.There was a significant increase in SEPTSO scores from semester 1 to 9 (t(16) = 34.55, p < .01, Cohen’s d = 9.79, n = 17). In semester 1 (n = 35), there were no significant associations between SEPTSO scores and GPA (r = .011, p = .949), PT MACS outcomes (r = .092, p = .867), or first-time NPTE pass rate (rs = −0.088, p = .634).Longitudinal responsiveness of the SEPTSO in a three-year DPT curriculum was demonstrated. There were no associations between SEPTSO scores and other outcome measures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

AbstractPurposeMaterials and methodsResultsConclusions\nIMPLICATIONS FOR REHABILITATIONTo explore how healthcare partners in community-based exercise programs for people with balance and mobility limitations perceive and enact referral in the context of their role.We conducted a descriptive, qualitative study involving semi-structured interviews and reflexive thematic analysis.Twelve healthcare partners from the Together In Movement and Exercise (TIMETM) program completed interviews. Seven (58%) participants were clinicians and 5 (42%) held non-clinical roles. The most common professional background of participants was physical therapy (n = 9, 75%). Clinicians made direct referrals while non-clinical participants facilitated referral by promoting the program. The main theme was healthcare partners perceive their role in referrals as secondary to their role as educators and trainers. Subthemes were: (1) healthcare partners fulfill educator and trainer roles when conducting formal training of instructors, educating instructors during program visits, and fielding questions; (2) almost all healthcare partners facilitate referral by sharing program information formally and informally; and (3) healthcare partners in clinical practice make direct referrals depending on the clientele.Healthcare partners perceive their roles as educators and trainers as taking precedence over their role in referrals. Findings can be used to guide selection and training of healthcare partners, design of clinical education programs, and research on competencies.Healthcare partners involved in supporting community-based exercise programs with healthcare-community partnerships (CBEP-HCPs) perceive their role in referrals as secondary to their roles in education, training, and overseeing the programCBEP-HCP program implementation may benefit from the inclusion of additional training and resources for supporting healthcare partners in non-clinical and clinical roles for facilitating referralEntry-to-practice healthcare professional education programs, particularly physical therapy programs, should consider including training on boundary-spanning competencies to prepare healthcare professional students for roles like being a healthcare partnerHealthcare partners involved in supporting community-based exercise programs with healthcare-community partnerships (CBEP-HCPs) perceive their role in referrals as secondary to their roles in education, training, and overseeing the programCBEP-HCP program implementation may benefit from the inclusion of additional training and resources for supporting healthcare partners in non-clinical and clinical roles for facilitating referralEntry-to-practice healthcare professional education programs, particularly physical therapy programs, should consider including training on boundary-spanning competencies to prepare healthcare professional students for roles like being a healthcare partner [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In professional healthcare training programs, field experience after physical courses is essential for students to become professionals. However, the outbreak of the pandemic has restricted such field experience, and so students' problem-solving awareness when facing clinical emergencies in a professional field after graduation has become a critical issue. In conventional teaching, video-based instruction with case-based learning sheets is usually adopted for healthcare training. In this teaching mode, students generally lack opportunities to experience the process of dealing with authentic cases, and hence might be unable to immediately judge and solve problems when entering the workplace. To enhance students' critical thinking and problem-solving awareness, the present study proposed a reflective cycle-based virtual reality (RC-VR) approach to provide a realistic environment and enable repeated practice. To examine its effectiveness, this study adopted a quasi-experimental design and applied it in a healthcare training program for risk assessment of maternal labor. The results indicated that the proposed RC-VR approach effectively enhanced students' learning achievement, sense of presence, critical thinking, and problem-solving awareness in comparison to the conventional teaching approach. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Numerous reviews have synthesized the empirical research on the effectiveness of teacher education, highlighting teacher education effectiveness research (TEER) as an emerging research paradigm. Our systematic search identified 27 reviews related to TEER, wherein teacher education is broadly understood as comprising all stages of teacher professionalization—namely, initial teacher education, teacher induction, and teacher professional development. In reviewing these reviews, we carry out a synthesis of existing research on TEER. Guided by four research questions (RQ), we focused major frameworks (RQ1), outcome measures (RQ2), processes (RQ3), and central research gaps (RQ4). Highlights: Only few reviews provide a background or macro framing, whereas most reviews apply TEER for examining a specific topic (RQ1); outcome measures often relate to the notion of teacher competence, making increased competence the true outcome of TEER (RQ2); coursework is the most dominant category of characteristics-forming processes (RQ3); the frameworks underlying the outcome measures appear to be an object of criticism on a theoretical but even more on a methodological level. Building on these findings, we suggest a processes-and-criteria classification (PCC) grounded in basic distinctions of the various studies synthesized by the reviews. We discuss perspectives on how this classification may provide an orientation for future TEER studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this opinion piece I present a brief introduction to embodiment and offer practical examples of embodied pedagogy. My overarching argument is that embodiment theory and practice merit a paradigmatic status in higher education pedagogies and a sub-theme is that using embodiment as a foundation for pedagogic praxis is usefully done in collaboration with the wealth of embodiment professionals working in different embodiment modalities across the globe. This piece includes some of the observations and practices I have encountered from such professionals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]