Search

This study describes the planning activities of 12 in-service elementary school teachers in Quebec. Theureau's (2006) course-of-action theory was used to document the teachers' life course relating to their planning activities over an entire school year. Semi-directed interviews were conducted using authentic planning materials (agendas, workbooks, schedules, etc.) used by teachers in order to describe their activity as it unfolds over time. The results show that teachers for all school subjects concurrently, mainly differ according to the timeframe involved (short, medium, long-term). Their concerns remain largely unchanged over the three timeframes, except that they are fleshed out in more detail for the short term, particularly with regard to the complexity of taking into account the pupils' characteristics, the teachers' situation and the collaborative nature of these activities. Results also describe how their planning activities are supported by multiple actions and communications over an entire school year.

Given the effort invested in workplace professional development programs, professional learning, as it takes place in context, should be examined closely to help inform the design of training mechanisms that will truly contribute to professional development. In particular, given the interest and growth in the use of video for the development of reflective practice among professionals, it appears relevant to further examine video-based mechanisms. Teacher education constitutes a fertile ground in this regard. This article thus presents a literature review on the use of video for the professional development of teachers, particularly regarding their ability to reflect on their own teaching practices. To this end, 89 articles were analyzed to bring out the participants' learning, in terms of both the learning process itself and its effects. Our findings show that video-based training mechanisms lead to significant learning, at least in the medium term, but that the collaborative dimension of learning could be further explored.

Make-believe play (MBP) provides kindergarteners with an authentic form of engagement that is particularly favourable to the development of oral and written language. As part of an action research study, an activity-oriented professional development (PD) program incorporating video was established to provide kindergarten teachers with guidance on their teaching practices in MBP situations. The findings show changes in the participant's PD trajectories. These findings provide direction as to how teachers who wish to implement more MBP practices in the classroom to promote language development in children can be supported within the framework of such a program. For instance, the results match those of previous research as regards whether a program that uses evidence such as videos would be more effective in leading a participant to effect changes in their PD. The results also indicate that PD programs cannot be exclusively collective or individual, but benefit from combining the two approaches. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Elementary teachers are expected to teach complex and authentic lessons and integrating multiple disciplines. In so doing, they must take many elements into account, such as disciplinary content, learning standards, and pedagogical knowledge, in an ever more complex environment, including pupils' increasingly heterogeneous characteristics. Our study aims to understand a beginning teacher's classroom activity in the context of a research-training program involving the use of video. The teacher involved was observed giving a science lesson (on buoyancy in a fourth-grade classroom) and then took part in two interviews involving self-confrontation with researchers at 1-week intervals, returning to the classroom between these interviews. Specifically, this article presents a program aimed at training and mentoring a beginning elementary school teacher using video recordings of her classroom activities in Quebec, Canada. The analysis describes the teacher's experience during this training process. In particular, the results indicate that the teacher's participation in this training program changed her concerns related to science education at the elementary level. Her focus shifted from classroom management (e.g., managing hands-on activities in science education and pupils' interactions) to supporting an approach favoring scientific inquiry that truly engages pupils and is anchored in sociotechnical controversies.

To identify clinicians' perceptions of current levels of implementation of cognitive rehabilitation best practices, as well as individual and consensual group priorities for implementing cognitive rehabilitation interventions as part of a multi-site integrated knowledge translation initiative. A two-step consensus-building methodology was used, that is the Technique for Research of Information by Animation of a Group of Experts (TRIAGE), including a cross-sectional electronic survey followed by consensual in-person group discussions to identify implementation priorities from a list of evidence-based practices for cognitive rehabilitation following traumatic brain injury and stroke. Thirty-eight professionals from three rehabilitation teams (n = 9, 13 and 16) participated, including neuropsychologists, occupational therapists, speech-language pathologists, educators, clinical coordinators and program managers. Descriptive statistics were used to document the perceived levels of implementation as well as individual and consensual group priorities. Most of the best practices (81–100%) were perceived as at least partially implemented by a minimum of 50% of the participants but only 20–25% of the practices were considered fully implemented. Findings suggest that current practices are mostly consistent with general cognitive rehabilitation principles suggested in guidelines but that further efforts are needed to support the application of specific cognitive rehabilitation strategies and interventions. Executive function and self-awareness retraining, as well as interventions promoting the generalization of skills, were among the highest implementation priorities. Consensual in-person group discussions, included as part of the TRIAGE process, also helped to define and operationalize these best practices into more specific intervention components according to the teams' needs and priorities. TRIAGE consensus-building methodology can be used to engage stakeholders and support clinicians' decision-making regarding the identification of implementation priorities in cognitive rehabilitation post-ABI in order to tailor the implementation process to local needs. The Technique for Research of Information by Animation of a Group of Experts (TRIAGE) can be used to support clinicians' decision-making regarding the identification of implementation priorities in cognitive rehabilitation post-ABI. The combination of individual consultations followed by consensual in-person group discussions, as part of the TRIAGE process, may help clinicians in defining and operationalizing best practices into more specific intervention components to implement. Effective implementation strategies are needed to support the use of specific cognitive rehabilitation interventions in prioritized areas, such as executive function and self-awareness retraining, as well as generalization of skills. Some differences in clinicians' perceived priorities point up the importance of tailoring implementation to local needs and contexts from the early stages in the process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The person-centered approach is increasingly recommended in long-term care facilities to increase quality of care. In Quebec, Canada,. caregivers were specifically trained in "relationship-based care. "This study analyzed caregivers' assessment of this approach's usefulness and their capacity, after training, to apply it to care practices. Questionnaires with open-ended questions were administered to caregivers (n= 392) one month after training. Caregivers' answers were categorized using a qualitative approach. Respondents perceive some features of this approach are beyond their reach or in opposition to their beliefs. They reported feeling pressure related to time constraints, their peers and the families of residents. These results indicate that training itself is insufficient to transform practice. Institutions wishing to implement such an approach must also act upon the beliefs of individuals, as well as upon work situations.