Search

In UK Higher Education (HE), there is a growing awareness that wellbeing is central to student experience. Increasingly, HE agendas are promoting a targeted holistic institutional approach to wellbeing that supports students thrive in and beyond the student journey. This study positions students as experts of the student experience. Through student voice, the study explores teacher education students' experiences as a product of the synergistic effects of wellbeing and eco-systemic factors related to remote learning. In turn, findings feed into programme and practice developments that support positive student wellbeing. A conventional Delphi Method was used for its effectiveness addressing four different conditions: (1) accessing geographically dispersed populations; (2) overcoming unequal power dynamics; (3) supporting structured communication between experts on a topic leading to consensus building and decision making; and (4) engaging students as co-producers of practice to support positive wellbeing. Our findings provide new insight into the multiplicity of factors that interact with student wellbeing to benefit, challenge, or threaten student experience and the coping resources teacher education students rely on to maintain their education trajectories. These insights provide valuable understanding informing future teacher education programming and practice.

Parents of children with Down syndrome (DS) were interviewed about if their experiences raising their children matched their initial assumptions about parenting a child with DS. A dominant narrative was identified, wherein most parents described initially having negative assumptions, which did not come to fruition; parenting their child was not very different from parenting a typical child. There was also a sub-group of participants who disputed the dominant narrative; parenting their child was challenging and the dominant narrative marginalizes that experience. The findings indicate that although for many parents, having a child with DS is like "taking the scenic route" (i.e., it involves a few more hurdles, but often more rewards), this framing is not always applicable. Therefore, health care providers and support organizations should promote a narrative that encompasses the diversity of parenting a child with DS.

This paper reports findings from a longitudinal qualitative study that explored the ethnographic learning processes of 10 modern languages students who spent one full academic year abroad, having first completed successfully an "Introduction to Ethnography" course in the UK. It begins from the argument that although significant attempts have been made to integrate ethnography into modern languages undergraduate degree programmes, relatively little is known about its actual impact on modern languages sojourners. Drawing on active interviews and reflective diaries that were designed to investigate this impact from shortly before participants embarked on their year abroad to the moment they returned, the thematic and critical discourse analysis of the data focuses attention on two key themes: students' perceptions of their host cultures and the impact of ethnography on students' perceptions. Findings from the first theme reveal that participants' perceptions were derogatory and that they used a number of mitigating discourse strategies to avoid creating a negative impression on the researchers. Findings from the second theme suggest that ethnography made little impact on most participants, given that their derogatory perceptions of the "foreign other" remained almost intact throughout the year abroad. The paper discusses possible reasons for these findings, arguing that the contextual nature of ethnographic inquiry does not always enable modern languages sojourners to dismantle the cultural generalisations they may make.

Twenty-first century graduates need to have the aptitude to be critical thinkers and capacity to make balanced judgements. The undergraduate dissertation (capstone/independent research project) is normally undertaken at the end of the degree programme enabling students to demonstrate their ability to apply, analysis, synthesis and evaluate their knowledge. Despite the pedagogical importance of the dissertation and the implication of them for the undergraduate student experience, much of the literature on dissertations focuses on: design, structure and implementation; teaching and learning strategies; assessment criteria and marking standards; and, students' development of subject-specific skills, personal attributes and transferable skills. However, the question remains how best to support and motivate undergraduate students in the final stages of the dissertation "write-up" process. This paper investigates and assesses the use of "writing retreats" within the final stages of the undergraduate dissertation process. Despite the benefits of writing retreats, they have to date typically only been offered to academic and research staff and postgraduate research students but not undergraduate students. This paper demonstrates that writing retreats are a feasible intervention tool that facilitates attitudinal changes, such as enhanced motivation, increased confidence and a more positive outlook on the final writing process of their independent research projects.

In 2014, the Undergraduate Research Initiative at the University of Saskatchewan implemented a pilot project to organize, support, and promote curriculum-based research experience as an integral aspect of participating first-year courses. The framework for the course-based initiative was the research arc; usually in groups, students in these classes would develop a research question, investigate it using discipline-appropriate methodologies, and disseminate the results. Nine classes (Agriculture, Animal Bioscience, Environmental Science, Women's and Gender Studies, Psychology, Kinesiology, and Interdisciplinary Studies) participated in this program pilot. There were four key agents in the program: faculty instructors, research coaches, students in participating first-year classes, and university administrative staff. This preliminary evaluation of the pilot suggests that first-year undergraduate research experiences have potential to benefit the undergraduate student participants as well as the faculty and research coaches involved. The primary benefits that faculty reported experiencing included an increased interest in ways to engage learners, reexamination of and reflection on their teaching strategies, the pragmatic support of a research coach helping with their work load, and an invigoration of their research. The primary benefits to research coaches included enhancement of their professional skills, experience in lesson planning and facilitation, CV building, and an ideology shift in how to best facilitate learning for undergraduate students. The most prominent benefits for undergraduate students appeared to be that they gained a better idea about how researchers think and work, that they increased their understanding of how research works, and that their own research and professional skills had improved. Early, bottom-up evaluation identified characteristics of implementation that appear to best facilitate achievement of the initiative's outcomes and identified the potential pitfall of imposing outcomes, from related but distinct initiatives, that may not be achievable or optimal in in the setting of first-year classes. The results of this evaluation suggest that rather than gaining clarity or focus, first-year students in course-based research experiences might gain awareness of their personal potential, of the potential of research, and of their career/educational options.

This paper presents a compilation of personal reflections from 66 contributors on the impact of, and responses to, COVID-19 in accounting education in 45 different countries around the world. It reveals a commonality of issues, and a variability in responses, many positive outcomes, including the creation of opportunities to realign learning and teaching strategies away from the comfort of traditional formats, but many more that are negative, primarily relating to the impact on faculty and student health and well-being, and the accompanying stress. It identifies issues that need to be addressed in the recovery and redesign stages of the management of this crisis, and it sets a new research agenda for studies in accounting education.

Solos have a long history in outdoor learning (education) for their use in 'wilderness' settings. They have been theorised in experiential education literature and through phenomenological concepts where dwelling and solitude provide unstructured time for individual reflection. Place-Based Education provides opportunities for educators to develop place-responsive practices in areas local to where people live, work and study. This paper reports on an exploratory investigation into a Masters-level course. Students were required to undertake an 'urban solo' in a familiar place and consider how ontological disruption might be nurtured in city-based locations. Six students participated in semi-structured interviews which were then analysed thematically using a constructivist grounded theory approach. Findings revealed that their solo experiences had had a profound and unexpected effect on all students. These changes seemed to occur as the result of an ontological shift in the students from being passive receptors of stimuli to engaging more actively with their surroundings. We concluded that, because of its simplicity and close proximity to school grounds, the urban solo is one way for teachers to overcome the barriers they consistently report to outdoor learning. We recommend that future studies draw further on urban theorists to develop more city-based, place-responsive practices.

Although the behaviour of young people is often a focus for concern, most young people do as they are asked. This paper presents findings from a qualitative study across four educational settings that set out to explore reasons for this compliance. Forty-four young people (aged 12--21) participated in interactive focus groups and 21 practitioners were interviewed. A critical exploration of the authority relationships between the young people and the participating adults was undertaken. The research was designed to explore the relevance of the typology of authority relationships proposed by Dennis Wrong for educational settings. The findings confirmed the applicability of his work; however, the paper argues that an additional basis for authority relationships characterised by 'care and commitment' should be included. The results suggest the potential for long-term caring relationships, authenticity and professional competence as key factors in enhancing compliance in educational settings.

Journal rankings lists have impacted and are impacting accounting educators and accounting education researchers around the world. Nowhere is the impact positive. It ranges from slight constraints on academic freedom to admonition, censure, reduced research allowances, non-promotion, non-short-listing for jobs, increased teaching loads, and re-designation as a non-researcher, all because the chosen research specialism of someone "who was vocationally motivated to become a teacher of accounting" is, ironically, accounting education. University managers believe that these journal ranking lists show that accounting faculty publish top-quality research on accounting regulation, financial markets, business finance, auditing, international accounting, management accounting, taxation, accounting in society, and more, but not on what they do in their "day job"--teaching accounting. These same managers also believe that the journal ranking lists indicate that accounting faculty do not publish top-quality research in accounting history and accounting systems. And they also believe that journal ranking lists show that accounting faculty write top-quality research in education, history, and systems, but only if they publish it in specialist journals that do not have the word "accounting" in their title, or in mainstream journals that do. Tarring everyone with the same brush because of the journal in which they publish is inequitable. We would not allow it in other walks of life. It is time the discrimination ended.

This paper presents an exploratory study into the nature and patterns of usage of accounting education research. The study adopts the most accessible metric, "Google Advanced Scholar" citations, to analyse the impact of research published in the six principal English-language accounting education journals. The analysis reveals a global readership for these journals but evidence of relatively low citation levels. However, papers tended to be cited more than expected in cross-disciplinary education journals, discipline-specific education journals, and non-education journals. Guidance is offered to authors seeking to maximise the impact of their research, and issues of concern are identified for editors and publishers. This is the first paper to look beyond content at the usefulness of research in accounting education as indicated by citations. In doing so, it contributes to the current debate on the quality of this research, and of research in accounting and finance in general.

While internationally there is a growing body of work investigating mainstreaming of English as an additional language (EAL), this topic has not featured strongly in research in the United Kingdom, and there are only a few studies that focus on the extent to which government policies and prescriptions concerning EAL students are actually being implemented in everyday practice. Addressing this gap, the current paper gives an account of the findings of a study which involved 22 student-teachers reporting on their observations concerning EAL policies and practices, across 66 placements in 47 schools in eight local authorities and in five independent schools. These student-teachers had taken part in an EAL course which sensitised them to issues surrounding EAL learners in mainstream classrooms and positioned them as informed observers. Their reports appear to reveal that the needs of EAL learners across Scotland are not being met to a sufficient degree, despite the fact that legislation is in place which requires local authorities and schools to ensure that all learners have appropriate access to the curriculum. Possible reasons for this state of affairs and ways in which progress could be achieved are considered in the concluding discussion. (Contains 1 note and 2 tables.)

From the 1990s the professional preparation of intending teachers in Scotland moved from monotechnic colleges to seven university schools of education. "Universitisation" (Menter et al. 2006) created new opportunities for the creative adaptation of work cultures to value teaching and research. New appointments are expected to demonstrate research potential and to hold higher degrees. The need to build research capacity "in" and "for" teacher education is a recognised international priority and is particularly important given the demographic profile of the UK educational research community (Mills et al. 2006). Through a series of 19 semi-structured interviews in two schools of education located in research intensive universities in Scotland during 2009-10, this research explored: (1) the experiences and tactics of emerging researchers with teacher education roles; and (2) institutional strategies to promote research engagement and development. This small-scale exploratory study identifies diversity within the "academic tribes" of teacher education (Bechler and Trowler 2001; Menter 2011) and suggests that research audits, in combination with political and economic influences on teacher education, may increase the bifurcation of research and teaching, inhibiting possibilities for productive interchange. A recalibration of school-university partnerships is suggested as one strategy to advance research-engaged professional education.

Previous research into student teachers' knowledge about language concluded that overall the picture was fairly bleak. Such research focused on the knowledge about language that the student teachers possessed when they moved from secondary school education into Initial Teacher Education (ITE) programmes. However, few studies have investigated the impact of the increasing demands on teachers, made in curricular documents throughout the last 20 years, to improve students' abilities in language and whether student teachers' knowledge about language had improved as a result of these curricular imperatives. This article reports on research into perceived and actual levels of knowledge about language conducted in a university in Scotland with students training to be primary teachers and secondary English and modern language teachers. Findings reveal that student teachers' levels of linguistic knowledge, as measured by the instrument employed in this study, are generally low contrasting with their own more positive perceptions of their competence.

This article reports on part of a wider study in which a group of teachers opted for a new model of continuing professional development (CPD) that was offered by one local authority (LA) in Scotland. In collaboration with the LA, the teachers selected the topic of critical literacy and the critical pedagogies that develop from a critical literacy approach. This CPD, which involved teachers, LA representatives and university lecturers, lasted two years and comprised a combination of sessions with all participants, focused input in participants' schools on topics of their own choosing and individual support as their critical literacy projects developed. Data were gathered from in-depth interviews with participants and the teaching programmes they produced. Analysis revealed that, despite experiencing some difficulties with declarative knowledge, participants demonstrated secure procedural knowledge in their own teaching projects which revealed clearly their understanding of the transformative nature of critical pedagogical approaches. Participants reported very high levels of satisfaction with the CPD model and its content and delivery, and found it transformative in that it shaped and centrally informed their subsequent pedagogical practices and the learning opportunities they created for their students. These findings are discussed and recommendations are made.

Extending the scope of prior research, this study examines perceptions of the costs and benefits of professional accounting body affiliation in the transition from student to practitioner. The study employs data obtained from 275 students and 508 practitioners and reports differences in respect of the importance placed on various costs and benefits associated with affiliation. Findings show it is important to avoid a "one-size-fits-all" approach to attracting and retaining members and that the needs and aspirations of tomorrow's accountants are different from those of experienced professional accountants. Implications for brand development and member recruitment and retention strategies are discussed.

This study is an analysis of the impact on students of their experience of an alternative placement. The placement was run with Year 2 students on a three-year undergraduate initial teacher education degree programme (primary, 3-11) in England. The placement enabled students to have a practical teaching experience in any setting outside the age phase they were training to teach. The analysis is based on a cohort evaluation of the placement (170 students). Data were collected in two ways: through students' written reflections and their identification of the standards required for Qualified Teacher Status that they experienced. This approach was selected owing to the strong expectations by the UK Government to meet set criteria to qualify as a teacher. There is one direct reference in the standards to learning outside the classroom, but it was found that the students considered they had benefited from the alternative placement by offering opportunities for their professional and personal development in many more areas. The research study found that these areas included learning from other experts, working with colleagues, gaining confidence to teach, experiencing other cultural settings, working with children in informal settings, the importance of personalising learning and, in some cases, experiencing second language teaching. (Contains 1 table.)

Objective: This study examined students' perceptions of and suggestions for the Northern Fruit and Vegetable Program, a free, school-based fruit and vegetable snack program implemented in elementary schools in 2 regions of northern Ontario, Canada. Methods: This was a qualitative study involving 18 focus groups with students in 11 elementary schools in the Porcupine region and 7 schools in the Algoma region. One hundred thirty-nine students from grades 5-8 participated in this study. Inductive content analysis was used to identify key themes. Results: Children perceived the Northern Fruit and Vegetable Program to be a valuable program that allowed them to try new fruits and vegetables (FVs). Participants stated they now eat more FVs at home and at school. Participants would like the program offered more frequently and with more variety. Conclusions and Implications: Although children identified several areas for program improvement, they generally perceived the program to be positive and valuable in promoting FV consumption. (Contains 3 tables.)

Children with developmental coordination disorder (DCD) experience difficulty coping with everyday demands due to difficulties in performing motor tasks. Recently, a cognitive learning paradigm has been applied to studying the nature of the problems experienced by children with DCD, which assumes that these children have fewer cognitive and metacognitive skills with which to acquire motor skills. However, despite the emergence of such cognitive models, individual differences in children's use of self-regulatory and metacognitive skill during motor learning have received little research attention. The aim of this review article was to examine the roots of this emerging field of research, locate it within the larger body of metacognitive and self-regulation literature, and examine some of the preliminary work that has been conducted on the role of self-regulation and metacognition in motor learning and in the motor performance difficulties of children with DCD.

In 2005, Alan Sangster, looking for a new challenge, widened his career focus to include accounting history, which at that time, was considered a vibrant and high quality field in which to work. At all stages of his career since his first academic appointment, his promotion, salary rises, and appointments had all been obtained largely on the basis of the quality of his research. Sangster discovered that despite having 12 refereed publications and a book on ERP systems implementation published, he was omitted from a list of possible and probable entrants to the UK's 2014 Research Excellence Framework (REF) exercise, designed to assess the quality of research across all UK universities. The reason for that omission was that none of the outlets for his research was rated above two in the "ABS Journal Quality Guide" ("ABS Guide"). The reason why this was the case was that his accounting history and accounting education papers were all published in specialist journals in those fields, none of which is deemed to be above a two in the "ABS Guide", and that his book was "irrelevant" as books are not included in the "ABS Guide". Sangster argues that the "ABS Guide" is divisive, biased, and quite clearly fallible, particularly with respect to journals specializing in accounting education and accounting history, never mind all the outlets it ignores because it does not recognize their existence.

This paper reports on observational approaches developed within a UK study to the identification and assessment of metacognition and self-regulation in young children in the 3-5 year age range. It is argued that the development of observational tools, although containing methodological difficulties, allows us to make more valid assessments of children's metacognitive and self-regulatory abilities in this age group. The analysis of 582 metacognitive or self-regulatory videotaped "events" is described, including the development of a coding framework identifying verbal and non-verbal indicators. The construction of an observational instrument, the Children's Independent Learning Development (CHILD 3-5) checklist, is also reported together with evidence of the reliability with which it can be used by classroom teachers and early indications of its external validity as a measure of metacognition and self-regulation in young children. Given the educational significance of children's development of metacognitive and self-regulatory skills, it is argued that the development of such an instrument is potentially highly beneficial. The establishment of the metacognitive and self-regulatory capabilities of young children by means of the kinds of observational tools developed within this study also has clear and significant implications for models and theories of metacognition and self-regulation. The paper concludes with a discussion of these implications.

Previous research into listening has tended to focus on individual processing rather than on how sociocultural contexts mediate the nature and quality of listening. This article draws on a study involving observations of listening lessons conducted by ten English teachers regarded as skilled practitioners, interviews with these teachers and with 40 of their students. It focuses on presenting interview findings which point to the need to take account in any discussion of listening of the varied and complex demands of social transactions and of the norms governing these transactions in particular classroom settings.

Examines the ways in which IT (information technology) can support and facilitate the learner in the workplace and suggests that work-based learning can correct the failure of academia to respond to the requirements of modern industry. Discusses the concept of work-based learning and the development of lifelong learning capabilities. (Author/LRW)

Investigates cross-cultural differences in values and attitudes toward nuclear war between 336 Caucasian and 67 American Indian adolescents in the rural Pacific Northwest. Implications of value ranking differences and differing attitudes about nuclear war, the nuclear freeze, and escalation of war are discussed in their cultural contexts. (SLD)

The structure of the national numeracy strategy (1999) has ensured that whole-class teaching has become a significant feature of the primary mathematics lesson. It is the section of the lesson where children are introduced to new mathematics and therefore there is a need to make it effective. In this article, the author describes her small-scale research project involving the observation and analysis of 33 student teachers' lessons. Sixteen of these were mathematics lessons. The purpose was to see what factors were involved in engaging pupils in the whole-class teaching section of the lesson and whether there was any sense in the idea of quickening the pace of the lesson. Of the 33 lessons, 13 could have been more effective in terms of children's engagement. Drawing upon an exploratory approach to research, a list of nine main features was drawn up from the observations. Some features were present and some absent in all situations, indicating that success is a complex weave of many skills occurring simultaneously, but the more engaging lessons were found to be where the student teacher addressed more of these features. These nine features are discussed, based on observational data from the research. These are: (1) strong presence/control; (2) quality questioning and "wait" time; (3) contribution from the children; (4) appropriate level of difficulty; (5) good timing; (6) well-organised resources; (7) clarity of explanation/expectation; (8) stimulating content; and (9) sufficient content.

A survey of patients in one medical center family practice residency looked at patient satisfaction in terms of: adequacy of explanations and time spent with the physician, comfort in expressing concerns about the teaching program, attitudes toward the teaching program, and availability of their physician. (MSE)

Examines depository library legislation in Peru, the current state of publications availability, and plans for a national system. Declines in book publishing, proliferation of pirated publications, and lack of a national center for distribution of publications are discussed. (RAA)

As with much in life the term "investigative", when used to describe an approach to teaching and learning, can have many interpretations. Some might consider that the term "investigations" is somehow "mired in the past", others might consider "investigations" to be a "credo" that sustains their own mathematics teaching and learning. With contemporary talk of "curriculum pressure", the demand for "results", and the "lack of time in the classroom" default positions and strategies can lose sight of the need for learners to understand. Here the case for an "investigative approach" is explained, and illustrated in a way which provides ideas that have the potential to enliven the learning any mathematics classroom.