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Although the expansion of the language education domain at higher institutions in Malaysia saw active incorporation of the validity, reliability, impact, practicality and quality (VRIPQ) framework; the aligning of English curriculum to the Common European Framework of Reference (CEFR) model and the increased embrace of English for Specific Purposes (ESP) principles, language educators still need to address issues to ensure the courses are well managed and the intended outcomes are achieved. All these take place within the backdrop of continuous lament and outcry from the employers and the public on graduates' lack of command and mastery of language and communication skills. In addition,the roles of language educators at tertiary level have become more complex as 21st century education and sustainable development goals (SDGs) demand elements of critical thinking, creativity, innovation, awareness and integrity to be incorporated in the curriculum so that these traits could be internalised in the undergraduates. These complex set of goals, expected outcomes and demands to be addressed, raise the questions on the ways and approaches to be undertaken in managing the English language courses in terms of content development, assessments and delivery. This qualitative study aims to investigate the ways in which key English educators manage the ESP courses they offer at their respective institutions, the factors that govern their management practices and the challenges that they face and mitigate to ensure course effectiveness. By exploring all these, strategies for a continuous improvement of ESP courses could be identified and put forth. Nine senior English educators holding various key designations from three engineering and technical related public universities participated in the study by providing qualitative inputs in the form of self-reflections, perceptions, opinions and anecdotal evidence to interview questions on the managing of the ESP courses and the assessment components. This study found that the managing of the ESP courses offered at the universities calls for a multi-dimensional approach due to the diverse nature of the English language, the learners' profile, the contextualisations and the challenges to be mitigated. This study unearthed a multitude of factors and educational realities that governed the educators' practices in managing ESP courses. The multi-dimensional managing efforts demonstrated by educators also reflected a range of conformity to best practices in ESP and assessment principles. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Entrepreneurial Education and the objective of fostering an Entrepreneurial Mindset have been extensively researched the last decades. So far, the main focus has been the end result of Entrepreneurial Education, namely venture creation, and more specifically venture creation through formal or core curriculum University education. Taking a different approach, this study explores the Entrepreneurial Education and the promotion of Entrepreneurial Mindset as well as of entrepreneurial competencies through extra-curriculum activities. More specifically, it uses the “Inter-Departmental Entrepreneurial Assignment” (IDEA) organized by the Athens University of Economics and Business (AUEB) as a case study, employing a quantitative method. IDEA is a semester - long extra-curriculum activity focused on Entrepreneurial Education, involving undergraduate students from different departments. Employing two distinct, complementary questionnaires, one pre and one post, we explore how Entrepreneurial Education influenced the students focusing on a set of specific entrepreneurial competences. More specifically, through this study we aim to gain a better understanding of how such extracurriculum, University provided Entrepreneurial Education focused on students’ entrepreneurial competencies, can influence the Entrepreneurial Mindset and the entrepreneurial way of thinking. Moreover, instead of venture creation, we focus on how Entrepreneurial Education may foster entrepreneurial competencies and a way of thinking that can be beneficial in all life aspects regardless the ultimate field of employment. Finally, this study may serve as the first step towards more research on different kinds of extra-curriculum activities and their impact, not only on entrepreneurial competences, but also on the cultivation of entrepreneurial emotions and an entrepreneurial way of living. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Four pillars of learning identified in the UNESCO report in 1996 include four “L”s: Learning to know, Learning to do, Learning to live together, and Learning to be. Since then educators have been discussing how four pillars of learning can affect 21st century’s curriculum. Evidently, space-related education is based on traditional type curriculum. Therefore, integration of new approaches in aerospace engineering and science curriculum is often challenging. This paper argues that transdisciplinary and project-based approach can be used in building innovative aerospace engineering and other space-related disciplines core curricula. The paper proposes using SDTP/MSIP projects as foundation for creating multi-disciplinary curricula in different universities and countries. The proposed methodology includes pilot team projects performed during two-week summer workshop, task diversification between participating universities, comprehensive individual studies (analysis), and joint findings reports (synthesis). Such approach is proposed to be tested during SDTP-2017 and in 2017-2018 academic year in Russia (MGTU) and USA (University of Houston). The paper concludes with an analysis of potential opportunities and complications for the development and integration of presented academic strategy to increase adaptability of diverse hands-on experiences into already established educational programs in Russia and the US. In a summary, a platform for further inquiry into multi-disciplinary academic strategies is discussed for more in-depth investigation in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Obligatory exercise, mandatory activity and work requirement are all examples of terms describing the same phenomenon in higher Norwegian education: Something a student needs to pass in order to get access to an exam. In this paper we call them mandatory coursework in alignment with relevant existing research. Some argue that mandatory coursework assignments can, and should, be eliminated. Before we can discuss this within Norwegian IT education, we need to know to what extent mandatory coursework is in use. A course description should describe any mandatory coursework within a course. In this paper we present extracted data from course descriptions from 12 institutions delivering IT education in Norway. The data tells us the frequency in which mandatory coursework is in use, the different types used, how many there are, in what stages within a study programme they are most commonly in use and the variation between the 12 institutions. The results tell us that mandatory coursework to a large extent is in use in Norwegian IT education, although there are significant variations among the different institutions. The most common coursework are labs, assignments and submissions, but participation is also quite common. Mandatory coursework is in use in both bachelor and master programmes with year one in a study as the most coursework intensive. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Though teacher preparation programs include university coursework and fieldwork in K-12 school settings, they are often disparate experiences. This group of mathematics teacher educators (MTEs) has been working to integrate these preparation efforts by purposefully designing coursework around McDonald et al.'s (2013) learning cycle to include mediated field experiences. Such experiences are embedded within public school classrooms and are organized around core teaching practices so that pre-service teachers (PSTs) engage in authentic learning; they learn mathematics and ways to teach mathematics through the act of teaching. Our goals as a working group are to establish cross-cutting and essential features of these mediated field experiences and identify future research questions and ways to standardize data collection to create clear lines of investigation to explore the impacts of such experiences. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We propose a working group that will bring mathematics education researchers together to explore how immersive spatial display technologies (e.g., room scale virtual reality) can be used for the teaching and learning of mathematics. The sessions will provide participants with the opportunity to explore a range of virtual worlds that are accessible via the HTC Vive, including mathematics-specifics environments that were designed by session organizers. The working group will provide a venue where participants can work together to plan research studies, discuss instructional activities, and design virtual environments for making and exploring mathematical figures. Our group aims to look ahead to a time in the near future-when immersive spatial displays are as commonplace as mobile phones-and anticipate the research, design, and development that can guide how these technologies will be integrated into schools. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To investigate performance differences between undergraduate mathematics students whose instructors implemented an inquiry-oriented curriculum and those whose instructors did not, we analyzed 513 content assessments. The data was disaggregated by gender to examine how inquiry-oriented instruction relates to the pattern of underrepresentation of women in mathematics. While we detected no gender performance-gap in a national comparison sample, we did find one in the inquiry-oriented group. Notably, this gap came from male inquiry-oriented students outperforming male students from the comparison group, while female inquiry-oriented students performed the same as female students from the comparison group. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper we discuss an epistemological framework rooted in a dialectic ontology of social, historical, and spatial dimensions. The framework is designed to make explicit the intersecting sociocultural, critical, quantitative, and spatial ways of knowing the world, which are inherent in mathematics education and quantitative learning environments more broadly. The intersection of these ways of knowing the world are discussed and then considered in relation to teacher education. We posit this framework could be powerful for both designing learning experiences for pre-service mathematics teachers and for making explicit to pre-service teachers a lens for making sense of their own future classroom environments to enact a more just and comprehensive mathematics curriculum. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We examine connections between teacher education coursework and teaching actions. In particular, we looked at one unit of instruction addressing collective argumentation in a pedagogy course and how two student teachers supported collective argumentation in their placements during the following semester. The student teachers' support for collective argumentation aligned with their interpretations of the unit on argumentation, reflecting their slightly different emphases of the role of the teacher in facilitating student participation and focusing on the goal of the argument. Our results suggest prospective teachers' interpretations of coursework can be reflected in their practice, even in student teaching. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this brief research report, we examine shifts in the attitudes of pre-service teachers related to Indigenizing the mathematics curriculum through the lens of positioning theory. Written responses were examined and examples of obscuring agency, reframing of mathematics, retemporalizing and repersonalizing and more openness to rethinking attitudes emerged. By analyzing attitudes of pre-service teachers we can begin to have productive conversations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The subject matter and many concepts in astronomy are abstract and underlie itsmathematical complexity. The apparent motion of the stars and planets in our sky is difficult to comprehend. Acelestial sphere is commonly used to describe the motions of the stars and planets in the sky. Having students construct a physical model of acelestial sphere rather than exploring a given model is useful to help them understand the motions in the sky. This article describes the process of building asimple celestial sphere to help students understand the motions of the stars in the sky. All of the materials used are inexpensive and readily available. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Teaching ergonomic design to undergraduate students can be challenging. One effective strategy for teaching ergonomic design is to incorporate the conceptual, technical, and procedural foundations of ergonomics into the design of products. In this paper, we discuss the integration of Computer Aided Design (CAD) and Digital Human Modeling (DHM) to improve the understanding of ergonomic principles among undergraduate students. The curriculum of two undergraduate courses, Product Design and Work Design, were revised to include a course project that combines concepts from both courses to assess students' knowledge of ergonomic design. The Product Design course focuses on the principles required for designing a product and developing the specifications for its components. The Work Design course focuses on ergonomic analysis and design of workplace and job. Students were asked to create different CAD designs for a single-channel pipette while considering ergonomics and then evaluate the designs using DHM. The design process involves gathering of customer requirements, identifying product specifications, generating design concepts, evaluating the designs, and selecting the best design. Results show that students' design skills can be greatly enhanced by integrating the two courses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Engineering for non-engineers is being taught successfully at the college level. While this has been done at individual institutions and there is a large community of interest, the practice has not become widespread. Based on the experiences of people who have taught these courses, issues keeping engineering from becoming part of every college student's education include finding a place for engineering in the general core curriculum, finding faculty to teach the course, rewards for faculty, resources, and course materials. Of these, the critical issue is finding a place in the curriculum. Pressure from outside the academic community is needed to drive changes in university core requirements. In the 1990s, a push came from the National Science Foundation (NSF) and the National Academy of Engineering (NAE) to make it a national priority to increase the technological literacy of the general public in the United States. Without much fanfare or attention, people at colleges and universities across the United States and beyond have been engaged in teaching non-engineers about engineering for many years. Under different names, people have developed programs ranging from individual courses to minors and even graduate level programs in the belief that all people should know more about engineering and the technology that engineers create and manage. To be prepared for the future, people need to know something about engineering. While good models have been developed for teaching people about these subjects, it has not become part of the general core curriculum at the college level. This paper will discuss barriers that must be overcome for the practice of teaching every student about engineering widespread. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents recommendations for the design of a leadership development program that will help to develop ethical leaders. The need for ethics in leaders is well-recognized in the existing literature. As organizations work to develop leaders, they need to focus on incorporating ethics into their leadership development programs. This can be accomplished through the incorporation of training on ethical perspectives, providing ethical decision making tools, and promoting ethical leadership theories and values. Incorporating these elements of ethics into the curriculum of a leadership development program can help organizations to build a strong ethical foundation in their leaders and provide them with the tools necessary to make ethical decisions and act in an ethical manner throughout their leadership career. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Due to the increased attention given to statistics in the school curriculum over the last several decades, there is a need to study the attitudes and beliefs of secondary mathematics teachers (SMTs) with respect to statistics since research has linked teachers' affect to student learning (Estrada & Batanero, 2008). Because the attitudes, beliefs, and emotions (affect system) of practicing SMTs toward statistics are not exactly known, an inventory of these constructs was conducted via a survey instrument. Most of the survey items were developed in light of the GAISE framework and the CCSSM; hence SMTs' affect toward statistics was described in terms of these documents. Based on responses to the survey items, SMTs indicated confidence in their own ability to master statistical content, belief that students can learn statistical concepts, and some agreement with the goals established by the GAISE framework. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the spirit of questioning, crossing, and blurring disciplinary borders with(in) mathematics education, this paper proposes a theoretical framework that merges conceptions of critical literacy and statistical literacy for high school mathematics curriculum. I begin by discussing the political nature of education and then situate this work within the goals of education for active citizenship. Next, I provide a detailed background of both critical and statistical literacy from multiple educational research perspectives. Lastly, by synthesizing notions of critical and statistical literacy, I present a theoretical framework for a critical statistical literacy in the context of high school mathematics curriculum. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With frequent predictions of upcoming technological and economic difficulties triggered by an impending shortage of information and communications technologies (ICT) professionals, the calls are growing stronger to include computer programming as a core element of school curriculum. These calls are bolstered by the suggestion that programming supports the development of thinking skills -- which echoes a longstanding argument for teaching mathematics. Motivated by the parallel, we attempted to investigate some of the common ground between the learning to program and the development of core mathematical concepts. We photographed and video recorded children, aged 9-10, as they learned to build and program Lego MindstormsTM EV3 robots over four days. Our findings suggest that programming supports children's understandings of arithmetic and decimal numbers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study provides evidence that enacted lessons based on written curriculum do not need to follow a direct curricular path from beginning to end. Deviations in this path, which we refer to as misdirection, can create opportunities for enhanced student interest in mathematical questions. We present three examples of misdirection from two enacted lessons and describe how they intensified student investment in the mathematics by creating contradictions that inspired students to ask their own mathematical questions. These examples can serve as models to teachers and curriculum writers who seek ways to motivate students to pursue mathematical understanding. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In many schools in Poland there area classes in which teachers successfully work with a notebook equipped with wireless Internet, and pupils - with netbooks connected to the school network. The encroachment of ICT on schools is favoured by the regulations of the core curriculum. The ability to use modern information and communication technologies, including searching for and using information, is - apart from reading, mathematical thinking and communication skills in native and foreign languages - one of the seven most important skills and is included in the core curriculum at each stage of education. Empirical studies confirm that the significance of ICT in educational practice has been growing steadily. Not only did they contribute to a better access to information, but also to the development of passions and interests of students. At present, the application of ICT in schools is not the main aim; rather, it is a tool to assist the development of the pupil, especially as regards the competences they need for life. It is impossible to imagine the geographical educational practice at various stages of education without the application of tools and techniques based on ICT. The author of this paper has become involved in a discussion on the importance of ICT, showing their advantages and chances to use it in geographical education, and drawing attention to the risks that it involves. Within the so-called "best educational practices", the selected examples of the use of ICT at various stages of geographic education in Poland were discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With average CPA exam pass rates typically in the low 50% range for each exam section, a significant number of students struggle to achieve success with the exam. Public accounting firms are increasing pressure for students to complete the exam prior to the start of employment, and this pressure resonates on accounting programs to develop methodology; which will assist students to successfully pass the exam, often during the fifth year of academic study in a 150-hour program. Two challenges faced by accounting programs to achieve this goal is a full curriculum with little room to add exam preparatory assistance that will increase exam success, and a changing demographic of student who is older in age that typically has less success demonstrating mastery through examination. Data does support the fact that CPA exam first time pass rates drop as the age of examinee increases. This paper examines methodology that accounting programs can consider that will provide a more supportive environment for older students to achieve success on the CPA exam. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study considers professional development (PD) effectiveness by examining sustainability of teachers' change. The instrumental collective case describes two teachers' classroom instruction three years after the completion of a PD focused on mathematics discourse. A strong alignment between the PD's goals with the teachers' school culture was one factor in the teachers' continued use of elements from the PD. Teachers also continued to emphasize core elements of the PD, including valuing student talk as a way of mediating student thinking. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Meeting the goals of rigorous curriculum requires providing professional development (PD) that challenges existing notions of teaching mathematics. It requires nurturing shifts from teachercentered norms to classroom norms centered on student thinking. This paper reports a PD design that used after school programs, and supported student mathematical thinking and a shift towards student centered practices. Effects on student learning, as well as on teacher practices were based on analysis of classroom videos, written artifacts, curriculum materials, and field notes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

For over a decade I have led a collaborative effort to develop, enact and revise curriculum materials for a Number and Operations course for prospective elementary teachers (PTs). A main focus of this course is on justifying one's thinking by relying on elementary-age appropriate meanings of numbers and operations, rather than rules. This article summarizes some of the key aspects of the curriculum development project, changes in the style and content of the curriculum, and recommendations for the importance of tone setting guidance for PTs and their instructors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Teachers' views about mathematics greatly impact the way they teach. Research indicates that many teachers project mathematics as a linear subject, and view mathematics teaching as about teaching a set of formulated procedures concerned with developing skills. Teachers' traditionally-held views of mathematics may constrain their ability to perceive and present mathematics as a human activity. Limited modes for curricular resources, professional development, or models exist to help support teachers to attend to the social, cultural, and political dimensions of mathematics education. In this paper, we draw upon the theoretical fields of ethnomathematics and its subset culturally responsive mathematics education to describe curricular efforts that were aimed to promote meaningful connections between mathematics content, context, culture, and the society. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The following paper is a description of a qualitative case study of a student as she attempted a course for the second time. This study took place at a four-year university in the first of a threecourse sequence of mathematical content courses for preservice elementary teachers. Data was collected over the course of a single semester using a combination of interviews and short-response, reflection questionnaires and was analyzed using an open-coding process. A rich description of the student's experiences includes a discussion of how the course curriculum, instructor feedback, ability to seek help, and having "the right team" contributed to the student's negative and positive experiences in the course. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper focuses on student learning in the context of a curricular module on pawnshops piloted with 15 students in an urban high school. The paper describes pedagogical frameworks guiding the development of the module and summarizes key features of its curriculum. Analysis focuses on student growth with respect to mathematical understanding of percent and opinions about pawnshops. Findings include student adoption of ratio strategies indicative of conceptual understanding of percent, and development of critical opinions about pawnshops as a lending system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Results of a CPC based comprehensive exam in global business are compared between students in a traditional classroom setting with those participating in a travel-study program. Research questions regarding commonality in measurement and equivalency in outcomes are addressed in the context of using either approach as a means of fulfilling accreditation requirements for program content and student learning outcomes in the field of international business. This paper also examines differences between content, pedagogy, and student learning in a travel-study program and a traditional classroom setting. The author has led travel-study programs for his institution since the 2006-2007 academic year. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article reports on the increasing demand and a need for globally competent engineers in the workforce diversity. To meet workforce demands of competent engineers, higher education colleges expand curricular programs to provide graduate engineering students with significant international education experience in abroad and at home institutions.

This study explored how workplace competency assessment data collected by College of Engineering programs from internship students and their supervisors between fall 2001 through fall 2011, are applied toward continuous improvement practices. The continuous improvement process is integral to the accreditation and evaluation of the engineering curriculum. This mixed methods study examined three separate practices using internship workplace competency assessment ratings in the continuous improvement process. The study examined how assessment rankings of the internship students' workplace competency strengths and weakness have changed from the 2001-05 assessment terms in the past accreditation cycle, to the 2006-11 assessment terms of the most recent accreditation cycle. It examined competency achievement percentages related to the ABET Criterion 3 (a-k) outcomes across the same timeline, and investigated how workplace competency assessment data are used to support continuous improvement for program curricula in the College of Engineering. The intent of the study was to gain better understanding of how the workplace competency assessment data has benefited the continuous improvement process that enhances student learning. The results can also provide suggestions to programs in the early stages of developing new program evaluation techniques. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article focuses on ethics for beginners in engineering. Reviewing the information on micro- and macroethics can help an instructor to arrange the ethical components of the technical course. Microethics involves actions of individual engineers whereas macroethics deals with social matters. A final recommendation is for instructors to peruse the ethics across the curriculum.

In response to the vision presented in the Engineer of 2020 Project, many engineering educators are redesigning courses and curriculum to provide students with opportunities to conceive, design, and implement engineering solutions to complex global issues. This paper describes the development and assessment of a redesigned first year cornerstone course called Engineering Opportunities. The motivation for the course redesign was to both be a pathway into the engineering community and to equip students for success in both the classroom and the engineering profession. The course is built on a learner-centered platform that is intended to create an inclusive environment for first year students to successfully transition from high school to college. The course content covers human-centered design, systems thinking, professionalism and ethics. The intention of this approach is to provide a high-impact educational experience within the first year for engineering students so that they can engage in opportunities to become acclimated with the process of self-guided deep learning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Incorporating user feedback is imperative for the adoption and continued usage of educational innovations in the classroom. We report on the development of an Android-based student mobile application, a user-suggested improvement for the AIChE Concept Warehouse. An Apple-based mobile application is also in development. Our intent is to share the applications' development and improvement process in the hopes that other innovators can benefit from the lessons learned through our experience. The AIChE Concept Warehouse was developed with the intent of fostering a community of learning within chemical engineering. The Concept Warehouse is a web-enabled database infrastructure that is designed to promote concept-based instruction through the use of concept questions. These concept questions are used in core curriculum courses like Material/Energy Balances, Thermodynamics, Transport Phenomena, Kinetics and Reactor Design, and Materials Science. Availability of high quality concept questions can lower the barrier for faculty to use concept-based instruction and assessment. This software allows the instructor to engage students and evaluate student learning in real-time. The instructor is then able to adjust the pace of lecture in response to student understanding. The Concept Warehouse also allows for reflective assessments such as "the muddiest point." The student mobile application was developed to make it easier for students to submit answers and written explanations to these assessments using mobile devices. Originally, students could submit their answers to conceptual questions using clickers, mobile browsers on smartphones, and laptops. Input via smartphones, however, proved cumbersome because it depended on the quality of the student's mobile browser and utilized the full-size webpage interface. The improved mobile student interface facilitates participation by making responses via smartphone more user-friendly. After the development of the application, we conducted initial usability tests with students who had previously used the web-based options for answer submission. In order to gauge usability, we collected usage statistics from student responses to a usability survey. Survey responses were used to identify student likes and dislikes as well as to compare different available options for answer submission. These results will be used to improve the design of the current application as well as guide our design decisions for the development of the iOS version of the student app. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article offers information related to framing routines which are a widely used literacy strategy to support students in the organization of topics, main ideas and details of information. It is noted that it can be used to support teachers in the design of engineering curriculum into the K12 classroom by using content from Common Core, and Next Generation Science Standards to design an engineering activity.

The construction industry is experiencing challenges in developing specific and necessary competencies; leadership is one known deficiency. Other reasons, including rising complexity and the rapidly changing nature of construction projects, have called for improved leadership development in the construction industry. The purpose of this paper is to first identify and synthesize the curricular components (i.e., course experiences) and noncurricular factors (e.g., mentoring networks) that impact the development of leadership competencies for civil engineering and construction undergraduate students. A critical review and qualitative synthesis of the literature was employed to gather known components and factors relating to students' leadership development resulting from undergraduate coursework. Findings indicate that the curricular components and noncurricular factors impacting development of leadership competencies include course assignments and activities, course content (e.g., emphasis on the development of technical competencies versus development of emotional intelligence skills), access to resources (e.g., new technologies, guest speakers), and the ability to enroll in courses outside of required curriculum [e.g., courses that prepare student groups to participate in Associated Schools of Construction (ASC) and National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) annual competitions]. By using information provided in this study, future steps may be taken by faculty members to bridge and, in particular, improve their students' development of leadership competencies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the 21st century Romanian school teachers are more and more faced with the fact that pedagogical tools having stood the test of time now seem to fail in the context of continuous change of laws and standards in the educational field. Writing the program for the optional discipline means a challenge for them each year; they need competences in many areas of knowledge to fulfill the regulations of the new Law of Education (nr. 1/2011). The article presents the situation of the optional disciplines in urban area at elementary level in two Romanian counties (Harghita and Covasna). The research was carried out in 37 schools, 330 classes, offering the picture of the optional discipline for 7,003 pupils overall. The research findings underline the high diversity of the optional disciplines: about two-third of them are used only in three or even less class. This means also that none of the disciplines have the absolute majority (over 50%). There is however a certain discipline with a high frequency, covering an area of the education which is almost absent among the obligatory disciplines, namely the Health Education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since 2010, ethical education has been included in the official Framework Education Programme for Elementary Education in the Czech Republic as a cross-curricular subject. Currently, there are no certified teachers of ethical education, though there is a high demand for them at Czech schools. The number of lecturers who specialize in ethical education should increase soon, as in 2012 the University of Hradec Kralove introduced ethical education as a subject of study within the Specialization in Pedagogy programme. The University of Hradec Kralove is the only Czech university to offer this subject of study so far. In connection to the introduction of the abovementioned subject of study at our university, a study that surveys the impact of ethical education on the classroom climate was conducted in the academic year 2013/14. This paper presents the planned research study and the results gained in this pilot study. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Kosovo, facing sustainability challenges that are challenging the global ecosystem, is moving towards broader inclusion of the education for sustainable development in its curriculum. This approach followed intensive curricular developments in the post-war Kosovo, especially in the new national curriculum adopted in 2011, a competency based curriculum and with many innovation in the educational system. This paper has been prepared by analyzing and comparing the inclusion of education for sustainable development in the new national curriculum and its practical implementation in pre-university level of education. During the research, the official curriculum documents of 2001 and 2011 are analyzed, as well the educational content that teachers and students face in terms of education for sustainable development. From the research has emerged that in many educational contents, work with students, but also in national curricula the education for sustainable development is often limited only within the concept of environmental education, which means that so far no clear and broad understanding of the complexity of sustainable development. The new curriculum, as one of its goals of pre-university education determines the development of responsibility to themselves, to others, to society and to the environment. Cross curricular education as one of the key areas of education for sustainable development in most curricular fields of the curriculum but more focus to the following areas: society and environment, life and work and health with wellbeing. Sustainable learning as component of new curriculum is considered teaching for and in service of the sustainable development of society, economy and environment. Through six curriculum levels, students planned to advance by developing and reinforcing knowledge and competence in the field of education for sustainable development. In real life in schools, the subject of environmental education, as elective one, covers field of sustainable development, but it also included the field of civics courses and natural sciences. The research results show that the curriculum framework sufficiently addresses this aspect, but learning, educational content and school based work is still incomplete and tentative. This research will provide specific recommendations for curriculum designers under the new curriculum to address in more concrete terms education for sustainable development even in lesson plans. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article provides information on an indoor skydiving approach for teaching STEM education and outcomes of this curriculum exchange. Topics discussed include speech delivery through technical support, K-12 education system, real time flight experience for practice, and safety procedures for experimentation.

Evidence-Based Management has emerged as an important perspective that emphasizes the use of available evidence to inform decisions and guide practice. Management educations is finding ways of incorporating evidence-based management into the curriculum and classrooms. The central issues are 'when is evidence needed by managers?' and 'what form should it take?'. In this paper we adopt a philosophy that management is some combination of science, art and craft. Science depends on the development, analysis and application of theory, art is inspiration, creativity and innovation and craft is experience. We examine the need and uses of evidence for each of the three perspectives and how and where to incorporate it into classes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigated the influence of undergraduate mathematics background on teachers' conceptual understanding of elementary mathematics as needed for teaching. While teachers with mathematics related backgrounds appeared slightly stronger overall in conceptual knowledge than other teachers, few participants generally appeared well-prepared. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This case represents a three-part comprehensive exercise designed to assist students effectively master the entire accounting process from transaction analysis to basic financial statement analysis. Each part of the case requires students to tackle all the financial accounting functions for a fictitious company. Students examine the information provided and record all journal entries (including adjusting and closing entries), post these to T-accounts, prepare an adjusted trial balance, prepare all four general purpose financial statements, and do basic financial statement analysis. While each part of the case is similar in format and identical in requirements, each successive exercises represents a new company and adds a layer of complexity relative to newly covered material in the course. The primary learning objectives of this successive case are to help students master required course material and to gain confidence in their abilities to synthesize important financial accounting concepts and procedures within the context of the entire accounting process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]