Search

IntroductionThe COVID-19 pandemic has significantly impacted the education sector, and this case study examined nearly three hundred PhD supervisors in Norway. The study was driven by the urgent need to better understand the professional, social, and existential conditions faced by doctoral supervisors during extended societal shutdowns. This explorative case study builds on a former study among PhD candidates and investigates the experiences of doctoral supervisors when remote work, digital teaching, and digital supervision suddenly replaced physical presence in the workplace, largely between March 12, 2020, and autumn 2022, due to the COVID-19 pandemic.MethodsA mixed-methods research approach, incorporating formative dialog research and case study design, was employed to bridge the conceptual and contextual understanding of this phenomenon. The primary data sources were a survey (N = 298, 53.7% women, 46.3% men, response rate 80.54%) and semi-structured interviews (with nine PhD supervisors). Supplementary data collection was based on formative dialog research. It included field dialog (four PhD supervision seminars), open survey responses (n = 1,438), one focus group (n = 5), an additional survey (n = 85), and document analysis of PhD policy documents and doctoral supervision seminar evaluations (n = 7). The survey data, interview data, focus group data, and supplementary data focus also retrospectively on the first year of the pandemic and were collected from August 2022 until October 2023.ResultsThe findings from the explorative case study revealed that the PhD supervisors faced numerous challenges during the pandemic, both professionally and personally. For PhD supervisors who extensively worked from home over a long period, the situation created new conditions that affected their job performance. These altered conditions hindered their research capacity, their ability to follow up with their PhD candidates, and their capacity to fulfill other job responsibilities. Although the PhD supervisors received some support during the pandemic, it seems that the incremental measures provided were insufficient.DiscussionThe case study results indicate that it is more important than ever to understand the gap between the formulation, transformation, and realization arenas when distinguishing between incremental, semi-structural changes and fundamental changes in PhD regulations and guidelines brought on by societal crises. This highlights the need for better crisis preparedness at the doctoral level in the years to come.

The widespread use of educational technology in schools compels teachers to seamlessly integrate technology while developing students’ digital competence. As educational technology continually evolves, digital competence becomes a dynamic target. Thus, teacher education must effectively prepare student teachers to teach effectively with technology. Researchers are increasingly examining the concept of teachers’ digital competence and how teacher education supports student teachers’ acquisition of digital skills for future employability. In Nordic countries like Norway, the term Professional Digital Competence (PDC) frames a teacher’s essential knowledge for using digital technology in teaching and learning. Despite this focus, there’s limited understanding of how Norwegian teacher education fosters PDC. This scoping review investigates current research on PDC and its implementation within Norwegian teacher education. Findings from numerical and thematic analysis offer insights into the prevalent types of PDC research. Thirty-four peer-reviewed papers were identified and coded along three dimensions: (1) theoretical perspectives, (2) research questions and methods, and (3) application and implementation. The review reveals a predominant focus on student and teacher educator perceptions or self-assessments when measuring digital competence. Our findings show that professional digital competence in teacher education is diverse and multifaceted. However, there are gaps in the current state of knowledge. To address this, we propose a definition and a framework to guide teacher educators. Future research should broaden participant profiles and involve a more diverse group of educators.

The overall aim of this scoping review is to present empirical studies regarding how the Nordic model has been investigated in relation to management in international companies. The subse quent objective is to discuss the model’s robustness regarding internationalization. The question raised is how the Nordic model, in relation to management, is configured in empirical studies undertaken in international corporations. Using systematic literature searches to examine peer- reviewed articles published between 2000 and 2022, 15 out of 972 studies were eligible for a full review. Primarily, one facet of the model was investigated: workplace democracy. Foreign-owned companies operating in Nordic countries partly adopted the model, whereas the model was implemented to some extent in Nordic-owned companies abroad. Management’s support and employee involvement were considered important. This review indicates that there is pressure on the model, although it has extended beyond the Nordic border and appears to be adaptable to global working life.

Introduction Early intervention by identifying children at risk and providing necessary support is vital to prevent stunted psychosocial development and mental health issues. In this regard, schools are important intervention arenas, reaching all students at a universal level. The need for enhanced efforts is well recognised in Norwegian policy documents, whereas school social workers can represent significant roles in supporting teachers with expanded knowledge on psychosocial factors, mental health and relevant interventions. Despite the clearly stated needs for interprofessional competence in school, limited research has been conducted, and there are no national standards or guidelines for school social workers’ practice. Thus, this scoping review’s overall objectives are to systematically map the existing research on social workers’ roles and responsibilities in Norwegian primary schools.Methods and analysis A scoping review will be conducted, using the methodological framework of Arksey and O’Malley. Four of their defined goals will be of significance: (1) examine the extent, range and nature of the research activity; (2) determine the value of undertaking a full systematic review; (3) summarise and disseminate research findings; (4) identify research gaps in the existing literature. Systematic searches will be conducted in relevant databases and search portals, including snowballing and manually searching reference lists. Publication language is restricted to English and Norwegian, the date range is from 1 January 2000 until 31 October 2022, and inclusion requires focus on social workers in a Norwegian primary school context. The data will be screened using the screening data extraction software Covidence. A thematic analysis of the literature will be carried out.Ethics and dissemination Ethical approval is not considered necessary as the aim of this scoping review is to investigate already published materials. Findings will be submitted as scientific papers and at conferences as part of the main project.

Since January 2020 there have been over 97 million reported cases and 2 million deaths worldwide from COVID-19 and it is not over yet. In many ways, the COVID-19 pandemic is a slow-motion disaster and an ‘external intervention’ that suddenly began in early 2020 and has maintained its grip on the world. The pandemic has influenced the education sector strongly as well, and Ph.D. candidates enrolled in Ph.D. programs during COVID-19 (‘the Ph.D. corona generation’) at Western Norway Graduate School of Educational Research II (WNGER II) were examined in this case study. WNGER II is a research school consortium with seven universities and universities colleges, 97 Ph.D.-candidates, and 48 supervisors and was established in 2018 to complement the Ph.D.-programs and strengthen the Ph.D. education in Western Norway. A pilot phase (2016–2017) was used to identify and address specific challenges in Ph.D. education as experienced in the seven universities and university colleges in Western Norway. The pandemic has presented an urgent need for a better knowledge base to understand the professional, social, and existential conditions for doctoral fellows when society is shut down for an extended period. This explorative case study examined what the doctoral fellows experienced when home office, digital teaching, and digital supervision suddenly replaced physical presence in the workplace (more or less) from March 12, 2020 to November 30, 2021 as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. A mixed-methods research, formative dialog research, and case study design was applied to try to bridge the conceptual and contextual understanding of this phenomenon. The main data sources were a survey (N = 62, 85% women, 15% men, response rate 70%) and semi-structured interviews (with six Ph.D. fellows). Supplementary data collection was based on formative dialog research and comprised field dialog (13 seminars, eight Ph.D. courses, three Ph.D. supervision seminars, and two Ph.D. gatherings, N = 26), one focus group (n = 11), 21 online observations, and document analysis of Ph.D. policy documents and course evaluations (N = 15). The explorative case study found that the WNGER II Ph.D. fellows are satisfied with the educational quality concerning digital teaching and supervision (micro-level) but have experienced several research-related and psycho-social challenges during the pandemic (meso-level). These changed frame factors have impeded their feasibility and doctoral progression. Even if the WNGER II Ph.D. fellows experienced support during the pandemic, it seems like it entailed incremental measures that have not been sufficient. The Ph.D. regulations were created before the pandemic under normal conditions for normal conditions, but it appears that no substantial adjustments have been made for these extraordinary pandemic conditions in which frame factors attached to data collection, publication delays, childcare responsibilities, social distancing, etc. have changed the premises for their feasibility. This has been particularly critical for these Ph.D. fellows, who have been in this slow-motion disaster for up to 20 months (55% of their 3-year scholarship). Therefore, results from the case study indicate it is more important than ever to understand the gap between formulation, -transformation, and realization arena when it comes to the distinction between incremental, semi-structural changes and fundamental changes in Ph.D. regulations and guidelines caused by societal crises. Even if time compensation has been offered, it seems like the overall Ph.D. guidelines, regulations, and assessment norms have remained unchanged in the transformation arena (meso-level), which might have given some unforeseen implications for some Ph.D.-candidates, which calls for better crisis preparedness on a doctoral level in the years to come.

Abstract This case study examines face-to-face and remote teaching in a doctoral education course and ask if flipped classroom, formative assessment and remote teaching increase the teaching quality of a literature review course. To be able to answer the research question, design-based research (DBRC, 2003) and case study (Yin, 2009) were used as a research-pedagogical design and methodological framework. The selection of informants is based on purposeful selection (Maxwell, 2005) where one group of PhD candidates (n = 24) situated at the University of Bergen and one group of PhD candidates (n = 12) situated at Volda University College, were selected. The study indicates that the PhD candidates enhanced their understanding of literature review throughout the PhD course, they appreciated the course design, and the quality of their academic papers and their survey feedback indicated that they had a good learning outcome from the course. Despite some methodological limitations, this study shows that advanced video conferencing systems in combination with a well-prepared teaching design have several positive outcomes and can be used as a starting point for a more large-scale study. The study shows, despite former mixed experiences with remote teaching, that student participation via several campuses did not necessarily lead to poorer quality and poorer learning outcome for these PhD candidates in this case study. However, the case study also shows the need for more large-scale research which will give a more nuanced and thorough understanding of how we can increase the teaching quality of remote teaching as part of the training component in the PhD.

Although flipped classroom (FC) has been popular in education since the 2000s, there is a lack of reviews on how the teaching approach has been applied and what has been gained in the field of teacher education. Most reviews focus either on implementation and learning outcomes with students in higher education and disciplines other than education or on the latter approaches with primary and secondary school pupils. This article presents a scoping literature review of 33 studies published between 2014 until 2019 on flipped classroom (FC) in teacher education. Our analysis points out that studies were mainly conducted in the United States, with an increased implementation in European and Asian countries, and with adoption primarily in the disciplines pedagogy, science, and language arts. Moreover, a majority of studies employed mixed methods with surveys being the most commonly used instrument to collect data. Two main foci were identified across the reviewed studies: student perceptions and academic performance. The analysis of the former revealed six outcomes (1. Attitude, motivation, and emotion; 2. Content delivery; 3. Learning environment; 4. Learning experience; 5. Instructor and student presence; 6. Engagement). Based on our synthesis, we discuss current trends and future development in the research field, FC's pedagogical value added in teacher education, and potential knowledge gaps in the research literature.

The present study investigates the variety among teacher educators (TEds) related to the use of digital resources in teaching as well as the strategies they use to develop digital competence. A person-centred approach was applied to identify meaningful patterns among TEds having different levels of self-reported digital expertise, at five teacher education institutions. Survey data from TEds (N = 389) was subjected to structural equation modelling. With latent class analysis, we identified three distinct profiles based on probability of engagement in different digital competence development (DCD) activities: 1) "The restrictive user"--characterised by sporadic and narrow use of DCD strategies, prefers peer-restricted collaboration, 2) "The moderate user"--regular user of DCD strategies, prefers peer-restricted collaboration, and 3) "The extensive user"--frequent and comprehensive user DCD strategies, engages in broad collaboration. "The extensive users" also use digital resources more frequently in their teaching compared to the moderate and especially "the restricted users." This is the case for individual interactions with students, to make teaching more relevant and applicable, as well as to make teaching more student active. Based on the knowledge on TEds profiles emerging from this study, we propose recommendations for better tailoring of DCD initiatives.

This paper aims to provide evidence on student teachers' perceptions of Flipped Classroom (FC) to help teacher educators (TEs) to make informed decisions about implementing FC and support student teachers to reflect on the value of FC in their teaching practice. FC, a pedagogical model requiring digital competence of students and teachers, has been a popular teaching approach for nearly two decades in K-12 and higher education. After the outbreak of Covid-19, more teachers have started to implement FC. In post-COVID-19, with the possibility of reusing video lectures made during the pandemic and the familiarity of digital skills to create digital lectures, a question for teachers is whether to continue with this approach. This paper follows an explanatory sequential mixed methods research approach. Insights from student teachers (STs) in the field of English as a foreign language (EFL) in Norway are the primary data, and surveys and focus group interviews are the main instruments to collect the data. FC's advantages and challenges perceived by STs are reported, and the possibility of STs becoming future flippers is explored. Findings from this paper indicate that STs would like to have more courses flipped in their studies, yet STs seem hesitant about flipping their courses in their teaching practice. STs also provide some practical suggestions on implementing the FC approach.

The digitalisation of education has been emphasised over the last two decades, affecting and developing both the theories and practices of teaching and learning. Considering these developments, the need for addressing teachers' and students' digital competence has gained ground. In the last few years, the concept of digital agency has been noted in empirical and theoretical research - broadly focusing on the integration of information and communication technologies (ICT) in education. Nonetheless, how digital agency is understood and how it relates to the more established concept of digital competence remains unclear. To address this gap, we conducted a conceptual systematic review and examined the current state of the knowledge on digital agency. Specifically, we review the conceptualisations of digital agency, its underlying theoretical frameworks, and how it relates to digital competence and similar concepts. Database searches resulted in 32 publications, with the majority published in education and design journals and stemming from Scandinavian countries. Our findings show that out of 32 studies, only one aimed at defining digital agency explicitly. Nevertheless, for the last three years, digital agency has been more frequently used in the body of literature, emphasising the design and transformation of teaching and learning with technology towards a 'new normal' considering the post-pandemic era and lessons learned. Reviewing the extant body of knowledge on digital agency, we review the strengths and weaknesses of the concept and compare it to the more established notion of digital competence. Finally, we discuss implications for policy, research, and practice in education.

Hensikten med denne studien er å utforske hvordan bruken av digitale fortellinger i lærerutdanningen kan bidra til å utvikle lektorstudenters digitale kompetanse og fremme innovativ bruk av IKT i engelskundervisningen. Gjennom bruken av kasusstudie og en design-basert forskningstilnærming beskriver denne studien to gjennomføringer og design-sykluser av et verksted med bruk av digitale fortellinger ved en norsk lærerutdanning hvor det overordnede målet var å vise innovative og hensiktsmessige måter å integrere IKT i engelskundervisningen. En digital kompetansemodell er brukt som linse i dataanalysen hvor datamaterialet kommer fra en kvantitativ spørre-undersøkelse, feltobservasjoner, refleksjonslogger, digitale artefakter og semi-strukturerte intervjuer. Studiens funn viser en rekke tilnærmingsmåter som kan tas i bruk i gjennomføringen av verksted i digitale fortellinger, slik som modellering av integrering av IKT og vurdering med IKT, stillasbygging ved studentaktive læringsopplevelser med IKT, og brobygging mellom teori og praksis gjennom refleksjon. Implikasjoner for lærerutdanningen blir diskutert. Nøkkelord: profesjonsfaglig digital kompetanse, digitale fortellinger, lærer-studenter, lærerutdannere, lærerutdanning, engelsk fagdidaktikk Abstract The purpose of this study is to examine how the use of digital storytelling (DST) in teacher education can help develop digital competence in secondary school English as a second language (ESL) student teachers, and promote the innovative use of information and communications technology (ICT) in ESL teaching. Following a case methodology and a design-based research approach, the study reports on two iterative design cycles of a DST workshop held at a Norwegian teacher education program where the aim was to promote secondary ESL student teachers’ digital competence and showcase innovative ways of integrating ICT into ESL teaching. A digital competence model is used as a research lens for the data analysis where data come from a quantitative survey, participant observations, reflection logs, digital artifacts, and semi-structured interviews. Findings point to a number of approaches that can be used in the workshop design such as modeling ICT integration and assessment, scaffolding student-active learning experiences with ICT, and linking theory and practice through reflection. Implications for teacher education are discussed. Keywords: professional digital competence, digital storytelling, student teachers, teacher educators, teacher education, ESL didactics