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This research investigates how a mobile-based archive application and digital literacy impact pre-service administrators' understanding of the smart village concept in rural governance. It uses a quantitative approach with a questionnaire given to 100 pre-service administrators to evaluate their attitudes towards these factors. Validity and reliability tests were conducted as part of the data analysis, and the data were assessed for normality assumption. The data were then analyzed using a multiple linear regression model. The coefficient of determination, which is 99.3%, suggests that nearly all variables related to the smart village concept can be explained through the archive application and digital literacy variables. Furthermore, the mobile-based archive application and digital literacy have a positive and significant impact on understanding the smart village concept, both simultaneously (0.000<0.05) and partially (0.000<0.05). We found a negative t value (-5.739) for the understanding of the smart village concept, which can be improved through the mobile-based archive application (9.299) and digital literacy (6.538) variables. The implications from these findings indicate that pre-service administrators in rural governance recognize the need for improvement in their understanding of the smart village concept.

In October 2022, New Brunswick Minister of Education and Early Childhood Development Dominic Cardy publicly resigned and widely disclosed his disappointment with Premier Blaine Higgs' leadership. Using Cardy's unprecedented public resignation letter as a primary source, this paper explores the inner workings of neoliberal governance and privatization in public education and critically analyzes data manipulation, governance shifts, and problematic conservative "hands-offism." Applying a rhizomatic methodological framing and theoretically drawing from Bourdieu and Passeron's (1977) conceptualization of symbolic violence and Gilmore's (2008) notion of "organized abandonment," we argue that neoliberal governance and privatization disproportionately affect vulnerable communities and weaken democratic processes. To understand these complexities, we utilize a rhizomatic analysis, simultaneously considering historical and geographical contexts, governance structures, and political narratives. We conclude that neoliberal governance and privatization are inherently symbolically violent, as they are used in tandem to perpetually defund and dismantle public institutions.

This study aims to explore the role of social cohesion, media, higher education, empowerment, and interfaith harmony in good governance of the public universities in Pakistan. Primary data was collected from the public sector universities in Pakistan. Data analysis was conducted by using SPSS and Mplus 8software. Results confirm that social cohesion, media, higher education, empowerment, and interfaith harmony have a significant influence on good governance in public universities in Pakistan. Data was collected from public sector universities in Pakistan. Hence, the findings of this study cannot be generalized to universities in other countries. The inclusion of civil society, social cohesion, media, higher education, empowerment, and interfaith harmony in university structures and functions can resolve issues in the higher education sector. This can be done through building awareness and monitoring university's activities and performance for good governance in higher education sector. The article extends stakeholder theory of corporate governance by inquiring important stakeholders such as civil society and cohesion, media, higher education, gender empowerment and interfaith harmony and their role in improving university governance. Policies can be revised in this context to maximize sustainability by achieving a harmonious balance among these factors. The study also highlights that key variables ensure good corporate governance as per stakeholder's approach in the context of higher education sector. [The pagination cited (p1-25) on the .pdf is incorrect. The correct pagination is p1-22.]

This paper focuses first on the issue of measuring education. When we consider "education and equity," we tend to quantify educational outcomes and compare these figures with others. While it is necessary to consider "equity" (or inequity) through comparisons with others, if we quantify the achievement of outcomes and evaluate the management of the organisation, we fall into a "metric fixation." Next, the paper discusses the issue of meritocracy, presenting a perspective on abilities as social and communal rather than individual. Finally, it discusses the concept of "collaborative learning" as presented by the Central Council for Education Report of 2021. This report states the importance of respecting all others as valuable beings. In order to clarify the significance and value of the presence of others in educational relationships, the paper considers a certain high school discussion situation. "Equity" in education cannot be realised by comparing personal figures on a particular scale. If we wish to realise "equity," paradoxically, it is essential that we do not ask whether we are achieving "equity" through comparison with others. Being equally opaque to one another, being diverse, is essential for the realization of pleasurable "collaborative learning."

The making of education governance reforms has led to the transfer of school management powers to teachers' and parents' representatives through primary school management committees. However, the committees have been found to be inadequate in ensuring that collective action is taken by their male and female members in most low- and middle-income countries. In response, this paper examines the possibilities that collective action by school committees is related to gender inequality, controlling for demographic and socio-economic factors across the rural (Iringa District) and urban (Arusha City) contexts of Tanzania. The results of a simple linear regression analysis using Ordinary Least Square techniques show that gender inequality predicts the collective action in school committees in both Arusha City and Iringa District. However, the multiple linear regression model predicts gender inequality in Arusha, and not in Iringa, controlling for membership experience and occupational status for both the rural and urban samples. This paper has implications for both policy and practice. In particular, the next round of school autonomy reforms needs to consider the criteria for school committee membership to incorporate membership experience and occupational status into the qualifications of parents' representatives. In practice, head teachers need to devise innovative, sustainable approaches using the readily available resources to provide planning, budgeting and monitoring skills-based training to newly elected parent representatives.

In June 2022, the Norwegian Expert Commission on Learning Analytics delivered an interim report to the Norwegian Minister of Education and Research. Motivated by the need to establish a solid foundation upon which to regulate and promote the use of learning analytics in the Norwegian educational sector, the Ministry asked the Expert Commission to investigate the relevant pedagogical, ethical, legal, and privacy issues. Addressing primary, secondary, higher, and vocational education, the interim report surveys the field of learning analytics and the regulatory environment across the contexts and analyzes its challenges and opportunities for Norwegian education. Four dilemmas -- data, learning, governance, and competence -- signal where greater knowledge, awareness, and reflection are needed, as well as the nature of necessary policy and regulatory choices. In this practical report, we offer insights on the use, development, and regulation of LA in different countries, describe the Expert Commission mandate, work method, and dilemmas, and conclude with a reflection on the relationship between research on learning analytics and the challenges that arise when implementing learning analytics in practice. This practical report is relevant for those interested in developing policies or practices surrounding the use of learning analytics at the local or national level.

Social network sites, most notably Facebook, have fundamentally transformed the way information is transferred, received, and shared by individuals and organisations. This article explores the diverse contexts in which Facebook is utilised as a knowledge-sharing instrument, along with the key challenges encountered in adopting Facebook as a knowledge-sharing instrument. It also indicates the gaps in adopting Facebook as a knowledge-sharing instrument. In a systematic literature review, 400 articles accomplishing the research objectives were identified. The findings revealed that Facebook can be used in different contexts. Greater awareness of Facebook's versatility as a platform for knowledge sharing across various domains is recommended. This article also advises that the challenges related to cost, time investment and technical expertise be addressed, and emphasises the need for education and training.

The release of ChatGPT and other Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools has raised significant and challenging questions around the ethics of artificial intelligence in higher education. The initial concerns regarding AI in higher education centered on academic integrity, and the literature reflects this initial response. However, the multifaceted nature of higher education institutions means that there are many domains that will be ethically impacted by the application and implementation of AI. The purpose of this literature review is to examine these many domains and stakeholders in terms of ethical impact to surface questions, concerns, and concepts that may help practitioners navigate this complex construct of education, technology, and ethics. The literature identifies several implications for practice, including academic integrity, assessment (including the concept of cognicy and the practice of authentic assessment), policies and syllabi, and frameworks, principles, and tools. It concludes with a rumination on how the work of ethics is often accomplished through questions, as well as with the recognition that, at this stage in the evolution of AI, it is difficult to identify black-letter answers. We must be prepared to adapt and evolve even as AI does.

This policy-interested South Australian public education case study problematises how the Chief Executive (CE) and members of the Education Department's Senior Executive Group (SEG) understood system and school improvement from 2018 to 2022. We applied Carol Bacchi's, "What's the Problem Represented to be?"(WPR) policy analysis framework to unearth the policy assumptions underlying the Department's overarching policy ensemble called "World Class," initiated across South Australia's public primary and secondary schools. WPR reveals heightened centralised technologies of command and control directed at teacher and leader work to achieve McKinsey defined World Class status by 2028. We find school improvement policy solutions were engineered through "managerially enforced complexity reduction" techniques within the paradigm of the Global Education Reform Movement (GERM). These techniques impacted policy prescriptions, performance management technologies, school improvement plans, curriculum materials for schools, and promoted NAPLAN as the ultimate measure of the good school, the good teacher, and the good principal. NAPLAN is the National Assessment Program-Literacy and Numeracy used in Australia and takes the form of an annual standardised assessment for students in Years 3, 5, 7 and 9. Most concerningly, we find the policy logics of World Class worked to incentivise inequality across public schools through diminishing the purposes of public education and the professionalism of educators. We conclude arguing for the democratisation of existing departmental structures within iterative inquiry-based approaches to policy formation and practice to better attend to public education purposes.

Summer camps are widespread in many countries and have a long history. Their contribution to children's and young people's leisure and recreation is widely acknowledged, as is their usefulness as an educational resource. That large numbers of children and young people across Europe attend summer camps is well-known; according to Eurofound (2020), most of the twenty-seven countries analyzed record student attendance at camps, and in twelve countries (including Spain) over 50% of young people take part. However, another study carried out in the member countries of the European Union (Plantenga & Remery, 2017) stated that when the availability, use, and quality of this service was assessed, it was seen that out-of-school services lacked structure and quality. Despite being an especially important and relevant topic in political discourses and international organizations, most countries do not define the service clearly and precisely (OECD, 2011). According to Eurofound (2020), many European states centralize their planning of educational leisure at national level, including the laws and decrees that underpin how these activities are organized. But camps are implemented locally, and municipalities play a significant role in designing and providing this leisure activity, both during the year and during holiday periods. Coinciding with previous publications (Eurofound, 2007), the formula for success was to be found in public-sector support, community involvement, integration between services and spaces, and the inclusion of minorities.

Summer camps in the United States operate in different contexts and formats to attract and serve youth with varying backgrounds. Overall, they currently serve more White, able-bodied, middle- to upper-class youth than youth of color, LGBTQ+ youth, youth with differing physical abilities, and other diverse identities (American Camp Association, 2018; Browne et al., 2019). Like many youth organizations, many camps view this trend as problematic and are addressing it through new and updated diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) policies and practices (American Camp Association, 2013; Gutiérrez et al., 2017). While some research has documented DEI strategies used at summer camps, no research to date has assessed the prevalence of specific strategies used at camps across the United States. Therefore, this study aims to identify the frequency of specific DEI strategies used by camps, effective approaches to hiring staff from underrepresented backgrounds, and training strategies that support existing staff in incorporating DEI practices into their work. Having this data will enable camps to self-evaluate their own progress. It also establishes a benchmark where future scholarship can begin to determine how to assess and promote more effective DEI practices.

Big Data offers opportunities and challenges in all aspects of human life. In relation to research ethics, Big Data represents a normative difference in degree rather than a difference in kind. Data are more messy, rapid, difficult to predict, and difficult to identify owners; but the principles of informed consent, confidentiality, and prevention of harm apply equally to digital data. Recognition that technologies are not inherently value neutral, and that data collection, aggregation, and their use in decision making can both create and intensify inequities and harms is central to applying these principles. Data justice extends concern with voice and authenticity into the digital domain. Universities act as gatekeepers to professional accreditation in fields including software engineering. The relation between academic freedom of enquiry, state and corporate interests in the Big Data age raises important questions about power and control in the academy, which have governance implications.

This article explores the rise of digitalisation in Australian higher education and its impact on learning and teaching, administration, and regulatory obligations. This digitalisation can be epitomised by the prevalence of learning management systems (LMS) which have reshaped the conduct and configuration of education. As universities have embraced the LMS, as forced by the pandemic, the confluence of disruptive digitalisation combined with globalisation, regulatory reforms, and shifts in government funding models have seen the Australian higher education sector in constant evolution. This article contextualises the impacts of digitalisation using the lens of neoliberalism and globalisation, with past, current, and future state considerations in the sector. It includes a case study from a large metropolitan Australian university with a signature pedagogy of industry-partnered and flexible learning to consider how Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) in Australia must continue to evolve in identity and provision of learning to serve social interests for the future in digitalised contexts.

Understanding teachers' expectations of university social responsibility (USR) is imperative for formulating effective human resources strategies within higher education institutions (HEIs). This study delves into teacher perceptions of USR within the context of higher education institutions (HEIs) in emerging countries, examining how these perceptions influence teacher satisfaction. The mediating roles of HEIs' reputation and image in shaping this relationship are also explored. Data were collected from 140 teachers across 15 Vietnamese universities. The research model underwent evaluation through structural equation modeling (SEM) utilizing the Partial Least Squares path modeling. The results affirm a positive influence of teachers' perceived USR on their satisfaction with universities. Notably, both HEIs' reputation and image serve as mediating factors in this relationship. Regarding the specific USR constructs, the findings highlight that teachers' overall perception of USRs is constructed based on their engagement with educational, environmental research, and partnership responsibilities within HEIs. This study underscores the importance of cultivating a positive reputation and image when integrating USR into the governance strategies of higher education institutions.

The objectives of research were to develop the new normal administration model according to the principles of good governance for schools under the Office of Primary Educational Service Area in Sakon Nakhon Province. The findings were as follows: I) Components of new normal administration for schools, consisting of 8 components: 1) New Normal Administration Planning 2) New Normal Working Method 3) New Normal Learning Curriculum Administration 4) New Normal Learning Administration 5) New Normal Learning Evaluation 6) New Normal Learning Resource Administration 7) New Normal Collaboration, and 8) Safety. Overall, it is at the most suitable level--the possibility at a high level. II) The new normal administration model consists of 5 components: 1) principles 2) objectives 3) structure 4) administration process and 5) mechanism. As for the components of the administration process, there are 8 sub-components, namely 1) New Normal Learning Resource Administration 2) New Normal Learning Administration 3) New Normal Learning Curriculum Administration 4) New Normal Learning Evaluation 5) New Normal Cooperation 6) New Normal Working Methods 7) Safety, and 8) New Normal Administration Planning. Four external factors affect the administration, including: 1) economic 2) technology, 3) social, and 4) political. III) Every component of the model is suitability possibilities and usefulness is at the highest level. IV) The manual for using the model consists of 3 components: 1) an explanation, 2) an introduction that presents details about the background, importance, objectives, and expected benefits, and 3) details of the model with the results of suitability at the highest level.

Social regulation as a tool is designed to change behavior and ultimately protect the public from some form of harm. In this sense, social work regulation is a tool with the primary goal of public protection. Social work practice regulations vary widely within the United States, and the concept becomes more distorted when examined through an international lens. This manuscript outlines the regulation of social work practice in the United States, the United Kingdom, and the European Economic Area. Regulation in this context is examined through the framework of governance. Attention is given to the mechanism of regulation that is the regulatory body. The regulation of social work practice in the United States, the United Kingdom, and the European Economic Area share many similarities and several fundamental differences.

Artificial intelligence in education (AIEd) is a fast-growing field of research. In previous work, we described efforts to explore the possible futures of AIEd by identifying key variables and their future prospects. This paper re-examines our discussions on the governance of data and the role of students and teachers by considering the implications of (1) a recent case related to the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and (2) the release of ChatGPT, a generative AI model capable to producing 'human-like' text. These events raise questions for the future of AIEd and the underlying function of assessment, and highlight the importance of active student participation in the integration of AI in education. [This article has been presented in the 5th International Open & Distance Learning Conference-IODL 2022.]

Universities across the globe are considering how to effect meaningful change in their higher education (HE) delivery in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic and shifting student learning preferences. This paper reports on a descriptive case- study of whole-of-institution curriculum reform at one regional Australian university, where more traditional 13-week semesters have been replaced with a 6-week immersive block model known as the Southern Cross Model. Based on a synthesis of literature in best practice HE pedagogy and principles, the case study draws on both a review of policy and staff interviews (N = 5) to outline the key changes necessary for successful HE transformation. Analysis revealed themes related to the vital roles of leadership, capacity building, monitoring the transition, staff adoption, and adequate technical systems in implementing a radical, multifaceted institutional transformation. Implications for practice at institutions considering reforming their curriculum model are also discussed. The findings from this case study indicate that an institutional transformation to an immersive block model requires both a considered change in institutional policy and process, as well as the appropriate resourcing of roles, governance committees, technical solutions, and, importantly, communities of practice.

Nowadays, it is not common to come across sectors that can work and succeed without using information technology (IT). IT has now become a part of organizations' management and strategic decision-making mechanisms. Therefore, organizations make serious investments to develop software and system infrastructures and transfer business processes to digital environments such as cloud technologies. So, they gain opportunities of spreading their business activities to wide stakeholders and customers and being business resilient. Here it is essential to provide assurance that an organization evaluates, develops, implements, maintains, disposes of its IT systems and manages life cycle of all information and information technology systems properly on all physical and logical environments. However, the most important matter is that an organization's objectives are met by the management practices of its information systems. While organizations carry out their digital transformation at a dizzying speed, organizations should be protected from material and moral damages such as loss of money, loss of commercial confidential information, loss of reputation by protecting the confidentiality, integrity and accessibility of the information assets they own and also comply with legal legislations such as the protection of personal data and intellectual property rights. In order to achieve this, organizations benefit from one or more frameworks, standards or directives that are suitable for their own structures and needs, separately or by integrating them. However, the most important point in this transformation process is the transition of organizations from IT management understanding to IT governance. In other words, IT has now become a part of the strategic decision-making mechanism by rising from the level of support tool to carry out business processes in organizations. When we search the academic literature, frameworks and standards, it is seen that the key elements of IT governance are structures, processes and relational mechanisms. If these three components are set up correctly and fit the organization, it can be assured that IT aligns with and supports the objectives of the organizations and that effective IT governance is achieved in every kind of organizations. In this research, databases such as Web of Science, IEEE, and SCOPUS are scanned and found articles are reviewed in order to make a literature review on IT Governance Mechanisms and Frameworks. Results are evaluated and discussed. By the way, suggestions for further studies were made and advanced researches were shed light on.

Nowadays, it is not common to come across sectors that can work and succeed without using information technology (IT). IT has now become a part of organizations' management and strategic decision-making mechanisms. Therefore, organizations make serious investments to develop software and system infrastructures and transfer business processes to digital environments such as cloud technologies. So, they get business resilient while they gain opportunities of spreading their business activities to wide stakeholders and customers. Here it is essential to provide assurance that an organization evaluates, develops, implements, maintains, disposes of its IT systems and manages life cycle of all information and information technology systems properly on all physical and logical environments. However, the most important matter is that an organization's objectives are met by the management practices of its information systems. While organizations carry out their digital transformation at a dizzying speed, organizations should be protected from material and moral damages such as loss of money, loss of commercial confidential information, loss of reputation by protecting the confidentiality, integrity and accessibility of the information assets they own and also comply with legal legislations such as the protection of personal data and intellectual property rights. In order to achieve this, organizations benefit from one or more frameworks, standards or directives that are suitable for their own structures and needs, separately or by integrating them. However, the most important point in this transformation process is the transition of organizations from IT management understanding to IT governance. In other words, IT has now become a part of the strategic decision-making mechanism by rising from the level of support tool to carry out business processes in organizations. When we search the academic literature, frameworks and standards, it is seen that the key elements of IT governance are structures, processes and relational mechanisms. If these three components are set up correctly and fit the organization, it can be assured that IT aligns with and supports the objectives of the organizations and that effective IT governance is achieved in every kind of organizations. In this research, databases such as Web of Science, IEEE, and SCOPUS are scanned and found articles are reviewed in order to make a literature review on IT Governance Mechanisms and Frameworks. Results are evaluated and discussed. By the way, suggestions for further studies were made and advanced researches were shed light on.

Public school board members are charged with the responsibility and accountability to provide governance-level advocacy for equity and excellence in public education. This qualitative study examined the perceptions of school board members in three K--8 school districts in the midwestern part of the United States regarding the 50+ year Race-Based Academic Achievement Disparity (RBAAD) in public education. Virtual one-on-one interviews, a virtual focus group, and member checks were used to gather data. Utilizing servant and moral leadership as the theoretical frameworks, the findings revealed that school board members are empowered with governance-level authority and the responsibility to address the RBAAD phenomenon, school board members encounter obstacles that challenge their ability to mitigate the RBAAD phenomenon, and school board members contend that opportunities exist to promote mitigation of the RBAAD. Implications for future research and practice are addressed.

This article examines the power dynamics underpinning performance management at a selected South African university. It specifically employs Michel Foucault's (1977) ideas on Governmentality to interpret the envisioning of performance management in this context at the level of Policy. The study employed a qualitative research methodology to address the questions at hand. Data were generated from one primary source: a discourse analysis of the Performance Management Policy (2013) at a selected university in South Africa. Using Michel Foucault's (1991) theories on governmentality, a discourse analysis of Performance Management Policy documents was conducted with the goal of critically interrogating the kinds of new academic subjectivities being created in South African higher education. The findings show that the Policy on Performance Management at the university in question works towards creating academic subjects which conform with the university's expectations and are consistently self- regulated. Findings also show that management of academics is constantly controlled and regulated by a powerful matrix of governance, comprising the university and the wider global community. This paper recommends that performance management discourses should take into stronger cognizance the matter of academic freedom and autonomy. We further recommend that Policy developers and management teams at universities be conscious of the complex forces of power that shape academic identities so that their policies move away from oppressive discourses. We argue that there is much we can learn from governmentality theory if we hope to build more just and equitable societies going forward.

Effective school leadership calls for the sharing of leadership responsibility in the area of supervision of instruction and other related activities of an educational institution. Such leadership styles and practices ensure high curriculum coverage and tend to offer better learning opportunities for students. This study employed a concurrent mixed- method design to explore the influence of Colleges of Education (CoE) authorities' leadership styles and practices on school effectiveness of the two teacher education colleges in the Upper East Region of Ghana. The study comprised second-year and third-year students, tutors and leadership of the colleges. A sample size of three hundred and eight (308) was utilised. A simple random sampling technique was used to draw both second year students and tutors. A cluster sampling technique was also used to cluster the population of the third- year students and a simple random sampling technique was then subsequently used to draw the students who were out in the field for their internship. Intensity case sampling technique was used in sampling school leadership. Two instruments namely an in-depth interview guide and a questionnaire were used to elicit responses to address the research question. The interview guide gathered responses from college leadership and the questionnaire was administered to both students and staff. The study revealed that college authorities use human-centred approaches in the management and governance architecture of the colleges, delegate responsibility to subordinates and adopt participatory decision-making mechanisms that bring on board internal publics to the decision-making table. The study largely disconfirmed Douglas Mc Gregor theory X assumptions. The study recommends that college authorities should continue to engage students and staff in the governance and management of their respective colleges and also expand the frontiers of the existing collaborations among internal publics of the colleges. In light of the foregone, authorities should continue to utilise democratic, shared and transformational leadership styles.

Data collection, use, leveraging, and sharing as a business practice and advantage has proliferated over the past decade. Along with this proliferation of data collection is the increase in regulatory activity which continues to morph exponentially around the globe. Adding to this complexity are the increasing business disruptions, productivity and revenue losses, settlements, fines, and penalties which can amount to over $15 million, with many penalties now being ascribed to the organization's leadership, to include the Board of Directors (BoD), the CEO and members of the senior leadership team (SLT). Thus, boards of directors can no longer ignore and in fact must embrace data privacy as a critical part of doing business in the digital world. In fact, not embracing data privacy as a critical part of their strategy, not only puts their stakeholders and stockholders at risk, but also places the future success of their organization in jeopardy. Additionally, increasingly through legal, regulatory, and normative occurrences, Boards are being pressured into taking a more active role in the data privacy activities in their organizations. Therefore, it behooves the BoD to be proactive vice reactive toward their data privacy endeavors.

Numerous scholars have investigated the determinants of university innovation efficiency. However, the internal governance aspects of universities and their interactions with the external environment are frequently neglected. Therefore, this study, grounded in the framework of embeddedness theory, employed the Stochastic Frontier Analysis method to empirically analyze innovation efficiency in Chinese universities. The results indicated that competitive threats significantly improved university innovation efficiency, whereas bureaucracy and international openness exhibited adverse effects, which were alleviated in regions with greater marketization.

With the rising prevalence of digital data, infrastructures and platforms in education, the challenge of conceptualizing and investigating 'intermediaries' has substantially increased. This not only refers to various new types of actors that have been materializing around practices of data infrastructuring (e.g., data management), but equally to the rising empowerment of data infrastructures themselves "as" intermediaries of policy and governance. The aim of this article is to sharpen our conceptual understanding of this interrelation between intermediaries and data infrastructuring. More specifically, the article suggests to approach intermediaries through a lens on "performative contexting," thus shifting the focus towards how 'intermediary contexting' is used, by whom and where exactly, rather than seeking to map intermediaries as an object 'from the outside'. Data infrastructuring, then, can be regarded both as part, and as a result, of such contexting efforts. Using Estonia as a case study, it is shown what we see (differently) when applying such a lens to the digital transformation of education. The findings hereby indicate a gradual emergence of what could be described as 'governance by intermediarization': a process in which more and more actors are shifted into the (self)contexting as infrastructural stewards, while the politics of digital transformation become centered -- i.e., seemingly depoliticized - around asserting continuous change through digital connection.

The use of educational technologies in schools is being reshaped by a new kind of intermediary organization that brokers relations between schools, academia, governance, and industry. In this article we define and examine 'edtech brokers' as organizations that operate between the edtech industry, public schools, research centers and governments, guiding schools in the procurement and pedagogical use of edtech. Edtech brokers have remained mostly unexplored despite their potential to redraw the boundaries between public education and the global edtech market. We claim that edtech brokers have become increasingly relevant in the past years, embedding new types of professionalities into education, and taking an active role in co-creating and updating schools' digital infrastructures, the evidence-making mechanisms around edtech, and the pedagogical practices around edtech. The article proposes three distinct categories of edtech brokers -- ambassador, search engine, and data brokers -- and explores their practices of mediation. By doing so, we outline the potential effects that brokers can have on schools and edtech markets, and we disentangle their specific imaginaries of the future of education they promote, often aligned with wider policy desires for reform.

This paper presents a critical analysis of the multifaceted intermediary role played by ed-tech (educational technology) consulting providers in the realm of educational governance. The study draws on multidisciplinary research and uses illustrative examples from Germany to outline their impact on the integration of digital technologies in schools. By employing an analytical framework that encompasses three key perspectives--policy, pedagogy, and economics--the paper explores the complexities of consultancy between governance actors, sectors, and fields of knowledge. Considering these dimensions together, the study offers a comprehensive understanding of ed-tech consulting, shedding light on its influence on policy enactment, educational practices, and economic value chains. It underscores the challenges and tensions that consultants must navigate, while raising concerns about their potential to pre-empt pedagogical decisions and diffuse commercial interests into educational settings. As such, this paper aims to provide a conceptual foundation for investigating these ambiguities, with the goal of stimulating further research into the growing field of ed-tech consulting.

Educators and researchers have increasingly recognized the importance of AI literacy. Despite the growing body of AI literacy literature, the challenges and enablers for introducing AI literacy for kindergarten children is still underexplored and undertheorized in early childhood education. It is critical to understand the challenges and enablers associated with promoting AI literacy and perceptions in kindergartens needs to be further researched and evaluated. This study aims to identify teachers' views on the importance of AI literacy in kindergartens and the challenges and enablers of promoting AI literacy in kindergartens. Data was collected from 15 teachers through individual interviews. It was found that the four main challenges of promoting AI literacy in kindergarten classrooms, including lack of school support, lack of children's comprehensive ability, insufficient teacher knowledge of AI, and lack of curriculum guidelines. The three main enablers of promoting AI literacy in kindergarten classrooms are government support, school support, and social needs. We also found that more than half of teachers in this study considered AI literacy education is crucial for kindergarten children. This study develops an AI literacy policy framework for young children that includes three dimensions -- governance, pedagogical, and operational and management. Based on the findings, suggestions for educators, curriculum developers, policymakers, and researchers are discussed.

The Australian "National Indigenous Reform Agreement" (Closing the Gap) aims to address inequalities in various aspects of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples' lives. Scholars have repeatedly critiqued its failure to tackle structural inequalities. The agreement was revised in 2020. The current study adopts Carol Bacchi's 'What's the Problem Represented to be?' approach to critically analyse the recently revised "National Agreement on Closing the Gap." This study shows that the main problematisation still concerns the unequal life outcomes between First Peoples and non-Indigenous Australians, but the major difference from the previous agreement is that such problematisation recognises the strong influence of structural inequalities. Findings indicate that Indigenous schooling is governed by the Agreement through discourses of structural change and the inherent comparative framework. This can condition the restructured relationship between First Peoples and the settler state, which makes it difficult to move beyond a comparative framework and a reductive understanding of self-determination. This study argues that the reconstructed relationships open opportunities to challenge settler colonialism in schooling and education policies. However, they should not be utilised to displace sovereignties and genuine self-determination.

This paper describes a scoping review of China's academic resource databases, relevant official websites, news reports and public accounts spanning a period from the end of 2019 to the end of 2022, to investigate the challenges in scientific integrity and ethical soundness of research conducted during and immediately after the COVID-19 pandemic in China. By conducting the scoping review with keywords related to the research questions in Chinese, relevant data were extracted and classified into four categories: challenges in research, challenges in ethics review, challenges in publishing academic work, and research ethics guidelines during and after the pandemic. The paper points out that problematic studies and findings increased with the escalation in medical research projects during the pandemic in China. The situation faced by researchers was more difficult than before the pandemic. The mode of informed consent, and ethics review and oversight systems also underwent changes. In addition, Traditional Chinese Medicine as an alternative medical treatment for COVID-19, attracted attention from the research community and became a topic of discussion. We conclude that the various challenges and concerns identified indicate a need for a proper and timely response system be formulated in preparation for possible future occurrences of new pandemics or other critical situations.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, the race to find an effective vaccine or treatment saw an 'extraordinary number' of clinical trials being conducted. While there were some key success stories, not all trials produced results that informed patient care. There was a significant amount of waste in clinical research during the pandemic which is said to have hampered an evidence-based response. Conducting trials which could have been predicted to fail to answer the research question (e.g. because they are not large enough to provide a definitive result) is not only a waste of resources but also a breach of research participants' trust and a violation of research ethics. The issues seen in COVID-19 clinical trials are symptomatic of a wider trial design crisis where many trials do not provide informative results. This paper examines the roles of key stakeholders in delivering ethical and informative trials and whether guidance published by 'The Good Clinical Trials Collaborative' could be used to align key stakeholder groups and enable a joined-up approach to improve clinical trial design.