Education & Training
A blended learning programme for out-of-field mathematics teaching
Out-of-field teaching is an international phenomenon with particular prevalence in the teaching of mathematics. Professor Merrilyn Goos, Professor of STEM Education at the University of Limerick, and Director of EPI*STEM describes the design features of a national mathematics teacher professional development programme. Employing three boundary crossing frameworks exposes the signature features of this part-time graduate programme’s blended learning design, and […]
Lions Quest: Promoting social and emotional learning in the classroom
The positive psychology movement promotes positivity and support in the classroom, to increase students’ well-being and academic achievement. Teachers are ideally placed to deliver this support. However, their skills and competencies in social and emotional learning (SEL) need to be developed. Dr Markus Talvio and Prof Kirsti Lonka conducted research into SEL interventions, particularly Lions Quest teacher workshops, which aim […]
How dialogue and democracy evolve through the interactions of children
It used to be said that children should be ‘seen and not heard’. However, since 1989 the United Nations enshrined child-centred education into its core values, and this educational style is now the norm for many societies. Recognising children as human beings with individual rights and agency, this style of education aimed to change how society views and treats children. […]
Taxonomy of affective curriculum for gifted learners: A framework for providing social–emotional learning to gifted children
As the demand for adequate social–emotional learning grows globally, in the United States there has been an emphasis on the power of affective education. Dr Derek Cavilla, from the University of Central Florida, has developed a framework called Cavilla’s Taxonomy of Affective Curriculum for Gifted Learners, which aims to help gifted learners achieve their potential through the power of social–emotional […]
Mapping freedom in academia
The ‘Mapping Funds’ project is creating maps based on collaborative and crowdsourced (public contribution) information as an active way to support the scientific activities and studies of at-risk scholars. These scholars are encountering constraints on their research activities due to the restrictive regimes they live and work in. The constraints include travel bans, deportations, arrest, prosecution and imprisonment. The project […]
Teaching words and how words work
Language is such a fundamental part of our being that vocabulary acquisition can be taken for granted. But vocabulary learning is a mammoth task, not least as it’s estimated that English-speaking students will encounter around 150,000 different words during their school career. American educator and researcher Elfrieda H. Hiebert has used digital technology to analyse thousands of texts to discover more about […]
Proactive strategic recruitment in research groups
Dr Jouni Kekäle, Human Resources Director at the University of Eastern Finland, has developed a proactive recruitment model to promote strategic academic recruitment. Successful recruitment is a significant aspect affecting academic outcomes. Proactive recruitment demonstrates how intrinsic motivation together with diversity within the research group and academic freedom are crucial elements required to promote the innovation that universities are searching […]
Insights into nature of science and evolution education
Dr Lawrence C. Scharmann, Professor of Education at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, has been working with non-major biology and science teacher students to enhance the teaching and learning of evolution. His students note that science theories are powerful tools and when they are presented with new ones, they do not have to give up other tools, such as their religious […]
A conceptual approach for interpreting the expanding instances of the internationalisation of education
The internationalisation of education (IE) has accelerated across the past two decades. Although there are now a range of representations and discussions of IE, lacking is a historically-informed framework to connect domains and levels of IE practices. Dr Paul Tarc from Western University argues for a conceptual approach to IE, one that includes theorising past and present enabling conditions of international education […]
Equitable access to quality education in elementary school mathematics
In a study contrasting an assessment-heavy approach that concentrates on ‘getting the answer right’ with one that promotes the development of mathematical thinking in the elementary school classroom, Professor Brian Hudson, from Karlstad University and the University of Sussex, examines what constitutes educational quality in terms of mathematics education. This research demonstrates that in order to ensure fair and impartial […]