Education & Pedagogy

Distance education is a growing phenomenon in education. Primary grades through post-secondary education institutions to businesses incorporating continuing education have utilized technology and distance education to facilitate learning. An obvious benefit from all distance education is that access to specific material and instruction is gained. In this article, the authors present a qualitative case study of the classroom management practices observed in a distance education, Masters level, research/statistics class. The main distance education technology used for the class was compressed video. The course was supported online by the use of WebCT, a computer program that creates a web-based environment on the Internet. EDFD 5013 Research Methods in Education is part of the College of Education and Health Professions required core courses for all Masters students at a land grant university located in the South. Students from a variety of disciplines take the course. The course was taught both at the university (the originating site) and broadcasted to four remotes sites across the state. A first-year doctoral student, who had previous teaching, experience taught the course. (Contains 4 tables.)

Increasing attention is being given to the inclusion of Education for Sustainability in pre-service teacher education. However, there is little research to explain why and how early-career teachers include Education for Sustainability in their work, or how teacher education providers can encourage and support them to do this. Through analysis of two interviews this paper examines the way in which a pre-service primary school teacher interprets her role in Education for Sustainability. Her personal reflections on the manner in which her life experiences, including her own schooling, have influenced her intentions as teacher are explored. Her university teacher education program in Education for Sustainability and her teaching internship experience also appear to have influenced her teaching goals. The profile presented in this paper outlines her intentions and sense of identity as teacher and how that has developed and is expressed. Conclusions centre on the relevance of her refections for education for sustainability in pre-service teacher education. In particular, her example demonstrates how the development of pedagogical content knowledge relevant to Education for Sustainability during the pre-service years can play an integral part in an individual's decision-making when teaching.

The United States Bureau of Labor Statistics reported 1.6 million post-secondary teaching jobs in 2004 and predicted this number to increase 27% or more by 2014. Hiring higher education faculty in technical education has been more problematic than in many other fields. The fields of technology education and vocational education were cited by researchers as having a lower than average number of applicants per position, with vocational education also showing a much higher than average failure rate for searches. This report uses findings from a survey of higher education department chairs and program coordinators to characterize faculty vacancies at the bachelor's and master's program levels in post-secondary technical education institutions, the criteria used to hire faculty, and the attitudes toward filling those vacancies with an individual who has earned a doctoral degree through an online method of delivery. The survey sample included department chairs or program coordinators of bachelor's and master's programs in technical education in the United States. An anonymous, online survey was used to collect data due to its ease for respondents, its low cost, the anonymity it guaranteed to respondents, and its avoidance of data entry errors. (Contains 2 tables.)

Inclusive education in South Africa has not been promoted as simply one more option for education but as an educational strategy that can contribute to a democratic society. After the end of the Apartheid era the new democratic government committed itself to the transformation of education and key policy documents and legislation stress the principle of education as a basic human right as enshrined in the Constitution. White Paper 6: Special Needs Education, building an inclusive education and training system (2001) provides a framework for systemic change for the development of inclusive education. As a philosophy, the concept of inclusive education in the South African context embraces the democratic values of equality and human rights and the recognition of diversity. Research however indicates that multifaceted societal changes, encompassing educational reforms and contextual changes, including the management of diversity in schools, have had a negative impact on the implementation of inclusive education. After ten year of democracy, the enduring tension between changing the structure of education and changing the process of education is still influencing progress. Enhancing the recognition and acceptance of the basic rights of all South African children to be accommodated in inclusive school communities therefore remains a challenge.

As a teacher of art teachers, this author values and promotes an education through the arts that loves freedom, an education through art connected to powerful social ideas and movements, connected to social justice. This is not a kind of education common today in public schools, but it has a rich lineage. Drawing inspiration from Maxine Greene, Lev Vygotsky, and other theoretical strands, her goal is to encourage student art teachers to see the connections between art, education, and social change. She publicizes these connections to attract art education students who are excited by and attracted to social justice work. In this article, the author contends that the right direction in education is always art, and that the direction to go in art education is toward whatever is bubbling up from the movements for social justice. More precisely, it is about bringing the "velvet vulva" to school. This is art education organized around the serious fun of risky, surprising experiences with artists, activists, and ideas that are current and important. Art, planted in a field of education and social action, is the seed--it can crack classrooms open, and make possible a rich and wholly humanizing and vision-expanding education for every child. That is the catalyzing power of the arts in education. (Contains 5 figures.)

International consensus on education priorities accords an important place to achieving gender justice in the educational sphere. Both the Dakar 'Education for All' goals and the Millennium Development goals emphasise two goals, in this regard. These two goals are distinguished as gender parity goals [achieving equal participation of girls and boys in all forms of education based on their proportion in the relevant age-groups in the population] and gender equality goals [ensuring educational equality between boys and girls]. In turn these have been characterised as quantitative/numerical and qualitative goals respectively. In order to consider progress towards both types of goal, both quantitative and qualitative assessments need to be made of the nature of progress towards gender equality. Achieving gender parity is just one step towards gender equality in and through education. An education system with equal numbers of boys and girls participating, who may progress evenly through the system, may not in fact be based on gender equality. Following Wilson (Human Rights: Promoting gender equality in and through education. Background paper for EFA GMR 2003/4, 2003) a consideration of gender equality in education therefore needs to be understood as the right to education [access and participation], as well as rights within education [gender-aware educational environments, processes, and outcomes], and rights through education [meaningful education outcomes that link education equality with wider processes of gender justice].

The importance of education and its prestige has grown as a result of the socio-economic changes after 1989. However, the Czech population still attributes less importance to education as a success factor for life compared to more developed countries. Still, young people strive for as high a level of education as possible, the primary incentive being expected financial gain. The characteristic features of the Czech population include a high occurrence of ISCED 3 qualification, a low proportion of the labour force with basic education (ISCED 1, 2) and with no education (ISCED 0) and a low proportion of individuals with tertiary qualifications (ISCED 5, 6). The 1990s saw a sharp reduction in the number of secondary vocational school students and an increase in participation in secondary programmes with "maturita" and in tertiary education. A further development of tertiary education is hindered by insufficient capacity in higher education institutions. The CR also shows a very low level of upward educational mobility. Participation in continuing education is lower compared to the EU and there is weak motivation particularly among individuals with lower qualifications. (Contains 6 tables, 2 graphs and 10 footnotes.)

The field of special education is currently in the grip of a pressing polycrisis, a convergence of multiple issues that collectively pose a significant threat. These issues, including a nationwide shortage of U.S. special education teachers, particularly in rural areas; declining enrollment in teacher preparation programs; and high teacher attrition rates due to stress and workload are urgent and demand immediate attention. To address this polycrisis, the paper's authors propose a novel approach to undergraduate special education teacher preparation in a rural university setting: a birth-age 21 program. Key features of the program's design will be reviewed, such as (a) a unified curriculum aligned with competencies and standards from early childhood and K-21 special education; (b) an emphasis on culturally responsive, family-centered practices; and (c) the prioritization of undergraduate student well-being and mental health, allowing space for personal development and interests. This article will close with potential benefits of a birth-age 21 teacher preparation program and recommendations for the field of special education and teacher educators.

In this paper, we focus on non-monetary and potential societal benefits of higher education and ask whether the higher education experience fosters political interest, internal political efficacy, and participation irrespective of completing a degree. Increasing enrolment rates in higher education also increase the number of higher education dropouts. Previous literature has found that dropouts fare equally well on the labour market as young adults who never enter higher education ('non-starters'), suggesting that higher education does not pay off without obtaining a degree. However, preparing students for the labour market is only one goal of higher education. Therefore, we focus on broader returns to the higher education experience and its potential contribution to society. We use a representative sample of adults in Germany and apply linear regression models to compare dropouts to both graduates and 'non-starters'. Our results confirm that higher education experience is positively related to political outcomes. However, except for internal political efficacy, the differences between dropouts and 'non-starters' do not appear to change substantially with the time spent in higher education. These findings call into question the role of higher education in creating politically informed and responsible citizens.

This report contains more than 30 structural indicators on education policies in five areas: early childhood education and care (ECEC), achievement in basic skills, early leaving from education and training (ELET), higher education and digital competence. The Eurydice project on Structural Indicators for Monitoring Education and Training Systems in Europe provides yearly data since 2015, which illustrate the main policy developments in education and training systems across Europe. The 2022 report contains the updated indicators for the 2021/2022 school/academic year together with a short overview of the major reforms since the start of the 2014/2015 school/academic year in five policy areas: (1) Early childhood education and care (ECEC); (2) Achievement in basic skills; (3) Early leaving from education and training (ELET); (4) Higher education; and (5) Digital competence. The 2022 update of the structural indicators covers the EU Member States, as well as Albania (only for digital competence), Bosnia and Herzegovina, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Norway, Serbia and Türkiye. [For the 2021 report, see ED617601.]

While resource provision is widely recognized as an essential element of successful inclusive education, this is the first time an entire book has been dedicated to the topic. In this volume leading experts address international perspectives on funding models, the role of resources, and the development of professionals for the implementation of effective inclusive education. Split into two parts, the first section of the book addresses funding challenges that have emerged following the implementation of an inclusive school system. The authors present a broad range of international perspectives on different funding models and collate evidence from a variety of countries. They also unearth a variety of perceptions regarding resourcing for successful implementation of inclusive education. In the second part of the book, the authors focus on international perspectives of teacher training and professional development for inclusive education, ranging from early childhood education to post-secondary teacher training. Providing critical information and empirical studies, valuable to all of those engaged in the endeavour of providing adequate resources to support inclusive education, this volume is of interest to education policy makers, school and system leaders, and economists.

This paper sets out to reclaim rights-based thinking on for the current proposals for the education Sustainable Development Goal (SDG). The proposed indicators are intended to contribute to a broad and bold agenda for education quality compatible with the targets set out in two proposals for a post-2015 education goals -- the Muscat Agreement (Global Education For All Meeting 2014) and Open Working Group (OWG) proposal (Open Working Group for Sustainable Development Goals 2014). Two targets are addressed, the "relevant learning outcomes" component of the basic education target and the target for qualified teachers. The paper is organized into two parts. Part I looks back at experience with the education MDG, EFA goals, and understandings of quality within the EFA movement to arrive at a framework for formulating indicators. Suggestions for post-2015 indicators are set out in Part II. The conclusion argues that the development goal should not only monitor what has been achieved against a pre-determined agenda but support stakeholders across all levels to create and implement a broad and bold agenda for education.

Often the biggest transition for students with disabilities and their families is from the supports and services provided in the preschool-12th grade (P-12) public education system to a college or university. At the P-12 level, three main federal laws impact students with disabilities: the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (Section 504), and the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). For students receiving special education under the IDEA or receiving accommodations and services under Section 504, transitioning from the P-12 public education system to an institution of higher education (IHE) may affect how the school assesses their disability, their eligibility for receiving accommodations or services, and the supports, services, and accommodations available to them. This report examines those laws' impact on students with disabilities in three key respects: how they define disability; how they determine eligibility for services and protections; and how they ensure students with disabilities receive the accommodations and services they need to participate in all levels of education. [JD Hsin originally co-authored this report.]

The state of Nebraska recently adopted and implemented a set of Science standards that aligns with the Next Generation Science Standards which include engineering practices such as engineering design and the use of technology. Curriculum administrators throughout the state are responsible for the implementation of these standards including training for engineering teaching and learning. This exploratory study investigated curriculum administrators' (n = 43) perceptions of Engineering Education in four areas: Importance of Engineering Education, District Familiarity with Engineering Education, Characteristics of Engineering, and Barriers to Integrating Engineering Education. This exploratory study used one instrument to collect data: a modified Design, Engineering, and Technology (DET) Survey. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics. The findings of this study revealed curriculum administrators express that the Science curriculum is an effective means to deliver engineering education and that engineering education content in pre-service teacher education programs and in-service teacher professional development to foster engineering education familiarity and best practices should be improved. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://www.proquest.com/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]

The purpose of these guidelines is to provide methods for comprehensive education sector analyses to support the preparation and monitoring of education sector plans. They are an update of a 1999 document that has been used to support the preparation of approximately 70 Education Country Status Reports (CSR) in more than 40 countries. The goal of the guidelines is to strengthen national capacities in order that Government teams can conduct education sector analyses with progressively less external support. They were prepared by education economists and specialists from UNESCO's International Institute for Educational Planning-Pôle de Dakar, UNESCO's Dakar Office, the World Bank, UNICEF and the Global Partnership for Education secretariat. The guidelines are divided into two volumes. The present volume features methodologies for analysing six sector-wide thematic areas: context; access; costs and financing; quality, system capacity and management; external efficiency; and equity. The emphasis is on formal primary and secondary education, with volume 2 specifically covering the other major education subsectors. [For Volume 2, see ED615592. For Volume 3, see ED615594.]