Education & Pedagogy

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to empirically test two opposing theoretical hypotheses from research literature: low quality of public education boosts support for public education; and low quality of public education weakens support for public education. Design/methodology/approach: The authors use microdata from 27 post-communist countries over a period of five years. This study uses two outcome variables in order to capture the level of support for public education: the willingness to elevate investments in public education to an important policy priority; and the willingness to pay more taxes to improve public healthcare. A series of logistic regressions is used to find how the outcome variable is influenced by six dimensions of the quality of the public education system. Findings: The main finding is that a lower quality of public education strengthens the willingness of citizens to make investments into public education by: making it a political priority for the government; and through a professed increased willingness to pay more taxes towards improving public education. These findings remain valid for both years of investigation and for both EU and non-EU samples. In contrast, the authors could not find support for the hypothesis that postulates that a lower quality of public education will reduce support for public education. Research limitations/implications: The main implication of these findings is that despite the increases in availability of private schooling opportunities, the citizens of post-communist countries have not abandoned their support for public education. Even if citizens of post-communist countries believe that public education is no longer of an appropriately high quality, they continue to support the provision of resources to it in order to improve on the current situation. Practical implications: The current low quality of public education can be seen as providing an impetus for encouraging support for public education. Social implications: In terms of policy-making, the findings demonstrate the opportunity to shore up public support for further reforms in public- education in post-communist countries. Originality/value: The current education policy research literature is silent about the direction of the effect of low quality public education on the willingness to provide support for public education. Against this background, this is the first study which empirically tested whether quality of public education affect willingness to support it. Covering a period of five years, the authors test the above-postulated hypotheses using a diverse sample of 27 post-communist countries.

Article 24 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD), ratified by 185 of the 193 UN Member States, provides an explicit right to "inclusive education" for people with disabilities in higher education, including those with intellectual disability (ID). However, inclusive higher education for people with ID remains under researched. This paper analyses how inclusive education is conceptualised in the UNCRPD and the obligations created for higher education institutions in relation to people with ID. It does this by drawing on a General Comment, Concluding Observations and views adopted by the UN Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities under Article 5 of the Optional Protocol to the UNCRPD in response to a complaint brought by a person with ID who faced barriers to accessing tertiary education in Mexico (United Nations, 2023). The paper also explores what inclusive higher education provision for students with ID, built around UNCRPD rights-based principles, looks like in practice. This is illustrated by description of a rights-based model of inclusive higher education, informed by principles of inclusive education as articulated in the UNCRPD which is offered to people with ID in an Irish university, thereby offering a European perspective. Empirical research from University College Cork (UCC) presented in this paper indicates that introducing inclusive higher education can benefit all students and not just those with ID.

Labor market demands are changing considerably amidst modern developments. Furthermore, societies are becoming increasingly diverse economically, socially, and culturally. Transformative learning is needed to address these economic and societal challenges and capitalize on the increasing diversity in society. This could be supported by the development of entrepreneurial competencies. While the importance of entrepreneurial education for developing entrepreneurial competencies in higher education is known, current entrepreneurial education approaches are not tailored to the growing diversity. Consequently, higher education institutions may benefit from consulting other disciplines, such as inclusive education, to enhance entrepreneurial competencies. While extensive research has been conducted separately on entrepreneurial education, entrepreneurial competencies, and inclusive education, less work has focused on their integration. This study maps the literature on inclusive education, defined as tailoring education to ensure all learners' participation and teaching students to contribute to an inclusive environment, and entrepreneurial competencies, defined as knowledge, skills, and attitudes that enable individuals to turn ideas into action, in higher education. A comprehensive literature review was conducted to map the predictors and outcomes of inclusive education and the predictors of entrepreneurial competencies using various databases. We selected, coded, and analyzed 106 articles. Thematic analysis suggests that inclusive education may support the development of students' collaborative competency, self-efficacy, intercultural competency, empathy, and critical thinking. Building on these findings, we integrated the results into an Entrepreneurial-Competencies-through-Inclusive-Education (ECIE) framework. This study offers new perspectives on developing entrepreneurial competencies through inclusive education, thereby going beyond the Entrepreneurship Competence Framework (EntreComp) and supporting transformative learning.

In this paper I examine the history of the integration of mathematics education into the Science Education Centre, which had been established by physicist, John de Laeter, within the School of Science and Engineering at Curtin University in Perth, Australia. De Laeter's vision for science education was that teachers should have access to professional education that allowed them to extend their discipline and pedagogical knowledge using strategies that brought together theory and practice in ways that were meaningful for teachers. This model was expanded when mathematics education was also included, paving the way also for technology education. I present the history of this integration laying out the themes that are important for the continued educational effectiveness of the Science and Mathematics Education Centre (SMEC) and the role that mathematics education has played in this process. As the title suggests, this article focuses on the activities of the group of mathematics educators who have worked within the Science and Mathematics Education Centre of Curtin University since it was established 30 or so years ago and who have contributed to its reputation. The two streams operated then and now more-or-less independently in matters of student thesis topic choice but offered students opportunities for interaction that might not have been available if the "M" had not been incorporated into the Science Education Centre (SEC). This article's focus is on the mathematics educators who contributed to the Centre's success and reputation, highlighting the synergistic relationship between mathematics and science that helped to make SMEC a leading center for mathematics and science education.

Globalization has affected many sectors of the society, including higher education. In the current global economy, higher education institutions face numerous challenges. Factors such as the increasing international competition, achieving higher ranking among global universities, and the pursuit of creating world-class institutions has had a significant impact on higher education institutions. While universities respond to these challenges differently, some higher education institutions are increasingly moving toward the internationalization of their campuses. Internationalization of higher education programs includes branch campuses, cross border collaborative programs, exchange of international students, and establishment of English-medium programs and degrees. Over the past decade, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) has been on the receiving line of this phenomena. Internationalization of higher education has greatly affected the UAE as it continues to strive toward becoming a leading education hub in the Middle East. Until recently, the goal of the UAE has been to make higher education accessible to all students within the UAE by providing them with quality learning resources. However, over the past several years, in addition to providing its citizens with quality education, the country is working toward establishing itself as a world-class regional education hub through inviting prominent universities to set up campuses in the country. This paper examines the current trends in internationalization of higher education and analyzes the recent successes and some unanticipated outcomes of this phenomenon in the UAE.

The paper examined the place of Distance Education (DE) as a method of Adult Education in Nigeria and its contribution to national development. The paper discussed DE practice and challenges in some African countries and related this to the Nigerian situation. The paper further noted the challenge of the national admission body for regular tertiary institutions with reconciling the ratio of applicants to those admitted. Incidentally, DE, which is originally a form of Adult Education, is fast becoming a replacement for regular higher education. The implication of this on Adult Education practice in Nigeria is that the changes in the demographics of participants in DE, along with other challenges, affect the essence of Adult Education provision, access and its conduct. The paper analyzed the concept of DE and noted that distance education is currently used to replace, instead of support mainstream education in Nigeria by eroding the more desirable non-formal approach. The paper agrees that DE can be used as a tool, per excellence, for human and national development, if practiced in its proper context, and attracts the desired target candidates. Several suggestions were proffered for better conduct of DE, including the use of awareness campaigns to attract the right candidates into DE programs as well as better provision of access to regular education for the youth to stem their influx into DE. The discourse has great implications for lifelong learning, access, national development and adult education practice in Nigeria and globally. (Contains 4 tables.)

In fall 2002, the University of Hawai'i at Manoa (UHM) Board of Regents approved a new structure for teacher education programs in the College of Education (COE). The new Institute for Teacher Education (ITE) provides coordinated oversight for four programs: the Bachelor of Education (BEd) in Elementary Education, Bachelor of Education (BEd) in Secondary Education, Post-Baccalaureate Certificate in Secondary Education (PBCSE), and Master of Education in Teaching (MET). The ITE programs share important characteristics. All programs are field-based. Students spend one to two days per week working in school classrooms during the semesters leading up to full-time student teaching and teaching internship semesters. Field experiences, student teaching, and teaching internships are integrated with the university coursework required to complete each program. Assessment data collected from students, school administrators, and mentor teachers indicate positive response to ITE programs, which actively engage students, university faculty members, school-level mentor teachers, and administrators in collaborative efforts to prepare new teachers. The data also provide ongoing feedback for program improvement. These standards- and field-based teacher education programs, grounded in a shared vision for education, are a relatively new development in UHM's teacher preparation history. The purpose of this article is to trace the history of UHM's teacher education from 1986 through present day, noting the important movements and events that provided impetus for change, and to highlight the major challenges that lie ahead.

As middle and secondary classrooms become increasingly inclusive, some special educators may not be prepared to teach content, and some general educators may not be prepared to address diverse learning needs. This mismatch between the reality of today's schools and traditional teacher preparation has led to the development of new models for teacher education that integrate or merge special education and general education. Integrated and merged models are two approaches to combining special and general education pedagogy for teacher education. In merged programs, faculty in general and special education collaborate to develop one program in which all candidates receive licensure in both general and special education. Merged programs are developed through the extensive and deliberate collaboration of general and special education faculty to redesign the teacher education curriculum and field experiences. However, while several merged programs have been developed to prepare elementary candidates, programs for middle/secondary candidates are scarce. When faculty from Curriculum and Instruction and Special Education consider creating a merged secondary program, many questions and issues arise. These questions and issues were addressed in the development and implementation of the Secondary Dual Educator's Program (SDEP). The overall purpose of SDEP is to develop strategic teachers with the versatility to meet the learning needs of all secondary students. This article describes the process used by cross-department faculty to develop the program design and components and how program evaluation led to revisions that strengthened the program. (Contains 3 figures.)

The purpose of health education is to positively influence the health behavior of individuals and communities, as well as living and working conditions that affect health. The goal of a Healthy Lifestyles course that is offered to undergraduate students enrolled in a university general education program (e.g., liberal arts education, core curriculum) is to build fundamental skills and to promote voluntary behavior change activities. As defined by Moore (2006), liberal education is "a philosophy of education that empowers individuals, liberates the mind from ignorance and cultivates social responsibility" because it "provides students broad exposure to multiple disciplines and more in-depth study in at least one field or area of concentration" (p. 46). As much as this definition of liberal education is shared among those in liberal arts education programs and the health education profession alike, it was challenging to convince a group of diverse faculty from multiple programs (arts, sciences, social sciences, etc.) at a public university to approve a new general education course centered around health behaviors. During the past 20 years, the faculty at this public university resisted including a Healthy Lifestyles course in the requirements of the general education curriculum. This article discusses the process used to add a required Healthy Lifestyles course to the general education program. The effects of this innovation and its limitations will be discussed, as will the effects of the course on students. The benefits of including a health education course in the general education program will also be addressed. (Contains 5 tables.)

This article has four sections. First, the author presents a theoretical discussion of the different explanations regarding the explosion of education after World War II. She explains how the actor-network theory--a theory of knowledge and of agency--enables people to understand the formation of the education-economic growth black box. The actor-network theory allows her to explain the formation of the education-economic growth network, a network in which UNESCO, the OECD, and the econometric economists of education participated. It also serves to elucidate the ways in which the collaboration of international organizations as central "allies" of the network contributed to the enhancement and diffusion of the education-economic growth black box, turning it into a component of the world education culture. Second, she presents the formation of the education-economic growth network which depicts through the evolution of the economics of education in calculable and predictable terms. She discusses the three main allies which constitutes the basis of the education-economic growth network: (1) human capital theory, (2) the residual factor, and (3) education planning. Third, she presents the critiques of the education-economic growth black box. And fourth, she discusses how the education-economic growth discourse became the basis of educational policies throughout the world--a fact that contributed to the expansion and empowerment of international organizations. Finally, in a concluding section, she discusses the utility of an analysis of international organizations as actors in furthering people's understanding of the evolution of a world education culture. (Contains 101 footnotes.)

For those working in the field of rights education, there is a broad understanding of what rights education encompasses and why it is significant, but there do not appear to be any agreed definitions of subtypes of rights education aside from human rights education (HRE) (which itself is contested). This lack of conceptual clarity makes it difficult to be certain that what is being delivered within a 'rights education' framework fulfils its obligations. To address this gap, this systematic review sought to understand how rights education for children has been defined in existing academic research. This review used seminal philosopher H.W.B. Joseph's rules for defining terms and an assessment was made of each definition against these rules. Findings confirm that few of the papers incorporate a specific definition of rights education for children, or its subtypes, such as children's rights education (CRE) or children's human rights education (CHRE). The analyses conducted in this article point to the need for definitional clarity for each of the terms CRE, CHRE and rights education for children. As a way forward, a definition of rights education for children is proposed as an overarching term positioned within international human rights law, which encompasses several specific subtypes that each use a different international human rights text to anchor its content, methods, approach and rationale. A new set of criteria to devise and assess definitions is also provided.

The Government of India's National Policy of Education 2020 stipulates that in the following five years all stand-alone teacher education colleges will be required to convert to multidisciplinary higher education institutions. This calls for a complete overhaul of the country's vast, diverse, and age-old system of teacher preparation. Evidence-based policy implementation is thus the need of the hour. This chapter attempts to aid the process by presenting insights from a comparative education research on pre-service teacher education (PSTE) of secondary school teachers at stand-alone teacher education institutions (TEIs) in the Indian city of Mumbai and university-based teacher education in the Chinese city of Hong Kong. Documentary sources, field visits, and 57 interviews form the basis of the findings. The dimensions for comparison include academic freedom and autonomy; pathways to PSTE; linkages of teacher education providers; and role and working conditions of teacher educators. The chapter deduces the core differences in teacher education at stand-alone TEIs vis-à-vis that at a university and draws out implications of shutting down the former. It concludes by laying down a road map for the effective universitization of teacher education in India that will result in genuinely improving teacher quality. [For the complete volume, "Building Teacher Quality in India: Examining Policy Frameworks and Implementation Outcomes. International Perspectives on Education and Society. Volume 41," see ED674924.]

A great education is the key to unlocking personal potential to succeed in careers and to lead a meaningful life. Accordingly, education is best addressed by those closest to students--parents and teachers. The proper Federal role in education should be to come alongside teachers, parents, and students in ensuring every student has opportunities to pursue the education that works for them. The U.S. Department of Education is committed to: expanding education freedom for students, their families, and their teachers; improving educational outcomes for every student and has encouraged states to increase options for families; and recognizing its limited role in education while empowering those who should not be limited: teachers, parents and, most importantly, students. The Department's Strategic Plan for fiscal year (FY) 2018-22 lays out a vision for bold reforms that reflect President Trump's priority to ensure all students in America have access to learning environments that fit their unique needs and prepare them for successful careers and meaningful lives. Contents include: (1) Message from the Secretary; (2) About the Department; (3) National Landscape; (4) Strategic Framework; (5) Performance Assessment and Planning; and (6) Appendices. [For the "U.S. Department of Education Strategic Plan for Fiscal Years 2018-22," see ED586968. For the "U.S. Department of Education FY 2017 Annual Performance Report and FY 2019 Annual Performance Plan," see ED607850.]

Education has until recently promoted social mobility, broad economic growth, and democracy. However, modern universities direct policy and resources toward criteria that exacerbate income inequality and reduce social mobility. Online education can make education more socially, geographically, temporally, and financially accessible, impacting the higher education industry, governments, economies, communities, and society in general. Thus, education's shift away from scarcity affects the differential earnings and socio-political influence of all concerned, and online education impacts, and is impacted by, such shifting power structures. "Socioeconomics, Diversity, and the Politics of Online Education" is a cutting-edge research publication that explores online education's optimal design and management so that more students, especially those traditionally underserved, are successful and can contribute to their communities and society. Additionally, it looks at the political/regulatory, diversity, and socioeconomic impacts on online education, especially for online education demographic groups. Featuring a wide range of topics including globalization, accreditation, and socioeconomics, this book is essential for teachers, administrators, government policy writers, educational software developers, MOOC providers, LMS providers, policymakers, academicians, administrators, researchers, and students interested in student retention and diversity and income inequality as well as promoting social mobility and democracy through accessible public education.

The West Virginia Higher Education Policy Commission (HEPC) has statutory responsibility for developing a six-year strategic plan for higher education in cooperation with the state's colleges and universities, policy makers, and other key constituencies. This master plan aims to coordinate the efforts of the various institutions of higher education in the state, while recognizing that each institution plays a unique role within the larger system. "Charting the Future" provides an overarching vision for the state's system of higher education; this vision is implemented through the compact reporting process which asks each college and university to set goals specific to its mission and to account for achieving those goals. Higher education has long been the pathway to upward mobility in America, and HEPC takes responsibility for opening that pathway to all West Virginians. Accordingly, this plan addresses key issues in providing a quality post-secondary education for the state's population--issues such as access, student preparation, program offerings, cost, and learning accountability. HEPC looks to capitalize on existing strengths and better position West Virginia as a globally competitive, economically prosperous, and dynamic state. This document reflects their belief that higher education plays an instrumental part in the cultural and economic health of West Virginia communities. It is organized around five major planning areas: (1) economic growth; (2) access; (3) cost and affordability; (4) learning and accountability; and (5) innovation.