Education & Pedagogy

In this study, the attitudes of adult learners towards distance education were examined and the study motivation and satisfaction level of adult learners, which are two important factors affecting participation, continuation and even dropout, were examined. This study was conducted in a relational research design in quantitative research model and data were collected with the help of three relational scales. These scales are "Attitude towards Distance Education Scale," "Distance Education Satisfaction Scale" and "Online Learning Motivation Scale." In this study, there were 350 participants, 302 women and 48 men. Adult learners of distance pedagogical formation program were selected within the scope of "purposive sampling method." "Regression analysis" was conducted with "the bootstrap method" to test the mediating role of motivational behavior in online learning in the effect of individuals studying via distance education on attitude towards distance education and satisfaction in distance education. Process macro developed by Hayes (2018) was used in the analysis. Accordingly, it was found that the indirect effect of attitude towards distance education on satisfaction with distance education was significant. Thus, it was determined that motivation in online learning mediates the relationship between attitude towards distance education and satisfaction with distance education. This study revealed that there is a significant positive relationship between attitude towards distance education and satisfaction with distance education. There is a significant positive relationship between attitude towards distance education and online learning motivation. There is a significant positive relationship between satisfaction with distance education and online learning motivation, and in the mediation model, it is seen that all path coefficients are significant in the mediation model of distance education students' attitudes towards distance education affecting their satisfaction with distance education through their online learning motivation.

Physical education is a socially constructed activity that forms one component of a wider physical culture that includes sport and health/physical activity. The terms sport and physical education are often used interchangeably in school contexts, where sport and health continue to shape what is understood by the term physical education. This study explores discourses shaping pre-service primary teachers' understandings of the nature and purposes of physical education within an Irish context and the relationship between these understandings. A 10-minute writing task prompted by the question "what is physical education?" was completed by a sample of pre-service teachers ("n"=544, age range 18-46, 8.8% male) from two colleges of education, prior to the physical education component of their teacher education programme. Content analysis involved an initial text frequency search to create categories which were collapsed into three broad areas of students' understandings of physical education--sport, health and physical education. The research design allowed access to pre-service teachers' understandings of physical education. Participants' understandings reflected their own school experiences and were framed within health and sport ideologies of physical education. Although acknowledged as an important part of school life physical education was perceived as a break from academic subjects where the purpose of learning was to learn sports and activities to stay fit and healthy. While the overwhelmingly positive nature of participants' experiences and the changing discourses around competition and team games are encouraging the dominant discourses of physical education continue to reflect the dominant aspects of wider physical culture in Ireland. The capacity of physical education to move beyond reproducing dominant sport and health ideologies provides a significant challenge to teacher education contexts, to challenge dominant discourses and recreate understandings of physical education for future action.

This book contains an introduction and 10 papers from the International Conference on New Trends of Development and Models of Reform in the Field of Vocational Education and Training in the 21st Century. The following papers are included: "Introduction to the Reports Held on the International Conference"; "The Development and Reform of the Vocational Education in China--Oriented toward the 21st Century" (Yu Zuguang); "The Dual System of Vocational Training--Structures--Problems--Prospects" (Hans-Guenter Wagner); "Strategies for Development of Vocational Education and Training in Korea" (Ikhyun Shin); "The Integrated-Technology Teaching and Learning (ITL) Concept--An Effective Approach for Technical Education" (Edward Ho, Evangeline Chen); "The Situation of Vocational Education and Training in Thailand" (Pavanuj Fungladda); "A Technological and Vocational Education Perspective: Past, Present and Future in Taiwan" (Fu Hung Yuan); "Internationalizing Business Education Programs: The Evolving Vision of Education for and about Business" (Kuang Ku Chen); "A Brief Survey of Knowledge Economy and Vocational-Technical Education" (Liu Chunsheng); "The Organization, Focus of Vocational Education Study and Its Impact on the Development of Vocational Education--A Survey Also on the Status, Characters, Functions and Significance of Shanghai Institute of Vocational and Technical Education" (Cheng Yonglin); and "New Trends of Development and Reform of Technical and Vocational Education in the 21st Century: The Outline" (Zheng Junhua). The conference agenda is appended. (MN)