Should Gender Differences be Considered When Assessing Student Satisfaction in the Online Learning Environment for Millennials?          下载免费PDF全文

Heather Lea Harvey  Sanjai Parahoo  Mohammad Santally 《Higher Education Quarterly》2017,71(2):141-158

The majority of today's students in online higher education are millennials and have grown up using technology. Therefore, there is a need to determine if their expectations from online learning are different from previous contextual studies and whether or not these vary across gender. This study used a mixed method approach, using focus groups, followed by online surveys of 834 undergraduate students from the University of Mauritius enrolled in an online course. Using factor analysis and structural equation modelling, the study found no significant differences based on gender for millennials, but identified three significant antecedents of student satisfaction for both males and females: university reputation; physical facilities; and instructor empathy.  相似文献   

Professional development of kindergarten teachers in Croatia – a personal choice or an obligation     

Ivana Visković 《Early Years: An International Journal of Research and Development》2018,38(3):286-297

The quality of educational processes with children of preschool age and long-term educational outcomes are largely related to the work quality of teachers. Lifelong learning and professional development, as predictors of quality, need to be regarded as an ongoing task for kindergarten teachers. Findings of an empirical study of Croatian kindergarten teachers’ views (N = 388) on professional development point to a link between teachers’ intrinsic motivation and their professional development. Motivation explains 46.87% of the variance Personal commitment to professional development. A slight positive correlation was found between the level of formal education and the frequency of professional development (r = .216, p < .01). Although the level of education of kindergarten teachers is not a good independent predictor, it affects readiness to self-fund professional development (p < .01). As for the significance of conferences as a form of professional development, participants of the study identified them as an effective opportunity (M = 4.68, SD = .52), promoting both quality practices (M = 4.69, SD = .54) and exchange of experiences (M = 4.68, SD = .56). The length of participants’ professional work experience affects their assessment of the significance of practitioners’ networking as a way of improving the quality of everyday practices (F = 1.43, p < .05).  相似文献   

Lecturers on teaching within the ‘supercomplexity’ of Higher Education     

Susan J. Lea  Lynne Callaghan 《Higher Education》2008,55(2):171-187

While a vast literature exists on students and their learning, work on lecturers and their teaching continues to lag some way behind. This paper explores the notion that the complexity of Higher Education (HE) today significantly impacts upon what goes on in the classroom through a two-tiered study. Semi-structured interviews were conducted to explore lecturers’ perceptions and experiences of teaching a specific module. Interviewees raised issues pertaining to the wider departmental, institutional and socio-political context. Consequently, focus groups were run with key people in the University to explore their perceptions of teaching and learning within the current HE climate. The findings suggest that lecturers perceive numerous external factors to impinge upon their teaching and attempt to militate against these in various ways in order to achieve ongoing enhancement of learning for students.

Susan J. LeaEmail:

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Computers in Artificial Intelligence Education     

JIŘI LAŽANSKÝ  VLADIMÍR MAŘÍK  OLGA ŠTĚPÁNKOVÁ 《European Journal of Engineering Education》1992,17(2):143-149

Both the origin and development of artificial intelligence (AI) are connected with the origin and development of computers. Computers play a very important role in engineering education. AI influences such disciplines like CAD, CASE, CAE, and others. The specific experience concerning AI education at a technical university has been gathered in this paper. There is stressed need of good balance between theoretical background and individual training with computers as well as importance of personal experience in solving practical AI.  相似文献   

Space Scale: Models in the History of Science and Students Mental Models     

Josef Feigenberg  Lea Valentina Lavrik  Vladimir Shunyakov 《Science & Education》2002,11(4):377-392

This paper deals with the problem of relating distance and scale by way of alternative models of perception taken from the history of science.The intuitive patterns of modern school children in evaluating the Solar System are then compared with those in the history of science. Immediate experience and intuition by children often contradict scientific understanding. The children in this study, for example, do not see the rays of the Sun as being parallel and ignore the curvature of the Earth. The authors argue that children's understanding of the rays of the Sun as not being parallel as well as their ignoring the curvature of the Earth is due to the limitation resulting from the students' `actual activity zone', and not to their insufficient knowledge. This study makes specific suggestions to broaden the scientifically based `actual activity zone' of students. We suggest that laboratory work based on historical experiments using elementary geometry – as, for example, the determination of the radiusof the Earth by Eratosthenes – promotes a scientific understanding of astronomicalmeasurements....The scale of space and time, which we customarily observe on Earth, and which is part of time, we become aware of the vastness of our universe, we are awed and humbled. But if astronomers spent all their time speculating about the immensity of the cosmos and the prodigious interval of time necessary for the evolution of the stars, their accomplishments would be few. The primary concerns of the astronomer when studying the cosmos are physical and mathematical interpretations of observations, predictions of future observations, and the development and refinement of his instruments for such interpretation and prediction. To help him in the conceptualization of his problem, astronomer may, consciously or unconsciously, visualize a small model representing the cosmic system under investigation. Using this method, we can arrive at an understanding of the relative dimensions of the system and an understanding of the time intervals involved.Shklovskii I.S. and Carl Sagan (1966)Intelligent Life in the Universe  相似文献   

How students perceive teachers’ nonverbal and verbal communication at agricultural universities in Austria,Slovenia and Albania     

Marija Klopčič  Renata Bažok  Helena Virić Gašparić  Karmen Erjavec 《The Journal of Agricultural Education and Extension》2018,24(5):473-483

Purpose: This study attempts to close the research gap created by the fact that existing studies neglect the problem of how effectively agricultural professors from different European countries communicate. The aim is to identify similarities and differences in the numbers of agricultural professors perceived by students as engaging in verbal and nonverbal immediacy communication.

Methodology: An online survey was conducted among students of agricultural universities from Austria, Slovenia and Albania.

Findings: The results show that professors of agriculture from Austria, Slovenia and Albania should generally not be satisfied with their own communication patterns and should thus try to improve their communication. The result also reveals cultural differences in the shares of agriculture professors employing different communication patterns in Austria, Slovenia and Albania. Compared to Austrian and Slovenian students, their Albanian peers perceive that most of their professors use nonverbal immediacy communication. According to Austrian students, the majority of their professors use verbal immediacy. On the contrary, Albanian students assessed that some of their professors employ verbal immediacy.

Practical Implications: The results show the professors of agriculture should improve the way they communicate to students. In particular, the Albanian professors should improve their verbal communication especially in terms of providing timely and quality feedback to students.

Theoretical implications: The study reveals differences in immediacy communication among countries (Austria, Slovenia and Albania) which the scientific literature considers to have a high-context culture.

Originality/Value: Given that no study has yet examined how students perceive professors’ communication in different European countries, this research helps understand the characteristics of agricultural professors’ communication.  相似文献   

Serbia and Montenegro: the catalytic effects of higher education     

Gordana Zindović‐Vukadinović 《Higher Education in Europe》2004,29(3):329-341

Brain drain has been a long‐lasting phenomenon. It existed in the former Yugoslavia, and was affected by various factors, from political through economic ones to the attractive offers for advanced studies and work in scientific institutions or firms in developed countries. Some ad‐hoc analyses were made concerning individual groups or periods, but there was no systematic monitoring and no complete and all‐inclusive data. It is however possible to draw a picture showing trends in the – mostly one‐way – movement towards highly developed countries.

Therefore, the current study has a mosaic character, which – we hope – shall throw some light and try to explain brain drain in the academic circles of Serbia and Montenegro (former SFRY). As the Republic of Serbia represents the largest component part (about 90 percent), most of the data is about Serbia.  相似文献   

Teacher capacity for and beliefs about data-driven decision making: A literature review of international research     

Amanda Datnow  Lea Hubbard 《Journal of Educational Change》2016,17(1):7-28

Data-driven decision making continues to be a growing educational reform initiative across the globe. The effective use of data requires that teachers develop the knowledge and skills to analyze and use data to improve instruction. The purpose of this article is to examine teachers’ capacity for and beliefs about data use. These issues are examined through a review of research in the past decade. We find that teachers’ beliefs about and capacity for data use are often not connected within the literature or in practice, but we argue they are the heart of the connection between data and instructional change. Teachers’ capacity to use data and their beliefs about data use are shaped within their professional communities, in training sessions, and in their interactions with coaches, consultants, and principals. However, efforts to develop teachers’ capacity for data use often fall short of their goals. Correspondingly, teachers have varied beliefs about data use, and some feel they lack the ability to use data to inform instruction. In order to be more successful, capacity building should directly address teachers’ beliefs, and data use must be decoupled from external accountability demands and involve a variety of information on student learning.  相似文献   

Grading students' programming and soft skills with open badges: A case study     

Bojan Tomić  Jelena Jovanović  Nikola Milikić  Vladan Devedžić  Sonja Dimitrijević  Dragan Đurić  Zoran Ševarac 《British journal of educational technology : journal of the Council for Educational Technology》2019,50(2):518-530

Well-developed programming (technical) skills are very important for software engineers, information systems engineers and programmers in general. However, they must also possess relevant personal skills (soft skills) to be successful at the workplace (eg, collaboration, solving real-world problems and communication). The latter, however, are rarely assessed and acknowledged in regular software engineering courses. This paper describes the results of a small case study involving an extracurricular Java programming course in which, in addition to knowledge and skills in relevant technologies, students' soft skills were also assessed. As part of the assessment, students have been awarded Open Badges. The study was exploratory in nature, aimed at examining Open Badges as a motivational mechanism, students' engagement in attaining soft skills and students' perception of soft skills and Open Badges. The results suggest that Open Badges may not be so effective in motivating students to complete the assignments nor attend the course, although students' perception of Open Badges is generally positive. Soft skills were generally perceived as important as hard skills. Students' engagement in attaining soft skills could be affected by assignment announcement time and its level of difficulty.  相似文献   

Work-related burnout syndrome in special education teachers working with children with developmental disorders – possible correlations with some socio-demographic aspects and assertiveness     

Vesna Jovanović  Jasmina Karić  Goran Mihajlović  Tamara Džamonja-Ignjatović 《欧洲特需教育杂志》2013,28(5):692-701

ABSTRACT

The aim of this research was to examine the levels of burnout syndrome dimensions in special education teachers and correlations with some socio-demographic characteristics, job characteristics, and levels of assertiveness. The research included 225 special education teachers from Serbia (82% were women, 18% were men, with the average age of 42.51 ± 9.23 years). Research instruments included Maslach Burnout Inventory, Rathus Assertiveness Schedule, and a socio-demographic questionnaire. There were differences in all burnout dimensions in relation to types of students’ special needs. Higher levels of burnout symptoms were observed in teachers working with children with motor skill disorders. The assertiveness scores had a significant negative correlation with emotional exhaustion and depersonalisation, and a positive correlation with a lack of accomplishment. The results obtained may help in the planning of the adequate preventative measures for improving the mental health of those professionals.  相似文献