Search Results for
"Students"

The German secondary education system is highly stratified. However, the higher tracks have expanded vastly over the last decades, leading to substantial changes in the distribution of students across the different tracks. Following the German re-unification, the school structure itself has also changed to some degree. Furthermore, several smaller education reforms have increased the flexibility of moving between different tracks. This study describes the changing distributions from 1970 to 2006 and examines whether social inequality in lower secondary education outcome and transition to upper secondary education has changed during the process. We find no robust evidence for change in social inequalities in the attainment of lower secondary school-leaving certificates or entry into the various upper secondary options. Most but not all of the observed inequality is due to individuals' lower secondary track placement. © 2011 Taylor & Francis.

What roles do teachers play in the development of talent and in the attitude of students toward school? Research indicates that teacher enthusiasm, feedback, and content knowledge are keys to student motivation, learning, and engagement. Research also reveals the importance of positive and supportive student/teacher relationships. In previous work concerning student attitudes toward school, a handful of teachers emerged, in the eyes of their students, as exemplary. Follow-up study provided insights concerning the characteristics, practices, and qualities of these teachers. What and how they teach, and the ways they relate to individual students distinguish these exemplary and talented teachers. This research reveals quantitative and qualitative findings that help to explain the student-identified exemplary teachers (n = 18) from two samples that included more than 400 teachers. Implications for practice based on findings from these exemplary teachers are highlighted. © 2011 National Association for Gifted Children.

This study aims to compare the effects of Jigsaw I technique from the cooperative learning methods and traditional teaching method on academic achievement and retrieval of Turkish teacher candidates in the matter of written expression. The sample of the study consists of 70 students studying at the Department of Turkish teaching in the academic year of 2009-2010. One of the classes was randomly specified as control group (N=34) to which traditional teaching method was applied while the other as test group to which the Jigsaw technique (N=36) was applied. The study was predicated on "Non-equal control group pattern". Learning styles of the groups were determined by the Kolb Learning Style Inventory (LSI). Data about their academic success were collected through Success Test for Written Expression (STWE) applied as pre-test and post-test and views of students about Jigsaw I technique were collected through a form questioning students' views (SVF). Then, the results obtained from them were analyzed. It was observed as a result of statistical analyses that there was not a significant variation in favor of the test group in terms of academic success and stability between the test group and the control group in teaching the written expression subject. It was also determined according to the results obtained from the study that the students stated positive views for the Jigsaw I technique. © 2011 Eǧitim Dani{dotless}şmanli{dotless}ǧi{dotless} ve Araşti{dotless}rmalari{dotless} İletişim Hizmetleri Tic. Ltd. Şti.

This study was designed to investigate the distribution of interpersonal profiles based on students' and teachers' perceptions and to examine the associations between students' perceptions of teacher interpersonal behaviour and learning motivation in Indonesia. Participants were 1900 secondary school students (grades 7 to 9) across 66 (Mathematics and EFL) classes from 11 public schools in Indonesia. The results show that a variety of interpersonal profiles could be distinguished, that teachers perceive themselves more favourably than their students do, and that students' perceptions of teacher interpersonal behaviour and their learning motivation are associated. influence and Proximity were found to be important determinants of student motivation; both dimensions are related to a more autonomous motivation, while influence is also associated with a more controlled motivation. Contrary to the existing knowledge base, this study reveals that the relationship between teacher interpersonal behaviour and student motivation is more strongly connected to influence than to Proximity. © 2011 National institute of Education, Singapore.

This paper reports on a pilot project which provided writing support for registered nurses undertaking Continuing Professional Development (CPD) and for pre-registration nursing students. Both groups of students have English as a second language (ESL). The aims of the project were to extend the scope of the available writing support within the faculty for ESL students through the provision of one-to-one sessions and workshops. In addition, workshops were provided for lecturers to improve their understanding of the barriers faced by ESL students. Literature indicates that communication with tutors and the need for clear feedback are important factors for ESL students. Quantitative and qualitative data were collected from questionnaires completed by participants after teaching sessions and were analysed against pre-agreed success criteria. Findings indicate that students were very positive about the effectiveness of the sessions in helping them improve their academic writing. Additionally, three themes emerged from the student data: reasons for using the ELS support service; what they liked most about the ELS service and suggestions for improvements to the service. Data from staff show that the sessions have given staff a greater insight into the problems faced by ESL students. © 2011 The Vocational Aspect of Education Ltd.

Ideas of 'how we learn' in formal academic settings have changed markedly in recent decades. The primary position that universities once held on shaping what constitutes learning has come into question from a range of experience-led and situated learning models. Drawing on findings from a study conducted across three Australian universities, the article focuses on the multifarious learning experiences indicative of practice-based learning exchanges such as student placements. Building on both experiential and situated learning theories, the authors found that students can experience transformative and emotional elucidations of learning, that can challenge tacit assumptions and transform the ways they understand the world. It was found that all participants (hosts, students, academics) both teach and learn in these educative scenarios and that, contrary to common (mis)perceptions that academics live in 'ivory towers', they play a crucial role in contributing to learning that takes place in the so-called 'real world'. © 2011 Society for Research into Higher Education.

Authors since William James (1892/1968) have implied that the structure of the self-concept can influence motivation and outcomes in particular domains. The value or importance an individual places on a domain influences how motivated that individual is to expend effort in that domain, ultimately influencing the positivity or negativity of the outcomes in that domain (the outcomes then likewise influence the valuing of that domain). Taking the example of identification with academics (selectively valuing an academic domain as central to the self-concept), we review the importance of psychological centrality and present a theoretical model directly linking the structure of the self to motivation and outcomes, something not explicitly discussed in the literature to date. Finally, strategies are suggested for how to increase a student's identification with academics, which this theoretical framework suggests should lead to improved motivation to achieve in academics and improved outcomes for students. © 2011 Springer Science+Business Media, LLC.

Despite some segments of the creative industries in Australia performing better than other segments in terms of earnings and employment growth, they all rely on highly skilled workers and face similar workforce challenges. Workers typically experience multiple entry attempts, spells of unemployment, short-term contracts, high degrees of mobility, casual/ part-time employment within and outside the creative industries, and pressure to ensure their skills remain relevant. Skills shortages and gaps, an insufficient supply of high quality industry-ready graduates, difficulties in predicting demand for skills, weak linkages between industry and education providers, reliance on overseas talent in some segments, limited opportunities for workers to engage in skill development and pressure on workers to keep abreast of technological developments are ongoing issues in the creative industries workforce. In response to these concerns, the Australian Research Council, three State Governments, industry and a large vocational education and training (VET) provider funded Queensland University of Technology (QUT) to conduct the 60Sox project. This 3-year project investigated the education, training and work experiences of aspiring creatives defined as new entrants, recent graduates and students enrolled in creative industries courses. It involved the largest survey of aspiring creatives ever undertaken in Australia, attracting 507 respondents, and a survey of 50 employers. Using the framework proposed by Hannan, Raffe and Smyth (1996), this article presents findings from an analysis of the macro and micro labour market outcomes of aspiring creatives using data from the two 60Sox project surveys and publicly available sources. The analysis confirmed that many graduates of creative industries courses who participated in the 60Sox survey and the national surveys for the National Centre for Vocational Education Research and Graduate Careers Australia were struggling to make a successful transition from education to work. This article also discusses the causes of this key finding and possible solutions to address transition issues. © 2011 Taylor & Francis.

A three-year longitudinal cohort study followed one cohort of undergraduate social work students (n = 38) from induction to graduation, measuring and tracking the acquisition of the National Occupational Standards for Social Work. An efficient 'user-friendly' set of mixed methods was embedded within the usual programme audit process. It is proposed that this methodology can be adopted by any competency-based educational programme seeking to ensure and improve the outcomes of their curriculum, as well as being used by students and practice educators to discuss their perspectives on the student's progress. Repeated measures t-tests demonstrated that student self-rating ('ipsative') measurement can track and quantify the acquisition of student competencies. However, ipsative measurement was not significantly correlated with 'external' tutors' and practice educators' (fieldwork supervisors') ratings or with final degree gradings. This raises questions around the validity and inter-rater reliability of ipsative measurement instruments used to evaluate student performance. Ratings of interviews in the first semester made by Voices of Experience (service users) were correlated with placement marks and final degree grades. © 2011 Taylor & Francis.

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to gain an understanding of the opportunities and challenges involved in providing clinical inter-professional education (IPE) to physical therapy (PT) students in the acute-care setting from the perspective of PT clinical instructors (CIs). Methods: Focus groups were conducted in four acute-care hospitals in Toronto. Participants were recruited using a purposive and convenience sampling approach in order to enhance our understanding of the perceptions of acute-care PT CIs. Eighteen full-time PT CIs with an average of 11 years in practice participated. A constant comparative process was employed to identify recurrent issues and themes within and between groups Results: Three main themes emerged from the focus groups: (1) Clinical IPE happens when inter-professional collaboration (IPC) occurs; however, IPC differs according to setting, access to other professions, time, support, and structure. (2) IPE is a lifelong learning process that applies to both CIs and students. (3) Student preparedness is a prerequisite for clinical IPE. Conclusions: IPC is an integral part of clinical IPE that requires ongoing commitment and reflection by CIs to ensure that they are ready to instruct students who have some preparation in formal IPE. More knowledge about providing clinical IPE in a structured manner, through academic and health institutions, will allow CIs to become role models for future generations of PT students.