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This article examines the literature on micro-credentials within the context of higher education and vocational education. It considers whether they are an innovative force for good or a disruptive force for evil. Are they, as the literature suggests, a means of creating agency, affording equity, access, and participation in higher and vocational education for those who otherwise lacked the time, money, opportunity, or confidence to apply for further study or/and felt disenfranchised from the learning experience, or/and found the whole concept of a qualification daunting? Are they, as posited in the literature, an excellent conduit to higher and vocational education for those wishing to sample an academic or vocational subject without committing to a full degree course? Or are they, as pre-supposed in other literature, an over-simplistic alternative to the traditional academic credential, a cynical attempt to dumb down knowledge, turning higher and vocational education into a series of stackable credentials aimed at satisfying the job market, and the neoliberal thirst for more and more dollars to fund our institutions, but failing to meet the finer subtleties of the academic experience? I examine and critique the literature around this debate and argue how we might harness micro-credentials to sustain innovation and disruption positively, leveraging them to move forward within education in general and higher and vocational education in particular. © 2024. Jeremy Hanshaw.

Background: Different theoretical concepts are used in participatory health promotion to describe project processes and effects. In practice, this may cause problems regarding efforts to counteract social inequality, pilot project scalability, and compatibility with state-of-the-art health concepts. Objectives: This article introduces the concept of real-world labs as a potential solution for current problems in participatory health promotion and investigates its practical applicability using the case example of an existing project. Methods: The article first describes current problems in participatory health promotion that emanate from the utilization of certain popular theoretical concepts. It then introduces real-world labs as a potential solution. Using the PArC-AVE project (Physical Activity-related Health Competence in Apprenticeship and Vocational Education) as a case example, it shows how the approach can be used retrospectively to address the previously mentioned issues. Results: Real-world labs are a transdisciplinary approach at the intersection of research and society. They help create an environment for flexibly testing innovative solutions under changing conditions. However, the approach is so far not commonly used in participatory health promotion. The example of PArC-AVE illustrates that existing participatory projects can potentially be developed in the direction of real-world labs. Perspectives include (a) the targeted integration of different actors into the participation process, (b) more variable approaches to scaling-up interventions, (c) a more flexible utilization of different participation methods, and (d) a better recognition of concepts such as planetary health. Conclusion: The real-world lab approach has the potential to increase the range of options available to participatory health promotion. However, only further practical testing will show whether it is indeed effective in overcoming social inequalities and ameliorating the high degree of context-dependence of many participatory projects. © The Author(s) 2023.

Contribution: This article proposes a task-driven ADDIE-Twist design model with a double-helix structure, which introduces intelligent teaching tools and lightweight collaboration platforms to design a knowledge-sharing and group collaboration model with two layers of teaching task driven and learning task driven, providing inspiration for the construction of new engineering courses and teaching reforms. Background: The ADDIE model is a classic instructional design model, but it still faces issues, such as a lack of flexibility, feedback mechanism, and emphasis on learners. The goal of new engineering education is to cultivate students' future-oriented professional literacy, knowledge structure, innovation, entrepreneurship capabilities, and teamwork spirit to meet the needs of society and industry development. In order to address these issues, this article proposes the ADDIE-Twist model. Research Questions: Can the use of the ADDIE-Twist model solve the problems of the traditional ADDIE model mentioned above? Can the use of the ADDIE-Twist model in engineering education improve the issues of lack of interaction and slow feedback between teachers and students? Methodology: Taking the experiment and implementation of the 'Programmable Logic Circuit Design' course at Jinan University as an example, this article presents a design scheme for engineering education courses based on the ADDIE-Twist model. The application effect of the model is analyzed through three aspects: 1) a questionnaire survey; 2) semi-structured interviews; and 3) student awards. Results: 1) The ADDIE-Twist model can effectively enhance the frequency of teacher-student interaction. 2) The teaching reform of the ADDIE-Twist model helps to improve students' learning motivation, participation, self-learning, and active exploration capabilities. © 1963-2012 IEEE.

Purpose: There is a global concern about the effectiveness of vocational education and training (VET) programmes in developing job-related skills and competencies for real-world environments for disadvantaged and unemployed youths. Experiential learning (EL) is a major component of VET programmes. This article aims to examine the effects of facilitating VET through EL theory to promote youths' skills acquisition. The study looks at the effects of material resources on the use of experiential learning theory (ELT), the types of EL and the contribution of ELT to VET programmes. Design/methodology/approach: The research design mainly entails a qualitative research design and research method to allow the researcher to view the reality as is experienced from the inside out by the trainees and training centre managers on important data for a thorough understanding. The study participants were 512 young trainees who completed different training courses from the VET programmes and 24 centre managers in the KwaZulu-Natal province of South Africa. Findings: The findings reveal that the use of ELT in VET programmes helped the trainees to gain real-world skills, hence contributing to their empowerment in terms of work experience and competence for their future employment. Based on the findings, the study concludes that ELT is an effective instrument to promote VET programmes for disadvantaged and unemployed youths. Practical implications: The practical and social implications of the findings are that, while disadvantaged youths cannot access and afford higher education, public and private sectors can remedy their situation by providing non-school-based technical and vocational training to help such youths enter the labour market. The findings will motivate the providers of skills development for unemployed youths to use ELT in designing course curricula, planning resources and directing teaching-learning approaches to help trainees to acquire skills and competencies to perform tasks close to real-work situations. Social implications: The socio-economic implication of the article is that skills development plays an important role in poverty reduction. Investing in the skills development of citizens is vital to raise the incomes of poor groups and to reduce poverty (ILO, 2018). Although the causes of unemployment have also to do with economic factors in a country, skills development is an essential ingredient in developing capacities for labour market entry and increased income generation of a vulnerable group of people. Originality/value: The article is significant because the study provides new insights into the use of ELT in VET programmes to improve their effectiveness in developing job-related skills and competencies for real-world environments for disadvantaged and unemployed youths. The study contributes to the body of knowledge by establishing a solid base for the evidence-informed practice of the effects of facilitating the VET programme through ELT to promote skills acquisition for the employment of unemployed and disadvantaged youths. © 2023, Celestin Mayombe.

Apprenticeship is a time-tested learning model and workforce development strategy. In the United States, registered apprenticeship (RA)—a structured form of apprenticeship that is regulated and overseen by government agencies—has been expanding from skilled trades into new industries. To inform this expansion and contribute to the understanding of how the model serves apprentices and employers, the author undertook a systematic literature review and a qualitative synthesis of empirical research, interpreting findings on RA over a 30-year period. The review identified 36 scholarly studies and an additional 98 articles from the practitioner literature. The synthesis derived three themes: expansion, benefits, and outcomes for minoritized groups, revealing gaps in research on the curricular and instructional design elements of RA that promote retention, completion, career advancement, and learning for apprentices. © The Author(s) 2023.

Introduction: At-risk youth are those who are currently or potentially exposed to physical, mental, or emotional danger. The Friendship Online Intervention Program (FOIP) was created to encourage physical activity (PA) and reduce risky behavior among vocational secondary-school youth in Israel. We wanted to evaluate the effect of FOIP on PA, substance abuse, and psychological factors, including psychosomatic symptoms and well-being. Methods: From October 2021 to June 2022, nonrandom sampling was employed to select at-risk youth from vocational secondary schools for participation in the FOIP. Before and after the intervention, questionnaires were administered to the intervention and control groups. The effects of FOIP were evaluated by univariate and multivariable analyses. Results: The intervention (n = 103) and control (n = 77) groups showed similar levels of PA, cigarette smoking, and alcohol consumption at the beginning of the study. At follow-up, the intervention group showed a 57% increase in PA versus no change for the control group and decreased levels of smoking compared to the control group (p <.001). Similarly, in the intervention group, the number of psychosomatic symptoms decreased (effect size = 1.68) and life satisfaction increased (effect size = 0.86). Group assignment (intervention or control group) significantly predicted PA level, cigarette smoking, psychosomatic symptoms, and life satisfaction (adjusted R2 =.46,.20,.08, and.28, respectively) with participants in the intervention group showing more favorable results compared with the control group. Conclusions: FOIP was effective in increasing PA and decreasing risky behaviors among youth. FOIP may help at-risk youth build resilience and promote their physical and mental health. © 2023 The Authors. Journal of Adolescence published by Wiley Periodicals LLC on behalf of Foundation for Professionals in Services to Adolescents.

Objective: To explore midwives’ knowledge and understanding of the law and practice of consent in the post-Montgomery world. Design: Cross-sectional online survey. Descriptive statistical analysis of midwives’ survey responses. Settings: Social media: Instagram, Facebook and Twitter. Survey distribution was via the UCL Opinio survey platform. Participants: A total of 402 midwives, surveyed over a four month period between 2nd March and 2nd July 2021. Measurements: Knowledge of legal consent, ‘sureness’ of meeting current legal requirements and competence to gain consent. Findings: 91% of participants acknowledged correctly that consent must be voluntary. 91% reported that women must be informed of all the risks associated with their care, although 26% reported that women should be informed of some of the risks associated with their care. Most participants were ‘sure’ that their discussions of consent meet current legal requirements (91%). 21% rated their competence to gain consent as ‘excellent’, 71% rated themselves as ‘very good’, whilst 1% rated their competence as ‘poor’. Deficiencies in fundamental knowledge of consent were noted in some participants rating themselves highest in ‘sureness’ of meeting legal requirements and competence to consent. Key conclusions: Fundamental gaps in midwives’ knowledge of legal consent were identified. Participants demonstrated uncertainty regarding the extent of risk disclosure and discussion of alternative care options. Participants generally rated themselves highly in their consenting practices, despite lacking in basic knowledge of legal consent, revealing a discrepancy between midwives’ self-perceptions and their actual knowledge. Implications for practice: The overconfidence displayed by some participants is concerning for clinical midwifery practice. Professional education and guidance for midwives on legal consent in keeping with Montgomery is urgently required to ensure that midwives are legally compliant in their consenting practices. © 2023

This study explored the teachers’ digital literacy in secondary school and deciphered the most suggested way of enhancing secondary teachers’ digital literacy, overview levels, and the trends factors in the last five years of research. The methodologies in this study employed the traditional systematic literature review (SLR), which compiled some previous studies to be examined. The initial studies were only selected from an article published in a reputable journal indexed by Scopus. Of the 118 articles reviewed, 46 were selected to be included in the analysis. Significant findings summarize the fact that most of the last five-year research about teachers in secondary schools was impacted by the rapid development of technology and the demand for 21st-century skills. To summarize, as it is at the intermediate level, most secondary school teachers are digitally literate. However, future research may evaluate digital literacy training programs for teachers to assess what improvements should be made to delivery as well as existing frameworks used to test teachers’ digital literacy. © 2024, Institute of Advanced Engineering and Science. All rights reserved.

Background: In midwifery education, clinical learning environments have a significant impact on students' acquisition of clinical competence and professional self-identity. The Turkish version of the MidSTEP can be used a measurement tool to assess midwifery students' perceptions of their clinical learning environment experiences and the positive effects of preceptor on the professional development of midwifery students. Aim: This research was conducted to determine the Turkish validity-reliability of MidSTEP. Method: This research, which was designed as a methodological study, was conducted with volunteer students studying in the first, second, and third years of midwifery at a university in Turkey. The MidSTEP consists of the Clinical Learning Environment Scale and Impact of the Midwifery Preceptor Scale, each with two subscales. The validity and reliability of the MidSTEP were assessed using Exploratory Factor Analysis, Cronbach's alpha, and Intraclass Correlation Coefficient. Participants: In this study, 205 students were included in the research sample, considering that it may not be sufficient to reveal the factor structure when the number of scale items and the sample size is less than 200. Results: As a result of the factor analysis a 26 item measurement tool of two scales and each with two sub-dimensions was achieved. The Turkish version of the MidSTEP Tool matched the original scale in terms of the number of items and factor structure. Conclusions and implications for practice: The Turkish version of the MidSTEP is a valid and reliable instrument. The measurement tool can confidently be used in undergraduate midwifery clinical education. © 2023 Elsevier Ltd

During the COVID-19 pandemic, there was an increased reported use of chemical cleaning, sanitizing, and disinfecting products (CSDPs), which created public concerns about negative health consequences for both children and adults in public schools. A subset of newer teachers shared experiences regarding safety and health (S&H) while working in school-based settings through a series of online surveys. Surveys were provided to teachers who completed work-based learning supervisory trainings provided by the New Jersey Safe Schools Program between October 2021 and June 2023. The participants answered questions focusing on CSDPs purchased for school use, their attitudes towards CSDPs, their use of personal protective equipment, and symptoms employees may have had due to CSDPs. A total of 205 teacher participants successfully completed the surveys. Over 25% of the teachers did not know where their CSDPs originated from, as they were provided by the school. Most participants “sometimes”, “not often”, or “never” read labels for CSDP ingredients or looked them up on healthy product apps. The participants (60%) tended to wear gloves while cleaning/disinfecting but did not wear masks. A third of the participants experienced respiratory health problems after working at school. Overall, the data suggest that more education on S&H regarding CSDPs needs to be provided to New Jersey teachers. © 2024 by the authors.