Professional development for professional learners: teachers’ experiences in Norway, Germany and England

Proposals made by the European Commission in 2007 led to the Education Council adopting, for the first time, a European agenda for improving the quality of teaching and teacher education. This article reports on a small-scale longitudinal interview-based study with teachers in England, Norway and Germany demonstrating that while opportunities for professional development are increasing in all three countries, dissatisfaction is expressed by most teachers in relation to its quality and outcomes.

Simulation of economic benefits achieved by water quality improvement for recreational and professional users, within the SPICOSSA SSA (SPICOSSA System Approach) 11 - Guadiana estuary ecosystem sic

Dissertação de Mestrado, Gestão da Água e da Costa, Faculdade de Ciências e Tecnologia, Universidade do Algarve, 2010

Prédictions sportives chez des athlètes de basketball: perception d’efficacité personnelle et illusion de contrôle

Les athlètes sont nombreux à parier sur les sports et leurs connaissances en sport pourraient les amener à s’y sentir compétents. Les théories similaires de la perception d’efficacité personnelle (PEP) et de l’illusion de contrôle offrent des pistes de réflexion sur cette impression de compétence. Comme la PEP peut se généraliser entre tâches similaires, la PEP des athlètes à une tâche sportive pourrait se généraliser, sous forme d’illusions de contrôle, vers la PEP à des prédictions sportives. L’objectif principal du mémoire est de vérifier si la PEP à une tâche de basketball se généralise vers des prédictions. Un objectif secondaire est de vérifier le lien entre la PEP aux prédictions sportives et l’illusion de contrôle. Vingt-trois basketteurs de niveau collégial ou universitaire sont répartis aléatoirement en deux conditions : PEP augmentée et diminuée. Lors d’une tâche de basketball, les athlètes doivent statuer le nombre de paniers qu’ils croient réussir et tenter de l’atteindre. Pour manipuler la PEP, il est mentionné aux athlètes qu’ils ont deux minutes pour accomplir la tâche, mais ont plus ou moins 15 % de ce temps. Ils effectuent ensuite des prédictions sur le basketball et sur un autre sport. Les résultats révèlent l’augmentation et la diminution significative de la PEP à la tâche de basketball, sans généralisation aux prédictions, puisque les athlètes des deux conditions rapportent une PEP élevée aux prédictions sur le basketball et modérée sur l’autre sport. Aussi, le lien PEP − illusion de contrôle n’est pas significatif. Les résultats illustrent toutefois que les athlètes présentent une PEP et une illusion de contrôle plus élevées aux prédictions sur le basketball que sur l’autre sport. Il semble que les basketteurs se sentent plus compétents pour prédire des événements de basketball qu’un autre sport, et ce, indépendamment de leur PEP à une tâche motrice de basketball.

The Personal and Professional Selves of Teachers: Stable and Unstable Identities

In much educational literature it is recognised that the broader social conditions in which teachers live and work, and the personal and professional elements of teachers' lives, experiences, beliefs and practices are integral to one another, and that there are often tensions between these which impact to a greater or lesser extent upon teachers' sense of self or identity. If identity is a key influencing factor on teachers' sense of purpose, self‐efficacy, motivation, commitment, job satisfaction and effectiveness, then investigation of those factors which influence positively and negatively, the contexts in which these occur and the consequences for practice, is essential. Surprisingly, although notions of ‘self’ and personal identity are much used in educational research and theory, critical engagement with individual teachers' cognitive and emotional ‘selves’ has been relatively rare. Yet such engagement is important to all with an interest in raising and sustaining standards of teaching, particularly in centralist reform contexts which threaten to destabilise long‐held beliefs and practices. This article addresses the issue of teacher identities by drawing together research which examines the nature of the relationships between social structures and individual agency; between notions of a socially constructed, and therefore contingent and ever‐remade, ‘self’, and a ‘self’ with dispositions, attitudes and behavioural responses which are durable and relatively stable; and between cognitive and emotional identities. Drawing upon existing research literature and findings from a four‐year Department for Education and Skills funded project with 300 teachers in 100 schools which investigated variations in teachers' work and lives and their effects on pupils (VITAE), it finds that identities are neither intrinsically stable nor intrinsically fragmented, as earlier literature suggests. Rather, teacher identities may be more, or less, stable and more or less fragmented at different times and in different ways according to a number of life, career and situational factors.

A Multinational Health Professional Perspective of the Prevalence of Mood Disorders in Patients with Acute and Chronic Wounds.

Recent research has started to identify mood disorders and problems associated with acute and chronic wounds, which have been shown to contribute to delayed healing, poor patient well-being and a reduced quality of life. Furthermore, mood disorders have been shown to have a negative impact on financial costs for service providers and the wider society in terms of treatment and sickness absence. This study aimed to survey a multinational sample of health professionals to explore their perspective and awareness of mood disorders amongst acute and chronic wound patients. Responses were received from n = 908 health professionals working in Asia, Africa, Australia, Europe, North America and South America. A strong awareness of the prevalence of mood disorders appeared to be widespread among the health professionals across the world, in addition to a view on the potential factors contributing to these problems with mood. Despite this, it was thought that few patients were actually receiving treatment for their mood disorders. Implications for clinical practice include the need for health professionals to actively engage with their patients to enable them to learn from their experiences. Studies that explore the benefits of treatments and techniques appropriate for minimising mood disorders in patients with wounds would provide empirical evidence for health professionals to make recommendations for patients with acute and chronic wounds.

‘Sport for Yes’? The Precarious Positioning of Scottish Athletes in the Scottish Independence Referendum Campaign.

This paper will critically consider the implications for Scottish athletes who have publicly stated their personal opinion on the Scottish independence referendum. Developments such as the inclusion of sport within the Scottish Government’s White Paper on Scottish independence, the establishment of the ‘Working Group on Scottish Sport’ and the establishment of the ‘Sport for Yes’ campaign group demonstrate the harnessing of sporting issues as an additional, if somewhat peripheral, debate point in the referendum campaigns (Lafferty, 2014; Scottish Government, 2013; Working Group on Scottish Sport, 2013, 2014). The latter of these developments, the establishment of the ‘Sport for Yes’ campaign group, is of particular interest, offering evidence of the explicit political mobilisation of past and present athletes in support of the ‘Yes Scotland’ pro-independence campaign. Whilst the pro-union ‘Better Together’ campaign does not possess a comparable group to the ‘Sport for Yes’ example, examples of athletes discussing the potential negative impact of Scottish independence on the funding and organisation of Scottish sport have been capitalised upon by pro-union campaigners, as exemplified in the comments of Sir Chris Hoy (BBC, 2013; Daily Record, 2013a). Given the negative reaction to Hoy’s comments from certain pro-independence campaigners (Daily Record, 2013b; Swanson, 2013), other Scottish athletes have understandably attempted to avoid controversy by refusing to align with either side of the referendum debate. This paper will therefore consider the potential pitfalls for athletes who publicly announce their political positions, whilst also scrutinising the extent to which such pronouncements are of political significance, drawing upon past academic analyses of the interrelationship between sport and politics (e.g. Coghlan, 1990; Houlihan, 1994; Jeffreys, 2012; Macfarlane, 1986; Whannel, 2008).

Best Practice for Providing Social Care and Support to People Living with Concurrent Sight Loss and Dementia: Professional Perspectives

Purpose-Approximately 100,000 people in the UK aged 75 and over have concurrent dementia and sight loss, but current understanding of their experiences, needs and preferences is limited. The purpose of this paper is to report on a research project that explored the provision of social care and support for older people with both conditions. Design/methodology/approach-The project was a collaboration between the universities of York, Worcester, Bournemouth and Cambridge, supported by the Thomas Pocklington Trust and the Housing and Dementia Research Consortium. Data for this paper were drawn from focus groups held in 2013 involving 47 professionals across the dementia, sight loss and housing sectors. Findings-Thematic analysis identified five main barriers to providing high-quality, cost-effective social care and support: time constraints; financial limitations; insufficient professional knowledge; a lack of joint working; and inconsistency of services. The requirements of dementia and sight loss often conflict, which can limit the usefulness of equipment, aids and adaptations. Support and information needs to address individual needs and preferences. Research limitations/implications-Unless professionals consider dementia and sight loss together, they are unlikely to think about the impact of both conditions and the potential of their own services to provide effective support for individuals and their informal carers. Failing to consider both conditions together can also limit the availability and accessibility of social care and support services. This paper is based on input from a small sample of self-selecting professionals across three geographical regions of England. More research is needed in this area. Practical implications-There are growing numbers of people living with concurrent dementia and sight loss, many of whom wish to remain living in their own homes. There is limited awareness of the experiences and needs of this group and limited provision of appropriate services aids/adaptations. A range of measures should be implemented in order to support independence and well-being for people living with both conditions and their family carers. These include increased awareness, improved assessment, more training and greater joint working. Social implications-People living with dementia or sight loss are at high risk of social isolation, increasingly so for those with both conditions. Services that take an inclusive approach to both conditions can provide crucial opportunities for social interaction. Extra care housing has the potential to provide a supportive, community-based environment that can help residents to maintain social contact. Originality/value-This paper adds much-needed evidence to the limited existing literature, and reflects the views of diverse professionals across housing, health and social care

In Protection of Whose “Wellbeing”? Considerations of “Clauses and A/Effects” in Athlete Contracts

Contractual agreements have become an accepted part of participation processes for athletes in a variety of sport contexts. Closer readings of these contracts,however, pose several questions regarding organizational intentions and motivations,the conceptualization of athletes as “workers,” and representation parity. In this article, we draw on four types of athlete contractual documents from both select international “amateur” and “professional” sport settings. Our key considerations include athletes’ ownership over their image and identities; medical and health disclosures; lifestyle, behavioral and body choices, and restrictions beyond sport; adherence to organizational philosophy and commitments; and social media and publicity constraints. Our exegesis here encourages sport researchers to deliberate whose “wellbeing” matters most when signing that seductive dotted line.

Legal, Ethical and Professional Issues

The chapter addresses the professional, legal and ethical issues associated with medicines management and the role of the nurse. To ensure safe practice it is imperative safeguards are recognised and applied; therefore pertinent legislative frameworks, policy and professional regulation are discussed. Safeguarding patients when administering prescribed medicines means the nurse must have up-to-date knowledge and skill and a key aspect of this is to ensure consent to treatment from the service user is secured; for this reason drawing on relevant legislation, the consensual process is reviewed. Not infrequently medicine management provokes ethical and legal challenges for the health care professional; these demand reflection and careful consideration; consequently in this chapter legal and ethical parameters and professional boundaries are appraised.

Changing Professional Identity in the Transition from Practitioner to Lecturer in Higher Education: an Interpretive Phenomenological Analysis

This research explores the experiences of five professional practitioners from disciplines including teaching, youth work, sport and health who had become lecturers in Higher Education. Their experiences are considered using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis and tentative conclusions are reached on the meaning of such experiences for the individuals. The work extends previous studies (Shreeve 2010, 2011; Gourlay 2011a, 2011b; Boyd & Harris 2010) to consider the relationship between knowledge and influence and how institutional preference for knowledge gained from research impacts on the validity of knowledge derived from professional experience. The research finds shared feelings associated with inauthenticity and loss arising from concerns that the contribution of the professional in Higher Education is undervalued. The research challenges the assumption that professional practitioners adopt the professional identity of a lecturer in Higher Education instead finding that they create their own professional identities in the liminal space between the professional and academic domains, but points to difficulties associated with constructed nature of such professional identities within the institutional structure of a Higher Education institution.

Unpacking the Link Between Entrepreneurialism and Employability: an Assessment of the Relationship Between Entrepreneurial Attitudes and Likelihood of Graduate Employment in a Professional Field

Purpose This research investigates the relationship between students’ entrepreneurial attitudes and traits and their classification of employment six months after university graduation. It aims to identify what specific attitudes and traits of entrepreneurial graduates are linked to employability in a professional or managerial field. Design/Methodology The research adopts a quantitative approach to measure the entrepreneurial drive of final-year undergraduate business school students and regresses this measurement against the employment level of the same students six months after their graduation. The employment classification of each respondent was classified as ‘professional/managerial’ or ‘non-professional/non-managerial’, in line with the Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) 2010. Findings The research found that both proactive disposition and achievement motivation were statistically linked to the likelihood of graduates being employed in a professional or managerial position six months after graduation. Originality/Value This research goes beyond existing literature linking entrepreneurship to employability to quantitatively examine what specific attitudes and traits can be linked to employability in recent graduates. By identifying the aspects of entrepreneurialism that have a relationship with employability, more information is available for educators who are designing entrepreneurial education programs and allows for greater focus on aspects that may be of greatest benefit to all students.

A Global Portrait of Counselling Psychologists’ Characteristics, Perspectives, and Professional Behaviors

Counselling psychologists in eight countries (Australia, Canada, New Zealand, South Africa, South Korea, Taiwan, the United Kingdom, and the United States) responded to survey questions that focused on their demographics as well as their professional identities, roles, settings and activities. As well, they were asked about satisfaction with the specialty and the extent to which they endorsed 10 core counselling psychology values. This article reports those results, focusing both on areas in which there were between-country similarities as well as on those for which there were differences. These data provide is a snapshot of counselling psychology globally and establish a foundation for the other articles in this special issue of the journal.