Investigation into the diffusion of innovation in technical and further education : implementing e-mail through action research

This research project examined the diffusion of change within one Victorian TAFE Institute by engaging action research to facilitate implementation of e-mail technology. The theoretical framework involving the concepts of technology innovation and action research was enhanced with the aid of Rogers's (1983) model of the diffusion of the innovation process. Political and cultural factors made up the initiation phase of innovation, enabling the research to concentrate on the implementation phase of e-mail Roger's (1983) model also provided adopter categories that related to the findings of a Computer Attitude Survey that was conducted at The School of Mines and Industries Ballarat (SMB), now the University of Ballarat—TAFE Division since amalgamation on 1st January 1998. Despite management rhetoric about the need to utilise e-mail, Institute teaching staff lacked individual computers in their work areas and most were waiting to become connected to the Internet as late as 1997. According to the action research reports, many staff were resistant to the new e-mail facilities despite having access to personal computers whose numbers doubled annually. The action research project became focussed when action researchers realised that e-mail workshop training was ineffective and that staff required improved access. Improvement to processes within education through collaborative action research had earlier been achieved (McTaggart 1994), and this project actively engaged practitioners to facilitate decentralised e-mail training in the workplace through the action research spiral of planning, acting, observing and reflecting, before replanning. The action researchers * task was to find ways to improve the diffusion of e-mail throughout the Institute and to develop theoretical constructs. My research task was to determine whether action research could successfully facilitate e-mail throughout the Institute. A rich literature existed about technology use in education, technology teaching, gender issues, less about computerphobia, and none about 'e-mailphobia \ It seemed appropriate to pursue the issue of e-mailphobia since it was marginalised, or ignored in the literature. The major political and cultural influences on the technologising of SMB and e-mail introduction were complex, making it impossible to ascertain the relative degrees of influence held by Federal and State Governments, SMB's leadership or the local community, Nonetheless, with the implementation of e-mail, traditional ways were challenged as SMB's culture changed. E-mail training was identified as a staff professional development activity that had been largely unsuccessful. Action research is critical collaborative inquiry by reflective practitioners who are accountable for making the results of their inquiry public and who are self-evaluating of their practice while engaging participative problem-solving and continuing professional development (Zuber-Skerritt 1992, 1993). Action research was the methodology employed in researching e-mail implementation into SMB because it involved collaborative inquiry with colleagues as reflective practitioners. Thoughtful questions could best be explored using deconstructivist philosophy, in asking about the noise of silence, which issues were not addressed, what were the contradictions and who was being marginalised with e-mail usage within SMB. Reviewing literature on action research was complicated by its broad definition and by the variability of research (King & Lonnquist 1992), and yet action research as a research methodology was well represented in educational research literature, and provided a systematic and recognisable way for practitioners to conduct their research. On the basis of this study, it could be stated that action research facilitated the diffusion of e-mail technology into one TAFE Institute, despite the process being disappointingly slow. While the process in establishing the action research group was problematic, action researchers showed that a window of opportunity existed for decentralised diffusion of e-mail training,in preference to bureaucratically motivated 'workshops. Eight major findings, grouped under two broad headings were identified: the process of diffusion (planning, nature of the process, culture, politics) and outcomes of diffusion (categorising, e-mailphobia, the survey device and technology in education). The findings indicated that staff had little experience with e-mail and appeared not to recognise its benefits. While 54.1% did not agree that electronic means could be the preferred way to receive Institute memost some 13.7% admitted to problems with using the voice answering service on telephones. Some 43.3% thought e-mail would not improve their connectedness (how they related) to the Institute. A small percentage of staff had trouble with telephone voice-mail and a number of these were anxious computer users. Individualised tuition and peer support proved helpful to individual staff whom action researchers believed to be 'at risk', as determined from the results of a Computer Attitude Survey. An instructional strategy that fostered the development of self-regulation and peer support was valuable, but there was no measure of the effects of this action research program, other than in qualitative terms. Nevertheless, action research gave space to reflect on the nature of the underlying processes in adopting e-mail. Challenges faced by TAFE action researchers are integrally affected by the values within TAFE, which change constantly and have recently been extensive enough to be considered as a 'new paradigm'. The influence of competition policy, the training reform agenda and technologisation of training have challenged traditional TAFE values. Action research reported that many staff had little immediate professional reason to use e-mail Theoretical answers were submerged beneath practical professional concerns, which related back to how much time teachers had and whether they could benefit from e-mail. A need for the development of principles for the sound educational uses of e-mail increases with the internationalisation of education and an increasing awareness of cultural differences. The implications for conducting action research in TAFE are addressed under the two broad issues of power and pedagogy. Issues of power included gaining access, management's inability to overcome staff resistance to technology, changing TAFE values and using technology for conducting action research. Pedagogical issues included the recognition of educational above technological issues and training staff in action research. Finally, seventeen steps are suggested to overcome power and pedagogical impediments to the conduct of action research within TAFE. This action research project has provided greater insight into the difficulties of successfully introducing one culture-specific technology into one TAFE Institute. TAFE Institutes need to encourage more action research into their operations, and it is only then that -we can expect to answer the unanswered questions raised in this research project.

Heteroglossic spaces : interrogating academic literacies in teacher education

This paper explores the challenges of implementing critical writing pedagogy in conditions of increasing cultural and textual uniformity of literacy and emphasises the need for a pedagogy that takes into account the heteroglossic nature of writing space and its relation to the multiple textual practices of students. In practical terms, we argue for such literacy practices in teacher education that would require students not only to understand the complexities of language and literacy but to actively engage them in a diverse range of textual practices that would both stretch their repertoires as language users and sensitise them to the cultural-semiotic diversity of contemporary classrooms. This task becomes more urgent in the current era of standards, accountability and classroom pedagogies that are not attuned to the particularities of students’ textual practices and the communication networks in which they participate.

Policy, practice and purpose in the field of education : a critical review

This paper provides a critical review of papers in this special issue on Bourdieu and practice. What is different about this collection is that, in analysing policy and practice through a Bourdieusian lens, the thinking tools of field, disposition (collective and individual), logics of practice and doxa have been mobilised with regard to the social practices of educational policy - its production, circulation and reception. First, these papers illustrate how, as a field, education has its own language, boundaries and power relations informed by particular modes of distinction and legitimation around different forms of capital formation, thus providing explanations for both social mobility and social stratification. Second, this collection foregrounds 'policy as practice' in terms of the social practices involved in the production of policy, the practices involved with the articulation and vernacularisation of policy through the processes of its reception, as well as the intent and effects of policy changing practice. Third, in focusing on specific policy problematics in higher education and schools, teacher professional development, leadership and educational reform, these contributions illustrate multiple methodological approaches as to how Bourdieu's thinking tools can be used to theorise educational policy, change, practice and effects. The value of Bourdieu's work lies on getting past the impasses between divisions between material and cultural analyses, between the materialist and linguistic focus, by talking about social practices, what people are doing, how they are thinking and how they are acting.

S(t)imulating learning : pedagogy, subjectivity and teacher education in online environments

Australian higher education increasingly relies on flexible modes of delivery as a means of attracting and retaining students in a highly competitive global education market. While education is among those disciplines that have been most actively involved in the shift from face-to-face to online learning and teaching, the transition for many teacher educators is fraught with tensions and contradictions. For some, teaching online is seen as primarily a cost-cutting exercise on the part of universities, and has little to do with improving the quality of student learning. For others, the online environment offers multiple pedagogic possibilities that have yet to be fully explored. Yet others consider online environments as problematic, posing challenges to pedagogic and peer relationships that are generally seen as integral to 'good' teaching. This paper draws on an empirical study of teacher education faculties in five Australian universities, and analyses excerpts from interviews about learning and teaching with teacher educators, educational designers and faculty management. We argue that understanding how teacher educators constitute learner and teacher subjectivities through their beliefs about and approaches to pedagogy is crucial to the future of online tertiary education. In particular, we consider how teacher educators' attitudes toward and approaches to online learning and teaching are predicated on their perceived subject positions as either 'stimulating' or 'simulating' particular kinds of learning interactions.

Critical multicultural teacher education

This thesis examined how best to prepare teachers to work in bicultural and multicultural New Zealand. Drawing on life history interviews with teacher education students, it identified key areas for reform, including closer examination of practices in multicultural education and greater acknowledgement of the cultural background of teachers themselves.

Changes, challenges, and successes facing secondary pre-service teacher education in Australia

In December 2008, the Australian Government was presented with a report from a Review of Australian HigherEducation known as the ‘Bradley Review’. The report clearly articulates many challenges that lie ahead; it questions thestructure, organisation and financial position of Australia to effectively compete in the global economy. This paperprovides a succinct discussion of some of the challenges and dilemmas encountered at a metropolitan Australianuniversity in Melbourne within the Faculty of Arts and Education in the School of Education. The courses will bereaccredited in 2016 and has to comply with the new Australian Qualification Framework (AQF), the AustralianTeaching Standards Framework (AITSL) and the Victorian Institute of Teaching (VIT). By employing narrative inquiry,reflective practice and document analysis as methodology, I discuss the Bachelor of Teaching (Secondary)/Bachelor ofArts course (degree), the largest secondary pre-service teacher education course at a university in Melbourne presentingsome strategies and inviting international dialogue in relation to some of the challenges faced regarding increasednumbers of students and lower entrance scores. Limitations of the current course are acknowledged and generalizationscannot be made to other education courses at universities across Australia. However, some new initiatives in the facultyare offered.

Environmental education and the health risk question: how do we educate the educators working with this theme?

Our society is presently seeing a trend of continuous increase of risk with severe consequences, especially those linked to environmental aspects. It has obligated us to reflect on this production and its effects, either positive or negative, and, after a long reflection, to think about the adopted model of civilization and the possibilities of changing such a model. The educational institution is among the social departments responsible for this revision process, since it represents one possibility to promote a more critical vision from society, providing it with tools needed for a more responsible action. However, schools are dominated by a traditional work, which does not allow for enough and proper attention to these relevant and current questions, and which involve a critical analysis of the conceptions and values established by our civilization, resulting in the present patterns of science-technology-society relations and their influence on the environment and health. Several research works have indicated a diversity of barriers that obstruct this necessary change. Since formal education plays an important role in the education of society for this theme, in this paper the possibilities and difficulty dealing with this problem are discussed, focusing on the question of teacher education, based on investigations related to teacher education programs for environmental education. The data collected show the urgency for introducing this theme in teacher training programs, taking into account the fact that educators have their own conceptions, values and attitudes that should be considered in these programs.

CLIL materials in Secondary Education: focusing on the language of instruction in the subject area of Mathematics

[EN]Applying a CLIL methodological approach marks a shift in emphasis from language learning based on linguistic form and grammatical progression to a more ‘language acquisition’ one which takes account language functions. In this article we will study the elements of the “language of instruction” of the area of Maths in Secondary Education, by focusing on the analysis of the communicative functions, and the lexical and the cultural items present in the textbook in use. Our aim is to present the CLIL teacher with the linguistic and didactic implications that he or she should take into consideration when implementing the bilingual syllabuses with their students. In order to do that, we will present our conclusions emphasizing the need for coordination in different content areas, linguistic and communicative contents, between the foreign language teacher and the CLIL subject one.

Resources to introduce Inquire Based Scientic Education in Secondary and High School

The global Hands-on Universe association is producing and distributing free resources world- wide to implement Inquire Based Scienti?c Education (IBSE) at secondary and high school levels. The materials are inspired in astronomical research and space exploration. The association is implementing the Galileo Teacher Training Program world-wide. In this contribution, a summary on the most recent resources being implemented by HOU-Espa~na and developed with Spanish participation is presented.

Crafting a Third Space: Teacher Beliefs and Practices in Curriculum Reform for Multicultural Education

Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Washington, 2016-06

Web 2.0 and the Global Transformation of Education

Румен В. Николов - Статията анализира необходимостта от институционални промени в училищата и университетите с цел да се адаптират към съвременните изисквания на обществото на знанието. Паралелно се анализират феноменът на електронното обучение, глобалната образователна реформа и необходимостта от разработването и прилагането на нови педагогически модели. В статията е поставен акцент върху Уеб 2.0 технологиите и електронните инфраструктури, както и върху тяхното влияние върху образованието и научните изледвания в училищата и университетите. Професионална квалификация на учителите, която да е проектирана така, че да отговаря на новите предизвикателства, се разглежда като ключов фактор за успешното навлизане на новите технологии в училище. Важно е да се отбележи необходимостта от разработка на стратегия за обучение на учителите през целия живот, която да отчита съвременните научни постижения в технологично- обогатеното обучение и новите теории за ученето. Препоръчва се изграждането на социални умения и компетенции, които са подходящи за работа в една Уеб 2.0 базирана учебна среда и с глобалния социален софтуер, да се включи в учебните планове и програми както на учениците, така и в курсовете за подготовка на учители.

An assessment of legal knowledge of preservice teachers completing accredited teacher education programs in South Florida

The purpose of the study was to assess the legal knowledge of preservice teachers completing their educational training at accredited South Florida universities. The population consisted of 372 preservice kindergarten through twelfth grade teachers completing their educational training in any area of public school education.^ The researcher selected areas of school law to assess based on nationwide studies of litigation involving teachers and school boards, the areas most pertinent to the teachers' daily activities and responsibilities. A forty-item instrument was developed and administered to preservice teachers at six South Florida public and private universities. The areas of school law surveyed were tort liability, teachers' rights as instructors and employees, and students' rights. The research questions asked if preservice teachers possess a fundamental knowledge of school law in any of the identified areas and if a significant difference of legal knowledge existed when comparing preservice teachers by university and comparing preservice elementary and preservice secondary teachers. The criteria for a fundamental knowledge of school law was established as scoring 80% or above on the total survey or any area of school law.^ Conclusions. (1) On the overall survey, the preservice teachers did not exhibit a fundamental knowledge of school law. The mean score was 64.2%, with 11.6% of the respondents scoring at or above the 80% level. (2) The preservice teachers did not possess a fundamental knowledge of school law in any of the three areas of school law, though the survey revealed a difference in the preservice teachers' knowledge in the specific areas. The scores were tort liability, 71.9%; teachers' rights, 65%; and students' rights, 52.3%. (3) A significant difference did not exist between elementary and secondary preservice teachers' knowledge of school law. (4) A significant difference did not exist among the preservice teachers' knowledge of school law when compared by university.^ The study suggested a need for increased instruction in these areas of school law to preservice teachers prior to the beginning of their teaching careers. ^

General and special education teachers' knowledge of and attitudes toward students with HIV/AIDS

AIDS education is mandated in schools throughout the United States to educate students about the disease. Teachers are expected to assume the major role of disseminating this information; therefore it is reasonable to question how knowledgeable teachers are about HIV/AIDS and where their information is coming from. This study explored the knowledge and attitudes of general and special education teachers toward students with HIV/AIDS and investigated whether a relationship between knowledge and attitudes existed. Information was collected using the AIDS Knowledge and Attitude Survey (AKAS). The sample was limited to certified teachers resulting in 318 participants.^ Research questions were analyzed using descriptive statistics, frequencies, t-tests, one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA), Scheffe post hoc analysis, and Pearson Product-Moment Correlation. Results indicated that general and special education teachers did not have complete knowledge about HIV/AIDS. Participants were knowledgeable regarding modes of transmission which may be the area of greatest concern for teachers, however, deficiencies were present within teachers' knowledge of general statements and facts and pathology. Among the ten demographic variables analyzed, six (gender, race/ethnicity, level of education, certification, instructional level taught, and classroom AIDS instruction) contained statistical significance.^ Analysis of attitudes indicated that general and special education teachers' overall attitudes toward students with HIV/AIDS were generally positive within clusters of Instruction and Fear, but not within Sensitivity and Communication. Among the ten demographic variables used for analysis only three (age, graduate enrollment status, and classroom AIDS instruction) produced statistical significance. Results found statistically significant relationships between Total Knowledge, all knowledge subtests, Fear, and Overall Attitudes. Statistical significance was also located on Total Knowledge, Pathology and Transmission knowledge subtests, and Sensitivity, as well as between Pathology and Instruction, and General Statements and Facts and Communication.^ The only variable determined to have statistical significance on both knowledge and attitudes was classroom AIDS instruction. Participants with previous AIDS instruction showed greater knowledge and possessed more positive attitudes. A review of previous research indicated training to be effective in increasing knowledge and fostering more favorable behavior toward persons with AIDS. Therefore, this study finds AIDS training to be beneficial for all teachers and is recommended during preservice education or through inservices for teachers already in the field. ^

A distance education case study: A comparison of instructional delivery methods practiced by higher education faculty and emerging standards

The purpose of this research was to compare the delivery methods as practiced by higher education faculty teaching distance courses with recommended or emerging standard instructional delivery methods for distance education. Previous research shows that traditional-type instructional strategies have been used in distance education and that there has been no training to distance teach. Secondary data, however, appear to suggest emerging practices which could be pooled toward the development of standards. This is a qualitative study based on the constant comparative analysis approach of grounded theory.^ Participants (N = 5) of this study were full-time faculty teaching distance education courses. The observation method used was unobtrusive content analysis of videotaped instruction. Triangulation of data was accomplished through one-on-one in-depth interviews and from literature review. Due to the addition of non-media content being analyzed, a special time-sampling technique was designed by the researcher--influenced by content analyst theories of media-related data--to sample portions of the videotape instruction that were observed and counted. A standardized interview guide was used to collect data from in-depth interviews. Coding was done based on categories drawn from review of literature, and from Cranton and Weston's (1989) typology of instructional strategies. The data were observed, counted, tabulated, analyzed, and interpreted solely by the researcher. It should be noted however, that systematic and rigorous data collection and analysis led to credible data.^ The findings of this study supported the proposition that there are no standard instructional practices for distance teaching. Further, the findings revealed that of the emerging practices suggested by proponents and by faculty who teach distance education courses, few were practiced even minimally. A noted example was the use of lecture and questioning. Questioning, as a teaching tool was used a great deal, with students at the originating site but not with distance students. Lectures were given, but were mostly conducted in traditional fashion--long in duration and with no interactive component.^ It can be concluded from the findings that while there are no standard practices for instructional delivery for distance education, there appears to be sufficient information from secondary and empirical data to initiate some standard instructional practices. Therefore, grounded in this research data is the theory that the way to arrive at some instructional delivery standards for televised distance education is a pooling of the tacitly agreed-upon emerging practices by proponents and practicing instructors. Implicit in this theory is a need for experimental research so that these emerging practices can be tested, tried, and proven, ultimately resulting in formal standards for instructional delivery in television education. ^

Education and training in the use of physical agent modalities by occupational therapists practicing in the physical disabilities area

This study was conducted to examine how occupational therapists (OTs) practicing in the physical disabilities area received their training in the use of physical agent modalities (PAMs); to determine the frequency of PAMs usage by those therapists; and to obtain their opinions regarding the training of OTs and OT students in the administration of PAMs. Three hundred OTs practicing in physical diabilities (n = 194 returned) were surveyed. The most frequently used modalities were hot and cold packs, paraffin, and ultrasound. The least frequently used modalities were transcutaneous electrical stimulation (TENS) and whirlpool. On-the-job training was the most common educational method received by the respondents for PAMs usage. The respondents considered a combination of undergraduate education, fieldwork, continuing education and on-the-job training as the most appropriate educational setting for training in modalities. While few of the respondents received preparation in PAMs during entry-level academic programs, the majority felt that OT students should be trained in PAMs usage as part of their education curriculum. ^