Teaching and learning with social software in higher education: content management systems integrated with Web-based applications as a key factor for success

The change of paradigm imposed by the Bologna process, in which the student will be responsible for their own learning, and the presence of a new generation of students with higher technological skills, represent a huge challenge for higher education institutions. The use of new Web Social concepts in teaching process, supported by applications commonly called Web 2.0, with which these new students feel at ease, can bring benefits in terms of motivation and the frequency and quality of students' involvement in academic activities. An e-learning platform with web-based applications as a complement can significantly contribute to the development of different skills in higher education students, covering areas which are usually in deficit.

Improving Learners’ Motivation through Feedback in English Language Teaching and Learning at Polytechnic School in Benguela, Angola

Currently, it is widely perceived among the English as a Foreign Language (EFL) teaching professionals, that motivation is a central factor for success in language learning. This work aims to examine and raise teachers’ awareness about the role of assessment and feedback in the process of language teaching and learning at polytechnic school in Benguela to develop and/or enhance their students’ motivation for learning. Hence the paper defines and discusses the key terms and, the techniques and strategies for an effective feedback provision in the context under study. It also collects data through the use of interview and questionnaire methods, and suggests the assessment and feedback types to be implemented at polytechnic school in Benguela

OER as a Model for Enhanced Teaching and Learning

This article presents preliminary findings from a research study conducted by the Institute for the Study of Knowledge Management in Education on the role of open educational resources (OER) in transforming pedagogy. Based on a study of art and humanities teachers participating in an OER training network, the study reveals how exposure to OER resources and tools support collaboration among teachers, as well as new conversations about teaching practices. These findings have implications for engaging teachers in adopting new OER use practices, and for how OER can be integrated as a model for innovation in teaching and in resource development.

Conceptions of mathematics teacher education : thoughts among teacher educators in Tanzania

This study addresses the question of teacher educators’ conceptions of mathematics teacher education (MTE) in teacher colleges in Tanzania, and their thoughts on how to further develop it. The tension between exponents of content as opposed to pedagogy has continued to cause challenging conceptual differences, which also influences what teacher educators conceive as desirable in the development of this domain. This tension is connected to the dissatisfaction of parents and teachers with the failure of school mathematics. From this point of view, the overall aim was to identify and describe teacher educators’ various conceptions of MTE. Inspired by the debate among teacher educators about what the balance should be between subject matter and pedagogical knowledge, it was important to look at the theoretical faces of MTE. The theoretical background involved the review of what is visible in MTE, what is yet to be known and the challenges within the practice. This task revealed meanings, perspectives in MTE, professional development and assessment. To do this, two questions were asked, to which no clear solutions satisfactorily existed. The questions to guide the investigation were, firstly, what are teacher educators’ conceptions of MTE, and secondly, what are teacher educators’ thoughts on the development of MTE? The two questions led to the choice of phenomenography as the methodological approach. Against the guiding questions, 27 mathematics teacher educators were interviewed in relation to the first question, while 32 responded to an open-ended questionnaire regarding question two. The interview statements as well as the questionnaire responses were coded and analysed (classified). The process of classification generated patterns of qualitatively different ways of seeing MTE. The results indicate that MTE is conceived as a process of learning through investigation, fostering inspiration, an approach to learning with an emphasis on problem solving, and a focus on pedagogical knowledge and skills in the process of teaching and learning. In addition, the teaching and learning of mathematics is seen as subject didactics with a focus on subject matter and as an organized integration of subject matter, pedagogical knowledge and some school practice; and also as academic content knowledge in which assessment is inherent. The respondents also saw the need to build learner-educator relationships. Finally, they emphasized taking advantage of teacher educators’ neighbourhood learning groups, networking and collaboration as sustainable knowledge and skills sharing strategies in professional development. Regarding desirable development, teacher educators’ thoughts emphasised enhancing pedagogical knowledge and subject matter, and to be determined by them as opposed to conventional top-down seminars and workshops. This study has revealed various conceptions and thoughts about MTE based on teacher educators´ diverse history of professional development in mathematics. It has been reasonably substantiated that some teacher educators teach school mathematics in the name of MTE, hardly distinguishing between the role and purpose of the two in developing a mathematics teacher. What teacher educators conceive as MTE and what they do regarding the education of teachers of mathematics revealed variations in terms of seeing the phenomenon of interest. Within limits, desirable thoughts shed light on solutions to phobias, and in the same way low self-esteem and stigmatization call for the building of teacher educator-student teacher relationships.

Exploring Relationship between Pakistani Teachers’ Pedagogical Beliefs and ICT Use for Teaching and Learning

Background: The aim of present study is to investigate relationship between Pakistani teachers’ pedagogical beliefs and ICT use for teaching and learning. Previous studies found close relationship between pedagogical beliefs and teaching practices including use of ICT. However, variation in results is also reported and attributed to cultural and contextual differences. Methodology: Quantitative approach was used to study a sample of 231 Pakistani basic education teachers from middle and upper-middle range private schools, mostly from large urban centres. Results: This study confirmed previously study results that constructivist-compatible pedagogical beliefs are significantly related to both traditional and constructivist use of ICT. However, it is also found that traditional-transmission pedagogical beliefs are significantly related to traditional use of ICT – a finding not reported in previous studies. Some amounts of ICT training for pedagogical purpose exhibit significant impact on ICT use, in particular constructivist use of ICT. Similarly age also play a role as younger teachers are more likely to use ICT, however, no significant difference of pedagogical beliefs and ICT use was found between male and female teachers. Recommendation for practice and further investigation are made in chapter 5.

Postsecondary Teaching and Learning Development Needs: Motivators and Barriers Associated With Participation in Educational Development

This study investigated instructor perceptions of motivators and barriers that exist with respect to participation in educational development in the postsecondary context. Eight instructors from a mid-size, research intensive university in south-western Ontario participated in semistructured interviews to explore this particular issue. Data were analyzed using a qualitative approach. Motivation theory was used as a conceptual framework in this study, referring primarily to the work of Ryan and Deci (2000), Deci and Ryan (1985), and Pink (2009). The identified motivators and barriers spanned all 3 levels of postsecondary institutions: the micro (i.e., the individual), the meso (i.e., the department or Faculty), and the macro (i.e., the institution). Significant motivators to participation in educational development included desire to improve one’s teaching (micro), feedback from students (meso), and tenure and promotion (macro). Significant barriers to participation included lack of time (micro), the perception that an investment towards one’s research was more important than an investment to enhancing teaching (meso), and the impression that quality teaching was not valued by the institution (macro). The study identifies connections between the micro, meso, macro framework and motivation theory, and offers recommendations for practice.

Evaluación formativa de las redes de colaboración del Centro de Excelencia en Enseñanza y Aprendizaje en Objetos de Aprendizaje (Centre for Excellence in Teaching and Learning in Reusable Learning Objects-RLO-CETL) : la visión del primer año.

Resumen basado en el de la publicación

Creating teaching and learning in Europe: promoting a new paradigm

The tides of globalization and the unsteady surges and distortions in the evolution of the European Union are causing identities and cultures to be in a state of flux. Education is used by politicians as a major lever for political and social change through micro-management, but it is a crude tool. There can, however, be opportunities within educational experience for individual learners to gain strong, reflexive, multiple identities and multiple citizenship through the engagement of their creative energies. It has been argued that the twenty-first century needs a new kind of creativity characterized by unselfishness, caring and compassion—still involving monetary wealth, but resulting in a healthy planet and healthy people. Creativity and its economically derived relation, innovation, have become `buzz words' of our times. They are often misconstrued, misunderstood and plainly misused within educational conversations. The small-scale pan-European research study upon which this article is founded discovered that more emphasis needs to be placed on creative leadership, empowering teachers and learners, reducing pupils' fear of school, balancing teaching approaches, and ensuring that the curriculum and assessment are responsive to the needs of individual learners. These factors are key to building strong educational provision that harnesses the creative potential of learners, teachers and other stakeholders, values what it is to be human and creates a foundation upon which to build strong, morally based, consistent, participative democracies.

Inclusive approaches to teaching and learning mathematics

This chapter explores the role of mentors in supporting pre-service teachers to include all children in mathematics teaching, no matter what their individual needs.

Teaching and learning data structures supported by computers: An experiment using CADILAG tool

This paper aims to present the use of a learning object (CADILAG), developed to facilitate understanding data structure operations by using visual presentations and animations. The CADILAG allows visualizing the behavior of algorithms usually discussed during Computer Science and Information System courses. For each data structure it is possible visualizing its content and its operation dynamically. Its use was evaluated an the results are presented. © 2012 AISTI.

Teaching and learning stance in specialized English for computing. A corpus linguistics approach

[EN]The use of large corpora in the study of languages is a well established tradition. In the same vein, scholarship is also well represented in the case of the study of corpora for making grammars of languages. This is the case of the COBUILD grammar and dictionary and the case of the Longman Grammar of Spoken and Written English. This means that corpora have been analyzed in order to identify patterns in languages that can be later practised by learners following those patterns described and exemplified with real instances.

Advances in Teaching and Learning 2005 Webcast - Introductions and Expert Panel

Expert Panel: Documenting Teaching Scholarship for Promotion and Tenure Lemuel Moye, School of Public Health Miguel daCunha, School of Nursing William Tate, Dental School Katherine Loveland, Medical School