Policies and practices for teaching sociocultural diversity - A framework of teacher competences for engaging with diversity (2010)

Teacher education institutions have a crucial role in the process of developing competences for diversity in education. The Council of Europe Project “Policies and practices for teaching socio-cultural diversity” is intended as a response to certain key questions connected with initial teacher education and the introduction of common principles in relation to the management of school diversity. It is therefore addressed both to education policy-makers, and to teacher educators.This publication (Volume 3 in the project series) has key competences as a focal point, opening up for discussions about what is needed both at the level of teacher education institutions, schools and individual teachers. In this volume it has been equally important to give space for the process of developing competences for teaching socio-cultural diversity

Estonia in transition under the restrictions of European institutional competition

After the fundamental changes of the early 1990s and before Estonia joined the EU, many neo-liberal economists regarded Estonia as their model student - due to the country's economic principles. Economic growth has been positive from 1995 on (except in 1999) until 2007, and above the EU average. During this period, GDP per capita and productivity have grown from just under a third of the EU average to 70 per cent of it in 2007. Today the attitude towards Estonia has slightly changed, because Estonia has involved into global economic crises and in decline stage of local trade cycle simultaneously. The transformation process in Estonia is an extreme case within a number of similar cases in Central and Eastern Europe. After regaining its political independence, Estonia established a liberal and democratic society. Since 1992 Estonia has pursued one of the most liberal trade policies in the world. The state budget is subject to the balanced-budget principle. In as early as 1998, 85% of companies were privatized. The currency board system tied the Estonian currency, the Eesti kroon (EEK), to the German mark (DEM) at a rate of about 8:1. To round the picture off: agricultural subsidies were abolished and a flat income tax rate was introduced. This article seeks to analyze Estonia's transition under the restrictions of European institutional competition in more detail. The first and second part analyses some areas of transition macro- and micro-policies that have been suggested that Estonia applies in order to a) join EU and b) catch up within the EU. The third part deals with Estonia's position in international economic competition up to the present time. We define Estonia's strong and weak points in system competition today as result the transition policy. As can be shown, there is still a great need for convergence in economic performance compared to the EU average. --Institutional economics,transformation,economic integration,Estonia

Pedagogy and Educational Sciences in the Post-Soviet Baltic States, 1990–2004: Changes and Challenges

Plasmonics is a promising field of nanophotonics dealing with light interaction with metallic nanostructures. In such material systems, hybridizationof photons and collective free-electron oscillation can result in sub-wavelength light confinement. The strong light-matter interaction can be harnessed for,among many applications, high-density photonic integration, metamaterial design, enhanced nonlinear optics, sensing etc. In the current thesis work, we focus on experimental fabrication and characterization of planar plasmonic metamaterials and waveguide structures. The samples are fabricated based on the generic electron beam lithography and characterizations are done with our home-made setups. Mastering and refinement of fabrication techniques as well as setting up the characterization tools have constituted as a majorpart of the thesis work. In particular, we experimentally realized a plasmonic absorber based on a 2D honeycomb array of gold nano-disks sitting on top of a reflector through a dielectric spacer. The absorber not only exhibits an absorption peak which is owing to localized surface plasmon resonance and is insensitive to incidence’s angle or polarization, but also possesses an angle- and polarization-sensitive high-order absorption peak with a narrow bandwidth. We also demonstrated that the strong light absorption in such plasmonic absorbers can be utilized to photothermally re-condition the geometry of gold nanoparticles. The nearly perfect absorption capability of our absorbers promises a wide range of potential applications, including thermal emitter, infrared detectors, and sensors etc. We also fabricated a plasmonic strip waveguide in a similar metal-insulator-metal structure. The strip waveguide has a modal confinement slightly exceeding that of the so-called plasmonic slot waveguide. We further thermally annealed the waveguide. It is observed that the propagation loss at 980 nm has been decreased significantly,which can be attributed to the improvement in gold quality after thermal annealing.QC 20140203</p

Factors influencing mobility of teachers from Harjumaa and Ida-Virumaa regions in the frame of lifelong learning programme Comenius

Teacher mobility is a process with old routes in the history, but its importance was emphasized only in the past 25 years, once education sector of member states became an important subject on European agenda. The interest for teacher mobility and as a result the great support provided emerged along with establishment of main priorities of European Union among which raising awareness of member states citizens about EU citizenships became a primary goal. In this order Lifelong Learning Programme Comenius was especially designed for the education area to offer the framework to schools‘ actors for participation in international mobility activities. Theoretical framework regarding mobility ―as a process of change affecting modes of behaviour or trajectories of individuals or social groups‖ was enriched concomitantly. Besides the positive achievements on the path of teacher mobility developments, there were met obstacles and limits discussed in the specialized literature on education and teacher mobility. On the other hand precise estimates on teacher mobility in Estonia comprising researches on affects and teachers‘ approach towards mobility are lacking. This research was carried out to identify the main factors affecting the decision making process of teachers from Estonian schools from Ida-Virumaa and Harjumaa to participate in international mobility activities in the frame of Comenius programme. Furthermore policy recommendations were made based on the findings in the study in order to decrease the negative impact of the identified factors on teachers‘ approach towards international mobility.http://www.ester.ee/record=b4541209*es

Entrepreneurship in Estonia: policies, practices, education and research

http://www.ester.ee/record=b2158181*es

The Diffusion of Cyber Forces: Military Innovation and the Dynamic Implementation of Cyber Force Structure

What explains the variation in implementation dynamics for cyber forces across militaries? In other words, as cyber forces emerge in states across the international system, why do some militaries undertake wide-ranging implementation efforts with few alterations to cyber force structure, while implementation in other militaries is characterized by a drawn-out, incremental process entailing several changes in cyber force structure? Militaries have been building cyber capabilities since the late 1980s; however, formalized military cyber organizations for these capabilities have only recently emerged. These cyber forces—active-duty military organizations that possess the capability and authority to direct and control computer network operations (CNOs) for strategic ends—have received little attention from scholars. Despite the potential impacts cyber forces might hold for international security dynamics, there exists no comprehensive overview of cyber forces and no analysis on the various ways they have been implemented across militaries. Moreover, current explanations drawn from the diffusion of military innovations remain incomplete in explaining the ways in which cyber force structure change over the course of the implementation process. In this dissertation, I examine the diffusion and implementation of cyber forces and advance a theory of organizational size to account for the varying implementation dynamics across militaries. My dissertation makes two important contributions to the growing literature on cyber conflict. First, I offer a novel typology for categorizing cyber forces and the respective force structures. By classifying cyber forces according to organizational model and scale of command, I identify nine distinct cyber force structures: Subordinated Branch, Subordinated Service, Subordinated Joint, Sub-Unified Branch, Sub-Unified Service, Sub-Unified Joint, Unified Branch, Unified Service, and Unified Joint. The second contribution is empirical: I create the first comprehensive database to catalogue the diffusion of cyber forces and evolution of cyber force structures across state—the Dataset on Cyber Force Structures. This dissertation also makes three broader contributions to the study of the diffusion of military innovations. First, I show how organizational characteristics mitigate diffusion pressures by constraining or enabling innovation and implementation. This dissertation moves past debates that portray militaries as either change-resistant or innovation-seeking organizations by providing a more nuanced claim: organizational characteristics—such as size—can predispose militaries to pursue certain types of changes while creating resistance to others. As such, this dissertation sheds important light on the ways in which the military organizational factors can shape the agency and decisions of those implementing an innovation principle. Second, I advance a stage-based conception of implementation for diffusion frameworks comprised of five stages: pre-adoption, introduction, modification, expansion, and full implementation. This framework can account for both partial and full adoption and provides a way to assess intermediate changes to an innovation prior to its full institutionalization. As a result, I use this framework to showcase the value of stage-based theorizing. Third, this dissertation introduces new methodological tools for testing stage-based hypotheses about adoption and implementation. In conjunction with qualitative analysis, this dissertation utilizes multistate survival modeling to assess variable effects at each stage of the implementation process. Traditional modeling techniques in the military diffusion literature—such as logistic regressions and basic survival modeling—prove both cumbersome and inadequate for assessing stage-based processes. In using multistate survival modeling, I emphasize the importance of matching methods to conceptual and theoretical assumptions

Vastutustundliku teaduse ja innovatsiooni mõistmine loodusteaduslikus hariduses

Väitekirja elektrooniline versioon ei sisalda publikatsiooneVastutustundlik teadus ja innovatsioon (Responsible Research and Innovation, RRI) on muutunud viimasel kümnendil Euroopa Liidu teadus- ja innovatsioonipoliitika oluliseks osaks ning seda kasutatakse poliitilise raamistikuna teaduse juhtimisel. Ehkki viimasel kümnendil on teadus- ja arendustegevuses hakatud üha enam huvi tundma RRI kontseptuaalse käsitluse vastu, võib RRI peamiseks probleemiks pidada piiratud arusaama kontseptsiooni olemusest. Näiteks ilmneb, et RRId on haridusvaldkonnas käsitletud eelkõige seoses Euroopa Liidu teaduspoliitika rakendamisega, kuid puudu on uuringutest, milles võrreldaks haridusvaldkonna RRI käsitust teaduskirjanduses avaldatud arusaamaga RRIst ning püütaks RRId haridusvaldkonda tähendusrikkal viisil integreerida. Eeltoodust lähtudes seati doktoriväitekirjale neli eesmärki: 1) välja selgitada RRI definitsioonid ja kontseptuaalsed dimensioonid; 2) teha selgeks, kuidas loodusteaduste õpetajad tajuvad RRId oma töös; 3) välja selgitada, kuidas loodusteaduste õpetajad mõistavad vastutustundlikkuse tähendust uurimusliku õppe eri etappides; 4) käsitleda RRIga seotud haridusfilosoofilisi suundi omavahel seotuna ning esile tuua vastutustundlikkuse osa haridusfilosoofilistes suundades. Uuringu tulemusena võib RRId kirjeldada protsessina, kuhu kaasatakse osalisi demokraatlikult, nähes ette ja tajudes, kuidas teadus ja innovatsioon võivad või saavad toimida ühiskonna hüvanguks. RRId iseloomustatakse nelja kontseptuaalse dimensiooni (refleksiivsus, operatiivsus, ennetamine, kaasamine) ja kahe avalduva kontseptuaalse dimensiooni (jätkusuutlikkus, hool) kaudu. Doktoritöö raames tehtud empiirilisest uuringust ilmnes, et RRId saab haridusvaldkonnas kontseptualiseerida järgmiste kategooriatena: arusaamine, tegutsemine, uurimine ja kaasamine. Seega võib RRId vaatlusaluses kontekstis tõlgendada kui tähendusrikast kaasamist, millega antakse õpilastele võimalus vastutada ja teaduslikult põhjendatud teadmistest või tehnoloogiaga seotud protsessidest aru saada, nendega seoses tegutseda või neid uurida. Töö praktiline väärtus seisneb panuses üldhariduskooli ja õppekava arendusse ning poliitikasse, kus tähelepanu tuleks pöörata vastutustundlikkuse tajumisele õppeprotsessis, loodusteaduslikus hariduses kanda kinnitanud suundade (nt uurimusliku õppe, sotsiaalteaduslike probleemide) sügavamale mõistmisele ning koolituste ja õppematerjalide väljaarendamisele.In recent decades, Responsible Research and Innovation (RRI) has gained a wider importance in the European Union where RRI is developed as a political framework in the governance of science. Although interest has increased in the conceptualization of RRI, the main problem is the lack of theoretical conceptualization as well as an explanation of RRI in practice. The literature indicates that RRI in science education is regarded in connection with the EU research politics, but there is still a deficiency of studies regarding the nature of RRI in education connected with scientific literature and also about integrating the RRI concept into education in a meaningful way. Therefore, the aims of the present research were to determine: (1) the definitions and conceptual dimensions of RRI based on the relevant literature on the topic, (2) how science teachers perceive the emergence of Responsible Research and Innovation in their work, (3) a better understanding of the meaning that the term responsibility can have in different phases of inquiry-based learning, (4) the complementarity of RRI-related philosophies in science education and to consider responsibility as a part of the RRI-related philosophies in science education. As a result of the study, RRI can be described as an effort to govern the process of research and innovation with the goal of democratically including, at the early stages, all stakeholders concerned in anticipating and discerning how research and innovation can or may work for the society as a whole. RRI can be described by the four conceptual dimensions – reflexivity, responsiveness, anticipation and inclusion – and with the two emerging dimensions – sustainability and care. Based on the empirical study of the current research, the RRI dimensions were conceptualized in education in the following categories: sense-making, action-taking, exploration and inclusion. In sum it can be said that RRI in education can be described as a process where teachers include learners meaningfully and where learners are given an opportunity to make sense, take action or explore the scientific knowledge or the technology-related processes. The practical value of the work stems from the contribution to the practice of the school for general education and curriculum development as well as to the politics. Attention should be paid on discerning responsibility in the learning process, a deeper understanding of the previously established approaches in science education (e.g. inquiry-based learning, socio-scientific issues) and development of the necessary training and teaching materials.https://www.ester.ee/record=b526604

The Development of eServices in an Enlarged EU: A Synthesis Report on eLearning

In 2005, IPTS launched a project which aimed to assess the developments in eGoverment, eHealth and eLearning in the 10 New Member States at national, and at cross-country level. At that time, the 10 New Member States were Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Slovenia and Slovakia. A report for each country was produced, describing its educational system and the role played by eLearning within both the formal education system and other aspects of lifelong learning. Each report then analyzed, on the basis of desk research and expert interviews, the major achievements, shortcomings, drivers and barriers in the development of eLearning in one of the countries in question. This synthesis report developed in the final phases of the project offers an integrated view of the developments of eLearning in the New Member States. Furthermore, the project has prepared a prospective report looking across and beyond the development of the eGoverment, eHealth and eLearning areas to summarize policy challenges and options for the development of eServices and the Information Society towards the goals of Lisbon and i2010.JRC.J.4-Information Societ