Te tuangi (the clam): A metaphor for teaching, learning and the key competencies

This article explores the shift from “essential skills” to “key competencies” in the school curriculum. Drawing on information gathered from teacher interviews and observations at a New Zealand primary school, this article suggests that culture and context strongly shape and influence the interpretation of key competencies. The authors develop a metaphor—te tuangi—to theorise the relationship between a learner (akonga) and a teacher (kaiako) in a cultural and social context

Digital entrepreneurship in a resource-scarce context: A focus on entrepreneurial digital competencies

Purpose – Thepurpose of this paper is to criticallyexplorehow context asan antecedent to entrepreneurial digital competencies (EDCs) influences digital entrepreneurship in a resource-scarce environment. Design/methodology/approach – The data comprises semi-structured interviews with 16 digital entrepreneurs, as owner-managers of small digital businesses in Cameroon. Findings – The results reveal the ways in which EDCs shape the entry (or start-up) choices and post-entry strategic decisions of digital entrepreneurs in response to context-specific opportunities and challenges associated with digital entrepreneurship. Research limitations/implications – The data comes from one African country and 16 digital businesses thus the research setting limits the generalisability of the results. Practical implications – This paper highlights important implications for encouraging digital entrepreneurship by focussing on institutional, technology and local dimensions of context and measures to develop the entrepreneurial and digital competencies. This includes policy interventions to develop the information and communication technology (ICT) infrastructure, transport and local distribution infrastructure, and training opportunities to develop the EDCs of digital entrepreneurs. Originality/value – Whereas the capabilities to adopt and use ICTs and the internet by small businesses have been examined, this is among the first theoretically sensitised study linking context, EDCs and digital entrepreneurship

What UK graduate employers think they want and what university business schools think they provide

This is tha authors' PDF version of an article published in International Journal of Management Concepts and Philosophy© 2009. The definitive version is available at www.inderscience.comThis paper evaluates the increasing focus on the development of students' competencies and skills for management, in university business schools. The debate suggests that deeper understandings, concerning the role of managers are being sacrificed at the hands of an instrumentalist/technicist agenda focusing on competencies and skills. The paper adds to the discussion by scrutinising and applying theory from the literatures of occupational practice, knowledge and learning. Data is presented from sixty four job advertisements stipulating the competencies and skills required of applicants and which illustrate the premium put upon personal practice knowledge. By taking a critical management perspective students can begin to understand the social context and power-based nature of management practice in the workplace. While universities may try to further fulfil the 'narrow', industry-led, competency focus, early indications suggest that universities may possess a good deal of freedom in designing pedagogies supportive of a critical agenda

Key competency development and students use of digital learning objects

The inclusion of key competencies in the New Zealand Curriculum (2007) has presented challenges for teachers in their efforts to gather evidence and detail student progress for reporting purposes. Research identifies the need to adopt different evaluation processes and systems, as outcomes and progression in key competencies is fundamentally different from those associated with more conventional learning. It also suggests the use of digital tools may assist in this process, but offers few suggestions as to how this might take place. This article introduces and describes a current research project utilising a thinking skills framework and screen-recording software to map students’ interaction with digital learning objects, and explore the extent to which they provide opportunities to develop thinking and relating to others competencies. It suggests the approach offers potential to make explicit for reporting purposes the nature and quality of students’ thinking, and how their interaction with others in groups, influences their ability to solve problems presented by the objects. However, it also suggests the approach may suffer from manageability challenges, and that student-led administration systems need to be developed to ensure its viability in whole class context

Developing the knowledge-based human resources that support the implementation of the National Dual Training System (NDTS): evaluation of TVET teacher's competency at MARA Training Institutions

Development in the world of technical and vocational education and training (TVET) on an ongoing basis is a challenge to the profession of the TVET-teachers to maintain their performance. The ability of teachers to identify the competencies required by their profession is very critical to enable them to make improvements in teaching and learning. For a broader perspective the competency needs of the labour market have to be matched by those developed within the vocational learning processes. Consequently, this study has focused on developing and validating the new empirical based TVET-teacher competency profile and evaluating teacher’s competency. This study combines both quantitative and qualitative research methodology that was designed to answer all the research questions. The new empirical based competency profile development and TVET-teacher evaluation was based upon an instructional design model. In addition, a modified Delphi technique has also been adopted throughout the process. Initially, 98 elements of competencies were listed by expert panel and rated by TVET institutions as important. Then, analysis using manual and statistical procedure found that 112 elements of competencies have emerged from seventeen (17) clusters of competencies. Prior to that, using the preliminary TVET-teacher competency profile, the level of TVETteacher competencies was found to be Proficient and the finding of 112 elements of competencies with 17 clusters was finally used to develop the new empirical based competency profile for MARA TVET-teacher. Mean score analysis of teacher competencies found that there were gaps in teacher competencies between MARA institutions (IKM) and other TVET institutions, where MARA-teacher was significantly better than other TVET teacher. ANOVA and t-test analysis showed that there were significant differences between teacher competencies among all TVET institutions in Malaysia. On the other hand, the study showed that teacher’s age, grade and year of experience are not significant predictors for TVET-teacher competency. In the context of mastering the competency, the study also found that three competencies are classified as most difficult or challenging, twelve competencies are classified as should be improved, and eight competencies are classified as needed to be trained. Lastly, to make NDTS implementation a reality for MARA the new empirical based competency profile and the framework for career development and training pathway were established. This Framework would serve as a significant tool to develop the knowledge based human resources needed. This will ensure that TVET-teachers at MARA are trained to be knowledgeable, competent, and professional and become a pedagogical leader on an ongoing basis towards a world class TVET-education system

Formation of Digital Competencies in the Process of Changing Educational Paradigm from E-Learning to Smart-Learning at Pedagogical University

The article analyzes the transformation of the educational paradigm of higher education from e-learning to SMART-learning and describes theoretical and practical aspects of the digital competencies formation of future teachers in the context of creating new knowledge in the SMART-University environment. The organizational and pedagogical conditions, principles and pedagogical methods of forming digital competencies are determined. A three-dimensional model for the formation of digital competencies in the context of creating new knowledge became the methodological basis for the pilot course “Information and communication technologies in education and science” for undergraduates of the pedagogical university. An experimental study was conducted in order to implement this model into the educational process of Ternopil National Pedagogical University. The results of the study showed that the role of pedagogical university is changing from providing knowledge to creating the conditions for students’ independent acquisition of new knowledge and forming appropriate digital competencies in the context of creating new knowledg

Did Concentration on Core Competencies Drive Merger and Acquisition Activities in the 1990s? Empirical Evidence for Germany

In the context of increasing globalization of markets, merger and acquisition activities in the 1990s are said to be driven by reorganization processes with respect to concentration on firms? core competencies in order to increase or maintain market power in international markets. This paper empirically investigates a sample of German domestic mergers in the 1990s to detect the impact of technology and market relatedness on the choice of the merging partner. Results from a conditional logit model show that firms prefer a merging partner within the same industry and with a related technological profile. These findings approve the hypothesis that mergers in the 1990s were undertaken to concentrate on core competencies. --M&A,Technological Firm Performance,Market Relatedness

The knowledge needs of innovating organisations

The sustainable management of innovation is perhaps the single most vital element of executive work in today's business environment. This has driven knowledge management theorists to revitalise interest in the concept of 'competency'. However, this theoretical domain continues to be fragmented by definitional debate. At a micro-level of analysis, Human Resources Management theorists have embraced the idea of managerial competencies, resulting in the elaboration of frameworks and standards of performance for the targeted development of individual knowledge. By contrast, at the macrolevel the Strategic Management literature has focussed on developing new concepts of competition and cooperation that emphasise organisational knowledge as the driver of strategic change. In this context, competence-based competition implies that competitive advantage is bestowed by an organisation's unique combination of core competencies. This definitional debate is a major obstacle to the development of an integrated perspective on competency and the knowledge needs of innovating organisations. This conceptual article asserts that, since innovation involves a learning process, it is necessary to develop process-based theory rather than the static categorisations that currently dominate thinking in this area. Drawing on theories from the field of learning, the article proposes a three-dimensional framework of knowledge-based competencies that are interlinked and meaningful across levels of analysis

Competencies in digitalization: an experiment in an international course

This research aims to explore competencies in the digital global context through an international experiment conducted at the Veracruzana University in Mexico and the Public University of Navarre in Spain. In this paper, we report test scores of a course from both universities (N = 85). The course was grounded on Industry 4.0 and digital transformation. Students were required to work in international teams through virtual communication and coworking tools. The main findings show that digital competencies though necessary, do not seem sufficient. Additionally, the research identifies the most developed competencies (decision-making and cognitive development competencies) and the competencies that need to be strengthened (digital competencies). From a practical perspective, the international experiment facilitates a collaborative learning scenario

Telework, virtual work or telework: skills for work in the urgency of a major crisis

The research aimed to define competencies for telework through a systematic review of the literature, through a two-stage survey: (I) bibliographic survey in the Web of Science (WoS) database, and (II) selection of articles published between the years 2016 and 2020, after reading the abstracts, based on the criterion of adherence to the research theme, and further appreciation and presentation of the studies. As a result, the definitions of the competencies for telework are gathered around four macro-competencies, which situate knowledge, skills, attitudes and values necessary for the virtual context, which combine the separation of technical and support competencies with the words “Collaborative work”, “Problem-based learning”, “Team work” and Interculture. These are: (I) Technical-operational competencies for telework, (II) Technical-relational competencies for telework, (III) Support organizational-managerial competencies for telework, (IV) Leadership organizational competencies in supporting telework. Derived from the discussions, it is considered, in the context of “big crisis”, it is suggested analysis on mental health and on the values of openness (innovation and expression of creativity) associated with the challenges for the development of competencies for telework