Principles in Patterns (PiP) : Project Evaluation Synthesis

Evaluation activity found the technology-supported approach to curriculum design and approval developed by PiP to demonstrate high levels of user acceptance, promote improvements to the quality of curriculum designs, render more transparent and efficient aspects of the curriculum approval and quality monitoring process, demonstrate process efficacy and resolve a number of chronic information management difficulties which pervaded the previous state. The creation of a central repository of curriculum designs as the basis for their management as "knowledge assets", thus facilitating re-use and sharing of designs and exposure of tacit curriculum design practice, was also found to be highly advantageous. However, further process improvements remain possible and evidence of system resistance was found in some stakeholder groups. Recommendations arising from the findings and conclusions include the need to improve data collection surrounding the curriculum approval process so that the process and human impact of C-CAP can be monitored and observed. Strategies for improving C-CAP acceptance among the "late majority", the need for C-CAP best practice guidance, and suggested protocols on the knowledge management of curriculum designs are proposed. Opportunities for further process improvements in institutional curriculum approval, including a re-engineering of post-faculty approval processes, are also recommended

Principles in Patterns (PiP) : Evaluation of Impact on Business Processes

The innovation and development work conducted under the auspices of the Principles in Patterns (PiP) project is intended to explore and develop new technology-supported approaches to curriculum design, approval and review. An integral component of this innovation is the use of business process analysis and process change techniques - and their instantiation within the C-CAP system (Class and Course Approval Pilot) - in order to improve the efficacy of curriculum approval processes. Improvements to approval process responsiveness and overall process efficacy can assist institutions in better reviewing or updating curriculum designs to enhance pedagogy. Such improvements also assume a greater significance in a globalised HE environment, in which institutions must adapt or create curricula quickly in order to better reflect rapidly changing academic contexts, as well as better responding to the demands of employment marketplaces and the expectations of professional bodies. This is increasingly an issue for disciplines within the sciences and engineering, where new skills or knowledge need to be rapidly embedded in curricula as a response to emerging technological or environmental developments. All of the aforementioned must also be achieved while simultaneously maintaining high standards of academic quality, thus adding a further layer of complexity to the way in which HE institutions engage in "responsive curriculum design" and approval. This strand of the PiP evaluation therefore entails an analysis of the business process techniques used by PiP, their efficacy, and the impact of process changes on the curriculum approval process, as instantiated by C-CAP. More generally the evaluation is a contribution towards a wider understanding of technology-supported process improvement initiatives within curriculum approval and their potential to render such processes more transparent, efficient and effective. Partly owing to limitations in the data required to facilitate comparative analyses, this evaluation adopts a mixed approach, making use of qualitative and quantitative methods as well as theoretical techniques. These approaches combined enable a comparative evaluation of the curriculum approval process under the "new state" (i.e. using C-CAP) and under the "previous state". This report summarises the methodology used to enable comparative evaluation and presents an analysis and discussion of the results. As the report will explain, the impact of C-CAP and its ability to support improvements in process and document management has resulted in the resolution of numerous process failings. C-CAP has also demonstrated potential for improvements in approval process cycle time, process reliability, process visibility, process automation, process parallelism and a reduction in transition delays within the approval process, thus contributing to considerable process efficiencies; although it is acknowledged that enhancements and redesign may be required to take advantage of C-CAP's potential. Other aspects pertaining to C-CAP's impact on process change, improvements to document management and the curation of curriculum designs will also be discussed

Rozwijanie umiejętności STEM w przedszkolu. Możliwości i wyzwania z perspektywy przyszłych nauczycieli

The article has been written as a part of Erasmus+ Project KLab4Kids[1]. Its main aim is to present the idea of STEM education to readers, to explain the interdisciplinary nature of STEM education as a “meta-discipline,” and to show the possibilities of implementing this type of curriculum/material in a preschool environment. The article consists of three parts. The theoretical part which aims to turn the readers’ attention to the interdisciplinary characteristics of STEM skills. It also analyses different theoretical frameworks and classifications of such skills, and offers a list of core STEM skills which can and should be developed at an early age. The second part is empirical and compares the theoretical assumptions with survey results – the opinions of students of early childhood education – future preschool teachers. In this part we present our initial teacher educators concerns about the essence and objectives of STEM education. In summary, the authors look at some challenges which have to be addressed in order to prepare teachers for a more modern well rounded education which is capable of shaping young children XXI century skills. Article prepared within the frame of Erasmus+ Project “Kitchen Lab for Kids,” grant number 2018-1-PL01-KA201-050857.The article prepared with financial support of EU Erasmus+ programme. The European Commission’s support for the production of this publication does not constitute an endorsement of the contents, which reflect the views only of the authors, and the Commission cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of the information contained therein.Prezentowany artykuł został opracowany w ramach projektu „Erasmus+ KLab4Kids”. Jego głównym celem jest przybliżenie czytelnikom idei edukacji STEM, wyjaśnienie jej interdyscyplinarnego charakteru jak tzw. „metadyscypliny”, a także ukazanie możliwości jej odniesienia do wieku przedszkolnego. Tekst składa się z trzech części. W części teoretycznej zwrócono uwagę na ponadprzedmiotowy/interdyscyplinarny charakter umiejętności STEM, dokonano przeglądu dostępnych w literaturze klasyfikacji tych umiejętności i zaproponowano listę tych umiejętności STEM-owych, które mogą i powinny być skutecznie rozwijane już w wieku przedszkolnym. W drugiej, empirycznej części tekstu, założenia teoretyczne zostały zestawione z wynikami badań sondażowych przeprowadzonych wśród przyszłych nauczycieli – studentów pedagogiki przedszkolnej i wczesnoszkolnej. Omówiono tu wiedzę i poglądy przyszłych nauczycieli na temat istoty i celów edukacji STEM, możliwości jej prowadzenia na zajęciach przedszkolnych, dostrzegane przez badanych bariery, wyzwania i potrzeby w tym zakresie. W podsumowaniu artykułu zwrócono uwagę na wyzwania, jakie stoją przed nauczycielami, aby mogli oni sprostać wymaganiom współczesnego procesu edukacji uwzględniającego kompetencje niezbędne w XXI wieku. Badania przeprowadzone w ramach programu Erasmus +, projekt „Kitchen Lab for Kids”, numer grantu: 2018-1-PL01-KA201-050857 Artykuł sfinansowany ze środków EU. Wsparcie Komisji Europejskiej dla produkcji tej publikacji nie stanowi poparcia dla treści, które odzwierciedlają jedynie poglądy autorów, a Komisja nie może zostać pociągnięta do odpowiedzialności za jakiekolwiek wykorzystanie informacji w niej zawartych

Environmental architecture education : a comparative study between the curricula of Kuwait University and Newcastle University with reflection on policy making and end users

PhD ThesisThis study investigates how, if at all, sustainable architecture education is practised in the Department of Architecture at Kuwait University. The thesis begins with the development of sustainable design and a brief history of education in Kuwait. Furthermore, it includes a critical discussion of architectural education theory, the role of architecture bodies in regulating both the profession, and architecture education competencies. The thesis begins with a background of the history of education, architectural education from apprenticeship level to formal Higher Education, the initiation of architecture accrediting bodies, and how environmental concepts were introduced into the curriculum through architecture accrediting bodies. The thesis exhibits different cases of theoretical approaches of architecture education, beginning with the UK, in which the political situation is a major driving force behind environmental education, and shifting to architecture education in SAPL, America (Texas A&M University), Kuwait University and Australian Sydney University., The different case studies also contribute to the debate about whether architecture schools, due to their different educational approaches, should be more strongly linked to other fields of study such as engineering and/or sociology, biology, building services, etc. The thesis displays the actual methods used in collecting field data, a summary of data analysis results using graphs, charts, etc., with more details of raw material included in the appendix section. The thesis identifies and discusses the influences upon sustainable architecture including policy, regulations, market forces, etc. These influences are identified as part of the three drivers of sustainability; environment, economy and society. It further concludes by linking the drivers of sustainable architecture with the attainment of sustainable architecture in Kuwait by implementing policies promoting it in accordance with international environmental policies and strategies. The thesis constructs a thorough argument for a new teaching environment for sustainable architecture in Kuwait drawn from the data analysis results and architecture education theories examined within. The recommended architecture education delivered provides a diagram of curriculum recommendations, and new teaching, learning and assessment methods within the right environment. Indicators to monitor the success of the proposed approach are included. The final recommendation of the research thesis provides a constructive description of the overall study, the key findings and the implications of the research, with a suggested framework for future research into curriculum development.Ministry of Education and Higher Education in Kuwai

A Framework For The Integration Of Technology Into Curricula Development And Student Assessment

The purpose of this work is to amalgamate technology and education in a manner which will prove to be beneficial to all stakeholders involved and which will allow for an improvement in the ubiquitous process of curriculum development in the teaching and learning sphere. The primary motivation surrounds the issue of limited human resources in terms of teachers and expert knowledge as well as available physical resources such as computer equipment or other classroom artifacts. It should be duly noted that it is in many developing countries where the student-teacher ratio is very high and where such a framework will be most useful. However, this work has the potential to benefit not only developing countries, but also developed countries where the available technology is more advanced and where its integration in student learning is more pronounced. The major focus will be on the creation of a framework which will allow for systematic, structured and seamless curriculum development and learning outcome assessment. Therefore, a major component will be the modeling of a curriculum in a structured and qualitative way to include goals and objectives which will then lend it to adaptation and use downstream within the framework. Another key component is Assessment which will encapsulate various ways in which this paradigm can leverage the assessment aspects of a curriculum. The benefits from this work may prove to be quite immense as the proposed framework may help to standardize the design, delivery and assessment of any curriculum regardless of location and resource

Framework for using tangible programming concepts to stimulate learning of STEM subjects at primary school

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Principles in Patterns (PiP) : User Acceptance Testing of Course and Class Approval Online Pilot (C-CAP)

The PiP Evaluation Plan documents four distinct evaluative strands, the first of which entails an evaluation of the PiP system pilot (WP7:37 – Systems & tool evaluation). Phase 1 of this evaluative strand focused on the heuristic evaluation of the PiP Course and Class Approval Online Pilot system (C-CAP) and was completed in December 2011. Phase 2 of the evaluation is broadly concerned with "user acceptance testing". This entails exploring the extent to which C-CAP functionality meets users' expectations within specific curriculum design tasks, as well as eliciting data on C-CAP's overall usability and its ability to support academics in improving the quality of curricula. The general evaluative approach adopted therefore employs a combination of standard Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) approaches and specially designed data collection instruments, including protocol analysis, stimulated recall and pre- and post-test questionnaire instruments. This brief report summarises the methodology deployed, presents the results of the evaluation and discusses their implications for the further development of C-CAP