Educational Leadership Doctoral Faculty Academic Qualifications and Practitioner Experiences in Georgia

Aim/Purpose This study examined doctoral faculty of educational leadership within the state of Georgia in the United States. The aim was to illustrate the academic qualifications and practitioner experiences of the faculty that develop students in educational leadership programs to be scholarly practitioners and future educational leaders. Background Faculty of educational leadership programs prepare their students to hold imminent senior leadership roles in P-12 school administration and higher education administration. In this apprenticeship model, doctoral faculty utilize their academic qualifications and/or practitioner experiences to develop students into scholarly practitioners. Methodology A descriptive quantitative study utilizing content analysis was conducted to examine faculty of doctoral programs in educational leadership (n=83). True to this methodology, the inquiry of this study sought to better understand the academic qualifications and practitioner experiences of doctoral faculty in the field of educational leadership. Contribution This study serves as a primer for faculty and researchers to visualize the doctoral faculty of educational leadership programs. It can serve as a catalyst to encourage empirical studies of educational leadership faculty and their effectiveness in preparing scholarly practitioners. Findings Key findings included that nearly 2/3 of the faculty have their terminal degrees from a Research 1 institution, 3/5 hold a PhD, and 3/4 have practitioner experience in their respective field. Recommendations for Practitioners Doctoral programs should examine the diversity of the academic qualifications and practitioner experiences of their faculty and develop strategies to enhance their programs with these complimenting skill sets. Recommendation for Researchers Descriptive studies effectively “dip our toe” into a new area of inquiry. Considerations for future research includes examining student perceptions of their faculty who hold either a PhD or Ed.D, as well as those who are academics versus practitioners to better understand their effectiveness. Impact on Society True to the work of John Dewey, education serves as the vehicle to promote a democratic society. Recognizing these doctoral faculty are preparing the future leaders of education, understanding the experiences of faculty will allow for better insight into those who are ultimately shaping the future of education. Future Research Future research should focus on empirical studies that explore the effectiveness of faculty based on their academic qualifications and practitioner experiences through the lens of student perceptions

Learning Experiences of Nursing Students in Online RN-BSN Programs in the United States

The complex profession of nursing requires the practitioner to be knowledgeable, skilled, and autonomous. It is estimated in the USA 36.8 percent of nurses hold degrees at the baccalaureate level and above. Evidence indicating baccalaureate-degreed nurses are better prepared to meet the demands of this complex profession has led to policymakers and practice leaders touting the importance of this degree. RNs are seeking the BSN degree in increasing numbers. However, due to family, work, and personal time constraints, traditional means of education may not be a viable option for many, and distance learning provides an alternative for students who might not be able to pursue degrees. The number of RN-BSN online education programs has increased significantly over the last decade. There is a great deal of research regarding the efficacy of these programs but little research exists regarding the learning experiences RN-BSN students have in these programs. The intent of this research study was to examine the structure of the learning experiences of RN-BSN students participating in online education programs. To accomplish this goal, data were obtained from 11 interviews with RN-BSN online education students about their perceptions and assumptions before beginning their coursework, and their perceptions and actual experiences, as well as, perceived challenges after experiencing the programs

Improving the PhD through provision of skills training for postgraduate researchers

Postgraduate research degrees in some systems, such as the UK, can be almost exclusively research based, with little formal, compulsory taught component. Government reviews recommend 10 days per year training in generic or transferable skills to ensure the suitability of doctoral graduates for employment. Professional bodies stipulate a commitment to continuing professional development as a requirement for chartered or accredited status. This includes The Chartered Society of Forensic Science and the British Association for Forensic Anthropology, as well as institutions for related fields such as The Institution of Engineering and Technology. Increasing numbers of universities therefore offer skills training programmes. Research students were surveyed to investigate their attendance and views on non-mandatory training courses, and only 33% of students agreed that all training needs were covered by their degree. However, in contrast to the recommended training commitment, over a one-year period students attended a mean of 5.5±0.7 training days, with 12% attending no training. Responses indicate a significant demand for increased training in management, consistent with government reviews; however, this work also indicates that provision of technical training should be addressed.Short course availability, design, delivery, promotion and recognition are discussed in relation to improving student uptake to reduce to the discrepancy between attendance levels and recommendations or aspirations

Nursing education and regulation: international profiles and perspectives

This review of nurse education and regulation in selected OECD countries forms part of ongoing work on contemporary nursing careers and working lives, based at the National Nursing Research Unit, King’s College London. The review was commissioned by the Department of Health to inform their work in considering the UK’s position in relation to the Bologna declaration and changes that may emanate from the implementation of Modernising Nursing Careers (DH 2006). While much of the information in the review was obtained from publications and websites, we also contacted key personnel in most of the countries included for an up-to-date review of developments in their country and would like to thank them all for providing this information

School principal preparation in Europe

This article centres on Cypriot, English, Greek and Swedish selection and training of principals. This was part of a 2001-2003 European Union (EU) funded study which created a distance learning CD ROM for principals. We analysed and compared national education systems and principals’ selection and training using documents, focus groups, principals’ interviews and an international seminar. The most centralised systems of Greece and Cyprus had less principal preparation, and more government involvement in principal selection, than the less centralised Sweden and England. The extent of training was perceived to matter less in successful principalship than selecting the right people although it was felt that even a good leader can be improved through training and principals were concerned about their lack of formal training

Skills for creativity in games design

This paper reports on an experimental study to understand further the extent to which academics may differ to practitioners in their conception of skills relevant to creativity within a specific design related subject: in this instance, Games Design. Ten academics, sampled from BA Hons games courses in the UK, participated in identifying what factors they each considered important to creativity in games design, and how, collectively, they rated particular skills, knowledge, talents and abilities relevant to creativity in games design. With the same research methodology, theoretical framework and procedures, the focus was placed on ten games design practitioners’ conceptions of skills for creativity in games design. A detailed comparison is made between the findings from both groups

Scenario-based evaluation of an ethical framework for the use of digital media in learning and teaching

nterest in educational podcasting, audio feedback and media-enhanced learning, in its various forms, has grown due to the increased access academic staff and students have to new technologies. The benefits have been widely reported in the educational development and disciplinary literature on learning technology, mobile learning, digital age learning, and assessment and feedback. However, such literature focuses more on what can be done, rather than if it should be done. Hargreaves (2008) signals the need to balance ethical risk in the creative curriculum with actions that maximise beneficence, especially within the context of a sector that espouses to develop critical skills in learners. In a world of constantly developing technology, it is not always easy to appraise the implications of a pedagogic innovation. As practitioners concerned with academic development, our aim is to facilitate academics to reflect on their practice from a variety of perspectives, and we felt that an easy–to-use ethical framework could assist academics to identify potential ethical problems. The Media-Enhanced Learning Special Interest Group (MELSIG) is a UK network of academics, developers and learning technologists. They identified the need to consider the ethical risk associated with using digital media in response to examples described in recent literature, and ideas generated by its community. It was as a result of discussions at MELSIG that this collaborative work began. The three members of MELSIG were joined by a colleague with an interest in ethics but who was relatively inexperienced with new technologies. When this work began we looked primarily at digital media, but it is considered that such a framework can be used to appraise the use of other new technologies in learning and teaching. This paper will begin by giving a brief explanation of ethics, as a discipline, and the approach to ethics which underpins this framework. We will then discuss the results from a scenario-based evaluation of the framework, undertaken by the four authors. Following this evaluation, the framework is now being evaluated by a wider community of practitioners, on real examples, and continues to develop as it is exposed to wider use. However, it is considered that the initial scenario-based evaluation raised some interim findings that will be of interest to a wider audience