Information Outlook, October 2003

Volume 7, Issue 10https://scholarworks.sjsu.edu/sla_io_2003/1009/thumbnail.jp

Developing a national cadre of effective leadership towards sustainable quality service delivery in South Africa

The application of the three (3) dimensional leadership competency model has the likelihood of having a positive impact on a sustainable developmental local governance framework. The purpose of the study was to explore the relevance of the Three (3) dimensional leadership competency model so as to suggest leadership traits that can be used in the enhancement of a developmental local governance framework. The lack of leadership with the requisite competencies and capabilities in the local government system has been the source of corruption and maladministration, and therefore necessitates an intervention in the development of leadership competencies. The research design, approach and method focuses primarily a qualitative approach, namely face-to-face in-depth interviews using a structured interview schedule triangulated through the review of published documents and publications. The findings show that significant progress has been achieved in many areas of the ideal of a developmental local governance framework, yet the lack of a value-based cadre of leaders is reversing the gains that have been achieved in the last 15 years of the ANC rule. Managerial competencies that are key components of leadership limit the acceleration of a developmental governance framework. This study indicates the relevance of the Three (3) dimensional leadership competency model in the enhancement of a developmental local governance framework, and has suggested key elements of leadership traits within the context of what can be used to achieve the objects of a developmental local governance framework

Quality management practices to direct and control the accomplishment of project objectives in R&D units

Projects create value and capabilities for organizations and beneficiaries of their outcomes and must be managed by implementing quality processes to assure an execution compliant with plans, activities, and applicable standards, and to accomplish the defined requirements and objectives in an efficient and effective manner. This study analyzed the frequency of use of quality management practices by companies with R&D units and compared them with project management students expectations of implementing quality project management practices as a professional. The data was collected using an online survey, and twenty-six quality management practices have been analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics, following standard procedures, and using the Independent-samples T-Test. For twelve out of the twenty-six practices, significant differences have been found between the two samples, five referring to quality planning practices and seven referring to quality control practices. For the twelve quality management practices, project management students had greater expectations of implementing them, in contrast to the actual frequency of use among the surveyed companies. The results can provide inputs to improve project management practices among companies, reinforcing the importance of training and recruiting project management professionals that have the required training, talent, and aligned expectations on how to successfully manage projects.- (undefined

Proceeding: 3rd Java International Nursing Conference 2015 “Harmony of Caring and Healing Inquiry for Holistic Nursing Practice; Enhancing Quality of Care”, Semarang, 20-21 August 2015

This is the proceeding of the 3rd Java International Nursing Conference 2015 organized by School of Nursing, Faculty of Medicine, Diponegoro University, in collaboration with STIKES Kendal. The conference was held on 20-21 August 2015 in Semarang, Indonesia. The conference aims to enable educators, students, practitioners and researchers from nursing, medicine, midwifery and other health sciences to disseminate and discuss evidence of nursing education, research, and practices to improve the quality of care. This conference also provides participants opportunities to develop their professional networks, learn from other colleagues and meet leading personalities in nursing and health sciences. The 3rd JINC 2015 was comprised of keynote lectures and concurrent submitted oral presentations and poster sessions. The following themes have been chosen to be the focus of the conference: (a) Multicenter Science: Physiology, Biology, Chemistry, etc. in Holistic Nursing Practice, (b) Complementary Therapy in Nursing and Complementary, Alternative Medicine: Alternative Medicine (Herbal Medicine), Complementary Therapy (Cupping, Acupuncture, Yoga, Aromatherapy, Music Therapy, etc.), (c) Application of Inter-professional Collaboration and Education: Education Development in Holistic Nursing, Competencies of Holistic Nursing, Learning Methods and Assessments, and (d) Application of Holistic Nursing: Leadership & Management, Entrepreneurship in Holistic Nursing, Application of Holistic Nursing in Clinical and Community Settings

Developing sustainable business models for institutions’ provision of open educational resources: Learning from OpenLearn users’ motivations and experiences

Universities across the globe have, for some time, been exploring the possibilities for achieving public benefit and generating business and visibility through releasing and sharing open educational resources (OER). Many have written about the need to develop sustainable and profitable business models around the production and release of OER. Downes (2006), for example, has questioned the financial sustainability of OER production at scale. Many of the proposed business models focus on OER’s value in generating revenue and detractors of OER have questioned whether they are in competition with formal education. This paper reports on a study intended to broaden the conversation about OER business models to consider the motivations and experiences of OER users as the basis for making a better informed decision about whether OER and formal learning are competitive or complementary with each other. The study focused on OpenLearn - the Open University’s (OU) web-based platform for OER, which hosts hundreds of online courses and videos and is accessed by over 3,000,000 users a year. A large scale survey and follow-up interviews with OpenLearn users worldwide revealed that university provided OER can offer learners a bridge to formal education, allowing them to try out a subject before registering on a formal course and to build confidence in their abilities as learners. In addition, it was found that using OER during formal paid-for study can improve learners’ performance and self-reliance, leading to increased retention and satisfaction with the learning experience

Universidade Aberta's pedagogical model for distance education: a university for the future

This document present the Pedagogical Model for Distance Education in the case of Universidade Aberta of Portugal. It describes the principles and actions for the fully virtualization of the organization and for the learning process