E-portfolio in education. Practices and reflections

The main activities of the digiFolio Project include: Building a common knowledge base supported by research work on the theory of portfolio usage; Paper and online publication of the results of the research work; Establishment of the pedagogical model for the training course; Analysis of the existing technological infrastructures for digital portfolio usage; Adjustment of the best tools and training course setup; Piloting and evidencing of the training course; Monitoring of the trainees' work by using a specific online teachers' support structure; International seminar. Website: http://digifolioseminar.org/?The present publication addresses the use of digital portfolios in educational context and it is one of the latest dissemination activities of the Digifolio project – Digital Portfolio as a strategy for teachers’ professional development, a COMENIUS 2.1 project which was carried out between 2005 and 2008. It involved several universities and teacher training institutions from five different European countries. The project, which main focus was the reflection on the potentialities of portfolios and digital technologies in the perspective of teachers’ professional development, came to its end with an international seminar which aimed at disseminating the work produced in the frame of a previous teachers training course, as well as allowing and welcoming the contribution of other education professionals with their practices and reflections on the above-mentioned thematic.Europeen Comissio

The Integration of Technology within Physical Education Teacher Education: Perceptions of the Faculty

In 2008, the national Physical Education Teacher Education (PETE) standards included a more integrated approach to teaching pre-service teachers about technology and stated that teacher candidates should be able to plan and implement technology infused learning experiences that meet lesson objectives. With the inclusion of the 2008 standards, PETE faculty have the task to create instruction that effectively integrates technology. This study investigated the preparedness for technology integration of 198 teacher educators within nationally recognized PETE programs. The study utilized survey research design to identify current technologies used, analyze current level of technology proficiency in relationship to the level of integration, identify factors that aid or hinder the technology infusion process and examine approaches PETE programs use to integrate technology within PETE programs. Roger`s Diffusion Theory (2003) and the Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge Framework (Mishra & Koehler, 2006) were used as theoretical guides. Results indicated low proficiency and integration levels. On average, proficiency levels were that of basic use of technology and integration levels indicated that PETE professors were aware of the use of technology but often did not integrate it or teach it to the students. In addition, the level of proficiency predicted integration levels significantly. Computer technologies, pedometers and heart rate monitor were tools most often integrated within PETE programs. PETE teacher educators expressed concerns related to the abundance of technologies as well as the limited availability and accessibility of technologies both at the PETE level and within K-12 schools. The results and literature suggest PETE faculty can enhance technology integration by developing a clear vision of technology integration, creating a technology plan, constructing teaching technology labs, and encouraging faculty-practitioner collaboration. In light of the 2008 national PETE standards, the results suggest that both the national and regional associations as well as PETE administrators should explore various professional development models in the area of both using technology (improving proficiency levels) as well as teaching effective teaching strategies related to technology (enhancing integration levels). Crucially, strategies where technology can assist in the enhancement of the overall quality of PE, in both PETE and K-12 PE, should be the main focus

How to Develop Teachers’ Mathematical Molding Teaching Skills

This study aimed at developing some of the mathematical modelling skills necessary for the student teachers in mathematics education College. Modeling involves making genuine choices, modeling problems have many possible justifiable answers, modeling problems matter to the end-user who needs to understand something or make a decision. modeling presents problem solving as a creative, iterative process. and it is inherently a team sport. To achieve this aim, the following main question was answered: How can we develop the mathematical modelling skills for the student teacher. The sample of the study consisted of 35 students in the fourth-year in the department of mathematics education The researcher used a mathematical modelling scale which consisted of: evaluating test for students' mathematical modelling skills. measuring student’s attitude towards suggested program of mathematical modelling which consisted of four units Using mathematical modelling to solving some problems. Modelling the data. Mathematical modelling and operation research. Mathematical modelling using “Mathematica software Program” . After Applying the designed mathematical modelling, comparing the pretest and the post tests, the outcomes showed that there was lack of the student teachers’ competence in the ' mathematical modelling in the pre- test. In the post- application the test showed that there was improvement in the student teachers' mathematical modelling skills.  The statistical analysis verified the effectiveness of the suggested program in developing student teachers' mathematical modelling skills in the department of mathematics and teaching mathematical modeling in a regular basis in the department is not applicable ,since many of the professors do not prefer a mathematical modeling so there should be  more studies to be conducted in the field of mathematical modelling, focusing on higher-order thinking skills and a continuous developing of student preparation Programs in the Faculty of Education. Keywords: Mathematical Modeling ,Mathematical mode

Student-Centered Learning: Functional Requirements for Integrated Systems to Optimize Learning

The realities of the 21st-century learner require that schools and educators fundamentally change their practice. "Educators must produce college- and career-ready graduates that reflect the future these students will face. And, they must facilitate learning through means that align with the defining attributes of this generation of learners."Today, we know more than ever about how students learn, acknowledging that the process isn't the same for every student and doesn't remain the same for each individual, depending upon maturation and the content being learned. We know that students want to progress at a pace that allows them to master new concepts and skills, to access a variety of resources, to receive timely feedback on their progress, to demonstrate their knowledge in multiple ways and to get direction, support and feedback from—as well as collaborate with—experts, teachers, tutors and other students.The result is a growing demand for student-centered, transformative digital learning using competency education as an underpinning.iNACOL released this paper to illustrate the technical requirements and functionalities that learning management systems need to shift toward student-centered instructional models. This comprehensive framework will help districts and schools determine what systems to use and integrate as they being their journey toward student-centered learning, as well as how systems integration aligns with their organizational vision, educational goals and strategic plans.Educators can use this report to optimize student learning and promote innovation in their own student-centered learning environments. The report will help school leaders understand the complex technologies needed to optimize personalized learning and how to use data and analytics to improve practices, and can assist technology leaders in re-engineering systems to support the key nuances of student-centered learning

Rekindling Embers of the Past with Technologies of Today: Increasing LMS Adoption at an Ontario Secondary School

The motivation behind this organization improvement plan is to reap the benefits of online learning, enhance teaching and learning, and consequentially increase student achievement. This organizational improvement plan addresses a problem of practice in an Indigenous ministry inspected secondary school in Central, Canada. Indigenous people are achieving fewer and lower levels of educational attainment compared to non-Indigenious counterparts and Indigenious students in the community this OIP is situated are likewise at-risk of widening this gap (Statistics Canada, 2011; Deloitte, 2018). To narrow this gap, this school is centered on using technology to pay tribute to the past. Online learning offers organizations a variety of teaching and learning benefits. In pursuit of enhanced outcomes, more and more K-12 organizations are attempting to adopt a Learning Management System; however, instead of experiencing the promised potential of online learning, organizations are receiving frustrations and lackluster results. The leadership approach selected to drive forward change in this endeavour is the adaptive leadership approach complimented with characteristics of situational leadership. The change path model is selected as the framework for leading the process of organizational change. Additionally, the plan, do, study, act model serves as the model for change. Collectively the change path model in tandem with the plan, do, study, act model and former leadership approaches all work together to implement, evaluate, and communicate the change

The e-portfolio in higher education: The case of a line of teaching innovation and complex change management

This work proposes a line of innovation to implement possible uses for the e-portfolio in higher education. We present an initial framework for analysis with attention to three main arguments: the validity of the interest of the e-portfolio for higher education in light of the current challenges posed by the knowledge society; the relevance of complex change management within organisations such as universities; and the identification of critical elements in the relevant literature concerning experiences similar to the case analysed here. The milestones for the line of innovation include six projects and three teacher training courses. Once data had been gathered in the respective assessment phases for each milestone by means of document analysis techniques (e-portfolios, teaching materials, usage statistics), questionnaires, discussion groups, in-depth interviews, and self-assessments (responsible academics, teachers, and students), a global analysis of the whole line was conducted from a complex approach to the problems of teaching change and innovation. A technological, political and cultural reading of innovation reveals emerging problems to reconsider: the attainment of deep learning; the standardisation of academic tutoring; the formation of learning and practice communities; the reconceptualisation of the e-portfolio as a personal learning environment; and the transformation of the university institution as a learning organisation. The premature condition of higher education to deal with the change in the teaching paradigm and the urgency to revisit its innovation policies to overcome it stand out among the critical conclusions of this study.
 Received: 27 April 2021Accepted: 27 October 202

Global Citizenship Education and Heritage Preservation of Host National Students in GCC International Bilingual Schools

International private schools adopt Eurocentric accreditation and curriculum standards that aim at developing global citizens. However, global citizenship education is a problematic construct based on a colonial instrumentalist framework. Contextualized in Type C international schools for GCC host national students, the problem of practice is GIBS’s unmitigated adoption of international GCE accreditation and curriculum standards in a manner that erodes the students’ culture and heritage. Grounded in a transformative worldview, GIBS’s accreditation and curriculum coordinator is in a unique position to lead organizational improvement that restructures school systems in a way that prioritizes GCC host national students’ heritage while empowering teachers to enact equitable instructional change. To address the problem of practice, a framework of change was developed by integrating ISA’s (2017) accreditation framework with Schein’s (2017) model of change management and Cawsey et al.’s (2016) change path model while using transformative, instructional, and servant leadership approaches. Culturally responsive learning’s three dimensions of culturally responsive care, culturally responsive instruction, and curriculum indigenization and decolonization were identified as the key to solving the problem of practice. To monitor and evaluate GIBS’s embedding of CRL into formal school systems, organizational change management takes place at the macro and micro levels using the API Model and PDCA cycle respectively. Synchronous alignment of GIBS’s accreditation phases and strategic improvement cycle with the OIP’s change implementation plan leverages the school’s pre-existing systems to achieve successful transformation