How am I bringing an educationally entrepreneurial spirit into higher education?

The originality of my research lies in clarifying and explaining what it means for me to have an educational entrepreneurial spirit and the values I hold that demonstrate this spirit in an explanation of educational influence in learning. This explanation includes a responsibility for students and acknowledging my values of passion and care (‘love’ of what I do), safety, creativity and excellence within my practice. The unit of appraisal in a living theory methodology is the explanation of the influence in my own learning, the learning of others and in the learning of social formations. The methodological inventiveness, particular to the Living Educational Theory methodology, has afforded me an opportunity to express who I really am; body, mind and spirit. I use multimodal forms to communicate and express of the nature of the knowledge that I am generating. I can now claim that my values have become living standards of judgement. Music plays an integral part of my life and has been a source of enjoyment and inspiration for me over the years. I have shown its importance by embedding it within my doctoral research to express and represent the meaning of emotion. I explain the importance of addressing emotion in education and the merits of reflecting on our experiences in order to become more educationally entrepreneurial, by taking risks, awakening our creativity and bringing ideas into action. Within these safe educational spaces I connect the head with the heart, marry the ‘sense and soul’ (Wilber, 1988) to combine a constructivist, behaviourist, cognitive pedagogical approach that avoids a fragmented learning experience as I inspire others to bring their ideas to fruition

Through the enlightened eye and I – am I bringing creativity and visual literacy into Higher Level Education?

Eisner (1993) explained the need to extend the forms of representation in our understandings of educational research. This special issue of EJOLTs is intended to contribute to the knowledge-base generating a new understanding of the educational influences of educators who are using ICT in e-learning and values-based self-study to enhance their own and their students’ learning. In this introduction I show how the originality of my own contribution is in the relationally dynamic meanings of my value of responsibility for others. My value of responsibility for my students includes acknowledging safety, care, honesty, creativity, enjoyment and excellence. In this introduction I also point to the epistemological significance of clarifying these meanings in an e-Learning c curriculum in Higher Education. In this paper I will discuss what I mean by visual narratives. I will show how my learning in school and Higher Education has shaped my teaching. I will explain the importance of emotions in teaching and learning and how this has influenced my emerging pedagogy. Finally, I will describe the Masters programme at Dublin City University and how I am supporting students on the M.Sc. in Education and Training Management programme. This special issue comprises four papers by students I am supporting. The papers show the values, ethos and spirit of the course I run and the influence of my own research to introduce creativity and visual literacy into Higher Education studies for practicing educators

Learning through action research and technology

In the context of changing or improving social practice, in education in particular, it emerges that teachers’ values and concerns need to be addressed and that this can be done through involving teachers in critical reflective dialogue and developing a more open attitude to educational practice. The focus of this article is on the action research approach to learning of the MSc in Education and Training Management programme (eLearning strand) and in particular, how participants of the programme engage in action research. It integrates improving practice with knowledge creation

Leadership in ICT in Education: our story at Dublin City University

This paper reports on the development of information and communications technology (ICT) in education at Dublin City University (DCU) in the context of evolving government policy in promoting ICT in education over the past two decades. It uses this historical account to trace the evolution at DCU of a distinctive approach to ICT in education and training at Masters Degree level. This approach can be characterised as a shift from imparting knowledge about computing technology and uses to the practical examination and development of innovative approaches to ICT in the educational process, and reflecting on the implications of these creative approaches for professional development in range of workplace contexts

Computational approach to inquiry based science education

The paper sets out the context for the EU Seventh Framework ‘Pathway to Inquiry Based Science Education’ (IBSE) project. After the context has been outlined, the paper is organised into the following sections: 1. National situation with regard to Science Education in Ireland. 2. Inquiry approaches promoted by Pathway. 3. Adopting IBSE into the Science Education Curriculum. 4. ICT in IBSE. 5. Reflection on IBSE

EU action in developments in the curricula and teaching methods appropriate for the future global technical challenges.

In keeping with the IEEE conference theme 'Developments in the curricula and teaching methods appropriate for the future global technical challenges' the purpose of our presentation is to show how we are promoting new development in the curricula and bringing new ideas into action. This paper sets out the context for the EU Seventh Framework ‘Pathway to Inquiry Based Science and Maths Education’ (IBSE) project (2011-2013). It outlines the current situation with regard to Science at Junior Certificate level (13-15) in Ireland and highlights the recent developments with the establishment of a new Junior Cycle. Key findings from an online survey on the use of Virtual learning Environments (VLEs) to support IBSE will be presented. Finally, we will outline the workshops that took place in Ireland and Greece, as part of the Pathway project, and the incorporation of digital technologies into the Inquiry process especially the use of computational models to support teaching and learning

The conversational framework and the ISE “Basketball Shot” video analysis activity

Inspiring Science Education (ISE) (http://www.inspiringscience.eu/) is an EU funded initiative that seeks to further the use of inquiry-based science learning (IBSL) through the medium of ICT in the classroom. The Basketball Shot is a scenario (lesson plan) that involves the use of video capture to help the student investigate the concepts of speed, velocity and acceleration. Using the LoggerPro® programme from Vernier Software and Technology (http://www.vernier.com/products/software/lp/), video is captured of a player throwing a ball towards the basket. The ball does not reach the basket, but instead bounces on the floor and continues its motion. The concept of constant velocity, vectors, acceleration in two dimensions is therefore demonstrated. Moreover, a connection with mathematics is established where the relevancy of linear and quadratic equations are clearly demonstrated in the context of the motion of the ball. The effectiveness of this lesson plan is evaluated through the lens of the “Conversational Framework” underpinned by the five stage inquiry-based learning approach

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

Оптимізація паралельного ітераційного процесу для лінійних систем з розрідженими матрицями

Розглядається один із підходів до побудови передобумовлювача для методу спряжених градієнтів розв'язування СЛАР з розрідженими матрицями нерегулярної структури. Запропоновано та досліджено передобумовлювачі на основі методу паралельних перерізів.Рассматривается один из подходов к построению предобуславливателя для метода сопряженных градиентов решения СЛАУ с разреженными матрицами нерегулярной структуры. Предложены и исследованы предобуславливатели на основе метода параллельных сечений.Considered is one of approaches for construction a preconditioner for method of conjunctive gradients for solution SLAE with sparse matrices of irregular structure. Preconditioners, which are based on method of parallel section, is proposed and investigated

Evidence-based occupational therapy for people with dementia and their families: What clinical practice guidelines tell us and implications for practice

This author accepted manuscript (post print) is made available following a 12 month embargo from date of publication (3 October 2016) in accordance with the publisher copyright policy.Background: The first evidence based Clinical Practice Guidelines and Principles of Care for People with Dementia in Australia have been released. The Guidelines detail a number of important evidence based recommendations for occupational therapists. Aim: The aim of this paper is (1) to provide an overview of Guideline development, and (2) to describe the evidence supporting a recommendation for occupational therapy. Common characteristics of effective occupational therapy programs for people with dementia are described. Methods: Guideline development involved adaptation of existing high quality guidelines developed overseas and 17 systematic reviews to ensure that the most recent high quality evidence was included. One of the systematic reviews involved examining the evidence for interventions to promote independence in people with dementia. Specifically, we looked at the evidence for occupational therapy and its effect on activities of daily living, quality of life and carer impact. Results: A total of 109 recommendations are included in the Guidelines. Occupational therapy was found to significantly increase independence in activities of daily living and improve quality of life. Effective occupational therapy programs involve: environmental assessment, problem solving strategies, carer education and interactive carer skills training. Conclusion: Occupational therapists working with people with dementia in community settings should ensure that their time is spent on those aspects of intervention that are shown to be effective