Qualitative Differences in Approaches to Teaching, Teacher Satisfaction and Communities of Practice in Art, Design and Communication Courses

The aims of this study were to investigate how approaches to teaching relate to the concept of communities of practice and to monitor teacher satisfaction as a function of approach to teaching. Following interviews with art, design and communication teachers, a slightly revised ATI, with the inclusion of teacher satisfaction and communities of practice items, was distributed to teachers in the UK, USA and Australia. 130 returned questionnaires were analysed. The results show; (a) that the ATI has validity in design-related areas, (b) that teacher satisfaction is related strongly and positively to student-focused approaches to teaching, and (c) that all teachers aim to develop students‟ skills, but those with a student-focused approach are more likely to also focus on the practice and the real world problems of the profession. The positive correlations between an emphasis on development for the professions and a student-focused approach to teaching, and teacher satisfaction and a student-focused approach to teaching, offer insight for those involved in the further development of teaching practice

Design and development of a theory-informed peer-led falls prevention education programme to translate evidence into practice: A systematic approach

Peer-led education has been shown to be an effective approach for raising community-dwelling older adults’ beliefs, knowledge and intention to engage in falls prevention strategies in a recent intervention trial. This article outlines the design and development of the intervention, which was a peer-led falls prevention education programme designed to promote older adult’s motivation to change their behaviour in the area of falls prevention. The elements of the programme that contributed to its efficacy are also described. The programme was designed using a four-step approach and was based on the constructs of a theoretical framework (the COM-B model). Feedback from older adults was also incorporated into the programme development. Programme components developed were a workshop to train older adult peer educators to deliver falls prevention education, a one-hour peer-led falls prevention presentation, and supporting resources to aid programme delivery. A questionnaire measuring older adults’ responses to the presentation was concurrently developed and pilot-tested prior to implementation of the education programme. Finally, resources to monitor and evaluate fidelity at five points in the programme were developed. It was found that seeking older adult consumer involvement, and adopting a theoretical framework-driven approach contributes to effective design and delivery of falls prevention education programmes. This ensured that the programme was acceptable to older adults, feasible to deliver and allowed robust measurement of the effect of the education programme on important behavioural change components

Student teachers’ thinking about learning to teach: a study of student teachers of mathematics and science at the end of their initial training

publication-status: Publishedtypes: ArticleRecent dominant models of student teacher learning include apprenticeship and reflective practice, but these are now being challenged, extended and enriched by broader socio-cultural models of learning. These new models direct attention to how learning is shaped by an interplay between the characteristics of the student teachers, their lecturers and their teacher mentors, and the characteristics of the university, schools and societal contexts within which these students, lecturers and mentors work. Socio-cultural theories also reveal the importance of how learning is transferred and transformed as the student teacher moves between different contexts (eg between university and school, or between one school and another). This paper explores the nature of student teachers’ thinking at the end of their initial teacher education (ITE) programme, and questions how the student teachers learnt to think about teaching in these ways – in particular what they felt they learnt in the university and school contexts, and how they dealt with differences between the ideas which were valued in those different contexts. Data were collected by questionnaire from a volunteer sample of student teachers of science and mathematics close to the end of their ITE course. Questions generally called for free response answers which were transcribed, and then coded in a grounded fashion. Analysis was strongly influenced by a framework of ideas derived from our synthesis of socio-cultural theories of learning. From the insights gained we develop a theoretical understanding of the emerging aspects of student teachers’ thinking and learning which we summarise under the term “progressive filtering”. We also argue that Activity Theory is of relevance to student teachers’ learning and we illustrate how this theoretical framework offers additional insights that could enable ITE to address issues which have remained problematic for some time

The Communication Conundrum Exercise: Pedagogy for Project-Based Learning

Many professionals spend a significant amount of their time managing and supporting project teams. To help students learn how to work in this environment, we present the Communication Conundrum Exercise (CCE). The CCE challenges students to solve a symbol-identification problem with tension from hierarchical controls and narrowly defined rules for communication. Students assume roles that correspond to the major roles found on real-life hybrid project teams, and work with the triple constraint triangle common in project management. We provide the rationale for the CCE and the method and results of our analyses from 126 management students in 26 groups, and provide the details of exercise setup, execution, and debrief. The CCE delivers a high-energy, high-impact experience for students on the nature of hybrid project teams and their communication challenges

Improving the learning of newly qualified teachers in the induction year.

notes: Published online 14 Dec 2010publication-status: Publishedtypes: ArticleNewly qualified teachers of mathematics and science are a precious resource and it important that they are provided with appropriate support and challenge during their first year in post. This study examines the developing thinking and practice of a group of such teachers in England, and the influence of their mentors within the workplace context of the school. We argue that thinking and practice is restricted by the concern to ‘fit in’; by the belief that behaviour management should be addressed before teaching can be developed; and by a lack of attention to the development of pedagogical thinking. We conclude that there is a need to change the beliefs and practices of induction mentors and develop their skills in discussing pedagogical ideas. This is most likely to be achieved within a school-wide culture of continuing professional learning