Professionalising teachers in guiding reflection

The contemporary knowledge society of the 21st century requires students, among other things, to have the ability to think analytically and reflectively. Research into the disappearance of technical employees from the technical labor market also shows it is important to guide students in their professional identity development, in which reflection of students is crucial. Various studies show however that educational programs and teachers experience difficulty with the effective use of reflection in education. In the project ‘Strengthening reflection in technical higher education programs’, six technical higher professional education programs of two Dutch higher education institutes are working on the improvement of reflection in their programs. Teachers from these teams are also trained in guiding and assessing reflection activities of students. In this current research, the following research questions will be answered: 1. How do teachers guide students during reflection activities or conversations? 2. How do teachers assess students’ reflection activities? 3. Does the offered training contribute to an increase in skills of teachers with regard to guiding reflection activities of students? A selection of teachers of the participating teams will be interviewed before and after the training. To assess teachers pedagogical and didactical knowledge and skills, video vignette interviews are used. Vignettes were designed to provide teachers with multiple authentic situations that are prototypical in their teaching context and which are depicted in video captions. Interview protocols were used to elicit teaching interventions and teachers’ rationales and thoughts behind these interventions in the depicted situations

Reflection in technical higher education: student perceptions

The project 'Strengthening reflection in technical higher education programs' is a response to the need for well-trained reflective science and engineering professionals and the subsequent question of teachers about how reflection can be designed and embedded in a meaningful way, especially in technical study programs. Within this project, eight technical education teams from two Dutch universities of applied sciences are working on improving the use of reflection in their curriculum. Among other things, teachers are professionalized in their guidance skills, to improve the guidance of reflective activities of their students. One of the research activities within the project involved a questionnaire to gain insight into: 1) the extent to which engineering students have an inclination and need for selfreflection, 2) the reflection level that engineering students reach according to their own judgement, and 3) how engineering students value (guidance of) current reflection activities in their study program. In the short (concept) paper we will address some main findings of this questionnaire based on data of 843 first- to fourth-year students from eight technical study programs. Amongst others, results indicate - contrary to some other research findings - that engineering students acknowledge the importance of being able to reflect as a future professional. However, they seem relatively less satisfied with currently provided guidance regarding reflection in their study programs. Also, most often employed reflection activities (i.e., reflection reports) are generally perceived least useful. Results give further direction to optimize activities and teacher guidance regarding reflection within higher (technical) education programs

Social connectedness in online and blended-learning communities

Increasing flexibilisation and personalisation of education creates challenges in terms of students’ social connectedness with each other, with the programme and with lecturers. For this reason, a team of researchers and professors from four universities of applied sciences in the Netherlands carried out research into how a sense of community can be created in learning communities. On the basis of a literature review and design-oriented research, we conducted experiments aimed at fostering social connectedness in eight learning communities. These learning communities were in the domains of Nursing, Healthcare and Welfare Teacher Training, Management in Care, Teacher Training, and Nutrition and Dietetics (part-time, full-time and dual programme variants). The above research resulted in this Social connectedness in Online and Blended Learning Communities guide, which consists of two parts. Part one outlines the seven design principles (focused on content, attitude and preconditions) which lecturers can work with in their role as facilitator. The lecturer can apply these design principles to promote social connectedness in online and blended learning communities, including when flexible student paths are involved. These design principles are supported by practical IT tools and working methods and are widely applicable. The design principles involved are: A. Getting to know each other B. Trust and cooperation C. Shared and common goals D. Willingness to participate E. Programme and instruction strategies F. Sharing information and knowledge G. Resources and preconditions. Part 2 consists of a methodological justification and substantiation of the research underpinning the guide as well as a description of the results and ends with a conclusion, discussion and recommendations for further research. The experiments showed that learning communities that were newly established or had changed in composition after some time mainly opted for design principles A. Getting to know each other and B. Trust and cooperation. Learning communities that had been active for a longer period chose mainly C. Shared and common goals. Further longitudinal and other research is needed to determine to what extent the design principles and the role of the facilitators can be applied in other domains (such as technology, economics, etc.)

Bouwstenen voor SLB 2.0: Een toekomstbestendig ontwerp

Een praktisch artikel over het ontwerp van SLB 2.0: bouwstenen voor een nieuwe, toekomstbestendige vorm van studieloopbaanbegeleiding. Door nieuwe onderwijsvormen neemt ook de vraag naar een nieuw ontwerp voor studieloopbaanbe-geleiding (SLB) toe. Dit artikel beschrijft de eerste inzichten voor ‘SLB 2.0’, waarin ontwerpcriteria worden geformuleerd voor een toekomstbestendige en meer geïntegreerde vorm van SLB

Succesfactoren voor een verbeteraanpak gericht op reflectie – een pilotstudie bij drie technische opleidingen van Saxion

Studie naar succesfactoren binnen drie pilot gericht op het verbeteren van reflectie binnen technische hbo opleidingen.  &nbsp

A matching activity when entering higher education: ongoing guidance for the students or efficiency instrument for the school?

In order to lower dropout rates and stimulate student success in higher education, the Dutch government implemented a new law demanding that every higher education institute offer a matching activity to applying students. This article evaluates how students and teachers experience this matching activity. Data were collected in a Dutch university of applied sciences through questionnaire (students: n = 1711, teachers: n = 52) and interview research (students: n = 136, teachers, n = 36). Results provide insights into useful and improvable aspects of the matching procedure. It also reveals a tension related to a ‘conflicting perspective’: the matching activity can be used as a selection-oriented instrument or as a guidance instrument, which leads to different perceptions on the effectiveness of the instrument

Kwaliteit van Reflectieprocessen van Studenten en SLB Programma’s Binnen Saxion

Om meer inzicht te krijgen in de kwaliteit van reflectieprocessen binnen studieloopbaanbegeleiding (SLB) is onderzocht hoe studenten reflecteren en hoe de leeromgeving van SLB daaraan kan bijdragen. Conclusie is dat binnen Saxion, de reflectiecyclus beter ingezet kan worden. Het onderzoek levert verschillende ontwerpcriteria voor het verbeteren van reflectie binnen SLB

Kenmerken van een succesvolle studieloopbaanbegeleidingspraktijk in het middelbaar beroepsonderwijs.

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