The purpose of this study was to use the inquiry process to engage fifth grade students in a community-based project that would educate them about what it means to be a…
Abstract
The purpose of this study was to use the inquiry process to engage fifth grade students in a community-based project that would educate them about what it means to be a civic-minded citizen. While the unique nature of any community-based project prevents exact replication of the project in another context, the inquiry process itself and the overall positive results are worthy of consideration by other teachers and teacher educators who hope to develop civic-minded citizens in the intermediate grades. This article will describe the context in which the project was implemented, the inquiry process that unfolded in one fifth grade classroom, and the lessons that were learned by all involved. The project suggests that if students are to become active citizens for the future, then they must be guided through discussion, research, and service learning experiences. Most importantly, this project seems to indicate that students may become more civic-minded when they are provided with authentic opportunities to participate in meaningful citizenship activities within their own communities.
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Anna Saba, Anna Moles and Lynn J. Frewer
Public opinion regarding the application and development of genetic engineering is likely to be an important factor influencing the future development of the technology, and its…
Abstract
Public opinion regarding the application and development of genetic engineering is likely to be an important factor influencing the future development of the technology, and its subsequent application within the commercial sector. Recent studies have been carried out which have assessed public attitudes to biotechnology, and in particular genetic engineering, but there is little empirical work to understand cross‐cultural differences in attitudes, other than that using an opinion poll methodology, particularly in a cross‐cultural context. This study seeks to compare public concerns assessed by a combination of qualitative and quantitative analysis in the UK and Italy. The results show that, despite the fact that Italians used a poorer vocabulary to describe their concerns compared to the British respondents, both samples clustered the applications in a similar way. Perceptions of need and benefit were important in both Italy and the UK as determinants of acceptance of particular applications. However, while negative constructs in Italy were predominantly focused on ethical issues, respondents in the UK focused on both risk‐related issues and ethical considerations; nevertheless, the pattern of concern regarding different applications were similar in both countries.
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In educational settings, intersectional factors such as neurodiversity, structural inequalities and social isolation have resulted in additional complexity in meeting young…
Abstract
In educational settings, intersectional factors such as neurodiversity, structural inequalities and social isolation have resulted in additional complexity in meeting young people’s mental health needs. The specific phenomenon of voice-hearing can be linked to these complexities and stigma has been shown to further marginalise young people following disclosure. Educational staff report a lack of confidence and specialist training in this area. This chapter outlines the current understanding around the experience of voice-hearing and identifies examples of good practice by considering the lived experiences of individuals that have made a disclosure of this nature in school. Barriers to disclosure and what was helpful about the experience are discussed. Developing a trauma-informed ethos and compassion-focussed principles are highlighted as whole-setting approaches to support and benefit both young people with these presentations and education staff. Recommendations of relevant organisations and training initiatives in schools are provided with guidance on developing and implementing best practices.
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Sara Willermark and Anna Sigridur Islind
This study aims to explore virtual leadership work within educational settings in the light of social disruption. In 2020, a global pandemic changed the way we work. For school…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to explore virtual leadership work within educational settings in the light of social disruption. In 2020, a global pandemic changed the way we work. For school leaders, that involved running a virtual school overnight. Although there is a stream of research that explores leadership in solely virtual communities, there is a gap in the literature regarding practices that transition from analog to virtual practices and the changes in leadership in those types of work practices.
Design/methodology/approach
The data gathering method constitutes a questionnaire to explore school leaders’ experiences of virtual work and virtual leadership in light of social disruption. One hundred and five Swedish school leaders answered the questionnaire covering both fixed and open questions.
Findings
The results show that school leaders’ general experiences of transition to virtual school have worked relatively well. We show how the work changes and shift the focus in the virtual workplace.
Originality/value
The author’s contributions include theorizing about leadership affordances in virtual schools and providing implications for practice. The authors summarize our main contribution in five affordances that characterize virtual leadership, including a focus on core activities, trust-based government, 1:1 communication with staff, structure and clarity and active outreach activities. The results could be interesting for understanding the radical digitalization of leadership in the digital workplace.
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The aim of this paper is to advance a critical pedagogical framework, combining critical pedagogy, design research, architectural theory and experiential learning. It addresses…
Abstract
Purpose
The aim of this paper is to advance a critical pedagogical framework, combining critical pedagogy, design research, architectural theory and experiential learning. It addresses global challenges at the intersection between urban peripheries and the Anthropocene – the centre of the climate crisis is a spatial crisis – preparing students as engaged architect citizens capable of reshaping collective life.
Design/methodology/approach
The framework is examined through a case study of the author’s final year architectural theory module, “The Periphery as a Critical Project”, elucidating its theoretical underpinning and presenting a visual analysis of student projects. Methods include reflective module design, fieldwork, close-reading of literature across disciplines, design research, experiential learning strategies and an inventive “theorypractice”.
Findings
The research demonstrates that theorypractice articulates a transformative and experiential learning experience, articulating architectural education as a site for critical engagement with urgent challenges. The approach equips students with critical thinking and making skills, cultivates a commitment to civic responsibility and encourages alternative visions for the Anthropocene. The paper concludes with concepts and practices to define an emerging architectural pedagogy for the Anthropocene.
Practical implications
The research provides guidance for educators in architecture, aligning with RIBA reforms emphasising “history, theories, methodologies” and experiential learning in allied fields such as urban studies, environmental planning and social policy, focused on climate and social resilience, spatial justice and critical literacy. More broadly it aims at preparing engaged architect citizens who can work on and with the world.
Originality/value
This paper contributes an original framework and novel methodology, bringing together theoretical and design research from architecture, urban studies, design, critical pedagogy and environmental humanities to expand experiential learning within architectural theory, an underexplored position. It addresses urgent issues related to urban peripheries, climate change, and how we educate future architects in times of crisis, offering a model for allied fields facing similar societal challenges.
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Federico Messina, Anna Saba, Aida Turrini, Monique Raats, Margaret Lumbers and Food in Later Life Team
The aim of this study is to investigate older people's perceptions, across eight European countries (the UK, Denmark, Germany, Poland, Portugal, Spain, Sweden and Italy), towards…
Abstract
Purpose
The aim of this study is to investigate older people's perceptions, across eight European countries (the UK, Denmark, Germany, Poland, Portugal, Spain, Sweden and Italy), towards functional foods.
Design/methodology/approach
The repertory grid method was used to elicit reasons underlying preferences of five yoghurts with different functional properties and two conventional ones.
Findings
Familiarity was the key driver in products' separation. For the Italian case, as well as the Spanish, Portuguese, Danish and Swedish the first principal axis could be interpreted as novel‐common axis, whilst it was not in the UK, Germany and Poland.
Research limitations/implications
Behavioural intention to buy functional yoghurts was more strongly predicted and moderated by single item perceived need (PN) than single item affective and/or cognitive attitude (AA, CA), even though PN, AA and CA could be consistently assessed within the same latent measure (in all countries but Denmark). Nevertheless, beliefs/attitudes towards a novel category of products such as functional foods may be reasonably keeping moving.
Originality/value
In this study, preference instructions pertaining to beneficial and imagery attributes, revealed idiosyncratic properties associated with functional yoghurts across eight European samples of older people.
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Lyndsay M.C. Hayhurst, Holly Thorpe and Megan Chawansky
Anna P.M. Tappel, Cindy Louise Poortman, Kim Schildkamp and Adrie J. Visscher
Schools struggle with sustaining their educational innovations (Cohen and Mehta, 2017; Askell-Williams and Koh, 2020) and may benefit from concrete and practical guidance…
Abstract
Purpose
Schools struggle with sustaining their educational innovations (Cohen and Mehta, 2017; Askell-Williams and Koh, 2020) and may benefit from concrete and practical guidance (Askell-Williams and Koh, 2020). A dialogue between staff within schools can be a way to promote self-evaluation regarding the innovation. Therefore, a self-evaluation tool for educators was developed: The Sustainability Meter (TSM). The purpose of the tool is to gain insight into the different perspectives and experiences of stakeholders within the school organization regarding the innovation, as a basis for improvement-directed actions to promote sustainable educational innovation.
Design/methodology/approach
In this small-scale study, the authors explored conceptual and instrumental use of the Sustainability Meter in two phases, and also examined user satisfaction. In phase 1, the tool was used under the guidance of the researcher (first author), who supported the chairs in taking steps before the group dialogue took place, and who then guided the dialogue itself as a moderator. In phase 2, work with TSM was organized independently by the schools themselves, supported by the manual. Data were collected in the form of observations of the dialogue, group interviews and documents generated by the participants.
Findings
In terms of conceptual use, in general, participants gained better understanding of each other's perspectives and backgrounds with regard to the (sustainability of the) innovation. The dialogue also led to insights into challenges for growth toward sustainable innovation. For instrumental use, the results of the analysis were incorporated in a plan of action in the majority of the participants' schools. In terms of user satisfaction, participants in all groups perceived TSM as an enjoyable support for high-quality dialogue. This research provides some indications that the tool might lead to sustainable educational innovations.
Originality/value
Next to developing an action plan based on the results of the school, the tool also appeared to help breaking up the process in smaller, clearer and more feasible improvement-directed actions. The results of this study further show that the authors could distinguish between three types of instrumental use. The improvement-directed actions in this research often were a combination of this three types: initial solutions, short-term and longer-term measures. This research provides some indications that the tool might lead to sustainable educational innovations.