Throughout the world, rapid political and economic change has applied enormous pressure on educators addressing leadership and accountability measures to improve instructional practices and student performance. Decentralisation of central authority regarding school site-based decision-making has drastically changed the educational environment in…

In a world dominated by change and transformation, this article explores instructional technology connections to and applications of transformative learning. The author provides an overview of the theory of transformative learning, which embraces the hallmarks of 21st century learning. Rather than focusing solely on how to use technology,…

Transformative educators such as Thomas Berry, Brian Swimme, and Edmund O'Sullivan believe that the time has come for a shift away from the dominant Western educational ideology that focuses on achievement, individualism, and material success. They propose that education must become more than a system of banking information and standardized…

This article is an autoenthnographic account of the yearlong journey of two undergraduates and their instructor when the traditional classroom structures associated with the banking concept of education were altered in an upper division class and follow-on research experiences. These changes focused on foregrounding students' experiences of the…

This paper dates back to 2009 (it was first presented at the CRLL Conference at Stirling University) and deals with the advances in lifelong learning introduced by an ERASMUS LLP-IP named Interdisciplinary Course of Intercultural Competences (ICIC). The programme, that involves academic and non-academic institutions concerned with higher education…

The nature and extent of the current ecological crisis raises the question: Does social work have a contribution to make in addressing the social and environmental changes required if we are to move toward a sustainable future? Given the links between the traditional concerns of social work and the emerging concerns of environmental and ecological…

The author discuses transformative learning as a means to explore the centrality of experiences, provide critical reflection, and a rational discourse to examine a set of conditions which need to be fulfilled to foster the application of the transformative learning process for professors and the students at the University of Prishtina. The author…

Emerging teachers undergoing initial teacher education programmes and given the opportunity to engage in a teaching placement in special provisions settings consistently report that they find the experience "transformative." Over eight years, informal and often unprompted data emerged which "insisted" upon reporting and suggested that the special…

In terms of teacher quality, Steele believes the best teachers have reached a stage she terms inspired, and that teachers move progressively through the stages of unaware, aware, and capable until the most reflective teachers finally reach the inspired level. Inspired teachers have a wide repertoire of teaching and class management techniques and…

This article presents the author's keynote address delivered at the "North Eastern Ontario Education Network 2011 Research Carousel: Evidence in the Classroom--Affecting Student Achievement at the Grassroots Level." In this address, the author first discusses teachers and learning in the literature on adult and professional learning.…

Most teachers look back on their first year (or years) of teaching with humility, many with some regret. The author stresses that teachers are always learners, especially so in their first years. At the beginning of each year, they start over again with new students. A learning teacher takes risks and makes mistakes but derives new information,…

In developing the Advanced Certificate in Teaching (ACT) as a professional qualification for continuing teacher education for early schooling at the University of KwaZulu-Natal we asked the following: "What are the enabling roles foundation phase teachers need to play in order to reclaim their space as agents who significantly influence their…

In this article, the author argues that technology use in education has focused on combating instructional problems and inefficiencies. While technology use for such purposes is viable and important, the author proposes that practitioners and researchers in this field utilize emerging technologies as a means to provide opportunities for personally…

Mentoring has been defined in many different ways. Traditionally, mentoring is seen as a relationship between an older, more experienced mentor and a younger, less experienced protege for the purpose of helping and developing the protege's career. Zachary's (2005) description best fits the process discussed in this article: "Mentoring is best…

This paper is threefold. It is grounded in the philosophical work of two educational theorists: John Dewey and our contemporary Nel Noddings. It also brings into the conversation the ancient system of Tarot, arguing that its pictorial symbolism embodies intellectual, moral, and spiritual "lessons" derived from collective human experiences across…