Although several studies have examined how quality teaching and learning is defined and operationalised in the global North, there is a paucity of such studies in developing country contexts. Using Zimbabwe as a case study, the research applies Sen's idea of deliberative democracy to a multi-stakeholder evaluation of policy formulation and…

In this paper, collaborative autoethnography is used to explore the authors' involvement as participants in and facilitator of an academic development programme that took place in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq. Recognising the significant differences in cultural origin between the Iraqi participants and its British facilitator, the authors share…

Many studies indicate that knowledge and knowledge production are the main predictors of social development, welfare and the ability to face the future with confidence. It could be argued that knowledge production is mainly carried out by universities. This study compares 1266 scientific research projects (SRPs) completed by faculties of education…

Learning has been described by two conceptual metaphors: as individual acquisition of knowledge ("acquisition metaphor"), and as an enculturation into a subject community ("participation metaphor"). On the other hand, academics' conceptions of teaching are usually reported to vary between teacher and student orientation. In…

Research examining the contexts that influence the use of learner-centered assessment (LCA) practices in undergraduate courses has not kept pace with those focusing on teaching practices. Such research is needed given that conceptualizations of effective pedagogy generally include both teaching and assessment. The authors examined a range of…

The doctorate is an educative process for students but what is its impact on supervisors' learning about the practice of doctoral supervision? Internationally, there is an increased emphasis on formal training, monitoring and accountability of doctoral supervisors. Yet there is a striking silence about what doctoral supervisors learn through…

One of the challenges of research into social practice is finding a way to take both the structural aspects of the social contexts and individual agency into account. This article describes the use of Bourdieu's social practice theory, together with Lave and Wenger's situated learning theory, to understand how the learning of practice takes place…

It has been claimed that one of the overriding purposes of the scholarship of teaching movement is to make more visible what teachers do to make learning happen. The authors of this article are critical of the literature on the scholarship of teaching for not having made more progress towards this aim. They support these assertions through…

Four theories of teaching are presented based on faculty definitions of teaching: knowledge transfer; shaping students to a predetermined mold; exploratory; and developmental. These theories are related to student attitudes about learning and are offered as a means of resolving misunderstandings among teachers and between teachers and students.…

Empirical studies of the connection between humor and learning indicate that humor can increase student attention and interest. Presentation of humorous material involves skills that can be learned through practice, and faculty development programs for teachers to acquire these skills should be made available. (MSE)