This article examines an innovation in teaching-learning and assessment processes through the use of a platform called the Competency Assessment Tool (CAT). It allows for the tracking of student blogs with the objective of improving self-reflective processes and providing feedback. The experiment was carried out in six universities in Catalonia,…

Within the Saxion Universities in the Netherlands, a profile of the "Reflective Professional" comprises a number of competencies that the honours programmes are designed to develop and support. This article describes the process of developing these competencies. The process involves three loops of learning, characterized by three sets of…

The performance-driven project management program examined in this article was funded to support a variety of technical assistance efforts designed to strengthen the performance of small and medium enterprises in the Turkish Cypriot community in Cyprus. The customized program combined progressive workshops with hands-on and distance coaching by…

All stake holders in competency based teacher training systems share an interest in the consistency of assessment outcomes and practice. Assessment data from more than 200 trainees participating in Initial Teacher Training/Education (ITT/E) programmes and partnerships at a Higher Education (HE) provider in the Northwest of England were analysed…

In an attempt to identify needed mental health skills, many professional organizations have or are in the process of establishing core competency standards for their professions. The AAMFT identified 128 core competencies for the independent practice of MFT. The aim of this study was to learn the opinions of AAMFT Approved Supervisors as to how…

Teachers of English experience significant pressure in attempting to meet the requirements of the national examination system, while also seeking to uphold their own ideological and philosophical perspectives on the value of poetry. Drawing on a mixed method study into the teaching of poetry at post-primary level in Ireland conducted between 2007…

Nowadays, the world requires skilled specialists in all spheres of life. In turn, the effectiveness of their education depends on both their will and the teacher's professionalism. This study investigates the advantages of the implementation of information technologies and the possible associated difficulties. It was found that in order to achieve…

Introducing research in undergraduate biology studies may contribute to creating research vocations and generate the idea that science may influence all aspects of common life. However, laboratory practices are too often disconnected from current investigations and rarely address real-life questions that are really interesting for students.…

The leadership institute, targeting new and aspiring county Extension directors, was completely revised to reflect face-to-face and online constructivist learning theory and practice. New co-learning and engagement methods were incorporated, and all facilitators and teachers/presenters were trained and coached to use the new methods and…

Southern New Hampshire University's (SNHU) "College for America" (CfA) made history in April 2013 when it became the first degree program to be approved under the "direct assessment of learning" provisions in Title IV. For the first time, federal financial aid can pay for what students actually learn, not how long they sat in a…

A striking convergence of research, documentation, commentary, and policy in the past five years strongly suggests that an almost exclusive focus on academic knowledge and skills is an incomplete solution. Additional behaviors, skills, and mindsets--sometimes called metacognitive skills or 21st-century skills--are just as necessary for academic…

This paper outlines a case study of an assessment development process which contrasts with more recent "top-down" trends in assessment which tend to leave assessment development processes opaque to users. This paper describes the processes of a collaborative, multi-agency project which set out to develop an assessment framework which…

Research indicates that students underachieve in college settings, in spite of intellect and other abilities. This research tested the likelihood of self-efficacy for learning, conscientiousness, impulsivity, procrastination and temporal discounting to predict academic achievement in an online competency-based university. Undergraduate students (N…

The instrumental case study reported here adds to the literature on authentic assessment by illuminating how one secondary agricultural education instructor employed authentic assessment in the agricultural mechanics laboratory. The study was underpinned by the constructivist notion of authentic learning and assessment, or allowing students to…

The high unemployment rate in South Africa compels potential entrepreneurs to start their own businesses in order to survive. Often this is with little or no formal training or education in entrepreneurship. Since problem recognition and problem-solving are amongst the most crucial competencies required for a successful entrepreneurial career,…