This paper reports on the views of school and college students in the 14-18 age range on mathematics and its applications. The findings relate to the perceived relevance of mathematics and to choices for sixth form study.

The aim of this research was to explore why workers in health and social services embarked on a Certificate in Community Care Practice and the extent to which they felt knowledge learnt related to their every-day work practice. The objective was to indicate how useful more academic courses are for health and social care staff, and to find out the…

This article explores the challenges presented in using the scholarship of teaching as a model of teaching excellence when devising an appropriate approach to reward. It argues that the complexity of staff motivation has to be addressed by a critical evaluation of institutions' commitment to the scholarship of teaching. An expectancy model of…

This study examined the efficacy of a couple-focused group intervention on psychological adaptation of women with early stage breast cancer and evaluated whether perceived partner unsupportive behavior or patient functional impairment moderated intervention effects. Two hundred thirty-eight women were randomly assigned to receive either 6 sessions…

The vast majority of youth sport programs in the United States relies primarily on parent volunteers to serve as coaches. Unfortunately, most of these volunteer coaches have not received formal training to prepare them adequately for the role of youth sport coach. To exacerbate the issue, according to the popular media, parents and other adults…

For professional standards for language teachers to be valid they need to reflect what is valued by language teachers in their own professional practice. Standards need to reflect "current effective professional practice." In order to determine how the profession itself understands what characterises good language teaching and what "accomplished…

In 1999, on the eve of rationalisation of South African higher education, J. M. Coetzee published a book entitled "Disgrace". In this publication he narrates the tale of a Classics and Modern Languages professor transformed into an adjunct professor of Communications, a marketable identity, as a consequence of rationalisation. Coetzee,…

In a project funded by the AHRB, researchers at the University of Sheffield used a combination of quantitative and qualitative research methods to examine the perceived contemporary relevance of archives, libraries and museums. The research sought to discern how far the British people value access to these established repositories of public…

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to report on a research project that identified organisational critical success factors (CSFs) for e-learning implementation in higher education (HE). These CSFs can be used as a theoretical foundation upon which to base decision-making and strategic thinking about e-learning. Design/methodology/approach: The…

Universities face the challenge of being aware of and responsive to continuous, rapid technological change as it affects the institutional mission. To address this challenge, the University of Washington conducted an institution-wide assessment of educational technology. The purpose of this research was to inform the design of technical tools and…

In a multi-year study of a group of learners engaged in online graduate study, I explored the development of learners' sense of community using a variety of data-gathering instruments. An initial questionnaire established learners' pre-program perceptions of online learning and the notion of community; subsequent questionnaires, interviews, and a…

Educational leadership has been seen by many as one of the most important factors in school improvement and effectiveness and is about providing a culture within which teaching and learning will prosper. The training of leaders has therefore become of paramount importance. There is a wealth of training in the UK for teachers in leadership roles,…

Recruiting and retaining qualified teachers for schools in rural communities is both an issue and a problem in many countries. The very nature of rural communities and perceptions of teaching in such environments tend to discourage qualified experienced and new teachers from taking appointments there. Education jurisdictions, therefore, use…

This exploratory study examined communications between designers and child development professionals during the preschool design process. Qualitative interviews and focus groups were conducted to investigate the need for communication support between child development professionals, parents, and design professionals (n = 20) during the process of…

This study explores the phenomenon of reflective learning through weblogging among pre-service teachers enrolled in an undergraduate technology course. Teacher trainees used weblogs to record their experiences in learning to use technology in teaching and learning. Although weblogging has emerged as a new form of mainstream communication among…