Adopting a pluralistic view of academics' informal learning that draws on Habermas (1987), this article suggests that a great deal of academic learning results from tensions and incompatibilities between individual interests and those of employing institutions increasingly resonant with the ideology of New Public Management (NPM), with its…

Increasingly, university and employer discourse identify a need for graduates to have an intellectual and global "mind-set" beyond disciplinary competencies and national boundaries. Universities aiming to educate global citizens show limited outcomes. Global citizen research has investigated the mobility experience, yet limited attention…

Online learning has grown considerably in recent years. However attrition rates from online courses indicate that not all learners are successful in such settings, and various factors have been identified as crucial to learner persistence. Research evidence suggests that motivation is one such factor. This study builds on previous studies by using…

Educators in Malawi and Zambia have always been concerned with their student's abilities to become analytical, logical and proficient readers of texts. This has been due to the fear that there is an increased overemphasis on knowledge of the fundamental literacy skills and other basics at the expense of critical thinking. This scenario has…

This volume addresses the role of communicative interaction in driving various dimensions of second language development from the perspective of Vygotskian sociocultural psychology. Emphasizing the dialectical relationship between the external-social world and individual mental functioning, the chapters delve into a wide range of topics…

The present study investigated the developmental interrelationships between play, gesture use and spoken language development in children aged 18-31 months. The children completed two tasks: (i) a structured measure of pretend (or "symbolic") play and (ii) a measure of vocabulary knowledge in which children have been shown to gesture.…

Learning using mobile devices also known as mLearning is the current buzz word in the present debates over the use of technology in education. Although mLearning has a high prospect for future education, it is yet to be incorporated widely in mainstream formal education. The lack of a contemporary theory of learning and model for the mobile era…

This paper focuses on the potential role of reflection and double loop learning in policy analysis and shared community learning. The discussion is illustrated by the case of HS2, a proposed high-speed railway project in England. It is noted that the foundation of social learning models is a rejection of traditional reliance on technologies or…

Outcome based or competency based education (OBE) is so firmly established in undergraduate medical education that it might not seem necessary to ask why it was included in recommendations for the future, like the Flexner centenary report. Uncritical acceptance may not, however, deliver its greatest benefits. Our aim was to explore the…

College students often find general chemistry to be a very challenging rite of passage on their way to degrees in various science, technology, and mathematics disciplines. As teachers, we make efforts to simultaneously patch gaps in students' prior knowledge and instill valuable learning strategies and sound study habits. In this paper, we…

Secondary physical education (PE) has become a popular area of inquiry because students are not meeting overarching goals of PE programs, are less motivated, and demonstrate negative affect while in class. As such, teachers and researchers are starting to examine pedagogical approaches that support student motivation as a means to alleviate some…

The Mathematical and Theoretical Biology Institute (MTBI) is a successful summer research experience for undergraduates, with a strong record of mentoring Ph.D. graduates, particularly, underrepresented minority students. However, the MTBI program was designed for education in research, not for research in education, and the mechanisms of the…

Background: Sports coaching is largely a social activity where engagement with athletes and support staff can enhance the experiences for all involved. This paper examines how high performance football coaches develop knowledge through their interactions with others within a social learning theory framework. Purpose: The key purpose of this study…

This article explores the views of professionals from the Centre for Assistance and Support to Initiatives, Organisations, and Professionals in Early Childhood (CASIOPE) and its member organizations on how reflective practice in early childhood professional learning is understood, put into practice, and evaluated. Findings from this case study…

In recent years, literacy educators have increasingly recognised the importance of addressing a broader range of texts in the classroom. This article raises some critical concerns about a particular approach to this issue that has been widely promoted in recent years-- the concept of "multimodality". Multimodality theory offers a broadly…