Government schools in Abu Dhabi, as part of widescale educational reforms undertaken in the whole of the United Arab Emirates (UAE), have undergone significant change since 2007 across cycles and across subjects including science. Science had been taught historically in the UAE using fairly traditional "chalk and talk", teacher-centered…

Learning experience has been one of the most debated aspects of Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs). Various perceptions on learning experience offered by MOOCs have led to many claims about the quality of these courses and their potential impact on higher education in both developed and developing countries. This paper discusses, from a learner's…

This paper reports on the introduction and use of e-learning technologies to help students study a school subject. The research intervention is located within a relatively resourced school in South Africa with students largely coming from one racial group. The choice of the school enabled the researchers to focus on investigating the effects of…

This paper reports on the experiences of newcomers at the 36th Annual MERGA Conference. The paper applies Wenger's (1998) social learning theory to explore the kinds of feedback that might assist newcomers. Questionnaire responses to describe the experience of ten newcomers and interview responses from five of the ten are reported. The…

This study used a self-determination theory lens to investigate high ability learners' motivational experiences. Participants were 15 high ability youth involved in a summer learning camp for gifted students. Two major themes emerged from qualitative data analysis: (a) "The Fun Factor of Learning" and (b) "The Rewards and Pressures…

Developmental immigrant students are a growing phenomenon in the United States, a growing population in higher education, and a growing presence in undergraduate classes, and like their mainstream developmental counterparts, many are academically underprepared for the rigors of college (Goldschmidt & Ousey, 2011), sometimes prolonging, or even…

In recent years, IUPUI has steadily acquired a considerable national reputation as an up-and-coming university. Some of the reasons for this recognition include the RISE Initiative and the large number of innovative degree programs recently started at IUPUI based on campus strengths and the priorities of the city of Indianapolis. Some specific…

In the fall of 2007, the author came to Northland College excited for the opportunities that it presented--a low faculty-to-student ratio and professional connections. But what he was really interested in was the new student orientation to the college. It just happens that this was one of a number of trips comprising Northland's Outdoor…

Reflexivity is a primary requirement for professional work. Our aim was to describe a methodology suitable for detecting the development of reflexive practice through the analysis of 59 Master's degree students' journals. We explore the use and changes of reflexive practice in relation to the settings and activities of the course using analysis of…

Pattern perception and organization are critical functions of the visual cognition system. Many organizational processes are available early in life, such that infants as young 3 months of age are able to readily utilize a variety of cues to organize visual patterns. However, other processes are not readily evident in young infants, and their…

Because a majority of teachers come from public universities, universities play an important role in examining and strengthening their teacher preparation programs to ensure they are graduating quality teachers. Student teaching is typically the culminating experience of the teacher preparation program and is considered to be the most crucial and…

Student's emotional aspects are often discussed in order to promote better learning activity in blended learning courses. To observe these factors, course participant's self-efficacy and reflections upon their studies were surveyed, in addition to the surveying of the metrics of student's characteristics during a Bachelor level credit course.…

This article reviews key findings from six surveys of technology-enhanced learning (TEL) across the UK higher education (HE) sector, conducted by Universities and Colleges Information Systems Association in association with Jisc. Updating the findings presented by Jenkins, Browne, Walker, and Hewitt [2010. The development of technology enhanced…

Out-of-school time (OST) programs like the Coastal Ecology science camp can positively influence science identities, particularly for youth from groups historically underserved and underrepresented in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM). OST STEM programming gives youth opportunities to learn science outside the formal classroom in…

The Humanitarian Engineering and Social Entrepreneurship (HESE) Program engages students and faculty across Penn State in the rigorous research, design, field-testing, and launch of technology-based social enterprises that address global development challenges. HESE ventures are embedded in a series of five courses that integrate learning,…