When future teacher-librarians enter their preservice education, what kinds of advocacy-focused learning experiences can and should they expect? How can preservice teacher-librarians be supported as they develop the character traits of advocates for effective, integrated school library programs? In this article, the authors, first and foremost,…

As most schools have installed whiteboard technology in at least one teaching area by year in primary schools and by subject in secondary schools there is evidence that not only technology and teaching approaches change but so too does the totality of learning experience summarised as "culture." As part of a research project concerned with the…

Since the publication of the Dearing report (1997) there has been an increasing emphasis on the quality of teaching and learning provision within higher education institutions (HEIs). This focus on provision has in turn generated much educational research into "approaches" to both teaching practice and student learning within higher education…

Educators are often torn between impositions of the institution in which they work and the imperatives of their individual courses or units and the impact this tension might have on student satisfaction with the learning experience. It is common to hear that students must graduate with multiple generic attributes or skills, yet these skills may…

A multicultural curriculum affirms and includes all people regardless of age, race, ethnicity, gender, socioeconomic status, language, religion, physical ability, or mental ability. The goal is to reduce prejudice and bias by discussing these issues. The Bloom/Banks curriculum framework was developed as a model for creating multicultural gifted…

With the widening knowledge base students will need to be more flexible in their learning habits. Traditionally, teaching school science often involves teacher-centred methods like lectures, experimental demonstration or guided inquiry. Plain knowledge dissemination will not adequately prepare students to cope with the changing world. Hence,…

Why teach art? Answers generated by preservice art teachers usually suggest a range of reasons (i.e.: so that students will have knowledge about art, acquire the skills of artists, and/or gain aesthetic appreciation). It is rare when students recognize that art is also taught in order to experience something yet unknown to the teacher, whether…

This article reports the findings from a secondary analysis of the data from two qualitative studies conducted by the researcher regarding the self-directed learning experiences of prostate and breast cancer patients. Of interest were possible differences in the descriptions of the participants' experiences that appear to relate to gender.…

Two studies, a cross-sectional (173 first-year and 215 final-year participants) and a longitudinal (81 participants), examined whether two aspects of the learning experience of student teachers (epistemological beliefs and learning approaches), and the interrelations between them changed as a result of their tertiary education. Between the first…

Good teaching is open to change and it involves constantly trying to find out what the effects of instruction are on learning, and modifying that instruction in the light of the evidence. Similarly, the ultimate outcome of instructional practice is effective student learning. Therefore, in this perspective, adequately meeting the varying needs of…

This article argues that an overhaul of undergraduate education in Ireland is needed. It asserts that at present most students leave university short-changed, never having been exposed to the riches of discovery and research. A framework founded on research and inquiry is designed to stimulate learning and innovation through action. It is argued…

This paper examines the patterns of language choice and the construction of L2 learning opportunities in foreign language learners' social networks by focusing on how these patterns and opportunities are socially structured in a Japanese language learner's natural interactions. It is based on a range of data, including a script of on-line chat…

The aim of the article is to analyse the qualitative and quantitative aspects of the skills of reading and text-understanding, focusing on the comparative analysis of experiences of meaning in native language, Romanian and English in the case of Hungarian pupils. We attempted to present the qualitative indexes and factors of the process of reading…

The purpose of this study was to examine and identify support service needs and preferences of distance learners studying at the Turkish Open Education System (OES). In order to fulfill this purpose, views and perceptions of OES students on importance and accessibility of student support services at the OES were investigated through a mixed-method…

Bilingualism (Sanz, 2000), motivation (Pintrich, 1989), and language aptitude (Grigorenko, Sternberg, and Ehrman, 2000) are crucial individual differences that contribute to successful adult language learning. Since Gardner's (1985) seminal work on motivation, many studies have shown that motivation is dynamic and that it affects language…