scholarly journals Measuring the effectiveness of knowledge creation as a means of facilitating evidence-informed practice in early years settings in one London borough

2014 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chris Brown ◽  
Sue Rogers
Keyword(s):  
Learning Community ◽  
Knowledge Creation ◽  
Early Years ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Measurement Scales ◽  
Evidence Use ◽  
Development Activity ◽  
London Borough ◽  
Professional Development Activity ◽  
General Desire

This paper examines our use of knowledge-creation activity as a way of developing evidence-informed practice among a learning community of 36 early years practitioners in one London borough. It also seeks to illustrate how we approached the idea of measuring evidence use and our engagement with, and adapted use of, two separate measurement scales: the 'ladder of research use' and Hall and Hord's (2015) Levels of Use scale. In doing so we examine the 'trustworthiness' of our approaches to measuring evidence use, which we explored via in-depth semi-structured interviews. Our findings would appear to be encouraging, suggesting that knowledge-creation activity provides an effective way of communicating research and keeping it top of mind; also that our interview data would appear to support the trustworthiness of our measurement scales as a means to ascertain levels of evidence use. At the same time the approach we have developed does have its limitations, namely that it is only really applicable to situations where researchers are working regularly with practitioners on areas of practice development, where the general desire is that these areas should become evidence-informed. However, we suggest that, in school systems such as that in England – where the expectation is that schools or alliances of schools should lead their own professional development activity, often in partnership with universities – it is likely that these instances will soon be increasing in number.

scholarly journals INDONESIAN MATHEMATICS TEACHERS’ KNOWLEDGE OF CONTENT AND STUDENTS OF AREA AND PERIMETER OF RECTANGLE

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (2) ◽  
pp. 223-238
Author(s):  
Wahid Yunianto ◽  
Rully Charitas Indra Prahmana ◽  
Cosette Crisan
Keyword(s):  
Teacher Knowledge ◽  
Mathematics Teachers ◽  
Lesson Plan ◽  
Full Range ◽  
Lesson Plans ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Development Activity ◽  
Professional Development Activity ◽  
Area And Perimeter ◽  
Knowledge Of Content

Measuring teachers' skills and competencies is necessary to ensure teacher quality and contribute to education quality. Research has shown teachers competencies and skills influence students’ performances. Previous studies explored teachers’ knowledge through testing. Teachers' knowledge of the topic of area-perimeter and teaching strategies has been assessed through testing. In general, items or tasks to assess mathematics teacher knowledge in the previous studies were dominated by subject matter knowledge problems. Thus, it seems that the assessment has not fully covered the full range of teacher knowledge and competencies. In this study, the researchers investigated mathematics teachers’ Knowledge of Content and Students (KCS) through lesson plans developed by the teachers. To accommodate the gap in the previous studies, this study focuses on KCS on the topic of area-perimeter through their designed lesson plans. Twenty-nine mathematics teachers attended a professional development activity voluntarily participated in this study. Two teachers were selected to be the focus of this case study. Content analysis of the lesson plan and semi-structured interviews were conducted, and then data were analyzed. It revealed that the participating teachers were challenged when making predictions of students' possible responses. They seemed unaware of the ordinary students' strategies used to solve maximizing area from a given perimeter. With limited knowledge of students' possible strategies and mistakes, these teachers were poorly prepared to support student learning. 

Knowledge creation in small building and construction firms

2013 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 125-142 ◽  
Author(s):  
Susanne Durst ◽  
Ingi Runar Edvardsson ◽  
Guido Bruns
Keyword(s):  
Construction Industry ◽  
Knowledge Creation ◽  
Vital Role ◽  
Knowledge Sources ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Construction Firms ◽  
External Knowledge ◽  
Body Of Knowledge ◽  
Small Building

Studies on knowledge creation are limited in general, and there is a particular shortage of research on the topic in small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Given the importance of SMEs for the economy and the vital role of knowledge creation in innovation, this situation is unsatisfactory. Accordingly, the purpose of our study is to increase our understanding of how SMEs create new knowledge. Data are obtained through semi-structured interviews with ten managing directors of German SMEs operating in the building and construction industry. The findings demonstrate the influence of external knowledge sources on knowledge creation activities. Even though the managing directors take advantage of different external knowledge sources, they seem to put an emphasis on informed knowledge sources. The study´s findings advance the limited body of knowledge regarding knowledge creation in SMEs.

Understanding the Impact of Heritage Language on Ethnic Identity Formation and Literacy for u.s. Latino Children

2016 ◽  
Vol 16 (3-4) ◽  
pp. 245-266 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maria M. Arredondo ◽  
Melanie Rosado ◽  
Teresa Satterfield
Keyword(s):  
Ethnic Identity ◽  
Academic Success ◽  
Identity Formation ◽  
Language Proficiency ◽  
Emotional Health ◽  
Early Years ◽  
Latino Children ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Ethnic Identity Formation ◽  
The Impact

Studies show positive associations between ethnic identity, socio-emotional health and academic success. However, most work is carried out with adolescents and few have examined how young children develop an ethnic identity, particularly u.s. Latino children. The present study represents a first-pass investigation of children’s ethnic identity mechanisms and their relation to academic success. We carried out semi-structured interviews in Spanish with 25 Latino children (ages 5–12). Open-ended questions addressed items on the Multigroup Ethnic Identity Measure and Ethnic Identity Scale, incorporating a mixed qualitative (i.e., themes) and quantitative (i.e., scoring) analysis. Results revealed that children provide great detail when discussing their ethnic background. Additionally, Latino children’s bilingualism and Spanish-language proficiency were significant markers of ethnic identity formation, which in turn were positively associated with affect and Spanish literacy. These findings shed light on the complexities of ethnic identity construction during children’s early years, and establish a path for further investigation of Latino children’s socio-emotional health and academic achievement.

In search of virtuous learning circles: absorptive capacity and its antecedents in the education sector

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Regina Lenart-Gansiniec ◽  
Wojciech Czakon ◽  
Massimiliano Matteo Pellegrini
Keyword(s):  
Organizational Learning ◽  
Prior Knowledge ◽  
Absorptive Capacity ◽  
Structural Equation ◽  
Knowledge Flows ◽  
Measurement Scale ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Measurement Scales ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Impact

Purpose This study aims to identify context-specific antecedents to schools’ absorptive capacity (AC) and to show how those can enact “a virtuous learning circle.” Design/methodology/approach The study uses a mixed method: an exploration based on semi-structured interviews with educational experts; the development of a measurement scale and a partial least squares structural equation modelling to test the impact of the antecedents. Findings The results yielded four empirically-grounded antecedents and their measurement scales, namely, prior knowledge, employees’ skills, educational projects and interactions with the environment (Studies one and two). All antecedents are significantly and positively related to AC processes (study three). Using the organizational learning theory perspective, the results have been interpreted as an AC “virtuous learning circle.” Practical implications With increasing pressures to adapt, a case of which was the COVID-19 pandemic, schools can greatly benefit from absorbing knowledge flows. This suggests the construction a favourable environment for AC. To this end, the individual (employees’ prior knowledge and skills), organizational (educational projects) and institutional level of managerial action (interactions with the environment) can be effective when create a recursive organizational learning circle. In addition, this study offers an expert-validated measurement scale for self-assessment of a school’s specific contingencies, and thus, for planning of punctual interventions to develop AC. Originality/value This study advances the existing body of knowledge management in the educational context by rigorously identifying and validating a scale for measuring the antecedents of AC and developing an interpretive approach to the AC “virtuous circle.”

scholarly journals Use of COVID-19 evidence in humanitarian settings: the need for dynamic guidance adapted to changing humanitarian crisis contexts

2021 ◽  
Vol 15 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Alex Odlum ◽  
Rosemary James ◽  
Audrey Mahieu ◽  
Karl Blanchet ◽  
Chiara Altare ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Primary Data ◽  
Evidence Based ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Humanitarian Crisis ◽  
Evidence Use ◽  
Humanitarian Settings ◽  
Humanitarian Response ◽  
Global Guidance ◽  
Guidance Documents ◽  
Context Specific

Abstract Background For humanitarian organisations to respond effectively to complex crises, they require access to up-to-date evidence-based guidance. The COVID-19 crisis has highlighted the importance of updating global guidance to context-specific and evolving needs in humanitarian settings. Our study aimed to understand the use of evidence-based guidance in humanitarian responses during COVID-19. Primary data collected during the rapidly evolving pandemic sheds new light on evidence-use processes in humanitarian response. Methods We collected and analysed COVID-19 guidance documents, and conducted semi-structured interviews remotely with a variety of humanitarian organisations responding and adapting to the COVID-19 pandemic. We used the COVID-19 Humanitarian platform, a website established by three universities in March 2020, to solicit, collate and document these experiences and knowledge. Results We analysed 131 guidance documents and conducted 80 interviews with humanitarian organisations, generating 61 published field experiences. Although COVID-19 guidance was quickly developed and disseminated in the initial phases of the crisis (from January to May 2020), updates or ongoing revision of the guidance has been limited. Interviews conducted between April and September 2020 showed that humanitarian organisations have responded to COVID-19 in innovative and context-specific ways, but have often had to adapt existing guidance to inform their operations in complex humanitarian settings. Conclusions Experiences from the field indicate that humanitarian organisations consulted guidance to respond and adapt to COVID-19, but whether referring to available guidance indicates evidence use depends on its accessibility, coherence, contextual relevance and trustworthiness. Feedback loops through online platforms like the COVID-19 Humanitarian platform that relay details of these evidence-use processes to global guidance setters could improve future humanitarian response.

scholarly journals The Griefer and the Stalker: Disruptive Actors in a Second Life Educational Community

2020 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jean-Paul Lafayette DuQuette
Keyword(s):  
Language Learning ◽  
Learning Community ◽  
Virtual Worlds ◽  
Second Life ◽  
Virtual World ◽  
English Language ◽  
Participant Observation ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Community Members ◽  
Fear And Anxiety

Linden Lab’s Second Life (SL) is well-known for its hands-off approach to user conflict-resolution. Although users are given tools to mute and block individual accounts as well as ban undesirable avatars from user-owned land, that does not prevent determined, malicious users from disrupting communities and harassing individuals. This case study focuses on two such malicious users exemplary of two specific types of malevolent virtual world actors: in-world griefers and online stalkers. As part of a decade-long ethnographic research project within the Cypris Chat English language learning community in SL, this paper utilizes data gleaned from notes on participant observation, semi-structured interviews, and first-hand encounters. It categorizes the disparate strategies these individuals have used over the years in their attempts to disrupt group cohesion, sow distrust between students and teachers, humiliate individuals, and foment an atmosphere of fear and anxiety. It then reviews the methods community members used to defend themselves from such attacks and analyzes the efficacy of these strategies. This study builds on our understanding of harassment in virtual worlds and acts as a cautionary tale for future virtual world educators and community leaders considering the development of their own online classes and groups.

Building a Learning Community Online

2011 ◽  
pp. 309-321
Author(s):  
Tessa Owens ◽  
Petra Luck
Keyword(s):  
Online Learning ◽  
Learning Community ◽  
Community Of Practice ◽  
Student Evaluations ◽  
Early Years ◽  
Early Years Education ◽  
Education And Care ◽  
E Learning

This chapter reviews a pilot e-learning project at Liverpool Hope University Col-lege. It will illustrate an approach to online learning aimed at students working inthe early years education and care sector and attempts to demonstrate the devel-opment of a “community of practice.” This chapter will discuss how the contextinformed the rationale for the approaches taken by the staff team and providescommentary from student evaluations highlighting their experiences.

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