scholarly journals Students as Change Partners in the School of English Language and Literature at the University of Reading.

Author(s):  
Joy Collier

The pedagogic landscape in Higher Education has certainly witnessed change in recent years and involving students as partners in aspects of degree-programme development is part of that change. Darling-Hammond (2009) described how educational systems internationally are changing priorities to enable students to "cope with complexity, use new technologies, and work cooperatively to frame and solve novel problems" (p. 45). Zhao (2011) asserts that it is vital to engage students as partners in change, giving them an active hand in programme design, to enable students to develop into creative individuals who leave education with much more than just an academic qualification; it is an "authentic way to develop professional skills" (Giles et al., 2004, p. 681) as well as an opportunity to develop a positive and autonomous approach to lifelong learning. The case study which follows involved students' working cooperatively with each other and with staff in a school of English language and literature. Together, we redesigned a new module aimed at: developing students’ understanding of the demands of university-level study and writing; supporting them in their transition from sixth form to higher education.

2014 ◽  
pp. 87-90
Author(s):  
János Nagy ◽  
Gergely Harsányi ◽  
Orsolya Jánosy ◽  
Endre Harsányi ◽  
Orsolya Nagy

The most important instrument of social advancement and economic development is the education system. The educational qualification of the population of Hajdú-Bihar county is continuously improving, however the census data of the year 2001 show that the educational qualification of the population of the county did not reach the national average. The educational qualification of the county’s population is higher at the county seat and in other cities and lower in small municipalities. The county’s ratio is strongly influenced by the data of the county seat Debrecen and that of Hajdúszoboszló sub region. The unfavorable educational level of the region is related to the migration tendencies and the brain-draining trends of the past decades, as a consequence of which the population of the less developed eastern regions has moved either to the capital, or to the county seats, or larger cities of the region. The young are increasingly affected by the process. The number of kindergartens in the county corresponds to the national average, therefore taking into consideration the regional demographic characteristics the aim should be the equalization of regional disproportions. The number of students per 1000 resident within the Northern Great Plain Region and in the county significantly exceeds the national average. The secondary school network of the county consists of 38 secondary grammar- and 51 secondary vocational schools. The secondary schools of Debrecen have considerable impact on the county’s secondary education. The vocational training network of Hajdú-Bihar county is a large, in its conditions highly differentiated institutional network in which all types of secondary vocational institutions are present with secondary technical-, vocational-, accredited higher vocational-, specialized or preparatory vocational-, and special skill enhancement programmes. The majority of the secondary institutions have regional, rarely national enrollment. Students who have the intention to continue their studies in higher education within the county can study in Debrecen or Hajdúböszörmény. The integrated University of Debrecen has the highest student number within the country and it offers the widest range of academic programmes in Hungarian higher education. The University of Debrecen with the wide range of graduate and postgraduate educational programmes, unified academic qualification system, English language programmes is a European standard scientific centre of the Trans-Tisza Region. The county’s higher education takes exceeding share beyond its weight in the education of Natural Sciences (Biology, Physics, Chemistry, Earth Sciences, Mathematics), Health- and Social Sciences, Agricultural- and Environmental Sciences and Information Technology, which positively influences its educational structure. The county’s share in the education of Humanities (Hungarian Language, Foreign Languages, History, Archeology, Philosophy) is also significant. 6.3% of the country’s scientific researchers work in the county. In 2010 7.0% of the country’s R+D expenditure was spent here. 3/4 of the region’s research capacity is in Hajdú-Bihar county employed either by the University of Debrecen or by the research teams of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences.


2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 141-157
Author(s):  
Ana-Maria Stan

After the Great War and the union of Bessarabia, Bukovina, Transylvania, and the Banat with the Old Kingdom, the reform of higher education and, implicitly, its transformation into a unitary and efficient system required a lot of efforts. A significant number of initiatives and projects were discussed by the Romanian academic circles, politicians, and by the broader public before the first law for the organization of universities in Greater Romania was adopted and implemented, in April 1932. This article is a case study, which focuses on two proposals put forward in the 1920s by some prominent professors of the University of Cluj. My research tries to clarify and enrich our knowledge regarding the various stages that preceded and shaped the 1932 higher education law. It highlights the similarities and differences between these projects, looking, in particular, at their most relevant and modern elements. The article could equally provide points of comparison for future analysis regarding the reconstruction of the educational systems in other Central or Eastern European countries, in the first half of the 20th century.


Author(s):  
Erda Wati Bakar

The Common European Framework of Reference for Language (CEFR) has become the standard used to describe and evaluate students’ command of a second or foreign language. It is an internationally acknowledged standard language proficiency framework which many countries have adopted such as China, Thailand, Japan and Taiwan. Malaysia Ministry of Education is aware and realise the need for the current English language curriculum to be validated as to reach the international standard as prescribed by the CEFR. The implementation of CEFR has begun at primary and secondary level since 2017 and now higher education institutions are urged to align their English Language Curriculum to CEFR as part of preparation in receiving students who have been taught using CEFR-aligned curriculum at schools by year 2022. This critical reflection article elucidates the meticulous processes that we have embarked on in re-aligning our English Language Curriculum to the standard and requirements of CEFR. The paper concludes with a remark that the alignment of the English curriculum at the university needs full support from the management in ensuring that all the stakeholders are fully prepared, informed and familiar with the framework.


2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
pp. 392
Author(s):  
Estibaliz Sáez de Cámara ◽  
Idoia Fernández ◽  
Nekane Castillo-Eguskitza

Since the United Nations (UN) approved the Agenda 2030 for Sustainable Development in 2015, higher education institutions have increasingly demonstrated their commitment by supporting several initiatives. Although a great deal of progress has been made, there is still a lack of integrative approaches to truly implement Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in higher education. This paper presents a practical case that illustrates how to design and articulate SDGs within an institutional setting adopting a holistic approach: EHUagenda 2030 plan of the University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU). It is based on empirical inquiry into global and holistic sustainable transformation and a real experience to move towards a verifiable and pragmatic contribution to sustainability. This plan describes the contribution to 12 of the 17 SDGs, along with three sectorial plans (Equality Campus, Inclusion Campus and Planet Campus), as well as the refocus of the UPV/EHU’s Educational Model and the panel of sustainable development indicators, which addresses the technical aspects of monitoring the SDGs. The methodology (mapping; mainstreaming; diagnosis and definition and, finally, estimation) is systematic and replicable in other universities yet to embark upon this integration. This case study makes a contribution towards the understanding of the complexity of the changes in Higher Education and the ways to approach it.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nuryadi Wijiharjono

This title of article is Business Analytics for Higher Education Institutions. By taking a case study at the Universitas Muhammadiyah Prof. Dr. Hamka (UHAMKA), this article aims to analyze and provide recommendations for the plan to establish a new academic of undergraduate degree program. Analysis of the institutional and technical environment that affects the legitimacy and sustainability of the university. This study uses the SWOT analysis method in the perspective of Business Analytics, where data availability plays a key role.


2019 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-18 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anna Zelenková ◽  
Dana Hanesová

Abstract The aim of the authors is to respond to the growing demands on the intercultural competence of university teachers due to intensified internationalization pressures on higher education, especially due to the growing number of students and teachers’ international exchanges. They report on an intercultural course design responding to this need, presenting a case study from Slovakia. First, they define the need of intercultural competence of university teachers, especially those teaching in English-medium study programmes. Then they share a) findings from a needs analysis preceding the design of a new curriculum for an intercultural competence course (ICC) at Matej Bel University (MBU) with three aims (development of linguistic, cultural and pedagogic competences); and b) results from action research during piloting the ICC course. A comparison of 2011 and 2018 surveys pointed to the growing dominance of the English language, including an increasing command of English by MBU teachers. The ICC curriculum, tailored to the pre-identified teachers’ needs, proved to be a feasible way of facilitating their intercultural competence. Its implementation revealed persistent prejudices and difficulties associated with overcoming them. It also confirmed a significant deficit in preparing university teachers for their role as intercultural mediators in English-medium courses.


2021 ◽  
Vol 40 (2) ◽  
pp. 413-427
Author(s):  
Erika Setyanti Kusumaputri ◽  
Hanifah Latif Muslimah ◽  
Adib Ahmad ◽  
Mayreyna Nurwardani

In the present era of globalisation, higher-education institutions are required to focus on innovation to deal with the various challenges. Considering what Islamic higher-education institutions in Indonesia, have achieved in recent times, they face an uphill struggle to compete at the global level. This study aimed at identifying and analysing the dynamics of resilience for globalisation in a state Islamic–University in Indonesia. The results of studies on the management of Islamic tertiary institutions, specifically on organizational resilience, are very difficult to find. This study used the qualitative analysis method of a case-study and comprised in-depth interviews with key people concerned with the management of the university, observation, and secondary data namely academic documents, photos, and information from the university’s official website. The findings showed the university’s continuous efforts to improve not only the academic community’s management skills, knowledge, and expertise but also the implementation of international-curriculum standardization and cooperation with overseas universities. These actions cannot be separated from obstacles faced by university from within and without particularly in terms of funding-related policies. The university’s program-based innovations which are yet to be carried out by other Islamic-universities in Indonesia indicate this institution’s initiative to break the obstacles.


2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (2) ◽  
pp. 108-133
Author(s):  
Mariam Anana

This study investigates the dichotomy of specialization in Literature and English language. In many primary and secondary schools in Nigeria, many teachers who teach Literature are the same teachers who teach English Language. This is responsible for lack of ultimate successes in academic performance, foundational establishment and progressive developments in Literature and English language. Set against the backdrop of the inseparability and non-specialization in individual subjects in question, the study examines the need for a dichotomy of specialization in English Language and Literature with a view to reducing the rate of errors and students’ failures in both subjects. Adopting the simple randomisation, the researcher uses selected primary and secondary schools in Lagos State as the case study; the paper raises four questions and these are: Can English Language teachers effectively teach poetic devices? Are segmental phonemes easily taught by Literature teachers? Can English Language teachers proficiently teach oral literature, literary criticism and non-African literature? Can Literature teachers competently teach stress and intonation? This research uses a qualitative approach and adopts The Speech Act Theory as its theoretical framework. Questionnaire of fifteen (15) items was used for data collection and the simple percentage was applied for data analysis. The researcher discovered that: It is not possible for English Languageteachers to effectively teach poetic devices. Segmental phonemes cannot be easily taught by Literature teachers. Students would lag behind in areas where teachers are not proficient in the subjects they teach. Also, it is not possible for a teacher to place equal emphasis on both English Language and Literature in classrooms. The study therefore recommends the need for a dichotomy of specialization in the two subjects so as to ensure effective teaching and learning of these subjects.


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