scholarly journals University Teachers’ Opinions about Higher Education Pedagogical Training Courses in Slovenia

2016 ◽  
Vol 6 (4) ◽  
pp. 141-161
Author(s):  
Katarina Aškerc Veniger
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Formal Education ◽  
Teaching Practice ◽  
Positive Impact ◽  
University Teaching ◽  
Present Survey ◽  
University Teachers ◽  
Pedagogical Training ◽  
Training Courses

Pedagogical training courses (PTCs) for university teachers have often been discussed and have become a widespread trend in recent years in many countries. Many university teachers consider pedagogical training (PT) as a valuable tool in their teaching practice. In Slovenia, however, there is little evidence of teachers’ opinions and beliefs regarding PTCs.2Many authors consider the effect of PTCs in higher education (HE) on teaching questionable, but there is also evidence of the positive impact of PTCs on university teaching. The results of the present survey show that there are statistically significant differences in teachers’ opinions on initial and sustained PTCs. Formal education for teaching in primary and/or secondary schools is often considered as appropriate for teaching in HE. The respondents with higher titles attributed the lowest importance to sustained PTCs. Those involved in (short) PTCs attributed less importance to PT, as well as to the certificate of participation in PT in comparison to the respondents who were not involved in PTCs. On the other hand, the respondents with the highest participation in PT (51 hours and more) are more in favour of PTCs, which confirms the preliminary findings that courses of longer duration provide more opportunities to affect teachers’ pedagogical thinking and conceptions of teaching and learning in comparison to shorter courses.

scholarly journals Changing teaching practice: The evolving purpose of the teacher in higher education

2021 ◽  
Vol 18 (6) ◽  
pp. 1-11
Author(s):  
Prue Gonzalez ◽  
◽  
Beate Mueller ◽  
Kevin Merry ◽  
Colin Jone ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Student Learning ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Teaching Practice ◽  
University Teaching ◽  
Leadership Roles ◽  
Future Expectations ◽  
Higher Education System ◽  
Subject Matter Expertise ◽  
Cultural Historical Activity

In this Editorial, we take the opportunity to expand on the second Journal of University Teaching and Learning theme, Developing Teaching Practice. Building on Editorial 18(4), which articulated changes to higher education in the period roughly between 1980 and 2021, we believe it is pertinent to explore the changing conceptions of academic as ‘teacher’. We use Engeström’s cultural-historical activity theory as a lens to consider how higher education teachers are situated in the current context of rapid changes arising from the COVID-19 pandemic. We explore possible future purposes of higher education to consider flow-on impacts on the purpose of its teachers and how their roles might change to accommodate future expectations. We assert the need to challenge the notion of the academic as a person who is recruited into higher education largely because of their subject matter expertise and maintains strong commitment to teaching expertise that is grounded in scholarship, critical self-reflection, and agency. In our various teaching and leadership roles, and consistent with the literature, we have observed paradoxical outcomes from the nexus between risk, innovation and development, driving risk aversity and risk management, with significant (contradictory) impacts on teaching, teachers and student learning. The barriers to implementing innovative curricula include questions of do students get a standardised and ‘safe’ educational experience or are they challenged and afforded the opportunity to transform and grow? Are they allowed to fail? Related, do teachers have genuine agency, as an educator, or are they positioned as agents of a higher education system? We explore these questions and invite our readers to engage in serious reflexivity and identify strategies that help them question their attitudes, thought processes, and assumptions about teaching and student learning. We welcome papers that contribute values-based conversations seeking to continue exploring ways of dealing with and adapting to change in our teaching practices, case studies of learning through failure, change and adaptation and the development of the field.

scholarly journals Journal of University Teaching and Learning Practice Editorial 8.3

2011 ◽  
Vol 8 (3) ◽  
pp. 2-4
Author(s):  
Geraldine E. Lefoe ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Social Inclusion ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Teaching Practice ◽  
University Teaching ◽  
Learning And Teaching ◽  
New Directions ◽  
The Uk ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The Way

Welcome to the third and final issue of Volume 8 of the Journal of University Teaching and Learning (JUTLP) in 2011. As the year draws to a close we are seeing some striking changes to the higher education sector internationally. In England budget cuts have seen the closure of the twenty-four Higher Education Academy subject centres at the same time as the establishment of student fees. In Australia the cap has been lifted across the board on the number of students that can be enrolled in universities with the resultant projected increased student numbers. The focus in Australia is on social inclusion yet in England the concern for the introduction of fees is just the opposite, these will be the very students who may now be excluded. The changes in both countries see new measures of accountability and more complex regulations put in place. Will this cause people to rethink the way we teach and the way students learn? For the Higher Education Academy in the UK, new directions see the hosting of a summit on learning and teaching with a focus on flexible learning, an indicator of new directions for many institutions. In Australia, we see a renewed opportunity to investigate such changes through the opening of the Office of Learning and Teaching (OLT) and its role of recognising the importance of learning and teaching through grants and awards schemes. We hope in 2012 we’ll hear more from our authors about the impact of these transformations, as well as those changes occurring in other countries around the world, on teaching practice in our universities.

scholarly journals Perceptions about the Future of Integrating Emerging Technologies into Higher Education—The Case of Robotics with Artificial Intelligence

Computers ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (9) ◽  
pp. 110
Author(s):  
Janika Leoste ◽  
Larissa Jõgi ◽  
Tiia Õun ◽  
Luis Pastor ◽  
José San Martín López ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Artificial Intelligence ◽  
Higher Education ◽  
Teaching Practice ◽  
Emerging Technologies ◽  
University Teaching ◽  
Teaching Staff ◽  
Strong Impact ◽  
Negative Effects ◽  
University Teachers ◽  
University Level

Emerging technologies (ETs) will most likely have a strong impact on education (starting with higher education), just like they have already had in so many economic and social areas. This paper is based on the results obtained in the project “My Future Colleague Robot”, an initiative that aimed to improve the competence of university teaching staff regarding the introduction of ETs in teaching practices at university level. In this paper, we identified the strengths and weaknesses, opportunities, and threats that are related to the adoption in higher education of the combination of two ETs: robotics together with artificial intelligence (AI). Additionally, we analyzed the perceptions of university-level teaching staff about the potential of introducing ETs in education. The empirical data presented here were collected using written essays from 18 university teachers and students. Deductive and inductive approaches with thematic analysis were used for the data analysis. The findings support the idea that previous ET-related experience can support positive attitudes and the implementations of ETs in university teaching; in this study, university teachers had optimistic expectations towards ETs, accepting them as part of teaching practice development, while discussion about the negative effects of ETs was negligible.

scholarly journals What do university teachers do all day (and often into the night)?'

2010 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
pp. 5-23
Author(s):  
Josie Arnold ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Personal Narrative ◽  
University Research ◽  
Learning Activities ◽  
University Teaching ◽  
University Teachers ◽  
Definition Of ◽  
The University ◽  
The Impact

Teaching and the student experience are interlocked. This paper takes a personal look at the pleasures and pressures of teaching in contemporary higher education. In doing so it adds to the definition of teachers’ work in higher education, surveys some of the creative and positive sides of University teaching and shines a light upon the impact of increased commercialisation and managerial approaches upon academic work. It focuses upon the teaching and learning activities that academics undertake in the service of the university, including the research that adds to and updates their own knowledge, and hence underpins their teaching, so as to enable and enrich the learning journeys of their students. This paper has been written as a personal narrative, as what I have come to call a ‘subjective academic narrative’. The ‘subjective’ refers to acknowledgement of the inevitability of the personal being an integral part of research; the ‘academic’ refers to the analytical and the intellectual ambience in which university research takes place; and the ‘narrative’ refers to the story, that is, the way in which we re-tell all of our research. Above all, this paper contributes to a sense of understanding some of the elements of teaching that are involved in student engagement.

Expanding Opportunities in Teacher Education

2015 ◽  
pp. 268-286 ◽  
Author(s):  
Donna Mathewson Mitchell
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Teacher Education ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Teaching Practice ◽  
Critical Role ◽  
University Teaching ◽  
Civic Consciousness ◽  
Graduate Entry ◽  
Use Of Technology ◽  
Arts Curriculum

Initial teacher education has a critical role in preparing future teachers. In an era of increasing distance education, an additional challenge is to effectively prepare pre-service teachers who connect with higher education in an online environment. The diversity of the higher education student cohort studying by distance is significant and can easily be rendered invisible through the ‘facelessness' of digital technology. In addressing this challenge, this chapter outlines an innovative program undertaken in two secondary visual arts curriculum subjects delivered in distance mode in a graduate-entry teaching course. The innovation models a practice-based partnership involving higher education and community and culminates in a professional student exhibition. Outcomes include: positive student experience; high levels of achievement; increased civic consciousness and involvement; meaningful integration of cross-curriculum perspectives; and sustained focus on teaching practice. The program provides an example of an integrated use of technology to enhance university teaching and learning with the aim of informing future K-12 educational possibilities.

scholarly journals Communication and didactics, the difficult but needful symbiosis in higher education systems

2019 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
pp. 1-13
Author(s):  
Stefano Mustica
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
European Commission ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Practical Knowledge ◽  
University Teaching ◽  
University Teachers ◽  
Equal Importance ◽  
The Individual ◽  
Teaching Learning ◽  
The University

Abstract The first purpose of the university system is to deliver qualitative education through solid didactics/educational, but not many university structures seem really interested in the subject. Sets of laws, measures, rules, and prescriptions of all kinds are in fact relegating it to a corner, making it less and less central and effective while also increasing the difficult to decipher, update and innovate it. As a matter of fact, the issue of modernization of teaching methods has been tackled decisively by the European Commission, which has placed it among the priorities of its agenda. By acting in this way, EU is manifesting the conviction that a better quality for higher education will determine a growth in development and competitiveness not only for the Union itself but also for the individual universities that will define a strategy to improve the level of their teaching and learning and to give equal importance to research and teaching. In its report on the theme of modernization and quality of teaching and learning, the European Commission summarizes its conclusions in 16 recommendations, including: - the need for adequate teaching training for teachers; - the need for the merits of teachers who make a significant contribution to improving teaching and learning methods to be recognized and rewarded. But in order to achieve such quality prospects, it is necessary for university teachers to combine the knowledge of their discipline with specific communicative, cognitive and, more generally, relational skills. All this must become a principle of the university teaching of the future. However, on a practical level, it is not uncommon to meet teachers who are not sufficiently attentive to these dimensions of the teaching-learning dynamic, failing to identify the “language” capable of transferring their theoretical/practical knowledge in the function of real learning of the student.

scholarly journals PÉDAGOGIE UNIVERSITAIRE RÉNOVÉE À L’ÉPOQUE DE LA PANDÉMIE : COMMENT PASSER DE L’AUTRE CÔTÉ DE L’ÉCRAN ?

Neofilolog ◽  
2021 ◽  
pp. 249-264
Author(s):  
Jolanta Sujecka-Zając
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
The State ◽  
University Teaching ◽  
University Teachers ◽  
Virtual Classes ◽  
Pedagogie Universitaire ◽  
The University

The 2020/2021 pandemic year has been difficult for teachers at all levels of education including higher education. There was a need to switch quickly to another type of education that would achieve the same objectives as before. How did the university teachers face this challenge? What consequences have been drawn for university teaching in general? We propose to take a global perspective of the state of current university pedagogy to highlight the need to renovate its approaches and to put the learner at the center of the process so to provide pedagogical support in his learning. We will analyze the results of three surveys concerning remote teaching and learning in Poland and in Europe. Finally, we will show what tools can be used to better monitor students` learning in virtual classes. 

Enhancing university teaching and learning through mentoring

2015 ◽  
Vol 4 (2) ◽  
pp. 107-125 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gabriela Pleschová ◽  
Lynn McAlpine
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Cognitive Abilities ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Educational Development ◽  
University Teaching ◽  
Pedagogical Practice ◽  
Transfer Of Knowledge ◽  
Development Programs ◽  
Content Type ◽  
University Teachers

Purpose – Mentoring has been increasingly used in educational development to facilitate transfer of knowledge from programs for higher education teachers to their pedagogic practice. However, studies are missing which would critically assess the outcomes of mentoring in programs for university teachers. The purpose of this paper is to systematically review existing research on mentoring in the context of educational development in higher education. Design/methodology/approach – Using a careful search strategy, 17 relevant scholarly sources were selected and analyzed to document the results of mentoring at individual, departmental and institutional levels. Findings – Among the striking findings was the lack of clarity or definition surrounding mentoring and similar terms, coaching and tutoring and the lack of methodological rigour in many studies. However, those methodologically more advanced studies suggest that mentoring can become a valuable component of educational development programs. As reported by previous research, mentoring can: enhance university teachers’ cognitive abilities, beliefs and attitudes; improve the effectiveness of teaching; increase teachers’ capability to research teaching and learning; enhance mentoring skills; and improve the overall teaching climate at universities. Practical implications – Categorization of different types of outcomes of mentoring in educational development can help the practitioners engaged in introducing or re-designing educational development programs with a mentoring element. Originality/value – This is the first systematic review of the studies discussing the process, value and outcomes of teacher mentoring to improve pedagogical practice at the university level.

scholarly journals A influência de um curso de formação de professores para a constituição docente / The influence of a teacher training course...

2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (2) ◽  
pp. 284
Author(s):  
Camila Cantarelli ◽  
Bruno Milani ◽  
Sérgio Guilherme Schlender ◽  
Andreia Inês Dillenburg
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Data Analysis ◽  
Teacher Training ◽  
Professional Education ◽  
Teaching Practice ◽  
Positive Impact ◽  
Education Teacher ◽  
Training Course ◽  
Training Courses ◽  
Self Formation

No atual cenário educacional verifica-se a criação de cursos de formação de professores, voltados à portadores de diploma de educação superior na modalidade bacharel que pretendam se dedicar a docência. Neste cenário objetiva-se com o presente estudo analisar a influência da formação nestes cursos na prática docente de três de seus discentes. A pesquisa pode ser classificada como qualitativa, básica, descritiva e biográfica. As entrevistas foram analisadas de acordo com os procedimentos de Delory-Momberger (2012, p. 533). Entre os diversos resultados, destaca-se a presença de uma crítica à prática de seus mestres, uma autoformação da prática e visão docente por meio da associação entre teoria e a execução da própria prática profissional e docente, bem como uma influência do curso no modo de constituir-se professor. Compreende-se, partindo da análise dos dados que o curso obteve um impacto positivo na prática vivenciada, reflexiva e crítica de ser professor.Palavras-chave: Educação profissional; Formação de professores; Prática docente. ABSTRACT: In the current educational scenario there is the creation of teacher training courses, aimed at those with a bachelor degree in higher education who wish to dedicate themselves to teaching. In this scenario the objective of this study is to analyze the influence of training in these courses on the teaching practice of three of its students. The research can be classified as qualitative, basic, descriptive and biographical. The interviews were analyzed according to Delory-Momberger's procedures (2012, p. 533). Among the various results, there is the presence of a criticism of the practice of their masters, a self-formation of the teaching practice and vision through the association between theory and the execution of the professional and teaching practice itself, as well as an influence of the course in the way to constitute as a teacher. It is understood from the data analysis that the course had a positive impact on the lived, reflective and critical practice of being a teacher.Keywords: Professional education; Teacher training; Teaching practice.

Expanding Opportunities in Teacher Education

2016 ◽  
pp. 944-963
Author(s):  
Donna Mathewson Mitchell
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Teacher Education ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Teaching Practice ◽  
Critical Role ◽  
University Teaching ◽  
Civic Consciousness ◽  
Graduate Entry ◽  
Use Of Technology ◽  
Arts Curriculum

Initial teacher education has a critical role in preparing future teachers. In an era of increasing distance education, an additional challenge is to effectively prepare pre-service teachers who connect with higher education in an online environment. The diversity of the higher education student cohort studying by distance is significant and can easily be rendered invisible through the ‘facelessness' of digital technology. In addressing this challenge, this chapter outlines an innovative program undertaken in two secondary visual arts curriculum subjects delivered in distance mode in a graduate-entry teaching course. The innovation models a practice-based partnership involving higher education and community and culminates in a professional student exhibition. Outcomes include: positive student experience; high levels of achievement; increased civic consciousness and involvement; meaningful integration of cross-curriculum perspectives; and sustained focus on teaching practice. The program provides an example of an integrated use of technology to enhance university teaching and learning with the aim of informing future K-12 educational possibilities.

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