The development of mathematics teacher professional competencies through social media

One of the competencies for mathematics teachers that needs to be developed continuously is professional competence. However, even if efforts for developing teachers’ competencies have been made formally by the government, it seems still lacking. This study, therefore, aims to develop mathematics teacher professional competencies through an informal development model using social media. This research used a qualitative method, a case study design, involving 19 mathematics teachers from various regions in Indonesia in the informal development process in the range of 2019-2021. The informal approach was carried out using question-and-answer techniques and guided discussions on mathematical problems. From the teacher development processes, 30 mathematics problems and their solutions were collected. As an illustration of this development process, this article presents five problems and their solutions, including solutions for two mathematics problems on conceptual understanding and three mathematics problems on problem-solving. We conclude that this informal approach is fruitful in helping mathematics teachers solve mathematics problems. This study implies that the teacher development process carried out in this study can be used as a model for informal teacher development by other higher education academics in their respective places.

Intensive intervention and risk management services (IIRMS) three years on: what we need to do better in the offender personality disorder pathway

Purpose This is a discussion paper describing the reflections of clinical leads within well-established intensive intervention and risk management services (IIRMS). IIRMS has developed in the past five years, with a small number of services leading in the development of a psychologically informed case management approach to working with individuals released from prison on probation licence, who have a history of high risk, high harm violent convictions linked to pervasive psychological and interpersonal problems. Design/methodology/approach Clinical leads of three services considered a period of 23 months up to December 2019, in which the outcomes for all individuals on their caseload at that time were reviewed. Reflections on the themes included the reasons for a premature return to prison and emerging themes for those who appeared to be successfully resettled. Findings Approximately one-third of the individuals were returned to prison, and for most, this occurred within the first 18 months of release. There was considerable unanimity between clinical leads regarding the themes, and problems with relative youth, substance misuse, relationship difficulties, managing transitions and complacency featured. There were four themes identified in those who appeared to have settled successfully in the community. Practical implications The identified themes provide key learning that will be enshrined in an updated version of the guidance for all IIRMS, with the overall aim of reaching out and engaging with a group of individuals who are most at risk of exclusion from services. Originality/value Although there are limitations associated with the informal approach of this paper, the reflections of the clinical leads have provided a valuable addition to the very limited empirical literature in this field.

The Genesis and Performance of Gender Focal Person Structures in Rwanda and Uganda National Agricultural Organisations: A Critique

Gender Focal Persons (GFPs) are commonly recruited by organisations as part of institutional efforts to mainstream gender. Despite their wide usage, these structures often struggle to achieve the intended goals. The underlying factors that explain their limited success are not well understood; yet, this would inform strategies for institutionalising gender in research institutions. This paper traces the genesis and operationalisation of the gender focal person structures in Rwanda and Uganda national agricultural research organisations, to unearth factors influencing their performance. Results presented are based on document reviews and qualitative interviews with scientists, managers, and GFPs in the two organisations. We found that the GFPs hinged on individuals and donors, and operated in an ad hoc manner without streamlined procedures. The structures were not embedded in institutional frameworks, hence their low visibility within the organisations. They were characterized by informality, voluntarism, unclear terms of reference, and accountability frameworks. We conclude that the ineffective performance of the GFPs in both organisations is explained by the informal approach used to establish, operationalise, and nurture them. Institutionalising the structure would require that the pioneering champions and donors successfully negotiate the embedding of GFPs into the mainstream; eventually, guaranteeing allocation of adequate human and financial resources from national budgets, as well as the establishment of accountability systems.

Scientific publications – the bad, the good, for a fistful of dollars

The article is devoted to the problem of assessing the quality of scientific publications. It is emphasized that the formal ranking of an article is currently determined, as a rule, not so much by the data obtained or formulated concepts, as by the scientometric indicators of the corresponding journals. Approaches to determining the ranking of an article based on the analysis of its citation (impact factor and its analogues) and the number of mentions in social networks (so called altmetrics), as well as the number of downloads of the paper from the publisher’s website are considered. The authors emphasize the significant role of the appearance of author-paid articles in the current change in the situation with scientific publications. It is assumed that the thorough commercialization of the process of publishing their works by scientists has led to a serious deterioration in their scientific component due to the reducing requirements for the format and content of manuscripts sent to the editors of paid journals. The authors express the hope that the “informal” approach to the evaluation of scientific articles, which is based on their content, but not the ratings of the editions that published these works, has not lost its relevance even at the present stage.

851 SMILE: Sustaining Medical Education in A Lockdown Environment. Student Perceptions of a Free Online Access Medical Education Platform as An Adjunct to The Traditional Undergraduate Curriculum During Lockdown

Introduction The coronavirus outbreak has had significant impact on medical students worldwide. SMILE is a free online access medical education (FOAMEd) platform. SMILE delivered 200 lectures during lockdown with up to 1400 students per session from UK medical schools and 33 abroad. Here we discuss student perceptions to SMILE during lockdown Method A survey was used to collect information from students who had utilised the platform during lockdown. This examined access to learning, impact on mental health during lockdown and the differences between FOAMed and more traditional based campus lecture-based learning. Results 1306 students responded to the survey. The majority of students were concerned regarding their training during lockdown, with 71% reporting an impact on their stress levels and 44% reporting a negative impact on mental health. On average students attended 4.3hours of teaching put on by their university per week, vs 7.9hours by SMILE. Positives included anonymity, making 80% more likely to both ask and answer questions, the informal approach, ease of access and enthusiastic teachers. Negatives included time differences and technical issues. Conclusions Lockdown provided challenges in medical education, which platforms like SMILE addressed. Our experiences highlighted many positive outcomes of online medical education that may be applicable to other educators.

Understanding ASEAN’s approach to sanctions against norm breakers

Regional organisations (ROs) increasingly act as promoters of democracy by applying sanctions against members who do not comply with collectively agreed norms. Despite the absence of an official sanctions policy, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) does interfere in certain ways into member states’ internal issues in some cases of norm violations. This study empirically explores how and why ASEAN decides to interfere or not in such situations. The findings derived from case studies on Cambodia and Myanmar, drawing on evidence from documents, media, and interview data reveal novel insights on ASEAN regionalism in the context of non-compliant member behaviour. I argue that the informal approach to regionalism provides ASEAN with a lot of room for discretion in responding to members’ norm violations. The article identifies geopolitical preferences, extra-regional interference, and legitimation as explanatory factors for the RO’s varying punitive actions.

Mobile Technology

The chapter defines the promise and possibilities of twenty-first-century digital musicianship, with musical creativity and engagement at the core of music education via the use of mobile devices. Through the intentional use of iPads, tablets, or other hand-held devices, students are presented with myriad ways to create, perform, listen to, and respond to music. The authors discuss the turnaround in their own thinking about mobile devices, their conceptions of creative musicking, and the changes in their pedagogical approaches to a more inclusive, constructivist, and informal approach to teaching with and through mobile technology. They explore the enormous potential of rather small technological devices to transform the music-making experiences of students of any age.

How to Problematise Categories: Building the Methodological Toolbox for Linguistic Reflexivity

Following qualitative researchers’ growing interest in reflexivity, a body of scholarship has emerged that aims to turn informal practices for reflexivity into methods that can be learnt and taught alongside other research practices. This literature, however, has focused on helping researchers become more reflexive toward their situatedness and positionality, rather than toward their use of language and its effects on knowledge production – a process I refer to as ‘linguistic reflexivity’. This article addresses this gap by formalising a method for ‘problematising categories’, an informal approach familiar to qualitative researchers as a promising solution to the analytical and ethical blinders that result from scholars’ unconscious use of language. I proceed in three steps. First, I review the literature to show the analytical, empirical and ethical rationales behind this approach and offer a definition of problematising categories as the practice of making conscious how socio-linguistic units of categorisation unconsciously organise our perception and can represent a problem for knowledge production. This practice, I argue, enables us to decentre ourselves from the taken-for-granted nature of those categories. Second, I develop a three-stage research method for problematising categories: noticing ‘critical junctures' when problematisation is called for, identifying the categorical problem through sensitising questions and reconstructing an alternative. Third, I demonstrate how problematising categories contributes to the research process by applying this method to my experience in problematising the binary pair ‘local’ versus ‘international’ in a research project on the environmental impact of Chinese investment in the Senegalese fishery sector. I show that problematising categories leads to more rigorous empirical findings and nuanced analysis in a way that is feasible within the frame of qualitative research projects. Overall, this article expands the practical tools for linguistic reflexivity and heeds the methodological call to make conscious and explicit choices for every dimension of our research.

Practical aspects of writing а high-quality final qualifying work in the profile “entrepreneurship”

This article discusses the practical aspects of writing a high-quality final qualifying work in the profile “Entrepreneurship” of the higher education curriculum. The article reveals the meaning and place of the final qualifying work on the profile of training “Entrepreneurship” in the system of practice-oriented vocational training of entrepreneurs. The article considers the importance of graduate qualification works on the “Entrepreneurship” profile as an element of the transition from an “informal” approach to training entrepreneurs and understanding entrepreneurship as a professional activity.

University-Supported Networks as Professional Development for Teachers in School-Age Educare

One of the most valued types of professional learning for teachers are forums that allow them to share their practices with other teachers. This is paper examines how university-based learning networks support the professional development needs of teachers in School-Age educare. University- supported network provide a more informal approach to professional learning and allows the teachers in School-Age educare to connect with other teachers in their field. The network further provides the participants an opportunity to be an active part of the research that is conducted at the university and a platform for developing a collective agency.