International Journal of Educational Research最新文献

The Australian government sees student mobility to the Indo-Pacific region beyond the institutional remit as an important tool to boost young Australians’ Indo-Pacific capability and the nation's multilateral relations with the region. Accordingly, the past decade has witnessed a fast-growing number of Australian students undertaking study and/or internships in the Indo-Pacific. Although an emerging body of research has started to examine the outcomes of Australian students’ study in the region, more nuanced understandings of their international experience and its societal impacts are needed. This article advances our thinking by conceptualising student mobility as becoming, as connecting and as contributing. It draws on 37 interviews with Australian students who are scholars engaged in learning abroad in the Indo-Pacific through the New Colombo Plan, a signature outbound mobility initiative of the Australian government. The findings of this study underscore the individual and societal changes driven by student mobility from a ‘Western’ country like Australia to Indo-Pacific countries. Through theorising student mobility to the Indo-Pacific as a process of becoming, connecting and contributing, the study demonstrates how these previously ignored Indo-Pacific destinations can offer transformative potential for learning abroad students and the communities they are engaged in. The research findings show how learning abroad in the Indo-Pacific can be a powerful vehicle to tackle ignorance, misconceptions and stereotypes. Using the concepts of mobility as becoming, connecting and contributing in combination, the article provides unique insights into not only self-formation or changes within the students themselves but also changes and transformations in relation to the host and home communities and broader society, allowing their learning abroad experiences to be viewed more holistically.

This study explores the significance of Comprehensive Sexuality Education (CSE) for Children with Special Needs (CWSNs) within regular early childhood education settings in two inclusive cities: Banjarmasin and Banjarbaru, South Kalimantan, Indonesia. Using a qualitative phenomenological approach, the research examines the perspectives, confidence, and experiences of Early Childhood Education (ECE) educators who teach CWSNs about sexuality. Participants underscored CSE's role in empowering CWSNs against sexual violence and addressing maladaptive behaviors, despite challenges such as societal misconceptions, curriculum deficits, and insufficient teacher preparedness. Educators' confidence in delivering CSE is hampered by their general educational backgrounds and the absence of specialized educators capable of effectively tailoring programs to individual student needs. Teaching methods varied, encompassing sign language for deaf children, repetitive language with engaging media for those with autism, and approaches sensitive to cultural and religious norms when addressing Body Awareness and Genital Function, Understanding Identity and Gender Roles, and Fostering Personal Boundaries and Safety. Participants advocate for a comprehensive approach to SE inclusivity, emphasizing collaborative efforts among diverse stakeholders and multidisciplinary expertise. They call for clearer policies and sustained support from educational authorities to develop evidence-based curricula and provide comprehensive teacher training. Addressing disparities between privately owned and government-run institutions is crucial for ensuring equitable integration of SE into educational practice.

Aim

This study investigates the influence of entrepreneurship education (EE) on the cultivation of individual entrepreneurial orientation (IEO) and its subsequent role as a precursor to entrepreneurial intention (EI) among students within the higher education landscape of the UAE. Existing research has explored the correlation between EE and EI, yet a significant gap remains in understanding how EE shapes students' IEO and its collective impact on EI. This investigation addresses this gap by examining both the direct and indirect effects of EE on IEO, unveiling its consequential effects on the EI of university students.

Grounded in neoliberal ideology, emphasizing market-oriented solutions and individual empowerment, this study uses the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) and a validated conceptual model to explore how EE shapes IEO and influences EI. The UAE's unique socio-economic context, characterized by rapid economic diversification and neoliberal-aligned education reforms, provides a novel setting for this research.

Methodology

Adopting a cross-sectional approach, data were collected from a sample of 245 university students using the convenience sampling method. Confirmatory factor analysis was employed to assess model fitness, data reliability, and validity. Hypotheses were tested through structural equation modeling.

Results

Empirical findings confirm the significant impact of EE in cultivating both IEO and EI across students from diverse academic backgrounds. The mediating role of IEO in the association between EE and EI is particularly noteworthy. This research highlights the pivotal role of EE in empowering and shaping students' entrepreneurial mindset, emphasizing the need for targeted entrepreneurship programs.

Implications

This research highlights the pivotal role of EE in empowering and shaping students' entrepreneurial mindset, emphasizing the need for targeted entrepreneurship programs. The insights offer valuable guidance for university policymakers seeking to enhance student entrepreneurship through diverse initiatives. Additionally, the study contributes to scholarly discourse by revealing the mediating impact in the relationship between EE and EI, thereby expanding the limited literature on IEO. By examining how EE aligns with neoliberal principles and addressing its efficacy, this study contributes to our understanding of the role of higher education institutions in promoting entrepreneurial attitudes and intentions among students in the UAE.

This paper uses a queer theoretical lens and mixed methods conceptual framework for use in assessing the level of queer representation of characters portrayed in Mandarin Chinese language learning textbooks published in the United Kingdom. MFL textbooks largely produce content which reinforces a perceive cisgendered, heteronormative characterisation of individuals within texts. Research that assesses the level of queer representation, tend towards focusing solely on gender or sexuality, and largely through qualitative research methods. Through the development of a mixed methods conceptual framework which allows for consideration of queer diversity along several spectra, the results of this study highlighted a significant lack of queer representation within Mandarin Chinese language learning textbooks. The implication of this is not only a mixed methods approach which accounts for often overlooked minority queer identities, but also identifying the need for a greater variety of queer representation within textbooks to better represent people of the 21^st century.

Recent studies have shown concern regarding an increased risk of functional illiteracy. A way to reverse this trend concerns focusing on improving reading fluency assessment. However, reading fluency assessment, which concerns quick, accurate and expressive reading, knows many shortcomings. To learn how to overcome these shortcomings, we conducted a scoping review. This review included primary and grey literature regarding the assessment and definitions of reading fluency and its underlying components within early primary education. Searches resulted in 107 relevant records. The results indicate that definitions of reading fluency are frequently not provided, and show discrepancies with assessment procedures.

Small schools often serve an important function in the local community, where their staff can enjoy close relationships with pupils, colleagues, and local community members. As with any leadership role, leaders of small schools can face challenges, some of which are unique to the small school context. To better understand these challenges and identify potential solutions to these challenges, a systematic review of the literature was conducted on the challenges and the potential solutions reported by leaders of small schools in the UK. Seventeen studies published between 2000 and 2023 were included for synthesis, which captured the experiences of headteachers of small primary schools in England, Scotland, and Northern Ireland. From meta-aggregating the extracted findings, five challenges were identified: (a) nature of the leadership role; (b) finances and resources; (c) relationship and partnership management; (d) teaching and learning; and (e) schools’ location and accessibility. Five potential solutions to these challenges were noted: (a) inclusive and focused leadership; (b) enhanced finances and pooled resources; (c) developing relationships and partnerships; (d) providing leaders and staff with effective support and Continuing Professional Development (CPD); and (e) enhanced school provision. Suggestions for policy and practice that can help leaders of small schools are discussed.

Major recent global challenges have highlighted the increasing importance of education systems fostering children's skills for adaptability and capacity for responding to change. Competences such as creativity, innovation and problem solving could be particularly valuable, but in countries like Rwanda little is currently known about how schools and teachers nurture them in the classroom. This paper adopts a psychological framework based on learners’ cognitive flexibility to address that gap, drawing on exploratory qualitative data from interviews and lesson observations in primary schools in Kigali, Rwanda. The findings identify teachers’ use of practical exercises, group work and frequent transitions between activities and languages as potentially supporting different aspects of children's cognitive flexibility. The paper concludes with implications for nurturing learners’ skills for adaptability in similar low-income contexts.