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1 – 10 of 14Anna Marie Johnson, Amber Willenborg, Christopher Heckman, Joshua Whitacre, Latisha Reynolds, Elizabeth Alison Sterner, Lindsay Harmon, Syann Lunsford and Sarah Drerup
This paper aims to present recently published resources on information literacy and library instruction through an extensive annotated bibliography of publications…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to present recently published resources on information literacy and library instruction through an extensive annotated bibliography of publications covering all library types.
Design/methodology/approach
This paper annotates English-language periodical articles, monographs, dissertations and other materials on library instruction and information literacy published in 2017 in over 200 journals, magazines, books and other sources.
Findings
The paper provides a brief description for all 590 sources.
Originality/value
The information may be used by librarians and interested parties as a quick reference to literature on library instruction and information literacy.
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Keywords
K.J.P. Truijen, P.J.C. Sleegers, M.R.M. Meelissen and A.F.M. Nieuwenhuis
At a time when secondary vocational education is implementing competence‐based education (CBE) on a large scale, to adapt to the needs of students and of the labour market…
Abstract
Purpose
At a time when secondary vocational education is implementing competence‐based education (CBE) on a large scale, to adapt to the needs of students and of the labour market in a modern society, many vocational schools have recognised that interdisciplinary teacher teams are an important condition for this implementation. In order to provide students with the right competences for the labour market, different subject teachers should work and learn together and, by doing so, should be able to develop changes and improvements to ensure the effective implementation of CBE. In spite of the appeal of forming teacher teams in vocational education, studies on this subject show that teams in educational settings are not easily implemented. This paper aims to address this issue.
Design/methodology/approach
In this study, 28 managers from a Vocational Education and Training (VET) college in The Netherlands were interviewed in order to find factors that are related to effective team functioning. The authors choose to rely on a qualitative approach, because there has hardly been any empirical validation of factors that are related to effective team functioning in a vocational education context. In order to determine what factors influence team effectiveness, the results from the interviews have been related to what is known about team effectiveness from the literature.
Findings
By relating the results from the interviews to what is known about team effectiveness from the literature, a framework for future research on team effectiveness in schools is provided. In line with the organisational and psychological literature on team effectiveness, the managers distinguished several aspects in their definition of team effectiveness. Moreover, the findings of the study highlight the importance of the development of task interdependence, transformational leadership, and group efficacy for producing effective teams in education.
Originality/value
Although teams and team functioning have been the focus of researchers from different disciplines and have been studied from different perspectives, studies on the conditions that support or limit the successful implementation of teacher teams in vocational education are still scarce. The results of this study are expected to provide a deeper understanding of the mechanism that underlies the ability of teacher teams in vocational education to function effectively.
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Lu Zhang, Peter Nyheim and Anna S. Mattila
This paper aims to examine the joint effect of power and gender on individuals’ perceptions and evaluations of information systems (IS), and their behavioral intentions of…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to examine the joint effect of power and gender on individuals’ perceptions and evaluations of information systems (IS), and their behavioral intentions of technology acceptance.
Design/methodology/approach
This study uses a 2 (powerful vs powerless) × 2 (female vs male) between-subject experimental design. A total of 128 subjects participated in the experiment.
Findings
The results suggest that there is a significant gender difference in terms of technology acceptance in the high-power condition. Further, such a gender difference is attenuated in the low-power condition. Specifically, when primed with the feeling of powerful, male users (vs female users) have higher computer self-efficacy and rate the IS as easier to use and more enjoyable. However, when the feeling of powerless was elicited, the effect of gender on technology acceptance disappeared.
Originality/value
The gender effect on technology acceptance has been widely studied. The current research extends the literature by considering the moderating effect of power on such a gender effect.
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Bilal Afsar and Waheed Ali Umrani
The purpose of this paper is to investigate the effect of transformational leadership on employee’s innovative work behavior, and the mediating role of motivation to…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to investigate the effect of transformational leadership on employee’s innovative work behavior, and the mediating role of motivation to learn, and the moderating role of task complexity and innovation climate on the link between transformational leadership and innovative work behavior.
Design/methodology/approach
A questionnaire, designed as a self-reported survey, was distributed to full-time employees and their respective supervisors working in 35 firms (services and manufacturing sectors) in Pakistan. Data were collected from 338 employee–supervisor dyads. The hypotheses were tested using structural equation modeling.
Findings
Results showed that transformational leadership had a positive impact on employees’ innovative work behavior and motivation to learn mediated transformational leadership–innovative work behavior link. The study further showed that task complexity and innovation climate moderated the relationship between transformational leadership and employees’ innovative work behavior.
Research limitations/implications
Based on the premises of interactionist perspectives on individual innovation, this study integrated multi-level variables to investigate leaders’ influences on followers’ innovative work behavior. This study contributed to the existing literature by providing empirical evidence on influence of transformational leadership on employees’ innovative work behavior as well as the impact of both individual and organizational level variables.
Practical implications
The close connection among transformational leadership, motivation to learn and innovative work behavior suggests that transformational leadership traits among managers are important to enhance employees’ innovative work behavior. Organizations should pay attention to creating a climate that is supportive of innovation and encourage individuals to learn new knowledge and skills, and provide employees with opportunities to use their acquired knowledge and skills.
Originality/value
This paper contributed to leadership and innovation literatures and provided insights into how the practitioners could use an appropriate leadership style to enhance innovative work behavior among employees. The study adopted a distinct model comprising five variables to investigate innovative work behavior from a multi-level perspective, i.e., motivation to learn and innovative work behavior at the individual level, task complexity at the unit level and innovation climate and leadership at the organizational level. This integrated model of using predictors from multiple levels supported the theoretical assumptions that innovative work behavior resulted from the interaction of individual, group and organizational level factors.
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Sander van Kempen, Anne van den Dool, Pirkko Lindberg and Leena Parviainen
This paper aims to provide an overview of the current situation as it relates to library acts and prominent usage trends in public libraries in The Netherlands and Finland.
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to provide an overview of the current situation as it relates to library acts and prominent usage trends in public libraries in The Netherlands and Finland.
Design/methodology/approach
The approach takes the form of a review of the relevant legislation, as well as statistical analysis from national library data in The Netherlands and Finland.
Findings
The findings suggest that while we can see a decrease in physical lending and literacy, we also see an increase in the number of visitors, digital lending as well as activities and events. In addition, in The Netherlands, financial support is decreasing, while in Finland, expenditures of public libraries are growing.
Originality/value
The paper draws upon various viewpoints from public libraries in The Netherlands and Scandinavia, focusing on Finland.
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Keywords
Zbyněk Filipi and Lucie Rohlíková
This chapter presents innovative approaches to active learning that were introduced into the teaching of preservice teachers at the Faculty of Education of University of…
Abstract
This chapter presents innovative approaches to active learning that were introduced into the teaching of preservice teachers at the Faculty of Education of University of West Bohemia, Pilsen, in the Czech Republic. Over the last three years, the Technology-Enhanced Learning course has seen substantial innovations in both the content and use of teaching strategies designed to prepare the students for their professional lives. The whole update of the course was implemented using the results of action research – all individual changes were rigorously tracked and analyzed. The state of the art in the active learning domain in education of preservice teachers is presented in this chapter.
There is a description of the procedure to update the course, based on the reflections of teachers and feedback from students, gathered during action research. Detailed evaluations of particular methods of active learning that have been proven in teaching are provided.
Besides practical activities with tablets and smartphones, during which students familiarize themselves with various types of applications and reflect on their use in teaching, the course was extended by the use of practical aids for the efficient inclusion of mobile technologies for teaching – the Czech version of Allan Carrington’s Padagogy Wheel. This aid is derived from the revised Bloom’s taxonomy and SAMR model and helps the systematic reflection of preservice teachers when preparing for technology-enhanced teaching.
A significant part of the teaching consists of cooperative projects between preservice teachers and pupils of elementary schools – for example, the preservice teachers help elementary school pupils discover possibilities of virtual reality during Google Cardboard activities, or preservice teachers in teams with elementary school pupils create digital stories together on the topic of Internet safety.
The innovative approach to active teaching in the Technology-Enhanced Learning course is apparent even during the exam. In the course of the exam, students process, present, and defend a lesson plan for the implementation of an activity using digital technologies.
Throughout the learning, as well as at the end, preservice teachers are encouraged to reflect on the teaching in the Technology-Enhanced Learning subject.
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Keywords
A.K. Halabi, A. Essop, T. Joosub, N. Padia, M. Vawda and Y. Yasseen
This paper compares the effectiveness of in‐house developed computer‐based learning (CBL) materials with face‐to‐face teaching. Two groups of higher education students…
Abstract
This paper compares the effectiveness of in‐house developed computer‐based learning (CBL) materials with face‐to‐face teaching. Two groups of higher education students were randomly assigned to complete tutorial work in one highly structured topic of introductory accounting using either CBL materials (treatment group) or face‐to‐face teaching (control group). The effectiveness of both approaches was measured according to the students’ performance in a class test, in relation to their prior accounting knowledge and gender. The results showed that the students with no prior accounting knowledge who completed the CBL materials achieved a significantly higher test mark than the face‐to‐face teaching group. However, there was no significant difference in the marks of the students with prior accounting knowledge, and there was no difference on the basis of gender. The results of this South African study correspond to results in existing literature in other countries, and contribute to the overall knowledge of the effectiveness of CBL materials with respect to prior accounting knowledge and gender.
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Hassan Mirzajani, Rosnaini Mahmud, Ahmad Fauzi Mohd Ayub and Su Luan Wong
The purpose of this study is to identify factors that affect teachers’ motivation to use information and communications technology (ICT) in the classroom. The study aims…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to identify factors that affect teachers’ motivation to use information and communications technology (ICT) in the classroom. The study aims to determine the extent to which selected variables, such as personal experience, school environment and technological factors, influenced teachers’ tendency to accept and utilize ICT in teaching.
Design/methodology/approach
The study used primary data sources from Mazandaran, Iran, that included field notes and semi-structured interviews.
Findings
Results revealed that adequate support from administrators, directives to teachers to use ICT, appropriate ICT skills and knowledge as well as adequate resources were important factors that influenced the utilization of ICT in the classroom. Findings also showed that insufficient technical support discouraged teachers from using ICT in teaching, while increasing adequate equipment and technical support in schools encouraged teachers in this respect.
Research limitations/implications
Because this study was conducted on a small number of participants, its findings may not apply fully to other educational institutions.
Practical implications
The results from this study would be helpful to educational departments and institutions in their formulation of policies to encourage the use of ICT in education. The findings would also give a better insight of what constitutes an environment that is conducive for learning where ICT is integrated into the classroom.
Originality/value
By focusing on teachers’ intention, this study provides important insights into which factors influence teacher attitude to use ICT into classroom. As a result, the finding will help the development of e-learning quality enhancement and assurance strategies.
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Information literacy (IL) training for teachers in developing communities, e.g. rural areas or townships in developing countries, is expected to pose special challenges in…
Abstract
Purpose
Information literacy (IL) training for teachers in developing communities, e.g. rural areas or townships in developing countries, is expected to pose special challenges in terms of sustainability, contextualisation, life‐long learning and empowerment. Little has been reported on such training in developing countries. Based on the authors' involvement in a UNESCO‐funded IL training project for teachers in a developing community in South Africa, the purpose of this paper is to review literature and to suggest a model that can further research and training in IL that meets actual requirements and needs of developing communities.
Design/methodology/approach
Literature reviews on four issues are reported on: ICT skills, teachers and developing/rural contexts; IL skills, teachers and developing communities; internet usage, search skills, teachers and developing communities; and lessons from ICT for development (ICT4D).
Findings
ICT4D literature and critical social theory seem useful to further research on IL training in developing communities as it empowers researchers to take up a position of enquiry that questions the value of ICT and the underlying assumptions embedded in the ways ICT is introduced in developing contexts. It is assumed that this would also apply to IL.
Originality/value
The contribution is original in its attempt to combine IL and ICT training for teachers in a developing community against an ICT4D background.
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