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Article
Publication date: 4 May 2012

Patricia Brouwer, Mieke Brekelmans, Loek Nieuwenhuis and Robert‐Jan Simons

The first aim of this study is to explore to what extent communities of practice occur in the school workplace. The second aim is to explore the relation between communities of…

2956

Abstract

Purpose

The first aim of this study is to explore to what extent communities of practice occur in the school workplace. The second aim is to explore the relation between communities of practice and diversity in composition of teacher teams.

Design/methodology/approach

Quantitative as well as qualitative data were gathered from seven teacher teams in a school for secondary education. Questionnaires and observation instruments were used to measure and analyze teacher teams' collaborative activities and diversity in composition.

Findings

Data suggest that communities of practice actually occur in the school workplace, but to a moderate extent. Also, communities of practice are related to four of the five diversity attributes that were investigated.

Research limitations/implications

The current study is a snapshot measurement of communities of practice. Future research is recommended to focus on the development of communities of practice in the school workplace by including longitudinal measurements.

Practical implications

Implications for teachers and administrators include follow‐up activities aimed at stimulating and sustaining communities of practice as well as taking diversity considerations in team composition into account.

Originality/value

Studies suggest that a community is a promising context for embedding collaboration into the culture of the school. However, empirical research that focuses on communities in the school workplace seems largely absent. This study provides insight in the occurrence of communities of practice from two perspectives: the perception of community members and the observation from outsiders.

Details

Journal of Educational Administration, vol. 50 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0957-8234

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 11 May 2012

Patricia Brouwer, Mieke Brekelmans, Loek Nieuwenhuis and Robert‐Jan Simons

The aim of this study is to explore whether and to what degree community development of teacher teams takes place and how community development comes about, that is, what…

1469

Abstract

Purpose

The aim of this study is to explore whether and to what degree community development of teacher teams takes place and how community development comes about, that is, what community‐building efforts teacher teams undertake.

Design/methodology/approach

Using a multi method approach, quantitative and qualitative data were gathered from seven interdisciplinary teacher teams in a secondary school during one school year. Teachers' perceptions of community development were complemented with video‐observations of team meetings by relative outsiders.

Findings

Data showed that the teacher teams undertook a wide variety and amount of community‐building efforts. However, community development of the teacher teams as perceived by the teachers was limited. Relative outsiders observed some community development.

Practical implications

From the findings the authors conclude that school managers could play a more proactive role in supporting teacher teams' community‐building efforts. Strategies embedding community‐building into the culture and policy of the school, including diagnosing, custom‐made support and making efforts explicit, could be effective.

Originality/value

The current study takes a long‐term approach, investigating the community development of teacher teams during the course of one school year. In addition, community development is measured using two perspectives, i.e. that of the community members and that of the relative outsider.

Details

International Journal of Educational Management, vol. 26 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0951-354X

Keywords

Content available
Article
Publication date: 11 May 2012

Brian Roberts

178

Abstract

Details

International Journal of Educational Management, vol. 26 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0951-354X

Article
Publication date: 9 January 2018

Kenneth Gaines and Patricia Commiskey

Stroke is a leading cause of death and disability in the USA and worldwide. While stroke care has evolved dramatically, many new acute approaches to therapy focus only on the…

Abstract

Purpose

Stroke is a leading cause of death and disability in the USA and worldwide. While stroke care has evolved dramatically, many new acute approaches to therapy focus only on the first 3-12 hours. Significant treatment opportunities beyond the first 12 hours can play a major role in improving outcomes for stroke patients. The purpose of this paper is to highlight the issues that affect stroke care delivery for patients and caregivers and describe an integrated care model that can improve care across the continuum.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper details evidence-based research that documents current stroke care and efforts to improve care delivery. Further, an innovative integrated care model is described, and its novel application to stroke care is highlighted.

Findings

Stroke patients and caregivers face fragmented and poorly coordinated care systems as they move through specific stroke nodes of care, from acute emergency and in-hospital stay through recovery post-discharge at a care facility or at home, and can be addressed by applying a comprehensive, technology-enabled Integrated Stroke Practice Unit (ISPU) Model of Care.

Originality/value

This paper documents specific issues that impact stroke care and the utilization of integrated care delivery models to address them. Evidence-based research results document difficulties of current care delivery methods for stroke and the impact of that care delivery on patients and caregivers across each node of care. It offers an innovative ISPU model and highlights specific tenets of that model for readers.

Details

Journal of Integrated Care, vol. 26 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1476-9018

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 1 April 2003

Georgios I. Zekos

Aim of the present monograph is the economic analysis of the role of MNEs regarding globalisation and digital economy and in parallel there is a reference and examination of some…

89975

Abstract

Aim of the present monograph is the economic analysis of the role of MNEs regarding globalisation and digital economy and in parallel there is a reference and examination of some legal aspects concerning MNEs, cyberspace and e‐commerce as the means of expression of the digital economy. The whole effort of the author is focused on the examination of various aspects of MNEs and their impact upon globalisation and vice versa and how and if we are moving towards a global digital economy.

Details

Managerial Law, vol. 45 no. 1/2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0309-0558

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 1 March 1987

S.D. NEILL

A discussion of the nature of information is undertaken by bringing together the views of Brenda Dervin and Karl Popper on subjectivity and objectivity as these relate to…

Abstract

A discussion of the nature of information is undertaken by bringing together the views of Brenda Dervin and Karl Popper on subjectivity and objectivity as these relate to information use. It is shown that while they take different routes, they come to similar positions. From the historical development of information science, some work on the problem of information management is selected to show the relevance of the philosophical discussion to the practice. The overall purpose is to establish information as an existent with which librarians and information scientists work in a peculiar way, resulting in the acts of classification and indexing as applied in information retrieval systems (or libraries). The nature of information and its relationship to human activities is seen to be fundamental to the practice and principles of the profession as well as the science. I use the word ‘librarian’ to indicate the intermediary since the word ‘intermediary’ can carry the meaning ‘human and/or non‐human’. Here we are concerned with human problems.

Details

Journal of Documentation, vol. 43 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0022-0418

Article
Publication date: 23 September 2021

Cristina Marín-Palacios, Oliver Carrero Márquez and Rhona Patricia Lohan

The social and work inclusion of people with disabilities is an important area of public action and research today. Future trends in the economy and lifestyle represent new…

Abstract

Purpose

The social and work inclusion of people with disabilities is an important area of public action and research today. Future trends in the economy and lifestyle represent new challenges for the inclusion of disabled people. This paper aims to provide a bibliometric analysis of the growing amount of research publications currently dealing with problems associated with people with disabilities in employment. The papers are analysed to gain a perspective on any changes in the field.

Design/methodology/approach

In this study, the analysis is conducted using a literature review and bibliometric analysis techniques in particular. The bibliographic source supporting this analysis resulted from a search of Scopus using Disability, Employment and Work as search terms, which yielded 750 publications spanning the previous nine years. VOSviewer was applied to facilitate the analysis.

Findings

The findings indicate that up until 2016, the conversation revolved around health and employment, and from 2017 onwards the research has become more focused on the employment of people with disabilities. Socioeconomic factors affecting people with disabilities appear as one of the causes impairing their inclusion, such as the different intellectual disabilities curtailing their employment and education for work.

Research limitations/implications

This analysis limited itself to only one database and open access articles. Therefore, further research is needed with a larger bibliographic base covering other aspects related to the future of disability employment.

Practical implications

This review may serve as a valuable source of information for researchers for further investigations in this area. And to aid in the development of effective policies to address existing social stereotypes.

Originality/value

This research illustrates, through the use of VOSviewer, the present studies in the area of disability and employment and sets the foundations for further research.

Details

Journal of Enterprising Communities: People and Places in the Global Economy, vol. 16 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1750-6204

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 17 April 2009

Aihie Osarenkhoe

Is non‐sequential internationalization process solely technology enabled or a product of mutually interdependent forces? This paper aims to show that even though the sequential…

3450

Abstract

Purpose

Is non‐sequential internationalization process solely technology enabled or a product of mutually interdependent forces? This paper aims to show that even though the sequential approach in the process model is intuitively appealing, not all firms follow such a path. Hence, integrated framework to explain how the international market entry process has changed with respect to the sequential approach is presented.

Design/methodology/approach

The data banks of the Swedish Trade Council and the Chambers of Commerce are used to identify small and medium‐sized enterprises (SMEs) with between 50 and 250 employees (in compliance with European Union's definition of SMEs). Data are collected through the use of questionnaires and in‐depth interviews from 60 Swedish SMEs operating in other countries and foreign SMEs operating in Sweden that tends not to develop in incremental stages with respect to their international.

Findings

Some of the findings are: that the sequential model is by no means reflective of, or appropriate for all firms' approaches to international business; the usefulness gained by using an international network approach to study the international activity of a firm; and the interplay between the identified driving forces behind a non‐sequential internationalization process.

Research limitations/implications

Even though market entry patterns of firms investigated demonstrate a non‐sequential internationalization process, they are still within the general theoretical framework where the basic assumption of the sequential internationalization model can maintain its validity. Firms are indeed exposed to irrecoverable transaction costs that hamper their behaviours and complicate export supply responses in international markets. However, the magnitude of the costs and speed of internationalization is dependent on the ability of the firms to take advantage of the enablers of non‐sequential internationalization pattern. This is particularly important for firms to and from developing countries and emerging markets and their propensities to succeed in their internationalization endeavours.

Originality/value

Knowledge acquired from the empirical study of firms that tend not to develop in incremental stages with respect to their international activities, and therefore start international activities by entering very distant markets and multiple countries right from birth without prior experience, is used to develop an integrated framework which aptly depicts that non‐sequential internationalization process is not solely enabled by technology, as commonly envisaged in literature, but a product of mutually interdependent forces. Consequently, this study provides a holistic view on the driving forces behind the rapid internationalization process encountered by many SMEs today.

Details

Business Process Management Journal, vol. 15 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1463-7154

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 10 January 2020

Maitreyee Das, K. Rangarajan and Gautam Dutta

The purpose of this paper is to do a thorough literature review to assess the current status of corporate sustainability (CS) practices, issues and challenges in small and medium…

3178

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to do a thorough literature review to assess the current status of corporate sustainability (CS) practices, issues and challenges in small and medium enterprises (SMEs) and based on literature suggest a model that can improve and strategically manage their sustainability practices in the emerging market context of Asia.

Design/methodology/approach

After setting the theoretical background on why the corporations need to shoulder the responsibility of sustainable development, the authors did a high level literature review to estimate the gap area and based on the findings formulated some research questions on why the SMEs, more specifically those in Asian emerging market, are lagging behind in terms of CS practices. Next, using the “literature survey” as the methodology the authors did a thorough in-depth literature review to answer the above research questions and organised the findings in light of those research questions. Considering the research gap and the crucial role of SMEs in a country’s economic progress the authors restricted the literature search on CS in the case of SMEs only.

Findings

CS is a well-practiced area in big organisations. However, the literature suggests that in the case of SMEs the situation is different. Social and environmental practices are grossly neglected in SMEs more specifically in emerging markets. Existing literature mentions that collaborative mode of operation, government policy and facilitation, supporting organisation culture can positively influence SME’s sustainability performance, and hence, improve their financial performance.

Research limitations/implications

The conceptual model has been developed based on suggestions and recommendations in western countries context. To establish the validity of the model in the Asian business scenario it needs to be tested with a sizable sample of SMEs in the Asian market.

Practical implications

The current paper has practical implications both for academic research on sustainable development and also in business development. The proposed model in the current form is based on the literature survey only. Once such a model is empirically established this can be proved beneficial for providing guidance to SMEs to enhance the sustainability of their business operations. Moreover, environmental and social best practices adopted by SMEs will also have a positive influence on society and the environment in the long run.

Originality/value

This paper had done a country-wise comparison of sustainable practices in SMEs and based on the recommendations and suggestions of different scholars as found in the detailed literature review, the authors developed few research propositions and also presented a conceptual model. Finally, to address the gap it mentions some future research possibilities to test and validate the proposed model in the context of SMEs in emerging markets of Asia.

Details

Journal of Asia Business Studies, vol. 14 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1558-7894

Keywords

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