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1 – 10 of over 171000It has been suggested that, if pedagogical and learning theories are integrated into lesson and learning study, a systematic construction of pedagogical knowledge is possible…
Abstract
Purpose
It has been suggested that, if pedagogical and learning theories are integrated into lesson and learning study, a systematic construction of pedagogical knowledge is possible (Elliott, 2012). In this Special Issue, it is reported how theory and theoretical concepts can add value to lesson and learning study. The purpose of this paper is to introduce the Special Issue and explore the above concepts.
Design/methodology/approach
This paper presents the Special Issue papers thematically and the main issues are discussed.
Findings
Together the papers suggest that pedagogical theories and theorizing practice may contribute to the improvement of teachers’ practical knowledge and knowledge about teachers’ professional tasks and objects. Furthermore, some theories and theoretical concepts hitherto under-exploited in lesson and learning study are presented and discussed from the point of view how these might improve the quality of the studies.
Originality/value
As a total, this collection of papers bring out issues about the role of pedagogical and learning theories and how these could inform lesson and learning study.
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The authors assessed the following six popular online theories: Cognitivism, connectivism, heutagogy, social learning, transformative learning theories and Vygotsky’s zone of…
Abstract
Purpose
The authors assessed the following six popular online theories: Cognitivism, connectivism, heutagogy, social learning, transformative learning theories and Vygotsky’s zone of proximal development (ZPD). The theories were selected because of their relevance to improving online instruction.
Design/methodology/approach
To compare them, the authors reviewed literature on adult learning theories from the following databases: Academic Search Premier, ERIC and ProQuest. They chose the most relevant articles about each theory published between 2007 and 2017, summarized them and extracted relevant information.
Findings
The theories suggest various pointers to help course designers to improve online learning. Based on cognitivism, instructors can use media-based instruction designed especially for the working memory. Similarly, connectivism informs instructors to design instruction integrated with technology. Heutagogy also promotes the integration of technology with online learning and encourages self-directed learning. Meanwhile, social learning theory informs instructors to design group discussions and activities to foster collaboration. The other three theories - cognitivism, connectivism and heutagogy – promote the integration of technology.
Originality/value
The authors said the paper was useful as it provided a theoretical framework for adult instructors and theory designers. The paper was a follow-up to another study by the sane authors of online theories. There are also research implications. While pedagogical frameworks are well-established for online learning, studies on learner motivation would establish a wider understanding of richer design formats, the authors say.
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Judgement is a pivotal notion for understanding learning. But how we view judgement is crucially shaped by our favoured conception of learning. The favoured conception of learning…
Abstract
Judgement is a pivotal notion for understanding learning. But how we view judgement is crucially shaped by our favoured conception of learning. The favoured conception of learning is shown to distort judgement, while an emerging conception of learning does justice both to judgement and learning from work.
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The purpose of this paper is to discuss two theoretical frameworks, Pirie and Kieren’s work (Pirie and Kieren, 1994) and variation theory of learning (Marton, 2015) in relation to…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to discuss two theoretical frameworks, Pirie and Kieren’s work (Pirie and Kieren, 1994) and variation theory of learning (Marton, 2015) in relation to lesson/learning study and mathematics teaching and learning.
Design/methodology/approach
The point of departure is the article: “Folding back and growing mathematical understanding: a longitudinal study of learning” (Martin and Towers, 2016) where it is demonstrated how Pirie and Kieren’s work (1994) and particularly the notion “folding-back” can be used as the theoretical framework in lesson/learning study. By dealing with similar arrangements and different theories, the two frameworks are contrasted.
Findings
It is suggested that the theory appropriated must be in resonance with the aim and focus of the study the theoretical perspective taken since it has implications for what becomes the focus of the process and subsequently the results of lesson/learning study.
Originality/value
This paper contributes to the discussion about how a more theory-informed lesson study and a broader theoretically framed learning study would improve and change the scope and progress of the two.
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It was Kurt Lewin, pre‐war pioneer of applied psychology, and inventor of the term group dynamics, who reputedly said: There is nothing so practical as a good theory. How right he…
Abstract
It was Kurt Lewin, pre‐war pioneer of applied psychology, and inventor of the term group dynamics, who reputedly said: There is nothing so practical as a good theory. How right he was. In these days when action learning is all the rage, such a saying is a timely reminder both of the need for and the value of theories in the execution of practice. For we all have theories; we use them constantly, and managers are no exception. Consciously or unconsciously we employ them to guide our actions: theories about the world and the way it works, about men, money, machines and materials, about management, and the different ways of “handling” people and things.
Christine Helen Arnold, Cecile Badenhorst and John Hoben
Decolonizing involves dismantling deeply entrenched colonial systems of knowledge and power by disrupting colonial patterns of thought, questioning how teaching and learning…
Abstract
Decolonizing involves dismantling deeply entrenched colonial systems of knowledge and power by disrupting colonial patterns of thought, questioning how teaching and learning occurs, and critiquing the colonial practices that are merged into the fabric of higher and adult education. Within this process, scholars and practitioners engage in interrogating teaching and learning approaches and developing a critical consciousness regarding what knowledge is valued and how this value is acquired. Within higher and adult education, limited research has explicitly considered the ways in which conceptions of andragogy and its accompanying instructional approaches might be deconstructed within the context of decolonization. The purpose of this chapter is to deconstruct and decolonize foundational higher and adult learning conceptual and theoretical frameworks that are routinely embedded within courses and programs. The conceptual and theoretical frameworks selected and analyzed include self-directed learning, transformative learning, and action learning as conventional examples of individual and collective instructional approaches employed within higher and adult learning settings. Maōri scholar Linda Tuhiwai Smith's (2012) nine characteristics of theory that contribute to colonizing discourses and 25 Indigenous projects/principles are employed as the lenses that frame this analysis. These lenses include social science and methodological approaches and strategies that decolonize populations and promote Indigenous epistemologies.
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Kaija Collin and Päivi Tynjälä
The integration of theory and practice has been recognised as one of the key questions in the development of professional expertise and vocational competence. In this study the…
Abstract
The integration of theory and practice has been recognised as one of the key questions in the development of professional expertise and vocational competence. In this study the question of how theory and practice meet each other during professional development was approached from the point of view of two different groups of learners: employees with varying length of work experience and university students taking a working life project course. Altogether 18 employees and 51 students were interviewed, after which transcribed interviews were qualitatively categorised. The opinions expressed by the informants indicate that work‐based learning is not a unified phenomenon but varies in different contexts and between actors. The findings suggest, however, that the transformation of students’ explicit “book knowledge” into implicit or tacit knowledge may begin already while the student is still in education, provided that formal knowledge is used for authentic problem solving.
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Yrjö Engeström and Hannele Kerosuo
The purpose of this paper is to show how activity theory transcends the boundary between workplace learning and organizational learning.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to show how activity theory transcends the boundary between workplace learning and organizational learning.
Design/methodology/approach
Activity‐theoretical analyses examine collectives and organizations as learners. On the other hand, activity theory is committed to pedagogical and interventionist actions to change and learning characteristic of workplace learning.
Findings
Activity‐theoretical studies put an emphasis on the object, i.e. on what is done and learned together in inter‐organizational networks, instead of studying only connections and collaboration of networks. The theory of expansive learning enables a longitudinal and rich analysis of inter‐organizational learning and makes a specific contribution in outlining the historical transformation of work and organizations by using observational as well as interventionist designs in studies of work and organization.
Originality/value
The paper shows that activity theory and the theory of expansive learning provide useful analytical tools for the enrichment of studies in workplace learning, as reported in the articles included in this special issue.
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The relationship between learning theory and training practice continues to attract attention. That theories find their way into concrete practice is clear, but whether individual…
Abstract
The relationship between learning theory and training practice continues to attract attention. That theories find their way into concrete practice is clear, but whether individual trainers have a real awareness of the theory or theories which influence their methods is not clear. In this paper schools of learning theory are briefly described, and an attempt is made to establish the ways in which these theories have influenced training methods.
Experiential approaches have become increasingly common in entrepreneurship education in response to calls for different approaches to the traditional didactic process-driven…
Abstract
Purpose
Experiential approaches have become increasingly common in entrepreneurship education in response to calls for different approaches to the traditional didactic process-driven approach. Experiential approaches offer the potential to develop the skills and mindset that are required in entrepreneurship. Research has highlighted the critical importance of educator pedagogical competence in the delivery and quality of teaching and learning in further and higher education. Nevertheless, educator narratives and practices are often based on foundations that suggest a lack in the depth of knowledge and understanding of the underlying pedagogic learning theories and practice. This paper brings educational theory and pedagogic practice together in a three-stage framework of the experiential entrepreneurship learning process to support entrepreneurship educators within further and higher education.
Design/methodology/approach
This paper reviews and brings together the seminal educational theories and philosophies of constructivism, objectivism, Kolb's (1984) theory of experiential learning, Schön's (1983) reflection-in-action and Mezirow's (1997) theory of transformative learning, to develop a framework which underpins the experiential entrepreneurship learning process.
Findings
This paper develops a three-stage framework which informs the roles of an educator and a learner in experiential entrepreneurship education within further and higher education, based on educational theories and philosophies that inform the learning process.
Practical implications
The developed framework supports the pedagogic competence of educators in the delivery of experiential entrepreneurship education through a deeper understanding of the supporting theory that informs the pedagogic practice. This will provide consolidation to enable educators to maximise the effectiveness of their educational practice (Kaynardağ, 2019) and can increase the legitimacy of entrepreneurship education (Foliard et al., 2018).
Originality/value
This paper meets calls in the literature to provide a closer engagement between educational theory and pedagogic practice to afford guidance as to how educators can navigate some of the different educational theories and philosophies to consolidate the effective delivery of quality experiential entrepreneurship education. Applying seminal educational theories and philosophies to ensure the quality of experiential education can support the legitimacy of experiential entrepreneurship education.
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