hat do we really know about the relationship between professional development and improvements in student learning? What evidence validates that relationship, and how trustworthy is that evidence? What does that evidence tell us about the characteristics of truly effective professional development activities? These questions guided one of the largest and most inclusive syntheses of research on ...

Structured abstract The purpose of this article is to critically examine, within the context of professional practice and learning, diverse theoretical approaches that are currently prominent in researching transitions and to propose future directions for research. Much research to date on professional transitions has focused on predicting them and then preparing individual practitioners to nav...

Efforts by universities in sub-Sahara Africa to promote professional development of instructors in course design and delivery by e-learning technologies have often lacked meaningful impacts. This study investigated the impact of collaborative course design on instructors’ professional learning about design and delivery of e-learning courses at the Open University of Tanzania (OUT). Six Teacher ...

This paper describes the pedagogical impact of real-world experimental projects undertaken as part of an advanced undergraduate fluid mechanics subject at an Australian university. The projects have been organized to complement traditional lectures and introduce students to the challenges of professional design, physical modelling, data collection and analysis. An overview of two projects is pr...

The Northern Territory Department of Education (DoE) provided assistive technology to support the teaching and learning of students with disability, and teacher training in integrating this technology in the classroom. A professional learning consultant was recruited in October 2012 with responsibility for researching and sourcing appropriate resources based on an evaluation of the needs of stu...

This article examines how principals describe the nature of relationships and presence (or absence) of relational trust among teachers, and between the teachers and the principal in the discourse of professional learning communities. Participants were 12 school principals from urban, suburban, and rural communities in Manitoba. In the discourse of learning communities, the notion of trust is ar...

For almost four decades, problem-based learning (PBL) has been the stated cornerstone of learning in many medical schools. Proponents of PBL cite the open nature of the learning experience where students are free to study in depth, unencumbered by the burdens of broad courses based on the memorization of facts; detractors, on the other hand, cite the lack of breadth and factual knowledge requir...

We tend to measure educational performance by students’ attainment in course work or examinations. In the case of professional education, the impact of the educational programme on the students’ own capacities to enhance their work practices, and the wider organizational effects of the students’ education and training, are also key ‘products’ of the educational process. This is particularly imp...

OBJECTIVES Although shared learning activities are gradually being introduced to health care undergraduates, it has not been possible to measure the effects of educational interventions on students' attitudes. The main objective of this study was to develop a rating scale using items based on the desired outcomes of shared learning, to assess the 'readiness' of health care students for shared l...