1,721,149 research outputs found
Preface
No full text© 2010 Susan Rodrigues for editorial material and selection. All rights reserved. This introductory collection brings together contributions from a range of international researchers, each working within their own traditions, to explore current perspectives on the use of analytical approaches in education. Providing a close examination of cutting-edge data analysis techniques, each contribution describes a set of tools to assist prospective researchers as they decide which analytical approach or approaches best suit their own research endeavours. Exploring theoretical approaches from both a macro and a micro perspective, each chapter: Outlines the theoretical assumptions of the approach Highlights the constraints and tensions within the approach Contextualises the tradition in which the approach is located Provides data and case studies to illustrate how the approach is used in classroom research and the realities of practice In the final chapter a cross-comparison between the approaches covered is presented, allowing researchers to better understand which approach is most suitable for their project. Essential reading for all those interested in the theory behind the analytical approach, this book will appeal to all postgraduates, researchers, and academics engaged in research in educational settings.status: Publishe
High Impact Learning that Lasts
No full textWithin competitive business markets, involving our employees in learning and development (L&D) activities is increasingly necessary for various reasons. In addition, L&D opportunities play a role in why applicants choose one job over another and are clearly an important reason for long-term retention within the same organisation. Benefits of employee-led learning in terms of teamwork, knowledge-sharing, and longer term employee satisfaction are significant. L&D should be an on-going process that strengthens long-term sustainable business growth. Allowing flexibility in learning and being open to informal learning in the daily training and work situation can be very effective and necessary to further develop professional expertise. It is important to make use of spontaneous learning opportunities and to consider what has been learned afterwards. Argyris’ double loop learning is characterised by taking ‘governing variables’ into account in all learning processes, reflecting on their influence before any action is started
Complexiteit, Creativiteit, Teams. Een exploratie van taakcomplexiteit en creatieve processen in projectteams
No full textThis doctoral dissertation focuses on two crucial concepts in current organisational practice and research: complexity and creativity. We investigate these issues in the context of one of the most popular investigated work formats in contemporary organisations: project teams. It is often assumed that project teams are better at tackling complex tasks than individuals, since a team has access to its members’ diverse bodies of knowledge and experiences. What exactly it is that makes a task complex, is however not clear. Furthermore, teams are often proposed as fertile grounds for the creativity that is assumed to be necessary to effectively deal with complex tasks. This doctoral dissertation entails five studies that are structured around these two parts: in part 1 (Study 1 and 2) we explore and clarify the concept of task complexity (TC) in project teams; in part 2 (Study 3, 4 and 5) we focus on processes of creativity and learning in project teams. The first part of this work thus focuses on deepening our understanding of the concept of task complexity. Our first study aims to deepen our understanding of (TC) and how it is investigated in teams. This is done in two steps: based on a systematic review of review studies on TC, we construct a ten-dimensional task complexity framework. A panel of experts that participated in a Q-sorting study corroborates the structure of this framework. Subsequently, we investigate how TC is investigated in teams by means of a systematic review of the literature. We conclude that research on TC in teams is mainly based on different conceptualisations and is as a result not comparable. In our second study, we investigate the practical relevance of our ten-dimensional model: by means of a Delphi procedure, we investigated the relative importance (or weight) of each TC dimension for overall TC.
The second part of this dissertation focuses on specific team processes that can support team creativity and effectiveness. In study 3 – the first study of part two – we investigate the conceptual and empirical differences between creative and learning processes in teams. Building on this, our fourth study investigates the interrelation between creative and learning processes, and the effect of this interrelation on team effectiveness. Furthermore, we investigate the role of the team’s social context for the occurrence of such processes. We found that there is an extensive overlap between facilitating team learning and team creative processes, although these processes remain important for team effectiveness. Furthermore, team creative efficacy and psychological safety are very strong predictors for team processes and effectiveness to emerge. However, the strongest predictor in our model is the degree to which teams have a shared mental model about their creative efficacy and psychological safety. In our fifth and final study we focus on the interrelation of team creative efficacy and team processes over time. Results show that there is a bidirectional effect between both variables, but that this effect changes over time. Furthermore, this study confirms the relevance of studying the level of agreement on e.g. creative efficacy among team members. The degree to which teams are on the same page is supportive for the emergence of team processes. Overall, this doctoral dissertation provides several valuable insights for theory and practice, on which we elaborate in our final chapter, the epilogue.status: Publishe
Transfer van training naar de werkplek: Naar een begrip van de multidimensionele rol van de direct leidinggevende
No full textIn response to ever changing business demands, business organisations invest heavily in training programs, with the expectation that training will update employees’ knowledge and skills and improve their performance. For training to be beneficial it needs however to be transferred back to the workplace. This entails that trainees effectively apply what they have learned in training in their job and that this leads to meaningful changes in work performance (Blume, Ford, Baldwin, & Huang, 2010; Newstrom, 1986). Research, however, indicates that training transfer outcomes are low and suggest minimal return on investment in training. Therefore, transfer of training has become a critical issue in research. Numerous empirical studies have examined training transfer and the factors that affect the transfer of training.
One of such factors is support of the supervisor, which has been established as one of the most critical work environment factors that affect transfer of training (e.g. Brinkerhoff & Montesino, 1995; Chiaburu, Van Dam, & Hutchins, 2010; Clarke, 2002; Colquitt, LePine, & Noe, 2000; Cromwell & Kolb, 2004; Hawley & Barnard, 2005; Lim & Johnson, 2002). In general terms, supervisor support can be described as the extent to which supervisors reinforce and support the use of training on the job (Holton et al., 1997). Yet, there continue to be gaps in the literature regarding the specific supervisory behaviours that influence transfer (Baldwin & Ford, 1988; Hawley & Barnard, 2005; Van Der Klink, Gielen, & Nauta, 2001). For the most part supervisory support has indeed been studied as a generic construct, and little is known about specific supervisory behaviours that increase transfer of training (McSherry & Taylor, 1994). It proves therefore interesting to further examine the content of the supervisor’s role in transfer of training (Van Der Klink et al., 2001).
The aim of this doctoral project is therefore to expand the theoretical grounding underpinning empirical work on the role of the supervisor in transfer of training and to provide further insight into the relationship between supervisory support and training transfer. More specifically, the focus will be on investigating the role of the supervisor in training transfer at a deeper level of specificity: in terms of specific behaviours and attitudes adopted by supervisors to support transfer of training.status: Publishe
Investigating students' approaches to learning. The role of perceived workload, perceived task complexity, working memory capacity, attention and motivation, and their predictive role of academic performance
No full textDuring the past decade, a wide range of teaching methods that emphasise the independence of the student have been implemented and investigated under the common denomination of student-centred learning environments. The main and consistent goal of all these learning environments is fostering a deeper level of learning and understanding. Despite promising results, the specific conceptual origin of this doctoral research lies in the finding that student-centred learning environments do not always push students towards a deep approach to learning. These approaches to learning include the intentions of the students and the strategies they use to learn. A student with a surface approach to learning seeks to reproduce the course material. The most popular strategies among these students are rote learning and unreflective memorisation. A deep approach to learning is associated with an intrinsic interest in the subject. The students intention is to understand the material by making use of various strategies such as conceptual analysis, reflection, discussing the material, looking up additional information, among others, to that effect. When carried out thoroughly, this deep approach to learning generally results in higher quality learning outcomes. The inconclusiveness of results in the research on student centred learning environments has given rise to the question as to what specific factors influence the induction of a deep approach to learning. This doctoral dissertation comprises 6 articles: 1 literature review and 5 empirical studies based on two experiments. In addition, there is a general introduction and a conclusion which focuses on what we have learned from this research and its limitations. Finally, some suggestions are put forward for future research. The first chapter is a literature review: based on the scientific literature, specific encouraging or discouraging factors, suggested by research on the influence of student centred learning environments, were identified. Next the nature of the influence of these factors on students approaches to learning was investigated. This literature study revealed a lot of possible encouraging and discouraging factors that can be divided into three general categories: context, perceived context and individual characteristics. A selection of variables to study was carried out, based on the literature review, and the influence of five independent variables (perceived workload, perceived task complexity, motivation, working memory capacity and attention) on students approaches to learning were investigated. Chapter 2 to chapter 5 report on the different hypotheses investigated regarding the relationships of these selected variables with approaches to learning. Chapter 2 investigated the influence of perceived workload and task complexityon students approaches to learning. This study identified lack of information, as an aspect of task complexity, as a generally inhibiting factor when trying to induce a deep approach to learning. It also showed the differential influence of familiarity on approaches to learning under different workload and task complexity conditions. Chapter 3 focused on the direct and indirect influence of motivation on learning approaches. It showed that autonomous motivation influences the perception of a lack of information. Moreover, autonomous motivation does not only influence students approaches to learning in an indirect manner. It also has a direct positive influence on deep approaches to learning. Chapter 4 is an exploratory study which investigates if working memory capacity and attention relate to students approaches to learning. Results indicate that students with high cognitive capacities use less deep approaches but they also show lesser use of surface approaches to learning. In chapter 5 the methodology of the previous chapters was supplemented with a complementary person oriented approach, examining if different student profiles could be identified based on the motivation and working memory capacity of the student. It was further explored if these different profiles differed in their learning approaches and whether they experienced a different influence of workload in their learning approaches. This study concluded that students with a different profile differed in their approaches to learning and were influenced by workload in the same way. Chapter 6 examined, by means of a neural network analysis, which variables were important for predicting the best, weakest and middle group of students in terms of academic performance, and how well they could predict learning outcomes. The predictors that were included were students approaches to learning, their motivation and their cognitive capacities: working memory capacity and attention. Results showed that the academic performance of the top and bottom 20% were best predicted by only their cognitive capacities, while approaches to learning and motivation only contributed to the prediction of the middle group in addition to their cognitive skills.status: Publishe
Students’ perceptions about constructivist learning environments within teacher education and its effects on student learning and prospective teacher behaviour
No full textstatus: Publishe
Autonomy-Supportive, Structuring, and Psychologically Controlling Teaching: Antecedents, Mediators, and Outcomes in Late Adolescents
Full text linkDit proefschrift onderzoekt (a) de relatie tussen leerkrachtdimensies en uitkomsten bij laat-adolescenten (vooral zelf-gereguleerd leren), (b) de mediërende rol van de kwaliteit van de motivatie bij studenten in deze relaties en (c) de antecedenten van psychologisch controlerend lesgeven.In Hoofdstuk 1 bespreken we leerkrachtstijl en werken we onze onderzoeksvragen uit. In Hoofdstuk 2 geven we een theoretisch overzicht van de kernconcepten in dit proefschrift, namelijk leerkrachtstijldimensies, zelf-gereguleerd leren en kwaliteit van motivatie. In Hoofdstuk 3 onderzochten we de relatie tussen autonomieondersteuning en structuur bij leerkrachten en hun verband met zelf-gereguleerd leren bij leerlingen en studenten. Gepercipieerde autonomieondersteuning en structuur waren positief gecorreleerd en konden onderscheiden worden met confirmatorische factoranalyse. Het hoofdeffect van gepercipieerde structuur op zelf-gereguleerd leren werd afgezwakt door een significante interactie tussen gepercipieerde autonomieondersteuning en structuur. Structuur moest aangeboden worden met minstens een matig niveau van autonomieondersteuning om een positief verband te hebben met zelf-gereguleerd leren. In Hoofdstuk 4 onderzochten we de relatie tussen gepercipieerde autonomieondersteuning en duidelijke verwachtingen, een centraal aspect van structuur, bij leerkrachten en hun verband met uitkomsten bij leerlingen. Op basis van hoge en lage scores voor deze twee variabelen konden vier gepercipieerde leerkrachtstijlen onderscheiden worden. De leerkrachtstijl gekenmerkt door hoge autonomieondersteuning en duidelijke verwachtingen had het meest positieve patroon van leerlinguitkomsten terwijl de tegenovergestelde leerkrachtstijl, gekenmerkt door lage autonomieondersteuning en vage verwachtingen, het meest negatieve patroon van leerlinguitkomsten had. In Hoofdstuk 5 onderzochten we hoe gepercipieerde autonomieondersteuning en structuur bij leerkrachten ontwikkelen en gerelateerd zijn over tijd en hoe hun ontwikkeling gerelateerd is aan de ontwikkeling in het functioneren van leerlingen. Er waren substantiële interindividuele verschillen in het initiële niveau en de verandering in gepercipieerde autonomieondersteuning en structuur en beide variabelen waren positief gerelateerd over tijd. Ten slotte waren veranderingen in gepercipieerde autonomieondersteuning en structuur positief gerelateerd aan veranderingen in autonome studiemotivatie bij leerlingen, die op hun beurt positief gerelateerd waren aan veranderingen in zelf-gereguleerd leren. In Hoofdstuk 6 onderzochten we verbanden tussen psychologisch controlerend lesgeven en uitkomsten bij leerlingen en tussen psychologisch controlerend lesgeven en gepercipieerde antecedenten. Psychologisch controlerend lesgeven was negatief gerelateerd aan de relatieve autonome studiemotivatie van leerlingen dat op zijn beurt positief gerelateerd was aan zelf-gereguleerd leren. Zelf-gereguleerd leren was positief gerelateerd aan schoolse prestaties. Daarnaast waren druk van bovenaf (bijv. schoolse administratie) en druk van binnenuit (lage relatieve autonomie om les te geven), maar niet druk van onderaf (lage relatieve autonomie bij leerlingen om te studeren), gerelateerd aan psychologisch controlerend lesgeven en deze verbanden werden gemedieerd door de depersonalisatie-component van burnout. Hoofdstuk 7 bespreekt onze voornaamste bevindingen, enkele beperkingen, suggesties voor verder onderzoek en praktische implicaties.status: Publishe
Peer Assisted Learning. Unravelling peer tutors' approaches to tutoring and their effects on students' learning, experiences and the dynamics of this learning environment
No full textA lot is known about the effectiveness of peer assisted learning and peer tutoring. In contrast, process-oriented research remains relatively limited. Since different kinds of interactions promote different kinds oflearning (King, 1997), it is important to understand exactly how peer tutors tutor and how their adopted strategies affect the learning opportunities generated within these learning environments. The need to disentangle peer tutors behavioural repertoire and its implications for students learning, experiences and the dynamics of the peer tutored learning environment raises as one considers that inexperienced or unskilled tutors, such as peers, have become the norm in tutoring settings nowadays. However, as peer tutors knowledge is often implicit, fragmented and poorly organised (Roscoe & Chi, 2007), and as it is known that they face the challenge of a double student-and-tutor role (Colvin, 2007), one can question whether and how peer tutors contribute to students learning. These reflections have stimulated this doctoral research project.In particular, this doctoral research project consisted of two empirical research phases. In a first phase (chapter 1), the behavioural strategies of peer tutors were investigated in-depth by means of a qualitative case study. Results showed that peer tutors engaged mainly in directive strategies, i.e.providing cut-and-dried answers or elaborations. Theseelaborations were, however, of a profound quality. In contrast, facilitative strategies (i.e.questioning, prompting or hinting) were less observed. What is more, they appeared to be rather general in nature. Furthermore, a typology of approaches to peer tutoring resulted from this study, i.e. motivational organisers, informers and questioners. Finally, it was shown that different types of peer tutors experienced tutoring differently.The second phase, represented by four empirical studies (chapters 2-5),built further on the results obtained in the first research phase. It aimed to investigate the effects of two different approaches to peer tutoring on students learning and experiences, as well to grasp the dynamics that resulted from both tutoring approaches in terms of students learning (inter-)actions adopted within the learning environment. For these purposes, a large-scale quasi-experimental study was set up in which two specific approaches to peer tutoring were induced, i.e. adirective versus facilitative approach. Chapter 2 and 3focused on the effects of these approaches to tutoring on students knowledge, understanding and actual skill performance. Chapter 2 revealed that while no maineffect of the approach to tutoring was found on students development of knowledge and understanding, nor on their actual skill performance, aninteraction effect existed between the approach to tutoring and students course-specific prior knowledge. More specifically, less knowledgeable students scored better in terms of their knowledge and understanding when being tutored by a facilitative peer tutor, while the opposite was true for high-knowledgeable students. Chapter 3 investigated this interaction effect more in-depth by means of extreme course-specific prior knowledge groups. These results nuanced the findings of chapter 2 as it appeared that the approach to peer tutoring only mattered for students who started the course with no or limited course-specific prior knowledge. The facilitative approach to tutoring remained to be most favourable. Chapter 4 focused on the learning (inter-)actions that were stimulated in students within both tutored learning environments. The main findings indicated that students tutored by a directive peer tutor uttered more non-elaborative comments or ignored peer tutors support. Also more informal actions and questions requesting confirmation or assessment-related information were observed. In contrast, facilitatively tutored students engaged mainly in elaborative actions, which were of a profound quality. However, this latter student group appeared to lack clarity as they mainly asked clarification questions. Questions requesting confirmation or assessment-related information occurred less than expected in this group. Finally, chapter 2 and 5 aimed to shed light on students perceptions and experiences within both tutored learning environments. It was shown thatdirectively tutored studenst appraised their tutored learning environment to a larger extent. Moreover directively tutored students' dislikes related mainly to peer tutors' expertise and organisational features. In contrast, facilitatively tutored students' dislikes concerned the perceived lack of clarity that resulted from peer tutors' approach to tutoring. Nevertheless, these students acknowledged more deep-level learning as a result of their attendance at these specifically tutored sessions.11.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-fareast-font-family:Calibri;mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman";mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-bidi;mso-ansi-language:EN-GB;mso-fareast-language:EN-US;mso-bidi-language:AR-SA"lang="EN-GB">EN-GB" lang="EN-GB">status: Publishe
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