Organizations worldwide have been turning to Six Sigma program (SSP) to eliminate the defects in their products or drive out the variability in their processes to attain a competitive advantage in their marketplace. An effective certification program has been touted as a major contributor to successful implementation of SSP. An effective…

Objective: This dissertation developed an automatic classification procedure, as an example of a novel tool for an informationist, which extracts information from published abstracts, classifies abstracts into their "fields of study," and then determines the researcher's "field of study" and "level of activity." …

Educational researchers are interested in whether what is learned in the classroom is transferred to new situations. This qualitative case study explores how computer-mediated communication, specifically web logs (blogs), can extend learning and facilitate transfer of learned concepts. Participants blogged for seven weeks about concepts related to…

Modern design and planning are routinely confounded by endemic conditions of deep fragmentation, rampant bureaucratization, and ineffective regulation. Such barriers hamper our ability to succeed in the execution of responsive, responsible, and superb ventures. Added to the mix are cost escalation, outdated technologies, cumbersome techniques,…

This survey provides valuable insight for social work educators into the goals and career intentions of working students who pursue master's degrees in social work, as compared to master's degrees in business. Social work graduate students were surveyed and compared to business graduate students in terms of their motivations for seeking advanced…

In this article we investigate the changing context for teacher professional learning potentially afforded by the conceptual change from professional development to professional learning. Using a narrative case study methodology, we utilize the "Best Evidence Synthesis Iteration" developed by Timperley, Wilson, Barrar and Fung (2007) to analyse…

This article highlights the practice of a group of New Zealand teenagers who are considered by their family and themselves to be technological experts. Drawing on Pierre Bourdieu's key concepts of habitus, field and capital, this text identifies and discusses the cyber-relations that constitute the practice in the field of home computer use for…

Diagnostic error typically involves both system-related and cognitive root causes. Educational interventions are proposed to address both of these dimensions: In regard to system-related origins, education should focus on communication skills, including handoffs. In regard to cognitive shortcomings, educators need to consider both normative…

This paper has five objectives: (a) to review the scientific background of, and major findings reported in, Medical Problem Solving, now widely recognized as a classic in the field; (b) to compare these results with some of the findings in a recent best-selling collection of case studies; (c) to summarize criticisms of the hypothesis-testing model…

In an environment characterised by increasing complexity where teachers need to make sophisticated pedagogical decisions the minimum requirement for teaching in Australian Vocational Education and Training (VET) is a Certificate IV in Training and Assessment (CIV TAA). This paper asks: Does the CIV TAA provide opportunities for participants to…

Traditionally, expertise theories have focused on skills acquisition with little regard for the domain or contextual factors affecting expertise development and retention. Because the development, retention, and recruiting of individuals with expertise is critical to organizational success, it is essential that HRD professionals understand the…

The authors' hypothesis is that if teachers (as experts) understand and teach concepts from the position of expertise teacher quality will improve. They believe that focusing on the key ideas will deepen both teacher and student understanding and allow learners to build the concepts necessary to form solid foundations for the application of…

The use of external examiners in the doctoral assessment process is seen as a quality assurance process in most higher education systems. This article suggests that the selection of examiners is a critical aspect of that process. Interview analysis highlights the professional/academic considerations involved in selecting suitable examiners, as…

Students of business administration in polytechnic higher education are faced with management content that can present specific difficulties when it refers to organisational contexts with which they are generally unfamiliar. This paper examines the way in which a learning and assessment methodology aimed at promoting "proximity" to…

As China is believed to be the market of the twenty-first century, the aim of this cross-sectional analysis, which is based on a literature review, examines the divergence between two main clusters, China and the West. The author makes use of dialectic logic vs. formal logic, particularistic vs. universalistic culture and socialization vs.…