Much research into the reasons students undertake tertiary study is at least implicitly based on rational choice theory: students calculate costs in order to maximize direct individual gain. The policy emphasis on pathways has somewhat broader bases including social inclusion as well as economic productivity, but narrowly focuses on institutional…

A small team of independent entrepreneurs developed two Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) on sustainable development that attracted over 400 participants. This article describes the original intentions and formats of the MOOCs as well as their actual performance. With little publicity, the courses revealed strong buy-in by the participants and…

This article reflects on a multi-year project involving participatory research with parents. Specifically, it reports on an ongoing capacity-building endeavor that consciously places parents at the center of a parent education project--wherein parents are regarded as project participants, possessing valued knowledge, rather than as more…

In this "Postcards from the Podium," a strategy employed by academic development staff in an attempt to increase participation in sharing best practice at an Australian university is outlined. A casual review of the literature from a diverse range of group-based, face-to-face workshops throughout the year focused on enhancing teaching…

With an emphasis on planning and cutting costs to make better use of resources, facilities managers at community colleges across the nation have undertaken facilities audits usually with the help of outside engineers. Such assessments analyze the history and structural integrity of buildings and core components on campus, including heating…

Shadowing is a data collection method that involves following a person, as they carry out those everyday activities relevant to a research study. This article explores the use of shadowing in a formative evaluation of a professional development school (PDS). Specifically, this article discusses how shadowing was used to understand the role of a…

Over the last two decades, educational theory has begun to incorporate analyses of space where formerly temporal considerations dominated. In this article, Marxist educational theory is spatialized by considering the school as (1) a form of fixed capital, (2) a crucial aspect of the built environment and (3) a relational space. The author begins…

In the UK, the Civil Service Reform Plan is being implemented with urgency. This requires Civil Service departments and agencies to reform their structures and ways of working in order to deliver effective services in a climate of economic austerity and rapid social and technological change. Historically, Human Resource (HR) professionals have…

A synthesis of the state of the literature is discussed in this section of the Evaluation Capacity Building (ECB) forum organized around four critical questions: (1) What is ECB? (2) How can we make it happen? (3) How do we know it is happening? and (4) What is its impact? The authors argue that to move the field of ECB forward we need to envision…

Indira Gandhi national Open University (IGNOU) is an apex body for open and distance learning (ODL) system in India. The university has nation-wide operation and pioneer in distance education. IGNOU has an hqrs, 67 Regional Centres and about 3400 Study Centres throughout India. The study centres are the academic contact point for distance learners…

In Canada, youth apprenticeships have been promoted as an educational alternative that leads to the development of valuable skills, allows for the opportunity to earn an income while learning and helps youth to gain a head start into lucrative, creative and in-demand careers. Yet, these programmes have remained rather marginal and continue to be…

In this article we present findings from the evaluation study of a nation-wide school renovation programme in Portugal. The aim is to analyse policy implementation, taking into account school community participation, discussing how the programme requirement to involve users in the renovation was met, examining perceptions of the programme's…

A Green school is energy efficient, higher performing school that can be environmentally beneficial. Importance of Green school lies in the environmental friendliness value it upholds. Service learning has emanated out of philosophies of progressiveness and pragmatism. Service learning enables students to grow and learn through active…

Professional development that aims to build school change capacity requires spaces for collaborative action and reflection. These spaces should promote learning and foster skills for distributed leadership in managing school change. The present study analyses the case of the Seminar for Critical Citizenship (SCC) established by teachers of infant,…

Many academic librarians in the state of New Jersey (NJ) have successfully integrated information literacy (IL) into the curriculum using the ACRL IL Competency Standards for Higher Education ("Standards"). These "Standards" formed the underpinnings of IL curriculum mapping and assessment plans, and have been adopted by…