Despite the increased availability of smartphones and health applications (apps), little is known about smartphone technology and apps for implementation in health promotion practice. Smartphones are mobile devices with capabilities for e-mail, text messaging, video viewing, and wireless Internet access. It is essential for health promotion…

This article aims to share experience from a Swedish project on the introduction and implementation of Open Educational Resources (OER) in higher education with both national and international perspectives. The project, "OER--resources for learning", was part of the National Library of Sweden Open Access initiative and aimed at exploring, raising…

The Education for Persons with Special Educational Needs Act in Ireland advocated the development of individual education plans (IEPs). However, this section of the Act has never been fully implemented and there is no obligation upon schools to develop IEPs. Research conducted across the country by Richard Rose and Yu Zhao of the University of…

One of the challenges in in-service teacher education is how teachers can be given professional development (PD) that enables them to respond to national curriculum and policy change. In recent years primary teachers in New Zealand have been inundated with Ministry of Education-funded professional development programmes to help them implement a…

As many educators and parents have observed, today's children are exposed to advanced technology at an early age, with tablets, e-readers, and smartphones being some prevalent choices. Experiences with technology can pave the way for unprecedented learning opportunities. However, without an education component, technology cannot reach its full…

This article focuses upon the adoption and implementation of United Kingdom government support for third stream business-facing activities in UK higher education institutions (HEIs). The article, concerned with income generation and the creation and application of knowledge beyond the confines of the academy, draws on policy literature and…

In the opening paper in this Special Edition I outlined the major issues that led to the establishment of "project e-scape". The project was intended to develop systems and approaches that enabled learners to build real-time web-based portfolios of their performance (initially) in design & technology and additionally to build systems…

Objectives: To evaluate the impact of school-based mentoring for adolescents (11-18 years) on academic performance, attendance, attitudes, behavior, and self-esteem. Method: A systematic review and meta-analysis. The authors searched 12 databases from 1980 to 2011. Eight studies with 6,072 participants were included, 6 were included in…

Implementing educational reform requires partnerships, and university-school collaborations in the form of investigative and experimental projects can aim to determine the practicalities of reform. However, there are funded projects that do not achieve intended outcomes. In the context of a new reform initiative in education, namely, science,…

This case describes a database redesign project for the United States Department of Agriculture's National Animal Germplasm Program (NAGP). The case provides a valuable context for teaching and practicing database analysis, design, and implementation skills, and can be used as the basis for a semester-long team project. The case demonstrates the…

The patients receiving treatment from a hospital need to interact with multiple entities when claiming reimbursements. The complexities of the medical service supply chain can be simplified with an electronic clearance management system that allows hospitals, medical insurance bureau, bank, and patients to interact in a seamless and cashless…

This article describes the steps involved in the development and implementation of a parent nutrition education workshop series for a low-income, primarily Spanish-speaking population in an urban school district setting. Overall, those parents who participated in the nutrition education workshops showed positive changes in their knowledge,…

This paper presents an original approach to designing social media that support informal learning in the digital workplace. It adapts design-based research to take into account the embeddedness of interactions within digitally mediated work-based contexts. The approach is demonstrated through the design, implementation, and evaluation of software…

In 2009, the South African Department of Education extended tuition fee abolition to schools serving the poorest 60% of students, increased from 40% in 2007. This policy intends to increase access to and longevity in school for the poorest households by removing fees as a barrier and replacing private revenue with increased state funds. Despite…

This article is a position paper, based on, and supported by, the extensive literature on the topic of Maori underachievement in education in Aotearoa/New Zealand. It places emphasis on what underachieving Maori students need to reach their full potential and ways in which educationalists can assist. I am of mixed heritage raised amongst three…