The study investigated experiences of dropouts in schools in rural secondary schools in the Eastern Cape, South Africa. Ten learners who previously dropped out of school described their experiences in school subsequent to re-enrolling. The implications of these experiences for educational leadership were explored. Using a qualitative approach,…

Focus groups (N = 15 groups; 8 with girls, 7 with boys) with adolescents in high schools near Cape Town, South Africa, were used to conduct a qualitative investigation of reported reasons for using and not using substances and for having and not having sex. Adolescents reported Enhancement, Negative States, Social, and Aversive Social motivations…

This study aims to share English language practitioners' reflections on the adaptation of teaching methods and materials during the pre-validation period of the European Language Portfolio (ELP). In order to achieve this aim, a high school was selected as the scope of research, since it has started to adapt the English language teaching…

Objective: To investigate the experiences and barriers to food security of community-dwelling older people. Design: Quantitative questionnaire and 5 focus group discussions using purposive sampling. Setting: Shire of Melton, Victoria, Australia. Participants: Thirty-seven people (13 male and 24 female), between 58 and 85 years of age, from…

Objective: Characterize the process of family vegetable selection (especially cruciferous, deep orange, and dark green leafy vegetables); demonstrate the usefulness of Exchange Theory (how family norms and experiences interact with rewards and costs) for interpreting the data. Design: Eight focus groups, 2 with each segment (men/women vegetable…

Children in foster care comprise a population of students at great risk for school failure. The child welfare agency, schools, and home must all work together to provide the services and supports required to achieve better results. The purpose of this study was to conduct focus groups with participants from each sector to discuss their views on…

This paper emerges from an ongoing, three-year qualitative study of how adolescents, teachers, and peer sexual health educators interpret the language of abstinence and represent the emotional meanings that enliven sexuality and sexual health. The paper demonstrates how conflicts of thinking and relationality emerge from aesthetic narratives about…

Transgender youth experience negative school environments and may not benefit directly from interventions defined to support Lesbian, Gay and Bisexual (LGB) youth. This study utilized a multi-method approach to consider the issues that transgender students encounter in school environments. Using data from two studies, survey data (total n = 2260,…

Recent literature in higher and adult education has identified "authenticity" in teaching as a significant yet under-researched phenomenon lacking a straight-forward definition. By exploring how academic teachers and their students, next to educational theorists and philosophers, understand the notion of authenticity in teaching we offer…

The Australian Disability Discrimination Act (1992) has challenged higher education to meet the increasing needs of students with different abilities. This may be more so in programmes that have practice components where students must demonstrate competency, regardless of their situation. This qualitative exploratory study undertaken at the…

Introduction: There is movement of physicians internationally. In some cases, physicians are recruited from low-income countries to wealthier countries like Canada to provide medical services in underresourced communities. This needs assessment examined the clinical medicine learning challenges faced by international medical graduates (IMGs) from…

Traditional frameworks of parenting have failed to capture the distinctive nature of parenting in Latino families. Cultural values likely influence parenting practices. The study of cultural values may allow us to identify aspects of parenting that are unique to Latinos and which complement traditional frameworks of parenting. This paper presents…

The new requirements for Initial Teacher Education (ITE) courses for the Learning and Skills sector mean that mentors now have a more significant role in the formal assessment of their mentees' practical teaching. This research looks at the emerging dilemmas and challenges and investigates the changing and complex relationship in institutions…

Gangs have a long history in Cape Town and children tend to begin involvement around age 12. Children's views on causes of children's involvement in gangs and appropriate interventions, were sought for inclusion in policy recommendations. Thirty focus group discussions were held with in- and out-of-school youth in different communities.…

Mineralogy is a core topic for tertiary geoscience programs worldwide. We report on the use of laboratory group work as an effective and integral part of a new introductory mineralogy curriculum at the University of British Columbia. The new laboratory curriculum was developed by incorporating student feedback with evidence-based pedagogies. These…