Studies show that adolescents that follow a higher educational track have more positive experiences than those of lower levels with aspects of democracy, such as decision-making or discussions. In our study, we focus on how adolescents from different educational tracks evaluate the various possibilities to experience democracy in daily life, and whether school is compensating for any difference therein. Data were gathered by interviewing 40 adolescents at two points in time (eighth and tenth grade). The results suggest that, especially in the later phase of secondary education, according to the experiences of adolescents it is apparent that school exacerbates instead of decreases social differences in society. Those in the higher educational track experience more often than those in the lower track having discussions and being encouraged to be socially and politically engaged. We discuss opportunities for teachers and for citizenship education to strengthen democratic socialization in both educational tracks.
Our study looks at gender differences among professors at Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences (AUAS). Despite progress in female representation in higher education, women still make up only 43% of professors as of 2024. While this is a 12% increase from last year, gender gaps persist. Specifically, the Faculty of Business and Education has only 29% women in professor positions. In contrast, the Faculty of Digital Media and Creative Industries and the Faculty of Health have more balanced gender distributions, with 50% and 55% women as full professors, respectively. We suggest AUAS should keep working to balance gender in full professor roles by strengthening executive commitment, setting clear goals, and monitoring progress closely. Our analysis has certain limitations. We lack specific details regarding the professors' appointment hours and their salary scale information. Furthermore, the recent inclusion of associate professors has not been accounted for in our analysis.
Social robots have been introduced in different fields such as retail, health care and education. Primary education in the Netherlands (and elsewhere) recently faced new challenges because of the COVID-19 pandemic, lockdowns and quarantines including students falling behind and teachers burdened with high workloads. Together with two Dutch municipalities and nine primary schools we are exploring the long-term use of social robots to study how social robots might support teachers in primary education, with a focus on mathematics education. This paper presents an explorative study to define requirements for a social robot math tutor. Multiple focus groups were held with the two main stakeholders, namely teachers and students. During the focus groups the aim was 1) to understand the current situation of mathematics education in the upper primary school level, 2) to identify the problems that teachers and students encounter in mathematics education, and 3) to identify opportunities for deploying a social robot math tutor in primary education from the perspective of both the teachers and students. The results inform the development of social robots and opportunities for pedagogical methods used in math teaching, child-robot interaction and potential support for teachers in the classroom
