In today’s foreign language (FL) education, teachers universally recognise the importance of fostering students’ ability to communicate in the target language. However, the current assessments often do not (sufficiently) evaluate this. In her dissertation, Charline Rouffet aims to gather insight into the potential of assessments to steer FL teaching practices. Communicative learning objectives FL teachers fully support the communicative learning objectives formulated at national level and embrace the principles of communicative language teaching. Yet, assessments instead primarily focus on formal language knowledge in isolation (e.g., grammar rules), disconnected from real-world communicative contexts. This misalignment between assessment practices and communicative objectives hampers effective FL teaching. CBA toolbox The aim of this design-based PhD research project is to gather insight into the potential of assessments to steer FL teaching practices. To this end, tools for developing communicative classroom-based assessment (CBA) programmes were designed and implemented in practice, in close collaboration with FL teachers. Rouffet's dissertation consists of multiple studies, in which the current challenges of FL education are addressed and the usage of the CBA toolbox is investigated. Findings reveal that assessing FL competencies in a more communicative way can transform teaching practices, placing communicative abilities at the heart of FL education.
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While Communicative Language Teaching (CLT) is nowadays widely recognized, the implementation of CLT in foreign language (FL) classrooms remains difficult. In the Netherlands, communicative learning goals have been formulated at the national level, but in daily practice assessments and learning activities tend to focus on knowledge of grammar rules and vocabulary out of context. Under the principle of constructive alignment, assessment and learning activities should be in line with learning objectives in order to enable effective teaching. Evaluation in particular plays a key role, because it has a direct impact on teachers’ pedagogical choices and students’ learning behavior (i.e., washback effect). To enhance alignment in the Dutch FL curricula of lower form education, the first author and 21 FL teachers collaborated to create a realistic, theoretically grounded communicative assessment program that would enable positive washback. This paper takes inventory of the challenges faced by teachers during the co-design process and the decisions that have been made to overcome them.
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This article reports on a study concerning relationships between personality traits and three aspects of Individual Learning Theories (ILTs) on acquiring social-communicative competence: self-perceived social-communicative competence, domain-related learning conceptions and preferred learning situations. ILTs are personal theories, which serve as frames of reference to describe, categorise and explain learning and school-related issues with regard to a particular domain. We investigated relations between personality and three ILT variables for first-, second- and fourth-year social work students. Results show that personality and ILT variables are related. Especially self-perceived competence and personality are related. Autonomy plays the most important role, especially for first-year students. Autonomy also predicts learning situations that first- and fourth-year students favour. Personality is more strongly related to ILT variables for social work students in the first year of their study. For these students personality predicts self-perceived social-communicative competence and preferences for learning situations. For older students, especially the second-year students, personality and ILT variables are less related. Increased insight into the role of personality in ILTs can help to improve education.
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Communication plays an important role in manyprofessional contexts. This is especially truefor students in the field of social work. Theaim of this study was to develop formative,self-regulated multimedia self-assessment ofsocial-communicative competencies for socialwork students. First, a pilot study wasconducted to gain insight into the students'specific characteristics. This insight was usedto design guidelines for the development of theassessment instrument in order to tune these tothe students' perceptions, instructionalpreferences, and personalities and thusenhancing the students' enthusiasm to use theself-assessment instrument. This might increasethe chance for successful implementation ofthis new form of assessment. A first version of a multimedia test wasdeveloped. A quality expert meeting wasorganised to gain insight into expertjudgements on the quality of the test and toobtain indications for improvement of theassessment. A second version of the test wasconstructed and put on the Internet. Nearly 400students completed the assessment and expressedtheir opinions on this new way of communicationassessment. We found it was possible to testsocial-communicative competence by means ofmultimedia, with the help of digital video. Theuse of Internet makes assessments available atany time to fit curriculum needs and alsoresolves time and space constraints. Ourconclusion was that the multimedia test isreasonably valid. All students reported havingliked the multimedia assessment.
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When studying the acquisition of social-communicative competence, it is important to take students' individual learning theories into account. Increased insight into the role ILTs play can be of help in improving social work education.
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This article reports on a literature review on empirical research investigating learning for vocations in the context of vocational education. We included 36 studies in which learning for vocations is empirically studied. Learning for vocations is characterised based upon prevalent research traditions in the field and framed from the perspective of vocational education and organised learning practices. This framing and characterisation directed the search terms for the review. Results show empirical data on vocational learning and illustrate how learning processes for the functions of vocational education - vocational identity development, development of a vocational repertoire of actions, and vocational knowledge development - actually take place. The review further shows that, empirical illustrations of learning processes that occur in the context of vocational education and organised learning practices are relatively scarce. The findings can be typified in relation to our theoretical framework in terms of three learning processes, that is learning as a process of (a) belonging, becoming, and being, (b) recontextualization, and (c) negotiation of meaning and sense-making. We argue that more empirical research should be carried out, using the functions of vocational education and the three learning processes to better understand vocational learning.
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poster voor de EuSoMII Annual Meeting in Pisa, Italië in oktober 2023. PURPOSE & LEARNING OBJECTIVE Artificial Intelligence (AI) technologies are gaining popularity for their ability to autonomously perform tasks and mimic human reasoning [1, 2]. Especially within the medical industry, the implementation of AI solutions has seen an increasing pace [3]. However, the field of radiology is not yet transformed with the promised value of AI, as knowledge on the effective use and implementation of AI is falling behind due to a number of causes: 1) Reactive/passive modes of learning are dominant 2) Existing developments are fragmented 3) Lack of expertise and differing perspectives 4) Lack of effective learning space Learning communities can help overcome these problems and address the complexities that come with human-technology configurations [4]. As the impact of a technology is dependent on its social management and implementation processes [5], our research question then becomes: How do we design, configure, and manage a Learning Community to maximize the impact of AI solutions in medicine?
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Lifelong learning is necessary for nurses and caregivers to provide good, person-centred care. To facilitate such learning and embed it into regular working processes, learning communities of practice are considered promising. However, there is little insight into how learning networks contribute to learning exactly and what factors of success can be found. The study is part of a ZonMw-funded research project ‘LeerSaam Noord’ in the Netherlands, which aims to strengthen the professionalization of the nursing workforce and promote person-centred care. We describe what learning in learning communities looks like in four different healthcare contexts during the start-up phase of the research project. A thematic analysis of eleven patient case-discussions in these learning communities took place. In addition, quantitative measurements on learning climate, reciprocity behavior, and perceptions of professional attitude and autonomy, were used to underpin findings. Reflective questioning and discussing professional dilemma's i.e. patient cases in which conflicting interests between the patient and the professional emerge, are of importance for successful learning.
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Background to the problem Dutch society demonstrates a development which is apparent in many societies in the 21st century; it is becoming ethnically heterogeneous. This means that children who are secondlanguage speakers of Dutch are learning English, a core curriculum subject, through the medium of the Dutch language. Research questions What are the consequences of this for the individual learner and the class situation?Is a bi-lingual background a help or a hindrance when acquiring further language competences. Does the home situation facilitate or impede the learner? Additionally, how should the TEFL professional respond to this situation in terms of methodology, use of the Dutch language, subject matter and assessment? Method of approach A group of ethnic minority students at Fontys University of Professional Education was interviewed. The interviews were subjected to qualitative analysis. To ensure triangulation lecturers involved in teaching English at F.U.P.E. were asked to fill in a questionnaire on their teaching approach to Dutch second language English learners. Thier response was quantitatively and qualitatively analysed. Findings and conclusions The students encountered surprisingly few problems. Their bi-lingualism and home situation were not a constraint in their English language development. TEFL professionals should bear the heterogeneous classroom in mind when developing courses and lesson material. The introduction to English at primary school level and the assessment of DL2 learners require further research.
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To adequately deal with the challenges faced within residential care for older people, such as the increasing complexity of care and a call for more person-centred practices, it is important that health care providers learn from their work. This study investigates both the nature of learning, among staff and students working within care for older people, and how workplace learning can be promoted and researched. During a longitudinal study within a nursing home, participatory and democratic research methods were used to collaborate with stakeholders to improve the quality of care and to promote learning in the workplace. The rich descriptions of these processes show that workplace learning is a complex phenomenon. It arises continuously in reciprocal relationship with all those present through which both individuals and environment change and co-evolve enabling enlargement of the space for possible action. This complexity perspective on learning refines and expands conventional beliefs about workplace learning and has implications for advancing and researching learning. It explains that research on workplace learning is itself a form of learning that is aimed at promoting and accelerating learning. Such research requires dialogic and creative methods. This study illustrates that workplace learning has the potential to develop new shared values and ways of working, but that such processes and outcomes are difficult to control. It offers inspiration for educators, supervisors, managers and researchers as to promoting conditions that embrace complexity and provides insight into the role and position of self in such processes.
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