In the ambitions to upgrade the teaching profession, much attention is given to Master’s courses for teachers. As such Master’s courses ask for considerable investment in time and money, the question can be raised to what extent the upgrading of teachers to the Master’s level will lead to improvement in teaching and learning at schools. This paper presents the outcomes of a small scale study in which 7 teachers who recently graduated at a Master’s program in the Netherlands were interviewed on the climate and conditions they experienced at the workplace in their schools to apply their newly acquired knowledge, skills and professional attitude in their daily work. This explorative study shows that teachers engaged in a Master’s program can meet considerable obstacles within the organizational culture of the school. There appears to be a considerable misalignment between the teachers engaged in the post-initial Master’s program and their supervisors. While the teachers see the purpose of the Master’s program both in private terms (personal development) and public terms (contributing to school development), they experience an organizational climate that leaves no room for a wider public purpose of their studies, where they use the competences and qualities they have developed outside the boundaries of their own classrooms
This thesis investigates knowledge workersandapos; satisfaction with Activity-Based Working (ABW) environments and its impact on perceived productivity in the Netherlands. Grounded in Person-Environment Fit Theory, this study addresses the importance of employee productivity in organizational success and examines how ABW environments can enhance satisfaction and productivity by aligning with job characteristics, task characteristics, and psychological needs. This study employed a quantitative approach, gathering responses through an online questionnaire from 110 knowledge workers in Dutch ABW settings. The study examined the relationships between job characteristics, task characteristics, behavioural patterns, psychological needs, and demographic characteristics with satisfaction in ABW environments and its impact on perceived productivity. The findings revealed positive correlations between ABW environments and job characteristics, suggesting that these settings are particularly beneficial for roles requiring high autonomy, social interaction, and internal mobility. Task variety also positively influences satisfaction, underscoring the importance of offering diverse tasks to foster employee satisfaction, thereby increasing their perceived productivity in ABW settings. However, the study found that employees with a high need for structure and privacy are less satisfied in ABW environments. Overall, this study found a generally positive outlook on ABW environments. Most participants reported a good fit between their workspace and activities, leading to higher satisfaction and perceived productivity. This suggests a potential positive feedback loop within well-designed ABW settings. The results offer valuable insights for facility and workspace managers aiming to create supportive and efficient work environments. By understanding and addressing the specific needs and characteristics of knowledge workers, organizations can enhance satisfaction and productivity, thereby adding value to their organizations and achieving sustainable success.
MULTIFILE
Evaluating player game experiences through biometric measurementsThe BD4CG (Biometric Design for Casual Games project) worked in a highly interdisciplinary context with several international partners. The aim of our project was to popularize the biometric method, which is a neuro-scientific approach to evaluating the player experience. We specifically aimed at the casual games sector, where casual games can be defined as video or web-based games with simple and accessible game mechanics, non threatening themes and generally short play sessions. Popular examples of casual games are Angry Birds and FarmVille. We focussed on this sector because it is growing fast, but its methodologies have not grown with it yet. Especially the biometrics method has so far been almost exclusively used domain by the very large game developers (such as Valve and EA). The insights and scientific output of this project have been enthusiastically embraced by the international academic arena. The aim of the grant was to focus on game producers in the casual sector, and we have done so but we also established further contacts with the game sector in general. Thirty-one outputs were generated, in the form of presentations, workshops, and accepted papers in prominent academic and industry journals in the field of game studies and game user research. Partners: University of Antwerpen, RANJ, Forward Games, Double Jungle, Realgames, Dreams of Danu, Codemasters, Dezzel, Truimph Studios, Golabi Studios
Levenscyclusdenken (meenemen van de impact van gehele levenscyclus van woningen op milieu, bewoners en productieketen) structureel invoeren is moeilijk voor woningcorporaties. Er worden wel pilots uitgevoerd, maar meestal eindigt het daar. Wat zijn belangrijke barrières en enablers en hoe kunnen deze weggenomen worden? Dat is de vraag in dit project.Doel Het project beoogt binnen drie woningcorporaties een intern gesprek tussen alle organisatielagen te ontsluiten over levenscyclusdenken, omdat we verwachten dat het ontbreken van dit gesprek een belangrijke barrière is. Op basis van groepsgesprekken en individuele interviews ontwerpen we een interne dialoog-tool. Looptijd 01 december 2020 - 30 november 2021 Resultaten Leer- en bewustwordingsproces onder beroepsprofessionals uit verschillende hiërarchische lagen en afdelingen van woningcorporaties over levenscyclusdenken; Visualisatie van de complexiteit van levenscyclusdenken bij woco’s; Netwerkvorming en vraagarticulatie voor opstarten groter project; Prototype van een dialoog-tool die woco’s in staat stelt zelf een interne dialoog op gang te brengen. Relevantie Naast doorwerking in de praktijk van woningcorporaties en onderzoek (kennis over barrières en enablers van levenscyclusdenken) werkt het project direct door in de onderwijspraktijk van de HU bijde Master of Urban Area Development. De genoemde woningcorporaties zijn opdrachtgever voor masterstudenten. Het activiteitenplan is gekoppeld aan de looptijd van de cursus “Strategisch beheer”. Aanpak Binnen het consortium van woningcorporaties, ketenpartners en experts ontsluiten we via een groepsgesprek en interne interviews (n=12) een dialoog tussen projectleider, asset manager, directie en/of beleids- of strategiemedewerker en financiën over de gevolgen van levenscyclusdenken op de interne organisatie van woningcorporaties. Vervolgens ontwerpen we een prototype voor een interne dialoog-tool die we testen in een eind(groeps)dialoog en met studenten van de Master of Urban and Area Development. Onderstaand beeld: impressie Mural-dialoog over het structureel invoeren van levenscyclusdenken. Concretisering HU-promotieonderzoek Het project bouwt voort op het HU-promotieonderzoek van Marieke Venselaar, die in 2017 promoveerde op het proefschrift 'Work Floor Experiences of Supply Chain Partnering in the Dutch Housing Sector', waarbij zij het gebrek aan interne dialoog over levenscyclusdenken reeds vaststelde. Marieke is inmiddels werkzaam als asset manager bij woningcorporatie Rochdale, maar wel als expert betrokken bij dit project. Website en blog Marieke Venselaar: www.mariekevenselaar.nl Cofinanciering Het onderzoek wordt gefinancierd door NWO (Regieorgaan SIA) Registratienummer KIEM.K20.01.009
Vacation travel is an essential ingredient in quality of life. However, the contriubtion of vacations to quality of life could be improved in two ways: by optimizing the decisions people make when planning and undertaking their vacations, and by travel industry testing and implementing––based on evidence––innovative experience products which touch customers' emotions. Secondary analysis of two longitudinal panel datasets will address the impact of people's decisions in planning and undertaking their vacations, on their quality of life. Field experiments in cooperation with travel industry partners will address the effects of innovative experience products, such as apps designed to help vacationers meet fellow travelers, or personalized memory books designed to help people relive their vacations after return home. Experience data in these field experiments will be collected using technology of the Breda University of Applied Sciences' Experience Measurement Lab, a unique facility for measuring emotions continuously from research participants' body and mind. Thus, the project will contribute to general understanding of quality of life, will feed valuable knowledge about experience design, measurement, and implementation to the Dutch travel industry, and will support the Breda University of Applied Sciences' key research theme of Designing, Measuring, and Managing Experiences. Inspiring examples from the project will reinforce research methods courses in the academic Bachelor of Science in Tourism, the HBO Master in Tourism Destination Management, and the academic Master of Science in Leisure Studies. Wearable emotion measurement from the field experiment will be a cornerstone of the fourth-year HBO-bachelor module Business Intelligence, where students will conduct their own research projects on experience measurement using consumer wearables, based on knowledge from this postdoc project. Finally, a number of methodological and content questions within the project will serve as suitable thesis assignments for graduation students in the above educational tracks.
