远程开放教育中电大图书馆服务创新

随着网络的飞速发展和功能的扩充,远程开放教育的深入开展,电大图书馆应在发挥自身长期积累的资源、技术和管理优势的基础上,强化改革和创新,创新服务,适应现代网络信息社会的发展,适应远程教育的发展对电大图书馆的要求。     

Experiencing Globalization: Active Teaching and Learning in International Political Economy

This article explores the teaching and learning challenges for the discipline of international studies (IS) that arise from the contemporary social, economic, and political changes usually labeled "globalization." The focus is upon the challenge posed to IS by a transformation in the nature of the relationship of teachers and students to the subject matter that they study: that is, teachers and students increasingly experience and contribute to globalization in the course of their daily lives as they simultaneously teach and learn about it. Significantly for the study of globalization in IS, pedagogical debates surrounding active teaching and learning highlight the potential for strategies that actively engage students' interests and everyday experiences with the subject itself. On this basis, the article outlines some potential routes into the active teaching and learning of globalization in the field of international political economy, illustrating these with examples from classroom activities and exercises.     

Fiscal Policy Learning from Crisis: Comparative Analysis of the Baltic Countries

The experience of a major crisis is often expected to lead to policy learning but the empirical evidence about this is limited. The goal of the paper is to explore comparatively whether the crisis of 2008–2010 has led to fiscal policy learning by civil servants in the three Baltic countries. Despite some differences in the crisis experience, the finance ministry officials in all three countries have identified the same lesson from the crisis: fiscal policy should be counter-cyclical and help to stabilize the economy. The paper also discusses how various factors have influenced policy learning, including the acknowledgment of failure, blame shifting, and analytical tractability.     

From Active Learning to Taking Action: Incorporating Political Context Into Project-Based,Interdisciplinary, International Service Learning Courses

Educational approaches that enable students to actively and directly participate in “real-world” projects are increasingly recognized as valuable pedagogical tools and, as such, being incorporated into university curriculums worldwide. Though not traditionally associated with political science courses, project-based international service learning presents a tremendous opportunity to bring classroom concepts and theories to life, provide an active approach to addressing international challenges, and assist students in the development of the hands-on, problem-solving, team-based, critical-thinking skills that are increasingly important to employers across all sectors. This article seeks to encourage political science faculty to incorporate international service learning—and/or project-based approaches—into their educational offerings. Through examination of the course Global Synthesis in Liberal Arts and Engineering Studies at California Polytechnic State University, we have identified multiple factors that can help promote successful execution of project-based international service learning as a pedagogical tool, and provide additional suggestions for faculty interested in adopting specific aspects of these educational approaches, and/or in doing so closer to home.     

Data Analysis and Data Visualization as Active Learning in Political Science

While data analysis and the related skills of data management and data visualization are important skills for undergraduates in the field of political science, the process of learning these skills can also be used to develop critical thinking, encourage active and collaborative learning, and to apply knowledge gained in the classroom. Drawing on our experiences using data work in upper-level courses in International Relations and American Politics, we discuss how data work and quantitative analysis can be incorporated into subject-based (i.e., nonmethods specific) courses, and how it can also enhance critical reasoning skills. An evaluation of this approach using direct and indirect assessment is included.     

Exploring a constructivist redesign of youth work training: transformative-oriented learning and trainer development

Abstract

Two small-scale studies were conducted to investigate the viability of a constructivist learning design for a 25-hour child and youth care training program. The first study investigated transformative learning conditions, belief change processes, and practice change. The second study explored a trainer’s development of transformative learning instructional practices. Results of study 1 indicated the training program fostered transformative learning conditions, practitioner reflection on practices, and changes in practice. The process of belief change differed by participants, with evidence of both transformative-oriented and nontransformative learning. Study 2 found the trainer’s change from a transmission to a transformative approach to teaching required shifting beliefs about types of effective teaching, greater attunement to practitioner points of view and the process of learning, and appreciation of practitioner initial resistance to training. The findings provide preliminary evidence for the viability and effectiveness of a constructivist approach to training and the process of trainer development for fostering transformative-oriented learning.     

The promotion of peace education through guides in peace museums. A case study of the Kyoto Museum for World Peace,Ritsumeikan University

This paper focuses on how peace education at a peace museum is promoted by a volunteer guide service for visitors. Peace museums are places where many materials related to war and peace history are on display. To support the learning experience of museum visitors, many peace museums in Japan provide a volunteer guide service. The Kyoto Museum for World Peace, Ritsumeikan University, started such a service more than 20 years ago. A citizens’ group, called Friends for Peace, is in charge of the museum guide activities in cooperation with the museum. This article explains the purposes and nature of the service, and also reports on a survey of similar services offered by other peace museums in Japan.     

Co-Production and Health System Reform – From Re-Imagining To Re-Making

There is growing interest in the application of citizen participation within all areas of public sector service development, where it is increasingly promoted as a significant strand of post-neoliberal policy concerned with re-imagining citizenship and more participatory forms of citizen/consumer engagement. The application of such a perspective within health services, via co-production, has both beneficial, but also problematic implications for the organisation of such services, for professional practice and education. Given the disappointing results in increasing consumer involvement in health services via 'choice' and 'voice' participation strategies, the question of how the more challenging approach of co-production will fare needs to be addressed. The article discusses the possibilities and challenges of system-wide co-production for health. It identifies the discourse and practice contours of co-production, differentiating co-production from other health consumer-led approaches. Finally, it identifies issues critically related to the successful implementation of co-production where additional theorisation and research are required.     

Preferred learning style： Gender influence on preferred learning style among business students

Past studies indicate that there was a correlation between gender and students＇ preferred styles of learning. Thus, the purpose of this study is to determine the influence of gender on the learning style preferences of business students based on the VARK （Fleming, 2002b） learning style survey, consisting of the V（isual）, A（ural）, R（ead-Write） and K（inesthefic） learning styles. The sampling design used for this study was non-probability sampling and the sampling technique conducted was convenient sampling on 207 male students and 199 female students from the business school. The study found that gender only influences the V（isual） and A（ural） learning styles of business students. In addition to that, even though both male and female students exhibited a similar response towards both these learning styles, female students were found to demonstrate slightly higher preference for the V（isual） and A（ural） learning styles as compared to the male students. The findings draw attention to facets of learning that may exist in pre-university and tertiary classrooms with a combination of female and male students, which could have an impact on teaching and managing these students.     

建构主义理论对高校教学改革的意义和启示

最早提出建构主义的是瑞士心理学家皮亚杰。建构主义认为,学习是学习者主动建构内部心理表征的过程;学习需要通过合作使认知和理解更加丰富和全面;教师是学生学习的主导,学生是学习的主体;建构主义的教学方法有:支架式、抛锚式、情境性教学、随机进入教学。建构主义理论对高校教学改革具有积极的意义:依照建构主义理论,系统实施教学改革;抓住内涵,建设精品课;制定措施,培养学生自主学习意识;开发校园环境建设新模式,促进学生心理健康发展。