Showing papers in "European Educational Research Journal in 2017"
TL;DR: In the debate on the integration of information and communication technologies (ICT) into schools, the beliefs and attitudes of teachers towards ICT in teaching and learning have always been regard... as discussed by the authors.
Abstract: In the debate on the integration of information and communication technologies (ICT) into schools, the beliefs and attitudes of teachers towards ICT in teaching and learning have always been regard...
84 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, student drop-out in higher education is an increasingly important issue across Europe, but there are substantial disparities between countries and institutions which suggest that variations in poli...
Abstract: Student drop-out in higher education is an increasingly important issue across Europe, but there are substantial disparities between countries and institutions which suggest that variations in poli...
66 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors address the topic of work-life interferences in academic contexts, focusing on early career researchers in the Italian university system, and reveal how the ongoing process of precarization is affecting both the everyday working activities and the private and family lives of early-career researchers.
Abstract: This paper addresses the topic of work–life interferences in academic contexts More specifically, it focuses on early career researchers in the Italian university system The total availability required from those who work in the research sector is leading to significant transformations of the temporalities of work, especially among the new generation of researchers, whose condition is characterized by a higher degree of instability and uncertainty Which are the experiences of the early career researchers in an academic context constituted by a growing competition for permanent positions and, as a consequence, by a greatly increased pressure? Which are the main gender differences? In what elements do Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics disciplines differ from Social Sciences and Humanities? The collected narratives reveal how the ongoing process of precarization is affecting both the everyday working activities and the private and family lives of early career researchers, with important con
59 citations
TL;DR: In the labour market women's jobs have frequently been conceptually and literally tied to housework and hence thought of as unskilled and therefore undervalued as mentioned in this paper, and women's roles have been associated with housework.
Abstract: In the labour market women’s jobs have frequently been conceptually and literally tied to housework and hence thought of as unskilled and therefore undervalued. Although academic institutions have ...
57 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors used the ICILS data to explore whether the achievement test used in this study addressed specific dimensions of CIL and, if so, whether the performances of girls and boys on these subscales differ.
Abstract: IEA’s International Computer and Information Literacy Study (ICILS) 2013 showed that in the majority of the participating countries, 14-year-old girls outperformed boys in computer and information literacy (CIL): results that seem to contrast with the common view of boys having better computer skills. This study used the ICILS data to explore whether the achievement test used in this study addressed specific dimensions of CIL and, if so, whether the performances of girls and boys on these subscales differ. We investigated the hypothesis that gender differences in performance on computer literacy items would be slightly in favour of boys, whereas gender differences in performance on information literacy items would be slightly in favour of girls. Furthermore, it was examined whether such differences varied across European countries and if item bias was present. Data was analysed using a confirmative factor analysis model, i.e. a multidimensional item response theory model, for the identification of the subscales, the explorations of gender and national differences, and possible item bias. To a large extent the results support our postulated hypothesis and shed new light on the commonly assumed disadvantaged position of girls and women in modern information society.
47 citations
TL;DR: In this article, a longitudinal analysis examines the gradual institutionalisation and (un)intended consequences of the UK Research Assessment Exercise (RAE) from 1986 to 2014, concluding that it transforms research to be more accountable.
Abstract: Research evaluation systems in many countries aim to improve the quality of higher education. Among the first of such systems, the UK’s Research Assessment Exercise (RAE) dating from 1986 is now the Research Excellence Framework (REF). Highly institutionalised, it transforms research to be more accountable. While numerous studies describe the system’s effects at different levels, this longitudinal analysis examines the gradual institutionalisation and (un)intended consequences of the system from 1986 to 2014. First, we analyse historically RAE/REF’s rationale, formalisation, standardisation, and transparency, framing it as a strong research evaluation system. Second, we locate the multidisciplinary field of education, analysing the submission behaviour (staff, outputs, funding) of departments of education over time to find decreases in the number of academic staff whose research was submitted for peer review assessment; the research article as the preferred publication format; the rise of quantitative ana...
38 citations
TL;DR: In Central and Eastern Europe (CEE), these processes of change have not only been much more abrupt and fastpaced than in the West, but have also run parallel to all-embracing political, economic and social transformations and, in many cases, nation-building as discussed by the authors.
Abstract: For most countries it is safe to say that higher education (HE) is the segment of the education system which has changed the most over the past 50 years. Expansion, massification, greater female participation, privatization, the diversification of programmes, and more recently internationalization and globalization processes have radically transformed national HE systems. In Central and Eastern Europe (CEE), these processes of change have not only been much more abrupt and fastpaced than in the West, but have also run parallel to all-embracing political, economic and social transformations and, in many cases, nation-building. HE policy-makers in the region have been forced to tackle essentially all contemporary challenges confronting western HE systems within a much tighter timeframe and under much greater political and economic strain. HE reform has run parallel to the democratization of political institutions, the introduction of capitalism and, more recently, European integration. To complicate matters, CEE universities simultaneously struggled with the restoration of university self-governance and autonomy, academic freedoms, and the renewal of the academic profession. In numerous cases, HE was also at the apex of complicated national language and identity issues. Due its turbulent history and present, CEE higher education displays a striking diversity, which reflect nations’ diverging pre-communist and communist pathways as well as different contemporary sources of legitimacy. CEE is home to some of the most tradition-rich universities in Europe, including the Charles University of Prague (1348), Jagellionian University of Kraków (1364), University of Pécs (1367), and University of Vilnius (1578). Many others emerged during the era of nationalism and modernization in the eastern Slavic regions (e.g. the University of St. Petersburg, 1724; Lomonossov University, 1755). Nation building in the Balkans was also accompanied by the opening of numerous large universities in the 1800s (University of Belgrade, 1808; University of Iaşi, 1860; University of Bucharest, 1864; University of Sofia, 1888), many of which were inspired by Napoleonic notions of nationalism. Characteristic of many CEE universities is their lacking historical continuity and struggle for survival amid territorial shifts. The University of Warsaw is a somewhat extreme example of this. Established in 1816 in the Duchy of Warsaw, a Polish state created by Napoleon Bonaparte, the
37 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors explore the impact of excellence as a powerful policy idea in the context of recent and contemporary developments in three selected Central and Eastern European countri... and propose a policy framework for excellence.
Abstract: The aim of the article is to explore the impact of excellence as a powerful policy idea in the context of recent and contemporary developments in three selected Central and Eastern European countri...
30 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors apply a theoretical framework based on institutional isomorphism and a theoretical analysis of higher education governance in Poland and Romania in the post-communist era.
Abstract: This analysis focuses on changes in higher education governance in Poland and Romania in the post-communist era. The author applies a theoretical framework based on institutional isomorphism and hi...
28 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors draw on Bourdieu's social theory, particularly his conceptual tools of cultural capital and field "distinction", to argue that less-advantaged Australian university students appear to have greater access to the cultural capital privileged in higher education institutions.
Abstract: In the global phenomenon of widening participation policy in higher education, lower retention rates for students from less advantaged socio-economic circumstances have potential to undermine the social inclusion agenda of HE. This might be an issue in Europe but is not necessarily the case elsewhere. In this paper we consider statistical data on Australian university students from under-represented groups, retained at similar rates to those of their more advantaged peers. Our data also include print and online media commentary on student retention. In our analysis we draw on Bourdieu’s social theory, particularly his conceptual tools of ‘cultural capital’ and field ‘distinction’. We argue that less-advantaged Australian university students appear to have greater access to the cultural capital privileged in higher education institutions. This tends to undermine claims of retention problems, and of ‘setting up students to fail’, which dominate quasi-policy media forums and have more to do with mitigating a...
28 citations
TL;DR: The assumption that men are more likely to undertake and succeed in an academic career, because the requirements of professional success in this occupation are compatible with normative gender assu....
Abstract: The assumption that men are more likely to undertake and succeed in an academic career, because the requirements of professional success in this occupation are compatible with normative gender assu...
TL;DR: In a recently changing Polish academic environment as discussed by the authors, different academic generations have to cope with different challenges and different challenges, and they have to adapt to different challenges in different academic environments.
Abstract: In a recently changing Polish academic environment – following the large-scale higher education reforms of 2009–2012 – different academic generations have to cope with different challenges. Polish ...
TL;DR: In this paper, a double special issue gathers a series of nuanced critically conceptual and case-study research showing that in the contemporary European context, despite regional differences in gender regimes, gender equality can be achieved in the European context.
Abstract: This double special issue gathers a series of nuanced critically conceptual and case-study research showing that in the contemporary European context, despite regional differences in gender regimes...
TL;DR: Despite an expansion of educational opportunities throughout the EU, access to university is still distributed based on social inequality as discussed by the authors, and this tendency can be observed in all EU countries, with Ge...
Abstract: Despite an expansion of educational opportunities throughout the EU, access to university is still distributed based on social inequality. This tendency can be observed in all EU countries, with Ge...
TL;DR: In this paper, the determinants of the educational expectations of young people in disadvantaged urban areas in three large cities in Sweden were explored, in addition to the conventional precoding factors.
Abstract: The aim of this study is to explore the determinants of the educational expectations of young people in disadvantaged urban areas in three large cities in Sweden. In addition to the conventional pr...
TL;DR: In this article, dual-career academic couples, how they combine careers and parenthood and how their strategies translate into employment pathways of researchers, and especially women researcheng.
Abstract: The paper focuses on dual-career academic couples, how they combine careers and parenthood and how their strategies translate into employment pathways of researchers, and especially women researche...
TL;DR: In this paper, the issue of inequality is one of the most pressing concerns in education and educational research, and factors such as increased socio-economic inequality, movement of people across nationa...
Abstract: Currently, the issue of inequality is one of the most pressing concerns in education and educational research. Factors such as increased socio-economic inequality, movement of people across nationa...
TL;DR: In this article, the authors seek to answer the question of what motivates governments to introduce and implement reforms in higher education (HE), and the political and economic reasons why some governments in the United States and Europe in the last few decades have introduced and implemented HE reforms.
Abstract: This paper seeks to answer the question of what motivates governments to introduce and implement reforms in higher education (HE). The political and economic reasons why some governments in the cou...
TL;DR: In this paper, the first-year experiences of non-trafficking students are analyzed and the challenges they encounter are analyzed. But the authors focus on the first year of a student's life.
Abstract: To understand student drop-out from university, research must explore students’ first-year experiences and the challenges they encounter. This article analyses the first-year experiences of non-tra...
TL;DR: There is increasing concern about high rates of dropout from universities, especially among students from disadvantaged backgrounds as mentioned in this paper, and this is related to recent changes in higher education in the UK.
Abstract: There is increasing concern about high rates of dropout from universities, especially among students from disadvantaged backgrounds. In the UK this is related to recent changes in higher education ...
TL;DR: In this article, the authors examine the domestic reinterpretations of international and European recommendations in Central and Eastern European countries (CEEC) and ask under what conditions these institutional recommendations, but also global processes such as the university rankings, affect domestic public policies.
Abstract: This contribution examines the domestic reinterpretations of international and European recommendations in Central and Eastern European countries (CEEC). It asks under what conditions these institutional recommendations, but also global processes such as the university rankings, affect domestic public policies. The countries of Central and Eastern Europe, which have experienced a far-reaching reform process since 1989, have been particularly affected by new standards promoted at the European and international level. The article shows that the combined external and domestic pressures affect HEI in multiple and sometimes contradictory ways. Based on the Polish and Ukrainian cases, it reassesses the (party) political factor in the reorientation of HE reforms. It shows that Europeanization and internationalization are neither uniform nor linear processes. Ultimately, the announced diversification of HEI appears as a longer-term process whose outcome remains uncertain.
TL;DR: The underrepresentation of women in academe has been the focus of both academic literature and European policy-makers as mentioned in this paper, and although the number of female scientists has increased, true gender equality has not yet been achieved.
Abstract: The underrepresentation of women in academe has been the focus of both academic literature and European policy-makers. However, albeit the number of female scientists has increased, true gender equ...
TL;DR: In this article, the authors focus solely on Hungary and specifically on two key areas: gov't and higher education in Central Europe, focusing on Hungarian higher education system and Hungarian education system.
Abstract: Higher education in Central Europe has been scrutinised from many different perspectives during the last 30 years. In our analysis, we focus solely on Hungary and specifically on two key areas: gov...
TL;DR: In this article, the realization of work-life balance policies at the University of Iceland is compromised by an emphasis on neoliberal notions of growth and performance measurements in the context of the university.
Abstract: It is suggested that the realization of work–life balance policies at the University of Iceland is compromised by an emphasis on neoliberal notions of growth and performance measurements in the for
TL;DR: The starting point of this study is the argument that not only rankings of higher education institutions (HEIs) are inescapable, but so is the constant criticism to which they are subjected as mentioned in this paper.
Abstract: The starting point of this study is the argument that not only rankings of higher education institutions (HEIs) are inescapable, but so is the constant criticism to which they are subjected. Agains...
TL;DR: The number of dual career couples in academia is growing due to the increasing proportion of women with a doctoral degree and the greater propensity of women to choose another academic as their par... as mentioned in this paper.
Abstract: The number of dual career couples in academia is growing due to the increasing proportion of women with a doctoral degree and the greater propensity of women to choose another academic as their par...
TL;DR: Vocational education has a historical legacy of being low-status and aimed at producing skilled workers, and students with low marks in comprehensive school are still often guided to the vocational education.
Abstract: Vocational education has a historical legacy of being low-status and aimed at producing skilled workers. Students with low marks in comprehensive school are still often guided to the vocational edu ...
TL;DR: In the UK, despite the expansion of the number of students now entering higher education it has not yet been achieved as mentioned in this paper, despite the fact that there is a large number of new students now attending higher education.
Abstract: Equal access to higher education has for long been a political ambition, however, despite the expansion of the number of students now entering higher education it has not yet been achieved. The pre...
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors propose that education systems are crucial social and cultural apparatuses, and that they are designed to homogenize at least to a large extent the discourses and praxis of the citizens of a nation by channelling them a...
Abstract: Education systems are crucial social and cultural apparatuses. They are designed to homogenize at least to a large extent the discourses and praxis of the citizens of a nation by channelling them a...
TL;DR: Using a qualitative interview approach, the authors analyzes the experiences of women in academic leadership positions in post-Soviet Kazakhstan and explores the extent of the relevance of Western research on female academic leadership.
Abstract: Using a qualitative interview approach, this study analyzes the experiences of women in academic leadership positions in post-Soviet Kazakhstan An exploration of the extent of the relevance of Western research on female academic leadership is used to explain the experiences of female leaders in Kazakhstan The results of the study are consistent with the results of prior studies conducted in other countries and can be largely explained by existing theories One distinctive feature of the experiences of female leaders in Kazakhstan is the superimposition of three dominant cultures – traditional, Soviet, and Westernized neo-liberal, which impose multiple conflicting expectations Kazakhstani women are obliged to maintain multiple identities when communicating with their colleagues, superiors and extended family members The exact outcome of the work–life balance negotiation depends, among other factors, on the type of ownership and geographic region of a university The study also reveals that neo-institut