“Bernard of Chartres used to say that we are like dwarfs on the shoulders of giants,
so that we can see more than they, and things at a greater distance, not by virtue of any
sharpness of sight on our part, or any physical distinction, but because we are carried high
and raised up by their giant size.” (John of Salisbury, 1159). This is particularly true of
the research that we carry out and then write about. It is most important that our readers
know how we got to where we are now, what others have written about the topic and the
gaps they have left that we are trying to fill.
Journal Articles
Intercultural competences for contemporary teachers
Teachers now work in a global world and need to develop competences in intercultural communication.
This can be achieved through information and communication technologies (ICT) to create
and enrich their environment, leading to a reassessment of the role of technology in the field of
humanitarian knowledge. This article describes the application of a technological model – the wiki
encyclopedia – and its possibilities in understanding different cultural identities and the manifestation
of tolerance. It enhances the ability for the modern teacher to communicate with people from
other cultural communities and successfully carry out intercultural communication. As a result of
the research, it is proposed that the Wiki encyclopedia should be included in the curriculum of training
pedagogical specialists in higher education institutions.
Preparation of a future teacher as a social and moral educator: a theoretical underpinning
This research focuses on the personality of teacher as a social and moral educator. Developments in
home social education bring some negative phenomena in the treatment and instruction received
by a child from its parents and teachers throughout its childhood and this is a complex issue to
address. Changes are needed to the definition of theoretical underpinning of future teachers in the
systematization of modern scientific knowledge about upbringing. The research explored comprehensive
conceptual descriptions of the relevant phenomena and examined the educational activities
of the teacher, using data from a variety of scientific disciplines. The study identified some key problems
in the preparation of student teachers, and examined the strengths and weaknesses of existing
software. It explored how student teachers approached activities to shape the image of the graduate
pedagogical higher educational institution (as demanded by the heads of Russian schools) and form
their view modern scientific knowledge in the field of theory and methodology of upbringing. The
results can help us develop a theoretical basis for the preparation of future teachers as social and
moral educators in general and non-formal education.
A didactic model for managing the application of information and communications technologies for teacher training and qualifications in Bulgaria
The rapid development of informational and communicational technologies (ICT) presents many
challenges and problems for education. It is necessary to adapt existing training models for use with
different technologies. It also creates the need for an adequate qualification of teachers for their effective
application.
The purpose of this inquiry is to present a comprehensive Didactic Model for classroom management
through the application of specialized software Mythware. The article summarizes the
outcomes from the application of this software for teacher training and qualification. The model
supports in-service teacher training and enables more effective work on the implementation of information
and communication technologies in the training process.
Educational clusters – the new opportunities for improving teacher training qualifications
The contemporary reality of societal development poses new challenges for education. Education
must be synchronized with the needs of society and innovative development promotes the emergence
of new structures. Educational clusters are comparatively new and one of the less researched
phenomenon in pedagogical science. The goal of the current inquiry is to present the outcomes of a
practical experience with a functioning educational cluster related to the qualification of teachers in
Bulgaria. The article examines the formation of educational clusters as a catalyst for innovative policies
and practices in the education of teacher teachers. It looks at the types of educational clusters,
and suggests a structure of an educational cluster for continuing teacher training and qualification,
based on experience of the Department for Information and In-service Teacher Training at Trakia
University, Stara Zagora, Bulgaria.
Learning after a model: the position of a teacher in practice
After the influence of the parents in the earliest period of childhood development, the social role
of teachers is crucial when it comes to the growth of each of the students individually and when it
comes to the development of the society as a whole. The lifetime learning and competent teacher is
the important figure in teaching process. Consequently, the role of teachers in the education system
is changing (according to the changes in lifestyle, technology and by other social changes), but it is
always an important factor in education and upbringing. The teacher remains a model – an example
for his/her students. That model is changing with the social context, and it is understandable that
there are many points of view in building up a teacher as a model: in theory, in imaginary of the students,
and in opinion of the teachers themselves. In the paper, we are going to consider all of them.
There are three forms of learning after a model: identification, imitation, and role learning. The
teacher is a model that carries a lot of importance to the formation of social identity and has a great
responsibility in developing the personality of the child.
In order to more effectively examine the role of teachers and emphasize the importance of the teachers’
model, we conducted a survey among elementary schools in Belgrade. In the survey participated
253 students (aged from 13 to 15) and 13 pedagogues, in order to encompass different viewing angles
to the position of teacher. We came to the conclusion that when students like a professor, they
learn their subject with more attention, so the most desirable virtues of the teacher are emphazed.
Also, we can see in the results that the personality of the teacher and his/hers personal skills and
competencies are very important for students and could be crucial in the quality of the teaching
process. Teacher is not only one sided subject who has obligation to transfer knowledge, he is also
important model of behaving and learning.
Narratives by initial teachers: stories about experiences and challenges
The present work focuses on narratives by initial teachers involved in a program called Pedagogical
Residence (PR), developed in a public university in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, to shed some light on the
main challenges that those teachers face. The main theoretical framework is Teachers Professional
Development (TPD) as developed by Garcia (1992, 2009) and by Day (2001). The data collection
took place during meetings held at the University as part of the PR program offered to new teachers
to embrace their cause and address their concerns and their will to leave teaching for lack of support.
The narratives of experiences were analyzed using thematization (Fontoura, 2011). The main
themes were the separation between theory and practice, the lack of self-esteem, and the need for
peer support. The findings are in line with the literature and the main recommendation is to develop
programs that address real life situations for initial teachers. This study highlights the need for continuous
education that supports teachers’ professional development.
E&SD 13(1) March 2018
This is the English language contents page for E&SD 13(1)
Nick Rushby
Editorial: Pages into sentences: writing better abstracts 6
Colin Latchem
21st century learning, technology and the professional development of teachers 10
Liesl Leonard, Carolynne Kies, Norina Braaf
Reflections: eLearning Colloquia enhance a Community of Practice 19
Ian Menter
Defining teachers’ professional knowledge: the interaction of global and national influences 32
Christine Sleeter
A framework to improve teaching in multicultural contexts 43
Anna I. Akhmetzyanova, Lira V. Artishcheva
Significant situations of interaction of children with disabilities 55
Peggy Germer
Development of competencies of L2 teachers in student teacher internships (competence area: teacher language in the classroom) 65
Viara T. Gyurova
Role of the non-formal education’s institutions for the teacher qualification in Bulgaria 75
Sergey A. Sedov
The determinants of the quality of higher education of teacher professional training 83
Notes for authors 105
Editorial: Pages into sentences – writing better abstracts
There are a number of similarities between writing a research article and preparing
teaching materials.
The teaching materials must gain – and hold – the interest of the students. When
you start to speak you have about 15 seconds to get the attention of your audience and
convince them that what you have to say is worth listening to. Many teachers (perhaps
most teachers) will have had the demoralising experience of losing their audience at the
beginning of a lesson and then being unable to win them back. There are strong parallels
for a research article.
The determinants of the quality of higher education of teacher professional training
There is a high demand for teacher vocational training in secondary vocational educational
institutions. The training of such teachers in post-secondary institutions needs to take into account
the factors (determinants) of its quality and the challenges facing modern educational practice.
Building on earlier work by Russian researchers, particular attention is paid to the ideas about the
quality determinism of higher professional and pedagogical education by integration processes in
the society. However, in the works reviewed there is no agreement of the quality determinants with
the tasks of vocational training teachers’ qualifications as well as with their solutions.
The article highlights the determinants of the quality of vocational training teachers’ qualifications
in higher education, based on the analysis of the actual tasks of vocational training teachers’
qualifications. The research used substantive and formalized approaches to investigate the content
and interrelation of the determinants of the quality of the higher professional and pedagogical
education, together with the actual tasks of preparation and their solutions. It shows the
interdependence not only of the tasks facing educational practice, but also their solutions. In order
to ensure the sustainable development of a society and the knowledge economy, decisions on the
implementation of standards and recommendations of quality assurance in the European Higher
Education Area, must take into account:
• the interdependence of the main spheres of society’s life,
• the integration of competence and cultural approaches in the qualifications of future teacher
vocational training,
• and the orientation of higher professional and pedagogical education.
This work has led to further detailed research in the context of the essence of higher professional and
pedagogical educational quality.
Role of the non-formal education’s institutions for the teacher qualification in Bulgaria
This article describes the ongoing changes in the teachers’ qualification system and the role of nonformal
education institutions in Bulgaria. The changes are related to the improvement of the quality
of school education and the new functions and roles of the 21st century teacher. It describes some
basic problems in the implementation of the new model for qualification of Bulgarian teachers
which emerged after the first year of applying the reform in practice. It analyses the main issues of
the normative base, and discusses the problem of the role of the non-governmental sector in the
reform. The findings are based on the opinions of 44 teachers from the country, 14 of whom are
students in the Master’s Program in Educational Management of the Faculty of Education at the
Sofia University “St. Kliment Ohridski”.
The research shows that teachers regard more seriously their needs for additional knowledge and
skills, and relate these to future courses and plans for professional and personal development. The
article recommends that there should be a national survey of the results of the implementation of
the new model of continuous teachers’ qualification and a re-examination of the increase in the
“benefits” (both moral and material) of the qualification for teachers.
Development of competencies of L2 teachers in student teacher internships (competence area: teacher language in the classroom)
This evaluation study on tandem learning among future teachers of Russian in school-based
internships aims at examining the development of teacher language competences for institutional
Russian teaching. The focus is on development of competencies of L2- teachers in student teacher
internships. The article deals with the tandem-method as one of the ways of training teacher language
for educational purposes in the classroom. Teacher language always has didactic implications. The
teacher serves as an educational role model in his foreign verbal actions, but the level of command
of the language for using it professionally as teacher language in university internships is very
heterogeneous. The reasons are manifold and related to worldwide migration and the efforts of
reforming the educational system in Europe. That is why the subject of interest for this research is
the development of teacher language as a part of linguistic competence. The individual perception of
future Russian teachers of the functional logic and quality of tandem language learning and support
is examined on the basis of learning diaries and interviews. The paper concludes with discussion
and results of providing external support – firstly, the autonomous learner, secondly, the partnerorientated
learner and thirdly, the learner who is determined by others. Depending on this typology,
the qualitative research shows that tandem work has a future role in the context of teacher training
and migration.
Significant situations of interaction of children with disabilities
The successful socialization and adaptation to new conditions socialization of children with
disabilities is conditioned by the attitudes they form to key situations of interaction. Understanding
and reflecting on the causes of these situation, contributes to successful forecasting. This article
is aimed at identifying the specifics of the relationship of children with disabilities to significant
situations in their lives and to understanding their causes. The research is based on interviews and
content analysis of the responses of 78 children with disorders (visual, hearing, musculoskeletal
and speech disorders). The study revealed that the causes of traumatic situations in children with
disabilities can be partly categorized and that the specificity of the violation determines the attitude
to different situations of children’s activity.
A framework to improve teaching in multicultural contexts
Teachers in multicultural contexts often have difficulty teaching their diverse students. Multicultural
education theorists have advanced frameworks for reforming classroom teaching; one of the
most widely used is Banks’s (2013) five dimensions of multicultural education. Research supports
the connection between these five dimensions and student learning, particularly integrating knowledge
from students’ cultural backgrounds into academic content, using pedagogy that is culturally
responsive to students, and addressing stereotypes about diverse groups. Research confirms that a
culturally inclusive curriculum, taught to high expectations and through trusting teacher-student
relationships, improves students’ academic achievement. This paper addresses how teachers can
learn to use these dimensions, using a planning framework that has been shown to improve curriculum
planning and teaching (Sleeter & Flores Carmona, 2017). After expanding on this framework
and its research foundations, this paper will illustrate a teacher learning to use it through a case study
of Angela, a second-year elementary teacher.
Defining teachers’ professional knowledge: the interaction of global and national influences
This paper draws on a cross-national study1 of definitions of teachers’ professional knowledge. The
paper seeks to link what has been revealed about international influences and trends to the broader
literature on the processes of globalisation and internationalisation. The concepts of ‘glocalization’
and ‘vernacular globalisation’ are critically reviewed in the light of the emergent findings. Six emergent
themes are identified that form a typology through which teacher education systems may be
categorised. These themes enable us to clarify both global trends and local distinctiveness within the
systems under review.
Reflections: eLearning Colloquia enhance a Community of Practice
In this context specific reflection on an annual eLearning Colloquia hosted by the Centre for Innovative
Education and Communication Technologies (CIECT) at the University of the Western Cape
(UWC), in Cape Town, South Africa; the researchers explore how the colloquia contributed to the
institutional Community of Practice (CoP). Furthermore, it highlights the shifts in the institutional
discourse on blended teaching and learning practices over an eight year period. The paper showcases
CIECT’s efforts in driving the effective use of eTools to increase awareness and understanding of
concepts such as agency, culture and structure. This awareness is critical in a post-modern Higher
Education (HE) setting where the need to create a knowledge-intensive institutional culture exists.
The human agents are central to the formation of a sustainable CoP which contributes to effective
teaching and learning practices. Secondary data was used for the study and non-probability, purposive
sampling resulted in a sample group of 78 individuals comprising of the Instructional Design
team as well as the academic staff members at UWC who utilize the institutional Learning Management
System or a range of Personal Learning Environments (PLEs) in their teaching and learning
practices.
21st century learning, technology and the professional development of teachers
There are two imperatives for transforming K-12 teaching and learning.
The educational imperative. The World Economic Forum concludes that at a time of fast-paced
digital change, countries need innovative places of learning that can provide the next generation
with the skills of the future (Kruchoski, 2016).
The technology imperative. The information technology revolution presents technology-rich
innovative learning environments for improving and extending teaching and learning and the
affordance of customisation of learning to individual learner needs, a concept which is highly
supported by the learning sciences (Groff, 2013).
The first part of this paper examines the competencies learners need for tomorrow’s world and the
innovative technology-based methods of learning needed for the regeneration of education systems.
The later parts of the paper focus on the teachers’ pre-service and in-service training needs in regard
to information and communications technology (ICT) integration in the classroom and how ICT
can be used to provide professional development for teachers and principals.
E&SD 12(4) December 2017
This is the English language contents page for E&SD Volume 12 (4)
Nick Rushby. Editorial 12(4): What do you want to be remembered for? 6
Alexandra S. Brykova. Teachers’ readiness to support students with special educational needs. 10
Leisan R. Munavirova. Issues of interaction of the components of the student teacher vocational and legal competence. 19
Nikolai P. Puchkov, Tatiana Yu. Zabavnikoba. Students’ self-development in modern technical higher educational institutions. 28
Valerya A. Stepashkina. Gaming as a technology in professional activity modelling. 35
Gulshat F. Shakirova, Elvira G. Sabirova. The use of educational websites and interactive platforms in teaching 6-8 year old children. 44
Nodira M. Egamberdyyeva. A comprehensive approach to the diagnostics of students’ moral education. 56
Notices and retractions. 66
Notes for authors. 79
A comprehensive approach to the diagnostics of students’ moral education
The tasks of moral education – students’ requirements and the ethical qualities necessary for graduates
of pedagogical universities – require the development of diagnostic measures that include
criteria for ethical education, as well as pedagogical methods for measuring the moral and ethical
qualities of subjects. The change in the choice of criteria for the diagnosis of morality is influenced
by the multidimensionality of global social processes, the complexity and significance of the spiritual
and moral foundations and factors affecting the upbringing of young people. This is enriched by
the properties of the individual psychological, social, emotional, value-orientated plan. The article
discusses the steps needed to identify and implement the stages of development and implementation
of the required diagnostics. It analyses the points of view available in pedagogical science taking
into consideration their generalization, systematization, and the selection of the most valid criteria
for the moral education of students. Subsequently it considers the development of criteria for moral
education of students, including moral and social components; approbation and correction of diag-
nostics in the direction of specific, individualized criteria for measuring specific qualities. The results
demonstrate the effectiveness of improved technology.
The use of educational websites and interactive platforms in teaching 6-8 year old children
There is a scarcity of practical research in Russia on the use by pedagogues of websites and interactive
educational platforms. This research focuses on the use of educational websites by 6-8 year old
children in Russia and examines the problems encountered by pedagogues working with digital resources.
Teachers and parents (n=202) were surveyed using a questionnaire which explored the use
of educational websites in respect to demographic, technologic, motivational, innovational blocks
and parental attitude to digital technologies. The article explores issues in the organization of teaching
6-8 year old children.