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Teamwork skills are considered essential for personal, academic and professional achievement, so universities are increasingly integrating them into their syllabuses. Within this context, teamwork skills have been gaining close attention, as they are considered essential competencies in an increasingly more globalised, dynamic and complex world. New employees are asked if they have teamwork skills, can resolve specific work issues or have the required skills to handle the new challenges posed by today’s society. In this study, we aimed to investigate the differences between students regarding their demographic characteristics (age category, education level) according to the level of development of their teamwork skills. The results revealed statistically significant differences between the different categories of students and the level of development of teamwork skills. It is important that teamwork skills are developed from the years of undergraduate studies. Both in our sample, but also in other studies from the literature, these students obtain low scores for this competence.These results can be used to create training programs for teachers and students in the development of teamwork skills.
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Teamwork skills in the Romanian academic environment

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Research notes a significant rise in varied practices of abusive supervision within the schooling context. Abusive leadership is a social justice dilemma which needs sustained confrontation. This qualitative conceptual study provides a philosophical exploration of the practices of abusive school leadership towards teachers with dissenting voices. This paper takes a conceptual methodological approach and deploys dominant social justice theories espoused by Miranda Fricker and Nancy Fraser as underpinning lenses. Extant and established scholarly literature on abusive supervision was identified and critically analysed. In its examination, the guiding research question was: what are the attributes of abusive school leadership and how do such leadership react to voices that are dissenting? This study is significant because there seem to be inadequate scholarly and empirical contributions on abusive school leadership practices towards teacher dissenting voices.
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Abusive School Leadership Practices and Teacher Dissenting Voices: Analysis through Nancy Fraser and Miranda Fricker

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The present study aims to identify the types of students’ roles in work teams for different didactic activities in the academic environment. In the study, a questionnaire was applied that measures teamwork styles, a questionnaire that includes three scales: leader, doer, thinker and carer, each scale with 10 items. This studiy was attended by 195 female students pursuing bachelor’s and master’s studies in the field of educational sciences, between the ages of 18 and 55. The hypothesis underlying this study presupposes the existence of a statistically significant difference between students from the bachelor program and students from the master’s program according to the types of roles within the teams formed by them. The results of the study indicated that teamwork styles such as career thinking and work style are more defined in master’s students than in undergraduate students, and the other work styles are better defined in undergraduate students than in master’s students. In conclusion, the objective of the study was achieved.
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Work styles in the team depending on the education level of the students

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When we speak about the concept of “permanent education”, our attention focuses on comprehensive and broad approaches to the instructive-educational process that go beyond, or, at least, should go beyond what we call or we mean by the traditional boundaries of school and formal education. In fact, the lifelong education constitutes sine qua non a continuing process of learning and development throughout life, a process that takes place in various contexts and at different stages of our lifetime. In this context, we can state that the permanent education must be in agreement with everything that means, on the one hand, the educational market, and on the other hand, the economic market corroborated with the idea of the labor market.
We believe that such an assumption is justified by the very demands and new orientations of the labor market as well as by the need of the human being to continuously develop himself in relation to himself and also to everything that is around him. Such a reform of the educational society (Comenius) and of the human being (Dewey), in relation to what the continuous development entails, only brings into discussion a series of ideas such as the continuous learning, the (self) exploration, the personal development and so on.Therefore, the analysis of this paper will focus on the one hand, on the paradigmatic approach to the concept of “permanent education” (from a diachronic and synchronic viewpoint), and on the other hand, on the analysis of specific features of some paradigms related thereof. Thus, <italic>we will try</italic> to show that its benefits and impact may vary according to individual context and needs.
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The Concept of Permanent Education – Paradigmatic Approaches

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Literature frequently describes how ineffective implementation of instructional policy frameworks can make distance learning a lonely and unrewarding academic pursuit, characterized by high student drop-out rates, high failure rates and academic exclusion. In trying to mitigate this catastrophe, academic departments in distance learning institutions utilize learning management systems (LMSs) to stimulate students’ learning experiences. In keeping with techno-progressivism, the researchers (and authors of this paper) turned to extant documentary policy and literature to review – qualitatively – how the University of South Africa’s (Unisa’s) Open Distance Learning Policy (ODLP) promotes academic inclusion and learning agency as cornerstones of student success and social justice, especially in an unequal society like South Africa. The findings revealed the following: 1) Unisa’s ODLP position has the impetus to influence the deployment of the LMS to promote academic inclusion; 2) Practical means of promoting inclusion were mirrored in the provision of manual or electronic learning material, computer laboratories and free internet connectivity in regional centres across all nine provinces of South Africa, as well as in the provision of laptops for National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS)-funded students, 30 gigabytes of free monthly mobile data to all students, and assistive technologies for students with disabilities; 3) Practical utilization of an LMS to foster self-regulated learning occurred through problem-based individual activities supplemented by asynchronous demonstrative learning material (e.g. audio, video), while collaborative learning agency was enabled through e-tutoring, which afforded students the opportunity to interact with e-tutors and their peers about the learning content; 4) Drawbacks in the use of the LMS stemmed from the insufficiency of assistive learning technologies that are required for students with disabilities to participate fully in online learning, and a corpus of students’ irregular attendance at and participation in e-tutoring discussions and their projection of a negative attitude towards the e-tutors.
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Professor and Head of Department at the Institute for Open Distance Learning

Lecturer in the Department of Information Science

Learning Management System (LMS) for Academic Inclusion and Learning Agency: An Interpretive Review of Technoprogressivism in ODL Instructional Technology Policy

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Several authors draw attention to implicit or explicit messages about the real world, aspects that we probably think less about when choosing a story to read to young children. Examples of behavioural antimodels can be easily captured by a competent pedagogue or parent in narrative writings such as fairy tales or stories belonging to well-known writers from the international and Romanian literature. The present study envisages a qualitative investigative approach, based on semi-structured interviews, aiming to explore parents’ perceptions regarding the effect of preschoolers’ exposure to stereotypes and verbal and behavioural aggression found in many of the traditional fairy tales and most circulated stories. The results of the study were compiled by investigating the responses of the 12 participants (N=12) based on three dimensions of analysis. Thus, a first dimension focused on the vision of the effects of aggression present in literary texts on children and the way to manage passages marked by violence. The second dimension sought to identify the opinion of the parents interviewed in relation to the possible consequences of the repeated exposure of children to clichés and stereotypes. The last unit of analysis aimed to picture the participants’ beliefs regarding the need to harmonize the subjects of fairy tales and stories heard by preschoolers to the current lifestyle of today’s society. The end of the paper includes a series of discussions with reference to the educational implications, limitations of the study and future research directions.
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PhD student enrolled in the Faculty of Psychology and Education Sciences in the Alexandru Ioan Cuza University of Iasi

Children’s exposure to aggression and stereotypes presented in fairy tales

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Language constitutes the central core of a child’s psychic structure and plays a predominant role in the overall process of personality development. Effective communication through language necessitates the cultivation of four fundamental skills, collectively recognized as linguistic abilities: listening, speaking, reading, and writing. The present study is underpinned by the premise that at very early ages, children do not sequentially or discretely acquire these four skills; instead, they evolve almost concurrently. Therefore, the aim of this research was to examine the prevalence of linguistic skills in two official reference documents that provide a unified perspective on the legal and pedagogical framework governing early education in Romania. <italic>The Early Education Curriculum</italic> and the official document <italic>Fundamental Milestones in the Early Learning and Development of Children from Birth to 7 Years</italic> were subjected to analysis using the semantic software Tropes v8.2 (developed by Pierre Molette and Agnès Landré), available in Romanian. Through the extraction of a series of references from the texts and subsequent statistical analysis, the interplay between explicit and implicit elements in the representation of linguistic abilities was brought into focus across all five developmental domains.
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Linguistic skills between explicit and implicit in the romanian early education curriculum

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A high-performing academic education system supports the development of skills such as curiosity and creativity in students’ activities and learning experiences. However, the academic curriculum gives quite a lot of importance to the accumulation of knowledge and the learning of specific skills, which can encourage an education that is less oriented towards the development of creativity and curiosity, especially in the discipline of History. Our study has as target group the 3rd year students of the Pedagogy of Primary and Preschool Education, whom we monitored during two academic years. The purpose of the research is to analyze the effect of the didactic strategy on students’ creative thinking and to show that creativity is a fundamental element for the development of their historical thinking as students and future practitioners. In our approach, we started from the following premises and hypotheses: 1) creativity is present in all learning contexts, although it is not always specified as such; 2) students need to be creative in a constantly changing world that requires us to permanently adapt; 3) outside of those disciplines that explicitly emphasize creativity (fine arts, music etc.) creativity is rarely present in the discussions regarding teaching and learning; 4) if at History we apply a series of strategies to stimulate creative thinking that includes interactive methods, diverse teaching aids and mixed organizational forms which involve cooperation, then students’ creativity, curiosity and interest in this subject will be stimulated. Therefore, we proposed the following objectives: (O1) The implementation of didactic strategies that stimulate students’ creativity; (O2) The analysis of the results - how does the didactic strategy affect creative thinking in the history discipline? (O3) The analysis and evaluation of the effect that the didactic strategy may have on creativity at History. The expected results are, in the case of students, an increase in creativity through the application of certain didactic strategies, motivation for learning and positive attitudes towards history, with the belief that when they become teachers they will apply similar strategies in the classroom.
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About Creativity in History Teaching and Learning

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Teaching is a challenging career that calls for a continuous tightrope walk, making resilience and adaptability pivotal to teacher survival. Teachers need to be able to be aware of their previous practices and to constantly examine and assess their effectiveness, attitudes, and accomplishments. This awareness comes through the coherent and sustained practice of reflective thinking, in which they can cultivate the habits of inquiry and reflection that are so needed in the teachers’ profession.
This paper presents a detailed inquiry of the reflective practices of 10 experienced educational practitioners (primary school teachers; all female, aged 38–55 years, average age 44) as they self-study their teaching practices to discover how reflection in practice impacts their growth as teachers.
The data was collected through a structured reflective journal (based on Smyth’s model for personal and professional empowerment) and a focus group interview. After the analysis of the data extracted from the focus group, two main themes emerged: a shift in perception about reflective practice and the impact of the use of reflection on teachers as professionals.
Findings suggest that having a structure can help teachers become more conscious of one’s experiences, as they purposefully inquire and critique their practice. The potential benefits of deliberately engaging in reflective activities are discussed.
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The Role of Reflection in Teaching: Perceptions and Benefits

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The successful professional integration of higher education graduates is closely linked to the quality of students’ training during their university studies and their motivation to engage in the process of training and developing professional and transversal competences. Academic success can be defined either in terms of the high academic achievement of a well-established academic pathway or by reference to the extent of academic results achieved during training, during university studies and in line with training requirements. Definitions of academic success differ, due to different perspectives of analysis. Approaching academic success from an analytical perspective integrates categories of factors that explain academic success as a process. The present article aims to present a register of factors influencing academic success and to explain their influence on student personality and successful academic career shaping. Categories of factors related to the internal and external learning environment were considered, such as personal/individual, social, economic, cultural, educational and psychological. Academic success among students is moreover explained by reference to the management of learning activities implemented by students and aspects related to the flexibility dimension of learning in the academic space, with positive implications on it. Academic success is also explained by considering academic standards and the achievement of these standards as a measure of assessment. The philosophy of defining academic success identifies the concept as being a relative one. In this sense, student satisfaction with one’s own academic performance can integrate academic success. From an academic perspective, high academic achievement, objectively measured, characterises academic success.
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Academic success - explanatory theories

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Upon passing matric, countless students choose to study further at Technical and Vocational Training Colleges (TVETs). Nevertheless, some of these students seem to be unable to attain the qualification that they studied for as they struggle with placements for Work Integrated Learning (WIL), which is a requirement for completion of the qualification. Various research has been done investigating the importance of WIL in enhancing student employability and the acquisition of practical skills; however, few have focused on the placement of students in employment centers. This study’s objective was to investigate the challenges that the selected TVET college faces when placing students. This research study adopted a qualitative research methodology. A case study design and constructivism approach were used. Data were collected through open-ended interviews and focus groups. Purposive and snowball sampling techniques were used. The study revealed that there was an elephant in the room. The students faced challenges such as a lack of funding, personnel shortages, geographic location of the colleges, etc. that led to other challenges, as explained in the study. The study concluded that the college had various challenges in placing students for WIL, and thus they had a huge backlog. These range from inconsistency in placement, the inability to prepare and guide students before and during placement, a lack of support, and a lengthy waiting period. A number of recommendations, such as a complete overhaul of the WIL placement process, the recruitment of competent personnel, and widening the pool of funders to fast-track the process and minimize the backlog, are suggested.
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Elephant in the room: Placing of Technical and Vocational Training College students for work-integrated learning in Eastern Cape Province

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Volume 5 (2024): Issue 1 (June 2024)

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Volume 3 (2022): Issue 1 (June 2022)

Journal of Education, Society & Multiculturalism

 The Journal of Education, Society &amp; Multiculturalism was initiated by the members of the Department of Education Sciences in 2019, with the desire to disseminate the results of theoretical and practical research studies from different fields (such as sociology, education, psychology, social pedagogy and social work). The journal is intended to be a scientific publication, academic type, indexed in international databases, an instrument of innovation and social change. The Journal of Education, Society &amp; Multiculturalism allows the access of all readers and promotes quality in scientific research. The editorial board invites all the specialists interested in disseminating the results of their scientific research to publish in this journal. We accept for publication innovative articles, scientific studies, research reports, book reviews, interviews with brand specialists, examples of good practices that have not been published so far. The Journal of Education, Society and Multiculturalism is an open access journal. All the received papers are analyzed and assessed by the Editorial bord and through a peer review process. The editorial committee encourages the publication of scientific articles under the condition of respecting ethical values regarding scientific research.   The editorial committee ensures all the authors that the confidentiality and impartiality regarding the process of reviewing their works are respected. The acceptance criteria are: the relevance of the study for the field in which it fits, the observance of the drafting criteria and the scientific correctness of the work.   The archive of the magazine can be found at https://www.jesm.ro/   Archiving   Sciendo archives the contents of this journal in Portico - digital long-term preservation service of scholarly books, journals and collections.   Plagiarism Policy   The editorial board is participating in a growing community of Similarity Check System's users in order to ensure that the content published is original and trustworthy. Similarity Check is a medium that allows for comprehensive manuscripts screening, aimed to eliminate plagiarism and provide a high standard and quality peer-review process.   