This book focuses on essential aspects of the theoretical foundations that support blended learning (BL) as a teaching training modality in tertiary education. Analyzing the changes in the world of education that lead to new ways of thinking and learning, it redefines the concept of blended learning at a time of constant growth in many universities around the world. This involves a shared reflection on the role of technology in the current university teacher education programs, as well as on the role that pedagogy plays in increasingly technology-driven contexts. Furthermore, the book presents pedagogical approaches to guide university professors in the design and implementation of blended learning courses. To this end, it describes some of the major models and approaches to BL instructional design, and examines issues related to the quality of BL training and the indicators to measure it, in order to identify those models that contribute to a better understanding of the dimensions that increase its effectiveness.
This book presents high-quality, peer-reviewed papers from the International Conference in Information Technology & Education (ICITED 2023), to be held at the Nilton Lins University, Manaus, Brazil, during June 29–30, 2023. The book covers a specific field of knowledge. This intends to cover not only two fields of knowledge—Education and Technology—but also the interaction among them and the impact/result in the job market and organizations. It covers the research and pedagogic component of Education and Information Technologies but also the connection with Society, addressing the three pillars of higher education. The book addresses impact of pandemic on education and use of technology in education. Finally, it also encourages companies to present their professional cases which will be discussed. These can constitute real examples of how companies are overcoming their challenges with the uncertainty of the market.
The need to develop 21st-century competencies has received global recognition, but instructional methods have not been reformed to include the teaching of these skills. Multiple frameworks include creativity, critical thinking, communication, and collaboration as the foundational competencies. Complexities of planning curriculum and delivering instruction to develop the foundational competencies requires professional training. However, despite training, instructional practice can be impacted by barriers caused by personal views of teachers, economic constraints, access to resources, social challenges, pandemic, overwhelming pace of global shifts, and other influences. With digitalization entering the field of education, it is unclear if technology has helped in removing or eliminating the barriers or has, itself, become another obstruction in integrating the competencies. Gaining an educator's perspective is essential to understanding the barriers as well as solutions to mitigate the impediments through innovative instructional methods being practiced across the globe via digital or non-digital platforms. The need for original contributions from educators exists in this area of barriers to 21st-century education and the role of digitalization. The Handbook of Research on Barriers for Teaching 21st-Century Competencies and the Impact of Digitalization discusses teaching the 21st-century competencies, namely critical thinking, creativity, collaboration, and communication. This book presents both the problems or gaps causing barriers and brings forth practical solutions, digital and non-digital, to meet the educational shifts. The chapters will determine the specific barriers that exist, whether political, social, economic, or technological, to integrating competencies and the methods or strategies that can eliminate these barriers through compatible instructional approaches. Additionally, the chapters provide knowledge on the impacts of digitalization in general on teaching and learning and how digital innovations are either beneficial to removing impediments for students or rather causing obstructions in integrating the four competencies. This book is ideally intended for educators and administrators working directly with students, educational researchers, educational software developers, policymakers, teachers, practitioners, and students interested in how 21st-century competencies can be taught while facing the impacts of digitalization on education.
Research in English Language Teaching: Mexican Perspectives Teacher research takes different forms and serves a variety purposes, but it is conducted by teachers, individually or collaboratively, with the basic aim of understanding teaching and learning in context. In Mexico, teacher research is starting to gain momentum and newcomers search for guidance and examples. This book can be used by English language teachers, teacher educators and student teachers who want to develop their professional expertise by investigating learning and teaching in a systematic and organized way. It is also useful for undergraduate students of EFL teaching and applied linguistics who need to produce a thesis, or experienced teachers who want to develop a research project for the first time. Research in English Language Teaching: Mexican Perspectives combines basic general knowledge and practical advice with reports of research conducted in Mexican educational contexts. PART ONE offers an overview of research and discussion on the teaching-research nexus, and different ways to meet the challenges of doing research. PART TWO presents accounts of recent research in the national context, written by teacher researchers working for different public higher education institutions. These accounts reflect diverse theoretical approaches, topics, methods of data collection and analysis, and styles of reporting. PART THREE includes basic guidelines to write the most common research genres: thesis, conference paper, and research article. The final section contains a glossary of research terms."
This book describes and outlines the theoretical foundations of system simulation in teaching, and as a practical contribution to teaching-and-learning models. It presents various methodologies used in teaching, the goal being to solve real-life problems by creating simulation models and probability distributions that allow correlations to be drawn between a real model and a simulated model. Moreover, the book demonstrates the role of simulation in decision-making processes connected to teaching and learning.
In an era of globalization, technological innovation, and social transformations, universities face the challenge of training students with the competencies needed to meet the demands of the market and to successfully integrate into today’s workforce. This book looks at the university as a dynamic source of essential competencies and explores various skill management models, methodologies and innovations applied by educational institutions around the world. The demands of today’s society represent a major challenge for universities and their teaching staffs. Professors need to adapt their teaching methods to meet these new challenges. For example, universities need to prepare new generations of students with the ability to select, update and use knowledge, rather than processing facts and formulas. Students need to be capable of learning in different contexts and modalities throughout their professional careers and learn to adapt their knowledge to new situations. In response, a conceptual and methodological change has taken place in the university organizational culture and in student curriculums. This book presents a variety of cases and observations on the competencies developed in the curriculums of universities around the world, with the aim to assure that graduates leave fully prepared to face the challenges of the new economy.
