This book arises from research conducted through Singapore’s National Institute of Education on such topics as integrating knowledge building pedagogies into Singaporean classrooms, with both students and teachers across school levels, from primary schools to high schools. Additionally, international scholars contribute research on theories of knowledge creation, methodological foundations of research on knowledge creation, knowledge creation pedagogies in classrooms and knowledge creation work involving educators. The book is organized in two sections. Section A focuses on theoretical, technological and methodological issues, where sources of justification for claims are predominantly theories and extant literature, although empirical evidence is used extensively in one chapter. Section B reports knowledge creation practices in schools, with teachers, students or both; the key sources of justification for claims are predominantly empirical evidence and narratives of experience The editor asserts that schools should focus on developing students’ capacity and disposition in knowledge creation work; at the same time, leaders and teachers alike should continue to develop their professional knowledge as a community. In the knowledge building vernacular, the chapters are knowledge artifacts – artifacts that not only document the findings of the editors and authors, but that also mediate future advancement in this area of research work. The ultimate aim of the book is to inspire new ideas, and to illuminate the path for researchers of similar interest in knowledge creation in education.

“This is a timely and important book which seeks to reclaim universities as places of learning. It is jargon free and forcefully argued. It should be on every principal and vice-chancellor's list of essential reading.” Jon Nixon, Professor of Educational Studies, University of Sheffield The ability to have or to find space in academic life seems to be increasingly difficult since we seem to be consumed by teaching and bidding, overwhelmed by emails and underwhelmed by long arduous meetings. This book explores the concept of learning spaces, the idea that there are diverse forms of spaces within the life and life world of the academic where opportunities to reflect and critique their own unique learning position occur. Learning Spaces sets out to challenge the notion that academic thinking can take place in cramped, busy working spaces, and argues instead for a need to recognise and promote new opportunities for learning spaces to emerge in academic life. The book examines the ideas that: Learning spaces are increasingly absent in academic life The creation and re-creation of learning spaces is vital for the survival of the academic community The absence of learning spaces is resulting in increasing dissolution and fragmentation of academic identities Learning spaces need to be valued and possibly redefined in order to regain and maintain the intellectual health of academe In offering possibilities for creative learning spaces, this innovative book provides key reading for those interested in the future of universities including educational developers, researchers, managers and policy makers.

This book responds to calls for further advancing knowledge creation in schools. It examines sixteen Chinese Language teachers from Singapore, since language teachers are primarily responsible for the basic literacy that is the foundation of students’ lifelong learning. Positing that people’s cultural beliefs and the language(s) they use are inseparable, the book argues that Chinese language teachers possess a unique understanding of the various phenomena that reflect the influences of Chinese culture by virtue of the language they speak and teach. For the purposes of the investigation, it employs phenomenography — a methodology aimed at finding and systematising how people interpret the world around them — to determine and describe Chinese language teachers’ conceptions of these phenomena.

The Springer International Handbook of Educational Development in Asia Pacific breaks new ground with a comprehensive, fine-grained and diverse perspective on research and education development throughout the Asia Pacific region. In 13 sections and 127 chapters, the Handbook delves into a wide spectrum of contemporary topics including educational equity and quality, language education, learning and human development, workplace learning, teacher education and professionalization, higher education organisations, citizenship and moral education, and high performing education systems. The Handbook is grounded in specific Asia Pacific contexts and scholarly traditions, using unique country-specific narratives, for example, Vietnam and Melanesia, and socio-cultural investigations through lenses such as language identity or colonisation, while offering parallel academic discourse and analyses framed by broader policy commentary from around the world.

Teacher Professional Learning in an Age of Compliance: Mind the Gap examines ways in which practice-based inquiry in educational settings, in a number of different countries and contexts, can transcend current ways of working and thinking such that authentic professional learning is the result. The authors contend that education policy, under pressure from a number of quarters, is retreating into a standardized, audited, and backward-looking arena, with the advances of more progressive educational philosophy being rolled back. In an age where practitioner inquiry and action research have often been ‘hijacked’ for the purposes of broad-based policy implementation, this book offers a rationale for reclaiming the critical edge so fundamental to inquiry-based professional learning. It examines the potential of inquiry-based forms of teacher professional learning to contribute to the growth of professional knowledge for and about teachers’ work. The authors intend that the book will assist in building new forms of professional knowledge that go beyond the current compliance model – engineered from less enduring materials – to inform a new model with its foundations in a strong ethical and moral framework. They also believe that this new model, if implemented, will help to reverse today’s conservative educational trends and make teacher professional development a force for genuine progress once again. They have consciously moved away from the celebratory tone of much of the academic reporting of teacher professional learning, adopting instead a genuinely critical edge. In covering a wide range of policies and practices from across the international spectrum, they have allowed themselves the freedom to engage in serious epistemological arguments about the nature of professional knowledge, as well as how it is constructed and employed.

"This book is a detailed resource on knowledge management and innovations that has been written and edited to provide flexibility and in-depth knowledge management innovations, strategies, and practices"--Provided by publisher.

This book analyses and compares concretely the processes of knowledge production, dissemination and use in the engineering, the information and communication technology, the health and the education sectors.

Computer Support for Collaborative Learning (CSCL) is a field of study centrally concerned with meaning and the practices of meaning-making in the context of joint activity, and the ways in which these practices are mediated through designed artifacts. This volume includes abstracts of papers that were presented during interactive poster sessions at CSCL 2002. Documenting an extremely heterogeneous, productive phase of inquiry with broad social consequences, these proceedings reflect the current state of CSCL research--particularly in North America and Western Europe.

Virtual worlds are places where humans interact, and as such they can be environments for research and learning. However, they are complex and mutable in ways that more controlled and traditional environments are not. Although computer-mediated, virtual worlds are multifaceted social systems like the offline world, and choosing to study virtual world phenomena demands as much consideration for the participants, the environment and the researcher as offline. By exploring virtual worlds as places of research and learning, the international practitioners in this book demonstrate the power of these worlds to replicate and extend our arenas of research and learning. They focus on process and outcomes and consider questions that arise from engaging in teaching and research in these spaces, including new approaches to research ethics, internationalization, localization, and collaboration in virtual worlds. This book was originally published as a special issue of Learning, Media & Technology.

"This volume will appeal to a wide array of readers, from novices to those already working in the field. Recommended for all collections." --CHOICE "Reference literature has been hard put to keep pace with its (distance learning) changes so the appearance of an Encyclopedia is most welcome. Recommended for academic and public libraries." --LIBRARY JOURNAL In today′s fast-paced world, with multiple demands on time and resources as well as pressures for career advancement and productivity, self-directed learning is an increasingly popular and practical alternative in continuing education. The Encyclopedia of Distributed Learning defines and applies the best practices of contemporary continuing education designed for adults in corporate settings, Open University settings, graduate coursework, and in similar learning environments. Written for a wide audience in the distance and continuing education field, the Encyclopedia is a valuable resource for deans and administrators at universities and colleges, reference librarians in academic and public institutions, HR officials involved with continuing education/training programs in corporate settings, and those involved in the academic disciplines of Education, Psychology, Information Technology, and Library Science. Sponsored by The Fielding Graduate Institute, this extensive reference work is edited by long-time institute members, bringing with them the philosophy and authoritative background of this premier institution. The Fielding Graduate Institute is well known for offering mid-career professionals opportunities for self-directed, mentored study with the flexibility of time and location that enables students to maintain commitments to family, work, and community. The Encyclopedia of Distributed Learning includes over 275 entries, each written by a specialist in that area, giving the reader comprehensive coverage of all aspects of distributed learning, including use of group processes, self-assessment, the life line experience, and developing a learning contract. Topics Covered Administrative Processes Policy, Finance and Governance Social and Cultural Perspectives Student and Faculty Issues Teaching and Learning Processes and Technologies Technical Tools and Supports Key Features * A-to-Z organization plus Reader′s Guide groups entries by broad topic areas * Over 275 entries, each written by a specialist in that area * Comprehensive index and cross-references between entries add to the encyclopedia′s ease of use * Annotated listings for additional resources, including distance learning programs, print and non-print resources, and conferences Advisory Board Tony Bates University of British Columbia Gregory S. Blimling Appalachian State University Ellie Chambers The Open University, U.K. Paul Duguid University of California, Berkeley Kenneth C. Green The Campus Computing Project Linda Harasim Simon Fraser University Sally Johnstone WCET Sara Kiesler Carnegie Mellon University William Maehl Fielding Graduate Institute Michael G. Moore Pennsylvania State University Jeremy Shapiro Fielding Graduate Institute Ralph A. Wolff Executive Director, Western Association of Schools and Colleges