This study investigates the effect of familiar musical distractors on the cognitive performance of introverts and extraverts. Participants completed a verbal, numerical and logic test in three music conditions: vocal music, instrumental music and silence. It was predicted that introverts would perform worse with vocal music, better with…

When individuals perceive time pressure, they decrease the generation of diagnostic hypotheses and prioritize information. This article examines whether individual differences in (a) internal time urgency, (b) experience, and (c) fluid mental ability can moderate these effects. Police officers worked through a computer-based rape investigative…

This article outlines the first cycle of an Action Research (AR) investigation into why professional learners are not using the Social Networking Technologies (SNTs) of their bespoke website. It presents the rationale of how this study came about, the ontological and epistemological stance of the authors and how this led to the particular choice…

The Spending Review announced by the Coalition Government in 2010 represents a challenge to those who lead a variety of state-sponsored institutions, not least in post-compulsory education. For General Further Education Colleges (GFECs) who are confronted with a reduction in funding for a wide variety of programmes, and Sixth Form Colleges (SFCs)…

This seminal study investigates the use of the EFQM Excellence Model[R] in the UK Further Education sector. Following initial interviews with Senior Managers and Quality Consultants, an online survey was sent to Principals and Senior Managers in all Colleges across the UK to critically investigate the relationship between the use of the Model and…

This empirical research involves the investigation of teachers' perceptions of a school transfer scheme whereby children aged 11+ years transfer permanently from primary to secondary school four weeks before the end of the summer term, in mid-June, in a small English town. Expressed perceptions of the secondary school staff concerning the…

This article focuses on an investigation into the learning journeys undertaken by managers of a community education project in an area of urban deprivation. A constructivist interpretation of life history narrative revealed the positive effects of community workers' heavy dependence on experiential work-based learning, which resulted in the…

This paper examines a data set that has its origins in European Social Fund Objective 4 financed training programmes in small- to medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Britain to examine the extent to which three different personal development outcomes are attributable to different types of skills acquired during the training process. The three…

This article details an investigation into the use of interactive whiteboards undertaken in five elementary schools in an English education authority. Evidence was collected by using a questionnaire containing closed and open questions, lesson observations, and structured interviews of teachers and headteachers. Potential benefits in the…

This paper examines three concepts relating to the role of heads of department (HoDs) in secondary schools: boundary management; the roles of subject leadership and departmental functioning as HoD activities; and the place of HoDs in evolving school hierarchies. To throw light on the last an empirical study is reported that explores hierarchies in…