In recent years, there has been considerable investment at the European Union level in expanding early childhood education and care (ECEC) facilities. In line with this quantitative substantial initiative, research and social policies are increasingly focusing on the quality of such facilities. High quality depends, among other things, on…

This book provides a platform for international scholars to share evidence for effective practices in integrated STEM education and contributes to the theoretical and practical knowledge gained from the diversity of approaches. Many publications on STEM education focus on one or two of the separate STEM disciplines without considering the…

Professional development is widely recognised as an essential path to promoting quality teaching and learning, but 'effective' professional development is dependent on core features such as duration, relevance and active teacher participation, all of which are central to teacher-centred research (Garet et al., 2001; Sanford, 2015; Scheerens,…

Educational quality is defined and shaped by the classroom practices implemented by teachers in our schools. The Teaching and Learning International Survey (TALIS)-PISA link presents a unique opportunity to explore what takes place in the classroom by listening to the voices of teachers and students. Teachers, with their professional training and…

There has been an overall change in higher education towards the achievement of outstanding patterns of quality and excellence that assure competitiveness at a global scale. Teachers feel the pressure of official regulations for achieving quality and excellence, based on questionable concepts of quality that do not take into account the experience…

This study aims to examine to what extent the field of competence regarding curriculum knowledge is concordant with the other sub-competency fields of teaching. These fields are field knowledge, pedagogic competence in field teaching, use of information and communication technologies in teaching, student behaviours and class management,…

This paper draws upon data from a broader piece of research aimed at examining pre-service teachers' views of their initial teacher education within the context of a master's degree programme in teaching. The data were collected through questionnaires and written narratives at the beginning and at the end of the programme. In this paper, the data…

Quality in higher education is a subject of increasing importance. This idea can be supported by looking at different sources, namely, the scientific literature, national and transnational governments' policies, such as those emerging from the Bologna Process. Also, the internationalisation of higher education and, within it, students' and staff…

The observation and assessment of quality of teacher--child interactions in elementary school settings are increasingly recognized as important; however, research is still very limited in European countries. In this study, we examined the quality of the interactions between teacher and children in first-grade classrooms in Portugal and the extent…

This article builds on existing data about the blended learning approach in higher education. It presents the theoretical framework and data of an empirical study conducted at the University of Porto in Portugal involving teachers who won the E-Learning Prize of Excellence in the period between 2006 and 2010. The main objective of this article is…

The study analyses the extent to which the sociological message transmitted by the teachers' pedagogic practice recontextualizes the official pedagogic discourse of the natural sciences curriculum for a Portuguese middle school. Theoretically, the study is based on theories of psychology (e.g. Vygotsky), epistemology (e.g. Ziman) and sociology,…

The paper is based on a recent report given to the Portuguese Ministry of Science, Technology and Higher Education on "Reforming Higher Education Distance Learning in Portugal" (Hasan et. al. 2009). The report was grounded on on-site visits of leading Portuguese Universities, Polytechnics and Business Schools as well as on written…

A multi-method active learning approach (MALA) was implemented in the Medical Biochemistry teaching unit of the Biomedical Sciences degree at the University of Aveiro, using problem-based learning as the main learning approach. In this type of learning strategy, students are involved beyond the mere exercise of being taught by listening. Less…

The IADIS CELDA 2012 Conference intention was to address the main issues concerned with evolving learning processes and supporting pedagogies and applications in the digital age. There had been advances in both cognitive psychology and computing that have affected the educational arena. The convergence of these two disciplines is increasing at a…