Understanding why individuals from minority groups choose to enter teaching is essential for developing equitable and inclusive education systems. This study adopts a comparative perspective to examine teaching career motivations among two minority groups in Israel—Arab and Jewish-Haredi student teachers. The sample comprised 205 student teachers who completed the Factors Influencing Teaching Choice (FIT-Choice) questionnaire. Quantitative analyses revealed significant differences in five motivational dimensions. Compared with Jewish-Haredi students, Arab student teachers placed greater emphasis on job transferability, job security, fallback career considerations, making a social contribution, and prior teaching and learning experiences. No significant differences were found in intrinsic career value or several other dimensions, suggesting that both groups share a strong commitment to teaching. The findings show that teacher motivation is shaped by cultural values, structural opportunities, and labor-market conditions. The study contributes to international FIT-Choice literature and informs culturally responsive teacher education policies and recruitment strategies.
Background: COVID-19 raised learning poverty to 70% in some low- and middle-income countries, with ten-year-olds unable to read and understand simple text. To address this challenge, Save the Children introduced Catch-up Clubs (CuCs), a remedial, community-based, programme, designed to raise literacy and social and emotional learning of primary school children that are falling behind. Aim: This retrospective study synthesised evidence from five low-income countries where the CuC programme has been implemented, to (i) establish the overall success and generalisability of the programme in different contexts and (ii) identify variables that influenced inequalities in literacy outcomes. Methods: An in-depth evidence synthesis and meta-analysis was conducted on country reports and existing datasets from five countries: Bangladesh, Malawi, Myanmar, the Philippines, and Colombia. Results: Secondary data analyses revealed a positive effect of the CuC programme on literacy outcomes in each of the five countries investigated and improved social and emotional learning in three countries. Generic (baseline literacy) and country-specific variables (sex and language in Malawi and sex in Bangladesh) had a significant impact on children’s literacy attainment. Conclusions: Despite important methodological caveats that may have influenced the findings, CuCs appear to have a positive impact on children’s learning outcomes and overall well-being that are generalisable across different contexts.
The present study employed a two-phase exploratory mixed methods design in English as a foreign language (EFL) classes at two private Japanese universities to gain a deeper understanding of students' perceptions of AoA and its influence on their perceived global competence (GC) awareness. The qualitative data revealed that students developed enhanced intercultural adaptability, respect, and tolerance, and cross-cultural knowledge, while demonstrating improved communicative practices in production, reception, interaction, and mediation. Subsequently, in Study 2, participants completed online surveys using adapted versions of Mohammed-Ismail and Prasantha-Kumar (2023) AoA scale and Coffey et al. (2013) GC scale after a semester-long exposure to AoA activities (N = 201). Both the linear regression analysis and the subsequent structural equation model indicated that AoA was positively associated with students' perceived GC, suggesting a possible link between AoA and GC. Further research is warranted to validate these findings across diverse educational and cultural contexts.
The growing importance of third-party funding, excellence policies, and organisational differentiation are eroding the Humboldtian idea of a unity of research and teaching. Though studies show a perceived preference for research over teaching amongst academics, there remains a dearth of research into the association between the research-teaching nexus and job satisfaction. We know little about whether, and if so how, national higher education contexts moderate job satisfaction. This study examines what effect, if any, the perceived preference for research, the compatibility of research and teaching, and workload have on job satisfaction and whether effects are moderated by country - selecting Canada, Germany, and Austria for comparison. Findings indicate that while high teaching and administrative workloads decrease job satisfaction, those who subjectively prefer teaching over research are more satisfied than their research-oriented colleagues. The results also show that national higher education systems are a significant moderating factor for job satisfaction, highlighting the importance of country-comparative research.
Education is a protective factor against child labor; however, COVID-19 school closures threatened educational attainment and increased child labor. In this 2-year longitudinal study in rural Côte d’Ivoire, we investigated children’s (N=955, Mage=10.45) learning outcomes, educational resource use, and agricultural work pre-, during, and post-COVID-19 school closures. The number of children participating in agricultural work increased during school closures and persisted once schools reopened. However, children randomized to an educational technology (EdTech) intervention (Allô Alphabet) and children who reported receiving family tutoring during school closures were more likely to report reduced agricultural work. Children working in cocoa agriculture during school closures showed poorer reading scores the following year; however, reading scores marginally improved for children who used EdTech during school closures. Results are discussed in terms of negative COVID-19 impacts and the positive role of educational resources on the attainment of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals in Côte d’Ivoire.
This study contributes to comparative and international education research by validating a culturally adapted Teachers’ Attitudes towards Inclusive Education (TATIE) scale in Iraqi Kurdistan and conducting a rigorous comparative evaluation of pre-service teachers. Addressing methodological challenges in cross-cultural studies, the research analyzes data from 500 pre-service teachers using Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling. Beyond establishing the reliability and construct validity of the adapted scale, the study integrates Multi-Group Analysis (MGA) and ANOVA to conduct a comparative analysis of demographic subgroups. The results reveal significant disparities in both measurement invariance and latent mean scores; specifically, participants with prior training and familiarity with inclusive practices demonstrated markedly higher self-efficacy and more favorable attitudes compared to their untrained and unfamiliar peers. Furthermore, significant variations were observed across gender and age groups. These empirically grounded insights offer valuable guidance for tailoring teacher education curricula in diverse cultural settings, contributing to the broader global discourse on equitable pedagogies.
Leadership plays a critical role in navigating institutional change in higher education, particularly in the context of global disruptions, policy shifts, and increasing demands for equity. While substantial scholarship has focused on senior executive leadership, the roles of deans and middle-level leaders in implementing and mediating institutional change remain comparatively underexplored. This scoping review synthesizes evidence from 24 empirical studies published between 2014 and 2024 across 22 countries. Guided by the frameworks of Arksey and O'Malley and Levac et al., studies were identified through systematic searches in ERIC, Education Research Complete, and Academic Search Complete, and analysed using thematic synthesis. Institutional change initiatives most commonly involved crisis response, curriculum reform, policy restructuring, and digital transformation, with qualitative approaches predominating (n = 21). This review proposes a novel four-domain model of leadership strategies encompassing affective, strategic, structural, and ethical domains. Across the studies, deans and middle-level leaders emerged as pivotal actors who enacted distributed leadership, fostered stakeholder engagement, and mediated faculty resistance during reform implementation. Persistent challenges included faculty resistance, limited resources, and policy ambiguity. Faculty resistance and resource constraints were the most consistent barriers to sustainable reform, underscoring the importance of adaptive, collaborative, and ethically grounded leadership. This review advances a conceptual framework to inform leadership development and policy design in higher education.
Global Citizenship Education (GCE) plays a significant role in supporting the development (or the preparation) of informed and active citizens capable of engaging with global challenges in an increasingly interconnected world. Research within the GCE field suggests that there is presently a lack of investigation into preservice teachers' conceptual understandings of the topic. This study, therefore, aim to address this gap in the literature by exploring preservice teachers' perspectives (in Kuwait and Germany) regarding their conceptual understandings for the GCE, aiming to compare how future educators in both contexts define and interpret the subject. To achieve this goal, the study employed a qualitative comparative approach, using semi-structured interviews with 15 preservice teachers from Kuwait and 7 from Germany. These data were analyzed through a critical GCE lens to uncover underlying themes and interpretation differences. Findings revealed that, while preservice teachers from both countries articulated similar thematic understandings, their interpretations reflected distinct contextual differences. Moreover, both groups exhibited a predominantly soft approach to GCE. The study reveals the need for a more robust integration of critical GCE principles within teacher education programs in both settings.
This study examines the internationalization of higher education in Laos, Myanmar, and Thailand by situating global internationalization trends within distinct political, institutional, and capacity constraints. Drawing on Knight's 4Ps framework and a systematic review of literature (2017-2026), the study analyzes policy documents, institutional reports, and comparative cases to explore how higher education institutions in Global South negotiate internationalization pressures. The findings reveal that internationalization across the three countries is uneven, selective, and shaped by local conditions, including limited institutional capacity in Laos, political instability and crisis-driven mobility in Myanmar, and stratified system expansion in Thailand. Regional integration and cross-border mobility emerge as critical dynamics, particularly between Myanmar and Thailand, challenging policy-centric models of internationalization. Based on these insights, the study proposes a Sustainable Internationalization Framework that explains how global agendas interact with local realities, offering a context-sensitive analytical lens for internationalization in Southeast Asia and comparable Global South settings.
University dropout is a multi-causal problem of international scope. Consequently, there is an ongoing effort among governments and universities to mitigate this issue. Spain and Brazil are no strangers to this problem. The objective of this study is to determine if there are differences in the importance that Spanish and Brazilian students attach to the different reasons for dropping out, which would show the existence of cultural differences. Accordingly, an adapted questionnaire consisting of 39 items was used, which, based on Tinto's interactionist model, covers six factors: financial, institutional, academic, teacher, social, and well-being. The questionnaire was administered to a sample of 1676 Spanish and Brazilian university students. The results show that there were differences in the importance placed on the different factors related to dropout between countries and depending on gender, which shows the need to analyze the cultural context. The study contributes to a consolidation of dropout models.
In recent years, researchers have shown an increased interest in the investigation of visualization-based tasks since they require other cognitive skills and metacognitive beliefs. Less is, however, research examines how these factors simultaneously associate with visualization-based tasks across different educational contexts. This cross-sectional study explored performance on the dice task and its various factors, involving 865 participants in grades 5 and 6 from Indonesian and Hungarian schools. 31 tests (Dice task, word comprehension, numeracy skills, spatial) and an 11-item questionnaire (metacognitive beliefs, attitudes, and daily activity) were employed. We performed t-tests and path analyses. The results revealed that Hungarian students' performance was higher than that of Indonesian students on dice tasks. Metacognitive beliefs and word comprehension roles for dice task performance seem to be more consistent between the two countries. The association between the dice task and other skills was not consistent across the two countries. Some implications are discussed.
Increasing the participation of students who study science and mathematics curricula is a priority in many countries, but between-school inequalities in the offerings of these subjects is not well understood. We examine stratified opportunities to learn science and math subjects in upper secondary schools in Australia, as a case study for examining how educational marketization reduces access to curricular subjects in comprehensive secondary education systems. Using census data from one state, we found biology and chemistry are offered in most schools, but substantial inequalities exist in access to physics and especially advanced mathematics. School size, socioeconomic composition, sector and location predict whether a school offers advanced mathematics. The findings suggest that inequalities in access to science and mathematics curricula are patterned by social background and that these inequalities are linked with educational marketization.
The vocational education and training (VET) consulting market is growing rapidly in the Arab Gulf States but still remains under-researched. This exploratory study examines its structure and characteristics through 12 qualitative interviews with private consultants and company representatives, focussing on the drivers of demand, the arrangement of these services and how they are perceived. Findings reveal that demand stems from government-led economic diversification, workforce development initiatives and align education with international standards. Large consultancy firms dominate strategic and VET policy-level work, while smaller firms and individual consultants handle operational support. Interviewees report divergent views on transparency and concerns about localisation of international models. By providing a first systematic account of commercial consulting for VET in this region, the study illuminates how private actors shape vocational educational policy in resource-rich nations pursuing rapid modernisation.
This study analyzes the presentation of area concepts for triangles and quadrilaterals in Indonesian and Japanese textbooks using the praxeology framework and evaluates potential learning obstacles through Didactical Design Research. The Indonesian textbook offers broader task variations but relies on limited techniques, which may potentially lead to ontogenic, didactic, and epistemological obstacles. Conversely, the Japanese textbook incorporates more comprehensive techniques, emphasizing a universal triangle-based approach and Euclidean geometry, yet excludes the area of kites, which may cause potential didactic obstacles. The findings highlight the need for educators to critically select textbooks and for policymakers to develop materials that address diverse learning needs while minimizing obstacles. This research offers valuable insights for improving mathematics education by aligning textbook content with pedagogical goals and student contexts.
This study evaluated the effectiveness of MarketSim, an online business simulator, in developing data-driven decision-making skills among undergraduate business students across three Latin American universities. The research followed 215 students from Colombia, Venezuela, and Ecuador over two academic years, implementing a mixed-methods approach with experimental and control groups. Statistical analyses included McDonald's Omega coefficients for instrument validation, Principal Component Analysis for construct assessment, and multiple procedures for hypothesis testing including Repeated Measures MANOVA, Hierarchical Linear Modeling, and Path Analysis. Results indicated stronger performance improvements in experimental groups using MarketSim compared to traditional teaching methods, with notable variations across institutional contexts. The study found sustained enhancement in data interpretation abilities, strategic planning skills, and knowledge retention among students using the simulation platform. Cross-university comparisons highlighted the importance of institutional support and technical infrastructure in successful implementation.
Higher education (HE) presents a valuable research context due to the increasing market orientation of institutions, with students playing an active role as decision-making agents. Faced with growing competition, higher education institutions (HEIs) have embraced business-oriented approaches to ensure their long-term sustainability and expansion. Developing effective marketing communication strategies is therefore essential for building a strong brand identity and engagement. This article conducts a bibliometric review on marketing communication in HEIs, identifying dominant trends, areas of interest, and gaps in the literature, thus contributing to the understanding and development of this field. Using performance analysis and science mapping, the study reveals a growing interest in HEIs marketing practices and highlights the impact of digitalization, with a significant shift from traditional to digital communication strategies. This study calls for future research on social media marketing, cultural differences in communication strategies, and the integration of innovative approaches to enrich the academic knowledge and debate.
Much of the research on identity formation of early-career researchers (ECRs) emphasizes how neoliberal restructuring of academia has impacted processes of becoming an academic. As a marginalized population in the academy, this is especially acute for women and female-read bodies. This study illuminates "academic identity crafting" processes based on sixteen interviews with ECRs in the United States and Austria who identified as women. Findings point to forms of identity crafting that are connected to "thriving for autonomy," "having a community," and "finding purpose." In addition, challenges of academic identity crafting, which are related to the neoliberal influence on the academy as well as the perceived absence of role models and mentors, were identified. This study highlights the need to improve the ways in which higher education institutions support early-career women researchers in crafting their academic identities.
Most school climate studies to date have focused on Minority World (i.e., high-income) countries. As such, there is limited understanding of the concepts and constructs that encompass school climate in Majority World (i.e., low- and middle-income) countries. We conducted a systematic review of empirical studies that assessed school climate quantitatively in Majority World countries. Out of 4372 initial articles, 172 met inclusion criteria. Of these, only 8.2% were conducted in a low-income country, and the vast majority (91.8%) in a lower-middle income country. A majority of publications are from 2016 onwards, and most (69%) on secondary education. Domains of school climate were well represented across existing frameworks (e.g., safety, teaching and learning, relationships, and institutional environment). The findings indicate a greater need for research in the lowest resource settings and a need to connect school climate to other important policy issues such as school-based violence and gender inequality.
Scientific literacy (SL) has been recognized globally as the main goal of school science. Similarly, scientific inquiry (SI) is an established science procedure in learning. Science textbooks are major resources for learning, but the ways in which SL themes and SI-levels are presented to students in textbooks may vary between countries. This study aims to compare how the representations of SL themes and SI-levels in upper-secondary schools biology textbooks in Finland (BookF) and Nigeria (BookN) align with a competency-based approach focusing on scientific knowledge and competencies, the learning context, and attitudes towards science. A modified framework of the Programme for International Student Assessment 2015 (PISA 2015) and a deductive content analysis were used for data processing. The findings using χ 2 tests indicate significant differences in the representations of SL themes and SI-levels. The books focused more on scientific knowledge and competencies than on learning contexts and attitudes. Moreover, BookF encourages structured inquiry, whereas BookN proposes confirmation inquiry levels.
