scholarly journals What is actually true? Approaches to teaching conspiracy theories and alternative narratives in history lessons

2020 ◽  
Vol 14 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Rikke Alberg Peters ◽  
Hildegunn Juulsgaard Johannesen
Keyword(s):  
Teaching Strategies ◽  
Historical Narratives ◽  
Research Approach ◽  
Controversial Issues ◽  
Contextual Knowledge ◽  
Conspiracy Theories ◽  
History Curriculum ◽  
Action Research Approach ◽  
High Level ◽  
Historical Reflection

Abstract This article presents an empirical study that examines the teaching of conspiracy theories as part of the lower secondary history curriculum in Denmark. We argue that this topic is highly relevant, especially when taught in relation to the use of history. Within this approach, answering questions about true and false is secondary to understanding how and why alternative narratives co-exist and, at times, conflict. By applying a qualitative action research approach involving two teachers who taught in three different classes, our aim was to obtain in-depth knowledge of what happens in the classroom when different teaching strategies are applied, as well as to determine whether and, if so, how students show signs of critical thinking and historical reflection. Our results show that, although they required extended contextual knowledge to practise source evaluation and historical reflection, the students were highly motivated and participated actively in discussions. Both teachers in the study used an open-ended dialogic and enquiry-based approach to prompt their students to investigate the theories for themselves and to draw their own conclusions. When teachers facilitate classroom discussions in an open-ended way, the complex existential aspects of the use of history are opened up and students are given the opportunity to explore the complexity of historical narratives. During the observations, we noted some high-level examples of historical reflection and contextualisation among the students. However, the teaching of conspiracy theories is not an easy task, and teachers face many ethical dilemmas when deciding which role to adopt. Keywords: conspiracy theories, alternative narratives, use of history, controversial issues, teaching strategies, historical reflection   Hvad er egentlig sandt? Tilgange til at undervise i konspirationsteorier og alternative forklaringer i historiefaget Sammendrag Denne artikel præsenterer et empirisk studie af, hvordan der kan undervises i konspira­tionsteorier i historie i udskolingen på en måde så elevernes historiske refleksion op­øves. Emnet er yderst historiefagligt relevant, særligt hvis det undersøges i forbindelse med historiebrug. I denne optik er besvarelser af spørgsmål om sandt og falsk sekundært i forhold til at forstå, hvordan og hvorfor alternative fortællinger eksisterer og til tider kommer i konflikt. Ved at anvende en kvalitativ aktionsforskningsmetode, der invol­verede et tæt samarbejde med to lærere, som underviste i tre forskellige klasser, var vores mål at opnå dybdegående viden om, hvad der sker i klasselokalet, når forskellige undervisningsstrategier tages i brug, samt at afgøre, om og i givet fald hvordan eleverne viste tegn på kritisk tænkning og historisk refleksion. Vores resultater viser, at selvom eleverne havde brug for omfattende kontekstuel viden for at kunne praktisere kildekritik og historisk refleksion, så var eleverne meget motiverede og deltog aktivt i klassediskussioner. Begge lærere i undersøgelsen brugte en åben dialogisk og undersøgelsesbaseret tilgang til at få deres elever til at undersøge teorierne for sig selv og til at drage deres egne konklusioner. Når lærere benytter en åben tilgang til diskussioner i klasseværelset, så åbnes der op for forståelsen af de mere komplekse eksistentielle aspekter af brugen af historie, og eleverne får dermed mulighed for at arbejde med kompleksiteten i historiske fortællinger. Vores observationer viser nogle eksempler på historisk refleksion og kontekstforståelse på højt niveau. Imidlertid er undervisningen i konspirationsteorier ikke en let opgave, og lærere står over for mange etiske dilemmaer, når de skal beslutte, hvilken rolle de skal indtage. Nøkkelord: konspirationsteorier, alternative fortællinger, historiebrug, kontroversielle emner, undervisningsstrategier, historisk refleksion

scholarly journals Bullying prevention in a Swedish municipality: Supported decentralised reasoning

2018 ◽  
Vol 01 (02) ◽  
pp. 69-90
Author(s):  
Paula Larsson
Keyword(s):  
Bullying Prevention ◽  
Research Approach ◽  
National Context ◽  
Contextual Knowledge ◽  
Whole School ◽  
Action Research Approach ◽  
Prevention Model ◽  
Degrading Treatment ◽  
Whole School Approach ◽  
Different Levels

The national context of Sweden is particularly illustrative for international research, in that bullying and degrading treatment have been a central aspect of policy-making for some time. In Sweden, schools and municipalities are obliged to produce detailed action plans to counteract bullying. The aim of this study is to describe and analyse how practitioners in schools, during implementation of the Municipality Bullying Prevention Model (MBPM), change the way they work and apply decentralised reasoning to prevent bullying. This study makes use of an action-research approach. In the project, bullying prevention is addressed by the participating schools. The findings indicate that practitioners introduced various measures in different places and at different levels during implementation of the MBPM. It also became apparent that bullying prevention work needs to build on a school’s contextual knowledge and have a whole-school approach.

scholarly journals Status disclosure for adolescents with HIV

2018 ◽  
Vol 74 ◽  
pp. 10011
Author(s):  
Annisah Annisah ◽  
Johanna Debora Imelda ◽  
Mona Sugianto
Keyword(s):  
Action Research ◽  
Life Expectancy ◽  
Primary Caregivers ◽  
Social Aspects ◽  
Research Approach ◽  
Hiv Status ◽  
Action Research Approach ◽  
Disclosure Status ◽  
High Level ◽  
Status Disclosure

The number of Adolescents with HIV in Indonesia in these last 4 years continuously increases. This condition brings new prospect that children who are born with HIV have better life expectancy with its following complexities. One of the biggest challenges is the issue of disclosure status. This study employs action research approach to reveal better alternative patterns of disclosure for revealing HIV status of adolescents. The results of the study show that the disclosure status will be successful if the adolescents and primary caregivers have a high level of readiness both on cognitive, affective, psychomotor, existential-spiritual, and social aspects. When the combination of these is not less than 8, the disclosure process can be predicted to succeed. If it is less than that, it would be better off to prepare all those eight aspects. Authors argue disclosure status is not only determined by who does that, rather adolescents and caregiver must be parallel prepared and ready to disclose. Therefore, it is important to assess readiness before the disclosure status process is carried out.

Knowledge Audit Approach for a Large-Scale Government KM Strategy

2014 ◽  
Vol 13 (04) ◽  
pp. 1450029
Author(s):  
Marie-Christine Roy ◽  
Elaine Mosconi ◽  
Mireille Sager ◽  
Jean-Francois Ricard
Keyword(s):  
Organizational Performance ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Research Approach ◽  
Km Strategy ◽  
Action Research Approach ◽  
Critical Issues ◽  
High Level ◽  
Audit Approach ◽  
Knowledge Audit ◽  
Sheer Number

The promise of increased organizational performance has brought about a high level of interest for knowledge management (KM). Organizations and Governments are also actively launching KM projects to meet increasing needs of high quality and responsiveness. This interest has contributed to the development of various aspects of KM, but has also underscored a lack of effective methods, as evidenced by the sheer number of proposed approaches, along with a lingering scepticism about their relevance in practice. In this article, we argue for the necessity for a more global and high level analysis for orienting KM strategic planning and propose different steps to go about it. We used an action research approach in the context of Quebec's efforts in planning a global and integrated KM strategy for managing its water related knowledge. This research project shows that the proposed auditing approach provided a useful guide to identify critical issues and projects in KM planning, particularly in a complex and large-scale governmental environment.

scholarly journals Action Research: An Approach To Improved Classroom Instruction

2004 ◽  
Vol 1 (7) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jennifer M. Hall
Keyword(s):  
Action Research ◽  
Learning Communities ◽  
Learning Process ◽  
Research Approach ◽  
Communication Course ◽  
Action Research Approach ◽  
Method Of Instruction ◽  
Teaching Learning ◽  
High Level ◽  
Level Of Motivation

In the teaching/learning process, the instructor and his/her method of instruction impact on the learners.  Success is also guaranteed when learners work in a non-threatening environment.  This paper seeks to highlight how using action research approach, a group of university students who were repeating a communication course were all successful at the end of the semester.  Students by establishing learning communities took responsibility for their learning.  Changes were made to the way the content was presented by introducing a variety of methodologies.  The teacher was a coach and facilitator to each group.  These changes were fundamental to the high level of motivation.  Attendance at classes and participation were outstanding.  The ultimate success in the course has resulted in changes to this and other courses in the department.

scholarly journals Investigating self-regulation in the context of a blended learning computing course

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniel F.O. Onah ◽  
Elaine L.L. Pang ◽  
Jane E. Sinclair
Keyword(s):  
Time Management ◽  
Help Seeking ◽  
Theoretical Perspective ◽  
Self Regulation ◽  
Independent Study ◽  
Research Approach ◽  
Small Data ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Action Research Approach ◽  
High Level

PurposeMassive open online courses (MOOCs) provide an innovative educational technology, which has become widely used for distance learning by independent learners. However, there has been little work so far to study the effects of using MOOCs as part of a blended classroom approach in which learning activities take place both online and in a traditional classroom setting. The purpose of this study is to investigate the aspects of blended MOOC usage in the context of a computing course for first-year undergraduates at a UK university.Design/methodology/approachThe MOOC was implemented on a purpose-built platform that supports learners to make informed choices about their learning path. This research investigates students’ capacity for self-regulated learning (SRL) and understands their preparedness for independent study, profile the general areas of SRL strength and weakness, which may affect their ability to learn effectively in a self-directed environment. An existing survey instrument, based on a six-dimensional conceptualization of SRL was adapted to investigate the self-regulation in the MOOC study.FindingsThe results demonstrate that the dimensions of self-evaluation and time management represent particular areas of weakness for these students. Furthermore, profiles of SRL for individual students show considerable differences in capability within the study. However, the deficiencies in SRL dimensions contrast with the students’ of generally high levels of attainment. This leads us to question the validity of the existing SRL. Furthermore, a high level of social interaction and help-seeking was reported in relation to the MOOC study indicating the increasing importance of social learning and the importance of co-regulation for SRL.Research limitations/implicationsAlthough this study presents findings from a small data sample, it points to a number of areas for future implementation and exploration. Firstly, in line with the action research approach, students’ SRL could, in the future, be tested early in the course with the MOOC component being ideally placed to provide personalised support for each student in aspects which they may benefit from developing further. Secondly, for students in the cohort studied in this paper, a longitudinal study will track how their SRL develops as they progress through the degree. We feel that it is important to gain further qualitative data to understand how students work in practice and the strategies they adopt when confronted with different modes of learning. Finally, it is necessary to consider the conceptualisation of SRL to understand if existing instruments could be adapted to provide a more accurate assessment of the effectiveness of learners’ self-regulation.Originality/valueThere has been little research on the effects of using a MOOC as the online component of a blended classroom learning approach. This study has used a theoretical perspective of SRL to investigate the approaches to self-regulation adopted by undergraduate computer science students studying in a blended MOOC environment. The MOOC used for this purpose was developed on the innovative eLDa platform, allowing students to determine, track and visualise their individual path through topics and materials offered in the MOOC.

Beyond Findings: Conversations with Experts

2018 ◽  
Vol 47 (2) ◽  
pp. 60-62
Author(s):  
Joanne Evans ◽  
Gregory Rolan
Keyword(s):  
Home Care ◽  
Associate Professor ◽  
Research Approach ◽  
Participatory Action ◽  
Childhood Education ◽  
Out Of Home Care ◽  
Action Research Approach ◽  
Historical Justice ◽  
Protection Systems ◽  
Discovery Project

AbstractRights in Records by Design is a three-year Australian Research Council-funded Discovery Project that is running from 2017 to 2019. This project brings together an interdisciplinary research team to investigate the recordkeeping and archival needs for those whose childhoods are impacted by child welfare and protection systems. Using a participatory action research approach the team of recordkeeping, historical, social work, early childhood education and community researchers are exploring the design of Lifelong Living Archives for those who experience childhood out-of-home Care. The goal of research and in designing the Archive is to re-imagine recordkeeping frameworks, processes and systems in support of responsive and accountable child-centred out-of-home Care, and to enable historical justice and reconciliation. Chief Investigator Associate Professor Joanne Evans and post-doctoral researcher Dr. Gregory Rolan from the Faculty of Information Technology at Monash University in Australia talk to PDT&C about this project.

scholarly journals More evidence or stronger political will: exploring the feasibility of needle and syringe programs in Ukrainian prisons

2021 ◽  
Vol 18 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Alexandra Dmitrieva ◽  
Vladimir Stepanov ◽  
Kateryna Svyrydova ◽  
Ievgeniia-Galyna Lukash ◽  
Svetlana Doltu ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Drug Use ◽  
Injecting Drug Use ◽  
World Health ◽  
Historical Period ◽  
Research Approach ◽  
Political Will ◽  
Prison Staff ◽  
Action Research Approach ◽  
Needle And Syringe Programs ◽  
Laws And Policies

Abstract Introduction In 2007, the World Health Organization (WHO) recommended for prison authorities to introduce prison needle and syringe programs (PNSP) if they have any evidence that injecting drug use is taking place in prisons. This article presents descriptive evidence that injecting drug use takes place in Ukrainian prisons, it discusses how (denial of) access to injection equipment is regulated in the current system and what changes should be considered in order to implement PNSP. Background Ukrainian prisons still live by the laws and policies adopted in the Soviet Union. Besides laws and regulations, these legacies are replicated through the organization and infrastructure of the prison’s physical space, and through “carceral collectivism” as a specific form of living and behaving. Inviolability of the prison order over time helps the prison staff to normalize and routinely rationalize punishment enforcement as a power “over” prisoners, but not a power “for” achieving a specific goal. Methods The Participatory Action Research approach was used as a way of involving different actors in the study’s working group and research process. The data were gathered through 160 semi-structured interviews with prison health care workers, guards, people who inject drugs (PWID) who served one or several terms and other informants. Results The “expertise” in drug use among prisoners demonstrated by prison staff tells us two things—they admit that injecting use takes place in prisons, and that the surveillance of prisoner behavior has been carried out constantly since the very beginning as a core function of control. The communal living conditions and prison collectivism may not only produce and reproduce a criminal subculture but, using the same mechanisms, produce and reproduce drug use in prison. The “political will” incorporated into prison laws and policies is essential for the revision of outdated legacies and making PNSP implementation feasible. Conclusion PNSP implementation is not just a question of having evidence of injecting drug use in the hands of prison authorities. For PNSP to be feasible in the prison environment, there is a need for specific changes to transition from one historical period and political leadership to another. And, thus, to make PNSP work requires making power work for change, and not just for reproducing the power itself.

scholarly journals The process of transprofessional collaboration: how caregivers integrated the perspectives of rehabilitation through working with a physical therapist

2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (4) ◽  
pp. e000378
Author(s):  
Ryohei Goto ◽  
Junji Haruta
Keyword(s):  
Nursing Home ◽  
Action Research ◽  
Physical Therapist ◽  
Nursing Home Residents ◽  
Research Approach ◽  
Action Research Approach ◽  
Informal Interview ◽  
Trial Basis ◽  
Field Notes

ObjectivesTo clarify the process of how caregivers in a nursing home integrate the perspectives of rehabilitation into their responsibilities through working with a physical therapist.DesignThis study was conducted under an action research approach.SettingThe target facility was a nursing home located in Japan. The researcher, a physical therapist, worked at the nursing home once a week from April 2016 to March 2017. During the study period, he created field notes focused on the dialogue and action of caregivers regarding care, responses of caregivers to the physical therapist and reflections as a physical therapist. Caregivers were also given a short informal interview about their relationship with the nursing home residents. For data analysis, two researchers discussed the content based on the field notes, consolidating the findings.ParticipantsThe participants were caregivers who worked at the target facility. Thirty-eight caregivers agreed to participate. Average age was 39.6±11.1 years, 14 (37%) were male and average caregiver experience was 9.8 years.ResultsTwo cycles of action research were conducted during the study period. There were four stages in the process of how caregivers in the nursing home integrated the perspectives of rehabilitation through their work with the physical therapist. First, caregivers resisted having the rehabilitation programme carried out in the unit because they perceived that rehabilitation performed by a physical therapist was a special process and not under their responsibility. However, the caregivers were given a shared perspective on rehabilitation by the physical therapist, which helped them to understand the meaning of care to adapt the residents’ abilities to their daily life. They practised resident-centred care on a trial basis, although with a sense of conflict between their new and previous role, which emphasised the safety of residents’ lives and personhood. The caregivers increased their self-efficacy as their knowledge and skills were supplemented by the physical therapist and his approval of their attempted care. They were then able to commit to their newly conceived specialty of care as a means of supporting the lives of residents.ConclusionsThe process of working with a physical therapist led to a change in caregivers’ perception and behaviours, which occurred in four stages: resistance to incorporation, recapture of other perspectives, conflicts and trials in the role of caregiver and transformation to a resident-centred perspective.

scholarly journals Use of participatory action research approach to develop a self-management resource for persons living with dementia

Dementia ◽  
2021 ◽  
pp. 147130122199728
Author(s):  
Sherry Dupuis ◽  
Carrie McAiney ◽  
Lisa Loiselle ◽  
Brenda Hounam ◽  
Jim Mann ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Action Research ◽  
Participatory Action Research ◽  
Primary Care Providers ◽  
Self Management ◽  
Research Approach ◽  
Care Providers ◽  
Participatory Action ◽  
Action Research Approach ◽  
Care Partners ◽  
Essential Components

This article describes the use of a participatory action research (PAR) approach to developing a self-management resource for persons living with dementia and care partners. Despite growing evidence that persons with dementia are able to contribute in meaningful ways to decision-making about their care and life preferences, few opportunities exist for them to participate in the design of resources and services meant for them. There is also a need to support the self-management of persons living with dementia with the provision of accurate, high quality, user-friendly information. The Living Well with Dementia resource was developed through a partnership with persons with dementia, family members, Alzheimer Society representatives, primary care providers, and researchers. The methods used in the development of this resource are outlined in six steps employed in this process, from establishment of a PAR team to final resource creation. Informed by a whole systems approach, the resource brings together essential components of self-management into a comprehensive system of care and support for living. It empowers users to be active participants in the application of new knowledge to their lives. Better self-management has important implications for access to health care and quality of life for persons with dementia and care partners.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document