Irina Verenikina

Intersection of trajectories: a newcomer in a community of practice

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to provide a case study of a newcomer to the practice of policing to explore conceptualisations of learning through practice. It aims to position learning as the intersections of trajectories of being and becoming within a community of practice. The paper seeks to argue that learners need to be understood with respect to their personal histories and how these interact with the social and cultural dimensions of the workplace.Design/methodology/approach – This paper is a case study of a new police officer with data collected through a series of interviews and observations over a two‐year period.Findings – The case study presented demonstrates the relationship between prior experience, personal histories, participation and a sense of belonging in shaping the learning of early‐career police officers. It suggests that in considering newcomers to the workplace it is important to view the process of learning as being influence by these interconnected factors.Research limita...

Socio-emotional connections: identity, belonging and learning in online interactions. A literature review

This review focuses on three interconnected socio-emotional aspects of online learning: interaction, sense of community and identity formation. In the intangible social space of the virtual classroom, students come together to learn through dialogic, often asynchronous, exchanges. This creates distinctive learning environments where learning goals, interpersonal relationships and emotions are no less important because of their ‘virtualness’, and for which traditional face-to-face pedagogies are not neatly transferrable. The literature reveals consistent connections between interaction and sense of community. Yet identity, which plausibly and naturally emerges from any social interaction, is much less explored in online learning. While it is widely acknowledged that interaction increases the potential for knowledge-building, the literature indicates that this will be enhanced when opportunities encouraging students’ emergent identities are embedded into the curriculum. To encourage informed teaching strategies this review seeks to raise awareness and stimulate further exploration into a currently under-researched facet of online learning.

Digital play: Exploring young children's perspectives on applications designed for preschoolers

This study builds on and contributes to research on digital play with young children. Previous research has examined digital play from different viewpoints, but no studies have specifically addressed young children’s perspectives as they interact with applications (apps) that have been designed specifically for their age group. While our review of the literature provides insights from investigations of young children’s perspectives, there is limited research on preschoolers’ views on the apps designed for them by adults. In this article, we discuss young participants’ perspectives on the apps that they engaged with in our research. In particular, we emphasise the importance of various contexts for digital play in relation to meaningful conversations and social interactions. Our findings provide insights about how children choose to engage in digital play and through this, pose implications for the design of apps.

The Use of iPADs in the Home Setting for Students With Autism Spectrum Disorders

Families and educators have turned to digital tablets to support the unique needs of students with autism spectrum disorders (ASD), due to their ease of use, social acceptance, low cost, and portability. While school-based trial programs are emerging, there is very little research examining collaborative partnerships between families and educators relating to digital tablets. This study employed a qualitative methodology to investigate the use of digital tablets in the home setting to support students with ASD. Underpinned by Moll and Greenberg’s funds of knowledge theoretical framework, the study posited that the use of digital tablets for students with ASD can be enhanced if experiences from the home setting are validated by educators. It used semistructured interviews and anecdotal evidence with four families to explore the various ways digital tablets are used. Data from interviews with four teacher participants in a school-based trial were used to examine the collaboration between homes and schools regarding digital tablet use. The results showed that digital tablets were used daily in their homes. Frequent recreational and educational uses were reported as well as uses that supported behavior and communication. Finally, there were some suggestions in relation to the collaboration between home and school.

Computer game design and the imaginative play of young children

This paper discusses preliminary findings of the study of computer game design in relation to current understanding of imaginative play and its developmental value for young children. The crucial role of childrens play in their development is well documented. A number of criteria, which are essential in building a foundation for childrens cognitive development in play, were identified based on a literature review of the theoretical and empirical studies of childs play. The identified criteria were utilized to observe two young children playing various types of computer games to explore the opportunities that the games provide for imaginative play in the early childhood years.

Developing a model for a self-study professional learning community

Although the term self-study may suggest an individual teacher educator studying his or her own practice, most self-studies involve pairs or small groups of teacher educators working together in what is often called collaborative self-study. An extension of an informal collaboration is to formalize self-study as professional learning for teacher educators. This means that a group of teacher educators and other academics can study their practices over an extended period of time and share experiences as a community. This chapter identifies and explains the nature of a professional learning framework that underpins a group of academics becoming a self-study community. The framework is developed from previous research with teachers in schools and is adapted for self-study of academic teaching practices. The framework is based on the dynamic interaction of three professional learning influences: (1) content, (2) process, and (3) conditions that support such a community. Development of the framework is based on the progress of a group of ten academics, mostly teacher educators, over a 12-month period. Refinement of the framework is supported by case studies of the experiences of two of the participants in the self-study community.

Digital Play and Learning in the Home: Families’ Perspective

This chapter reports on our exploration of families’ perspectives on the role and place of the tablet technologies in their children’s educational and recreational activities. We report on interview data from parents within 17 purposively sampled families with children aged between 3 and 5 years who regularly used various tablet technologies in their homes. Thematic analysis of individual and focus group interview transcripts reveals that all the parents appreciated the opportunities that tablet technologies provide for enhancing their children’s experiences of learning and play. All the parents saw the importance of early learning for their children’s future academic success; many also acknowledged that digital play is part of the “basic” knowledge that children should experience prior to formal schooling. However, none of the parents were sure about the criteria in selecting software applications beyond common-sense criteria of affordability, online information and word-of-mouth recommendations. In the chapter we aim to share the perspectives of parents in relation to the ways that they judge the best practices of using the tablet technologies in young children; their choices of appropriate applications for their children’s recreation and learning, and the ways that they monitor the use of these technologies with their families.

Mapping participation in situated language learning

ABSTRACT Research on the international student experience in Australia has highlighted the challenges that international students face when obtaining tertiary qualifications in an Australian university [AEI. (2012). Student voices: Enhancing the experience of international students in Australia. Canberra, Australia: Australian Education International]. Specifically, international students are reported to have difficulties achieving their stated goals of making connections, forming friendships and improving their oral English language skills during their sojourn [AEI. (2013). International student survey 2012 overview report. Canberra, Australia: Australian Education International; Yates, L., & Wahid, R. (2013). Challenges to Brand Australia: International students and the problem with speaking. Higher Education Research & Development, 32(6), 1037–1050]. This paper investigates the interactions of five male Saudi Arabian international students in the local English-speaking community and considers how they participate in it. Diary records and interview conversations are used to examine the nature and extent of participation, drawing on the linguistic concept of register or analysis of situation. The findings indicate that quality interactions for the purpose of language learning are derived from casual conversations and those without pre-defined social roles which afford opportunities for identity negotiation and interactional benefits.