Theme Issue Refereed Articles
Problems of Learning Fundamentals of Semiconductor Electronics
Farrah Fayyaz, M. Ashraf Iqbal and Yasser Hashmi
pp. 3-17
Semiconductor theory is a core course in the field of electrical and computer engineering in which students learn the fundamental concepts of electronic
devices like diodes and transistors. A solid understanding of these concepts requires a thorough comprehension of the quality and quantity of charge
carriers and of the different mechanisms by which these charges can move and contribute to the flow of current in a semiconductor. There are a number of
serious issues that can cause hindrances in the meaningful understanding of these concepts. Initially the students are familiar with only one type of
charge carrier that can flow – i.e., electrons. Subsequently they learn about another charge that flows but that has only a virtual existence, which is
actually the absence of an electron. It is difficult for students to appreciate the difference between these two distinct charges. In this research, we seek
to identify the hindrances faced by the students in understanding these concepts and to explain (using theories of the psychology of learning) why such
difficulties arise even if one has all the prerequisite knowledge as well as the motivation to apply that knowledge. Concept mapping is used as a tool to
find the possible missing links in a student's knowledge structure. Our claims are based on concept maps developed by the students and structured interviews
conducted with students as well as with instructors teaching the course under review.
A Qualitative Study of Chinese Police Officers' In-service Training
Ting Wang and Shujie Zhang
pp. 18-32
This paper presents findings from a qualitative study, which examined a small sample of Chinese police officers' perceptions of training. This study set out
to investigate the key factors influencing the effectiveness of police training in the Chinese context of Beijing when international security measures are
heightened. The research is significant in that it explored a relatively new aspect of police training, particularly from the perspective of the trainees
while in Australia. An in-depth interview method was employed in the study. Five Beijing police officers, who were studying a Master of Professional English
degree at an Australian university, were interviewed in March 2005. The interviews were transcribed verbatim and the transcriptions were translated from Chinese
into English. The findings showed that the transmissive and didactic pedagogy appeared to dominate Beijing police training. A gap was identified between the
organisational goals and individual training needs. The study suggests that the individuals' needs for professional development should be considered in
designing training programs. The findings indicated that conducting training needs analysis at the individual level, qualified trainers, updated training content
and an emphasis on knowledge and skill transfer were significant factors contributing to the trainees' perceptions of effective police training.
Soul, Mind and Science Education
Ian Eddington
pp. 33-46
An enquiry is made about the nature of the soul at the dawn of premodernism, at the dawn of modernism and in the era of postmodernism. The enquiry is used to
support the view that, even in today's politically correct and morally relativist world, science (and by default science education) should continue to predicate
its activity on, and judge its success by, a commonsense appeal to experience, and not give in to lesser forms of validation.
Pedagogies and Learning in Cooperative and Symbolic Communities of Practice: Implications for and from the Education of Australian Show People
Beverley Moriarty, Patrick Alan Danaher and Geoff Danaher
pp. 47-56
Groups and organisations are not automatically sites of effective and transformative pedagogy and learning; such outcomes are most likely to occur when entities
become communities of practice (Wenger, McDermott & Snyder, 2002). One conception of community focused explicitly on the facilitation of pedagogy and learning is
cooperative community, centred on five principles (Johnson & Johnson, 1998). Another productive notion of community is as a symbolic construction, centred on
members' shared consciousness and boundary maintenance (Cohen, 1985). One community that demonstrates the pedagogical and learning potential of cooperative and
symbolic communities of practice is the Australian show people (Danaher, 1998, 2001). Following generations of educational marginalisation, this community
participated in a specialised program within the Brisbane School of Distance Education between 1989 and 1999, and since 2000 its members have benefited from having
their own Queensland School for Travelling Show Children, established under Education Queensland's auspices. This paper maps and portrays enactments of the
cooperative and symbolic communities of practice in the school and on the show circuits. It identifies specific strategies that underpin the pedagogies and learning m
ade possible in those communities of practice, and it considers possible implications of such pedagogies and learning for other educational contexts and groups.
Non-Theme Issue Refereed Articles
The Application of Learning Theories to the Design of Course Management Systems
Afendi Hamat and Mohamed Amin Embi
pp. 57-64
Course management systems (CMSs) are increasingly used by institutions of higher learning to spearhead their institution-wide forays into the world of e-learning, so
much so that the 'face' of e-learning in these institutions is represented by such systems. But how much 'learning' is there in these systems? Although scholarship in
this area is still in its infancy, one good question that should be asked is who decides what makes up the systems and how. If the vendors are the ones deciding things,
are we allowing ourselves to be led by people whose primary consideration is financial gain? Should educators take comfort in vendors' assertions that they are 'merely
providing the platform' and that we should just pour content into these platforms? That would merely result in accidental pedagogy as educators scramble to fit their
content into the platforms. By contrast, this paper discusses what we know of human learning, viewed through the three major theories of learning, and how we could apply
the principles from these theories to the design of a CMS. The learning-driven approach to the design of CMSs would hopefully be more beneficial to the students and
teachers using such systems.
Naming and the Existentialist Curriculum of Action: Creating a Pluralistic Pedagogy
Shaireen Rasheed
pp. 65-75
Through examination of Paulo Freire (1968) and Maxine Greene's (1988) concept of action as it relates to a pedagogy of transformation, I argue for a pedagogical theory
of empowerment in which learning becomes the basis for challenging educational practices that make some students voiceless and thus powerless. My paper emphasises that a
struggle for pedagogical meaning and interpretation must start with the individual being involved in the more rudimentary activity of naming. By elucidating that emphasis
for both Freire and Greene is on articulation about a student's own constitution, my paper argues for an educational pedagogy that not only recognises the importance of
complexity and difference but also provides the conditions for educators to cross borders, where disparate linguistic, theoretical and political realities meet as part of
an ongoing attempt to engage in a continual process of negotiation and translation around a third space. I conclude by contextualising Freire and Greene's pedagogy of
action within a classroom. Through suggesting concrete and effective ways to implement Freire and Greene's pedagogy, I encourage educators to transform their classrooms
into spaces for individual students and cultures to coincide, thereby producing transformative results.
