Active participation in processes of change are an essential aspect of community participation, and proper recognition of opportunities for participation facilitate community engagement nationally and internationally. Education and its relation to citizenship in recent years has become one of the most important fields of research. From different areas and contexts, it has been revealed that there is a prevailing need for education for citizens to take part actively in the processes of change and improvement that the current global situation requires. The Handbook of Research on Education for Participative Citizenship and Global Prosperity is a pivotal reference source focusing on the productions and fields of study that are carried out all over the world on education for citizenship, namely the devices that provide young people with the consciousness and highlight the aspects of an active democratic life. While highlighting topics such as citizenship identity, educational policy, and social justice, this publication explores participation instruction, as well as the methods of community involvement. This book is ideally designed for educational administrators, policymakers, researchers, professionals, and educators seeking current research on instructional methods for teaching active community and political involvement.

Accreditation of teacher education programs is increasingly embraced internationally and is being modeled after the American experience, despite criticisms from some in the field of teacher education in the United States. This book examines the transformation of accreditation and the interest and perception of nations and regions choosing to use the model in their own culture, including the Middle East and Gulf Region, South America, and the United Kingdom. Its distinctive edge is the juxtaposition of three sectors: quality assurance/accreditation, teacher preparation, and global/international experiences. The authors address how the adoption of a universal requirement for accreditation embraces a particular view of what teacher quality means. The emphasis on the development of teacher preparation in concert with accreditation is of academic interest to scholars in the United States and abroad. The experiences and voices of teacher educators as international colleagues in a global climate of accountability brings a fresh perspective on shared challenges.

This book presents an interdisciplinary approach to the study of affectivity and human learning by bridging the gap between neuroscience, cultural and cognitive psychology. It brings together studies that go beyond the focus on cognitive-intellectual variables involved in learning processes and incorporate the study of the role played by affectivity and emotions in learning not only at educational settings but in all processes of transformation and human development, thus presenting affectivity as a catalyst and mediator of all daily learning processes. Chapters brought together in this contributed volume present both theoretical contributions and results of empirical research from different disciplines, such as neuroscience, cognitive psychology, cultural psychology, educational psychology, developmental psychology and philosophy, and are grouped into five thematic sections. The first part of the book brings together chapters discussing different aspects of the role played by affectivity in learning processes from the perspectives of cultural, educational and developmental psychology. The second part is dedicated to the role of affectivity for teachers during their training as educators and during their pedagogical practice in diverse contexts. The third part focuses on the relationship between affectivity and learning from a neuroscientific point of view. The fourth part discusses affectivity and learning in therapeutic and clinical contexts. Finally, the fifth part brings together chapters about affectivity and learning in everyday life. By bringing together this rich interdisciplinary collection of studies, Affectivity and Learning: Bridging the Gap Between Neurosciences, Cultural and Cognitive Psychology will be a valuable resource for researchers in the fields of psychology, neuroscience and education, as well as for educators and teachers interested in knowing more about the relationship between affectivity and human learning.

Quality and Qualities: Tensions in Education Reforms is a provocative call for understanding and further exploring the elusive concept of quality in education. Although education quality has acquired high priority in the past few decades, the multiplicity of conceptualizations of quality also reflects the concerns and foci of multiple stakeholders. Coming to an understanding of quality education involves careful analysis of the context from which any particular reform or program emerges and of the continuing struggle to define and achieve it. Two main questions persist: who benefits from particular policies focused on quality? And what are the potential tradeoffs between a focus on quality, equitable distribution of education, and inclusion of various traditional expectations? This book explores notions of quality as understood within various systems of national, formal, and nonformal education. Also it considers the tensions that arise with the introduction of new standardized notions of quality in relation to international measures and educational reforms in developing countries. In all cases, specific national issues and concerns compete with global agendas.Challenges to quality that are given particular attention in the book chapters include changing definitions of quality, high expectations for education and issues with implementation, and the introduction of English as a means to achieve quality in a globalizing world. Special attention is also given to possible actions that support a more equitable education without ignoring the requisite of quality. The final chapter suggests three models/choices for seeking higher quality and guiding the educational future of nations.

The Routledge International Handbook of Early Literacy Education offers a pioneering overview of early literacy provision in different parts of the world and brings together interdisciplinary research evidence on effective literacy teaching to inform current and future practice and policy of early literacy. From the problem of identification of literacy difficulties in a particular learning context to supporting the provision of early literacy through digital media, the handbook deals with the major concerns and newest areas of interest in literacy research. With an international and future vision, it provides an accessible guide to the main debates and future trends in the global field of early literacy, and informs academics, policy-makers, practitioners, educators and students about innovative early literacy research methods and instruction. The three sections and 30 ground-breaking chapters reflect a conceptual framework of questions asked by scholars and educators interested in looking beyond traditional definitions of literacy. Part I provides contemporary insights collected by internationally renowned scholars on what literacy is, and what it can offer to young children in the twenty-first century. Part II is a collection of detailed portraits of 14 countries, regions or language communities, and focuses on early literacy provision, practice and policy from across the world. Part III outlines key interventions and research-endorsed practices designed to support home–school connections and children’s reading and writing skills, as well as vocabulary, phonological awareness and narrative abilities, with examples drawn from various home, school and community environments. All chapters promote discussion, critical analysis and questions for reflection and are written in jargon-free language in an easy-to use themed format. This handbook is an indispensable reference guide for practising teachers and student teachers, especially those undertaking postgraduate qualifications, as well as early literacy researchers, policy-makers and school-based literacy leaders.