Culture, Education, and Future

From independence to interdependence: Rethinking educational research

2025-06-16T19:44:45+03:00

Educational research stands at a critical juncture. As we advance deeper into the 21st century, traditional research paradigms that have long guided our understanding of educational phenomena are being challenged by new theoretical perspectives and methodological innovations. The question before us is not merely about adopting new techniques, but about fundamentally reconsidering how we conceptualize the very nature of learning, teaching, and educational effectiveness.

For decades, educational research has been dominated by individualistic approaches that seek to isolate variables and attribute outcomes to the independent actions of students, teachers, or administrators. While this reductionist perspective has yielded valuable insights, it may be limiting our ability to understand the complex, interconnected dynamics that truly drive educational success. We increasingly recognize that educational environments are not collections of isolated actors but dynamic social systems where relationships, interactions, and collective processes play crucial roles.

Recent advances in complexity science, network analysis, and machine learning offer unprecedented opportunities to examine these interconnected dynamics. These methodological innovations allow us to move beyond traditional cause-and-effect models toward more sophisticated understandings of how educational outcomes emerge from the intricate web of relationships within school communities.

Interdependent versus independent research: An overdue shift in perspective

2025-06-26T16:40:51+03:00

Traditionally, research in the social sciences has focused on the role of individual attitudes, skills, and dyadic relationships in shaping educational outcomes. However, less attention has been paid to the influence of broader patterns of social interaction, particularly within school contexts. This study demonstrated how interaction-based data could be generated and analyzed to better capture these dynamics. Drawing on data collected from 2,682 students and 118 teachers across 10 schools, we applied an AI-driven machine learning algorithm to examine the effects of interactive dynamics on student achievement. Results indicate that while socioeconomic status (SES) remains a consistent predictor of student test scores, the most significant effects stem from interactions related to social capital, the diversity of information each person has access to, and to the degree of effort one invests in network dynamics. These findings highlight the value of incorporating social network structures into educational research and suggest that interactive dynamics within school communities may play a pivotal role in shaping student achievement.

Ex-colonialism: Toward collaborative change in curriculum studies

2025-06-26T16:40:49+03:00

This article seeks to bring Australian-settler scholar Simone Bignall’s writing on ex-colonialism (exit-from-colonialism) into conversation with the field of curriculum studies. Specifically, ex-colonialism is discussed in relation to theories of social change in education and other frameworks for thinking about Indigenous and non-Indigenous curricular relations. Ex-colonialism posits a resolute exit from colonialism that doesn’t seek the recognition of the state and demands a complete overhaul of settler-colonial social structures. Coming from an intercultural position that includes a Eurocentric critique of Eurocentrism and mirroring an Indigenous politics of refusal from a settler-theorized position, ex-colonialism offers settlers some agency in enacting radical anti-colonial change. Structurally, the paper unfolds as follows. First, I present ex-colonialism in brief as an intercultural framework for working toward collaborative, anti-colonial change. I then characterize four other, more popular terms in curriculum studies that can be considered representative of larger Indigenous projects of social change: reconciliation, decolonization, Indigenization, and resurgence. Next, I compare each term to the project of social change proposed through ex-colonialism. I then highlight the history of BIPOC replacement in curriculum studies and public education, linking it to the consumptive nature of neoliberal capitalism. In response, I draw on ex-colonialism’s careful attention to the ethics of relation in order, ultimately, to suggest the micropolitical possibility of an otherwise to what has existed and what exists now in public schooling and curriculum.

Examining culturally responsive teaching and assessment in an undergraduate public speaking course

2025-06-26T16:40:47+03:00

Given the diversified background of students in the United States, the demand for cultural responsiveness in education has increased. Previous research has explored how teachers apply culturally responsive teaching and assessment (CRTA) to reach marginalised students in kindergarten -12^th grade classrooms. Higher education has received less attention. This study initiates a promising step for investigating cultural responsiveness through the lens of college students, an area that has not been fully explored in the prior research. Specifically, our research team conducted semi-structured interview with 38 undergraduate students to examine the presence and potential of CRTA in a predominantly white public speaking course. Students spoke positively about how their course instructors created a respectful, welcoming environment and demonstrated care for students’ academic success. However, richer aspects of cultural responsiveness were minimal. Similarly, students’ perceptions of the potential for CRTA in the course were mixed and largely superficial. These findings can contribute to faculty development and course design across many colleges and universities.

Impacts of K-12 emergency online teaching within a rural, rural-remote context: Finding value in the experience

2025-06-26T16:40:45+03:00

Exploratory, convergent mixed methods research was used to examine the shifts in rural/rural-remote K-12 teachers' (n=40) perspectives and experiences of emergency online teaching (EOT), including perceptions of value before and after the EOT phase of the recent COVID-19 pandemic. The sample came from one highly rural state (64.9% rural population) in the western United States. Data were collected using a Likert-like survey along with a set of open-ended questions. Descriptive statistics and a t-test were used to examine survey data while thematic analysis of the participants’ narratives was used to identify themes within the open-ended data. A substantial increase in knowledge was reported post-EOT, and statistical analysis confirmed significant gains in perceived knowledge of and confidence with online instruction (t (39) = 8.2041, p ≤ 0.001) within the sample. Findings suggest that participants’ self-efficacy with online teaching improved because of their EOT experiences. Results also suggest the experience had value beyond the pandemic years, with participants reporting perceptions of slight to moderate value, including ongoing value for enhancing teaching and value for learning along with perceptions of self-efficacy and adaptability in times of future crisis. Within the qualitative data, both prominent challenges, such as student engagement, and successes, such as teacher adaptability and resilience, emerged. Recommendations along with consideration of the implications for teacher educators, rural policy makers, and other stakeholders interested in determining the long-term benefits and challenges of the emergency online teaching experience on teachers and their professional practice are examined as well.

Future-proof learning outcomes for classroom music teacher education: A Europeanwide exploration

2025-06-26T16:40:43+03:00

Equipping school-based music teachers with future-proof competences for meaningful classroom music in primary and secondary education, can be approached in different ways. One way is to facilitate music teacher education by formulating and disseminating future-proof learning outcomes that capture current and future demands of the music teaching profession. As part of the Erasmus+ Teacher Academy, the ‘Teacher Education Academy for Music’ (TEAM), we are developing a data-based set of descriptors that define the expected learning outcomes for future music teachers in schools. We take two existing (and widely used) sets as a starting point, and are updating them based on data collection and discussion. The purpose of the current study is to determine current and future-oriented trends in existing institutional, regional and national sets of descriptors, throughout Europe, which have been collected from stakeholders in the TEAM project and the EAS network. Through open coding, with guiding inclusion and exclusion criteria, 6 dominant emergent themes have been defined: (1) collaborations, (2) digitisation, (3) diversity & inclusion, (4) global (artistic) citizenship, (5) interdisciplinarity, and (6) practitioner research & professional development. We discuss the findings in relation to the current (international) discourse in music education and look forward to the potential impact of the findings on the concept and formulation of the new set of learning outcomes in Europe.

Social media orientation of local and global values in the Saudi Arabian context

2025-06-26T16:40:41+03:00

The role of social media in influencing personal norms and values has rarely been examined. This position paper addresses the impact of the flood of global values arising from top-down globalization and Western hegemony on Saudi Arabia’s (SA) locality (i.e., religion, culture, and language). Using a neologism coined for this paper – social media orientation (i.e., how values are oriented and perpetuated via social media) – the issue was anchored within the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR) with its focus on technological innovation especially social media platforms. I focused on what can be done to preserve SA’s locality in the face of social media orientation to avoid being swept up in the flood of global values that contradicts Islam’s core value system and SA’s core culture and rich heritage. After profiling SA’s locality (Islamic religion, Hofstede’s cultural profile, and the Arabic language), and Saudi’s social media usage patterns, I shared my opinion on how best to protect the locality. The next generation must become flood resilient, so youth can lessen the risk the flood of global values poses for Saudi citizens and the Saudi religious/cultural/language infrastructure and view the flood as a chance to analyze, clarify, and adjust values. Pushback against a juggernaut empowered by social media orientation is possible if the momentum is reframed as an opportunity to leverage the local to redirect the flood to benefit Saudi’s cultural heritage and economic future.

The role of online PD in enhancing Ecuadorian teachers’ knowledge of SEL in K-12 classrooms

2025-06-26T16:40:39+03:00

Social emotional learning (SEL) has gained prominence in Latin America as a crucial component in holistic student development within increasingly pluralistic societies to support students’ academic performance and well-being. This qualitative case study investigated the role of a three-week online professional development (PD) course in enhancing Ecuadorian K-12 teachers’ understanding of SEL concepts and integration in culturally diverse classrooms. Data was collected from participants’ tasks submitted immediately before starting the course (n=52), at the end of week 2 (n=35), and at the end of the course (n=30). Data were analyzed using thematic analysis (Braun & Clarke, 2006). The findings reveal significant improvements in teachers’ understanding of SEL over time as teachers’ SEL definitions expand from a basic focus on emotional regulation to a comprehensive view that incorporates social, cognitive, and behavioral aspects and their positive long-term impact on students’ lives. However, four major challenges identified in their SEL implementation related to student behavior and engagement, teacher preparedness to address learners’ needs, and the role of external socio-cultural factors on SEL implementation. This study highlights the need for PD opportunities to effectively embed SEL within intercultural and diverse educational contexts, offering insights for curriculum development and SEL strategies in multicultural educational settings. The study recommends integrating SEL into PD initiatives tailored for diverse contexts to promote inclusive education This research study offers insights into addressing pluralism, student success, and the creation of positive classroom environments in multicultural contexts.

Competency based curriculum in Kenya: Taking stock of implementation process at early years education

2025-06-26T16:40:37+03:00

This paper argues that the government implemented Competency Based Curriculum (CBC) with the aim of nurturing global learning competencies into learners. However, the quest faced many challenges at the Early Years Education (EYE) level. Such scenario was going to have a negative implication on producing learners with envisaged competencies. The purpose of this study therefore, was to investigate the gaps that existed in the designed curriculum framework and the actual practice during implementation process. The study adopted descriptive survey design method. Purposive sampling and simple random sampling were employed to select participants. Interview schedules, document analysis and structured observations schedules were utilized to collect data. Quantitative data was analyzed by use of frequencies, percentages, means, pie charts and bar graphs while qualitative data was analyzed thematically and reported inform of quotations and narrations. It was established that gaps existed in the stated curriculum framework designed and the actual practice during implementation. The study concluded that teachers’ we’re not sufficiently retooled on pedagogy and assessment, making their understanding on curriculum implementation vague. There was acute shortage of infrastructure especially digital devices and internet connectivity, undermining the attainment of digital literacy competency. Stakeholders were not adequately sensitized on the rationale for the curriculum reforms before roll out making them sceptical, uncertain and doubtful. It recommended retooling of teachers, funding to be backed by a coherent policy which prioritizes the provision of infrastructure, teaching and learning resources and sensitization process to involve all stakeholders working to implement the reform in shared sense-making.

Green and/or digital transition in music education? Analysis of European policy papers and competence frameworks

2025-06-26T16:40:35+03:00

This article critically analyzes the interplay of digitalization and sustainability in European policy papers and competence frameworks, with a focus on implications for music education. Drawing on a comparative document analysis of key frameworks such as DigComp 2.2 and GreenComp, as well as policy documents like the European Green Deal and the Digital Education Action Plan, we uncover a significant gap between high-level ambitions for “twin transitions” and their practical integration in educational contexts. The competence frameworks show minimal links to music and struggle to address contradictions, such as the environmental costs of digital technologies versus their proposed benefits. By exploring sustainable practices like low-tech music-making and ethical AI use, this analysis calls for a curriculum that critically aligns music education with broader sustainability and digitalization goals, positioning it as a transformative force in addressing climate challenges.