Global Innovators Conference 2013

The writing centre's history has been eventful, all the more as its pedagogical innovations increasingly set it in opposition to standard curricular practice. As, on the one hand, classroom instructors absorbed the student-centred philosophy of the writing centre, and on the other, deans and management pressed tutors/mentors to justify their roles and methods vis. curricular outcomes, writing centres struggled to articulate why they matter, other than as a remedial service for poor student writers. Community outreach offers writing centres an opportunity to revive the spirit of discovery and innovation that drove the work and writings of Kenneth Bruffee, Stephen North and others in the 1970s and 80s. The innovations devised in outreach 'laboratories' have pragmatic implications for their primary student clientele. Furthermore, community service offers writing centre scholarship a quarry of research that could contribute to the development of an overarching theory of the writing centre, which some scholars say is the necessary next step, and which others warn may lead to the death of writing centres as we know them.

Students pursuing their civil engineering degree usually learn the theory part in class but may struggle to relate theory to practice if the instructor has no industry experience. Engineering graduates can benefit more when civil engineering courses are taught by instructors that have both academic and practical experience. An instructor with industry experience can motivate students, enable them to relate what was learned in the class with the real world, and allow them to start developing their own engineering judgment, which is essential for the successful practice of civil engineering. The paper discusses the importance of practical experience in civil engineering education, problems facing practical teaching, and successful practices in practical teaching.

The demand for innovation within organizations is a worldwide concern. In order for innovation to occur, creativity must first be unleashed in the individual. Education is under heavy criticism for failure to produce the workforce needed to meet the innovation challenge. The solution lies in the human imagination.

Student engagement is an area of concern for many educators, as students with higher levels of engagement and motivation tend to learn more than their less-motivated or engaged peers (Schreiner, 2007). Research into strengths-based approaches shows that people working from their strengths display higher levels of motivation, confidence, satisfaction and competence and that they tend to learn and retain information more easily (Rath, 2007; Clifton & Harter 2003; Linley & Harrington, 2006; Peterson & Seligman, 2004). In addition, when teachers are both socially supportive and intellectually demanding students tend to be more engaged and positive about their own learning (Stipek, 2002; Turner, Meyer, Cox, DiCintio & Thomas, 1998).

By 2036, UNESCO (2012) has estimated that there will be more people with college and university diplomas and degrees than ever before in history combined. However, many people are getting better qualifications of higher prestige for less work and of poorer quality. So, having such credentials not only no longer makes graduates marketable, but possessing this caliber of aptitude also makes individuals tremendously liable as accomplices and culprits in perpetuating real world problems (RWPs) unless they opt to instead use gained knowledge to participate in constructive conversations towards their reduction, remediation and resolution.

This paper was presented at the Global Innovators 2013 Conference in Doha, Qatar. The issue of assessing the quality of occupational standards is important as a first step to identify the needs of a countries vocational training system. Elaborate methods like DACUM and functional analysis can be applied to develop occupational standards. Subject matter experts usually assess the results and quality of the standard development. This assessment does not rely on objective scientific evidence and is often driven by politics and subjective decision. This manuscript shows an approach how to apply a quality procedure with reflect the needs of the labor market.

The Arab Spring of 2011 deconstructed enduring post-colonial dictatorships that perpetuated propaganda politics and penalized democratic expression. Within four months of the start of the revolutions, intellectuals began actively discussing how the uprisings of Tunisia, Egypt, Yemen, Libya, and Syria, along with resistance movements in neighbouring countries, offered “a particular opportunity to switch pedagogic and scholarly modes and strategies” in the region (Jadaliyyah, 2011). Indeed, it is an opportune time to discuss fundamental education reforms – amendments that remedy specific ideological paradoxes and incongruences that have obstructed education for a democratic society and thwarted civil empowerment in the Middle East and North African (MENA) region. This study provides an overview of the major factors that plague MENA education systems which include increasing educational disparity, a decrease in the quality of education despite high per capita education expenditures, and a mismatch between labour market needs and the outputs of education systems. It specifically highlights the post- revolution evolution technical and vocational education and training systems must undergo to effectively address one of the highest youth unemployment rates in the world – a significant contributor to ongoing unrest among the 85 million youth in the region. Specific recommendations for ways in which TVET reforms can positively impact this demographic through measures that address education quality and relevance are presented.