bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Problem‐based learning: lessons for administrators, educators and learners
Authors: Yeo Roland 
Published: January 2007

PurposeThe paper aims to explore the challenges of problem‐based learning (PBL) as an unconventional teaching methodology experienced by a higher learning institute in Singapore.Design/methodology/approachThe exploratory study was conducted using focus group discussions and semi‐structured interviews. Four groups of people were invited to participate in the research involving administrators, management personnel, lecturers and students.FindingsKey findings of the research point to three pertinent enablers in developing PBL in higher education. They are the role of people, process and purpose in the implementation of PBL. These three areas are interconnected in many ways but their relationship is not entirely linear.Research limitations/implicationsAlthough the study is limited by the single context from which data were drawn, it offers considerable implications for research in higher education as PBL has been regarded as an emerging paradigm. Much discussion and debate of PBL have centered on the compatibility of subjects, backgrounds of students and the level of preparedness institutions are willing to adopt such an approach.Practical implicationsImplications for practice and policy include strategic communication of PBL rationale, appropriate structuring of PBL lessons, careful allocation of resources, identification of suitable PBL facilitators and ensuring of the right mixture of students in PBL group formations.Originality/valueAlthough a number of studies have been carried out in Singapore, very few have concentrated on how PBL has been implemented in engineering education. More importantly, while current studies center on the pedagogical aspects of PBL, this study provides a fresh perspective on educational management.
E‐commerce and graduate education
Authors: Orr Stuart , Bantow Ray 
Published: January 2007

PurposeOnline education has been growing rapidly, but has not had the benefit of the extensive teaching pedagogy development of traditional face‐to‐face teaching. This paper aims to provide a review of the current literature and present the results of a survey, conducted to determine the effectiveness of a graduate online subject.Design/methodology/approachThe literature was reviewed to identify measures of success and quality in online education delivery. These measures were then considered in relation to their application in practice via a case study based around a survey conducted at Deakin University in Australia.FindingsA total of 16 relevant measures of teaching quality were identified in the literature. Most measures had elements of bias and some were more generally applicable to online learning. The case study suggested that the value of computer mediated learning in an online environment was limited and that a combination of print and computer mediated conferencing performed better in more of the identified quality matrices.Practice implicationsOnline learning does not save teaching resources if standards of quality are maintained. It can be used to provide a remote teaching facility, provided it is backed up by resources such as printed study guides. For the subject evaluated, online mediated learning did not the provide the same quality of education.Originality/valueWhilst some research has been conducted in this area, no substantive grounded theory has been applied to postgraduate or fee‐paying online education regimes. As a result, case studies of such applications can be very helpful in the design of future teaching systems.
Development of multiple thinking and creativity in organizational learning
Authors: Cheong Cheng Yin 
Published: January 2007

PurposeBased on a typology of contextualized multiple thinking, this paper aims to elaborate how the levels of thinking (data, information, knowledge, and intelligence), and the types of thinking as a whole, can be used to profile the characteristics of multiple thinking in organizational learning, re‐conceptualize the nature of creativity in organizational action and thinking, and provide a new systematic framework to broaden the possibilities and approaches to developing multiple thinking and creativity in organizational action and learning in education and other sectors.Design/methodology/approachThe paper presents a theoretical framework of multiple thinking and creativity in organizational learning.FindingsBased on the typology of contextualized multiple thinking, a new theoretical framework can be proposed to facilitate understanding and development of multiple thinking and creativity in organizational learning and to enhance the effectiveness of action of individuals and organizations in education and other sectors in a complicated context.Originality/valueThe theoretical framework provides a new direction and new strategies for conceptualizing research, development and practice, designed to promote thinking, creativity and effectiveness in organizational action and learning in education and other sectors in a new era of globalization and great transformation.
Top‐down management: an effective tool in higher education?
Authors: Tsai Yau , Beverton Sue 
Published: January 2007

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to explore the strengths and weaknesses of top‐down management in a university that has embraced globalisation with a strong market‐led ethos and to suggest the ways in which adjustments might be made to top‐down management processes.Design/methodology/approachThe paper examines the strengths and weaknesses of top‐down management by drawing upon relevant literature and further explores its related problems through a case study of a department in the universities of one country.FindingsSeveral studies have concluded that top‐down management through its exercise of direct power is still a preferable means of reducing the chaos resulting from teachers caught up in de‐stabilising and confusing change processes. In the current globalisation context, it is also concluded that the success of top‐down management is predicated upon a willingness or readiness of the faculty to allow it to exist.Research limitations/implicationsAlthough this paper explores the strengths and weaknesses simply through literature, it provides a case study to understand the problems with top‐down management in higher education. The case study illustrates some of the issues that may or may not be proved by ensuing or larger‐scale research to be generalisable, but for the specifics of this case the issues discussed would appear to be important.Originality/valueThis paper recognizes the importance of top‐down management to higher education in the global society and sheds light on how to make top‐down management more efficient in higher education.
Programme feedback: it only takes a minute!
Authors: Drummond Graeme 
Published: January 2007

PurposeThe paper aims to examine the practicalities of implementing the one‐minute paper (OMP) concept and to consider whether claimed benefits are likely to be achieved without significant increases in resources.Design/methodology/approachThe study makes use of a literature review to establish the claimed OMP benefits. These benefits are then examined in an operation context using a student survey over a two‐year period.FindingsThe research demonstrates that numerous benefits claimed from OMP (e.g. enhanced student/staff feedback) are achievable with only modest resource requirements. However, staff need to “sell” the concept to students and deploy simple strategies to manage the process. Additionally, the research highlights that OMP may help improve student retention rates.Research limitations/implicationsThe use of OMP as a retention technique would merit further study.Practical implicationsThe paper examines the theoretical concept in a practical setting and suggests practical guidelines aimed at achieving the optimum benefit from the system.Originality/valueThe study provides a fresh perspective on OMP with the focus on practical classroom management. The concept is extended into the area of student retention, with OMP providing a functional method to identify/help students who may struggle to progress in a specific subject.
School principal preparation in Europe
Authors: Thody Angela , Papanaoum Zoi , Johansson Olof , Pashiardis Petros 
Published: January 2007

PurposeThis article seeks to centre on Cypriot, English, Greek and Swedish selection and training of principals. This was part of a 2001‐2002 European Union (EU) funded study which created a distance learning CD ROM for principals.Design/methodology/approachNational education systems and principals' selection and training were analysed and compared using documents, focus groups, principals' interviews and an international seminar.FindingsThe most centralised systems of Greece and Cyprus had less principal preparation, and more government involvement in principal selection, than the less centralised Sweden and England.Originality/valueThe extent of training was perceived to matter less in successful principalship than selecting the right people, although even a good leader can be improved through training and principals were concerned about their lack of formal training.
Balanced scorecards in managing higher education institutions: an Indian perspective
Authors: Umashankar Venkatesh , Dutta Kirti 
Published: January 2007

PurposeThe paper aims to look at the balanced scorecard (BSC) concept and discuss in what way it should be applied to higher education programs/institutions in the Indian context.Design/methodology/approachThe paper is based on extant literature on the balanced scorecard concept per se, as well as applications of BSC in higher education as reported by other researchers.FindingsThe BSC approach offers an institution the opportunity to formulate a cascade of measures to translate the mission of knowledge creation, sharing and utilization into a comprehensive, coherent, communicable and mobilizing framework – for external stakeholders and for one another.Research limitations/implicationsIn the absence of any specific Indian case study, the possible impact could only be conjectured or deduced.Practical implicationsA useful model is proposed that can be adapted with appropriate modifications to the management of tertiary institutions of education in India, whether it be a university, affiliate college, autonomous institution or private educational institution.Originality/valueIn the absence of evidence of the application of BSC to the educational institutional domain in India, the current paper may be a starting‐point for a debate and possible strategies to implement BSC methodology in this area.
Taming enterprise dementia in public sector organizations
Authors: Girard John P. 
Published: January 2007

PurposeThe aim of this paper is to report the finding of an exploratory research project that considered how public service organizations may conquer the debilitating effects of enterprise dementia.Design/methodology/approachBuilding on the seminal research of Michael Earl, this project sought to solicit the view from the front, which in this case are the middle managers of the Canadian public service. Specifically, the aim was to determine which of Earl's schools of knowledge would be most appropriate in curbing the organizational memory loss and taming the information anxiety that are common place today.FindingsThe sample of public service middle managers overwhelmingly opted for a single strategy. The organizational school surfaced as the strategy most likely to fit respondents' perceived needs. Through collaboration, Earl's organizational school focuses on maximizing the use of social networks with a view to knowledge sharing.Practical implicationsThis paper provides a compendium of knowledge strategies that may be useful for public service executives.Originality/valueThis the first project to consider how Earl's taxonomy of knowledge strategies may be implemented in a Canadian public service environment.
Measuring performance on a local government level in a transitional country: the case of Serbia
Authors: Šević Željko 
Published: January 2007

PurposeThe paper seeks to discuss the process of performance management and measurement system‐building in the public sector in a transitional country, with particular reference to Serbia.Design/methodology/approachA short description of the general legal framework within which the local governments in Serbia operate is given, followed by a discussion of the usual, and to some extent well‐known, problems of performance management system‐building and implementation.FindingsThe detailed interviews with a number of mayors and senior local Civil Servants pointed out that a number of issues, believed to have been resolved in the Western countries, have emerged as being problematic in the policy implementation process in the region.Originality/valueThis paper not only analyses the stages in the system‐building process, but also tries to explain why “measurement revolutions” may fail in a constantly changing transitional environment.
Exploring work‐family backlash in a public organisation
Authors: Haar Jarrod M. , Spell Chester S. , O'Driscoll Michael P. 
Published: January 2007

PurposeThis study aims to test the belief that work‐family practices could have a negative influence in the workplace for non‐users of these practices.Design/methodology/approachA quantitative approach was undertaken, where users and non‐users of work‐family practices reported on a number of job‐related attitudes. Organisational justice theories suggest that employees will report lower attitudes if they feel that they are missing out on some benefit or practice. T‐tests were used to compare differences in these attitudes between users and non‐users.FindingsThere were no significant differences in any of the examined attitudes between users and non‐users of the organisations' work‐family practices.Research limitations/implicationsImplications are that firms should not necessarily decline the adoption of work‐family practices if they fear a “backlash” from their employees who would not use work‐family practices. The authors suggest that the social good these practices may provide might remove any negative feelings towards the organisation by employees who cannot use these practices.Practical implicationsPractical implications for public sector organisations might be offering work‐family practices that target the widest array of employees. Further, future research into work‐family backlash should compare actual users of multiple practices as explored here.Originality/valueThis is one of the few papers to explore users and non‐users of multiple work‐family practices. It confirms previous research into work‐family backlash, indicating that the non‐users are not adversely affected by work‐family practices that they do not or cannot use. However, unlike other studies, this paper explored the use of multiple work‐family practices, providing stronger and more realistic findings for managers to have confidence in their work‐family practices.
Exporting new public management: performance agreements in a Pacific microstate
Authors: O'Donnell Michael , Turner Mark 
Published: January 2007

PurposeThe purpose of this article is to explore the export of new public management (NPM) to developing countries and to describe and evaluate the introduction of these initiatives in very different environments from their origins.Design/methodology/approachThe article traces the introduction of performance agreements into the public service of Vanuatu. Performance agreements are identified as an initiative typically promoted by NPM. The Vanuatu case is set within a review of the origin, use and record of performance agreements in countries such as Australia, the UK and the USA.FindingsThe adoption of performance agreements has been slow and has enjoyed limited success. Among the difficulties encountered are suspicion, lack of incentives, an unreceptive environment, and possible identification as being donor‐driven. It is difficult to see performance agreements in their current form making an impact on performance improvement in the Vanuatu public service.Practical implicationsNPM initiatives must be carefully considered before being transferred to other countries. They may offer benefits but what has worked in one environment will often need considerable modification, certain preconditions and lengthy lead‐in time to be effective in another environment.Originality/valueThere are few case studies of attempts to transfer NPM‐style reforms to developing countries and none on performance agreements, yet many countries in the Pacific and elsewhere are becoming interested in this mode of performance management. This case study helps to fill this gap through description and analysis of the Vanuatu experience and provides practical lessons for others considering policy transfer of NPM initiatives such as performance agreements.
Professionals, discretion and public sector reform in the UK: re‐visiting Lipsky
Authors: Taylor Ian , Kelly Josie 
Published: January 2007

PurposeSeeks to examine how far Michael Lipsky's theory of discretion as it relates to public sector professionals as “street‐level bureaucrats” is still applicable in the light of public sector reform and in particular the introduction of increased managerial control over professionals.Design/methodology/approachThe main thesis in Lipsky's work,Street‐Level Bureaucracy, that street‐level bureaucrats devise their own rules and procedures to deal with the dilemmas of policy implementation is linked to public sector reform over the past 25 years or so. The article differentiates between three forms of discretion, rule, task and value and assesses the extent to which these different forms of discretion have been compromised by reform. Examples are drawn principally from the literature on school teachers and social workersFindingsThe findings suggest that the rule‐making (hence bureaucratic) capacity of professionals at street‐level is much less influential than before although it is questionable whether or not the greater accountability of professionals to management and clarity of the targets and objectives of organisations delivering public policy has liberated them from the dilemmas of street‐level bureaucracy.Research limitations/implicationsThe work has focussed on the UK and in particular on two professions. However, it may be applied to any country which has undergone public sector reform and in particular where “new public management” processes and procedures have been implemented. There is scope for in‐depth studies of a range of occupations, professional and otherwise in the UK and elsewhere.Practical implicationsPolicy makers and managers should consider how far the positive aspects of facilitating discretion in the workplace by reducing the need for “rule‐making” to cope with dilemmas have been outweighed by increased levels of bureaucracy and the “de‐skilling” of professionals.Originality/valueLipsky's much cited and influential work is evaluated in the light of public sector reform some 25 years since it was published. The three forms of discretion identified offer the scope for their systematic application to the workplace.
Consuming work: front‐line workers and their customers in Jobcentre Plus
Authors: Rosenthal Patrice , Peccei Riccardo 
Published: January 2007

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to present a conceptual and empirical analysis of the rationale and enactment of consumer discourses in reformed British welfare administration, through a focus on consumption and the service interaction. The paper aims to explore how administrators use these discourses to manage consumption in particular ways in order to promote individual enterprise and employability, and analyse the pivotal role of front‐line workers in these efforts.Design/methodology/approachThe paper draws from range of data sources collected in a case study of Jobcentre Plus, including analysis of public and internal documents, observation of six public offices and interviews with 13 front‐line staff.FindingsImages of customer sovereignty are used alongside heightened control to try to shape claimants' motivation and capacity for work. Front‐line staff, mainly endorse reformed structures, but their view of claimants is complex, departing from the images fostered by administrators.Research limitations/implicationsThe paper highlights the importance of context‐specific understanding of deployment of consumer discourses in public sector, but interview data are exploratory and further research is needed.Practical implicationsThe paper highlights complexities inherent in customer orientation in welfare administration and the pivotal role of front‐line in reforms.Originality/valueThe paper provides a distinctive approach to analysis of customer concept in public sector reform, through focus on consumption and the service interaction.
Learning across borders: the case of Danish local government
Authors: Salskov‐Iversen Dorte 
Published: January 2007

PurposeThis paper sets out to chart the transnational activities of Danish local government, with a specific view to examining the perceived relevance of these activities for public sector learning, innovation and development. More specifically, it probes into the degree to which Danish local government can be seen to have a global outlook and is actively participating in knowledge sharing and knowledge production across borders; and the nature of this engagement.Design/methodology/approachTheoretically, the study draws on the literatures of public management, governance and globalization. Empirically, the paper is founded on a survey of the global orientation of the 79 largest Danish local authorities, and on a number of more detailed studies of selected local authorities conducted in 2003‐2004.FindingsThe findings show that more than a third of the local authorities surveyed consider themselves very internationally active, even if a closer examination of the data suggests that the nature, intensity and, importantly, strategic implications of these activities vary considerably. Nevertheless, for several major authorities, transnational activities and, more generally, a global outlook, are part and parcel of being a learning organization. For a majority of authorities, however, transnational activities appear to constitute an under‐utilized learning, innovation and development resource which, if carefully attended to and managed, could bring some distinct value to the municipal organization.Research limitations/implicationsThe modest size of the overall population of respondents, a response rate of only 65 per cent and the open‐ended nature of many of the questions suggest that no firm conclusions can be drawn on the basis of these data. The questions probed into the lived experience of the interviewees, and what we got was their representation of the world. The data cannot tell us anything about what these authorities actually do, whether transnational activities can actually be harnessed as a management development tool.Originality/valueThe study is explorative in the sense that it seeks to elicit insights into a relatively under‐researched area. It adds some flesh to current thinking about the global interconnectedness of local authorities, focusing on the strategic implications of such an orientation.