Zoekresultaten

Quality in teaching and teacher education

The purpose of this final chapter is twofold: (1) to provide the synthesis of learnings on quality in teaching and teacher education on the basis of the analysis and discussion of the fourteen chapters collected in this monograph, and (2) to discuss implications for future research on quality in teaching and teacher education, policy and practice. In so doing, we ask: What do we know about quality in teaching and teacher education from the collected chapters and how can these findings inform future research, policy and practice in these areas? In order to answer these questions, the chapter is divided into five main parts. In the first part we identify a call that is present in all chapter: to move beyond a reductionist notion of education. In the second part we recognize the growing attention for teaching quality both as a blessing and a burden. In the third part we identify seven key dilemmas that arise from the different chapters. Next we use these dilemmas to identify implications for teacher education practice, policy and research. We conclude this chapter with some final reflections.

Towards a global quality framework for assistive technology service delivery

Assistive technology supports maintenance or improvement of an individual’s functioning and independence, though for people in need the access to assistive products is not always guaranteed. This paper presents a generic quality framework for assistive technology service delivery that can be used independent of the setting, context, legislative framework, or type of technology. Based on available literature and a series of discussions among the authors, a framework was developed. It consists of 7 general quality criteria and four indicators for each of these criteria. The criteria are: accessibility; competence; coordination; efficiency; flexibility; user centeredness, and infrastructure. This framework can be used at a micro level (processes around individual users), meso level (the service delivery scheme or programme) or at a macro level (the whole country). It aims to help identify in an easy way the main strengths and weaknesses of a system or process, and thus guide possible improvements. As a next step in the development of this quality framework the authors propose to organise a global consultancy process to obtain responses from stakeholders across the world and to plan a number of case studies in which the framework is applied to different service delivery systems and processes in different countries.

Who are you?

Assistive technology provision

Purpose: This is a position paper describing the elements of an international framework for assistive techhnology provision that could guide the development of policies, systems and service delivery procedures across the world. It describes general requirements, quality criteria and possible approaches that may help to enhance the accessibility of affordable and high quality assistive technology solutions. Materials and methods: The paper is based on the experience of the authors, an analysis of the existing literature and the inputs from many colleagues in the field of assistive technology provision. It includes the results of discussions of an earlier version of the paper during an international conference on the topic in August 2017. Results and conclusion: The paper ends with the recommendation to develop an international standard for assistive technology provision. Such a standard can have a major impact on the accessibility of AT for people with disabilities. The paper outlines some the key elements to be included in a standard.

Measurement of speech parameters in casual speech of dementia patients

From the article: "Individuals with dementia often experience a decline in their ability to use language. Language problems have been reported in individuals with dementia caused by Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease or degeneration of the fronto-temporal area. Acoustic properties are relatively easy to measure with software, which promises a cost-effective way to analyze larger discourses. We study the usefulness of acoustic features to distinguish the speech of German-speaking controls and patients with dementia caused by (a) Alzheimer’s disease, (b) Parkinson’s disease or (c) PPA/FTD. Previous studies have shown that each of these types affects speech parameters such as prosody, voice quality and fluency (Schulz 2002; Ma, Whitehill, and Cheung 2010; Rusz et al. 2016; Kato et al. 2013; Peintner et al. 2008). Prior work on the characteristics of the speech of individuals with dementia is usually based on samples from clinical tests, such as the Western Aphasia Battery or the Wechsler Logical Memory task. Spontaneous day-to-day speech may be different, because participants may show less of their vocal abilities in casual speech than in specifically designed test scenarios. It is unclear to what extent the previously reported speech characteristics are still detectable in casual conversations by software. The research question in this study is: how useful for classification are acoustic properties measured in spontaneous speech."

What does quality of life mean to older adults?

BACKGROUND: Consideration of older adults' quality of life (QoL) is becoming increasingly important in the evaluation, quality improvement and allocation of health and social care services. While numerous definitions and theories of QoL have been proposed, an overall synthesis of the perspective of older adults themselves is lacking.METHODS: Qualitative studies were identified in PubMed, Ebsco/Psycinfo and Ebsco/CINAHL, through a search on 28 November 2018. Articles needed to meet all of the following criteria: (i) focus on perceptions of QoL, (ii) older adults living at home as main participants, (iii) use of qualitative methodology, (iv) conducted in a Western country and (v) published in English (vi) not focused on specific patient groups. A thematic synthesis was conducted of the selected studies, using the complete 'findings/results' sections from the papers.RESULTS: We included 48 qualitative studies representing the views of more than 3,400 older adults living at home in 11 Western countries. The QoL aspects identified in the synthesis were categorized into nine QoL domains: autonomy, role and activity, health perception, relationships, attitude and adaptation, emotional comfort, spirituality, home and neighbourhood, and financial security. The results showed that although different domains can be distinguished, these are also strongly connected.CONCLUSION: QoL can be expressed in a number of domains and related subthemes that are important for older adults living at home. The findings further support that the concept of QoL should be seen as a dynamic web of intertwined domains.