Search Results (677)

Students who disengage from high school often face academic, social, and relational barriers to re-enrollment and persistence. Alternative high schools designed for dropout recovery frequently seek to address these barriers through smaller school environments, flexible programming, and intensified adult support. This two-year qualitative case study explores how students at an urban alternative charter school describe their experiences of belonging and re-engagement after previously leaving school. Data were drawn from 47 semi-structured interviews with 14 students and 2 graduates (ages 18–21; 10 of 16 male) supplemented by school observations, staff focus groups, and school documents. Using a constant comparison approach to thematic analysis, the study examines how students described differences between their alternative charter high school and their previous schooling experiences, the extent to which they perceived a sense of belonging within the school community, and how they connected these experiences to their engagement and persistence in school. Participants frequently described feeling known, supported, and socially integrated, particularly through relationships with adults, relevant curriculum, vocational programming, and community service opportunities. Students often associated these experiences with increased motivation to attend school, greater academic confidence, and a stronger sense of educational purpose. Findings suggest that belonging-related experiences may play an important role in how students interpret their re-engagement in school, while also highlighting the importance of institutional structures that support relational connection in dropout recovery settings. Full article

Educational information systems have evolved into highly interconnected digital landscapes that support learning management platforms, student information systems, institutional repositories, and online assessment environments. As these systems increasingly operate across cloud infrastructures and mobile devices, ensuring the confidentiality, integrity, and availability (CIA Triad) of educational data is critical for safeguarding institutional operations and maintaining trust in digital education services. This paper investigates how next-generation security protocols, such as adaptive multi-factor authentication and advanced access control and data protection mechanisms, can reinforce ISO/IEC 27001:2022 requirements within contemporary educational information systems. The analysis maps emerging protocol capabilities to relevant new ISO/IEC 27001:2022 control domains, illustrating how they mitigate threats associated with unauthorized access, data manipulation, and service disruption. The proposed framework is further supported by an implementation-oriented mapping and an illustrative operational architecture that demonstrates the feasibility of translating prioritized security determinants into practical mechanisms. The FAHP analysis identifies access control mechanisms, backup and recovery, and data validation as the three highest-weighted determinants, with aggregate weights of 0.061, 0.059, and 0.057, respectively. These determinants are translated into a determinant-driven Security Operationalization Matrix that connects ISO/IEC 27001:2022 control domains, CIA dimensions, and technology recommendations, and is complemented by implementation feasibility considerations tailored to the budgetary, infrastructural, and resource constraints characteristic of educational institutions. Based on the prioritization results and conceptual operationalization, the proposed integrative approach provides a structured and progressively adoptable foundation for CIA-oriented security governance in digital educational environments. Full article

Background/Objectives: Higher education requires students to communicate in complex academic and social contexts, including oral presentations, group work, help-seeking, assessment, and peer interaction. For students with developmental communication disorders, and communication-related developmental profiles, these demands may create hidden participation vulnerabilities that affect mental health, academic engagement, and belonging. This scoping review mapped empirical evidence among tertiary students, focusing on mental health, academic participation, social belonging, institutional support, and contextual influences. Methods: A scoping review was conducted in accordance with PRISMA-ScR guidance. Five databases, PubMed, PsycINFO, CINAHL, Scopus, and Web of Science, were searched for English-language, peer-reviewed empirical studies published from 2000 onwards. Eligible studies involved university, college, or tertiary students with developmental speech, language, fluency, pragmatic communication, or communication-related developmental profiles, who reported at least one mental health, academic, or social participation outcome. Data were charted and synthesised thematically, with methodological quality appraised using CASP-informed criteria. Results: Twenty-one studies were included. Evidence was strongest for stuttering and fluency-related participation, while research on developmental language disorder, speech sound disorder, pragmatic language impairment, cluttering, and mixed communication profiles was limited. Across studies, communication needs intersected with anxiety, depression, stress, self-efficacy, oral assessment, help-seeking, disclosure, stigma, accommodation access, and belonging. Key limitations included reliance on self-report, cross-sectional or retrospective designs, inconsistent diagnostic confirmation, and limited evidence for intervention. Conclusions: The available evidence suggests that developmental communication disorders and communication-related developmental profiles can function as hidden participation vulnerabilities in higher education. These vulnerabilities are shaped by students’ communication profiles and by communication-intensive university environments. Universities may therefore need communication-accessible teaching, flexible assessment, visible support pathways, and coordinated support across disability services, counselling, academic support, and speech–language pathology. Full article

Background: University counselling services provide essential support for students navigating critical academic phases. These services have proven to be successful in promoting long-term psychological well-being and student retention. Methods: In a clinical and health psychology perspective, this study aims to analyze the effectiveness of the Narrative Mediation Path (NMP) counselling groups involving 85 underachieving university students, lagging behind in their studies. The intervention aims at promoting psychological well-being, Reflective Functioning, emotion regulation, and academic engagement in order to improve students’ academic performance and prevent university dropouts. At the beginning and end of counselling the following measures were administered: (a) Clinical Outcomes in Routine Evaluation—Outcome Measure, (b) SInAPSi Academic Engagement Scale, (c) Academic Performance Inventory, (d) Reflective Functioning Questionnaire, (e) Emotion Regulation Questionnaire. Results: The results showed that counselling group participation was associated with significant and clinical improvement in all the outcomes considered. Reflective Functioning showed a trend toward improvement, but this change did not reach statistical significance. Conclusions: Overall, the present study suggested that group counselling could represent a useful service supporting students’ psychological wellbeing and in facing the difficulties encountered during the academic career. Full article

Rural youth often face barriers to accessing mental health services, including workforce shortages, limited resources, and persistent stigma. Schools are well-positioned to address these gaps through comprehensive school mental health systems (CSMHSs) embedded within multi-tiered systems of support (MTSSs). This study evaluated the implementation and effectiveness of a CSMHS in a small Midwestern rural school district over seven years. A longitudinal case study design was used to describe implementation across seven years. Universal mental health screening data were analyzed to determine the proportion of students receiving tiered supports over time. Implementation fidelity was assessed annually using the School Health Assessment and Performance Evaluation (SHAPE) system. Across seven years, more than 80% of students consistently demonstrated mental wellness within Tier I supports, with Tier II and Tier III needs aligned with expected MTSS distributions. SHAPE data indicated steady implementation improvement, particularly in universal screening, teaming, and tiered support. Ongoing challenges included monitoring Tier II intervention fidelity and demonstrating system-level impact. Findings suggest that CSMHSs can be effectively implemented and sustained in rural school settings when aligned with existing MTSS frameworks, supported by strong partnerships, and adapted to local contexts. This study provides evidence supporting the feasibility of rural CSMHS implementation and offers implications for practice and sustainability. Full article

Universities increasingly rely on digital self-service channels to manage high volumes of time-sensitive admissions enquiries. AI enabled chatbots represent a prominent solution because they can provide round-the-clock responses, standardize guidance, and potentially reduce uncertainty for applicants. Yet evidence on whether such chatbots meaningfully assist students and improve their satisfaction with admissions support remains limited in many developing higher education contexts. This quantitative study evaluates the perceived effectiveness of AI chatbots used for university admissions in Pakistan, with a focus on student assistance and satisfaction as key outcomes. Using a cross-sectional survey design, data were collected from students who had recently engaged with university admissions information services (e.g., website chat widgets, messaging-based virtual assistants, and admissions enquiry portals) across private universities in Pakistan. Admissions chatbot effectiveness was measured through established information systems and service quality constructs system quality (ease of use, responsiveness, accessibility), information quality (accuracy, clarity, completeness), and service quality and trust cues (assurance, privacy confidence, and appropriateness of conversational support). Student assistance captured the extent to which chatbot interactions helped participants complete admissions related tasks and navigate application procedures. Student satisfaction reflected overall evaluation of the admissions support experience. The results indicate a positive association between perceived chatbot quality and perceived student assistance, and a further positive association between student assistance and student satisfaction with admissions support. The overall pattern suggests that student assistance functions as a key mechanism through which chatbot effectiveness translates into satisfaction. At the same time, respondents highlighted limitations in resolving complex or exception based queries, emphasizing the importance of transparent escalation to human admissions staff. The study contributes context specific evidence from Pakistan and offers an empirically grounded framework that university administrators can use to evaluate and improve admissions chatbots. Practical implications emphasize maintaining accurate knowledge bases, designing clear handoff pathways, and implementing governance practices that strengthen students’ confidence in information reliability and data privacy. Full article

This study analyzes cyberattack trends targeting non-profit organizations using longitudinal data collected over a three-year period within the Non-Profit Cybersecurity Incident Repository (NPCIR). Developed through a National Security Agency Center of Academic Excellence in Cyber Defense (NSA CAE-CD) designated center, the NPCIR applies an open-source intelligence (OSINT) methodology to systematically document cybersecurity incidents affecting the global non-profit sector. This study examines attack types, threat actor characteristics, sectoral distribution, and cybersecurity impacts using the Confidentiality–Integrity–Availability (CIA) triad framework. The results indicate that availability-related incidents, particularly ransomware and distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks, constitute the most prevalent threats, while confidentiality breaches remain highly significant due to frequent data exposure incidents. Statistical analyses further demonstrate significant differences between non-profit organizations aligned with DHS CISA critical infrastructure sectors and those operating outside these sectors, especially regarding the prevalence of availability-focused attacks. In addition to its empirical contribution, the NPCIR initiative supports experiential learning opportunities for undergraduate and graduate students in cybersecurity and information technology. The resulting dataset provides actionable cyber threat intelligence for researchers, practitioners, and non-profit leaders seeking to strengthen organizational cybersecurity resilience and awareness. Full article

Digital participation in higher education increasingly depends on flexible short-format learning designs that support engagement under varied access conditions. This study examines Moodle-supported microlearning through an extended Information Systems Success (IS-Success) framework and treats sustainable digital participation as an interpretive lens rather than a directly measured construct. The model analyzes how system quality, information quality, service quality, privacy and ethics, training readiness, engagement, and barriers/access relate to satisfaction, usage intention, and perceived learning outcomes. Data were collected through a bilingual Arabic–English questionnaire from 219 undergraduate students at the University of Kassala, Sudan, and analyzed using partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM). The findings show that system quality, information quality, service quality, and privacy and ethics were positively associated with satisfaction. Satisfaction, training readiness, and engagement positively predicted usage intention, whereas barriers/access negatively predicted usage intention. Satisfaction and usage intention were positively associated with perceived learning outcomes. The model showed acceptable explanatory and predictive power. The findings suggest that perceived microlearning success depends on platform quality, ethical confidence, learner readiness, engagement, and access conditions. The results should be interpreted as perception-based associations rather than evidence of causal effects, objective academic performance, or long-term educational sustainability. Full article

This qualitative study examines how culturally responsive pedagogy (CRP) and transformative learning are fostered in higher education when structured reflection, dialogic engagement, and feedback are intentionally embedded in teacher education coursework. Drawing on data from two university courses—one undergraduate course for preservice teachers and one graduate course for in-service educators (n = 44)—the study explores how equity-focused instructional design supports development toward inclusive, globally informed practice. Data sources included student reflective writing, an anonymous pre- and post-semester survey aligned with InTASC dispositions, instructor reflexive journals, peer observation reports, and course feedback artifacts. Of the 44 enrolled participants, 39 completed the pre-survey and 19 completed the post-survey; survey results were analyzed descriptively at the group level because responses were anonymous and could not be matched across time. Analysis followed Braun and Clarke’s thematic analysis procedures, with trustworthiness strengthened through triangulation, peer debriefing, member checking with a subset of participants, and reflexive journaling. Findings revealed seven interconnected themes demonstrating how reflective writing, critical scholarship, multimedia exemplars, dialogic feedback, and iterative course design supported movement from awareness toward equity-oriented pedagogical praxis. Four overarching outcomes were especially salient: (a) expanded understandings of CRP as justice-oriented praxis; (b) increased capacity to identify and interrogate personal and systemic bias; (c) stronger connections between global and intercultural perspectives and locally grounded teaching commitments; and (d) reported pedagogical shifts toward more inclusive, equity-centered practice. Survey findings indicated a group-level shift from Agree toward Strongly Agree across equity-oriented dispositions, suggesting strengthened professional commitments while warranting cautious interpretation given unmatched responses and post-survey attrition. Comparative analysis also highlighted cohort-differentiated developmental trajectories, underscoring the importance of scaffolded, context-responsive approaches in equity-focused teacher education. Overall, the study demonstrates how intentional instructional design can position reflection as an ethical and professional stance that supports equity, inclusion, and global readiness across educator career stages. Full article

Students with disabilities, particularly those needing additional support or intervention to manage emotions and behaviors, build healthy relationships, and navigate social and academic demands, face heightened risks of high school pushout that can be traced back to their transition into high school. Project Elevate (PE) is a multi-component intervention that strategically invests in early coordinated student, family, and school supports to prevent barriers associated with high school pushout, such as a lack of continuity of effective services across school sites. This mixed-methods pilot study examined the implementation of PE with three 8th-grade students and their parents during their last term in middle school. This study includes quantitative pre–post descriptive analyses of multi-informant reports of students’ social, emotional, and behavioral skills, as well as descriptive analyses of weekly teacher- and parent-reported behavior and student attendance. Qualitative analysis using the Framework Method was applied to student and parent interviews and open-ended responses on a satisfaction questionnaire to understand their experience receiving PE support. Session case notes were also used as contextual data to describe implementation processes and contextualize findings. Results indicated improvements in student attendance and reductions in home-based behavioral concerns, with mixed findings across school-based outcomes. Students and parents reported high satisfaction with the intervention, highlighting the value of individualized support, goal setting, and strengthened communication with schools. Findings from this intervention development pilot study provide preliminary evidence regarding the implementation and perceived value of PE. Results also highlight the importance of culturally responsive, relationship-centered practices that affirm student strengths and support access to educational opportunities. Further investigation of PE in larger studies is warranted. Full article

The integration of Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI) in higher education has opened new possibilities for optimizing administrative and academic services, particularly in contexts characterized by high-demand communication processes. Within the framework of service science, this study addresses the challenge of efficiently managing high volumes of email inquiries in a university master’s program, aiming to improve service quality and operational efficiency. The study examines the implementation of GenAI-based assistants, specifically NotebookLM and custom Gem AI assistants, trained in regulatory, curricular, and historical data from the University Master’s in Teacher Training at Rey Juan Carlos University. A mixed analytical approach is adopted, combining elements of data science to quantify efficiency gains and service science to analyze organizational and service-related transformations. The implementation of GenAI assistants contributes to improved response times, enhanced accuracy of information provided, and a reduction in administrative workload. The results suggest that GenAI can support the scalability and quality of academic administrative services when integrated within a structured service framework. However, its effective adoption requires careful consideration of ethical, organizational, and governance dimensions to ensure sustainable and responsible implementation. Full article

Background/Objectives: Long-term clinical data on direct posterior composite restorations are scarce, particularly beyond simple survival outcomes. This study aimed to characterize the long-term functional, esthetic, and biological behavior of posterior composite restorations after nearly three decades of service using selected FDI criteria and to assess changes across available follow-up examinations, including within a predefined sub-cohort. Methods: This observational follow-up involved 21 patients with 57 posterior composite restorations placed in 1995–1996 at the Department of Operative Dentistry, Goethe University Frankfurt, by undergraduate dental students under supervision. The 2025 follow-up used FDI criteria to assess functional, aesthetic, and biological properties, classifying outcomes as clinically acceptable, intervention needed, or failure. Descriptive analyses were applied to the entire cohort. Longitudinal analyses were conducted on a sub-cohort of 14 patients with 27 restorations at three time points. Exploratory analyses assessed associations with restoration factors, caries experience, and gingival health. Results: In 2025, 54.4% of restorations were clinically acceptable, 28.1% required intervention, and 17.5% were failures. Functional criteria remained mostly acceptable, though form and contour showed the highest mean values. In the longitudinal sub-cohort, significant changes over time were observed in anatomical form and occlusal wear. Retention, marginal adaptation, proximal contact, and surface luster did not change significantly. Biologically, restorations available for direct assessment had low incidences of secondary caries, hard-tissue defects, and postoperative sensitivity or pulpal issues. Conclusions: Posterior composite restorations can function for nearly three decades but gradually deteriorate in certain aspects. Long-term changes mainly involve cumulative functional aging of the anatomical form and occlusal wear, rather than widespread biological failure. These findings underline the importance of differentiated long-term assessment and support conservative management approaches where clinically feasible before replacement is undertaken. Full article

This systematic review examined empirical studies on in-service professional development (PD) aimed at fostering inclusive pedagogy-related practices in mainstream primary and secondary schools, focusing specifically on research employing quantitative pre–post teacher-level outcome designs. The review addressed three areas: (1) the core content and design features of such PD programmes; (2) their reported effects on teacher-, student-, and classroom-related outcomes; (3) factors associated with broader or more sustained forms of change. Searches of ERIC, Web of Science Core Collection, and Scopus identified 1915 records, of which 16 studies met the inclusion criteria. Most programmes reported short-term improvements in teacher knowledge, beliefs, self-efficacy, and, in some cases, instructional practice. To interpret programme heterogeneity, this review applied an alignment framework derived from inclusive pedagogy theory to examine the pedagogical assumptions reflected in PD programmes. Programmes varied substantially in their degree of alignment, and those showing stronger alignment more often reported broader and, in some cases, more sustained teacher-, classroom-, or participation-related changes. However, these patterns should be interpreted cautiously given the methodological limitations of the evidence base. More uniformly positive findings were concentrated in weaker single-group studies relying largely on self-report, whereas studies with comparison group designs reported more mixed, modest, or less sustained effects. Overall, the review suggests that inclusion-oriented PD may support meaningful forms of teacher learning, although evidence regarding sustained classroom transformation and longer-term student-level impact remains limited. Full article

This study examined how digital equity conditions and bundled professional development policies are associated with sustainable teacher learning, self-efficacy, and student engagement in Greek primary schools. A total of 460 in-service teachers from urban, suburban, and rural areas participated in the study. Data were collected through Likert-scale measures assessing information systems use, TPACK-aligned professional development outcomes, teacher self-efficacy, implementation challenges, and student engagement. The analysis included ANOVA, MANOVA, OLS regression with interaction terms, and theory-informed indirect-pathway models. The findings indicated that infrastructure funding alone was not significantly associated with teacher capacity or student engagement after the introduction of relevant controls. More consistent associations emerged when funding was combined with mandated and time-protected professional development, together with minimum connectivity standards. Teacher self-efficacy was consistent with a partial indirect pathway between information systems use and student engagement, while stronger indirect associations were observed among early-career teachers. In addition, a bundled governance index was associated with narrower urban–rural disparities in teacher capacity. The findings suggest that sustainable digital equity in primary education depends not only on access to resources but also on coherent professional support structures that are associated with teacher confidence, instructional continuity, and long-term engagement. Implications are discussed for the design of sustainable professional development policies in teacher education and primary schooling. Full article

In this study we describe the refinement process from the first to the second phase of a teaching–learning sequence development and implementation. The TLS comprises several experimental activities that aim to support understanding of Control of Variables Strategy (CVS) reasoning in the context of floating/sinking and properties of magnets. The research was carried out during a science laboratory course in a department of early childhood education. The participants numbered 67 in the first phase of the survey and 45 pre-service early childhood teachers (referred to as student teachers) in the second phase. The analysis is theoretically grounded in Pickering’s model of scientific practice, as adapted in science education, which provides the analytical framework for identifying and categorizing refinement changes. The results showed that the refinements are differentiated from each other according to the factors that guide them. Specifically, the three refinement changes guided by the educational factor were local-guided, i.e., related to a specific activity dealing with the student teachers’ educational needs, and the other two, also driven by the scientific factor, were holistic-open refinements, i.e., related to a set of activities adjusting the TLS to the new scientific trends. These findings contribute to the literature on Teaching-Learning Sequence development by illustrating how theoretically grounded analysis can make refinement processes more explicit and analytically interpretable. Full article