Search results for "Phenomenography"
showing 10 items of 38 documents
Career practitioners' conceptions of social media in career services
2013
This article reports the outcomes of a study, undertaken from a phenomenographic perspective, of career practitioners' conceptions of social media usage in career services. Fifteen Finnish career practitioners – representing comprehensive, secondary and higher education as well as public employment services – were interviewed in focus groups. The analysis of the interview data revealed five distinct descriptive categories reflecting the career practitioners' conceptions of social media's use in career services. Social media in career services was conceived as (1) unnecessary, (2) dispensable, (3) a possibility, (4) desirable and (5) indispensable. The results indicated associations between …
Higher education teachers' descriptions of their own learning : large scale study of Finnish Universities of Applied Sciences
2016
In this large-scale study, higher education teachers’ descriptions of their own learning were examined with qualitative analysis involving application of principles of phenomenographic research. This study is unique: it is unusual to use large-scale data in qualitative studies. The data were collected through an e-mail survey sent to 5960 teachers at universities of applied sciences in Finland. The number of respondents was 1622. Four hierarchically structured categories of learning were found: individual learning, collegial learning, team learning and innovative partnership learning. The role of teachers in higher education demands innovative partnership learning: being active at the socie…
Postoperative Patient Education in Physiotherapy after Hip Arthroplasty : Patients' Perspective
2016
The objective of the present study was to explore postoperative patient education in physiotherapy from total hip arthroplasty (THA) patients' perspectives, which has been a little-studied area of research. The usefulness of rehabilitation protocols after THA has been debated over the years, and there are no clear guidelines for physiotherapy after THA METHODS: The data for the present qualitative study were collected from nine patients with THA by using individual interviews at the hospital after surgery. The interviews were audio-recorded and analysed by using a phenomenographic method RESULTS: Four different categories of postoperative patient education in physiotherapy after hip arthrop…
Career practitioners' conceptions of competency for social media in career services
2014
This article reports findings from a phenomenographic investigation into career practitioners' understanding of competency for social media in career services. Sixteen Danish and Finnish practitioners with experience using social media in career services were interviewed in focus groups. Competency for social media in career services was conceived as (i) an ability to use social media for delivering information, (ii) an ability to use social media for delivering career services, (iii) an ability to utilise social media for collaborative career exploration and (iv) an ability to utilise social media for co-careering. The findings can be used to develop pre-service and in-service training of …
Physiotherapy students’ conceptions of skill at the beginning of their Bachelor studies
2015
Skills have recently received widespread attention in education policy documents and discussions. This article reports the results of research on Bachelor’s degree physiotherapy students’ conceptions of skill at the beginning of their studies. The aim of the present study was to examine how beginning students understand skill, and the focus was on conceptions of skill in general rather than on any particular skills. The participants of the study were 35 physiotherapy students. The data were gathered within the first two weeks of their university studies. Specifically, requested essays written by the students were analyzed using the phenomenographic approach. The data-driven analysis yielded…
Engineering students’ conceptions of entrepreneurial learning as part of their education
2015
The purpose of this study was to examine what kinds of conceptions of entrepreneurial learning engineering students expressed in an entrepreneurship course integrated in their study programme. The data were collected during an entrepreneurship course in Estonia that was organised for fourth-year engineering students, using video-recorded group interviews (N = 48) and individual in-depth interviews (N = 16). As a result of the phenomenographic analysis, four qualitatively distinctive conceptions of entrepreneurial learning were discerned. Entrepreneurial learning was seen to involve (1) applying entrepreneurial ideas to engineering, (2) understanding entrepreneurial issues in a new way, (3) …
Student teachers' experiences of participating in mixed peer mentoring groups of in-service and pre-service teachers in Finland
2017
This article examines from the student perspective a new Finnish model of teacher development that uses the peer group mentoring (PGM) method for combining pre-service and in-service teacher education. Reflective reports of student teachers (N = 19) who participated in PGM were analyzed using the phenomenographic method. The results show that students' experiences varied from considering the activity as (1) a coffee break or (2) peer-support, to seeing it as (3) identity construction or (4) a way of participating in a professional community. In further development of the model more emphasis should be placed on the integration of theory and practice. peerReviewed
Career experts' conceptions of systems development in lifelong guidance
2023
AbstractThis article reports the findings from a phenomenographic study of career experts’ conceptions of systems development in lifelong guidance settings. The results show that conceptions of systems development in lifelong guidance varied from minimal, aspirational, strategic to systemic. By exploring the logical relationship between qualitatively different conceptions, it provides policymakers and other stakeholders with a way of holistically viewing the varying levels of lifelong guidance systems development. The matrix presented in this article may serve as a catalyst for reflection on crucial elements, such as legislation, leadership and cooperation, that have the potential to improv…
Student teachers' ways of experiencing the objective of health education as a school subject: A phenomenographic study
2010
Abstract The aim of this phenomenographic study was to identify student teachers' (N = 20) ways of experiencing health education as a school subject, using semi-structured interviews and essays. The findings indicated that the target phenomenon was discussed through the general objective of the subject in five ways: health education as 1) a context for delivering theoretical knowledge, 2) a channel for providing pupils with practical knowledge and skills to contribute to health-related choices, 3) a means to promote pupils' self-regulative knowledge and independent thinking, 4) a context for personal growth, and 5) a means for developing responsible behavior in society. The hierarchically-o…
Critical aspects of student teachers’ conceptions of learning
2011
Abstract The aim of this phenomenographic study was to discover the educationally critical aspects of learning conceptions among health education student teachers (N = 20). The qualitative data consisted of written essays and semi-structured interviews. Six qualitatively distinctive conceptions of learning could be discerned, namely learning as 1) the reproduction of acquired health knowledge, 2) the application of health knowledge, 3) developing personal meanings on health matters, 4) the transformation of individual thinking, 5) personal growth, and 6) collective meaning-making. These qualitatively distinct categories were reflected through three themes, which embodied critical aspects: t…