One of the best-known criticisms of traditional education systems concerns their deterministic impact on the social trajectory of learners, which maintains and reinforces social inequality. However, previous analysis (Tchibozo, 2004) has shown that the effect of schools on learners' education-to-work transitions can be not only deterministic, but also random or chaotic. A new tool, the AGIC Calculator, has recently been developed to enable educators, guidance counsellors, policy makers and researchers to specify in a practical way the dynamics of learners' school-to-work transitions and to analyse more precisely social reproduction, and more generally to precisely analyse the dynamics of any type of social trajectory. This note outlines the main points of the problem and the value of the AGIC calculator for guidance counselling, education policy and research in this field. /// Une critique bien etablie a l'encontre des systèmes éducatifs traditionnels concerne leur impact déterministe sur la trajectoire sociale des apprenants, qui maintient et renforce l'inégalité sociale. Cependant, des analyses antérieures (Tchibozo, 2004) ont montré que l'effet des écoles sur les transitions éducation-travail des apprenants peut être non seulement déterministe, mais aussi aléatoire ou chaotique. Un nouvel outil, le Calculateur AGIC, a été récemment développé pour permettre aux éducateurs, aux conseillers d'orientation, aux décideurs politiques et aux chercheurs de spécifier de manière pratique la dynamique des transitions école-travail des apprenants, d'analyser plus précisément la reproduction sociale, et plus généralement d'analyser précisément la dynamique de tout type de trajectoire sociale. Cette note souligne l'interet du calculateur AGIC pour le conseil en orientation, la politique éducative, et la recherche dans ces domaines.

Recent research points to the significant role that Psychological Capital (PsyCap) plays in predicting teacher wellbeing (Luthans, Youssef, & Avolio, 2006; Seligman & Csikszentmihalyi, 2000), and in preventing burnout (Chang, 2009; Dussault & Deaudelin, 1999; Fullan, 2001; Hakanen et al., 2006; Maslach et al., 2001). PsyCap, the complex and malleable, "state-like" constructs of hope, efficacy, resilience, and optimism, is influential in increasing motivation in work and educational settings. Collective Teacher Efficacy (CTE) (Goddard et al., 2015; Ramos et al., 2014; Sandoval et al., 2011) has also been found to positively impact teacher’s experiences through the enhancement of persistence, job satisfaction and professional commitment, expectations for students and effective implementation of change. What is not evident is how these two constructs interact, and to what extent they inform teacher wellbeing. Intriguingly, the implementation of Professional Learning Communities (PLCs) could serve as a crucial interface between PsyCap and CTE, facilitating a symbiotic relationship that magnifies their individual impacts on teacher wellbeing. PLCs not only provide a structured environment for collective problem-solving and shared expertise (Stoll et al., 2006), but also cultivate a sense of community that could potentially elevate these psychological constructs. This study investigates the literature to consider the potential relationship between PsyCap and CTE and the implications for supporting teacher wellbeing within the implementation of a Community of Practice (CoP) approach to professional learning. A Systematic Qualitative Literature Review (SQLR) methodology (Pickering & Byrne, 2013) explores the intersections of psychological capital, collective teacher efficacy, and teacher wellbeing in the context of PLCs. The SQLR methodology applies specific inclusion and exclusion criteria, with 26 studies identified for review. The analysis identified connectedness between the PsyCap components of hope, efficacy, resilience, and optimism with teacher wellbeing, in particular to elements shown to mitigate teacher burnout, and which can be considered indicators in the assessment of wellness. The CTE and CoP literature highlights the importance of shared vision, structured collaboration, regular reflection, supportive leadership, celebration of successes, and fostering trust, as factors that facilitate positive teacher experiences within the processes of professional learning and navigating change. This analysis offers insights into how PsyCap and CTE may interact with and inform teacher wellbeing in the PLC professional learning context.

Transgender youth in the United States need support in public schools (Kosciw et al., 2020). This growing population experiences bullying, discrimination, and violence at higher rates than their cisgender counterparts, and this has negative impacts on their educational success and mental health (Garthe et al., 2022; GLSEN, 2021; Goldblum et al., 2012; Johns et al., 2019; Jones, 2018; Sausa, 2005). State and federal non-discrimination policies affect the degree to which transgender students feel safe (Fields & Wotipka, 2022). Yet, research shows that non-discrimination laws are ultimately limited in their impact, and schools need to establish their own policies and practices to support transgender youth (Meyer & Keenan, 2018; Roberts & Marx, 2018; Spade, 2015). A total of 42 peer-reviewed journal articles were identified that address how to best support transgender students in secondary public schools. These articles were analyzed, and four major themes emerged as successful interventions: professional development for teachers, transgender-inclusive school policies, gay-straight alliances, and trans visibility in the curriculum. Drawing on Meyer’s (2003) and Testa et al.’s (2015) adaptation of minority stress theory, this review shows how schools have the potential to act as a buffer against minority stress for transgender youth. Suggestions for further studies based on gaps include a push for more intersectional research and research centered on school practices that currently work for transgender students.

The notion of ‘teacher quality’ is a concept that has dominated education research and policy for decades. While the terminology is widely accepted and used in the literature, it lacks a clear and consistent understanding and application in the field. Furthermore, the underpinning factors relating to ‘teacher’ and ‘teaching’ quality are regularly used interchangeably and often unintentionally. As a result, while the concept of ‘teacher quality’ is widely used and forms the basis of critical policy reform in Australia and internationally, its foundations are compromised due to this lack of clear definition and common intent. Moreover, with such disparate understandings and applications of ‘teacher quality’, assessing the viability and impact of policy and performance and comparing systemic outcomes in this area, in schooling systems, is increasingly difficult. Within this context, this study seeks to draw out, from a critical analysis of the literature, what is meant when the term ‘teacher quality’ is used in research and policy. A deliberate emphasis was placed on the Australian context with the intention of situating the findings in this setting. To achieve this, a Systematic, Quantitative Literature Review (hereafter SQLR) was conducted, adopting the formal methodology of Pickering and Byrne (2013). The SQLR produced 215 articles after exclusion protocols were applied. Forty-four themes emanating from these papers revealed that ‘teacher quality’ as a concept is invariably interconnected with notions of ‘teaching quality’, but the underlying constructs lack consistency and definition, despite an assumption that there is a shared understanding of the meaning. The findings suggest that the lack of clarity around this construct has allowed policy to drive a prevailing narrative, most recently characterised by a measurement and accountability agenda. As a result, professional expertise as well as interpersonal and psychosocial factors shown to impact the quality of teachers and their practice have been marginalised. It appears that what actually matters, in terms of impact in schools and performance of educators, is in the union of these concepts; ‘who’ teachers are and ‘what’ they do.

Compared to what can be seen in such other public policy sectors as health or economy, researchers’ involvement in policymaking is less frequent in education. Given that policymaking is a collaborative process, this article explores how the collaboration rules, as well as differences in professional personalities and cultures among players, may trigger education researchers’ comparatively lesser involvement in the making of education policy. The article focuses on the collaboration between researchers and experts. Based on an analytical framework, an international survey of researchers and experts (N=114) with experience in collaboration in education policy making was conducted. Quantitative analysis (simple descriptive statistics and independence tests) of the data was carried out. The results show that the education researchers who participate in policy-making workgroups may find themselves faced with governance and knowledge-sharing rules they are not accustomed to, unmet expectations, and conflicts. It also appears that education researchers have professional personalities and cultures that significantly contrast with those of experts. It is suggested that such challenges and differences may generate both exclusion and self-exclusion of many education researchers from the making of education policy. More openness and professional changes are called for.

This review examined the literature addressing humor as a potential trait that may enhance leadership styles in higher educational administration. It provides an overview of current humor research from several disciplines of major contemporary leadership theories and styles in higher educational administration and develop and propose a theoretical link between humor as functional management communication for enhancement to other leadership characteristics. The framework developed in this analysis offer a suitable range of humor and its implications for leadership and leadership development in university environments for more effective leadership competencies to manage the multi-dimensional intricacies and practicalities. Additionally, the review provides strategic insights, and practical ways of incorporation of humor into leadership styles in higher education administration along with suggestions for further empirical exploration on relationships of humor and leadership effectiveness.

Sixty years of vocational education and training policy in the European Union: this book presents the main developments, orientations, and achievements of the EU VET policy, and explains its rationale and functioning. The book shows how the European Commission, the Member States, the social partners, and civil society, interact through both the "Community method" and the "Open method of coordination" within the framework of the Copenhagen Process. The book highlights how the Union shapes Member States' approaches to the content of VET programmes, the conditions for accessing VET, and the acquisition, validation, certification, and international recognition of skills and qualifications.