Active learning methodologies have become a key approach to addressing contemporary educational challenges. However, teachers’ rationales for implementing these methodologies are not uniform and may differ depending on sociodemographic and professional characteristics. This study explores the purposes and underlying rationales teachers attribute to active learning and examines differences by sex, age, educational level, and disciplinary field. A qualitative study with a descriptive phenomenological design was conducted using an open-ended survey. A total of 1,067 Spanish teachers participated through non-probability snowball sampling. Data were collected via an online questionnaire (Google Forms) and analyzed inductively through qualitative content analysis supported by NVivo. Twelve categories were identified within a central meta-category on rationales for active learning. Comparative matrices were then developed to examine patterns across sociodemographic variables. Student motivation and improved learning outcomes emerged as the most frequent rationales across all groups. Male teachers placed stronger emphasis on motivation, achievement, and competency development and expressed greater concern about ethical issues and risks associated with technology use. Female teachers more often highlighted contextualized learning, inclusion, student-centered participation, and pedagogical innovation. Age-based differences showed that teachers under 35 prioritized student agency, innovation, and relevance to contemporary contexts, whereas older groups emphasized effectiveness, academic performance, and competency development, with the oldest group also stressing personalization and autonomy. Disciplinary differences revealed that Health Sciences and Engineering emphasized professional preparation, performance, and practical relevance, while Arts/Humanities and Social/Legal Sciences favored participatory, reflective, and meaning-oriented purposes. By educational level, primary education focused on inclusion and holistic development, vocational education on applied competencies and employability, and official language schools on contextualization, communication, and interaction. Teachers’ rationales for active learning vary systematically across sociodemographic and contextual factors, supporting the need for differentiated professional development policies aligned with teacher profiles and institutional contexts.

Introduction: School teachers play a crucial role in shaping and directing young minds holistically. Teachers, as workers, are facing extreme stress in the workplace due to multiple demands and expectations from them, similar to other workers across the globe. Improvement of working conditions is important to safeguard the mental health of workers. The International Labour Organization advocates the promotion of mental health in the workplace. Still, teachers in India are facing stress due to their work and interconnected factors, impacting their mental well-being.

Objectives: The study aims to find out the professional and personal challenges of public sector and private sector school teachers that affect their mental health and overall well-being.

Methodology: An in-depth face-to-face interview was conducted with school teachers (n= 30) from both the public and private sectors; using a purposive sampling technique, participants were selected from various locations in West Bengal, India. Data was collected using a semi-structured questionnaire. Thematic analysis was employed to identify the key themes of the study.

Results: The following themes revealed the causes of mental distress among the teachers: a) challenges in private sector schools, further divided into power dynamics of multiple hierarchies, continuously appeasing parents and students, and everyday extreme productivity pressure to sustain their job; b) challenges in public sector schools, further divided into impact of poor infrastructure, weak collegial relationships, and regular extensive travel, lifestyle disorder creating health issues, and complaints about non-academic workload and salary; and c) shared challenges between public and private schools, further divided into neglect of household duties and responsibilities, violation of right to disconnect, and lack of career growth and development.

Conclusion: Mental well-being impacts teaching quality, and so to reduce stress, a better scope for promotion, leisure, and salary, and higher staff recruitment, is essential.

Introduction: Experienced teachers pursuing graduate specialization in learning disabilities (LDs) anticipate profound professional transformation. However, while acquiring advanced diagnostic frameworks and evidence-based interventions, many encounter a "practice-gap" when re-entering schools. This reflects the tension between individual expertise and organizational contexts where formal support for specialist roles is often absent. Drawing on Avidov-Ungar's (2024) multidimensional personalization framework, this study examines how LD specialists navigate professional development following an MA degree, specifically under conditions of structural isolation and limited institutional recognition.

Methods: We conducted semi-structured interviews with 15 MA-qualified LD specialists in Israel (13 in schools, 2 in private practice). The study utilized a retrospective qualitative design, focusing on professional learning trajectories, post-degree integration, and perceptions of organizational support. Data were analyzed using abductive thematic analysis, mapping the interplay between individual agency and systemic constraints.

Results: Findings reveal a recurring "Organisational Void", a systemic lack of professional supervision or peer consultation that fails to reinforce graduate-level expertise. To bridge this gap, specialists engage in what we term Compensatory Personalization. Individual initiative and self-sourced resources, ranging from peer networks and social media groups to generative AI tools, substitute for missing institutional infrastructure. While this enables immediate functioning, it places heavy emotional and professional burden on specialists, leading to a precarious "migration of expertise" where highly qualified professionals increasingly turn toward private practice.

Conclusions: The study conceptually distinguishes Supported Personalization, fueled by organizational scaffolding, from Compensatory Personalization, which relies solely on individual resilience. We argue that for specialist expertise to be sustainable within public education, systems must move beyond individual resourcefulness toward structural integration. Implications for policy-making and teacher retention in specialized fields are discussed.

Introduction: Multilingualism is a defining characteristic of contemporary classrooms, particularly in linguistically diverse contexts such as India. While policy frameworks advocate mother tongue-based instruction and multilingual pedagogies, the preparedness of teachers to respond effectively to linguistic diversity remains contested. This study examines how teacher education conceptualizes multilingualism and supports the development of teachers’ professional multilingual competence across institutional and practical learning arenas.

Methods: The study adopted a mixed-methods design involving structured questionnaires and semi-structured interviews with pre-service and in-service teachers, along with an analysis of teacher education curriculum documents. Quantitative data were examined using descriptive statistics, while qualitative responses were analyzed thematically. The interpretation was guided by a critical pedagogical lens to explore the relationship between policy discourse, curriculum design, and classroom realities.

Results: Findings indicate that multilingualism is widely acknowledged as a social and educational reality; however, it is frequently framed as a general pedagogical concern rather than as a systematically developed professional competence. Teachers reported limited formal preparation in multilingual instructional strategies, translanguaging practices, and language-responsive pedagogy. Practical school experiences and personal linguistic backgrounds were perceived as more influential in shaping confidence than campus-based coursework. Curriculum analysis further revealed insufficient integration of applied multilingual frameworks.

Conclusions: The study concludes that educating teachers for multilingualism in India remains a complex but essential task. Strengthening curriculum design, integrating theory with practice, and providing structured experiential learning opportunities are necessary to bridge the gap between policy aspirations and classroom realities, thereby promoting inclusive and equitable multilingual education.

This qualitative study analyzes the impact of a short-term international trip to Singapore on five preservice educators. The exchange program involved preservice educators from semester 7 and semester 8 and helped students’ professional development, intercultural experience, and pedagogical transformation. Though there is no specific report that officially counts how many UAE preservice educators have gone overseas for short trainings or trips, this paper will carefully examine how educators who are still in training and some who had graduated as the study was being conducted feel about and view short international trips. It will also study the impact that overseas trips had on their personal growth and their skills as future teachers. Considering UAE's 2021 vision and National strategy for Higher Education 2030 , which looks into 21^st century skills, the paper explores theperceptions of Bachelor of Education preservice educators in an early childhood education program travelling from the UAE to Singapore. Using semi-structured online interviews, the study analyzes four major learning dimensions: holistic and experiential learning, professional and pedagogical development, intercultural and crosscultural understanding, and personal growth. The findings reveal that the five preservice educators experienced meaningful shifts in teaching philosophy and the short trip supported child-centered and experiential methods while the educators experienced personal development in terms of gaining confidence, openness to change and multicultural appreciation. Despite obstacles such as a limited program duration, the short five-day trip facilitated transformative learning and underpinned Dewey’s experiential learning principles. Strategic recommendations include increasing the number of days for the program and executing post-exchange workshops. The study revealed policy implications for UAE early childhood education about holistic development, experiential learning integration and sustainable classroom practices. Overall, the paper demonstrates the potential of a short overseas trip to Singapore as a high-impact competency-building tool for nurturing competent global educators.

Physics education plays a critical role in developing scientific literacy, technological competence, and problem-solving skills among secondary school students. However, persistent challenges in pedagogy, resources, and institutional support continue to undermine effective physics instruction in many developing contexts. This study investigates contemporary teaching methodologies, their effectiveness, and the challenges of teaching physics in Sierra Leonean secondary schools. Using a mixed-methods approach, data were collected from 66 physics teachers across four geographic regions of the country through structured questionnaires and semi-structured interviews. Descriptive statistics were applied to survey responses, and qualitative insights from interviews were used to enrich interpretation. Findings reveal that group discussion was employed by approximately 61% of teachers, while problem-solving and critical-thinking exercises were used by 50%, suggesting partial integration of learner-centered strategies. Practically oriented methods, such as demonstrations and experiments, were reported by fewer than half of respondents (43.9%), indicating limited hands-on engagement in physics instruction.

Although teachers acknowledge the pedagogical value of practical, inquiry-driven, and ICT-supported instruction, their implementation is constrained by systemic barriers. The most frequently reported challenges include inadequate laboratory equipment and teaching resources (80.3%), large class sizes (68.2%), insufficient training in modern instructional methodologies (54.5%), limited instructional time (48.5%), and minimal access to ICT tools. Teachers who reported using digital tools and interactive strategies consistently perceived these tools and strategies as effective in enhancing student understanding and engagement (100%), suggesting that low adoption is driven by structural limitations rather than resistance to innovation. The study highlights a clear gap between recommended best practices in physics education and actual classroom implementation in Sierra Leone. Addressing these gaps requires coordinated policy interventions that provide resources, sustain teacher professional development, and support institutional frameworks. The findings provide evidence-based insights to inform educational reform efforts to improve the quality of physics instruction and student learning outcomes.

A sense of belonging is widely recognized as a critical psychosocial factor that influences student engagement, persistence, and academic success in higher education. However, the relationship between sense of belonging and academic achievement has not been sufficiently explored in non-Western contexts, particularly among Sub-Saharan African students enrolled in Moroccan universities. The present study addresses this gap by examining the association between sense of belonging and academic achievement within this underrepresented population. This study combines the Sense of Belonging Theory and Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs to understand belonging as a basic mental state that helps start stronger motivation. Specifically, belonging helps meet psychological needs, which then trigger motivation that leads to involvement and better results. This approach shows belonging as more than just a social feeling but as an important step in the motivation process toward success. A quantitative correlational design was utilized. Data were collected from undergraduate students using an adapted version of the Sense of Belonging Instrument (SOBI), which was refined for contextual relevance and cultural sensitivity while maintaining psychometric validity. Academic achievement was measured using grade point averages, and Pearson correlation analysis was performed. The results show a clear positive link between feeling like you belong and doing well in school, underscoring the importance of social and psychological connections for student success. These findings suggest that universities should use inclusive practices to help students feel they belong, such as special orientation programs, peer mentoring, and teaching methods that include everyone. In the broader discussion of inclusive education and student diversity, this study emphasizes that colleges need to offer not just access but also fair and supportive learning environments for students from other countries.

Online social work education has rapidly expanded in response to workforce shortages and the need to increase access to professional preparation. However, a central challenge remains ensuring that students in online programs are adequately prepared for the relational and in-person realities of social work practice. This session examines human services curriculum development through a “Teach One, Do One, Then Do It Again” instructional framework, demonstrating how online programs can intentionally bridge the gap between virtual learning and real-world practice at both the Bachelor’s and Master’s levels in efforts to increase the number of these professionals.

The session highlights how iterative learning cycles that combine instruction, applied practice, and repeated skill rehearsal support the development of competency, professional judgment, and readiness for face-to-face client interactions. Participants will explore strategies designed to simulate the complexities of in-person practice, including scaffolded skill demonstrations, role-play, case-based learning, simulated client interactions, multimodal content delivery, and a consistent course structure. Particular attention is given to how these approaches address common online learning limitations, such as reduced opportunities for spontaneous and synchronous interaction, embodied communication, and real-time feedback.

While recognizing the growing demand for social workers in rural and underserved Midwestern communities, this model reflects models at the University of Missouri that expand online Bachelor’s and Master’s level education while maintaining rigorous preparation for practice. This session illustrates how thoughtfully designed online curricula can strengthen human service workforce pipelines, support licensure readiness, and ensure graduates are equipped to navigate the interpersonal and contextual demands of in-person social work.

Collaborative work among teachers is widely recognized as a key factor for professional identity and sustainable school change. When teachers collectively engage in reflecting on practice, developing alternative pedagogical approaches, and responding to daily challenges, they strengthen their professional autonomy and capacity to transform educational processes into concrete interventions. This perspective aligns with the vision of schools as learning communities, encompassing cognitive, ethical, and relational dimensions of learning. This study aimed to identify teachers' conceptions of inclusive practices and to develop a professional development plan grounded in effective approaches. The research addressed the following: teachers' conceptions of inclusive practices; challenges and advantages associated with their implementation; and strategies for student engagement. A mixed-methods design was adopted: a World Café with 22 teachers generated data to inform a continuous professional development plan, later validated by 10 teachers. Content analysis revealed that, although inclusion is widely recognized as essential, its enactment is frequently framed as contingent upon external conditions, indicating a tendency to position inclusion outside teachers’ immediate sphere of agency. These findings expose a critical gap between inclusive values and pedagogical action, suggesting that professional development must explicitly address underlying beliefs about responsibility, efficacy, and student diversity. Moreover, the results indicate that structured collaborative spaces can operate as transformative arenas where teachers not only exchange strategies but also critically interrogate assumptions, negotiate meanings, and reconstruct professional identities. The proposed plan integrates Differentiated Instruction and Universal Design for Learning as complementary, practice-oriented frameworks. Its positive evaluation (M = 3.9; SD = 0.51) suggests relevance and feasibility; however, its impact depends on sustained, context-sensitive implementation. The study further implies that effective professional development requires longitudinal engagement, distributed leadership, and organizational conditions that legitimize experimentation, risk-taking, and reflective inquiry. Ultimately, it reframes professional learning as a collective, inquiry-driven, and identity-forming process, central to fostering equitable and genuinely inclusive school cultures.

This paper examines reflective journals written by pre-service teachers enrolled in a course on Ethnic-Racial Relations Education (ERER) in Brazil as a privileged archive for observing how racial identities are constructed, avoided, negotiated, and reconfigured within teacher education. Rather than treating the journal as a confessional narrative, we approach it as a situated pedagogical technology in which school memory, family genealogy, normative language, and theoretical frameworks intersect. Students are invited to articulate Brazil’s legal framework for ethnic-racial education with their own racial self-location, tracing family histories, silences, migrations, and experiences of racialization.

Drawing from a broader corpus of 113 journals and a curated analytical sample of 18 texts, the study identifies recurring narrative and affective patterns that reveal how the legal mandate for ethnic-racial education is translated—or neutralized—within everyday schooling. Findings show that compliance often coexists with curricular ornamentation, superficial adhesion, euphemistic language, and the transformation of structural racism into administrable “cases.” At the same time, the journals document moments of rupture, pedagogical intervention, and durable displacement capable of reorienting professional trajectories.

We argue that effective implementation of ethnic-racial education in teacher preparation requires more than normative alignment; it demands a precise pedagogical lexicon capable of distinguishing surface adherence from implication, representation from curricular redistribution, and presence from belonging. By naming the micro-mechanisms through which racial hierarchies persist or are interrupted, teacher education can move from performance to structural reconfiguration.

Methodologically grounded in ethical rigor and reflexive analysis, this study contributes to debates on teacher education by proposing that documenting and naming these mechanisms is itself a form of institutional responsibility and pedagogical care.