Journal of Baltic Science Education

84-86

Authors: Todar Lakhvich

We all live in a changing interdependent world where Technology and Science are among the forces defining the development of any country, nation and all the civilization. Education gives people skills and knowledge, which make Technology and Science the tools to gain a progress and success. The time science created crisis seems to go away and just now the same science may resolve the most exciting challenges of our civilization. It’s still a time when acquisition and proliferation of scientific knowledge is obviously the way for solving of many social, ecological and other problems. Scientists have been advocating for the idea for last decades. And finally Policy makers have awakened to the realities of the situation and just now accept the fact the Science is a powerful source for sustainable development. Now we all need to affect public opinion for endorsement of the idea of Science utility and relevance. Thus questions how to teach Science in all the aspects and what ways to choose for organizing a process of education are of great importance both for scientific fundamental or applied researches and social, cultural and economic development of any country.

99-108

Authors: Boris Aberšek, Metka Kordigel Aberšek

Engineers carry a stigma of being ineffective communicators, and various calls for teaching them communication skills have been performed. In the context of Bologna changes in European university space, such calls seem to be even more important, since the demand of employability and applicability of graduate engineers is one of the most important arguments for change. Many engineering educational institutions (mostly universities) have made efforts to improve the situation: they have included rhetoric or communication courses into the existing study programs. Rhetoric/communication teachers, who used to undertake similar courses in the language and literature departments, have mainly taught these rhetoric courses. However no special rhetoric/communication courses have been developed for engineers. The fact is that research in the field of rhetoric for engineers has not got a lot of scientific research yet. This paper will attempt to given answers to the following question: What kind of communication skills does an engineer require? A rhetoric course, designed for engineers and a didactic model for rhetoric education of engineers will be presented and evaluated.

119-134

Authors: Milan Kubiatko, Muhammet Usak, Kursad Yilmaz, Mehmet Fatih Tasar

This paper focuses on differences of attitudes related to information and communication technologies among Czech and Turkish university students. Student attitudes were evaluated summatively and with respect to gender, year, country, and type of residential area (town/village). Student attitudes were measured by a modified version of the Information and Communication Technologies Attitudes Questionnaire (Kubiatko & Haláková, 2009). The sample consisted of a total of 770 unversity students (316 Czech and 454 Turkish). The data analysis included factor analysis, MANCOVA, ANOVA, and t-test. The factor analysis yielded five dimensions: 1) Influence of ICT on teaching process, 2) Influence of ICT on human body and environment, 3) Using of ICT in teaching, 4) School and ICT, 5) ICT as didactic equipment. As a result, students from the Czech Republic, male students, sophomores, and students living in town showed more positive attitudes in comparison to other respective groups.

142-155

Authors: Walter Leal Filho, Paul Pace, Evangelos Manolas

This paper outlines the contribution the education sector can provide in meeting the challenges of climate change, worldwide. It offers an analysis of the means via which education, awareness and training can help the global efforts to tackle climate change and lists a set of practical activities which may assist various groups in handling climate matters as part of formal and non-formal education. The paper concludes by providing a warning: without proper emphasis to educational approaches, the desired (and indeed) changes in attitudes and behaviour as well as the motivation needed in order to engage people in reducing the impacts they may have on the climate, may not be fully achieved.