REd Issue 7

The second edition of the book, published in 2020, Digital Education, is coordinated by Ciprian Ceobanu and Constantin Cucoş, Professors at the Faculty of Psychology and Education Sciences of the “Alexandru Ioan Cuza” University of Iaşi, Olimpius Istrate and Ion-Ovidiu Pânişoară, an Associate Professor and a Professor at the Faculty of Psychology and Education Sciences of the University of Bucharest. The studies gathered in this book include qualitative as well as quantitative analysis to help teachers expand and deepen the understanding of information for identifying solutions to the challenges of digitalization of education. Divided into thirty-four chapters grouped into five parts, the book analyses the impact of new technologies on training pathways.

The book of Lisa M.D. Owens and Crystal Kadakia is addressing a critical topic of learning and development (L&D) activities mostly as performed in business areas but also with parts applicable in learning in general. The authors are describing both details of the evolution of L&D and, also, they make a proposal for a model of work in adapting to new and rapidly changing needs of learners.

Changes from all around the world in any activity are supposed to accept changes and respond being ready for them, by developing specific skills, knowledge, abilities, attitudes, and experience. Based on bringing new ideas and creativity, human capital could obtain long-run leadership performance, becoming leaders for others and motivating them to do the same. Leadership and creativity could be the essential variables to overcome intellectual competition keep close the valuable customers, be a model to follow for other members of the organization and obtain individual and organizational performance. To get performance, the organization needs performance employees; thus, to have creative organizations, must have visionary leaders. This article will analyze educational creativity, the necessary environment to have innovative leaders, creative work, creative thinking, and the importance of visionary leaders in obtaining performance. This article is an examination of leadership and creativity in organizations. Its aim is to reflect on creative leadership and its contribution to stimulating performance. Despite the importance to researchers and organizations of how creativity contributes to efficient leadership and how leadership contributes to group organizational and educational creativity, our understanding regarding this interrelationship remains limited mainly. An analysis of the literature based on both theoretical information and empirical evidence shows that studies exploring the intersection between performance and creative leadership in organizations are disagreeing in terms of how they conceptualize this relationship. Therefore, the essential goal of this article is to understand how leaders in distinctive settings can promote creativity among their followers and stimulate organizational performance. The analysis of the subject literature was used to achieve the aim of the article and verify the hypotheses. The review of the results of the empirical research of different authors has confirmed the research hypotheses that a leader has the role of learning how to stimulate the creativity of employees and rewarding their innovative behavior. The article contains three related studies of distinctive researchers. Study I is a quantitative study focused on the effect of creativity on the work environment. Study II and Study III are correlational studies. Study II examines two behaviors: personality traits and creativity in different work fields. Study III looks at the relationship between individual or group creativity and innovation at work.

Social reintegration programs carried out within probation services are an important factor contributing to desistance from crime. A large number of people in the records of these services have the obligation to participate in at least one such program. It is known that the programs carried out by the probation officers have a significant educational component on the supervised persons, as they include many of the elements of an effective correctional treatment. It was also observed that delinquents participating in these programs develop thinking techniques that help them carefully evaluate the consequences of their own decisions and actions. The topic of this paper represents a real interest for probation practitioners, since the development of the supervision process, the preparation of educational reintegration programs in the activity of assistance and counselling, require interactions with the beneficiaries of the Probation Services. Therefore, the emergence of some situations may inherently present professional ethical dilemmas. ​​This paper highlights the need to explore and analyse the nature of these dilemmas, their frequency, the way counsellors manifest themselves in the face of an ethical ambiguity, the highlighting of optimal answers and reactions from a deontological and ethical point of view, and finally, the creation of some good practices. Although the chosen subject is an extremely challenging one, in this paper I will focus on the counsellor-beneficiary relationship, being aware of the multitude of issues that can be discussed with colleagues from different services. I will mention general aspects related to the notions of ethics, morals, and deontology in educational reintegration programs. I will also highlight certain relevant aspects in the Romanian legislation and in the European recommendations in the matter of probation. The present study was carried out at the national level, namely at the level of the Probation Services between 15.10.2022 and 14.11.2022. The research was built on the basis of the sociological survey method and as an investigation tool we used questionnaires. Which included both closed and open questions. Also, to obtain information, I used other techniques, such as the study of documents (probation files) and open-ended discussions. The data were collected by completing the questionnaires to the probation counsellors through remote communication means, and personally by colleagues from the Bistrița-Năsăud Probation Service. Thus, a number of 50 colleagues from most services in the country agreed to complete the questionnaire. In the last part of the paper, as a result of the research undertaken, I aimed to present the way in which we analyse and manage a variety of professional ethical dilemmas encountered in everyday practice. In addition, the relevant legislative benchmarks are discussed, optimized response strategies are presented, and finally the conclusions represent an opportunity for reflection and learning that can provide professionals with greater self-confidence, and a sense of safety and control over these situations.

By probing into the Strategy regarding the digitalization of education in Romania updated in 2021 by the Romanian Ministry of Education and Research after the COVID-19 and aligned with the latest European Digital Agenda for 2020-2030 published by the European Commission, we are hoping to offer future researchers a set of propositions to continue the inquiry on possible opportunities derived from emerging risks associated with the digitalization. This exploratory case study aims to identify a positive application of the risk filter that is capable to assess not only the range of risks, but also their systematicity, while planning a governmental digital strategy in a critical system like education. We believe that this topic deservers immediate attention, because of the unique opportunity offered by the COVID-19 pandemic, and because a good implementation plan is one of the strongest predictors of a successful strategy. As researchers, our hope is that by understanding the systematicity of risks which could influence the implementation of digital strategy in the education system in Romania, policies and programs can be developed further based on risk analysis and correct prioritization of operational plans. This research was an exploratory case study in which a digital strategy was analysed, and the characteristics of systemic risks have been mapped to the operational plans. It was concluded that the systematic filters identified for the risks could be used for planning the projects, to identify areas of risk exposure during planning and at various stages during the preparation of projects. The final outcome of the case study is that the identification of systemic risks can help with the management of each project and could lay the foundation to a project database.

In kindergartens, where cognitive, behavioral and attitudinal development of the young child is desired, it is recommended to use efficiently nonverbal communication (expressed especially through posture, mimicry, gestures), in order not to inhibit the child, but to arouse his curiosity. The teacher has an important role in terms of her duty to teach preschoolers to communicate verbal and nonverbal even outside the physical space of the kindergarten, in the family, on the street, in the circle of friends. Most of the times, the nonverbal competence of the teachers is the fruit of a hard work, it involves effort in finding a suitable variant for the word, gesture, silence, space or time. In this article we present the nonverbal elements frequently used by the educators, which we identified after conducting a research in which we applied the questionnaire-based survey method. The results of the research have shown that educators use a variety of nonverbal elements that produce on children both positive and negative effects.

School segregation of Roma has become one of the most studied disciplines in the field of education in the last 20 years. Even though research mentions its persistence, no studies have shown how it persists, this study aims to fill this gap in the specialized literature. Based on the analysis of several reports, this qualitative study aims to show how the school segregation of Roma in Romania survives in the mainstream education system. Despite the fact that in 2004 the state recognized the seriousness of the problem and introduced Ordinance 1540/2007 prohibiting all forms of school segregation, many public-school units in Romania continue to practice this form of discrimination against Roma children. School segregation is a persistent problem in Romania, and studies show that between 1998 and 2016, the proportion of segregated schools increased significantly, becoming a barrier in the Roma integration process. The recommendations of the study on solutions against the school segregation of Roma children aim to involve Roma civil society in the process of monitoring segregated schools, enrolling Roma children from residentially segregated communities in mixed schools and informing parents about the consequences of segregation on Roma children.

The structures of the education system respect the system in our country. Practically, in most cases, the four cycles are followed as forms of education: primary education, high school education, high school or professional education, and higher education (for adults). In many countries, vocational education attracts more and more young people, in Austria, Germany, and Portugal a fairly high percentage of 2/3 of the total number of students choose the path of vocational education. The permanent needs existing in the labor market lead very much to the area of ​​trade, compared to the theoretical one which is very difficult to prove in the labor market. Another reason why professional studies take the place of higher ones is also represented by the very high costs regarding the graduation of higher education in the universities of the member states of the European Union, such as Sweden, Poland, and Germany. In this article, we will analyze professional/vocational education in Austria, France, and Germany.