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This paper is the result of the collective work undertaken by a group of Psychological Contract (PC) and Sustainability scholars from around the world, following the 2023 Bi-Annual PC Small Group Conference (Kedge Business School, Bordeaux, France). As part of the conference, scholars engaged in a workshop designed to generate expert guidance on how to aid the PC field to be better aligned with the needs of practice, and thus, impact the creation and maintenance of high-quality and sustainable exchange processes at work. In accordance with accreditation bodies for higher education, research impact is not limited to academic papers alone but also includes practitioners, policymakers, and students in its scope. This paper therefore incorporates elements from an impact measurement tool for higher education in management so as to explore how PC scholars can bolster the beneficial influence of PC knowledge on employment relationships through different stakeholders and means. Accordingly, our proposals for the pursuit of PC impact are organized in three parts: (1) research, (2) practice and society, and (3) students. Further, this paper contributes to the emerging debate on sustainable PCs by developing a construct definition and integrating PCs with an ‘ethics of care’ perspective.

The objective of this article is to discuss the possibility of using generative artificial intelligence (AI) to enhance teaching practices and pedagogical support to improve the quality of education provided to young people in elementary and secondary schooling. This issue is linked to the global perspective of a shortage of teachers, which directly affects Sustainable Development Goal 4 (SDG 4), concerning the enhancement of education quality as a target for global sustainable development. From this viewpoint, the potential use of AI may also relate to the improvement of educational quality and the reduction of social inequalities, yielding indirect effects on other sustainable development goals. As a method, we intend to conduct an extensive theoretical discussion addressing the challenges for teacher education and work worldwide, utilizing existing data from databases such as UNESCO, the UN, and the OECD, among others. In addition to data on teachers, we plan to analyze the potential for creating artificial intelligence based on existing ones but trained for the specific contexts of each country’s educational system. The goal is to examine the potential for formatting artificial intelligence to provide pedagogical support for teachers, such as: grading of objective and discursive assessments; individualized intelligent tutoring; analysis of students’ individual pedagogical development; preparation of individual student diagnoses; suggestions of specific pedagogical actions based on curricula and materials used; and all other pedagogical actions that support teachers in their educational journey. This work was funded by CAPES, CNPq, and FAPEMIG.

Research on improving graduates’ employability is of great significance for higher education reform, providing a scientific basis for innovation in educational content, teaching methods, and assessment mechanisms, thereby cultivating high-quality employment talents adapted to future social needs. Based on Social Cognitive Career Theory and Student Retention Theory, this study uses Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) to analyze data from 2808 graduating undergraduate students from 63 “Double First-Class” universities in China. The aim is to explore the influence mechanism of entrepreneurship education on graduates’ employability. The results show that entrepreneurship courses, competitions, and policies have significant positive effects on graduates’ employability, while emphasizing the crucial mediating role of entrepreneurship education quality in this process. Although the direct impact of entrepreneurship faculty on employability is not significant, it still exerts a significant positive influence on employability through the mediating variable of entrepreneurship education quality. These findings provide important evidence for theoretical research and practical reform of entrepreneurship education in universities. Based on the results, this paper proposes three practical implications to guide universities in optimizing their entrepreneurship education systems and enhancing graduates’ employability.

This mixed-method study examines the perceptions of Intercultural Communicative Competence (ICC) by English teachers in the Preparatory Year (PY) program at King Saudi University. Studies that aim to investigate teachers’ perception of ICC and its implementation in a foreign language classroom are relatively scarce. Additionally, the majority of the studies that generally targeted the concept of ICC in a foreign-language learning context were studies that either relied on online blogs, discussion forums, and chat rooms to allow students to communicate cross-culturally, or examined ICC development during sojourns or study abroad periods in the target country. Relatively fewer studies have addressed the concept of ICC in a classroom context. The researcher employed a mixed-method study conducted in two phases to investigate the importance of the 10 ICC objectives adapted from the work of Byram (1997) and Fantini and Tirmizi (2006). The quantitative data were collected during the first phase of the research through a survey aiming to identify patterns and trends of teachers’ perceptions of ICC objectives and their relevance to the curriculum content and classroom activities. The qualitative data were collected during the second phase of the research using focus group discussions and class observations. The main implication of this study for the field of language teaching and learning is that there is a gap between English teachers’ perceptions of ICC objectives and their current practices in the classroom. The fact that ICC objectives are not an explicit part of the current curriculum limits their systematic integration. Additionally, the current study findings call for the introduction of learning strategies that can accelerate the students’ standard academic language learning, one of the ICC objectives that was found to be rather important for the English PY program. The findings also reiterate the need to incorporate other English variations in teacher training sessions. On the other hand, familiarizing students with other English variations will enable them to communicate more effectively and appropriately with the locally expanding Indian and Philippine communities, which would make English learning more relevant for them and more attuned to local demand in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

This study explores the integration of open innovation in education with a focus on technology and cultural aspects, aiming to foster improvements in educational management and policy within Oman learning environments. The research investigates the relationships between technological literacy (TL), cultural compatibility (CC), human face-to-face communication methods (HFtFCM), and student motivation and engagement (SMaE). A survey was conducted among 1,436 Oman students, and the data were analyzed using partial least squares and structural equation modeling to assess the moderating effects of TL and CC on these relationships. Results indicate that incorporating TL and CC as moderators significantly strengthens the mediation framework, enhancing the connection between HFtFCM and student perception of communication effectiveness (SPoCE). Specifically, the p-value decreased from 0.11 to 0.005, highlighting increased statistical significance, and the path from HFtFCM to SPoCE to SMaE improved from -0.051 to 0.071, demonstrating a stronger mediation effect. Conversely, the indirect effect from Technology-Based Communication Methods (TBCM) to SPoCE to SMaE decreased from 0.047 to 0.008. Additionally, notable paths such as TL → SPoCE and CC → SPoCE emerged, illustrating the enhanced explanatory power of these moderators. Conclusion: These findings underscore the potential of TL and CC to elevate student engagement and communication effectiveness, offering valuable insights for educational policy development and leadership programs. Doi: 10.28991/ESJ-2025-09-01-025 Full Text: PDF

Abstract The advances in Virtual Reality technologies, increased availability and reducing hardware costs have diminished many of the early challenges in the adoption of VR. However, a commonly identified gap in immersive Virtual Reality-Head Mounded Display (VR-HMD) training for medical education is the confidence in the long-term validity of the applications, in particular, the acceleration of the learning curve efficacy of learning outcomes over time and actual skills translation into real environments. Research shows a wide range of ad hoc applications, with superficial evaluations often conducted by technology vendors, based on assumed environments and tasks, envisaged (as opposed to actual) users and effectiveness of learning outcomes underpinned with little or no research focusing on a requirements-driven validation approach. This presents decision-making challenges for those seeking to adopt, implement and embed such systems in teaching practice. The current paper aims to (i) determine whether medical VR training improves the skill acquisition of training candidates, (ii) determine the factors affecting the acquisition of skills and (iii) validate the VR-based training using requirement-driven approach. In this paper, we used within- and between-subject design approaches to assess the validity of VR-based surgical training platform developed by Vantari VR against requirements which have been identified to have impact on learning processes and outcomes in VR-based training. First, study and control groups were compared based on their level of skill acquisitions. Then, by tailoring a requirements framework, the system was validated against the appropriate requirements. In total, 74 out of 109 requirements were investigated and evaluated against survey, observer and stakeholder workshop data. The training scenario covered the topic of Arterial Blood Gas (ABG) collection for second-year university medical students. In total 44 students volunteered to participate in this study, having been randomly assigned to either the study or control group. Students exposed to VR training (the study group) outperformed the control group in practical clinical skills training tasks and also adhered to better safety and hygiene practices. The study group also had a greater procedural completion rate over the control group. Students showed increased self-efficacy and knowledge scores immediately post-VR training. Prior ABG training did not impact on VR training outcomes. Low levels of simulation sickness, physical strain and stress, coupled with high levels of enjoyability, engagement, presence and fidelity were identified as factors affecting the overall training experience. In terms of learning, high scores were recorded for active learning, cognitive benefit and reflective thinking. Lastly, by validating the system against 74 system requirements, the study found a user acceptance level of 75%. This enabled the identification of weaknesses of the current system and possible future directions.

Background. Blended learning requires a virtual learning and online environment (VLE), which make available a process for establishing learning communities. The Faculty of Physical Education at the University of Jordan designed a number of courses which incorporate blended learning with contact classes and online components on an e-learning models. Objectives. Of the present study is to investigate if modes of BL possible influence on students' perceived achievement goals and satisfaction. Methods. The research model is tested using a questionnaire survey. Eighty-three undergraduate sport students participated in the courses (Motor Learning) offered by the University's Faculty of Physical Education the participants were divided in two groups. Results. Indicated that students were satisfied with blended program and online learning environment; satisfaction was generally high with 83.4%. The results also show that BL rotation type (students rotate between online and traditional content on fixed schedule) significantly affects learning satisfaction. Moreover, the quality of the teaching received the highest satisfaction level where interaction significantly affected self-study. Conclusion. The feedback of students who are amongst the key stake holders is essential to ensure a successful implementation of bended learning.

The COVID-19 pandemic poses great challenges to higher education. Universities had to change their infrastructure to full remote teaching and learning environments in a very short time. Lecturers and students were forced to adjust their established routines and concepts of teaching and learning. During the first nationwide lockdown in Germany, we explored students' anticipations regarding the risks and chances of this challenging situation. They were asked about the negative and positive effects of this sudden switch to online university courses and the relevance personally ascribed to each of these expected effects. A sample of 584 students provided 3,839 statements, which were examined by means of qualitative content analysis. While 57.7% of the statements concerned negative effects, 42.3% dealt with positive ones. The range of expected negative and positive effects was wide, but key themes emerged particularly frequently. While the mentioned effects were generally considered to be of high personal relevance, negative effects were rated as significantly more relevant, but with only a small effect size. The relevance of negative effects was considered higher by master students than by bachelor students. Relevance ratings were significantly higher for the first effect mentioned compared with all subsequent effects, indicating an ease-of-retrieval effect, which is relevant from both a methodological and content perspective. The results provide important insights into students' perspectives on remote learning that will be significant beyond the current pandemic, as they can guide sustainable measures by exploiting opportunities and mitigating risks. We discuss practical implications and methodological limitations of the study.