The role of high school racial composition and opportunities to learn in students' STEM college participation

We analyze longitudinal data from students who spent their academic careers in North Carolina (NC) public secondary schools and attended NC public universities to investigate the importance of high school racial composition and opportunities to learn in secondary school for choosing a science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) major. We consider school racial composition and opportunities to learn as contexts that shape students' decisions regarding college majors. Results of cross‐classified hierarchical logistic models indicate that attending schools with predominantly White students is negatively associated with declaring a STEM major and with graduating with a STEM major irrespective of students' own race. The finding suggests that for students in North Carolina, attending racially isolated White high schools is related to a decrease in adolescents' participation in STEM during college.     

Why some early college high school students do not transition to a 4‐year college: An exploration of perceived barriers and schooling experiences on students’ transition plans

This study examined why some seniors attending Early College High Schools did not plan to continue their education at a 4‐year college immediately after graduation despite attending schools designed to provide coordinated academic and social supports with the expectation that all students would continue their education. Most students in our study (75%) did plan to continue their education at a 4‐year college immediately after graduation. For the remaining students, we used cluster analysis to identify four distinct groups of noncollege bound students. These groups were evaluated based on background characteristics, perceived opportunities and barriers, and schooling experiences. Results indicate that noncollege bound students are diverse in their reasons for not continuing their education at a 4‐year program and that any reform efforts designed to personalize opportunities and supports for these students must take into account how combinations of perceived opportunities and barriers shape their postsecondary decisions.     

An Alarmist View of Engineering College Enrollment

Engineering college enrollment is in some measure a response to the demand for trained people. The forecasting of enrollment may thus be improved if it is based upon trends in the demand for trained people. One way to measure these trends, which does not seem to have been explored, comes from consideration of the membership in technical societies. The trends found in this way are very marked. The over-all rate of growth so indicated is exponential and is about 7 1/2 per cent per year. The indicated growth rate in electrical engineering is much greater than in any of the other major subdivisions of engineering except chemical engineering.     

家庭社会分层视角下高校学生教育机会研究——基于浙江N所高校的调查

高校学生所拥有的众多社会资源中家庭社会资源对其高校学习机会产生重要影响。通过问卷调查了解到家庭所在地区、家庭经济来源负责人的职业及家庭经济收入不同的学生拥有不同的高等教育机会,要实现教育机会的公平需要从经济发展模式、法律制度、产业发展平衡等方面进行改进。     

汉赋的时代精神与建筑品格

汉赋将汉代的恢弘气势发挥到了极致,其直接服务于帝王,展现了帝王的至尊权威,领汉百载之风骚。汉代帝王宫殿的威严、雄伟、巨丽,而汉大赋的恢弘、豪放、奢丽,二者均承袭了汉时代的精神,体现着汉王朝的强大和汉代帝王的至尊。汉宫殿与汉赋实现了建筑艺术与文学艺术的一次旷世交汇。     

Rural Students in Washington State: STEM as a Strategy for Building Rigor,Postsecondary Aspirations,and Relevant Career Opportunities

In rural settings, leaving for college can mean a young person's first step in leaving home forever (Sherman & Sage, 2011). That presents a serious challenge for college recruiters as they ask parents from Indian reservations or close-knit Hispanic or rural farming communities to allow their children to consider postsecondary opportunities. In this article, the authors discuss impediments to college-going that rural students face and shine a light on several efforts in central Washington State that help students connect to job opportunities in fast-growing, lucrative STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) careers in the region. Beyond inviting STEM professionals to job fairs, these efforts can expand opportunities for collaboration between STEM professionals and rural schools and teachers. Such opportunities might include enriching the K–12 curriculum with locally relevant problems of science, using local STEM professionals to collaborate on learning projects, and possibly engaging students to contribute to national databases and studies. These programs represent one way to highlight the real-world application of postsecondary education, encouraging students to pursue STEM college programs and careers.     

Challenges in the Implementation of Outcomes-Based Assessment Program Review in a California Community College District

The purpose of this study was to explore the manner in which a community college district planned to implement a systematic outcomes-based assessment program review process in order to have results inform institutional, district, and state policy discussions. Data derived from this grounded theory study indicated that there was not a shared conceptualization across institutional and district leadership for the identification of the audience that would use the data generated from the program review process. This finding is typical for many institutions, particularly as leadership desires to honor the individual uniqueness of each college.     

“新工科”大学生职业生涯规划现状及对策研究——基于山东大学“新工科”大学生调查

当前,经济与高科技知识含量产业的高速发展,为新一轮"新工科"人才的就业提供良好的发展机遇。在此背景下,大学生职业发展与就业指导课程改革成为"新工科"学生培养计划中不可或缺的一环,因此,本研究基于问卷调查与数据分析,总结山东大学学生对职业生涯规划的现状和存在的问题,以期从理论层面为大学生就业指导课程的教学改革提出建设性意见。     

Community College Engineering Students’ Perceptions of Classroom Climate and Fundamental Engineering Skills

ABSTRACT

The purpose of this study was to examine community college engineering students’ perceptions of their classroom climate and how these perceptions are related to fundamental skills in engineering. The study was guided by the following research question: How are community college engineering students’ perceptions of their fundamental engineering skills related to their perceptions of classroom climate? Data from a 2009 National Science Foundation sponsored project, Prototype to Production: Processes and Conditions for Preparing the Engineer of 2020 (P2P), which contains information from students in 15 pre-engineering community college programs, were examined. Measures of classroom climate and fundamental skills related to engineering were first established through an exploratory factor analysis. In order to explore differences in student perceptions by individual characteristics and by institution, hierarchical linear modeling (HLM) was used. Results indicated that for community college engineering students, a warmer perception of classroom climate was associated with a higher perception of fundamental engineering skills. At community colleges, class sizes are generally smaller, especially compared to introductory courses at universities, and may provide a warmer climate for students considering beginning their engineering degrees. Given the diversity within community colleges, these institutions may provide an important pathway for underrepresented groups in engineering.     

FACULTY PERCEPTIONS OF THE QUALITY OF OFF‐CAMPUS INSTRUCTION

Two‐year college faculty teaching credit courses off‐campus were surveyed to ascertain their perceptions regarding a variety of factors about these courses. In general, faculty cited a number of factors that lead to the conclusion that the quality of off‐campus courses may be less than comparable on‐campus courses. However, the summary question about the extent of learning indicated that 83% of two‐year faculty included in the survey reported their students learned as much or more than they would in a comparable on‐campus course. The information was based upon personal perceptions of the faculty included and was not correlated to other measures such as standardized test scores or grade point averages. The data from two‐year college faculty were compared to a larger data base from 322 faculty teaching at all levels of higher education and results were similar.     

论高校理工科学生创新能力培养的基本途径

高校理工科学生是国家未来科技发展的主力军,是技术创新的带头人。国家的发展、科学的进步需要技术的创新,理工科学生的创新能力决定了未来技术的创新能力,因此,高校要大力培养理工科大学生的创新意识和创新能力。本文基于此谈高校大学生创新能力培养的基本途径。     

以构建和谐社会的视野探索高校思政工作

以建构和谐社会的宏大目标，紧密结合互联网给当前高校思政工作带来的机遇和挑战，重新审视和定位高校思政工作，并在此基础上，提出了当前高校思政工作的主要策略：要以积极的态度直面互联网络，以科学的态度审视大学生的个人需求，以求实的态度创新高校思政工作。     

Creating and Implementing a Faculty Interest Group for Historically Underrepresented Faculty

This article describes the creation and implementation of a faculty interest group for historically underrepresented faculty at a large, urban community college in the Northeast. Faculty interest groups provide opportunities for faculty across disciplines to meet to explore common interests and share concerns and best practices. The faculty interest group described in this article was designed to explore and address the challenges faced by historically underrepresented faculty and facilitate the process of attaining reappointment, promotion, and tenure. Nationwide, nearly half of community college students come from populations that are also historically underrepresented, and community colleges are challenged to recruit and retain faculty that mirror the student body. Research demonstrates that historically underrepresented faculty members enrich the overall education of all students, and yet a significant number of those faculty members describe their college campuses as unwelcoming. Factors that make campuses unwelcoming for these faculty include, but are not limited to, the following: isolation and marginalization; salary disparities; microaggressions based on race, gender, and sexual identity; heightened visibility; and additional role demands. Community college administrators ought to be concerned with historically underrepresented faculty members’ satisfaction and persistence on campus because these faculty members are vital members of the academy. Faculty interest groups for historically underrepresented faculty may provide the support and professional development opportunities that will ensure their retention and success in academia.     

COGNITIVE,MOTIVATIONAL AND TEMPERAMENTAL INDICANTS OF CREATIVITY AND INTELLIGENCE1

Relationships between measures of creativity and measures of intelligence were analysed to show that even when the intercorrelations among the former are not appreciably larger than correlations between creativity and intelligence measures, dimensions of creativity are found to be psychometrically and conceptually distinct from dimensions of intelligence. One hundred eighty-eight art and engineering college students were administered objective tests and questionnaires designed to tap a number of ability and nonability indicants of creativity and intelligence. Some of these measures were of a kind that some investigators would regard as “criterion” measures of creativity and intelligence. Data were analysed by means of correlational and factor analytic procedures. Eight major influences were indicated by independent factors rotated to approximate simple structure. The influences represented by these factors were identified as: fluid intelligence, crystallized intelligence, memory, fluency, rule-orientation versus intuitive thinking, and self-sufficient-calculated-risk-taking. The fourth, seventh, and eighth factors were discussed as representing distinct cognitive, motivational, and temperamental aspects of creativity. At the level of test intercorrelations discriminant validity did not obtain–measures of creativity did not intercorrelate more highly among themselves than they correlated with measures of intelligence. The putative factors of creativity did correlate more highly with creativity criteria, however, than did the factors identified as representing intelligence. Moreover, the intelligence factors were more highly related to intelligence criteria than to creativity criteria. Thus the evidence of this study suggests that it is useful to think of creativity and intelligence as the outgrowths of distinct (although overlapping) sets of influences, even when this is not well indicated by discriminant-convergent validation analyses carried out with respect to tests (in contrast to factors).     

论＂90后＂大学生社会责任感的培养

分析了“90后”大学生的个性特点与精神追求,认为当前大学德育要密切关注“90后大学生社会责任感的培养问题。指出全体教育工作者要形成共识,理解学生社会责任感的培养问题对学校教育工作质量的重要影响;要努力形成一种关心“国家大事”、为解决中国社会发展难题而“求解”的校园文化氛围。帮助学生树立以“社会需要促学习”的学习理念;要为青年学生参与社会实践、服务社会、报效祖国创造条件,让他们经风雨见世面,锻炼才干,培养起担当社会生活重任的能力。通过培养学生的社会责任感,为国家民族造就脊梁。     

ACADEMIC LEADERSHIPS VIEWS OF SCHOOL PSYCHOLOGY AND BLACK STUDENTS: THE CASE OF HISTORICALLY BLACK COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES

The purpose of this study was to understand academic leadership's views of the field of school psychology. This is the first study that has attempted to incorporate the views of historically Black college and university (HBCU) Psychology Department Chairs' regarding the field of school psychology and the potential development of school psychology programs at HBCUs. The results indicated that Department Chairs at HBCUs are not recommending the field of school psychology to their students based on a variety of reasons related to their views of the field (e.g., lack of focus on Black research issues). Despite the shortage of school psychologists and ample career opportunities, Department chairs in our sample do not recommend the field of school psychology as a first option graduate school choice. Implications are discussed in terms of increasing the number of African Americans in the field of school psychology.     

Professional Career Opportunities for Rural College Students—An Empirical Analysis Based on the Chinese General Social Survey

Abstract

Rural college students are an important, integral part of the current urban labor force. This article uses a group comparison perspective to study the professional career opportunities and their impacting factors of rural college students and other related groups. Analysis of 2010 Chinese General Social Survey data shows the following: (1) college students who transfer from agricultural to nonagricultural status and urban college students have the same opportunities to enter party and government organs and state-owned enterprises, have the same opportunities to obtain elite professional status, and have about the same economic incomes; (2) even if they have received college degrees, if they have not achieved the transition from agricultural to nonagricultural status, rural household registration status will decrease the professional career opportunities of rural college students, and their work unit status, professional status, and income levels will be lower than those of urban college students; (3) in non–college student groups, transitioning from agricultural to nonagricultural status will also increase the aforementioned professional career opportunities for the urban labor force with rural backgrounds. The article presents views on six social groups in the current urban labor force, and through empirical analysis lays out the nature and extent of the impact of household registration status and higher education on professional career opportunities.     

Turning a College Around Through Planning,Governance, and Finance

There was rapid growth of Alabama community colleges in the late 1960s. At the same time, there was rapid growth nationally of fire science associate degree programs. With these concurrent events, one would expect fire department personnel in Alabama to benefit from new community college opportunities in fire science and fire administration. Instead, participation in fire science degree programs has been disappointing. Almost 40 years later, most of the fire-related community college programs in Alabama have closed due to low enrollment, while the national trend for fire science programs indicates steady or growing enrollment elsewhere. This article looks at the 25-year period of 1977 to 2002. Reasons for the decline in Alabama fire-related community college programs are examined. During this period of decline, fire chiefs and leaders of the statewide fire associations failed to publicly embrace higher education. The inescapable conclusion is that the expected benefits to the people of Alabama resulting from significantly higher levels of professional training and education programs for Alabama fire fighters and officers have not been realized.     

关于当前高校就业教育的思考

高等教育大众化使大学毕业生的就业矛盾日益突出。高校就业教育可以从大众教育与精英教育相结合,选修课设置与社会需要相结合,学生综合素质培养和就业指导相结合,拓宽就业门路与社会保障相结合等各个层面出发,提高学生的竞争力、就业力、职业素质,以增强社会的稳定因素,确保社会生活的动态平衡。     

The chicken soup effect: The role of recreation and intramural participation in boosting freshman grade point average

Freshman grade point average, in particular first semester grade point average, is an important predictor of survival and eventual student success in college. As many institutions of higher learning are searching for ways to improve student success, one would hope that policies geared towards the success of freshmen have long term benefits reflected in eventual graduation. In this paper, we look at whether participation in Intramural and Recreation programs is associated with freshman grade point average at a mid-sized public institution with extensive recreational opportunities. We find a strong positive association between freshman grade point average and participation in recreation. Our results suggest that investments in recreational opportunities for students are complementary to the institution's academic mission rather than a distraction from it.