Validation and Use of an Instrument to Assess University-level Psychosocial Environment in Australian Universities

This article extends the field of learning environment research by reporting the validation and use of the University-Level Environment Questionnaire (ULEQ) which assesses institutional-level psychosocial environment in universities. The ULEQ has seven scales: Academic Freedom, Concern for Undergraduate Learning, Concern for Research and Scholarship, Empowerment, Affiliation, Mission Consensus and Work Pressure. The sample consisted of 489 academics from 52 departments in 28 Australian public universities. Validation data showed that scales of the ULEQ have satisfactory internal consistency, sensitivity to different department environments and minimal overlap. Results of three analyses conducted in this study illustrated the usefulness of the ULEQ. Significant differences between three types of universities were revealed for four scales: Academic Freedom, Concern for Research and Scholarship, Empowerment and Mission Consensus. No significant differences were found for comparisons of Education, Biology and English departments. A comparison of male and female academics' perceptions of the university-level environment found that females perceived their environment more positively than males. This study demonstrated the utility of the ULEQ in learning environment research in college and university settings.     

Using Academics' Perceptions of University Environment to Distinguish between Australian Universities

This paper reports a discriminant analysis of Australian universities using academics' perceptions of their university-level environment. A sample of 514 academics from 52 departments in 26 publicly funded universities responded to the University-Level Environment Questionnaire, which assesses academic's perceptions of seven dimensions of institutional environment (viz. Academic Freedom, Concern for Undergraduate Learning, Concern for Research and Scholarship, Empowerment, Affiliation, Mission Consensus and Work Pressure). Discriminant analysis revealed that the four university types were separated by the first discriminant function, with long-established universities separated widely from new universities. Concern for Research and Scholarship was the major discriminating variable, with Academic Freedom a minor discriminating variable. The study suggests that new universities must improve their level of research and scholarship if they are to become more like other Australian universities.     

A Continuing Role For Academics: The Governance of UK Universities in the Post–Dearing Era

The governance of higher education has become a recognised cause for concern. Many academics lament the demise of an easy collegiality in the face of the rise of a harder managerialism that robs them of control. But outsiders to the system, concerned about the efficiency and effectiveness of higher education management, are critical of the extent to which academics seem all too eager and able to block changes that might lead to universities better addressing the needs of society.
This paper rejects the simple nostrums of both those who hark back to a collegial golden age and those who make the case for a brave managerial future. It argues that universities that are capable of real strategic change in response to challenge are capable of transcending the dichotomy between collegiality and managerialism as modes of organisation. In these successful universities, academics must be involved and prepared to lead, but they must also work in partnership with administrators, in institutions that will be strong to the extent that there is a shared vision that makes the institution rather more than just the sum of warring departments.     

Is university internationalization bad for performance? Examining two different types of diversity

While most studies on diverse organizations have been directed at business organizations, the academic sector has also become increasingly international and heterogeneous. Few large-scale studies have investigated multicultural academic departments and none of those have dealt with diversity and group processes. Therefore, a survey was directed towards academics in 16 science departments in three large universities in Denmark. Results based on the response from 489 academics showed that cultural diversity, as a deep level heterogeneity, was positively related to performance and satisfaction, whereas gender diversity, as a surface level heterogeneity, was negatively associated with satisfaction. Implications of these findings are discussed in detail.     

Sailing into the Wind: New disciplines in Australian higher education

Much is made of the potential of lifelong learning for individuals and organisations. In this article we tend to make much less of it, certainly with respect to its use in universities to discipline academics. Nevertheless, we argue that academics now need to re-learn the positions they occupy and the stances they take in response to the marketisation of Australian universities. In particular, we suggest that the position of (pure) critique no longer commands attention in Australian contexts of higher education, although the paper does not suggest a disregard for a critical stance purely for the sake of participation. It is in understanding the interconnections between position and stance , and how they might be strategically performed during the everyday practices of academics, that a more promising way of engaging with the venalities of the market is envisaged; a strategy that could be described as 'sailing into the wind'. In discussing these matters, the paper draws on semi-structured interviews with academics located in university faculties/departments/schools of education along Australia's eastern seaboard.     

Why (not) assess? Views from the academic departments of Finnish universities

In Europe, national quality assurance systems of higher education have begun to be established. In Finland, this development has had the consequence of forcing universities to take notice of assessment procedures. However, little is known about the procedures taking place in individual academic departments as a result of this pan‐European trend. This article describes how academics currently comprehend quality assessment, paying particular attention to self‐evaluations and quality assurance systems. Altogether, the paper casts light on how academics are responding to the increasing university assessment activities.     

谈大学学科布局

本文从国际比较的视角来考察目前中国综合性研究型大学中在学科布局上存在的普遍性问题。第一部分以若干所美国知名大学内部学院和学科设置为例，论述综合性研究型大学中学院设置的三个层次的共同规律。以此为基础，第二部分分析中国目前通行的学科分类的缺陷，大学内部学院设置的偏差，以及本科生和研究生培养模式的问题，并提出相应的改革建议。     

Measuring quality in universities: An approach to weighting research productivity

The aim of the study is to demonstrate, via the use of the discipline of Education, a procedure to identify and weight the importance of various indicators of research productivity which in turn have become significant components in determining quality within and between universities. The methodology allows for the identification of indicators that are most important, and ascertains if there are differences among academics as to the relative weighting of the various research indicators.Highly valued indicators of research productivity amongst the Education academics were refereed journal articles, peer reviewed books, and major competitive research grants. Refereeing was critical in the determination of quality in research productivity, and the findings generalized across many academics regardless of their own personal productivity. It is recommended that the methodology can serve to determine the tacit weights that academics within and across disciplines attach to various research products. At least, this method makes academics and administrators aware of the weightings they are actually using when making decisions about the quality of academic departments.     

高校图书馆实施网络资源利用教育之探讨

信息科技突飞猛进以及网络日渐普及的今天, 网络已成了人们获取信息的重要工具。开展网络利用教育已成为高校乃至其他教育部门的一项重要任务。目前我国高校图书馆在实施网络资源利用教育中尚存在诸如重视不够, 人力不足, 教育内容差异大, 以及教学设施、场地不完善地等问题。因而, 各高校图书馆必须拟定网络资源利用教育的政策和计划, 把网络资源利用教育纳入文献检索课的教学内容中去, 并采取其他行之有效的措施来普及和提高网络资源利用教育的水平和发展。     

Exploring the factors that influence knowledge sharing between academics

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the impact of organisational and individual factors on the knowledge sharing behaviour of UK academics. Although there a few articles that explore knowledge sharing between academics in an Asian context, there is currently only one article that explores this topic in a UK context. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 12 academics to gather insights into their views on the factors that affect knowledge sharing. Findings demonstrated that academics are prepared to share different types of knowledge; a range of factors affecting this process were highlighted by interviewees. Trust was discussed more than other individual factors and was often associated with social exchange. Culture was described by most interviewees as collaborative and leaders were generally considered to have integrity, but often did not themselves share knowledge. Regular face-to-face contact was emphasised as being critical for knowledge sharing. This study demonstrates there is a culture of trust in most departments and academics are willing to share knowledge with their colleagues. They do, however, believe that the matrix structure, that is typical of academic departments, has resulted in unclear roles and responsibilities, which could hinder the design of structures to promote collaboration and sharing.     

Restricted opportunities under employment reform: the experiences of select universities in the Chinese Mainland

This study investigates changes to academic work life under recent employment reform in the Chinese Mainland. It employs a mixed-methods research approach, first conducting a survey of 1,770 teachers at nine universities in Mainland China. These nine universities consist of first-tier, second-tier, and ordinary universities. Next, through a qualitative research approach, 60 teachers at three of the nine universities were interviewed. Teachers from the departments of management, information technology, education, and physics were interviewed, reflecting a variety of work conditions. Our study finds that the employment reform, with its stress on quantitative research output, has led to further restrictions on academic work and the standardization of academic development. The new measurements have led to a crisis of confidence and dignity for many senior teachers. Great pressure has also been placed on younger academics, who receive very limited promotion opportunities. This study offers a significant theoretical contribution to discussion on the changing academic work life and has policy implications for higher education personnel policy in China.     

Using the Teaching Perspectives Inventory (TPI) to examine the relationship between teaching perspectives and disciplines in higher education

This study examined the relationship between different views of teaching and dimensions that differentiate academic disciplines. A total of 114 academics within Greece and 127 academics from similar disciplines but other countries were compared using the Teaching Perspectives Inventory (TPI). Distinctions among disciplines for both groups were based on Biglan’s 3-dimensional classification (Pure/Applied; Hard/Soft; Life/non-Life). The objective of this study was to examine to what extent the teaching perspectives of the academics differ from one classification category to another. Greek academics represented participants in 15 departments across 9 universities throughout Greece, while the international sample was drawn from the TPI database. Statistical analysis indicated better differentiation of Biglan’s classification for its Life/non-Life dimension than for Pure/Applied or Hard/Soft between the combined samples for four Teaching Perspectives: Transmission, Developmental, Nurturing and Social Reform. No perspectives differences existed for Biglan’s Hard/Soft categorisation, although Greek professors were significantly higher in Soft rather than Hard disciplines in the Developmental, Nurturing and Social Reform perspectives compared to their global counterparts. They also demonstrated overall higher ‘Transmission’ scores. The authors conclude that disciplinary differences are real, but that they are small compared to the interpersonal ones or even to the international ones. The relationships between the teaching perspectives and Biglan’s classifications are further discussed.     

Wikipedia and the University,a case study

This article discusses the use of Wikipedia by academics and students for learning and teaching activities at Liverpool Hope University. Hope has distinctive aspects but we consider the findings to be indicative of Wikipedia use at other British universities. First we discuss general issues of Wikipedia use within the university. Second, we examine existing research on Wikipedia use amongst students and academics. Based upon a sample of 133 academics and 1222 students, our principal findings were: (1) 75% of academics and students use Wikipedia; (2) student use is typically confined to the initial stages of assessments; (3) a quarter of academics provide guidance on how to use Wikipedia and (4) 70% of academics use Wikipedia for background information for teaching purposes, something that it is not influenced by whether student use is tolerated or not. Our conclusion is that whilst Wikipedia is now unofficially integrated into universities, it is not ‘the’ information resource as feared by many and that an enlightened minority of academics have attempted to assimilate it into their teaching.     

A new initiative in departmental reviews: annual meetings in the Faculty of Science

A profound change is now taking place in British universities which challenges the traditional academic values of autonomy and self-regulation: regular and systematic appraisal of both individual academics and departments. This case study reports an in-depth analysis of departmental appraisal in the Faculty of Science at the University of Birmingham. The different expectations, concerns and reactions of those directly involved are highlighted and explored. From this analysis a number of conclusions are drawn that might inform similar initiatives in other institutions.This is a revised and extended version of a paper presented at the Annual Conference of the Society for Research into Higher Education on Restructuring Higher Education, Birmingham Polytechnic, December 16–18, 1987.     

Managing a modern university: is it time for a rethink?

The corporate approaches introduced in the late 1980s and now prevalent in universities in Australia have led to irrevocable changes in the way universities are managed and academics work. The management approaches widely applied in Australian universities are largely based on a top‐down corporate management model, with central control over policy and budget driven by the need to meet stringent external accountability requirements. This form of management rewards compliance and predictability. The economic environment over this period has changed drastically, becoming more global and uncertain. The prevailing management processes are not suited to the modern economic environment. A modern university is expected to operate more as an enterprise, but to do so effectively it needs flexible and responsive forms of management that are more inclusive of academics in the decision making process. This paper explores the organisational management literature and links it to the context in which universities operate. It considers the implications for managers and academics, as key stakeholders in a modern university, in this changeable environment.     

Research and teaching cultures in two contrasting UK policy contexts: Academic life in Education Departments in five English and Scottish universities

The paper explores academic staff and departmental research and teaching cultures in the Education Departments of five universities in Scotland and England, countries with increasingly diverging public policies in respect of education. The relationship between research and teaching, how the purposes of universities are defined and the status of research in Education are current UK higher education policy preoccupations. Data is drawn from interviews with 40 academics, observation of department settings, documentation and websites. The analysis draws on the work of Bourdieu, considering the changing habitus of individual academics, their departmental and academic subject context and the forms of symbolic capital now required in Scottish and English Education departments in response to new policies affecting their academic field. The paper also utilises recent literature on the research–teaching relationship. The career trajectories of respondents, their habitus and the forms of symbolic capital that they bring to academic life are examined, as are the extent to which the teaching and research cultures in each of the five departments studied mirror each other and whether these also reflect the two different policy contexts. The themes how academic cultures are shaped and research/teaching connections viewed have international as UK relevance.     

高水平大学建设要重点处理好的八个关系

如何建设高水平大学是高等教育领域的热点。中国高水平大学建设要处理好适应与引领、卓越与特色、学术与行政、教学与科研、学校与院系等八个基本关系。解决好这八个方面的问题,需要大学管理者、高等教育研究人员深入细致的思考与务实的研究。     

Changing Patterns in the Middle Management of Higher Education Institutions: The Case of Portugal

Abstact Much of the writing on higher education in recent years has tended to assume that the new management push in higher education is both universal and irreversible. This paper, however, presents evidence from Portugal to challenge that assumption. While elements of the new managerialism are clearly evident in the perceptions and attitudes of academics in charge of the basic academic units (departments/schools and faculties) in the country’s universities and polytechnics, academic management remains faced with a complex, contradictory and conflicting set of demands and expectations which is likely to take a considerable time to resolve.     

The entrepreneurial university and academic discourses: The meta‐synthesis of Higher Education articles

The innovative teaching, knowledge and technology production and societal service activities of academics are largely discussed within the entrepreneurial university discourse in Higher Education journals. Therefore, this research focuses on a meta‐synthesis of Higher Education articles to better understand the concepts of the entrepreneurial university and entrepreneurial academic. After the systematic elimination based on keywords and titles, 25 articles have been selected from the top 10 Higher Education journals in the SCImago Journal Rankings. Content analysis was performed on these articles to highlight the common operational areas in entrepreneurial universities and activities of entrepreneurial academics. The meta‐synthesis shows that, both for universities and academics, entrepreneurship is overwhelmingly characterised by the commercialisation of scholarly activities that enrich institutional income revenue as well as academics’ personal income. However, such an approach can distance universities from their mission of public good; so Higher Education administrators should create mechanisms that would allow both to take place in a balanced way.