The Bulgarian academic profession in transition

In this essay I analyze the current status of the academicprofession in Bulgaria at a time of difficult socio-economictransition. After providing a brief overview of the historicaldevelopment of Bulgarian academia, I discuss faculty workingconditions, the career path within the profession and the legalframework for the professoriate. Numerous problems with respectto finances, institutional infrastructure and legal environmentchallenge the status quo of the Bulgarian faculty. The essaycloses by highlighting the future key issues for theacademic profession that focus around its finanacial viability,difficulties in recruiting a new generation of scholars, the qualityof teaching and learning, and faculty entrepreneurship.     

中国高校女教师队伍发展的现状分析

本文从社会性别和国际比较的视角对我国高校女教师队伍的发展现状进行了分析。论文以1994至2004年为研究范围,首先对我国高校女教职工队伍的基本构成及变化趋势进行分析,在此基础上,从性别视角对高校专任教师队伍的职称结构、学位结构和年龄结构进行量化研究,并进一步从女教授占教授总数比例的角度将我国女教师队伍置于国际视野之下进行比较,从而较为全面地对我国女教师队伍的发展状况在国际坐标中作出清晰的定位,最后,论文分析了女性在高级职称中占比例低的机构制度原因,同时指出高校女教师发展的现实策略。     

Emeriti faculty as mentors: the benefits and rewards of mentoring the next generation

ABSTRACT

This holistic single-case study reports on the benefits mentors derived from participating in the Increasing Minority Presence within Academia through Continuous Training (IMPACT) mentoring program. The IMPACT program was sponsored by the National Science Foundation Office for Broadening Participation in Engineering 15–7680 (awards #1542728 and #1542524). In this program, emeriti faculty were matched with underrepresented minority faculty in the engineering professoriate for career-focused mentorship. The conceptual framework of the Benefits of Being a Mentor grounded this study. Findings indicate mentors appreciate the opportunity to give back and remain engaged in the field, to relive past academic career experiences, and to support the next generation of engineering professors while adjusting to retirement. These findings aligned with the conceptual framework on three factors: rewarding experience, improved job performance, and generativity. Implications for administrators and faculty, as well as additional research areas, are discussed.     

Temporal perceptions and university faculty

This study is a preliminary investigation of the temporal perceptions of 100 male university faculty members grouped by professorial rank and by the three general academic areas of natural sciences, social sciences and humanities. The general hypothesis states that the temporal perceptions of these respondents relate to academic area and not to professorial rank. From the respondents' answers to an open-ended question during a taped interview session, three perceptual categories were derived and labeled ambiguous, analytical, and synoptic. Chi-square analysis confirmed the general hypothesis. This confirmation is congruent with previous research findings that academic area is a significant distinguishing variable to apply to the professoriate. Natural science respondents perceived time analytically, as increments for measurement, whereas respondents in social sciences and humanities tended to perceive time ambiguously, as having more than one meaning. Implications of this small-sample investigation at a comprehensive, state-supported university are important not for the answers provided but rather for the questions generated. These questions delineate areas for further research.     

Mr. Chips Meets Capitalism:ProfScam's Attack on the Professoriate

The author argues that whileProfscam, by Charles Sykes, is seriously flawed, the book presents a forceful attack on the professoriate. Sykes is successful in raising questions about the modern university that are difficult to answer.     

The use of a Markov model in assessment of alternate faculty personnel policies

This study demonstrates the usefulness of the Markov modeling technique for analysis of alternative faculty personnel policies at a university. The necessary faculty flow model and transition matrix are developed with limited resources and only two years of time-series data. By making adjustments to the input vector (those entering the university) and the transition matrix, faculty personnel policy decisions are simulated and their outcomes, in terms of important faculty characteristics, are determined. Six hiring and retirement policies at a major university are assessed utilizing this procedure. The results that are presented provide an illustration of the nature of the information which can be obtained from this procedure.     

The horizontal and vertical fragmentation of academic work and the challenge for academic governance and leadership

Academic work has become increasingly fragmented. The horizontal fragmentation of the profession into disciplinary tribes has been accompanied by the increasing participation of student affairs and educational development professionals located outside the academic units but are actively engaged in academic work, such as supporting teaching and student learning. An increasing vertical fragmentation of academic work has recently occurred within academic units with the increasing employment of contract university teachers and research assistants. In Canada, horizontal and vertical fragmentations have occurred while universities and strong faculty unions have protected the “traditional” tenure-stream professoriate. Drawing on recent research, the author argues that these Canadian full-time faculties have high levels of job satisfaction and are well-remunerated, productive scholars. Maintaining the status and the supportive working conditions of the full-time, tenure-stream professoriate has largely been accomplished through labor cost efficiencies created by the increasing use of part-time, contractual university teachers, now frequently represented by labor unions that are distinct from their full-time peers. This article discusses the challenges for academic governance and leadership associated with this increasing fragmentation of academic work in the context of the “global” university.     

Cross-cultural implications of graduate study abroad: The case of Korean academics

The purpose of this study is to explore the perceptions of Korean faculty regarding the cross-cultural implications of their graduate education abroad for their careers in the academy. Personal interviews were conducted with twenty-seven Western-trained faculty members at three private research universities in the Republic of Korea. Individuals were purposively selected to provide representation across disciplinary fields, academic rank and gender. The study focuses on faculty members' 1) experiences as foreign graduate students and their socialization to the professoriate, and 2) perceptions of the impact of their cross-cultural graduate preparation on their academic careers. Analyses of the data with respect to the research questions revealed two themes: 1) the westernized expectations they developed regarding teaching and research, and 2) the emphasis they place on service to their university and nation. The implications of these findings are discussed not only for faculty careers but also for Western graduate education and training.     

Faculty Research Productivity: Exploring the Role of Gender and Family-Related Factors

This study explores the role of several family-related factors in faculty research productivity for a large, nationally representative sample of university faculty members. The role of marriage, children, and aging parents is examined after controlling for other personal and environmental factors, such as age, rank, department, and intrinsic motivations to conduct research, that previous research has shown to influence research productivity. Analyses are conducted on a sample of 8,544 full-time teaching faculty (2,384 women and 6,160 men) at 57 universities nationwide. Results show that factors affecting faculty research productivity are nearly identical for men and women, and family-related variables, such as having dependent children, exhibit little or no effects on research productivity.     

Literature review: the gap between mentoring theory and practice for diverse women faculty

Mentoring remains a beneficial resource for faculty career advancement. Yet, women faculty across African, Latinx, Asian, and Native American Diasporas often report their career advancement needs are unfulfilled by mentors. As a result, a gap exists between mentoring theory and practical application in higher education. Some scholars identified one factor contributing to this gap is Caucasian mentors not addressing faculty gendered and ethnic intersectional identity and the implications of that identity in the professoriate. Also, mentoring literature discussions omit the importance of facilitating learning, particularly when exploring the needs of women faculty across ethnic groups. I explored the gap between the proposed functions of mentoring and the challenges of cross-cultural mentoring and learning as a component of mentoring. The aim is to bridge the gap between theory and practice by providing readers with key mentor behaviors identified in qualitative and quantitative research that facilitate learning.     

中外高校教师学缘结构的近亲繁殖强度比较

近亲繁殖比喻主要以本校的一种理论、一种思想、一种模式来组建教师队伍,其成员常常在本校取得学位后留下来任教,延续本校的学脉。通过对比分析发现,国外高校教师的学缘结构更倾向于远亲杂交,国内高校教师的学缘结构则倾向于近亲繁殖,但国外高校的近亲繁殖也能开出创新的花朵。因而,我们在强调远亲杂交的同时,不能一味否定近亲繁殖。     

美国大学教师的学术自由权利:历史的视角

美国大学教师的学术自由权利经历了"学院时代"与"大学时代"两大历史时期的发展。美国大学教师学术自由权利的争取过程,同时也是赋予学术自由权利以认识论和政治论意义的过程。历史证明,学术自由权利是保障大学教师从事知识创新与探索活动的基本权利,是保护教学与研究工作免受各种不合理干扰和限制的必要权利,是赋予大学教师适当社会地位和必要经济保障的重要权利,也是一项与学术责任相伴生的有限权利。     

加拿大安大略省教学轨教职的发展现状、评价标准及现实启示

近年来,在学生规模扩大、教育问责强化、财政资助缩减等压力之下,加拿大安大略省将引入教学轨教职作为提高教育质量的重要改革举措。与传统的终身轨教师相比,教学轨教师主要从事教学和学习活动,与兼职或临时讲师相比,教学轨教师对教学和学生的投入更多,与学校的聘任关系更加稳定。作为与终身轨教职平行的职业发展轨道,教学轨教职的评价标准主要侧重考察教师在教学技能、教学计划与课程发展、教学领导与成就等领域的贡献。教学轨教职的引入对大学而言是一次机会,可以重新审视教学与研究之间的关系,探索教学使命和研究使命如何相互促进。在当前的教师岗位分类改革中,我国高校可从教学模式和课程体系、聘任与晋升评价体系、晋升与岗位转换通道、教学荣誉体系等方面提高教学为主型教职的认可度,促进教学为主型教师队伍的职业发展。     

Organizational Capacity and Political Activities of Canadian University Faculty Associations

In this study we examine the organizational capacity and political activities of Canadian university faculty associations in the development of higher education policy. We attempt to describe, from the perspective of the faculty associations, their political role both internal and extenral to the university and the extent to which faculty associations perceive themselves as being able to influence issues of policy. We report the findings of a national survey of university faculty associations including data on organizational structure, finance, perceived influence on institutional and provincial government, policy, services and programs, and other factors related to their role as political pressure groups.     

论现代大学教师发展制度的实然与应然

从政府主导的制度设计、工具理性的价值引导、培训为主的项目安排、相对单一的经费来源等,分析了我国现代大学教师发展制度的实然状态,并从层次分明的制度设计、认知理性的价值引导、需要主导的项目设计以及多元并举的经费保障等四个方面,探析我国现代大学教师发展制度的实然选择。     

我国高校教师绩效评估的探析

高校教师的重要性现今已经得到人们的充分肯定,高校教师绩效评估也因此逐步受到人们的重视。但我国的高校教师绩效评估现在还存在诸多的问题,需要采取一系列的措施进行改革,使我国高校教师绩效评估能够具有科学性和公平性,能够使教师的积极性充分的调动起来。     

A University Name Change: Significance of Faculty Involvement

ABSTRACT

The landscape of higher education is more competitive now than ever before. Colleges and universities are changing and refocusing their identity, missions, and strategic visions to better serve students, prospective students, partners, and other external constituencies. As a result, many colleges and universities have changed their name to distinguish and differentiate themselves in this growing and evolving marketplace. This study takes a closer look into the phenomenon of a university strategic name change process and faculty involvement. It addresses the following questions: How much faculty involvement is needed to facilitate a successful university strategic name process? What is the impact of faculty involvement on a university strategic name event? What are the drivers of a university strategic name change? What are the roles of faculty members in fulfilling the desired outcome(s) of university strategic name change events. This paper proposes that faculty involvement is pertinent to the process and outcomes of a strategic university name change.     

Who mentors undergraduate student researchers? An analysis of faculty involvement at a four-year university

ABSTRACT

In this study, we investigated a profile of faculty who mentor undergraduate researchers at a four-year Hispanic-serving, public research university. Six variables were investigated: ethnicity, gender, age, tenure status, teaching evaluations, and research productivity. Data were compiled from institutional databases. Findings showed a greater percentage of tenured faculty mentoring undergraduate researchers while the percent of minority UR faculty mentors was consistent with institutional percentages. Additionally, findings included a higher percentage of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) Undergraduate Research (UR) underrepresented minority faculty mentors compared to STEM Institution (INST) underrepresented minority faculty. For research productivity, UR faculty mentor funding comprised 28.0% of all external grant awards and 36.0% of all external funding during the sampling period. The majority funding for INST and UR faculty were found to be in the STEM disciplines. These findings provide evidence of potential predictors to describe UR faculty mentor profiles and can be considered important information for determining future educational policies and practices.     

David Purpel,Emeritus Professor: In Memoriam

This article employs an intersectional analysis of the experiences of Black faculty at an elite US university who have mentored Black undergraduates, and focuses on faculty’s meaning making of their connection to their mentees, and challenges they face in these relationships. Findings reveal that faculty found their shared cultural background enhanced mentoring, and they worked hard to establish trust with their mentees, absent at times in mentees’ relationships with White faculty. Participants shared barriers to engaging in mentoring relationships, with gender and age intersecting with race for unique challenges and benefits for the subjects. Policy recommendations are made to support junior faculty mentors in the tenure granting process, and produce incentives for all faculty to share the responsibility of mentoring.     

新中国成立前后高校解决师资难题的路径探析——以唐山工学院为例

新中国成立前后,我国高等教育亟待蓄力起步,而高校作为高等教育的实际承担者,如何解决师资不济之难题,是高校能否有序开展教育、培养国家建设人才的关键所在。在师资延聘过程中,唐山工学院通过留聘旧教员、向上级和其他单位部门申请调聘所缺师资、留聘毕业生、充分利用社会关系延聘师资及加强师资延聘宣传工作等一系列卓有成效的举措,在一定程度上克服了师资短缺的困境,为学校开展教育教学及科学研究提供了保障,同时也为当代高校延揽人才积累了宝贵经验。