Identifying costs of instructional technology in higher education

Abstract

The current advocacy for rapidly increasing the use of instructional technologies has not been accompanied by sufficient research on the costs of these modes of instruction. The purpose of this article is to illustrate the need for more comprehensive research on instructional technology costs and to provide a framework for examining these costs. First, to provide context, some current assumptions about the growing use of instructional technology are discussed. Then various categories of costs are described.     

Affirmative action effectiveness criteria in institutions of higher education

In the last decade institutions of higher education have received increasing pressure to reduce and/or eliminate any discriminatory actions. Affirmative action programs have been used by these institutions to comply with the letter of the law. Research shows, however, that these programs have not been highly successful in eliminating discrimination. This study was designed to assess the judgment policies of personnel and affirmative action officers in institutions of higher learning regarding the criteria necessary for effective affirmative action programs. The research identified 13 separate potential criteria. The results suggest attitudes and procedures were the most important criteria for effectiveness. Institution type (public versus private) and size (number of students) have no moderating effects.     

现代远程高等教育教学模式改革构想

本文通过对远程高等教育模式的诠释和审视 ,认为现代远程高等教育模式的改革应围绕学生和学生的学习这一中心进行 ,这是现代远程高等教育的本质特征 ,并提出了 5项改革措施 :1、以建构主义认识论作为远程教育教学模式主要理念之一 ;2、由单一性教学模式向混合型教学模式发展 ;3、由归纳型教学模式向演绎型教学模式发展 ;4、由以“教”为主向以“学”为主转化 ;5、发展本地化、多样化的远程高等教育教学模式。     

Killing the old myths: Positioning an instructional technology center for a new era in higher education

Summary In conclusion, consider that the best directors, the most successful ones, the most powerful ones, do not direct; they orchestrate and conduct. The most common gestures in conducting are circular. A symphony conductor works on a piece of music written by someone else, but the richness comes from the interpretation. Knowing the music is not enough. A conductor must exact the best performance from each player and each instrument. In a symphony, there is no center, no autonomy, no competing forces, only a seamless whole. How can you conduct your work to make your media center one player in the larger orchestra of your institution? How can you harmonize your role within the mission and needs of the university with the support of your clients and supervisors, create beautiful sounds together, get a solo once in a while, and hear a lot of applause? This article is adapted from a keynote address at the Fall conference of the Consortium of College and University Media Centers, Honolulu, HI, October 1991.     

Evaluation criteria as control variables in the design of instructional systems

Many of the concepts and principles used in cybernetics are helpful in examining and designing instructional systems. However, the operational utility of cybernetic models is dependent on the match between the phenomenon being modelled and the model itself. In this paper, the position is taken that except in those forms of learning where the criteria for success are independent, fixed, and few in number, the cybernetic paradigm cannot be applied to curriculum development without a modified interpretation of how evaluation criteria can act as system control variables.     

高职教育教学质量的控制与管理

据有关资料统计,全国各类高等职业教育院校,已经有2000余所,在校生人数占接受高等教育学生总人数的一半以上。高职教育在规模和数量上的发展都是空前的。目前,人们最关心的是高职教育的教学质量问题。同济大学高等技术学院举办高职教育五年来,在对高职教育教学质量的控制与管理方面,作了一些有益的探索和实践。     

高职专业改革的几个问题

高职专业改革是教学改革的龙头,专业培养目标要具有高职教育特色的知识、能力、素质结构;专业结构调 整要具有前瞻性,克服盲目性;专业设置要突出行业性和地方性,要适应岗位培训需求;专业口径要注意针 对性、适应性和融合性;要强化专业实践教学环节;要淡化专业概念,优化课程内容。     

论高等教育全球化的指标体系

高等教育从国际化到全球化是一个过程,是一个渐进、量变的过程,更是一个量变引起质变的过程。高等教育由国际化演变为全球化的"度"可以从三个方面考察:一是高等教育从国际化到全球化的组织临界标准,即高等教育市场全球化指标;二是高等教育从国际化到全球化的留学生临界标准,即留学生市场全球化指标;三是高等教育认证从国际化到全球化的临界标准,即高等教育质量全球化指标。     

Organizational decline and effectiveness in private higher education

The central purpose of this study was to determine the relationship between organizational decline and three domains of effectiveness (i.e., academic, morale, and external adaptation) in private colleges and universities. The study differed from earlier inquiries in terms of its measurement of the organizational decline construct and its reliance on faculty perceptions of organizational effectiveness. The results clearly demonstrate that the relationship between decline and effectiveness is not uniform across the three types of private institutions (i.e., Research Universities, Comprehensive Colleges, Liberal Arts Colleges). For example, organizational decline has a negative effect on effectiveness in the academic domain only at Liberal Arts Colleges. Similarly, the magnitude of decline necessary to have a negative effect on effectiveness varies among the three institutional types. The implications of these findings for future research and for the management of decline in private higher education are discussed.     

Examining faculty questions to facilitate instructional improvement in higher education

Many of the innovations that show promise for improving outcomes for underprepared community college students require instructors to make changes to their teaching practice. Little research explores the experiences of faculty teaching in reformed courses as related to their professional learning needs. Drawing on a multi-year qualitative study, this paper uses data from 100 faculty interviews to explore the questions they ask when teaching a new course. A key outcome of the analysis is a typology of questions that mirrors the stage of implementation. Through analysis of 20 observations of implementation activities, this paper also documents the learning opportunities made available to instructors and examines the extent to which these activities addressed their questions.     

试论远程教育教师的教育技术素养

本文阐述了教师的教育技术素养所包含的基本要素和各要素之间的结构关系,借鉴了美国国家教育技术标准中“教师教育技术基本标准”,提出了远程教育教师提高教育技术素养是确保远程教育教学质量的关键。     

Teaching improvement grants: what they tell us about professors' instructional choices for the use of technology in higher education

To understand the creative possibilities for the instructional uses of technology, it is important to understand what professors’ are thinking about or imagining they could be doing. This article describes how an analysis of teaching improvement grants can inform us regarding professors’ instructional choices for the use of technology in higher education. An analysis over 6 years of award winning innovative technology proposals emphasized the positive practices that were being proposed, the importance of situating the analysis within an historical framework (eg, over time, culture, infrastructure) and the value of focusing on professor thinking that precedes teaching action and subsequent evaluation of its impact on learning.     

试析“高等教育院校有效性”的概念及其价值

“高等教育院校有效性”(简称‘院校有效性’)已成为美国高等院校内的通用语。本文认为,“院校有效性”是一个系统的、不断进行的、对院校在朝向其使命与目标过程中,收集、分析有关达标情况与成果的指标、数据与信息,并加以度量与表达的过程,用此度量的结果帮助决策的制订和促进改革。这一概念的推广和使用对于指导院校自身的发展有着特别重要的应用价值,对于丰富和完善高等教育理论也将起到重要作用。