Sources of career support for university faculty

A survey of faculty at a research-oriented public university in the midwest identified four major sources of support for faculty. These are off-campus personal supports including spouse or significant other, family, friends, a former professor, and the religious community; colleagues within the academic unit; professional supports outside the unit such as administrators, colleagues on campus with common research interests, and national and international networks; and a minority network including minority faculty in the unit and on campus and other ethnic or cultural groups off campus. The primary source of support for faculty was a spouse or significant other. Differences in types of career supports were examined for women and men and for faculty at different ranks.This research was partially supported by an Affirmative Action Grant awarded by The Ohio State University, 1987–88.     

Now I’m Ready: The Impact of a Professional Development Initiative on Faculty Concerns with Program Assessment

This article examines the impact of a faculty professional development effort on the understanding, confidence, and attitudes of education faculty related to program assessment activities. We applied literature on the adoption of innovations, institutional effectiveness, and professional development to a case study of a series of workshops on assessment. The results suggest that faculty members had improved skills and knowledge, understanding, confidence, and attitudes regarding assessment following the workshops. The opportunity for faculty members to collaborate with colleagues on assessment and to develop an understanding of the kinds of supports in place for assessment work were important elements in the gains.     

州郡学院“院校研究”——以亳州师范高等专科学校为个案

本文从解析州郡学院＂院校研究＂的内涵入手,剖析亳州师范高等专科学校发展的＂瓶颈＂因素,提出对其进行＂组织再造＂的对策,进而详细地规划了亳州师范高等专科学校的新校区建设方案、专业拓展方案,最后总结出州郡学院＂院校研究＂的若干启示。     

Instructional Rounds as a professional learning model for systemic implementation of Assessment for Learning

The purpose of this research was to examine the implementation of a professional learning project aimed at building educators’ knowledge and skills in assessment for learning (AfL) within two school districts in Ontario, Canada. Specifically, the research examined the value of a two-tier Instructional Rounds (IR) professional learning model. This professional learning model was unique because it engaged both teachers and principals in collaboratively learning and implementing AfL strategies in order to develop systemic capacity in assessment. In total, 12 principals, 48 teachers, two superintendents and two school district assessment consultants participated in the study. Data were collected through observations of IR sessions, classroom observations, interviews, IR session reflections and a post-project survey. Findings from this study report on positive changes in teachers’ and principals’ conceptions and implementation of AfL as well as on the value and challenges of IR as a professional learning model. The paper concludes with a discussion on developing systemic capacity in AfL through an IR model of professional learning.     

Coming full circle: from teacher reflection to classroom action and places in‐between

The article shows the experience of professional development over the course of a decade of one teacher’s career nested against the backdrop of one reforming middle‐school context in the USA. Through the use of four fine‐grained narrative exemplars, the campus professional development trajectory is examined from the vantage point of Daryl Wilson, an eighth‐grade literacy teacher who participated in the research study for 10 years. By using narrative inquiry as both a method and a form to feature Daryl’s and some of his colleagues’ experiences of teacher learning within the context of school reform, the strengths and challenges of the various iterations of professional development are discussed. In the final analysis, the narrative exemplars show Daryl Wilson’s meaning‐making as he moves from an isolated form of teacher reflection to full‐blown classroom action where his students’ learning and his colleagues’ professional development are also implicated. However, before coming full circle, Daryl experiences some less‐than‐satisfying teacher learning situations in‐between.     

The value of institutional research in the assessment of institutional effectiveness

A survey of 167 institutions engaged in the regional reaccreditation process between 1987 and 1992 revealed that the presence of institutional research activities was positively related to the institution carrying out a systematic assessment of institutional effectiveness. Institutional research activity was more predictive of assessment efforts than was the type of governance (public or private), the level of degree offered, or enrollment size. An alarmingly low proportion of institutions had begun to define outcomes at the time of the survey—a first step in the development of assessment procedures. Even fewer had identified ways of measuring outcomes. Budgets and staff expertise were felt to be adequate for current responsibilities but insufficient to assume responsibility for assessing institutional effectiveness. Institutional research activity is urgently needed in order to support the data collection efforts required by institutional assessment mandates. Whether these activities are conducted by institutional researchers or are dispersed across the campus, they provide the underpinnings for assessment.     

Is There a Need for a European Institutional Research?

Recent changes in European higher education have accompanied a strong desire and need by national ministries to have comparable data across institutions and a growing recognition from campus leaders that effective planning and decision-making requires reliable institutional data and analyses. This has induced changes and restructuring of duties and roles of administration, administrative staff and academic staff. In North America, internal institutional data analysis is often referred to as institutional research. We examine the roles and functions of institutional research within North America and how the changes within European higher education have created a purpose for institutional research. Specifically, we explore the topical areas of institutional assessment, data management, institutional governance, as well asthe changing identity of academic professionals within European universities. Within our examination, we explore in-depth one European country’s higher education system to demonstrate how history, culture and legislative changes manifest into a need for institutional research.     

Strategies for Increasing Faculty Involvement in Institutional or Program Assessment

This narrative research study was conducted to explore the experiences of full-time community college faculty members involved in student learning outcomes assessment. Prior research documented the need for more community college faculty involvement with assessment at the program and institutional levels (Grunwald & Peterson, 2003; Kinzie, 2010; Nunley, Bers, & Manning, 2011); however, little research had been published about faculty experiences with assessment at these levels. This study adds to the body of literature about community college faculty participation with assessment by sharing the perspectives of faculty members who had participated with either program or institutional assessment on their campus. One-hour semi-structured interviews with nine participants at three different 2-year institutions recognized for their assessment processes provided the data for the study. The size of this study was limited to nine participants so that an in-depth exploration of each participant’s experience with assessment could be conducted. The shared experiences of the participants in this study revealed that faculty involvement with assessment beyond the course level was primarily influenced by faculty perception of assessment being valued as a tool for institutional improvement. Three indicators of the value placed on assessment by these institutions were that they: (a) allocated resources (time and training) for assessment, (b) clearly articulated the goals of assessment at their institution, and (c) demonstrated how assessment results were used in institutional decision-making. This study also revealed that faculty members’ prior experience working with assessment and individual skills or abilities also influenced decisions to become involved with assessment.     

中国特色院校研究的发展探析

中国院校研究将进入一个新的阶段。院校研究的特点是校本研究、应用研究和管理研究,目前在中国推行院校研究受一系列因素的影响:管理体制的改革、社会环境与公众问责制度形成、研究机构设置与专业人员培养等。本文进一步分析了中国特色院校研究的主要内容及推进大学院校研究工作应注意的问题。     

基于CiteSpace的智慧校园研究热点及发展趋势分析

智慧校园是教育信息化2.0背景下数字校园发展的高级形态与必然趋势,以面向老师与学生个性化服务为理念,在云计算、大数据及物联网等技术支持下,全面感知外部环境,能够支持教学管理、评价与智能决策的教育教学环境和舒适的生活环境。本文使用引文可视化工具CiteSpace提取智慧校园相关研究的高频关键词,构建关键词共现图谱、关键词聚类图谱,对智慧校园研究相关热点进行分析,发现智慧校园的研究存在着诸如数据保护力度不足、缺少评价研究等问题,所以需要采取积极的应对措施,如发展评价研究、保护数据隐私等,将智慧校园的研究成果应用到实践过程中,以实现更有效、更高效的教与学。通过对知识图谱进行分析,总结出智慧校园的研究呈增长型趋势,并且有从理论知识研究转向实践应用研究、管理与评价范畴研究逐渐显现的趋势,智慧校园将随着技术的更迭、时代的发展而持续深入地发展。     

教师聊天,教师发展：一个教师学做科研的行动研究报告

鼓励普通教师积极参与科研是目前国内外教师发展的主题,通过一个教师第一次开展一个行动研究的过程记录,详细报道了此教师如何通过同事间私下聊天这种交流方式消除职业孤独、增强反省和解决教学问题的能力,成为善于合作的自信积极的人。通过系统对比分析专业研究者和普通教师研究者的科研条件和目标的区别,提出教师研究、教师发展的运动必须尽快树立教师友善的研究评估标准,以确保科研不会变成教师肩上的新负担、真正促进教师职业发展。     

民族地区高职高专心理健康教育现状、问题与对策

通过对广西37所高职院校大学生心理健康教育现状进行调查,发现各高职院校普遍重视学生心理健康教育工作,但总体上滞后于广西区内的本科院校,各高职高专院校大学生心理健康教育普遍存在缺乏制度保障;主动性、针对性、实效性差;从业人员不足,素质不高等问题。对策:各级教育行政主管部门加强评估、检查力度,促进心理健康教育保障制度的建立与完善;营造全员开展心理健康教育的氛围;加强课堂教学,将课堂教学与课外活动相结合;建立学校心理咨询督导制度,提高心理咨询人员的专业水平;开展朋辈心理辅导,缓解专业心理咨询人员之不足;重视心理健康教育研究,提高工作的针对性、实效性。     

中国高校大学生求学满意度测评体系和评价模型研究

本研究通过对北京、上海、武汉、广州、西安5个城市的12所大学的抽样调查,应用因子分析法和排序法,建立了一个可量化测评的中国高等院校学生满意度的指标体系和评价模型。研究发现,"学校环境、风气"、"学生管理机制"、"教学基础设施"、"后勤服务"、"课外活动"、"教师职业素质"、"教学课程管理"、"职工服务意识"和"个人发展"是影响大学生满意度的重要指标。其中"学校环境、风气"和"教师职业素质"的权重最大,应成为学校提高学生满意度的重点。     

Ecological Pushes and Pulls on Women Academics’ Pursuit of Research in China

Women academics reportedly exhibit lower research productivity than males. This study first quantitatively explored gender differences in research output based on a survey among 309 Chinese academics teaching English as a foreign language (TEFL). Qualitative data obtained through interviews with seven female respondents were analyzed from an ecological perspective. Results showed significant gender differences in domestic publication but no such differences in international publication. Women academics’ pursuit of research was influenced by many factors from and beyond the microsystems of workplace and family, and their coping strategies included soliciting help from seasoned colleagues, attending academic conferences, and joining online communities. The findings highlight the institutional supportive practices and familial environment that are equally important in promoting women academics’ professional development.     

院校研究与学习分析

院校研究与学习分析在学习研究方面同异并存,皆利用大数据探寻学生学习的优劣.院校研究主要依赖大学的管理和调查数据,学习分析主要使用学习管理系统收集的数据.院校研究聚焦于帮助大学“知己知彼”,学习分析旨在助力“知学生”“知学习”“知教育”.院校研究为学校层面决策提供实证研究证据,学习分析识别学生个体学习行为从而支持个性化学...     

高等教育专业评估研究进展理路与发展趋向

通过对专业评估和专业认证的概念界定,分析了当前国内外专业评估研究的现状和特点,指出当前专业评估研究的特点是既有一定的发展又存在诸多不足,并阐述了下一步研究的趋向是要构建有中国特色的专业评估认证理论和实践体系。     

我国院校研究的现实困境及其功能构建

随着我国高等教育的快速发展,高等学校办学规模不断扩张,组织结构日趋复杂,院校研究日益受到关注。但是我国院校研究起步较晚,发展过程中面临着诸多困境,如何界定和构建院校研究的功能成为当务之急。本文借鉴院校研究协会对院校研究功能的划分,提出院校研究的六项主要功能,对进一步深化院校研究理论、加强院校研究功能,提出相应的政策建议。     

Predictors of academic and social integration of college students

This study extended earlier research based on Tinto's 1975 model of student college attrition by investigating patterns of student social and academic integration across institutional types. This study found that different college types were characterized by different patterns of student participation in the social and academic life of the college. Personal characteristics and overall climate associated with each institutional type explained statistically significant but modest amounts of the variance in student participation in specific campus activities that help define campus life. Moreover, several personal characteristics were related to students' campus behavior differently across institutional types. Findings are discussed in terms of their implications for student recruitment and retention.     

Signifying authenticity in academic practice: a framework for better understanding and harnessing portfolio assessment

Portfolios are an assessment tool that help frame expectations of personal professional learning about teaching in higher education, a key dimension of academic practice. In this paper, we review our experiences in both supporting academic colleagues to develop a teaching portfolio, and in their assessment. We argue that the authenticity of the account offered is key: participants should aspire to render an authentic account of themselves, their context, actions and their professional stance. Likewise, assessors need to verify that an account is authentic. We posit five signifiers of authenticity: biographical/professional context; practice development and experience of practice; integration of core concepts and key ideas from the literature, especially evaluation and conceptions of teaching; purpose and values in continuing professional learning (CPL); coherence of writing, vocabulary used, writing style, etc. These are intended to help course leaders and conveners of CPL activities to articulate what it is that is being sought from participants, and hence clarify expectations for both participants doing the learning and for disciplinary colleagues assisting with the assessment.     

院校研究与中国高等学校的发展

起源于美国的院校研究经历了萌芽阶段、雏形阶段、成型阶段和完善普及化阶段。院校研究因其具有参谋咨询、信息中枢和知识管理的功能而受到各国的重视。在目前我国高等教育走向普及化、国际化的进程中,加强院校研究对我国各高等学校具有更为现实的意义。借鉴国际院校研究的新方法、新成果,我国必须成立全国性的院校研究机构,制定院校研究的基本原则,建立院校研究的平台,确立院校研究的重点。