Supporting Black Male Community College Success: Determinants of Faculty–Student Engagement

The purpose of this study was to examine determinants of Black male students’ engagement with faculty in the community college. Data from this study were derived from the 2011 three-year cohort of the Community College Survey of Student Engagement (CCSSE). Using data from 11,384 Black male respondents within 260 community colleges, this study investigated faculty–student engagement using hierarchical, multilevel modeling. Among other findings, this study illustrated the importance of reading remediation, participation in learning communities, study skills courses, and college orientation in positively contributing to faculty–student interactions. Implications for college practice are discussed.     

What Do Teacher Mentors Tell Student Teachers About Pupil Learning in Infant Schools?

Abstract

Recent emphases on experiential classroom learning in the induction into expertise of student teachers may over‐estimate the learning support that class based practitioners offer students. Current understandings of teachers' thinking and planning suggest that expert practitioners may not be best placed to provide student teachers with frameworks for understanding what Shulman (1987) categorises as general pedagogical knowledge. Data from a sample of 11 UK infant school teacher mentors in the form of 5 hours of taped planning and evaluatory conversations with 20 students have been content analysed. Teacher‐talk related to explanations of how pupils learn forms the focus of the paper. Implications for mentor training and school‐university partnerships are drawn from the analysis of the data. Finally the need to confront the language difference that obtains between schools and universities in order to develop the theoretical base of teacher education is asserted.     

What Do Learning Scientists Do? A Survey of the ISLS Membership

This study responds to a question that people working in the field of learning sciences get asked regularly: What do learning scientists do? Earlier attempts to answer this question came from a need to define a new field of educational research. Now that the International Society of the Learning Sciences (ISLS) has grown into a robust and productive society, it is time to gain a more nuanced understanding of learning sciences research and practices—including where it takes place, for whom, and in what form—as defined by members of the learning sciences community. Here we report on the responses of 253 ISLS members to a survey conducted in 2014. We discuss implications of the findings in terms of the type of impact learning scientists have. We also discuss how these results might be used to advise prospective students and to create a vision for our future.     

What Can We Do About Waste?

Last week’s topic:The e-waste problem is growing rapidly.Just whatare China’s problems with recycling?Howcan we improve the system?And,howcan we raise our awareness? Jin Guangcan:People’s attitude isthe major reason for the e—waste problem     

Student Plagiarism in Universities: What are we Doing About it?

Student plagiarism subverts the system of course evaluation, debases qualifications and offends against academic integrity. Research findings from the U.S.A. and the U.K. indicate the widespread nature of student plagiarism in universities. Opportunities for plagiarism among university students appear to be on the increase but there is evidence to suggest that official policies, procedures and responses on the part of some universities and academic staff may be inconsistent and inequitable. Universities need to be more proactive in: developing strategies to raise student awareness of the unacceptability of student plagiarism; developing and enforcing policies aimed at controlling student plagiarism; and setting up programmes to promote academic integrity. A continuum consisting of seven plagiarism behaviours linked to a suggested set of procedures and penalties can be used by academic staff to classify instances of plagiarism and deal with individual cases in a fairer, more consistent manner.     

What Do Teachers Know About Digital Safety?

Abstract

The research objective was to determine the level of digital literacy (DL) among teachers. The scope of DL was narrowed to the issue of the safe use of electronic media. The research was conducted using a competency test and diagnostic survey. The following aspects of DL were measured: awareness of the mechanisms of communication with other Internet users and any threats resulting thereof, understanding what sexting is and what is meant by invasion of privacy, knowledge about copyright, ability to verify the credibility of information available online (the least developed area of DL), awareness of cyberbullying and the prevention thereof (the most developed DL skill), and the security of online financial operations. The study was conducted in the second half of 2016 in Poland and was commissioned by the Ministry of National Education responsible for the Bezpieczna+ (Safe+) project. The survey was carried out among 421 lower-secondary school teachers (covering three grades for children aged 12/13 to 15/16) from all over the country. The research results can be generalized at α?=?0.95 level. The teachers surveyed showed different levels of DL. The teachers of technical subjects (including ICT) obtained the best results, whereas natural science teachers scored the lowest. Age was not a determinant of ICT expertise. A low level of DL and safety skills prevailed in the group of teachers who recently began their career in education (trainees). The group of beginner teachers in particular should be given educational support. This research also breaks the stereotype that young teachers have much more advanced DL than older teachers.     

What Are Online Teaching Faculty Telling Us About Building Community?

This article describes the results of a mixed-methods study that examined the perceptions of community among online faculty in Washington state community and technical colleges. Twelve community and technical colleges were randomly selected from the 34 colleges in Washington state. Results indicated significant differences between females versus males on questions related to motivators, time, and interactions. A significant difference existed among program area faculty related to regularly scheduled community-building activities. There were no significant differences between responses from full-time versus adjunct faculty or among the responses based on instructors’ number of years teaching online or their age. The results of this study suggest a strong agreement (87%) among all faculty on the value and importance of interacting with other online colleagues regarding effective online teaching practices.     

Rubrics as a Tool for Learning and Assessment: What Do Baccalaureate Students Think?

Rubrics are increasingly used as tools to evaluate student work. This study examined BSW students' perceptions of the benefits and challenges of using rubrics. Pre- and posttest questionnaires were administered to 35 students in two sections of a diversity course. Students judged the use of rubrics favorably. Rubrics communicated the instructors' expectations, clarified how to write course assignments, explained grade and point deductions and, in general, made course expectations clearer. Students suggested that the rubric design should be self-explanatory and easy to follow. If carefully developed, rubrics may be a useful tool for advancing student learning in social work programs.     

What Will She Say?

Bob:Dad, every time when the TV news is over, the announcer says "Good night" to us. If we turn the TV off, what will she say?Dad:" Power cut again?" (江河供稿)     

Do Returnee Faculty Promote the Internationalization of Higher Education? A Study Based on the “2014 Faculty Survey in China”

Abstract

Based on data from the “2014 Chinese University Faculty Survey,” this article analyzes the distribution characteristics and manifestations of internationalization from returnee faculty to Chinese colleges as well as their impacts on the internationalization of higher education in the three dimensions of scientific research output, teaching content and methods, and international exchanges. Compared to local teachers, returnee faculty members adjust their research output strategies to reach a higher level of internationalization. They favor publishing papers in international journals and publish fewer domestic papers and make fewer domestic patent applications. They focus on international perspectives and content in their course teaching content and methods. In terms of international exchanges, they participate in international academic conferences and travel abroad more often for advanced studies. Their experiences studying overseas accumulate their comparative advantage in the internationalization of the academic profession. Higher education institutions should make them play larger roles in promoting the internationalization of scientific research and teaching as well as international academic exchanges to improve the level of internationalization of Chinese higher education.     

Pedagogical Signals of Faculty Approachability: Factors Shaping Faculty–Student Interaction Outside the Classroom

Decades of research demonstrate that college students benefit from positive interaction with faculty members, although that same evidence suggests that those interactions are far from common, particularly outside the classroom. Moreover, relatively little is known about which, when, how, and why faculty members choose to engage with students outside of the classroom. Guided by the theory that faculty members use in-class behaviors to signal their “psychosocial approachability” for out-of-class interaction with students (Wilson et al. in Sociology of Education 47(1):74–92, 1974; College professors and their impact on students, 1975), this study uses data from 2,845 faculty members on 45 campuses to identify the personal, institutional, and pedagogical factors that influence the frequency and type of interaction faculty members have with students outside of the classroom.     

Affirmative Consent: What Do College Student Leaders Think About “Yes Means Yes” as the Standard for Sexual Behavior?

Affirmative consent (AC) is becoming the standard for sexual behavior between students. However, little is known about how college students interpret and practice AC. We conducted in-depth, semistructured interviews with a purposeful sample of 31 undergraduate students to understand students' perceptions of AC and how it was practiced in their sexual relationships.

Despite knowledge about AC, many student leaders thought that it was an unrealistic expectation for students. This suggests that college sexual health education needs to clearly articulate actions that are consistent with AC and indicate how these can be incorporated into students' sexual behavior.     

What Do We Mean When We Say “Pass Rate”?

Pass rates are key assessment statistics which are calculated for nearly all high-stakes examinations. In this article, we define the terminal, first attempt, total attempts, and repeat attempts pass rates, and discuss the uses of each statistic. We also explain why in many situations one should expect the terminal pass rate to be the highest, first attempt pass rate to be the second highest, total attempts pass rate to be the third highest, and repeat attempts pass rate to be the lowest when repeat attempts are allowed. Analyses of data from 14 credentialing programs showed that the expected relationship held for 13 out of 14 of the programs. Additional analyses of pass rates for educational programs in radiography in one state showed that the general relationship held at the state level, but only held for 6 out of 34 educational programs. It is suggested that credentialing programs need to clearly state their pass rate definitions and carefully consider how repeat examinees may influence pass rate statistics. It is also suggested that credentialing programs need to think carefully about the meaning and uses of different pass rate statistics when choosing which pass rates to report to stakeholders.     

What Does Little Birdie Say?

在她黎明时的小巢中,小鸟说些什么呢?小鸟说,让我飞吧,妈妈,让我飞走吧。宝贝,再多呆一会儿,等到那对小翅膀再长硬些儿。因此她又多留了一会儿,然而她还是飞走了。在破晓时分的床上,婴儿说些什么?婴儿像小鸟那样说,让我起来飞走吧。乖乖,再多睡一会儿,等你的四肢再长硬点儿。如果她再多睡一会儿,婴儿必然也会飞走。W hatdoes little birdie say,In her nest at peep ofday?Let m e fly,says little birdie,M other,let m e fly away.Birdie,resta little longer,Tillthe little w ings are stronger.So she rests a little longer,Then …     

The Effects of Student–Faculty Interaction on Academic Self-Concept: Does Academic Major Matter?

Using cross-classified multilevel modeling, this study attempted to improve our understanding of the group-level conditional effects of student–faculty interaction by examining the function of academic majors in explaining the effects of student–faculty interaction on students’ academic self-concept. The study utilized data on 11,202 undergraduate students who completed both the 2003 Freshman Survey and the 2007 College Senior Survey at 95 baccalaureate institutions nationwide. The results show that the strength of the relationship between having been a guest in a professor’s home and students’ academic self-concept varies by academic major. Findings also suggest that some aspects of departmental climate, such as a racially more diverse student body and greater faculty accessibility, can possibly magnify the beneficial effects of student–faculty interaction. The study discusses the theoretical and practical implications of the findings.