Success and Motivation—a Way to Motivate ESL Readers in Chinese Private Colleges

Motivation refers to what and how an individual chooses to do.This essay explores the way to motivate ESL readers in private colleges and concludes that teachers should create opportunities for students to experience success as well as improve their self-efficacy.     

Universities——Drivers for regional innovation culture and competitiveness

The actual infrastructure of the information society sustains the globalization trend and increases the importance of the information and knowledge. The development of the knowledge society is the direct consequence of the mix of economic, social and cultural processes, which involve the knowledge creation and its equitable distribution, access and sharing. Universities, as poles of knowledge, creativity and innovation, play a key part in the regional development and the global competitiveness. The universities are active promoters of the innovation culture at the regional and international level, by increasing the synergy among education, research and innovation. The article focuses on the role of the academic area in the development of the learning and creative society at the regional level, contributing to the design of new knowledge and technology embedded products, services and organizational processes, which represent the premises of the global competitiveness. The most important challenge the academic environment faces in the new economy is to bridge the gap between the political decision, the governance and the labour market, offering innovative solutions and developing the intellectual capital to address the various issues of the knowledge economy. The article highlights the role of the universities as regional development drivers, by analyzing the economic performance of the Bucharest-llfov region and the direct influence of the trinomial equation： education-research-innovation.     

On English Student Teachers＇ Microteaching in Normal Colleges and Universities

微格教学前应复习语言教学理论与实践知识,确定微格教学实施方案,撰写教案并开展课前研讨;微格教学中应注意教师教态与角色转变、课堂用语与指令的准确性以及教学决策的合理性;微格教学后应开展评价与反思。微格教学存在的诸如管理不够完善、指导教师认识模糊、评价标准缺乏系统性等问题应引起注意。     

The Cognitive Value of Two‐Year Colleges for Whites and Blacks

Although community college educators believe their programs benefit their students through cognitive development, until now no good evidence was available. The fourth follow‐up of the National Longitudinal Study of the High School Class of 1972 allows the controlled assessment of the value of two‐year institutions. The results indicate that while whites benefit cognitively from two‐year post‐secondary programs, blacks do not.

In 1947, the President's Commission on Higher Education (1947, p. 9) concluded that, “The first goal in education for democracy is the full, rounded and continuing development of the person. ... To liberate and perfect the intrinsic powers of every citizen is the central purpose of democracy, and its furtherance of individual self‐realization is its greatest glory.” From these principles the specific goals of higher education are derived (Bowen, 1977). The formal academic program and extra‐curricular life of an academic community are intended to help students develop in three respects: cognitive learning, affective development, and practical competence (Bowen, 1977). It is assumed that as these goals are realized so are the powers of the individual.

Whenever there are goals to be reached in any endeavor, it is natural to ask whether they are in fact being realized. Bowen (1977) compares education to an industry that is responsible for disclosing both its costs and outcomes. Assessing the outcomes of higher education is necessarily a complex task; nevertheless attempts have been made to pull together information from a variety of studies and draw conclusions from them (e.g., Feldman and Newcomb, 1969; Bowen, 1977; Pace, 1979). In general the effects of college attendance have been found to be positive. Attending college raises the level of knowledge and cognitive

powers of students, increases psycholgocial well‐being, understanding, tolerance and self‐reliance, and helps students develop skills and traits that make them more adaptable to a variety of social and work situations (Bowen, 1977).

Comprehensive evaluations of higher education have been limited to four‐year colleges. For example, Kar‐weit and McPartland (1981) studied the cognitive gains produced by postsecondary schooling, and found that college attendance enhanced vocabulary skills, but only maintained mathematic skills. In contrast, little has been done to evaluate outcomes of community college attendance, although educators within community college systems stress the importance of accountability in establishing the much maligned credibility of community colleges (Roueche and La Forge, 1974; Miller, 1979).

The absence of research on community colleges is in part due to the variety of functions that community colleges have assumed. Community colleges were originally intended to open the doors of education to all high school graduates, especially the economically disadvantaged (Monroe, 1972). Emphasis was placed on providing two years of additional general education beyond high school, and on low‐cost preparation for students who wished to transfer to four‐year colleges in the third year. In 1947 the President's Com‐mision on Higher Education (1947) suggested that the emphasis of two‐year colleges should be shifted to preparation for semiprofessional white collar and vocational occupations. This preparation was not to be at the expense of general education, but in addition to it, for those who desired to learn specific occupational skills. As the popularity of community colleges grew, it also became apparent that many economically disadvantaged students were also academically disadvantaged, and community colleges found themselves in the business of providing remedial courses for many students who were not ready to enter regular academic programs.

Although research indicates that community colleges in general place greater emphasis on occupational education than when originally conceived, they remain, at least in philosophy, committed to providing an education that contributes to the intellectual development of their students, whether they are in academic or vocational programs (Monroe, 1972; Cross, 1974). This commitment is in recognition of the fact that cognitive skills such as verbal ability and basic mathematics competence, and affective development in the areas of self‐awareness and interpersonal relations, are necessary to practical competence in most work and social situations.

Community college curricula, in general, reflect a commitment to intellectual and affective development. The general education requirement in community colleges varies greatly, but usually consists of a specified number of elective courses to be chosen from the humanities, natural sciences, mathematics, and the social sciences (Monroe, 1972). Remedial programs are primarily for academic deficiencies in reading, language, and mathematics (Monroe, 1972).

Although community college programs seem designed to further cognitive and affective development, critics (Scigliano, 1976; Hudson and Smith, 1976) question the ability of community colleges to provide a good general education. Nevertheless, there is little evidence on this point one way or the other. Existing studies are lacking in several ways. For example, Rou‐eche and Kirk (1973) and Lavin et al.(1979) determined the success of programs for academically and economically disadvantaged students in community college programs by looking at grade point averages and completion rates; however, neither of these measures establish gains in cognitive or affective development. Rossmann et al.(1975) measured cognitive development by gain scores on reading and mathematics tests, but they were unable to compare gains against a control group of noncollege attenders.     

Why Do Colleges Become Universities? Mission Drift and the Enrollment Economy

This paper analyzes mission drift in baccalaureate colleges. “Becoming a university,” defined as a change in organizational name (e.g., Aurora College becomes Aurora University), symbolizes the transition from a liberal arts mission to a comprehensive university mission. Mission drift is conceptualized as a form of “divergent change,” which can be studied using institutional theory. This paper develops testable hypotheses about becoming a university by integrating institutional theory literatures on market factors, institutional factors, and network factors. Hypotheses are tested by applying panel methods to a 1972–2010 panel dataset of all private organizations defined as “liberal arts colleges” by the 1973 Carnegie Classification. Results show that colleges became universities in response to declining freshmen enrollments, prior adoption of curricula associated with the comprehensive university model, and when network contacts previously became universities. Organizational age and strong market position lowered the probability of becoming a university. The findings contribute to literatures on organizational change and mission drift. Given that most postsecondary institutions—both public and private—are increasingly tuition reliant, future research should analyze the adoption and the effects of behavioral changes designed to increase enrollment-related revenue.     

Diverse Colleges of Origin of African American Doctoral Recipients, 2001–2005: Historically Black Colleges and Universities and Beyond

The contribution of HBCUs as “colleges of origin,” i.e., where Black doctorates earned their bachelors’ degrees, remains of interest, given the historical role of HBCUs and the current desire to increase the percentage of doctorates awarded to African Americans in all fields. Using national survey data from multiple sources, we estimated which college characteristics predicted later doctoral degree attainment in all fields. We took into account the large number of Black graduates from HBCUs, which make them likely to be colleges of origin, and controlled for standardized test scores, Carnegie classification, and student/faculty ratio. HBCUs were associated with doctorate production more than twice the expected level based on their other average characteristics. In addition, colleges with low student/faculty ratios, higher SAT scores, and historical Carnegie classifications of research universities and selective liberal arts colleges were also associated with a higher percentage of Black graduates later earning doctoral degrees.     

Summary of Bilingual Teaching Research in Chinese Universities and Colleges during Ten Years

Based on the research papers dated from 1999 to 2008,on bilingual teaching in universities and colleges collected in the CNKI database,this paper presents the situation of bilingual teaching research during ten years,points out some shortcomings in the above papers,and then proposes some suggestions for the further research in bilingual teaching.     

On Library＇s Function in the Quality Education of Universities and Colleges

素质教育是社会进步的要求。文章在分析素质教育重要性的基础上,分析图书馆作为高校教学科研的重要组成部分在素质教育中所具有的优势,探讨了高校图书馆开展学生素质教育的主要途径。     

Study of Students＂ Night Sports Activities in Guilin＇s Universities and Colleges

对桂林市六所高等院校在校学生采取抽样调查,其目的是充分地释放高校夜间体育锻炼的潜力,从而满足广大学生群体夜间锻炼的需求,增加夜间体育的附加值,拓宽夜间体育锻炼在桂林地区高校的辐射面,树立＂健康第一＂的理念和终身体育的目标。     

Why are Women Underrepresented in Elite Colleges and Universities? A Non-Linear Decomposition Analysis

The emerging female advantage in education has received considerable attention in the popular media and recent research. We examine a persistent exception to this trend: women’s underrepresentation in America’s most competitive colleges and universities. Using nationally generalizable data spanning four decades, we evaluate evidence for three possible explanations. First, we analyze whether men’s academic profiles more closely match the admissions preferences of elite institutions. Next, we consider organizational preferences for male applicants. Finally, we test whether women self-select out of elite institutions through their application choices. Using Blinder–Oaxaca non-linear decomposition techniques and multinomial logistic regression, we find that men’s advantage in standardized test scores best explains the enrollment gap. Our analyses thus suggest that the gender enrollment gap in elite colleges and universities is a matter of access, not student choice. We discuss the implications of these results for educational equity and college admissions.     

Strings attached? Linking Historically Black Colleges and Universities public revenue sources with efficiency

Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), a set of US higher education institutions historically tasked with educating African–American students, receive both state and federal funding. However, state governments often assert operational control through the political process, potentially influencing how key resources are used. Do these different sources of publicness have competing effects on efficiency? Using a 5-year panel of financial and organisational data of HBCUs, this study explores the relative effect of each of these revenue sources on efficiency. The study finds that the efficiency of HBCUs is negatively impacted by higher proportions of state revenue, and that higher proportions of federal revenue have a positive effect on efficiency. This suggests that state governments should consider their political roles in assessing the performance of HBCUs, and that HBCUs might look to lessons from other organisations for methods to reduce the impact of state external control.     

Teachers＇ Teaching Development： Cultural Construction the Core and Requirement of Teaching in Universities and Colleges

教学是高校的首要任务,大学文化建设的核心是教学文化建设,教学文化建设的核心是促进教师教学发展,而教师教学发展的核心是体系化建设。转变教学评价、建设教学团队、增强服务、引领专业发展是教学文化建设的几个主要方面。     

Building as We Go: Secondary Schools,Community Colleges,and Universities in Partnership – The Early College High School Initiative

ABSTRACT

The purpose of this study was to examine the perceptions of key informants about the processes of institutional change and collaboration involved in the development of three early college high schools (ECHS)s over a 4-year period. The 15 study participants were members of early college high school councils and included high school principals, counselors, community college administrators, and school district administrators. Participants were located at two early college high schools located on community college campuses, and one was located on a school district site. This mixed methods study used a survey and structured interviews, both based loosely on case studies from Not so easy going: The policy environments of small urban schools and schools-within-schools (Raywid & Schmerler, 2003) and factors identified by the Wilder Collaboration Inventory (Mattessich & Monsey, 1992) as critical to successful collaboration. The findings of the study showed that the ECHS partnership, according to the majority of its members, exhibited (a) indicators of institutional change in policy and attitude toward collaboration; and (b) the success factors of history of collaboration, favorable political climate, appropriate cross section of members, collaboration seen in self interest, sharing a stake in process and outcome, shared decision making, concrete attainable goals and objectives, and shared vision. Success factors not showing a majority response were adequate resources, mutual respect, open and frequent communication, clear roles and policy guidelines, and sufficient funds.     

Raising attainment in mathematics — The story of Wolverton School

This paper has arisen from a case-study undertaken as part of ‘Whole School Action on Numeracy’, one of six linked projects in the Leverhulme Numeracy Research Programme. Studied over four years, ‘Wolverton’ School emerged as a success story in terms of consistently increasing attainment results in mathematics. The research revealed some of the tensions that exist for schools in the current atmosphere of pressure to raise levels of attainment. Decisions have to be made about curriculum coverage, about setting, about teaching to the test. These tensions together with the strategies adopted by the school to promote the development of numeracy form the subject of the paper which draws from teacher and headteacher interviews, followed by analysis by the research team, with an additional section summarising the responses from an LEA primary adviser from a different authority who was interviewed and asked to comment on the first two sections of the paper. The Epilogue brings the story up to date with comments from a recent interview with the Headteacher as he moves on to a new school.