Deviancy from the norms of science: The effects of anomie and alienation in the academic profession

Anomie Theory, as formulated by Robert K. Merton, has been posited as a possible explanatory framework for deviancy from the norms of science.Anomie is the inability of some individuals to achieve excessively emphasized group goals through adherence to group norms. This study tests Anomie Theory by using alienation from the reward system of academic disciplines as an operationalization of this theory. Findings suggest support for Anomie Theory as an explanation for deviancy from the norms of communality, disinterestedness, and universalism. Implications for such topics as the use of norms as interpretative devices and the ambivalence of academics over compliance with dominant and subsidiary (counter-norms) are discussed. Implications for professional practice are also offered.     

Teaching performance norms in academia

As most faculty have autonomy in their teaching, social control mechanisms to guide teaching in the interests of clients are needed. Thus, this study posed the question: What is the normative system for undergraduate college teaching? To answer this question, the College Teaching Behaviors Inventory was administered to a sample of 800 faculty holding appointments in biology, history, mathematics, and psychology at Research I Universities and Comprehensive Colleges and Universities II. Principal components analysis was used to identify four patterns of teaching norms: interpersonal disregard, inadequate planning, moral turpitude, and particularistic grading. Analysis of variance was used to test for differences in the degree of impropriety accorded to these normative patterns by academics in the two types of institutions and in the four academic disciplines included in this inquiry. Although institutional differences were observed for interpersonal disregard and inadequate planning, disciplinary differences were not found for any of the four normative patterns. Conclusions and implications of these findings are presented.     

研究生学术规范教育刻不容缓

学术规范主要包括学术道德规范、学术法律规范、写作技术规范和学术评价规范。当前研究生学术行为失范的现象屡有发生, 这与社会不良风气、学术管理体制、导师学术行为的影响有关, 但研究生学术规范教育的缺位是其重要原因之一。因而, 高校必须从弘扬大学精神、完善学术道德教育机制、开设学术规范课程、重视导师示范作用和鼓励研究生创新等几方面来进行教育管理, 以使其学术行为趋向道德和规范。     

The Role of Competitive and Cooperative Norms in the Development of Deviant Evaluations

The present study examined how peer group norms influence children's evaluations of deviant ingroup members. Following the manipulation of competitive or cooperative norms, participants (children, M_age = 8.69; adolescents, M_age = 13.81; adults, M_age = 20.89; n = 263) evaluated deviant ingroup members from their own and the group's perspective. Children rated cooperative deviancy positively and believed their group would do the same. Adolescents and adults believed that their group would negatively evaluate cooperative deviancy when their group supported a competitive allocation strategy. Reasoning varied based on norm and participants’ agreement with deviancy. Understanding an ingroup may not be favorable toward a cooperative deviant in a competitive context is a developmental challenge requiring the coordination of social and moral norms.     

Authorship in multi-disciplinary,multi-national North-South research projects: issues of equity,capacity and accountability

The challenges of ensuring equity among partners of very different academic power and status, across continents, within complex research projects involving differing disciplines with their own norms, and balancing needs for capacity development of individuals and for institutions can be major sources of conflicts. While each of these concerns has been addressed separately, the implications of situations where they reinforce each other have not. Drawing on experience in four complex, multi-partner and multi-disciplinary social science research projects, I consider four main overlapping issues: (1) the structural inequalities inherent in North-South relationships as well as between junior and senior researchers and how these raise difficult problems for research managers; (2) the implications of different kinds of local institutions, and of seeing authorship as a major feature of capacity building, even if no funding is allocated to the task within research grants; (3) the effects of multi-disciplinarity: how intellectual property is understood in different disciplinary settings as well as embodied in national or institutional rules, and the implications of these differences in the context of the pressures imposed by institutional review procedures, in particular the Research Excellence Framework in the UK; (4) the challenges to research managers of ensuring that transaction costs do not swamp the possibility of achieving real intellectual additionalities, and how to address the risk that the costs of collaboration outweigh the likely benefits.     

高校学术共同体推进学科生态建设的作用机制研究——以加州大学伯克利分校为例

学术共同体在一流大学学科生态建设中发挥着不可替代的作用。通过对美国加州大学伯克利分校学术评议会的制度规范和运行效果进行深入分析,研究发现,伯克利分校学术评议会通过合法性、适应性、合作性三大作用机制来构建良好学科生态,即：通过确立共治的行为规则来增强共治合法性;根据社会变化及时优化学科发展制度;通过多元主体协作不断推动学科创新发展。研究对我国高校学术共同体推进学科生态建设的启示如下：强化高校学术委员会的功能定位,完善组织结构;聚焦人才培养,根据环境需求积极改进培养制度;优化教师评价顶层设计,注重对教师在学术委员会中服务情况的考察;加强多元协同,推动不同主体深化合作。     

学科融合:大学跨越式发展的重要途径

在我国现有条件下建设世界一流大学必须走跨越式发展之路，实现大学的跨越式发展途径有许多。本文认为学科融合符合现代科学和学科发展的要求，学科融合通过作用于大学的三大职能，达到增强学科势力，实现大学跨越式发展的目的。     

Operationalizing and validating disciplinary literacy in secondary education

The goal of this study was to define the construct and establish the validity of disciplinary literacy, which has recently gained attention from the implementation of the Common Core State Standards (National Governors Association Center for Best Practices & Council of Chief State School Officers in Common Core State Standards for English language arts & literacy in history/social studies, science, and technical subjects [PDF]. Authors, Washington, DC, 2010). After defining disciplinary literacy in the four core disciplines of English language arts, science, history and social studies, and mathematics, scales were developed and administered to a snowball sample of professionals nationwide, with 857 respondents. The data showed evidence of disciplinary literacy as a multidimensional construct with three related factors: source literacy, analytic literacy, and expressive literacy. Based on EFA and CFA results, we can conclude that there are at least three types of literacy in operation among the four core disciplines. The three factors of literacy varied significantly by the four core disciplines of English/language arts (ELA), science, history and social studies, and mathematics, supporting the notion that each discipline uses literacy uniquely. This is the first study of its kind to attempt to define, quantify, and validate the construct of disciplinary literacy.     

A case study on the formation and sharing process of science classroom norms

The teaching and learning of science in school are influenced by various factors, including both individual factors, such as member beliefs, and social factors, such as the power structure of the class. To understand this complex context affected by various factors in schools, we investigated the formation and sharing process of science classroom norms in connection with these factors. By examining the developmental process of science classroom norms, we identified how the norms were realized, shared, and internalized among the members. We collected data through classroom observations and interviews focusing on two elementary science classrooms in Korea. From these data, factors influencing norm formation were extracted and developed as stories about norm establishment. The results indicate that every science classroom norm was established, shared, and internalized differently according to the values ingrained in the norms, the agent of norm formation, and the members’ understanding about the norm itself. The desirable norms originating from values in science education, such as having an inquiring mind, were not established spontaneously by students, but were instead established through well-organized norm networks to encourage concrete practice. Educational implications were discussed in terms of the practice of school science inquiry, cultural studies, and value-oriented education.     

Social identification and academic performance: integrating two existing models of tertiary student learning

Recent research has mapped the ways social identification and normative influence affect students’ self-reported learning approaches and course experience, and also, the ways in which social identification and learning approach impact directly on grades. However, there is no evidence for a model incorporating both of these processes. The current paper aims to address this in a dataset drawn from a range of courses and disciplines at a mid-size Australian university. The data capture student demographics, social identification with the field of study, perceived learning norms and learning approaches, and examine how these map onto end of semester academic outcomes. Findings indicate support for the Bliuc identification-to-grade, through learning approach model. Further, we find support for the Smyth identification-by-norm moderation model of predicting learning approaches. Added to which, we find support for a combined moderated mediation model, where the identification–norm interaction moderates the indirect effect of identification predicting grades through learning approach. Implications for course design are discussed.     

一流控制科学与工程学科建设的思考

控制科学是以控制论、信息论、系统论作为其方法论基础的。随着信息技术的发展,控制科学与工程学科呈现出实践性、时代性、系统性和交叉性等特征。本文通过分析国内高校重点控制科学与工程学科的情况,探讨我校建设一流控制科学与工程学科的思路。     

国外学科文化研究综述

学科文化的研究对学科建设、研究生教育、学术组织管理与评价、跨学科研究以及大学内涵发展等具有重要意义。国外学科文化研究肇始于学科分类研究。从不同的分类标准看,学者们一般是从学科认识论、学科共同体整合机制以及学科成员个体的行动策略等三个理论维度来认识和理解学科文化。学科文化的实证研究包括单一学科内部的文化“深描”、不同学科的文化比较以及学科文化与社会再生产等三个研究层面。三个理论认识维度和三个实证研究层面构成了国外学者研究学科文化的基本分析框架。     

Challenging Performative Fabrication: Seeking authenticity in academic development practice

While extensive discussion has been devoted to internationalising the curriculum in a response to the presence of international students, little is known about how academic staff members perceive the presence of this student cohort. Using data collected through semi‐structured interviews with 80 academic staff from four different faculties in one higher education institution, this study investigates staff understanding regarding international students, with particular attention given to how disciplinary differences shape their responses. Findings indicate that staff from ‘soft’ and ‘hard’ disciplines hold different instructional beliefs, which then affect their teaching and learning practice. Discussions are provided on how these differing conceptions of teaching fit into the context of academic development with respect to international education.     

Conceptions of quality in four different disciplines

Abstract

The paper is based on a book (written by the author and his colleague Markku Lehikoinen) dealing with definitions of quality and views on the applicability of different methods of quality assessment to four different disciplinary fields: physics, biology, sociology and history. The paper focuses on conceptions and definitions of quality voiced by scholars representing the different disciplines. The study involved semi‐structured in depth interviews with 33 experienced scholars. The disciplines under study were chosen to represent diverse disciplinary cultures, with the aim of finding out about the potential impact of (social and cognitive) cultural characteristics of the disciplines on conceptions of quality. The findings show both common views across disciplinary fields and disciplinary differences.     

A holistic approach to international students, institutional habitus and academic literacies in an Irish third level institution

This qualitative study examines the interplay between academic staff and international students with regard to developing academic literacies at university. Higher education has traditionally responded to increasing student diversity with the expectation that students will conform to institutional norms or habitus. In this context international students arrive with cultural capital which may not fit such norms, and would benefit from developing their academic literacy, as indeed would home students given an increasingly diverse student body in Irish higher education. Findings reveal a gap between academics expectations and international students’ capabilities. Academic staff remained within the remit of the research in contrast to the 22 international students who were interviewed. They did not separate the totality of their campus experience from academic literacy practices. These ranged from uncertainty around writing in another language to a mismatch between diversity management in class and students’ own expectations. International students found difficulty to making friends on campus which could benefit their integration into the academic literacy practices of their respective disciplines. Findings point towards a whole institution response to student diversity which transcends traditional disciplinary boundaries.     

关于高师院校“学科教学论”发展的若干思考

“学科教学论”是高等师范院校非教育专业本科生的一门必修课,是研究学科教学理论及其应用的一门教育学科。“学科教学论”与课程论、教学论并列,同属于教育学的三级学科。“学科教学论”课程的建设,要从自身学科内容的优化和拓展性课程的开发两方面入手。“学科教学论”师资队伍的建设,要注重制定规划,分层培养;加强与其他相关学科的联系,加强与中小学的联系,形成集体优势;对“学科教学论”教师给予一定的政策倾斜等。     

A ‘region’ under siege? Singularisation,regionalisation and genericism in Early Childhood Studies in England

This paper draws on Bernstein’s sociology of knowledge to examine the academic study of early childhood in England, involving scrutiny of how knowledge is recontextualised from contributory disciplines to take account of early childhood practice and professionalism, and of governmental influence on what counts as disciplinary and curriculum knowledge. The relatively fragmented disciplinary structure of Early Childhood Studies suggests vulnerability to attempts to control its purpose. However, this is mitigated by commitments within the academic community to traditions of early childhood practice, and a sense of advocacy and shared values. The analysis draws upon a recent investigative project undertaken at English higher education institutions.     

Tradition,Authority and Disciplinary Practice in History Education

Abstract

The concepts of ‘tradition’ and ‘authority’ are generally understood to be problematical in history curriculum design. Drawing on MacIntyre’s account of disciplines as social practices, this article argues that, to the contrary, these are concepts that need to be incorporated into any curriculum theory that attempts to build a school subject on the foundations provided by an academic discipline. In history education, there is a strong consensus towards deriving the ideas of the history curriculum from the discipline of history, and this article argues that it is therefore necessary for history curriculum theory to account for the concepts of ‘tradition’ and ‘authority’ as they exist in disciplinary practice.     

The determinants of female junior high school students' intentions to enroll in elective physical science courses in high school: Testing the applicability of the theory of reasoned action

Data were collected from female junior high school students (N=94) to identify the determinants of their intentions to enroll in at least one elective physical science course (e.g., physical science, chemistry physics) in high school. The model used in the study was Fishbein and Ajzen's Theory of Reasoned Action. According to the model it is supposed that the intention to perform a certain behavior is a function of the weighted attitude toward performing the behavior and the weighted subjective norm. The effects of external variables (e.g., science grades, academic ability) on females' intentions to enroll in at least one elective physical science course in high school are mediated by the model's theoretical constructs. The findings provide support for several hypotheses derived from the model. The females' intentions to enroll in at least one elective physical science course in high school were found to be a function of both attitude toward performing the behavior and subjective norm. Attitude toward performing the behavior and subjective norm, in combination, were found to predict behavioral intention with a high degree of accuracy. Attitude toward performing the behavior was also found to carry more weight than subjective norm in the multiple regression on behavioral intention. In contrast, academic ability, science grades, and attitude toward science failed to predict behavioral intentions, just as they were unrelated to the females' attitudes toward performing the behavior and subjective norms.     

Designing Interdisciplinary Assessments in Sciences for College Students: An example on osmosis

College science education needs to foster students' habit of mind beyond disciplinary constraints. However, little research has been devoted to assessing students' interdisciplinary understanding. To address this problem, we formed a team of experts from different disciplines to develop interdisciplinary assessments that target introductory college-level science. We started our project by focusing on osmosis, a topic that involves knowledge from multiple science disciplines. We developed an instrument focusing on this topic and administered it to 3 classes of college students. A Rasch partial credit analysis showed that the items demonstrated satisfactory psychometric properties. The findings also revealed the differences between student's disciplinary and interdisciplinary understanding. The educational implications of the study were discussed.