Integrating theory and practice to increase scientific workforce diversity: a framework for career development in graduate research training

Few, if any, educational interventions intended to increase underrepresented minority (URM) graduate students in biological and behavioral sciences are informed by theory and research on career persistence. Training and Education to Advance Minority Scholars in Science (TEAM-Science) is a program funded by the National Institute of General Medical Sciences at the University of Wisconsin-Madison with the twin goals of increasing the number of URM students entering and completing a PhD in BBS and increasing the number of these students who pursue academic careers. A framework for career development in graduate research training is proposed using social cognitive career theory. Based on this framework, TEAM-Science has five core components: 1) mentor training for the research advisor, 2) eight consensus-derived fundamental competencies required for a successful academic career, 3) career coaching by a senior faculty member, 4) an individualized career development plan that aligns students' activities with the eight fundamental competencies, and 5) a strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats personal career analysis. This paper describes the theoretical framework used to guide development of these components, the research and evaluation plan, and early experience implementing the program. We discuss the potential of this framework to increase desired career outcomes for URM graduate trainees in mentored research programs and, thereby, strengthen the effectiveness of such interventions on participants' career behaviors.     

The role of first-year seminars and first-year college achievement for undeclared students

Higher Education - It is commonly stated in both literature and news outlets that undergraduate college students, who are undeclared (i.e., have not declared a major), are at a higher risk of...     

How academics manage individual differences to team teach in higher education: a sociocultural activity theory perspective

Higher Education - In the higher education (HE) landscape worldwide, team teaching has become increasingly common. The growing prevalence of team teaching in HE has mainly been driven by the...     

Education Abroad and College Completion

Research in Higher Education - While some stakeholders presume that studying abroad distracts students from efficient pursuit of their programs of study, others regard education abroad as a high...     

Maturation of consonant perception,but not vowel perception,predicts lexical skills at 12 months

Consonants and vowels differentially contribute to lexical acquisition. From 8 months on, infants' preferential reliance on consonants has been shown to predict their lexical outcome. Here, the predictive value of German-learning infants' (n = 58, 29 girls, 29 boys) trajectories of consonant and vowel perception, indicated by the electrophysiological mismatch response, across 2, 6, and 10 months for later lexical acquisition was studied. The consonant-perception trajectory from 2 to 6 months (β = −2.95) and 6 to 10 months (β = −.91), but not the vowel-perception trajectory, significantly predicted receptive vocabulary at 12 months. These results reveal an earlier predictive value of consonant perception for word learning than previously found, and a particular role of the longitudinal maturation of this skill in lexical acquisition.     

The Examination of a Pullout STEM Program for Urban Upper Elementary Students

The purpose of this study is to determine whether a pullout STEM program (STARBASE) makes reading and math scores decrease and examine its impact on urban fourth, fifth, and sixth grade students’ attitudes and perceptions regarding STEM education and careers. We employed a mixed-methods, case study approach that involved two published and one indigenous instrument composed of Likert scales, semantic differential scales, and open-ended items, along with structured interviews. Results indicate that it is possible for reading, math, and social studies scores to be unaffected when implementing a STEM pullout program, as adjusted trends (for ethnicity and socioeconomic status) are not statistically different from those of non-STARBASE school divisions in the area. Additionally, the Black/White achievement gap, as measured by standardized test scores, was substantially closed over the last decade within STARBASE schools. Quantitative measures revealed few differences in student attitudes from pre- to posttest. Student qualitative responses were overwhelmingly positive. Students wanted more STARBASE time in the regular school year. Students, particularly Black students, also wanted an increase in career education opportunities. Implications regarding curricular changes aimed at STEM education and model adoption are addressed.     

Exploring barriers and solutions to academic writing: Perspectives from students,higher education and further education tutors

Staff and student perceptions of what constitutes good academic writing in both further and higher education often differ. This is reflected in written assignments which frequently fall below the expected standard. In seeking to develop the writing skills of students and propose potential solutions to writing difficulties, a study was conducted in a university and a nearby further education college in the north west of England to explore barriers and solutions to AW difficulties. This paper reports the findings generated using unmoderated focus groups with second-year university health studies students (n=70) and moderated focus groups with further education college teachers (n=3) and health studies lecturers in a university (n=6).

Findings indicated that staff and students’ perceptions of what constitutes AW differed. The barriers to academic writing that were identified included lack of time and confidence; lack of extended writing at FE level; lack of reading and understanding of academic texts or journals; referencing; and academic jargon.     

Parenting Practices in Preschool Leading to Later Cognitive Competence: A Family Stress Model

Research Findings: This study investigates the effect of the early home environment on self-regulation in preschoolers, and how self-regulation relates to later school achievement, while taking into account family resources. Participants were part of the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development's Study of Early Child Care and Youth Development. Our model tested paths from family income and maternal depression through parenting to dyadic and child outcomes, including attachment, self-regulation, and child cognitive outcomes in the 1st grade. Findings indicated that family income and maternal depression had a substantial effect on parenting practices. Children whose parents did not display negative affect toward them during episodes of depression were more likely to maintain healthy attachment styles. Parenting, which was directly affected by family income, was the most important predictor of children's cognitive development. Practice or Policy: Regarding implications for practice, this research indicates that parents who provide a safe and stimulating environment for their children, despite limited financial resources or mental health issues, are more likely to have children who are prepared for school. School counselors, child care administrators, and policymakers should be aware of the importance of parenting to school success and should provide opportunities for parent education and involvement during the first years of life.     

‘A Not-so-simple Story from My Life’: Using Auto-ethnography and Creative Writing to Re-frame the Heteronormative Narratives of School Life

Reflecting on my experience as a teacher and a lesbian in a second-level school in Ireland in the early 1990s, I use an auto-ethnographic approach first to explore some of the ways dominant narratives can silence, constrain and marginalise some people. Projecting forward to an imagined future, I draw on creative writing to ‘re-frame’ how identity could be represented and experienced. While it is noted that context, attitudes and experiences have changed for the better in the intervening decades, legislative frames still hold fast, and heteronormativity continues to curb expressions of difference. Adopting a creatively disruptive style and format, I hope to provide a glimpse of a new normal in schools where more positive and less alienating experiences are imaginable … for everyone.     

Listening for Creative Voices amid the Cacophony of Fiscal Complaint about Art and Design Education

The current tertiary education climate in Australia and other Organisation for Economic Co‐operation and Development (OECD) countries is one where class numbers are increasing and contact hours between students and teachers are reducing to keep them financially viable. In this context increasing pressure is being placed on teachers to essentially ‘do more with less’ and to perform well, despite the changing conditions. Students, too, are challenged to learn in an environment where they have less time with their teachers. What seems surprising is that all of this is occurring whilst the rhetoric of tertiary institutions is being more closely aligned with contemporary constructivist theories of learning with a focus on producing creative graduates. This pressure is now being keenly felt in creative disciplines where studio models of teaching, which require small classes and substantial contact hours, are seriously under threat. If tertiary institutions genuinely want to produce creative graduates there needs to be more widespread understanding of how creative processes are nurtured and creative minds are fostered. Many experienced teachers in creative disciplines have developed such understanding. Their voices need to be encouraged and supported so that the artistry of their creative pedagogies may be articulated and heard above the cacophony of fiscal complaint. We do not naively suggest that financial issues should be disregarded. We do, however, call for a middle way where sophisticated conversations, about both the quality and viability of creative educational practice, amongst all stakeholders can allow for an authentically creative future to emerge.