Teaching as Theater

As new media proliferate, professors need to be particularly attentive to the ways by which students learn—in and out of the classroom—and how scarce classroom time can be organized. This article argues that professors' comparative advantage lies as an exemplar of discipline‐based thinking. Effective training in how to think about problems (the essence of any discipline) demands that professors embrace the classroom as theater, where business drama and the story it tells can capture the hearts and minds of the student participants. The article talks through a case as theater.     

伦理学、经济学与高等教育——作为一种公共物品的大学

本文探讨了大学教育的经济学与公共物品的功利主义概念.笔者认为,现代大学的发展与演变是与物品这一概念的变化相伴随的.早期的自由主义经济学理论(代表人物如穆勒)认为,一种物品能够被供给,要么是因为它作为一个整体对社区有益,要么是因为它不能或者不应该通过私人的方式供给,比如国防.正如国家和社会在规则制定与福利供给方面变得越来越复杂,物品的定义也日益复杂.政策的合理性往往是通过它有助于公共财富的积累而得到证明的,具体来讲,政策应该要么满足社会受众的某种具体利益(这种福利是需要政府提供的,如学生的受教育经费),要么增进社会作为一个整体的利益(比如受教育人口的增长).这与现代大学的成长和进步是并行不悖且相互砥砺的.新自由主义的观点是对以上观点的一种挑战,它认为私人的投资与供给所产生的回报要远高于公共的投资与供给,而且从道义上来讲,个人与社会对于供给何种物品应该具有选择权;同时,由经济效能与个人选择所带来的混合的社会利益可以获致更多的集体公共物品.然而,这种观点没有考虑到规范的议题(如公平与社会正义)的影响.因此,本文旨在思考上述几重张力对于以下问题的影响,这些问题包括现代大学与公共物品的当代意涵之间的联系,以及大学占统治地位的经济功能能否与其在知识和文化方面的使命相协调.     

Método de carpeta para la evaluación de la lectura en clase: los porqué, los qué y los cómo

Además y más allá de la descripción de las características formales del método de carpeta, este artículo propone que el valor real de un buen método de carpeta es su capacidad para cambiar actitudes y actividades de estudiantes y educadores, extendiendo como guía de aprendizaje y meta-conciencia de lo que se hace el propio proceso de evaluación.     

La interacción familiar como educación moral

Sin lugar a dudas, el estilo de comunicación de los padres influye en el desanollo del razonamiento moral de sus hijos. En este artículo se presentan las conclusiones de diversas investigaciones realizadas al respecto, mostrando cómo las pautas de comunicación familiar reflejan el «estadio» familiar de razonamiento moral y desarrollando, además, un modelo de tratamiento de temas morales entre compañeros de clase denominado discusión transactiva.     

Teaching Statistics Visually: A Quasi‐Experimental Evaluation of Teaching Chi‐Square through Computer Tutorials 1

This paper examines the effectiveness of computer graphic tutorials in explaining statistical concepts to undergraduates enrolled in two sections of criminal justice research methods. We demonstrated key concepts to a treatment group through a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet and Macromedia Flash movies. The students’ statistical skills were measured through a test on mathematical calculation and multiple‐choice questions about chi‐square concepts. Both sections scored similarly on the skills test; however, the treatment group performed better on the conceptual questions. We discuss the implications for teaching methods and statistics and offer several resources that instructors can use in their courses.     

Conceptualizing Justice: Revising the Introductory Criminal Justice Course*

Criminal justice is often criticized for lacking theoretical grounding. This article argues that the introductory criminal justice course should be reconceptualized in such a way that permits a critical assessment of theoretical bases underlying crime, law and justice. Doing so would better prepare students to understand key questions in the study of criminal justice and would also help give criminal justice greater credibility as a stand‐alone academic discipline. In addition to presenting the benefits of a theory‐driven introductory course, possible content and pedagogy are described.     

Understanding the power of social contexts on criminal justice institutions

I am truly very grateful to the Academy, the Awards Committee, and those that nominated me for the Bruce Smith Senior Award. I recently learned that Mr. Smith was a leading national expert on policing from the 1930s to the 1950s. He dedicated his career to solving the problems of political patronage, payoffs, brutality and inefficiency in policing. He bridged the gap between academia and practice. I have tried to do the same but not with the same success as Mr. Smith. I am, however, firmly committed to bridging the gap between research and practice to improve performance.     

An Evaluation of a Pilot Service‐Learning Course for Criminal Justice Undergraduate Students*

This article focuses on a pilot service‐learning program implemented with undergraduate students enrolled in a juvenile delinquency course. An evaluation of the service‐learning program on students’ attitudes toward diversity, interpersonal skills, personal and intellectual development, and citizenship behavior using qualitative analysis is presented. The results indicate that the majority of students came to view the youth in a positive light, reported learning how to work with youth, experienced a reduction in stereotypes, gained career insights, learned how to apply academic theory to real‐life experiences and developed attitudes about how society addresses delinquency that were sympathetic to the youths’ condition.     

Productive Usability: Fostering Civic Engagement and Creating More Useful Online Spaces for Public Deliberation

This article offers productive usability as a usability approach that focuses on the usefulness of civic Web sites. Although some sites meet traditional usability standards, civic sites might fail to support technical literacy, productive inquiry, collaboration, and a multidimensional perspective—all essential ingredients for citizen-initiated change online. In this article, we map productive usability onto broader philosophies of usability and offer a framework for rethinking usability in civic settings and for teaching productive usability.