Determinanten der Studierbereitschaft unter besonderer Berücksichtigung von Studiengebühren

Even more than other European countries, Germany must fear a serious future skills shortage and lack of experts. Therefore, increasing the proportion of high school graduates who wish to study at a university is a clear political objective. The aim of this paper is to identify variables that hinder or support the decision to pursue university studies. We used longitudinal data of 23,000 graduates of upper secondary school of the years 2002, 2004, 2006, and 2008 to analyze how tuition fees (which are charged only in some of the German federal states), family status, and students?? own cost-benefit analyses impacted their decision in favor or against taking up university studies. Results showed that the subjective costs of higher education were highest for persons of low social economic background, and for women. Also, the introduction of tuition fees in some federal states in the year 2006 lowered the percentage of students who wanted to enter higher education. Contrary to our expectations, however, this effect was observed in all federal states, irrespective of whether they had introduced tuition fees or not. Our results suggest that participation in higher education can be increased by both lowering (social and psychological) costs and raising (social and psychological) benefits of higher education.     

Assessment and Evaluation in Social Work Education: Formative and Summative Approaches

Despite a wealth of tacit knowledge in academia regarding effective teaching strategies and a rich theoretical and empirical knowledge base on student learning, social work instructors wishing to identify appropriate ways to measure teaching and learning have little evidence to guide them. This article presents a framework for assessment of student learning and evaluation of instructor teaching that distinguishes between formative methods, which support an ongoing process of improvement, and summative methods, which represent a measure of competence or mastery. While summative methods are often used to meet institutional or programmatic goals, formative methods bridge assessment and evaluation and can result in a more reflective, constructive, and productive experience for both instructors and students.     

University and Social Involvement at the Neighborhood Level: Implications for Social Work Education

The article describes and evaluates an innovative experiment in education and training of social workers at an academic learning center, which was established by the Hebrew University's School of Social Work and Social Welfare in a neighborhood of Jerusalem. The project focused on strengthening the link between theory, research, and practice. Participants were exposed to advanced theories and macropractice seminars, and gained practical experience as well as tools and technologies for coping with the social problems faced by Jerusalem neighborhoods. In that process, they became aware of the difficulties involved in initiating programs and in establishing coalitions with neighborhood institutions, residents, and other constituencies. The article deals with the achievements of the learning center, as well as with the difficulties and dilemmas encountered in the effort to sustain collaboration between the university and the community. In addition, issues related to supervision of students specializing in community work and practice, and implications for social work education are presented and discussed.     

University-based initial teacher education: Institutional re-positioning and professional renewal

The emphasis on 'partnership' in initial teacher education is a matter not just of organisational structure but of professional practices and purposes. If universities are to remain key players in initial teacher education, they must support the occupational group that represents the sector's interests and values: university-based initial teacher educators. Currently, however, this occupational group is awkwardly positioned between competing sets of accountability demands and institutional requirements. This article argues that only by encouraging and sustaining the professional renewal of university-based initial teacher educators will the university earn itself a continuing place in the evolving story of initial teacher education. That renewal is dependent, in other words, not only on the institutional re-positioning of the university but also on its re-commitment to initial teacher education as a core activity; a re-commitment which, it is argued, must recognise professional learning as a major 'field' of study across professional domains.