How students conceptualize grade‐based acceleration in inclusive settings

Despite extensive research supporting educational acceleration for students with high academic ability, some psychologists, counselors, and educators express concerns about accelerative interventions. Such concerns often hinge on uncertainty about social acceptance, even in inclusive education settings. Research on acceleration has consistently shown benefits for students with high ability; however, there is a lack of research about grade‐based acceleration in inclusive schools. This study engaged two groups of students in group concept mapping processes to examine how they conceptualized beliefs about grade‐based acceleration in inclusive schools. First, 26 students in inclusive classes generated beliefs about grade‐based acceleration. Then they, and a group of 14 students with high ability, structured the data by sorting and rating a synthesized list of the generated beliefs. We analyzed the sorted data using multidimensional scaling and hierarchical cluster analysis. The resultant cluster maps revealed some differences and some similarities in the ways that the two groups of students conceptualized beliefs about educational acceleration. Practical implications are discussed.     

Design and the management of multi-institutional research collaborations: Theoretical implications from two case studies

Over the past three decades, U.S. science and technology funding agencies have increasingly supported large-scale, centralized, block grant-based research projects that often span multiple disciplines and institutions. This trend has developed at such a rate that research focused on understanding the management of these new collaborative models has largely not kept pace. We use two case studies of large-scale, multi-disciplinary collaborations to develop an institutional framework that illuminates the relationships among (a) the epistemic norms of the disciplines represented in the collaboration, (b) the organizational structure of these collaborations, and (c) the inter-institutional collaboration success.The results of our case study analysis demonstrate that large-scale, multi-discipline, inter-institutional collaborations need a relatively high level of development in either (1) the epistemic development of the disciplines involved in the collaboration or (2) the organizational structure of the collaboration. We argue that the domain (i.e. epistemic or organizational) that provides the highest level of institutionalization is the one that organizes the “rules” of the collaboration.     

Introducing and Developing Professional Standards in the Information Systems Curriculum

In light of growing concerns in the public and recent mandates from business program accrediting bodies and curricular task forces, the importance of teaching ethical topics in information systems programs is discussed. Innovative strategies used for teaching the application of ethical criteria to common situations are reviewed. Results of a survey of information systems faculty members in the US are presented and are compared to previous studies that related primarily to computer science and software engineering programs. Insight is provided into the topics, techniques, degree of coverage, and assessment techniques currently used when teaching ethics in computing-related programs. Key concerns and future work is also outlined.     

Informed Consent in the Study of On-Line Communities: A Reflection on the Effects of Computer-Mediated Social Research

In studying on-line communities, researchers must consider the unique environmental factors involved in order to minimize potential harm to human subjects. In particular, the often commented upon disinhibiting effect of computer-mediated communication can encourage people to agree to or even insist on a kind of public exposure by which they may eventually be harmed. On the Internet, where perceptions of interpersonal affect and effects may be obscured by the nature of the medium itself, care must be taken to guard against not only any increased tendency for researchers to objectify subjects, but also the tendency for subjects to underestimate the potential consequences of consent. The criteria for informed consent that may be sufficient in face-toface research environments are not necessarily so in a medium in which subjective experience is easily objectified and information is easily devalued.     

It's not just what you know but who you know: Social capital theory and academic library outreach

The concept of social capital and its contribution to success and well-being in a variety of settings has potential for academic library outreach. Research has found that those with extensive and varied networks of social relationships can benefit in myriad ways, including academic and professional achievement. A connection has also been found between lower levels of social capital and negative effects on individuals as well as communities generally. Academic libraries are strategically positioned to enhance the social capital of their users, effecting positive differences in engagement, retention, and success after graduation.     

Global references,local translation: adaptation of the Bologna Process degree structure and credit system at universities in Cameroon

This article uses temporal comparison and thematic analytical approaches to analyse text documents and interviews, examining the adaptation of the Bologna Process degree structure and credit system in two sub-systems of education in Cameroon: the Anglo-Saxon and the French systems. The central aim is to verify whether such adaptation has replaced, re-enforced or modified existing practices. Secondly, the article analyses the factors that have influenced this adaptation. The results highlight the idea that education systems may demonstrate a level of awareness about global practices, but these practices are interpreted in their local contexts; thus, policy-makers ‘think globally but act locally’.