The emergence of doctoral programmes in the Colombian higher education system: Trends and challenges

The international literature contains few formal analyses of the state of Colombian higher education and its most critical issues. This article systematically and comparatively analyzes the emergence of Colombian doctoral programmes within a national and international context. It shows that, while Colombia has experienced a significant growth in the number of Ph.D. graduates per million people over the last decade, it continues to lag behind other Latin American countries. Further, it is critical for Colombia to increase funding for doctoral training, both by increasing the number of scholarships for graduate studies and by improving the mobility of researchers and strengthening the infrastructure of doctoral programmes. Increasing its numbers of Ph.D. holders is vital if Colombia is to succeed in entering the knowledge-based economy.     

Impact of participation in extra-curricular activities during college on graduate employability: an empirical study of graduates of Taiwanese business schools

This study examined college graduates’ evaluations of their employability skills associated with graduate participation in various extra-curricular activities including being a core member of: (a) student government (such as student councils), (b) service (such as scouts clubs), (c) sports, (d) music and (e) arts clubs. The final sample comprised 28,768 business school graduates who hoped to enter the workforce immediately upon graduating in the 2008 school year. Results from propensity score matching analyses demonstrated that students who had been core members of extra-curricular activities were more likely to positively evaluate their communication, leadership, creativity and self-promotion skills. Furthermore, results suggested that different types of extra-curricular activities could unequally influence the employability of graduating college students. Leadership skills benefited most from involvement in sports clubs, while creativity skills benefited most from involvement in music clubs. Communication and self-promotion skills benefited moderately from all extra-curricular activities. Unlike other employability skills, the time management skills of students hardly benefited from extra-curricular activities.     

Spatial differences in the quality of university patenting: Do regions matter?

This paper uses patent citation data to analyze the quality of university technology across European regions. The empirical analysis draws on a panel dataset of 4580 European university-owned patents classified by 202 European regions over the period 1998-2004. The methodology involves a multilevel framework to identify the effects of factors at three hierarchical levels (individual, university, and regional) on the quality of university patenting. The results suggest that regional factors, such as the level of development, industrial potential, and regional higher education R&D expenditure, do not play any significant role in determining the quality of European university patents. We instead find that the factors affecting patent quality stem from their specific characteristics. We also find that university size does not explain the quality of patents. However, there is significant unobserved heterogeneity at the university level in all models, suggesting that differences in other university characteristics explain a substantial part of the variance in patent quality.     

Studienabbruch und -wechsel in den neuen Bachelorstudiengängen

The article gives an overview of current state of research concerning study drop-out. Then, on basis of successfully validated scales from literature, a new instrument for measuring personal reasons for abandoning bachelor study programs is developed and tested for reliability and validity. A study drop-out, based on study conditions and study demands, will be tested by a path model.     

Huitzilopochtli: The Will and Resiliency of Tucson Youth to Keep Mexican American Studies Alive

In response to the banning of Mexican American Studies in Tucson, students in the newly formed Chican@ ¹ Traditionally the term “Chicano” would be used for individuals of Mexican descent in the United States, and “Latino” is a pan-ethnic term that is inclusive of the people of South American and Central American descent. Due to the gendered nature of languages, the use of Chican@ and Latin@ have become more commonly used in Educational, Feminist, and Ethnic Studies scholarship as a representation of both Chicanas/Chicanos and Latinas/Latinos. It is a way to embrace equality and respect toward everyone. View all notes Literature, Art, and Social Studies program displayed their resiliency in the face of the oppressive actions of the Tucson Unified School District and the state of Arizona. This article serves as a platform for the voices of these dedicated youth who continued their educational and activist journey on Sundays throughout the 2012–2013 academic school year. The students share their impressions of why the Chican@ Literature, Art, and Social Studies program was important to them and how the curriculum, pedagogy, and relationships with classmates and their teacher shaped their continued struggle to revive Mexican American Studies for future generations and the transformation of the world.     

Aggression toward teachers,interaction with school shooting media,and secondary trauma: Lockdown drills as moderator

The purpose of the present study was first to investigate whether both teacher-reported classroom aggression (ATT) and teachers’ interaction with school shooting media (ISSM) are predictors of teachers’ secondary trauma related to school shootings (STSS) and to second, consider how participation in lockdown drills may moderate these relationships. Two measures were created to understand the levels of aggression teachers report occurs in their classrooms and to understand how teachers interact with media related to school shootings. Both ISSM and ATT were associated with higher levels of STSS. Lockdown drills did not appear to interact with these relationships to either strengthen or weaken them. Considering the importance of teachers’ well-being and how it influences their ability to be effective teachers, continued investigation is warranted.     

“I’m not running around with my pants sagging, so how am I not acting like a lady?”: Intersections of Race and Gender in the Experiences of Female Middle School Troublemakers

Careful examination of the discipline gap reveals growing disproportionality in the use of exclusionary discipline measures with female students of color, particularly African American females. Most often, adolescent girls of color are disciplined for subjectively defined behaviors, or behaviors considered inappropriate by educators. This study seeks to understand how seven middle school girls of color explain and justify their compliant and noncompliant behaviors and how their interactions with educators shape their beliefs about such behaviors. Using the theory of intersectionality, we examine how these girls both experience oppression and resist it within various domains of power. Findings show that a hostile school environment characterized by a lack of academic and social support, challenges to justice and fairness, presumptions of guilt, miscommunications and misunderstandings, and peer conflict alienates these young females of color from the learning process. Additionally, findings suggest participants strive to be heard and respected at school, using it as a site of resistance and reflecting their individual empowerment and self-advocacy.