E-Master of Marketing: Phase 2 in Transnational Marketing Education

A previous article in Higher Education in Europe (Vol. 24, No. 2, 1999), by three of the authors of the present article, outlined the beginnings of an on-line course, "Marketing Theory and Practice" (MTP), offered by the Department of Marketing of Monash University in Australia. It noted the opportunities such a development presented in terms of collaboration. Following the successful introduction of MTP on-line (http://www.buseco.monash.edu.au/Subjects/MKT/ MTPonline/) into the undergraduate programme, the project team applied for a significant funding grant to implement a department-wide strategy for the electronic delivery of marketing education. This implementation includes the development of an E-Master's degree in Marketing, details of which are discussed in this article.     

Incorporating technologies into a flexible teaching space

Higher education institutions are increasingly exploring how they can use emerging technologies to develop and enhance the learning experiences offered to students. These activities have mainly focused on developing student‐centred facilities. The University of Warwick has taken the next step by developing a space (the Teaching Grid) specifically designed to meet the needs of teaching staff across the institution. This paper describes how the Teaching Grid supports teachers by providing a flexible experimental space together with a rich collection of established and new technologies, and with comprehensive staff support. We analysed the use of the facility during the first 30 months of operation, using data collected from 119 case studies, in order to present a perspective on how they have used the technologies and how this has impacted on their teaching practice. We present a taxonomy that provides a concrete framework to support future analysis of and comparisons between such spaces.     

Influences and Experiences Affecting the Pro‐environmental Behaviour of Educators

This paper examines the relative importance of various categories of influence and formative life experiences on the development of environmental educators’ knowledge and concern for the environment. The authors analyse the ways in which the importance of influences may change through time or be affected by the subject's age. Conclusions are drawn and discussed, including the crucial role of the family and of childhood experiences outdoors in promoting the development of concern for the environment and pro‐environmental adult behaviour.     

Coping with [R]evolution in Online Games: Vulnerability and Resilience Responses to Change in MMO Game Expansions

Massively multiplayer online games (MMOs) often introduce new content and mechanics to increase player retention and enjoyment. Drawing on theories of socioecological risk response, this exploratory study examines players’ in situ responses to these changes by analyzing patterns in public, in-game chat across 3 game expansions. Analysis reveals that a) change facilitates agenda setting in player chat, b) vulnerability and resilience expressions highlight tensions in player and game agencies, and c) increased semantic distance between the game and the “real” helps cope with game changes. In addition, sociotechnical affordances of MMO environments could be a mechanism for coping with change, more generally.     

A Place to Protest

The national media converged on Baltimore, Charleston, and Ferguson, Missouri, in 2014 and 2015 to cover protests in response to police violence toward African American males. Although national and local media covered the events and the aftermath, alternative media sought to provide additional viewpoints and spur readers to respond. This study analyzed the practices, content, and public discourse connected to alternative weekly newspapers in Baltimore, Charleston, and St. Louis. The study examined whether the publications reflected ideal roles of alternative media, including representing different viewpoints, using non-traditional methods of content, and providing a space for the public to challenge systems of power and oppression. The authors also studied the online forums associated with all three publications, including each organization’s website and Facebook page, as potential spaces for alternative publics to emerge around a shared interest in collective action. The publications showed some characteristics of the ideal form of alternative media, but most lacked the diverse voices and critical calls to action needed to represent the normative standard. The discourse the news organizations spurred also fell short of the ideal. The forums lacked rational and critical engagement, and commenters largely failed to promote sincere attempts to engage in community conversation.     

RESEARCH SECTION: Why do students think they fail? The relationship between attributions and academic self‐perceptions

Attributions can have a significant effect on academic achievement and students with learning difficulties are more likely to display negative attributions than their peers. In this article, the attributions of students identified as having learning difficulties are compared with those of other non-labelled low achievers, and non-labelled average achievers. Margaret Banks, MSc research methods student, and Dr Lisa Woolfson, Reader in Educational Psychology, both at the University of Strathclyde, involved 26 low-achieving students (15 identified as having learning difficulties and 11 without any such label) and 27 averagely achieving students in their exploratory study. The students attempted to solve two sets of puzzles that, unknown to the participants, were actually impossible. They then gave a reason for their failure and rated the stability and controllability of their failure. Participants were also asked to give a self-rating of academic achievement. It was found that teacher and student perceptions of academic achievement were not synonymous. In terms of attributions, Margaret Banks and Lisa Woolfson argue that teachers' perceptions of student achievement may not be as important as students' self concept. They suggest that low self-perception of achievement and negative attributions are both associates of low self-esteem.