ICT/media uses and college entry for students from diverse backgrounds

This study examined the effects of two types of Information communication technology and media (ICT/media) use on college access using ICT/media to obtain college information as a mediator paying focused attention to English language learners. The study analyzed the Educational Longitudinal Study (ELS) from the US Department of Education, employing a survival analysis with structural equation modeling components. The results demonstrated that the frequent use of a computer for independent learning had significantly positive direct, indirect, and total effects on college entry for both English language learners and native English-speaking students. However, the digital gameplay had significantly negative effects. The study discusses the implications of using ICT/media.     

U.S. and Israeli young women’s future perceptions

The current study investigated the content of future perceptions among 47 U.S. women and 48 Israeli women. Thematic analysis was used to explore participants’ qualitative responses. Women’s responses covered a wide range of topics, and were categorized into ten key themes: (a) work, (b) family/relationships, (c) property, (d) residence, (e) education, (f) general quality of life, (g) leisure, (h) pro-social activities, (i) multiple role management, and (j) religion. Results demonstrated the role of nationality in the process of exploration and future perceptions. Implications for research and practice are discussed.     

Mentoring and the Retention of Newly Qualified Language Teachers

Much of the recent literature on mentoring has focused on generic issues. This paper looks at subject-specific issues in mentoring from the perspective of newly qualified modern language teachers in their first year of teaching. While the majority of teachers in the sample expressed dissatisfaction with the quality of the mentoring they received, most progressed successfully into their second year of teaching. The findings suggest that conventional conceptions of mentoring may only be a marginal factor in the survival of these teachers in their first year. Conflicts over language teaching methodology, in particular, emerge as a contributory factor in the breakdown of relationships between these teachers and their mentors. Equally, it is in terms of their own pedagogical skills and of a clearly established rationale for their practice in the language classroom that these newly qualified teachers express their confidence and their ability to survive without formal support. The implications of these findings are discussed in the light of the introduction of new requirements for induction of newly qualified teachers and in particular with reference to the selection of induction tutors in school.     

The developmental directions and tasks of the school based curriculum management system in Korea

The purpose of this paper is to inquire into the developmental directions and tasks of the School Based Curriculum Management(SBCM) system. The concept of the School Based Curriculum Management can be considered as a subsystem to School Based Management. The logics behind the SBCM system are autonomy, accountability, effectiveness, creativity, professionalism, and participation. The developmental directions of SBCM are to establish and implement the highly autonomous and participative SBCM, the diverse creative SBCM, the highly accountable SBCM, and the professional SBCM. The developmental tasks of SBCM suggested in this study are to establish the School Based Staff Development system, to practice the evaluation system that can control the quality of SBCM, to be managed by a strategic-layer management system, and to constitute the committee of school curriculum.     

Are There Economic Incentives for Non‐Traditional Students to Enter HE? The Labour Market as a Barrier to Widening Participation

The expansion of higher education (HE) in the UK has disproportionately benefited young people from relatively rich families: the gap between rich and poor in terms of participation in HE having widened since the 1970s. We explore a neglected possible cause of this class difference: that the labour market fails to provide sufficient incentives for potential entrants from less advantaged backgrounds to enter HE. Most studies of the rewards from participating in HE in the UK suggest that the rates of returns are sufficiently high to provide clear economic incentives to participate. However, until recently, most studies generated estimates of the average rate of return to graduation, which could overestimate returns to marginal entrants, particularly those from disadvantaged backgrounds. In this review we examine the methodological problems faced by more targeted studies of the rates of return to graduation and review their key findings concerning the economic returns to non‐traditional entrants.     

Improving the participation and engagement of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students in business education

Most Australian universities have among their goals to increase the number of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students at their institutions. In the Australian higher education context, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students are seriously under-represented, particularly in business education compared to other disciplines. An understanding of why a larger proportion of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students do not choose to study a discipline that provides promising employment opportunities, is fundamental to improving the status quo. This paper reviews the literature to identify key barriers to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students’ participation and engagement in business education. Apart from multiple general barriers to participation in higher education, factors specific to business as a profession and as an academic discipline are also considered. The paper then discusses a number of strategies Australian educational institutions could pursue when seeking to increase participation and engagement of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students in business. Drawing on the review, the paper concludes with recommendations for higher education institutional policy to further improve Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander student participation and engagement in business studies.     

Community engagement is … : revisiting Boyer’s model of scholarship

ABSTRACT

Criticisms have been levelled at academics at a time when funding of universities is increasingly tied to private and corporate purposes and when academics are held accountable through a hierarchy of functions. Claims are also made that academics work within narrow specializations and are removed from real-world experience and problems. Boyer’s model of scholarship offers four categories of scholarship that remain relevant to understanding and guiding the work of academics, including how they engage with communities. To explore the nature of academics’ work, we draw on data provided by a group of academics who participated in a research project using both sociological elicitation and visual arts-based research methodologies. The participants were asked to explore what various aspects of current academic work mean for them by providing an image and text, akin to creating a postcard. In this article, we focus on responses they provided to the prompt ‘Community engagement is?…?’ The postcards show how community engagement can be interpreted in diverse ways and that, along with teaching and research, community engagement are all integrated, mutually reinforcing drivers and outcomes of academic work.