Whose feedback? A multilevel analysis of student completion of end-of-term teaching evaluations

Student evaluation of teaching (SET) is now common practice across higher education, with the results used for both course improvement and quality assurance purposes. While much research has examined the validity of SETs for measuring teaching quality, few studies have investigated the factors that influence student participation in the SET process. This study aimed to address this deficit through the analysis of an SET respondent pool at a large Canadian research-intensive university. The findings were largely consistent with available research (showing influence of student gender, age, specialisation area and final grade on SET completion). However, the study also identified additional influential course-specific factors such as term of study, course year level and course type as statistically significant. Collectively, such findings point to substantively significant patterns of bias in the characteristics of the respondent pool. Further research is needed to specify and quantify the impact (if any) on SET scores. We conclude, however, by recommending that such bias does not invalidate SET implementation, but instead should be embraced and reported within standard institutional practice, allowing better understanding of feedback received, and driving future efforts at recruiting student respondents.     

Working with students in higher education – professional conceptions of teacher educators

The objective of this research is to identify the professional conceptions that guide teacher educators in their work with students, to learn about the nature of these conceptions and to distinguish among them. This aim is important because the conceptions formulated by those working in higher education guide their professional practice and affect their everyday conduct. Multidimensional categorical content analysis of the data shows that the conceptions can be characterized according to specific criteria. The research findings reveal three types of conceptions. The first conception is that the role of teacher-educators is to assist students in succeeding in their studies and to expand ties with them. The second conception is that teacher-educators should empower students and help them grow and construct their professional identity as teachers. The third conception is that in guiding their students teacher-educators should mediate between teaching theories and practices.     

Patterns of Social Support Communicated in Response to Expressions of Uncertainty in an Online Community of Young Adults with Cancer

In order to develop more effective ways of helping adolescents and young adult (AYA) cancer survivors cope with cancer-related uncertainty, it is important to understand how AYAs respond communicatively to each other's uncertainty. We designed this project to gain insight into the patterns of social support that occur in response to AYAs' expressions of uncertainty. We analyzed 510 responses to posts in an AYA-focused online discussion group. Eighty-two percent of messages responding to uncertainty contained informational support. Sixty-seven percent contained multiple types of support. Among medical, personal, and social sources of uncertainty, the most typical response tended to be a combination of informational support accompanied by emotional and/or esteem support. AYAs who express uncertainty in online support groups should be advised that their posts are likely to be met with information, such as advice and referrals, which may either facilitate or impede their uncertainty management goals.     

Foreign Systems of Communication

Gunnel Rikardsson's The Middle East Conflict in the Swedish Press: A Content Analysis of Three Daily Newspapers 1948-1973 (Stockholm: Esselte Studium, 1978—price not given, paper)

Ron Sanders' Broadcasting in Guyana (London and Boston: Routledge & Kegan Paul, 1978-13.95 or$9.50, paper)

Charlotte Brunsdon and David Morley's Everyday Television: 'Nationwide' (94 pp.)

Revue Francaise de Communication (CEEPP 38, rue de Bassano, 75008 Paris, France—various rates from different regions: about $38.00 to the USA/quarterly)

A Comparison of Commercial Television in the United Kingdom, the United States of America, Canada, Japan and Australia (Australian Broadcasting Tribunal, 153 Walker St., North Sydney, NSW 2060, Australia—apparently free on request, paper with spiral binding)

Dean T. Jamison and Emile G. McAnany's Radio for Education and Development (Beverly Hills, Calif.: Sage Publications, 1978—$15.95/7.95)     

Documentary Filmmaking and Ethics: Concepts,Responsibilities, and the Need for Empirical Research

In the discourse on documentary filmmaking and ethics, scholars focus on the filmmaker–filmed relationship and relate many concepts to morality in documentary filmmaking. They additionally mention circumstances that may be relevant and they identify insufficiently meaningful solutions to such moral issues. However, they fail to reflect on ethical theories and how these inform filmmakers’ ideas about the right thing to do. In this article I discuss the discourse and how it can serve to further develop the debate on the ethics of documentary filmmaking. I propose to include empirical data about filmmakers’ experiences and opinions to help us understand what ethics truly inform documentary filmmaking.     

Popular Reading Collections in Public University Libraries: A Survey of Three Southeastern States

Offering a separate, popular reading collection can be a valuable public service in academic libraries. Popular reading is also known as leisure reading, recreational reading, and reading for pleasure. These phrases are synonyms for an interest in reading bestsellers, mysteries, romance novels, biographies, graphic novels, humor, self-help, or popular nonfiction, among other literature categories. This article examines the survey data of popular reading collections in the public universities of three southeastern states. It also discusses the popular reading collection at the author's library, also located at a southeastern public university, and analyzes the data from both circulation records and a survey of more than 100 patrons who used the collection during the fall 2008 semester.     

Preparing for the Inevitable: Training Social Workers to Cope with Client Suicide

Little attention has been given to educating and training social work students and professionals about working with suicidal clients. This article summarizes the literature on client suicide and the professional social worker, as well as presents results from a mixed methods study, which utilized both qualitative and quantitative data collected from a national study on client suicide among social workers. The results indicate that 55% of social workers will experience at least one client suicide attempt and 31% will experience a client suicide completion during the course of their career. Additionally, less than 50% of the social workers surveyed received previous training or education about client suicide in their MSW programs. Suggestions from social workers for the content of training classes on client suicide are included. Implications for practice and research are also discussed.