Solidarity and support: feminist memory work focus groups with working-class women studying social science degrees in Australia

This paper reports on our use of a two-phased, feminist memory work in a project conducted with 11 women, social science students at an Australian university. We begin by describing government-led attempts to widen participation in Australian universities because 10 of the 11 women who participated in our project were from non-traditional backgrounds. We discuss qualitative group research, identifying some of the benefits and limitations of focus groups, before differentiating them from feminist memory work and analysing key findings. Using excerpts from participants’ written stories and oral discussions, we analyse some of the obstacles the women faced trying to complete their studies. Our attention then turns to methodological concerns where we examine memory work as a feminist inquiry method. As second-wave feminists understood several decades ago through their use of consciousness-raising groups, we describe how we derived many benefits from using feminist memory work. The method invites deep reflection on the intersections between the personal and political and can be productive of insights about how people feel, not just think, about their experiences. A sense of solidarity can stem from this awareness amongst participants who have a chance to workshop and thus reinterpret their own stories and those of others, which can mean a growth in self-confidence and a reduction in self-blame.     

Centering Nepantla Literacies from the Borderlands: Leveraging “In-Betweenness” Toward Learning in the Everyday

This article argues that building powerful literacies involves the centering of dispositions and practices that thrive on the boundary—spaces that are not always sanctioned as educational. Leveraging youths’ repertoires is particularly important for educators of nondominant learners who are committed to challenging characterizations of their students as being inept or deficient. To this end, we address how the design of learning opportunities that attend to polylingual repertoires (Gutiérrez, Bien, Selland, & Pierce, 2011)—the use of multiple languages and forms of expression-—can open up opportunities, pathways, for youth to leverage new identities as resources for consequential learning. We advance the idea of organizing learning environments where youth playfully negotiate their nepantla identities that are often in a “state of perpetual transition” (Anzaldúa, 1999, p. 100). We argue that nepantla literacies, or literacies that thrive in the boundary, emerge through negotiations with syncretic (Gutiérrez, 2014) literacies—those that are valued in the academy and across spaces and communities.     

Middle leadership roles in universities: Holy Grail or poisoned chalice

Middle leadership roles in higher education have been identified as important for institutional effectiveness yet fraught with tensions, and those in middle leadership roles often feel unprepared and unsupported. This study of the responsibilities, skills and competencies, and support required for heads of school in a New Zealand university, drew on a survey and interviews with heads and focus groups or interviews with a range of stakeholders. The research found that while heads found satisfaction in their role, they also faced challenges associated with people management, workload and impact on their research careers. There was widespread agreement among stakeholders about the capabilities needed for the role and an awareness of the barriers to effectiveness. Suggestions for making the role more appealing include reducing workload, providing learning and development programs, clarifying the balance of professional and personal competencies required, and encouraging the distribution of leadership.     

Primary sources of cognate research in human performance technology

This article is third in a series written to address questions regarding the need for more empirical research in the field of human performance technology (HPT) and the need to determine the future direction of HPT research. The call for more empirical research has been published in journals such as Performance Improvement Quarterly and Performance Improvement (formerly Performance and Instruction) for nearly 20 years.     

Insights from South African students preparing for early childhood teaching: contexts neglected in teacher preparation

The preparation of teachers for diversity within and between schools is a growing focus in teacher education worldwide, and particularly in South Africa, where the education landscape has shifted dramatically since the democratic elections of 1994. While diversity is a recurring theme in the literature, the matter of contextual diversity still offers serious challenges to teacher education. This paper focuses on the urgent need to prepare teachers for all school contexts in South Africa, particularly those where neglect carrying over from Apartheid inequalities make failure and a sense of inferiority the norm. It uses critical theory and the capabilities approach to analyse extracts from discussions with early years’ student teachers which express needs with regard to preparation for specific situations faced during field experience with young children. The analysis shows that these students are not adequately prepared to teach in the previously disadvantaged schools which cater for the majority of South Africa’s learners, and that there is a disjuncture between preparation received in the lecture room and realities encountered in the field. It argues for a shift in emphasis from teacher education models which construct middle class classrooms as ideal to those which build quality education for disadvantaged learners, rural contexts, and African language speakers.     

Empirical Research on Performance Improvement

In 2002, James Klein published a study based on a content analysis of research articles in PIQ from 1997 through 2000. That study was aimed at determining how much empirical research was being reported in HPT and what the focus of that research was. Klein found that only about one third of the articles published in PIQ represented empirical research. The current study replicates Klein's research for the years of 2001 through 2005. Results indicate that there has been a significant increase in empirical research published in PIQ in the last five years with empirical research now accounting for more than one half of all PIQ articles. Further clarification of the levels of evaluation for non‐instructional interventions and the refinement of research questions in the field are suggested as ongoing needs. An analysis detailing the comparison of the two studies is provided.     

‘I am happy just doing the work …’ Commuter student engagement in the wider higher education experience

This paper reports on a large qualitative study with commuter students in England. Research on student success identifies the importance of engagement in academic and non‐academic aspects of the student experience; in this paper student engagement is segmented into academic, enhancement and social spheres. Commuter students, who often incorporate a range of equity characteristics, aim to achieve good degree and employment outcomes, and prioritise academic engagement. But commuting tempers their face‐to‐face academic engagement as they make trade‐offs between the costs of travelling and the value of the academic encounter. Engagement in enhancement and social activities is limited and is seen by many as an extraneous aspect of the higher education experience. This lack of engagement can be understood through the employment of notions of economic, cultural and social capital, and these insights inform the recommendations for higher education providers to improve the engagement and outcomes of non‐traditional students in higher education.