Living in a world different from the one in which we think

ABSTRACT

The rise of populist nationalism in many parts of the world poses urgent challenges for higher education institutions. Normally zones of liberal values and reasoned argument as well as sources of expert information, constructive criticism and useful advice for societies, universities face increasing uncertainty as a result of political and popular attack in a wide range of countries. Doing nothing is probably not an option. The challenge facing higher education broadly is to understand and to respond effectively to a geopolitical and social reality that is qualitatively new and threatening. Effective response will require a degree of self-examination, a re-articulation of purpose and a reconfiguration of action across multiple domains of university life.     

Difficult‐to‐manage Students: a survey of children who fail to respond to student discipline strategies in government schools

Previous studies of discipline problems in junior primary and primary schools have indicated that the majority of behaviour management problems both inside and outside classrooms can be attributed to relatively small numbers of children who persist in difficult‐to‐manage behaviour. This study explored particular aspects of these children's behavioural characteristics, as reported from the results of a survey of principals from the majority of junior primary and primary schools in South Australia. The data summarised propose a tentative profile of these difficult‐to‐manage children, together with findings concerning the impact their behaviours have on the school staff. Suggestions are offered for more effectively meeting the demands and needs of these children.     

A comparison of a subject-specific and a general measure of critical thinking

The majority of studies reporting gains in college students’ critical thinking due to instructional process variables measured critical thinking with subject-specific questions rather than general or decontextualized questions. However, it is uncertain whether these gains were attributable to the use of subject-specific questions or to other distinctive aspects of these studies (e.g., methodological). The present study provides a direct, controlled comparison between general and subject-specific test questions in the context of a laboratory-based true experiment assessing the effect of higher order review questions on gains in critical thinking. A stronger effect was found when the tests of critical thinking contained questions that were subject-specific (e.g., introductory psychology) rather than questions that focused on general topics.     

The development of self-regulation in the first four years of life

This study examined longitudinally the development of self-regulation in 108 young children during the first 4 years of life. Children's committed compliance (when they eagerly embraced maternal agenda) and situational compliance (when they cooperated, but without a sincere commitment) were studied. Both forms of compliance were observed in "Do" contexts, in which the mothers requested that the children sustain unpleasant, tedious behavior, and in "Don't" contexts, in which they requested that the children suppress pleasant, attractive behavior. Children's internalization while alone in the similar contexts was also studied. Parallel assessments were conducted when the children were 14, 22, 33, and 45 months of age. At all ages, the Do context was much more challenging for children than the Don't context. Girls surpassed boys in committed compliance. Both forms of compliance were longitudinally stable, but only within a given context. Children's fearfulness and effortful control, observed and mother reported, correlated positively with committed compliance, but mostly in the Don't context. Committed, but not situational, compliance was linked to children's internalization of maternal rules, observed when the children were alone in the Do and Don't contexts. These links were both concurrent and longitudinal, context specific, and significant even after controlling for maternal power assertion. There was modest preliminary evidence that committed compliance may generalize to interactions with adults other than the mother.     

THE IMPACT OF FORMATIVE AND SUMMATIVE EVALUATION OF TEACHING IN NORTH AMERICAN UNIVERSITIES

This paper reviews recent research evidence on formative (developmental) and summative (judgemental) evaluation of teaching in North American universities. The major conclusions of the review are as follows: (1) student ratings are the most common method of evaluating teaching in North American universities, and their popularity appears to be increasing; (2) student ratings have been found to provide reliable and valid information on limited aspects of teaching competence; (3) teaching evaluations make a difference in decisions on faculty salary, tenure and promotion; (4) evaluation of teaching has been shown to produce modest improvements in teaching effectiveness; (5) faculty satisfaction with teaching evaluation practices ranges from very high to very low, depending on institutional context; and (6) there is consensus that several specific improvements are needed in the current teaching evaluation system.