The entrepreneurial subjectivity of successful researchers

This article begins the work of examining what kind of doctoral experiences positively influence researcher development, and what other attributes may contribute to a successful research career. It reports preliminary findings from the analysis of survey responses by a sample of successful mid-career researchers. Positive doctoral experiences and the early establishment of research activity are found to be important to researcher development. Successful researchers were also found to be able to acknowledge the importance of their ‘soft skills’, and to have flexible, responsive and adaptive dispositions. We term this disposition ‘an entrepreneurial subjectivity’ and argue that it is an important and under-examined characteristic of the successful researcher.     

Telecommunications

SILICON VALLEY FEVER: GROWTH OF HIGH-TECHNOLOGY CULTURE by Everett M. Rogers and Judith K. Larsen (New York: Basic Books, 1984---$19.95)

TECHNOSTRESS: THE HUMAN COST OF THE COMPUTER REVOLUTION by Craig Brod (Reading, Mass.: Addison-Wesley, 1984---$16.95)

THE NAKED COMPUTER: A LAYPERSON'S ALMANAC OF COMPUTER LORE, WIZARDRY, PERSONALITIES, MEMORABILIA, WORLD RECORDS, MIND BLOWERS AND TOMFOOLERY by Jack Rochester and John Gantz (New York: William Morrow, l983---$15.95)

TELEMATICS AND INFORMATICS edited by Indu B. Singh and Jay Liebowitz (Pergamon Press, Fairview Park, Elmsford, NY 10523----$95.00 institutions/$45.00 to individuals, quarterly)

MICROCOMPUTER COMMUNICATIONS: A WINDOW ON THE WORLD by Barbara E. McMullen and John F. McMullen (New York: John Wiley, 1983---$14.95, paper)     

British Media Works

DYNAMICS OF THE BRITISH PRESS, 1961–1984: PATTERNS OF CIRCULATION AND COVER PRICES by Harry Henry (NTC Publications, Symot House, 22 Reading Rd., Henley-on-Thames, Oxon RG9 1AG, 1986, 178 pp.—L40, paper, no ISBN)

STRIKES AND THE MEDIA: COMMUNICATION AND CONFLICT by Nicholas Jones (Oxford: Blackwell, 1986, 220 pp.—L17.50, ISBN 0-631-14697-0)

LEARNING THE MEDIA: AN INTRODUCTION TO MEDIA TEACHING by Manuel Alvarado, et al. (Basingstoke: Macmillan Educational, 1987, 306 pp.—L25, ISBN 0-333-30522-1)

POWER WITHOUT RESPONSIBILITY: THE PRESS AND BROADCASTING IN BRITAIN by James Curran and Jean Season (London: Routledge, 1988, 372 pp. price not given, paper, ISBN 0-415-00653-8)

IMAGES INCORPORATED: ADVERTISING AS INDUSTRY AND IDEOLOGY by John Sinclair (London: Croom Helm, 1987, 214 pp.—L9, paper, no ISBN given)

NOISE: THE POLITICAL ECONOMY OF MUSIC by Jacques Attali (Manchester: Manchester University Press, 1985, 180 pp.—L7.50, paper, no ISBN given)

POLICING DESIRE: PORNOGRAPHY, AIDS AND THE MEDIA by Simon Watney (London: Comedia, 1987, 160 pp—L7, paper, no ISBN given)

BEHIND AND IN FRONT OF THE SCREEN: TELEVISION'S INVOLVEMENT WITH FAMILY LIFE by Barrie Gunter and Michael Svennevig (London: John Libbey, 1987, 98 pp.—L9.50, paper, no ISBN given)

TELEVISION AND SOCIAL CONTROL by Mallory Wober and Barrie Gunter (Aldershot: Gower, 1988, 274 pp.—L25, ISBN 0-566-00764-9)

VIOLENCE ON TELEVISION: WHAT THE VIEWERS THINK by Barrie Gunter and Mallory Wober (London: John Libbey & Co. Ltd., 1988, 74 pp.—L9.50, paper, ISBN 0-86196-172-2)

SEX, CLASS AND REALISM: BRITISH CINEMA, 1956–1963 by John Hill (London: British Film Institute, 1986, 228 pp.—L7.95, paper, ISBN 0-85170-133-7)

BOND AND BEYOND: THE POLITICAL CAREER OF A POPULAR HERO by Tony Bennett and Janet Woollacott (Basingstoke: Macmillan Educational, 1987, 316 pp.—L6.95, paper, ISBN 0-333-28621-9)

CINEMA, LITERATURE & SOCIETY: ELITE AND MASS CULTURE IN INTERWAR BRITAIN by Peter Miles and Malcolm Smith (London: Croom Helm, 1987, 271 pp.—L25, no ISBN given)

NATIONAL BROADCASTING UNDER SEIGE: A COMPARATIVE STUDY OF AUSTRALIA, BRITAIN, ISRAEL, AND WEST GERMANY by Eva Etzioni-Halevy (Basingstoke: Macmillan Press, 1987, 228 pp. price and ISBN not given)

THE UN, UNESCO, AND THE POLITICS OF KNOWLEDGE by Clare Wells (London: Macmillan, 1987, 282 pp., L29.50, no ISBN given)

WORLD NEWSPAPER INDUSTRY by Peter J.S. Dunnett (Beckenham: Croom Helm, 1988, 276 pp.—L30, ISBN 0-07099-0834-2)

TRUTH BETRAYED by W. J. West (London: Gerald Duckworth, 1987, 262 pp.—L13, ISBN 0-7156-2182-3)

COMMUNICATIONS SATELITES: THE TECHNOLOGY OF SPACE COMMUNICATIONS by Larry Blonstein (London: Wm. Heinemann, 1987, 162 pp.—L12.95, paper, ISBN 0-434-90153-9)

EDUCATION ON DIRECT BROADCAST SATELLITES IN EUROPE: REPORT TO THE EUROPEAN SPACE AGENCY by George Wedell, et al. (Manchester: The European Institute for the Media, 1987, 148 pp. price and ISBN not given, paper)

THE QUESTION OF ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE edited by Brian P. Bloomfield (Beckenham: Croom Helm, 1987, 286 pp.—L25, no ISBN given)

COMPUTER GRAPHICS AND APLICATIONS by Dennis Harris (New York and London: Chapman & Hall, 1984, 174 pp.—L21.00, paper, no ISBN given)

HOME IS WHERE THE HEART IS: STUDIES IN MELODRAMA AND THE WOMEN'S FILM edited by Christine Gledhill (London: British Film Insitute, 1987, 366 pp.—L7, paper, no ISBN given)

BOXED IN: WOMEN AND TELEVISION by Helen Baehr and Gillian Dyer (London and New York: Pandora Press, 1987, 234 pp.—L8, paper, no ISBN given)

A WOMAN'S GUIDE TO JOBS IN FILM AND TELEVISION by Ann Ross Muir (London and New York: Pandora Press, 1987, 342 pp.—L7, paper, no ISBN given)

G.C.H.Q.: THE SECRET WIRELESS WAR, 1900–1986 by Nigel West (London: Coronet Books, 1987, 400 pp. L3.95, paper, ISBN 0-340-41197-X)

2MT WRITTLE: THE BIRTH OF BRITISH BROADCASTING by Tim Wander (Capella Publications, Stowmarket, Suffolk, UK, 1988, 179 pp.—L12.95, ISBN 0-946443-10-6)

THE LAST DAYS OF THE BEEB by Michael Leapman (London: Coronet Books, 1987, 381 pp.—L3.50, paper, ISBN 0-340-41107-4)

THE ECONOMICS OF TELEVISION: THE UK CASE by Richard Collins, et al. (London/Beverly Hills, CA: Sage, 1988, 136 pp.—$29.95, ISBN 0-8039-8112-0)     

Learning‐to‐learn and learning‐to‐teach: the impact of disciplinary subject study on student‐teachers’ professional identity

A coherent view of student‐teachers’ preparation and the learning experiences to which they are exposed are key to sustaining the relevance of university‐based teacher‐education programmes. Arguably, such coherence is lacking and the research base to an understanding of the student‐teacher experience is still a relatively limited one. This paper takes the view that student‐teachers’ epistemological growth is a key component of their professional development, their sense of identity as intending teachers, and their successful entry into a teaching career. In adopting a phenomenographic approach it explores a chain of evidence which demonstrates that immersion in the processes of learning and knowing, within a specific disciplinary context, had a significant impact on students’ emerging professional identities and on their values as teachers which extends beyond the subject matter itself. Arguably, the findings of this case‐study hold important implications for a teacher‐education programme and for effective pedagogic practice.     

Class instruction in voice

DRAMA IN LIFE: THE USES OF COMMUNICATION IN SOCIETY. Edited by James E. Combs and Michael W. Mansfield. Humanistic Studies in the Communication Arts. New York: Hastings House, Publishers, 1976; pp. xxx+444. $18.50; paper $10.50.

UTOPIA AND REVOLUTION: ON THE ORIGINS OF A METAPHOR, OR SOME ILLUSTRATIONS OF THE PROBLEM OF POLITICAL TEMPERAMENT AND INTELLECTUAL CLIMATE AND HOW IDEA, IDEALS, AND IDEOLOGIES HAVE BEEN HISTORICALLY RELATED. By Melvin J. Lasky. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1976; pp. xiii+726. $35.00.

COMMUNICATION YEARBOOK I. Edited by Brent D. Ruben. New Brunswick, New Jersey: Transaction Books, 1977; pp. xii+656. $24.95.

DECISION MAKING: A PSYCHOLOGICAL ANALYSIS OF CONFLICT, CHOICE, AND COMMITMENT. By Irving L. Janis and Leon Mann. New York: The Free Press, 1977; pp. xxii+488. $15.95.

RHETORIC AND PHILOSOPHY IN CONFLICT: AN HISTORICAL SURVEY. By Samuel Ijsseling. The Hague: Martinus Nijhoff, 1976; pp. 142. DG 35.

LORD NORTH. By Peter D. G. Thomas. London: Allen Lane, 1976; pp. viii+176, £6.00; New York: St. Martin's Press, $12.95.

THE IMPENDING CRISIS, 1848–1861. By David M. Potter. New York: Harper &; Row, 1976; pp. xv+638. $15.00.

SCHOOLMASTERS OF THE TENTH CENTURY. By Cora E. Lutz. Hamden, Connecticut: Archon Books, 1977; pp. xi+202. $1250.     

New materialist ontologies in mathematics education: the body in/of mathematics

In this paper we study the mathematical body as an assemblage of human and non-human mathematical concepts. We argue that learners’ bodies are always in the process of becoming assemblages of diverse and dynamic materialities. Following the work of the historian of science Karen Barad, we argue that mathematical concepts must be considered dynamic material, and we suggest a “pedagogy of the concept” that animates concepts as both logical and ontological. We draw on the philosopher of mathematics Gilles Châtelet in order to pursue this argument, elaborating on the way that mathematical concepts partake of the mobility of the virtual, while learners, in engaging with this mobility, enter a material process of becoming. We show how the concept of virtuality allows us to look at mathematical concepts in school curriculum in new ways.     

Listening to student voices: student researchers exploring undergraduate experiences of university transition

This exploratory study presents a different approach to studying transition by involving students as researchers. The aim was to investigate how students talked about their experiences of transition in university. Nineteen first and second year undergraduate psychology students participated in focus groups and semi-structured interviews, conducted by student researchers, to provide in-depth accounts of their transition experiences. Findings showed that students held internal images about university, shaped through cultural experience, which were used to form expectations and interpret experiences. Social relationships were crucial, with the formation of groups facilitating adjustment in an unfamiliar environment. Students also described how negotiating transition contributed to personal changes. The research emphasises the salience of sociocultural factors in transition, and the relationship between transition and identity. Additionally, the value of including students as researchers to provide authentic access to student voices is highlighted.     

Perceptions of studying during adolescence: student typologies and the relationship with attainment

This research explores perceptions of studying among students taking public examinations at age 16. Cluster analysis was used to classify 826 Year 11 students, in their final year of compulsory schooling, according to their study typology. Pupils were drawn from eight outer London schools and completed a self-report questionnaire to assess perceptions of studying. The analysis revealed six distinctive groups with differences in the use of metacognitive, effort-management, time-management and study strategies. The groups differed in relation to attainment and the amount of homework that students reported completing. Clusters were identified with poor students, who had become disengaged with their studies, and hard working students, who valued the task and adopted a variety of strategies. Other clusters displayed poor time management strategies, use of planning and organisational strategies. For the future, it appears important to understand characteristics that are exhibited by individual students, if all are to be assisted in achieving their potential.