Enthusiasts,fence-sitters and sceptics: faculty perspectives on study abroad in Australia and the Czech Republic

Although governments and universities worldwide recognise the value of study abroad as a means to prepare graduates to live and work in a globalising world, there is a wide gap between the rhetoric and reality. The reasons for this are complex, but one factor, not often discussed, is the role academics play in study abroad. This paper explores academics' perceptions of study abroad in universities within two higher education systems: Australian and Czech. Findings from both countries are considered across four themes: academics' perceived value of study abroad; ‘internationalising’ academic staff; academics' concerns about student equity and integrating study abroad into the curriculum at home. The implications for practice and further research are discussed.     

‘They have different information about what is going on’: emotion in the transition to university

Most new students experience school to university transition as challenging. Students from backgrounds with little or no experience of higher education are most vulnerable in this transition, and most at risk of academic failure. Emotion appears implicated in the differential way in which first-generation students and students with family familiarity of university experience the transition. This article draws on the voices of first-year dental and oral hygiene students at a South African dental faculty regarding university transition experiences. It draws on the construct of capital and Archer's [(2002). Realism and the problem of agency. Journal of Critical Realism Alethia, 5(1), 11–20] understanding of ‘competing concerns’ to examine how emotion shapes students' experiences of university transition and how they position themselves with regard to these experiences. The article explicates the ways in which emotional commentary and classed locations intersect, exploring the extent to which this intersection shapes young people's framing of their concerns of ‘being a student’ and ‘becoming a dentist’. The article identifies aspects of the university's material and cultural environments which shape students' emotional responses and which consequently are implicated in the perpetuation of class-based differential life chances.     

Gay characters in conventional spaces: Will and Grace and the situation comedy genre

This paper explores how Will & Grace, which has been heralded in the popular press for its positive representations of gay men, situates the potentially controversial issue of homosexuality within safe and familiar popular culture conventions, particularly those of the situation comedy genre. This paper draws on feminist and queer theory to examine the liabilities of relying on these familiar situation comedy conventions, demonstrating how the program equates gayness with a lack of masculinity, relies on sexual tension and delayed consummation, infantilizes the program's most potentially subversive characters, and emphasisizes characters' interpersonal relationships rather than the characters' connection to the larger social world. Additionally it argues that by inviting mainstream audiences to read the program within familiar televisual frames, Will & Grace can be read as reinforcing heterosexism and, thus, can be seen as heteronormative.     

Factors affecting the adoption of social network sites: examining four adopter categories of Singapore's working adults

Adapted from Chang et al.'s (2006) models, this study examines factors that influence adoption and non-adoption of social network sites (SNS) in adopters (Continuers, Discontinuers) and non-adopters (Potentials, Resistors). Chi-square and t-test were used to analyze the survey data of Singapore's working adults and Internet users (N =222). The findings reveal innovation characteristics (relative advantage, compatibility, complexity) and perceived popularity differ significantly in three pairs of adopter categories. Results show Continuers and Potentials are concerned more about image than Discontinuers and Resistors, while technology cluster differs between adopter vs. non-adopter and Continuers vs. Discontinuers. Moreover, the study suggests younger people tend to adopt SNSs, females continue to use SNSs more, and potential SNS users are more innovative. Lastly, a regression model to forecast the adoption of SNSs is proposed in which age, compatibility, technology cluster, and perceived popularity are predictors.     

Capturing Citation Activity in Three Health Sciences Departments: A Comparison Study of Scopus and Web of Science

Scopus and Web of Science are the two major citation databases that collect and disseminate bibliometric statistics about research articles, journals, institutions, and individual authors. Liaison librarians are now regularly called upon to utilize these databases to assist faculty in finding citation activity on their published works for tenure and promotion, grant applications, and more. But questions about the accuracy, scope, and coverage of these tools deserve closer scrutiny. Discrepancies in citation capture led to a systematic study on how Scopus and Web of Science compared in a real-life situation encountered by liaisons: comparing three different disciplines at a medical school and nursing program. How many articles would each database retrieve for each faculty member using the author-searching tools provided? How many cited references for each faculty member would each tool generate? Results demonstrated troubling differences in publication and citation activity capture between Scopus and Web of Science. Implications for librarians are discussed.     

Rehearsals in Clinical Placements: Scaffolding Teacher Candidates' Literacy Instruction

ABSTRACT

Rehearsals are lesson enactments with feedback prior to implementation with students, and are one facet of practice-based teacher education with an aim to promote ambitious teaching in all contexts. This study explores how rehearsals, related to literacy instruction, were enacted in an urban K–8 school between teacher candidates and their mentor teachers. Data collection included two structured interviews with each mentor and teacher candidate, and two rehearsal observations. Results indicate classroom mentors (a) provided specific, contextualized, individualized feedback in a range of ways, (b) connected feedback to underlying principles, and (c) asked teacher candidates to “rewind” and reteach rehearsed segments integrating feedback, which garnered additional and more refined practice opportunities. This study suggests that in the right circumstances rehearsals, which typically occur in higher education coursework, can enhance literacy instruction in clinical settings. Limitations and recommendations for if and how to integrate rehearsals in K–12 settings are also provided.     

Making the Case for Differentiated Teacher Effectiveness: An Overview of Research in Four Key Areas

Research into teacher effectiveness has traditionally attempted to uncover generic characteristics of effective teachers. However, recently the realisation that teacher effectiveness may be differentiated across different domains has gained recognition. In this article, we propose that researchers and policy-makers develop more differentiated models of teacher effectiveness. An overview of research is given that looks at whether there is evidence for differentiated effectiveness in four areas: different subject and curriculum areas, pupil background and ability, pupils' personal characteristics, and different teacher roles.     

Gender and stereotypes in motivation to study computer programming for careers in multimedia

A multimedia university programme with relatively equal numbers of male and female students in elective programming subjects provided a rare opportunity to investigate female motivation to study and pursue computer programming in a career. The MSLQ was used to survey 85 participants. In common with research into deterrence of females from STEM domains, females displayed significantly lower self-efficacy and expectancy for success. In contrast to research into deterrence of females from STEM domains, both genders placed similar high values on computer programming and shared high extrinsic and intrinsic goal orientation. The authors propose that the stereotype associated with a creative multimedia career could attract female participation in computer programming whereas the stereotype associated with computer science could be a deterrent.