First- and second-generation design and engineering students: experience,attainment and factors influencing them to attend university

Challenges for students who are ‘first-in-family’ to attend university have been discussed within widening participation discourse. However, in the UK, ‘first-in-family’ or first-generation students have frequently been conflated with those experiencing poverty or from lower socio-economic groups. This research integrated survey data with assessment data from final-year design and engineering students in a UK university to examine students’ attainment, the influences on why students decide to attend university and students’ experiences during their degree programmes. Analysis of the data showed variations in the reasons for first- and second-generation students wanting to go to university, particularly a significant difference in the influence of parents. First-generation students described significantly less parental influence on the decision to attend university than second- or subsequent-generation students. Smaller differences in students’ experiences and attainment in university were also noted. Whilst first-generation students reported differences in study habits, their attainment was, on average, marginally higher than that of their peers. Building on others’ theoretical work, which suggests the importance of social capital within higher education (HE), this research highlights the difference in social influences on both university application and expectations of university for those with and without a family history of tertiary education. Further research is needed to explore, in larger samples, whether the social influences on individuals’ perception of HE are in turn shaped by whether or not their parents attended university, and further, what impact this may have, not only on degree outcomes but also on the broader benefits typically associated with graduate experience.     

Teaching for Understanding in Earth Science: Comparing Impacts on Planning and Instruction in Three Professional Development Designs for Middle School Science Teachers

This paper compares and contrasts the impacts of three professional development designs aimed at middle school Earth science teachers on how teachers plan and enact instruction. The designs were similar in their alignment to research-based practices in science professional development: each design was of an extended duration and time span, included follow-up support to teachers, and incorporated active learning approaches in the professional development. In addition, the designs had a high level of coherence with other reform activities and with local standards. The main difference among the designs was in the roles of teachers in designing, adopting, or adapting curriculum materials. Evidence from teacher survey and observation data indicated that all programs had positive impacts on how teachers planned and enacted teaching for understanding, but differences among programs was more evident in their impacts on instructional planning.     

Asia and the Pacific in 2020: scenarios for educational research

By 2020 our world will have changed and with it the shape and role of education and of educational research. One cannot predict the future, but in this paper three possible scenarios are outlined reflecting alternative approaches of government to the economic, political, social and environmental challenges facing the Asia Pacific region. For each scenario (loosely-labelled: conservative-hierarchical, pragmatic-competitive, utopian-co-operative), the goals, structure, policy and practice of education and educational research are outlined, and the implications for the development of educational research and for the Asia Pacific Educational Research Association (APERA) are explored.     

Exploring IT-enabled innovation: A new paradigm?

Innovation is a major strategic issue for many organizations. This paper reports on findings from 10 case studies of successful IT-enabled innovation covering a wide range of organizations and projects. They were carried out as an exploratory study to identify practices that contribute to innovation and specifically consider the implications of a focus on innovation for earlier work on benefits-led approaches to IT.     

Can ‘pooling teaching tips’ be more than ‘pooling teaching tips’?

Tertiary Education and Management - There is increasing interest in how academic development of various kinds influences university teaching and student learning. To date the focus has been on...     

Quantum lithography: A?non-computing application of quantum information

Quantum information theory holds the promise of revolutionizing technologies other than computing and communications. In this article we show how quantum entanglement can be harnessed to beat the Rayleigh diffraction limit of conventional optical lithography, and to permit nano-devices to be fabricated at a scale arbitrarily shorter than the wavelength used. Given the relative ease of performing optical lithography compared with other schemes, and the relative costs associated in migrating the lithography industry to each new fabrication technology, exploiting quantum entanglement to extend the useful life of optical lithography could be economically attractive.