Soft power,university rankings and knowledge production: distinctions between hegemony and self‐determination in higher education

The purpose of this article is to analyse the nature of the global hegemonies in higher education. While anti‐colonial thinkers describe the dominance of the Western paradigm as an oppression of indigenous culture and knowledge and as neo‐colonialism in higher education, their arguments lead to such questions as how much self‐determination do non‐Western countries have? On what basis can the colonised resist the coloniser? To what extent are non‐Western nations aware of the Western hegemony? To answer these questions, this article uses the concept of soft power to interrogate how global hegemonies are manifested in higher education agendas. With reference to the pursuit of a world‐class status in higher education in East Asia, it discusses how the international inequality in higher education is viewed from the anti‐colonial perspective in the existing literature. The article then proposes the soft‐power perspective as an alternative way to explain why non‐Western countries are willing to follow the Anglo‐American paradigm to develop their higher education systems. Extending this analysis, the article argues that the emerging global university rankings are important resources of soft power that have the potential, as a governance tool, to reshape the global higher education landscape.     

基于CIM的电力生产管理信息系统方案设计

基于CIM的电力信息管理系统,可以解决电力系统中数据一致性问题:使电力企业各部门、各业务使用的数据保持统一性、完整性、可靠性。电力系统信息管理涉及到不同的软件平台、不同的应用软件、不同的应用模式以及不同的数据类型和格式。不仅仅是将多个应用系统连接起来,而且可以将应用软件的数据交换标准化,以及根据业务处理需求协调不同的应用。     

Analysis of job satisfaction of university professors from nine Chinese universities

Research on work life and job satisfaction of university professors is becoming an important research issue in the field of higher education. This study used questionnaires administered to 1 770 teachers from different levels, types, and academic fields of Chinese universities to investigate job satisfaction among university professors and the relationship between job satisfaction of university professors and the organizational characteristics of the university. The job satisfaction of Chinese university professors includes six dimensions: career development and school management, teaching and research services, salary, benefits and logistical services, professional reputation, teaching and research facilities, and the work itself. The overall job satisfaction levels are close to average, with salary and benefits receiving the lowest level of satisfaction. The organizational characteristics of universities, such as school type, school level, academic field, organizational climate, evaluation orientation, and school management, all have significant effects on the overall job satisfaction of university professors. The organizational climate and school level affect all six dimensions of job satisfaction among university professors.     

期望中的教师专业性:政策文本分析的视角

教师被认为是教育改革成败的关键.在变革的社会中,政府、家长、社会团体等利益相关者对教师素质的要求各不相同,同时对教师专业性概念也有不同的诠释.其中,政府颁布的各种教育改革政策对教师工作的影响越来越频繁、直接.本文运用文本分析的方法对我国相关教师政策加以梳理,以期揭示国家政策对教师专业性的规定及其内涵.     

Infusing Culturally Responsive Instruction to Improve Mathematics Performance of Latino Students with Specific Learning Disabilities

Culturally responsive instruction has the advantage of helping diverse students make academic gains. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of culturally infused mathematics lessons on the academic achievement of five middle school Latino students with specific learning disabilities in a resource classroom. We used an ABACACA multiple treatment reversal design, in which two forms of culturally responsive instruction (B) and its modification (C) were compared with the traditional instruction (A). The results of the study indicated that the modified culturally responsive mathematics instruction (C) was associated with increases in positive gains in participants' daily mathematics quizzes. Limitations and implications are discussed in relation to culturally responsive instruction for middle school Latino students with specific learning disabilities.     

Applying an optical space-time coding method to enhance light scattering signals in microfluidic devices

An "optical space-time coding method" was applied to microfluidic devices to detect the forward and large angle light scattering signals for unlabelled bead and cell detection. Because of the enhanced sensitivity by this method, silicon pin photoreceivers can be used to detect both forward scattering (FS) and large angle (45-60°) scattering (LAS) signals, the latter of which has been traditionally detected by a photomultiplier tube. This method yields significant improvements in coefficients of variation (CV), producing CVs of 3.95% to 10.05% for FS and 7.97% to 26.12% for LAS with 15 μm, 10 μm, and 5 μm beads. These are among the best values ever demonstrated with microfluidic devices. The optical space-time coding method also enables us to measure the speed and position of each particle, producing valuable information for the design and assessment of microfluidic lab-on-a-chip devices such as flow cytometers and complete blood count devices.     

Understanding the Influence of Learners’ Forethought on Their Use of Science Study Strategies in Postsecondary Science Learning

Understanding self-regulation in science learning is important for theorists and practitioners alike. However, very little has been done to explore and understand students’ self-regulatory processes in postsecondary science courses. In this study, the influence of science efficacy, learning value, and goal orientation on the perceived use of science study strategies was explored using structural equation modeling. In addition, the study served to validate the first two stages of Zimmerman's cyclical model of self-regulation and to address the common methodological weakness in self-regulation research in which data are all collected at one point after the learning cycle is complete. Thus, data were collected across the learning cycle rather than asking students to reflect upon each construct after the learning cycle was complete. The findings supported the hypothesized model in which it was predicted that self-efficacy would significantly and positively influence students’ perceived science strategy use, and the influence of students’ valuation of science learning on science study strategies would be mediated by their learning goal orientation. The findings of the study are discussed and implications for undergraduate science instructors are proposed.     

Becoming Data Driven: The Influence of Teachers’ Sense of Efficacy on Concerns Related to Data-Driven Decision Making

Data-driven decision-making (DDDM) reform has proven to be an effective means for improving student learning. However, little DDDM reform has happened at the classroom level, and little research has explored variables that influence teacher adoption of DDDM. The authors propose a model in which teachers’ sense of efficacy for the skills that support classroom-level DDDM and DDDM anxiety significantly influenced teachers’ DDDM efficacy, which then influenced collaboration concerns that influenced refocusing concerns. The authors used structural equation modeling to analyze data on 537 teachers in order to validate this hypothesized model. Results supported this model and are discussed.