Influence of group formation choices on academic performance

With its multidisciplinary and applied foci, team‐working skills are seen as especially critical in business courses in general and in business information systems courses in particular, and are specifically incorporated into desired graduate attributes by many universities. Past research has focused on the benefits of group working but little work has been conducted to examine the relative contribution of group formation choices on academic performance. This paper reports on a study that develops and validates a data‐collection instrument and identifies four underlying factors that influence formation of groups: convenience, social cohesion, task management and technical skills/knowledge. The results thus suggest that academic performance is influenced by the skills and knowledge of individual members, potential social cohesion among the group members and the task management ability considered at the group formation stage. The study notes that while how a group is formed influences ultimate academic performance, how the group operates is also an important factor.     

International education,the formation of capital and graduate employment: Chinese accounting graduates’ experiences of the Australian labour market

Since the late 1970s, international education has steadily gained in popularity in China. An emerging middle class seeks to strengthen its position in China’s rapidly stratifying society under its socialist market economy with the shift from wealth creation for all to wealth concentration for a few. Previously, a foreign qualification was considered a passport to success in either the host or home country’s labour market. But the growing popularity of overseas study, coupled with the massification of the Chinese higher education, means Chinese international students are seeking to distinguish themselves in an increasingly competitive global labour market. This longitudinal study of international graduates, backgrounded by Australian employer perceptions, examines the journeys of 13 Chinese accounting graduates as they attempt to transition from an Australian university into the Australian labour market. Bourdieu’s thinking tools of field, capital, disposition and habitus are utilised to consider how different cultural, social and linguistic capitals inform employer understandings of ‘employability’ meant Chinese accounting graduates significantly adjusted their life goals.     

Generalizability in Item Response Modeling

An approach called generalizability in item response modeling (GIRM) is introduced in this article. The GIRM approach essentially incorporates the sampling model of generalizability theory (GT) into the scaling model of item response theory (IRT) by making distributional assumptions about the relevant measurement facets. By specifying a random effects measurement model, and taking advantage of the flexibility of Markov Chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) estimation methods, it becomes possible to estimate GT variance components simultaneously with traditional IRT parameters. It is shown how GT and IRT can be linked together, in the context of a single-facet measurement design with binary items. Using both simulated and empirical data with the software WinBUGS, the GIRM approach is shown to produce results comparable to those from a standard GT analysis, while also producing results from a random effects IRT model.     

Articulation and Transfer for Career and Technical Students: Best Practices for Dealing with Real and Perceived Barriers to Baccalaureate Degree Attainment for Applied Science Students

ABSTRACT

Community colleges produce large numbers of high quality graduates from career and technical programs. These programs are often of high academic rigor and quality. However, most universities view these Applied Associates of Science (AAS) as being terminal associate's degrees that are not appropriate for transfer. Regional accrediting standards are often cited as the reason for this differentiation. The reality is that institutional policies often simply dismiss AAS courses by their prefix to simplify the process. This study and presentation will explore the reality of what is allowed by accrediting bodies in transferring AAS courses and best practices for facilitating the maximum allowable course transfer.     

Learning to teach physics through inquiry: The lived experience of a graduate teaching assistant

This investigation examines the difficulties encountered by one graduate teaching assistant as she taught Physics for Elementary Education, a large‐enrollment, inquiry‐based science course taught at a public Midwestern university. The methodological approach of hermeneutic phenomenology served as the lens to investigate the research question, “What is the lived experience of a graduate teaching assistant as she learned to teach physics through inquiry to elementary education students?” We summarize the findings in terms of the blending of two conceptual frameworks: orientations to science teaching and professional identity. We learned that fundamental beliefs about the nature of science support certain orientations, and if those beliefs remain unchallenged, then the orientation is unlikely to change. Finally, we discuss implications for strategies that may assist college‐level instructors with changing their orientation to teaching science. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Res Sci Teach 41: 584–602, 2004     

The effect of westward travel across five time zones on sleep and subjective jet-lag ratings in athletes before and during the 2015’s World Rowing Junior Championships

This study examined sleep-wake habits and subjective jet-lag ratings of 55 German junior rowers (n = 30 male, 17.8 ± 0.5 years) before and during the World Rowing Junior Championships 2015 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Athletes answered sleep logs every morning, and Liverpool John Moore’s University Jet-Lag Questionnaires each evening and morning. Following an 11-h westward flight with 5-h time shift, advanced bedtimes (?1 h, P < .001, η_p² = 0.68), reduced sleep onset latency (P = .002, η_p² = 0.53) and increased sleep duration (P < .001, η_p² = 0.60) were reported for the first two nights. Jet-lag symptoms peaked upon arrival but were still present after 6 days. Sleep quality improved (P < .001, η_p² = 0.31) as well as some scales of the Recovery-Stress Questionnaire for Athletes. Participation was successful as indicated by 11 of 13 top 3 placings. Overall, the initial desynchronisation did not indicate negative impacts on competition performance. As travel fatigue probably had a major effect on perceptual decrements, sleep during travel and time to recover upon arrival should be emphasised. Coaches and practitioners should consider higher sleep propensity in the early evening by scheduling training sessions and meetings until the late afternoon.     

The effects of task constraints on visual search behavior and decision-making skill in youth soccer players

We examined differences in visual search behaviors and decision-making skill across different microstates of offensive play in soccer using youth participants (13.0-15.8 years) varying in skill and experience. We used realistic film simulations of offensive play, movement-based response measures, and an eye movement registration technique. Playing experience, skill level, and the unique constraints of the task, expressed by the number of players and relative proportion of offensive and defensive players, determined both the observed search behavior and processing requirements imposed on players in dynamic offensive team simulations. Significant differences in performance were observed between players and nonplayers and across three groups of soccer players who differed in skill level. Implications for talent identification and development are considered.