Part-time academics’ perception of their role and academic development: a case study from Indonesia

ABSTRACT

Employing part-time and casual academics is now a widely accepted practice in higher education globally. We explored the issue of the identity of part-time academics in Indonesian higher education through interviews with 14 part-time and 11 full-time academics. Both groups identified more strongly with their teaching roles than with other roles. However, they differed in their perceptions of opportunities to enact their chosen academic roles and of the kind of academic development they needed. The current standardised model of academic development needs to be rethought to offer more flexibility and to invite departments’ participation in the development of their academics.     

Challenging gender-blindness in preservice secondary science teachers

This material is based upon work supported in part by a grant from the National Science Foundation (Grant No. HRD 945-0022). Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation.     

Avoiding the Issue of Gender in Japanese Science Education

This paper describes how the patriarchal structure of Japanese society and its notions of women, femininity, and gendered stereotypes produced strong cultural barriers to increasing the participation of females in science education. Baseline data on attitudes toward science and the perceptions of gender issues in science education, academic major and career choice were collected from 175 university students (124 female, 51 male). Students responded to a Likert scale that included the option “I don't understand the question”. All respondents took advantage of the option for items related to gender issues. On some items up to 67% of the males responded that they did not understand the question. Females in science choosing this option did not exceed 19%. In Japan, gender is an invisible, pervasive construct that impacts females' participation in science and science education. In other ways, attitudes toward science among Japanese students mirrored those found in the United States and in other countries. Respondents held the most favorable views of science when they were in elementary school and females preferred biology while males preferred the physical sciences. The exception to the Western pattern of liking science and science teachers is that male non-science majors rather than female non-science majors reported poor academic performance in elementary school, declining attitudes in middle school, and they held the most negative attitudes toward their science teacher and science subjects.     

Included? The Status of African American Scholars in the Discipline of Criminology and Criminal Justice Since 2004

This article provides a re-examination of the progress of African Americans in criminology/criminal justice doctoral programs since 2004. It focuses on African-American faculty, their scholarly research, and involvement in professional associations. Recent trends in African Americans enrolled in doctoral programs also are analyzed. Findings indicate that the representation of African-American faculty and doctoral students in criminology and criminal justice programs has increased although both continue to be under-represented in programs at predominantly white institutions. Evidence of increases in their contributions to the body of knowledge and service to professional associations was notable. The article concludes with strategies and recommendations for ensuring that inclusion continues to matter in the next decade.     

‘You're Like Yourself': Multimodal Literacies in a Reading Support Class

This article explores the experiences and literacy practices of an adolescent boy enrolled in an academic support class, in which students received an open-ended invitation to respond to S.E. Hinton's novel The Outsiders with the software programme Comic Life. In constructing this ‘telling case', we highlight how traditional print literacies associated with English instruction can construct school as a ‘contradictory symbolic space' for many students, but also how the introduction of the multimodalities can provide opportunities for adolescents to experience in-school literacies as social, performative and creative. We argue for re-envisioning literacy curricula and assessment not only to incorporate multimodalities, but also to provide students with instruction in writing conventions and practice with print in ways that serve larger purposes beyond remediation and test preparation. We posit the possibility for ‘complementary symbolic spaces' that are connected to the landscape of adolescent literacies that students traverse outside school and to students' desires to communicate, create and reach others within a range of discourse communities.     

Trajectories of early childhood family instability and the development of externalizing behaviors from middle childhood to adolescence: A prospective study of at-risk families

This study examined associations between trajectories of family instability across early childhood and trajectories of externalizing behaviors from middle childhood to adolescence. Growth mixture models were fit to annual caregiver reports of instability from child ages 2–5 (N = 731; 49% girls, 50% White). A curve of factors model was fit to externalizing behaviors from child ages 7.5–14. Chronic, elevated instability across early childhood predicted elevated externalizing behaviors from middle childhood to adolescence. Data collection spanned from 2002 to 2017. Increasing or declining levels of instability predicted elevated externalizing behaviors in middle to late childhood, but not in adolescence. Caregiver depressive symptoms mediated the association between instability and the externalizing behavior intercept. Intervening on chronic instability may reduce child externalizing problems.     

Social Integration and the Mental Health of Black Adolescents

The influence of family, school, and religious social contexts on the mental health of Black adolescents has been understudied. This study used Durkheim's social integration theory to examine these associations in a nationally representative sample of 1,170 Black adolescents, ages 13–17. Mental health was represented by positive and negative psychosocial well‐being indicators. Results showed that adolescents' integration into family and school were related to better mental health. In addition, commitment to religious involvement positively influenced mental health. Although the direct effect of religious involvement was inversely related to mental health, mediation analyses revealed a positive influence through religious commitment. Findings suggest a greater emphasis on all three social contexts when designing strategies to improve the mental health of Black adolescents.     

Equitable science education in urban middle schools: Do reform efforts make a difference?*

A central commitment of current reforms in science education is that all students, regardless of culture, gender, race, and/ or socioeconomic status, are capable of understanding and doing science. The study “Bridging the Gap: Equity in Systemic Reform” assessed equity in systemic reform using a nested research design that drew on both qualitative and quantitative methodologies. As part of the study, case studies were conducted in two urban middle schools in large Ohio cities. The purpose of the case studies was to identify factors affecting equity in urban science education reform. Data were analyzed using Kahle's (1998) equity metric. That model allowed us to assess progress toward equity using a range of research‐based indicators grouped into three categories critical for equitable education: access to, retention in, and achievement in quality science education. In addition, a fourth category was defined for systemic indicators of equity. Analyses indicated that the culture and climate of the case study schools differentially affected their progress toward equitable reform in science education. © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Res Sci Teach 38: 1130–1144, 2001     

Using self- and peer-assessments for summative purposes: analysing the relative validity of the AASL (Authentic Assessment for Sustainable Learning) model

The purpose of this paper is to provide a proof of concept of a collaborative peer-, self- and lecturer assessment processes. The research presented here is part of an ongoing study on self- and peer assessments in higher education. The authentic assessment for sustainable learning (AASL) model is evaluated in terms of the correlations between sets of marks. The article provides an explanation of the assessment process, and analyses sets of marks as a means of justifying the validity of the process. The results suggest that students, even those with no prior experience in peer- or self-evaluation, in their first year of tertiary study, under the right conditions, are able to accurately judge their own work and make reasonably accurate judgements of the work of their peers. While previous studies have expounded the benefits of self- and peer assessments in tertiary study, undertaking a prescribed process, such as AASL, has a further implication in allowing others to replicate the process with reasonable assuredness of the validity of the process across various fields of study.