From being silenced to having a voice: when mentoring makes all the difference

Higher Education - The 2010s witnessed unparalleled policymaking and development in international higher education in China. Whilst research has shed light on the broader...     

OF MANNERS AND MORALS

ABSTRACT:  In this paper I explore the role of manners and morals.¹ In particular, what is the connection between emotional demeanor and the inner stuff of virtue? Does the fact that we can pose faces and hide our inner sentiments, i.e., 'fake it,' detract from or add to our capacity for virtue? I argue, following a line from the Stoics, that it can add to our virtue and that, as a result, moral education needs to take seriously both a commitment to good character and a commitment to the 'aesthetic' of character.     

An innovative academic seminar model

This paper describes a collaboration between an urban antipoverty agency, Action for Boston Community Development (ABCD), and a private higher education institution, Lesley College. This collaboration is providing a bachelor's degree program for adults associated with human service agencies. The introductory course, which is the focus of this paper, served to validate the students' experiential learning, helped them gain needed skills, and empowered them to make positive changes in both their perceptions and behaviors. Within a remarkable short period, the individuals in this group made significant changes in their lives. The program described can serve as a model in creating nontraditional partnerships to address the needs of underserved adult populations.     

Understanding teachers with extreme individual learning differences: developing more effective teachers

Three teachers, who held extreme preferences for the ways they learn, participated in a year‐long professional development course, designed to sensitize teachers to their own and colleagues’ individual learning differences (ILDs). The case study focuses on their extreme learning preferences and discusses the impact of these preferences on their language, beliefs and practice, both before and after the course. The teachers’ learning preferences were determined from their scores on seven learning/cognitive styles tools and understood further from field notes, interviews and pre‐/post‐test responses. The study suggests that teachers with extreme learning preferences tend to: (a) teach the way they prefer to learn; (b) overgeneralize and project their own learning needs onto students; and (c) hold initial pathognomonic (“blame the learner”) beliefs about students mismatched to them. After the course, the teachers changed their language, beliefs and practice in the direction of becoming more effective teachers, e.g., they held more interventionist beliefs (“I can intervene to help the learner”). The three teachers were strong prototypes who can provide insights about the importance of ILDs in learning, practice and professional development.     

Texas Community College Funding: Nonmetropolitan and Metropolitan Ad Valorem Tax Rates and Revenue

This article examines ad valorem tax rates per $100 valuation and the resultant tax revenues per in-district contact hour for Texas nonmetropolitan and metropolitan public community colleges. The results of the analyses indicate no difference in ad valorem tax rates between these institutions but demonstrate differences in the resultant tax revenues. Recommendations for further research are provided.     

Educating Gerontologists for Cultural Proficiency in End-of-life Care Practice

An educational program was developed to train practitioners to provide care for patients and families that are responsive to cultural concerns. The aim was to increase knowledge and improve attitudes toward providing culturally proficient and culturally sensitive care for patients and families facing life-threatening illnesses. The program consisted of six half-day sessions on key areas in end-of-life care practice. The modules integrated and infused content related to ethnically and culturally diverse populations in a comprehensive training format. Evaluation results suggested that the program was successful in increasing participant knowledge and attitudes towards cross-cultural interdisciplinary practice of end-of-life care.