A multi-criteria approach for the group assessment of an academic course: A case study

The present paper aims at proposing a structured methodology to evaluate the results of an academic training course addressed to postgraduate students. The evaluation process intends to identify the efficacy of an education course by means of a comparison between the general objectives and the results expected by the students. Since the evaluated aspects by the students, detected by means of questionnaires, are both quantitative and qualitative, the proposed methodology is based on the analytic hierarchy process (AHP). In order to facilitate the evaluation process, answers have been modelled by means of linguistic variables. In particular, different evaluation scales have been used and each one is characterized by different levels associated to different fuzzy numbers.     

Adolescents’ autonomous functioning and implicit theories of ability as predictors of their school achievement and week-to-week study regulation and well-being

Research on students’ motivation has mainly focused on interpersonal differences rather than on the ongoing, intrapersonal dynamics that forge students’ everyday life. In this five-month longitudinal (diary) study, we recruited a sample of 179 high school students from Greece (35.8% males; M_age = 16.27; SD = 1.02) to investigate through multilevel analyses the ongoing dynamics of students’ motivation. We did so by examining the relation between autonomous functioning and aspects of study regulation (namely, study efforts and procrastination) and well-being (namely, subjective vitality and depressive feelings). After controlling for perceived competence, we found week-to-week autonomous functioning to relate positively to study efforts and subjective vitality and negatively to procrastination and depressive feelings. Interestingly, implicit theories of ability - the degree to which one believes that ability is fixed or amenable - were found to moderate the week-to-week relations of autonomous functioning to study efforts and homework procrastination. In particular, autonomous functioning co-varied positively to study efforts and negatively to homework procrastination only among students who believed that ability is malleable. Also, beliefs that ability is fixed predicted poorer grades, lower mean levels of study efforts, and higher homework procrastination. The results underscore the necessity of taking a more dynamic view when studying motivational phenomena and the importance of jointly considering the implicit theory framework and self-determination theory.     

Critically reflexive dialogue and praxis: Academic/practitioner reflections throughout a formative evaluation of Circles® USA

Reflections about the use of critically reflexive praxis by academic/practitioners are offered based on a case study of a formative evaluation of Circles^® USA, a nonprofit organization coordinating initiatives across the U.S. working to move families out of poverty. Critically reflexive praxis is theorized as featuring several themes including acknowledging different levels of context, critical dialogue with collaborators, engaging cultural difference and intersectionalities, problematizing power relations and relationships among researchers and collaborators, and occurring throughout the research project. Examples of critical dialogic reflexivity and navigating common tensions that emerge throughout such community engagement projects are detailed during three phases: planning and design; fieldwork and interviews; and outcomes, applications, and implications.     

试论职业资格考试对教育供求的调节

职业资格证书制度属于国家考试制度,学历证书制度属于国家教育 制度,二者对教育供求的调节产生了不同影响。在学历社会向资格社会转轨过程 中,要实现职业资格考试对教育供求的有效调节,就必须研究职业资格考试与教 育供求调节的关系,改革国家教育培训制度,更好地适应劳动力市场的需要,这是 优化人力资源配置、加强人力资源能力建设的重要课题。     

Floating collection in an academic library: An audacious experiment that succeeded

Can a floating collection thrive in a large multicampus academic research library? Floating collections have been successful in public libraries for some time, but it is uncommon for academic libraries and unheard of for a large academic library system. This article will discuss the investigation into the feasibility of a floating collection at Penn State University Libraries, its implementation, and continuation for a period covering 2009 through 2015. Attaining the floating collection, limited to monographs in the general stacks of campus libraries, proved to be easier to implement than imagined and resulted in unintended benefits as well as some surprises.     

Being and becoming a university teacher

This study examined how one academic framed the enablements and constraints to her project of being and becoming an academic. Complexity facilitated reflection in that it provided a visual representation of data, which was used to generate a concept map, which represented as equal all the component parts of her landscape. Five spaces with emancipatory potential to assist the academic in her professional development emerged, namely: communities of practice, academic freedom, position statements, development opportunities and a supportive environment. Rather than suggesting any generalisability in the findings, the authors argue that the significance of this study is theoretical and methodological. Complexity theory has the potential to help academic development practitioners understand the landscapes in which their academics operate, and guide appropriate development opportunities.     

学术史研究的新境界

进化史观的传播，新史学思潮的初步确立，冲击着传统学术史的编纂方式。进入二十世纪后，摆脱由纪传体史书演化而来的学案体学术史束缚，编撰崭新的章节体学术史，成为历史编撰学的重要课题。在建构中国学术史的新体系的历程中，出现了象梁启超著的《论中国学术史变迁之大势》，刘师培的《周末学术史序》，章太炎的《清儒》、《学隐》、《学变》等用新观点、新方法写成的学术史著作，开创了学术史研究的新境界。本文主要对梁启超著的《论中国学术史变迁之大势》做较为系统的分析，兼顾对其他用新观点写出的学术史著作进行阐释。     

彭桂萼边疆史地研究的学术思想特点

彭桂萼的边疆论著,是当前研究西南边疆有价值的历史资料之一,也是云南的重要文献之一。他的研究克服了前代学者研究滇西南囿于书本的局限,以实地履勘与文献考证相结合,著述真实可信。综观他的边疆论著,具有明显的爱国爱乡的思想倾向;实地调查,创新体例;认清边疆形势,加强边防建设;风土人情,记载周详的特点。