Students’ Perceptions of Mental Health Counseling in the United Arab Emirates (UAE)

Counseling services in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) have focused on counseling in the elementary and secondary schools. To date, the idea of the private practitioner of mental health counseling has been virtually nonexistent. However, education officials at the University of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) have been exploring the option of following the international trends of preparing students for mental health counseling services, with special emphasis in marriage and family. A counselor education degree would allow individuals to operate private practices to address various concerns that impact individuals within the society at large. No instruments that measure perceptions of counseling from an international perspective were found for the purposes of this study. Therefore, it was necessary for the authors to devise and test a new tool. Surveys were completed by a sample of 141 undergraduate students regarding their perceptions of the importance of counseling in UAE society and the role of the counselor in society and other general questions regarding perceptions of counseling. With this initial effort, psychometric properties of the ‘Perceptions about Counseling Survey’ appeared promising. Results revealed that students had a favorable view toward the role of the counselor in UAE society. Results further revealed that students perceived the counseling profession as favorable. Given that the participants were predominately female, the results were analyzed from the social and cultural perspective of women in Arab society and the social psychological theory of ‘attitude’ is considered as a contextual backdrop.     

Homophobic and transphobic bullying: barriers and supports to school intervention

This study explores the perceived barriers and supports identified by school staff in tackling homophobic and transphobic bullying, using Bronfenbrenner’s ecological model as a framework. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with participants from five separate second-level/high schools (two designated disadvantaged schools, and three non-disadvantaged schools), within an area of Dublin, Ireland. Thematic analysis was used to analyse the resulting data. Findings indicated that the main barriers in tackling homophobic and transphobic bullying included students’ perceived discomfort in discussing their sexuality with teachers, teachers’ discomfort in discussing issues (including an associated lack of training), a lack of priority given to these types of bullying, and parental views on homosexuality. Perceived supports included consistency in dealing with these types of bullying, appropriate training, and support from management. Relationships were also evidenced between some perceived barriers and supports, with the absence of these factors being perceived as a barrier, while their presence was perceived as a support. Findings are considered within the context of previous research. The strengths and limitations of the study are discussed, as are its practice implications, and implications for possible future research.     

选聘离退休干部、教师担任大学生辅导员初探

从高校是培养合格的社会主义事业的建设和接班人这一根本任务出发，着重阐述了选聘部分优秀离退休干部、教师担任辅导员工作的重要性及优势。     

基于网络的高校学生工作信息化平台的构建

随着信息技术的迅速发展,互联网既给大学生思想政治教育带来了挑战,也给进一步加强和改进大学生思想政治教育提供了新的机遇。在实际工作中,我们应当拓展高校思想政治教育的途径,以专题网站、学生信息管理系统、即时交流平台、学生信息化队伍建设,配合制度保障等手段以构建学生工作信息化平台。     

Comparison of online and classroom-based student evaluations of instruction

In recent years, colleges have been moving from traditional, classroom‐based student evaluations of instruction to online evaluations. Because of the importance of these evaluations in decisions regarding retention, promotion and tenure, instructors are justifiably concerned about how this trend might affect their ratings. We recruited faculty members who were teaching two or more sections of the same course in a single semester and assigned at least one section to receive online evaluations and the other section(s) to receive classroom evaluations. We hypothesised that the online evaluations would yield a lower response rate than the classroom administration. We also predicted that there would be no significant differences in the overall ratings, the number of written comments, and the valence (positive/neutral/negative) of students’ comments. A total of 32 instructors participated in the study over two semesters, providing evaluation data from 2057 students. As expected, online evaluations had a significantly lower response rate than classroom evaluations. Additionally, there were no differences in the mean ratings, the percentage of students who provided written comments or the proportion of comments in the three valence categories. Thus, even with the lower response rate for online evaluations, the two administration formats seemed to produce comparable data.     

A qualitative study of perceptions of bullying in Irish primary schools

This small-scale research examined young children’s, aged six to seven (n = 8), perceptions and understanding of bullying in Irish primary schools. It also included the views of the children’s parents (n = 8) and teachers (n = 2) on bullying. The participants’ views were obtained through semi-structured interviews which were analysed using the constant comparative method as per grounded theory approach. The results revealed the complexity of young children’s interactions in school and the difficulty that the adults around them have in accurately defining and addressing bullying behaviour. The data indicate the need for parents and teachers to listen attentively and sensitively to children’s accounts of bullying and to provide consistent advice on how to address bullying.     

Relations between students’ perceptions of the teaching-learning environment and teachers’ approaches to teaching: a qualitative study

ABSTRACT

In recent decades, a constructivist view of learning has triggered a change in teaching-learning environments (TLEs). Teacher-centred TLEs have been replaced by student-centred ones where the teachers’ approaches to teaching are more learning- than content-focused. Previous research exploring the relationship between student-centred TLEs and the quality of learning has shown contradictory results. Previous studies also indicate that various elements of TLEs may influence students’ learning. This study explored course-level types of elements, enhancing or hindering, related to TLEs, which the course students described. The TLEs of the courses varied because the teachers adopted different types of approaches to teaching. The data for this study were collected through semi-structured interviews with undergraduate students (N = 33) from three compulsory courses. The interviews were designed so that students could describe their perceptions of the course as well as their learning experiences and processes. The data were analysed using qualitative content analysis. The results revealed that when the teacher employed a consonant learning-focused approach to teaching, the students perceived almost all elements of the TLE as enhancing. When the teacher’s approach to teaching was identified as dissonant, the students perceived several elements of the TLE as hindering. This study revealed that inclusion of student-activating teaching-learning activities is important when designing TLEs, but that it is also crucial to design elements which guide and structure students’ learning.

Abbreviation: TLE: teaching-learning environment     

浅谈历史试卷测量法的效度

历史测量法中,试卷测量法是人们经常使用,也是最为广泛使用的一种测量方法。作为一种重要的测量方法,历史试卷测量法效度的提高显得尤为重要。一份高质量的试卷同时也是高效度的试卷,而要提高试卷测量的效度,出题者的经验和知识非常重要,除此之外,出题者要了解学生概况,了解并熟悉教材,懂得丰富的教学方法和各种不同习题的解决方法,出题者准备得越充足,就越能把握好出题的难度以及所出题目的针对性,从而有利于提高试卷测量法的效度。     

高校辅导员实践育人工作的困境与路径选择

全球化加剧了西方文化、价值观的扩张、渗透,对高校育人工作带来巨大冲击。当前,高校实践育人工作存在轻实践重理论、缺乏专业指导、体制支撑不够等问题。高校辅导员是思想政治教育与实践育人工作的主体,应当加强辅导员队伍建设,将重点放在组织保障、专业指导、评价体系、保障制度等方面。     

Seeing Web 2.0 in context: A study of academic perceptions

This paper reports on a study at a research intensive University in the North of the UK exploring academics' perceptions of the potential of Web 2.0 for their teaching and any influences shaping those perceptions. It looks at the perceptions of academics ‘on the ground’ as well as those leading teaching and learning strategies at the University. The study identifies a range of perceptions among academics. These are influenced predominantly by academics' beliefs of what constitutes good teaching in their contexts. The paper concludes with an exploration of ways in which the range of perceptions evidenced may inform discussion of Web 2.0, arguing that academics' perceptions are crucial to context-based understandings of its potential.