Bundled or unbundled? A multi-text corpus-assisted discourse analysis of the relationship between teaching and research in UK universities

Creating and disseminating knowledge through research and teaching has long been regarded as the hallmark of the modern university. However, new university business models have called into question the ‘bundling’ of teaching and research, and sustained research on the relationship between teaching and research has found little evidence of an insoluble connection between the two activities. In this article, we explore the relationship between teaching and research from the perspective of universities’ institutional discourse. We use corpus-assisted discourse analysis to examine the relationship between research and teaching as presented in two sets of institutional texts currently influential in UK Higher Education: Research Excellence Framework environment statements and Teaching Excellence Framework provider submissions (a total of 2143 documents and 12,492,071 words). Our findings show that, while universities emphasise the value of research to their teaching, they do not always emphasise (or sometimes even decry) the influence of teaching on their research. We empirically evidence that, according to what universities themselves write in institutional texts, teaching and research are not always in a mutually beneficial entanglement, but often rather a one-way relationship in which research expertise and institutional prestige are used to bolster claims of teaching excellence. This has implications for the communication of both the vision and the purpose of a university in regulatory exercises and wider policy, but also speaks to the broader idea and practice of being a university in the twenty-first century.     

Facilitating flexible learning by replacing classroom time with an online learning environment: A systematic review of blended learning in higher education

Higher education institutions are trying to provide more flexibility and individualization, which is mainly realized through the use of new technologies and implemented in online or blended learning designs. This systematic review aims to investigate the impact of replacing classroom time with an online learning environment. The meta-analysis (k = 21 effect sizes) applied strict inclusion criteria concerning research design, measurement of learning outcomes and implementation of blended learning. The estimated effect size (Hedge's g) was positive, although not significantly different from zero and the confidence interval [-0.13, 0.25], suggesting that overall differences between blended and conventional classroom learning are small, and, at best, very small negative or moderate positive effects are plausible. This means that despite a reduction in classroom time between 30 and 79 per cent, equivalent learning outcomes were found. Consequently, blended learning with reduced classroom time is not systematically more or less effective than conventional classroom learning.     

Covid-19: Emerging Considerations for Body Sourcing and Handling. A Perspective View from Nigeria

The current Coronavirus disease (Covid-19) pandemic has spread to about 220 countries of the world and has resulted in a significant number of deaths globally. Infections are still on the rise, and the impact on the global death rate could be devastating. There are fears over the likely impact of a large number of deaths on body sourcing and handling of cadavers for teaching and research. Historically, epidemics come with several challenges and have often led to some level of negligence of ethical practices and health and safety regulations associated with body sourcing and handling. The authors highlighted some emerging problems in this article, focusing on Africa and Nigeria in particular. These problems include a higher risk of coronavirus exposure for body handlers, shortage of cadavers for teaching and learning, a lack of standard regulations leading to unethical body sourcing and handling, and a lack of monitoring and collaboration needed for a well-coordinated Covid-19 pandemic response strategy. If these issues are ignored, the previous gains made in anatomical ethical practices may be destroyed. Some useful recommendations for policymaking geared toward prevention or curtailing these emerging issues have been instilled in this article.     

The Unintentional Effects on Body Donation Programs of a Competency-Based Curriculum in Postgraduate Medical Education

As medical programs place increasing importance on competency-based training and surgical simulations for residents, anatomy laboratories, and body donation programs find themselves in a position of adapting to changing demands. To better assess the demand for “life-like” cadaveric specimens and evaluate the possible impacts that competency-based medical education could have upon the body donation program of McGill University, Canada, the authors tracked, over the course of the last 10 years, the number of soft-embalmed specimens, along with the number of teaching sessions and the residents enrolled in competency-based programs that are using cadaveric material. The results reveal that the number of soft-embalmed specimens used within residency training increased from 5 in 2009 to 35 in 2019, representing an increase from 6% of bodies to 36.5% of the total number of body donors embalmed in this institution. Correspondingly, the number of annual teaching sessions for residents increased from 19 in 2012 to 116 in 2019. These increases in teaching are correlated with increasing number of residents enrolled in competency-based programs over the last 3 years (Pearson r ranging from 0.9705 to 0.9903, and R² ranging from 0.9418 to 0.9808). Those results suggest that the new skill-centered curricula which require residents to perform specific tasks within realistic settings, exhibit a growing demand for “life-like” cadaveric specimens. Institutions’ body donation programs must, therefore, adapt to those greater need for cadaveric specimens, which presents many challenges, ranging from the logistical to the ethical.     

Educators’ experiences in special education institutions during the COVID-19 outbreak

The COVID-19 outbreak has had a profound impact on education worldwide. As a result of the educational institutions closures, it is likely that the impact on special education would be more detrimental since special education population becomes more vulnerable in the aftermath of an outbreak. In the scope of this study, a researcher created survey was used to examine educators’ teaching experiences and their perceptions about the impact of COVID-19 outbreak on special education students. The sample included 215 educators working in the Special Education and Rehabilitation Centers (SERCs) in Turkey. Results indicated that a large majority of the SERCs were not able to continue their education during the COVID-19 outbreak. In addition, there was a difference in educators’ experiences by their educational practices (normal weekly schedule, reduced schedule, most of the educational activities are suspended, and all of the educational activities are suspended). Perceived level of COVID-19 outbreak impact on special education students were found to be significantly higher for autism spectrum disorders, intellectual disabilities, attention deficit and hyperactivity disorders, visual impairments, hearing impairments, specific learning disabilities and gifted students, respectively. The conclusion highlights the need of global collaboration, disaster preparation and management for students with special needs.     

文化功能视角下江口“金钱杆”的发展逻辑研究

文化功能也就是"出之于人,归之于人",江口土家族"金钱杆"起于秦末时期的西楚霸王,形于族人生产生活实践中。经过研究发现,"金钱杆"是具有彰显土家族文化的独特符号、"常"与"非常"之间转换的独特节点、教化孩童的重要载体以及增强体质的独特途径的少数民族传统体育活动。本研究主要探求"金钱杆"发展逻辑,旨在为"金钱杆"的传承和发展提供有益的指导。     

‘Teaching’ the path towards university: understanding student access through storied-futures and meritocratic grand narratives

The notion that the stories of our lives shape dispositions towards imagined futures is another lens through which university underrepresentation should be viewed. A storied lens attends to how futures, like university attendance, are storied during childhood to the extent that some youth imagine, and therefore plan, these futures as natural progression. Such was the case for study participants, indicating that childhood stories contain answers for mitigating social reproduction connected to parental education and cultural forces within the home. Examining social mobility through the underexplored storied-futures grand narrative presents unique solutions that lay hidden within the dominant meritocratic grand narrative.     

新冠肺炎疫情下专业图书馆科研新媒体服务探究——以中国科学院文献情报中心“中国科讯”为例

[目的/意义] 以中国科学院文献情报中心"中国科讯"为例，分析专业图书馆应急科学传播服务的举措及成效，为应急事件下专业图书馆科学传播服务提供借鉴。[方法/过程] 梳理新冠肺炎疫情期间"中国科讯"微信公众号推送的服务内容，从日均用户增长和阅读量分析用户对不同类型内容的关注程度，提出应急科学传播服务的思考。[结果/结论] 疫情期间，"中国科讯"日均用户增长明显，电子资源保障类内容阅读量最高，其次为新冠病毒科技攻关进展相关内容、科普类直播和信息素养教育直播观看人数达到数万人。应急事件下，专业图书馆应加强特色服务的宣传、加强信息甄选和审核机制，重大公共卫生事件下应急科学传播工作预案缺失也需引起重视。     

图书馆借助新媒体传播科学文化的实践研究——以中国科学院文献情报中心“科学人讲坛”为例

[目的/意义] 以"科学人讲坛"在"新媒体+科学文化内容"方面的有序推进为主要案例，论述新媒体技术在图书馆科学文化传播活动中的具体应用，找到专业图书馆科学文化传播工作优势及发展方向。[方法/过程] 梳理"科学人讲坛"讲座内容、推送渠道及观看数据，通过数据分析影响科学文化传播效果的主要因素。[结果/结论] 新媒体及时、灵活、强互动等特性在科学文化传播工作中起到了良好的效果。图书馆的服务意识、丰富馆藏及科学人文精神与新媒体技术优势的结合，使科学文化传播工作中公众的参与兴趣得到了极大提升，拉近了科学与公众间的距离，提高了科学文化传播效果。     

动态助词“来”的历时发展及其衰落动因考察

古代汉语中,"来"的用法异常复杂,仅其助词属性下就又可以细分出六七种不同的用法,但这些用法大多并未能沿用到现代汉语共同语中,这也包括用作动态助词的"来"。从历时发展来看,动态助词"来"产生之后,在唐五代、宋元、明清三个阶段的使用并未呈现出持续上升的态势,而是在共同语中逐渐衰落了,今天仅在偏南方的一些方言中还有所使用。作为动态助词,"来"的衰落动因是多方面的,既有"来"自身功能负担过重,以及在使用中受限制过多的内因作用,也有系统内部成员竞争的外因作用。