Education Commons^™

Best Practices For Student Learning Assessment In Smaller-Sized Undergraduate Mass Communication Programs, Douglas J. Swanson Ed.D Apr

Douglas J. Swanson, Ed.D APR

Assessment of student learning in higher education is no longer optional, because the public increasingly expects universities to spend less and produce more. Generating detailed, meaningful assessment is challenging, particularly for smaller-sized mass communication programs with limited resources. Mass communication-focused assessment literature is scarce. This best practices essay reviews other research to illustrate proven examples of ways to assess simply and effectively in undergraduate mass communication programs to achieve maximum faculty support and curriculum improvement.

Student Learning In High-Impact Practice Mass Communication Courses, Douglas J. Swanson Ed.D Apr

Douglas J. Swanson, Ed.D APR

College and university high-impact practice (HIP) courses involve students in intensive values-focused learning inside and/ or outside of the traditional classroom environment. Much research has documented that participation in HIPs increases student retention and graduation rates. At the same time, the nontraditional learning structure of an HIP course can complicate a thorough assessment of student learning. Anecdotal evidence reflects strong involvement in HIPs by mass communication programs, although communication efforts in this regard are not as well documented in the literature as efforts in other fields. This essay briefly defines HIPs and presents an appropriate theory that would guide HIPs …

A Writing Center Collaboration With A Hybrid Introduction To Public Speaking Course, Michael G. Strawser

Michael G Strawser

No abstract provided.

Design And Delivery: Embracing Instructor Responsibility In The Online Communication Course, Michael G. Strawser, Marjorie M. Buckner, Renee Kaufmann

Michael G Strawser

This manuscript describes the important of providing communication course instructors with training focused on cultivating instructor responsibility. Instructor ownership of creating and delivering pedagogically sound courses in an online learning environment is an important but often overlooked concept in online course design. Ultimately, courses should incorporate sound assessment and instructors should be committed to continued refinement o f online learning pedagogy. This essay offers relevant principles for assessing online communication courses and creating assignments that encourage experiential learning and engage the 21s' century learner.

Digital Content Delivery In Higher Education: Expanded Mechanisms For Subordinating The Professoriate And Academic Precariat, Wilhelm Peekhaus

Wilhelm Peekhaus

This paper suggests that the latest digital mechanisms for delivering higher education course content are yet another step in subordinating academic labor. The two main digital delivery mechanisms discussed in the paper are MOOCs and flexible option degrees. The paper advances the argument that, despite a relatively privileged position vis-à-vis other workers, academic cognitive laborers are caught up within and subject to some of the constraining and exploitative practices of capitalist accumulation processes. This capture within capitalist circuits of accumulation threatens to increase in velocity and scale through digital delivery mechanisms such as MOOCs and flexible option programs/degrees.

A Cohort's Culture Of Learning, Kelly Visnak

Kelly Visnak

This study explored the social involvement among cohort members from a professional graduate program delivered in a blended learning environment. Qualitative directed content analysis was used with a methodological framework derived from Edgar Schein’s (2010) ten dimensions of learning culture. The findings showed the cohort developed a culture of learning.

Twitter In A Spanish Conversation Course (And Maybe In Yours), Pilar Munday

Pilar Munday

Dr. Pilar Munday describes her use of twitter in teaching students Spanish language and culture at Sacred Heart University.

Governance In Nigerian Universities: The Position Of The University Internal Auditor, Professor Ben C Osisioma

Prof Ben Chuka Osisioma

The University system is committed to the principles of good governance which ensure that the Institution is ‚fit for its purpose‛ as an organization put in place for teaching, research and consultancy and professional services to the community. The principles demand a response to the challenge of operational dexterity, technical ingenuity, strategic relevance, African persona and political deftness as part of the task of modernization of the governance of higher education. The task of the Internal Auditor is five-fold – to provide transparency and act as an advisory body to senior management, to identify underperforming areas and opportunities for improvement …

Fostering Development Of Mentoring And Reverse Mentoring Skills Among Public Relations Undergraduates, Douglas J. Swanson Ed.D Apr, Betsy A. Hays M.A., Apr, Julie Henderson Ph.D., Apr, Fellow Prsa

Douglas J. Swanson, Ed.D APR

Mentoring and reverse mentoring have gotten a lot of attention in the academic and professional literature in other disciplines (accounting, management, nursing, the sciences, etc.). But these concepts haven’t been addressed much in public relations. We believe that if these practices were more fully integrated into the undergraduate curriculum, our students would be more prepared to participate in mentoring in the professional environment, as well as launch careers as independent PR practitioners. The purpose of our panel discussion is to briefly share our experiences in regard to mentoring, reverse mentoring, and entrepreneurship. We’ll talk about what our research and our …

Developing Students’ Research Skills In The Undergraduate Public Relations Writing Course: A Framework For ‘Real World’ Success., Douglas J. Swanson Ed.D Apr

Douglas J. Swanson, Ed.D APR

Those of us who teach in higher education are in a time of continually diminishing resources. Our budgets have been cut, but our class sizes and teaching loads continue to increase. There’s an unceasing drumbeat from the profession to better prepare our students with social media skills demanded in the workplace (Cahill, 2009). In the education of public relations undergraduates in particular, there seems to never be enough time or resources for faculty to teach students all the new skills needed – let alone the basics. Outside of class, faculty struggle to find time for research. Our long-delayed projects sit …

Assessment Of Student Learning In The Department Of Communications: A Successful Faculty Collaboration, Douglas J. Swanson Ed.D Apr

Douglas J. Swanson, Ed.D APR

As recently as 2010, our department was noted for its inability to operationalize a program of assessment of student learning. Although several faculty members had presented strong and noteworthy proposals, the department as a whole had not implemented any assessment plan. In January 2011, the department was represented at the university’s assessment retreat. At that time, a four-year plan was developed that identifies seven learning outcomes for all Communications majors and has procedures for measuring and evaluating student learning across the core curriculum and all five of the subject concentrations. Extensive supportive policy was developed. Documentation was made available to …

Proximity And Matthew Effect In Co-Authorship Pattern Of Iranian Top Universities, Mahmood Khosrowjerdi, Neda Zeraatkar, Marzieh Hajipoor

Mahmood Khosrowjerdi

Co-authorship is used to measure scholarly collaborations of countries, institutions, and individuals. It refers to the process in which two or more authors or researchers collaborate with each other to create a joint-work through collaboration methods and channels. Although many studies have been conducted to analyze the individual or field co-authorships in Iran, a little have concerned the organisational co-authorships in this country. This study aims to analyze organisational coauthorships among Iranian top universities based on proximity rule and Matthew effect. Data were limited to published articles affiliated to top universities in Iran and extracted from the Web of Science …

Information Literacy In The Workplace: A Cross-Cultural Perspective, Yuhfen Diana H. Wu

Diana H. Wu

This cross-cultural study has two main purposes: to investigate how information literacy is perceived in the workplace and to discover how employees obtain information to carry out their jobs in an effective and timely fashion. This project applies a mix of research methods, including site visits, interviews, and a survey. More than 120 participants from forty companies were involved in this study. They were from a wide variety of industries in Taiwan and Silicon Valley, in Northern California, where many companies base offices or operations from around the world. Major obstacles in conducting cross-continent research are cost, time demands, scheduling, …

Arm Chair Activism: Serious Games Usage By Ingos For Educational Change, Payal Arora, Sorina Itu

Payal Arora

The battle between educators and entertainers continue when it comes to gaming. While this is so, the edutainment battleground has expanded to include actors outside formal schooling agencies, namely International Non-Governmental Organizations (INGOs). These actors employ digital games with the aim to educate and activate towards specific social causes. These serious games are viewed to have tremendous potential for behavioral change through their interactive and persuasive aspects. This paper examines serious games deployed by certain prominent INGOs and analyzes the educative aspects of such new media platforms. What is revealed at the design, audience, and content level compel us to …

Four Distinct Generations Of Workers Makes Leadership Challenging, Joyce K. Kutin

Joyce K Kutin RN, MSN, MOL

The Bureau of Labor Statistics for the year 2000 stated that Baby Boomers (age thirty-six through fifty-four) represented fifty percent of the United States labor force while Generation X (age twenty to thirty-five) represented some thirty-three percent, a significant decline in workforce. This demographic, time bomb indicates the urgency for many organizations in developed countries to prepare for and cope with the imminent retirement of their aging workforce.

Understanding Controversies And Ill-Structured Problems Through Argument Visualization. Curriculum And Learning Materials For Problem-Based Learning In Small Groups Of Students Who Work Autonomously On Projects With The Interactive Agora Software, Including An Exemplary Reader On Genetically Modified Plants, Michael H.G. Hoffmann

Michael H.G. Hoffmann

No abstract provided.

Leaders Of Today Are Challenged By Generation X Workforce Retention, Joyce K. Kutin

Joyce K Kutin RN, MSN, MOL

Many organizations today are comprised of a culturally diverse workforce. In addition to organizational diversity related to gender, ethnicity, race, or religious beliefs, there are also four different generations working side by side. Today’s workforce includes the Silent Generation, the Baby Boomers, Generation X, and Generation Y. The Silent Generation is known for their lifestyle approach of consistency, uniformity, conformity, law and order, hard work and playing by the rules. Baby Boomers were the first generation to grow up with television; they were the first to have broad access to news, issues, advertising, and a variety of programming. Generation X …

Meta-Communication For Reflective Online Conversations: Models For Distance Education, Ugur -. Demiray, Gulsun -. Kurubacak, T. Volkan Yuzer

Ugur Demiray

One of the ways in which distance education is capable of reaching online learners is the basis and method of meta-communication. Therefore, it is important to understand how to design reflective online conversations and how to implement a diverse milieu for prospective online learners so that they are able to transfer their information, knowledge, and learning from theoretical forms to real life experiences.

Meta-Communication for Reflective Online Conversations: Models for Distance Educations discusses the potential of meta-communication models for building and managing reflective online conversations among distance learners. This book unites models for meta-communication, distance education, and reflective online conversations …

Annual Review Of Social Partnerships Issue 6, Maria May Seitanidi

Maria May Seitanidi

This is the 6th Issue of the Annual Review of Social Partnerships previously known as the NPO-BUS Partnerships Bulletin.

Collective Choice, Justin Schwartz

Justin Schwartz

This short nontechnical article reviews the Arrow Impossibility Theorem and its implications for rational democratic decisionmaking. In the 1950s, economist Kenneth J. Arrow proved that no method for producing a unique social choice involving at least three choices and three actors could satisfy four seemingly obvious constraints that are practically constitutive of democratic decisionmaking. Any such method must violate such a constraint and risks leading to disturbingly irrational results such and Condorcet cycling. I explain the theorem in plain, nonmathematical language, and discuss the history, range, and prospects of avoiding what seems like a fundamental theoretical challenge to the possibility …

Cognitive Effects Of Argument Visualization Tools, Michael H.G. Hoffmann

Michael H.G. Hoffmann

External representations play a crucial role in learning. At the same time, cognitive load theory suggests that the possibility of learning depends on limited resources of the working memory and on cognitive load imposed by instructional design and representation tools. Both these observations motivate a critical look at Computer-Supported Argument Visualization (CSAV) tools that are supposed to facilitate learning. This paper uses cognitive load theory to compare the cognitive efficacy of RationaleTM 2 and AGORA.

The Student-Run Public Relations Firm In An Undergraduate Program: Reaching Learning And Professional Development Goals Through ‘Real World’ Experience, Douglas J. Swanson Ed.D Apr

Douglas J. Swanson, Ed.D APR

A student-run public relations firm can offer a variety of benefits for an undergraduate program in which there are limited resources for professional involvement by students. The article is a case study that profiles a student-run firm launched in conjunction with a capstone course in a journalism department. Specific learning and professional development goals were established for students, the department, and for clients served by the firm. The article presents a brief summary of successes, along with a discussion of opportunities and challenges. General recommendations are offered for establishing a student-run public relations firm.

Press Release 2nd Intl Symposium On Cross Sector Social Interactions: Re-Imagining Partnerships For The Global Social Good, Maria May Seitanidi

Maria May Seitanidi

Leading academics from The Netherlands, France, the UK, the US and Canada, discussed at BRUNEL BUSINESS SCHOOL, on 29th April 2010, how to re-designed social partnerships as global institutions while contributing to the global social good by delivering policies, programmes and impacts and encouraging the collaboration between institutions and citizens.

Manifest Greatness The Final Original Version By Emmanuel Mario B Santos Aka Marc Guerrero, Emmanuel Mario B. Santos Aka Marc Guerrero

Emmanuel Mario B Santos aka Marc Guerrero

MANIFEST GREATNESS vf24jan2010 WE COME TOGETHER THERE OUGHT TO BE NO POOR WE TAKE CHARGE.

English Language Teachers’ Perception And Management Of Learners’ Oral Communication Apprehension, Arshad Abd Samad, Annisa Nor Jettey, Khairuddin Md.Idris, Samsilah Roslan

Arshad Abd Samad

This study reports on how English as a Second Language (ESL) teachers perceive and manage oral communication apprehension (CA) among learners in the language classrooms. The main purpose of this qualitative study was to understand language teachers’ perception and how they think they are addressing the phenomenon. A qualitative methodology was employed with data generated through interviews, classroom observations and document reviews. A total of twelve respondents from five Malaysian secondary schools were involved in this study. They comprised eight ESL teachers, who were the primary respondents, as well as one principal and three heads of the English language department. …

Copycats Of The Central Himalayas. Learning In The Age Of Information, Payal Arora

Payal Arora

This case study highlights practices of a rarely documented group of neo-users of the Internet or newbies from Central Himalayas, serving as a catalyst for delving deeply into the act of ‘plagiarism’ in online learning By looking at such ‘learning’ practices away from schools, namely at cybercafés in Almora, a ‘rur-town’ in the Himalayas, much is revealed of its educational system and learning in the broadest sense. There is an urgent need in educational environments to move beyond the punitive approach to ‘plagiarism’ through computer usage and instead pay attention to the actual learning and teaching that goes on through …

“Theoric Transformations” And A New Classification Of Abductive Inferences, Michael H.G. Hoffmann

Michael H.G. Hoffmann

Based on a definition of “abductive insight” and a critical discussion of G. Schurz’s (2008) distinction of eleven “patterns of abduction” that he organizes in four groups, I suggest an even more comprehensive classification that distinguishes 15 forms in an alternative structure. These forms are organized, on the one hand, with regard to what is abductively inferred—singular facts; types; laws; theoretical models; or representation systems—and, on the other, with regard to the question whether the abductive procedure is selective or creative (including a distinction between “psychologically creative,” as in school learning, or “historically creative”). Moreover, I argue that theoretical-model abduction—which …

Lam Map Of Nagel's Core Argument In "The Problem Of Global Justice" (2005), Michael H.G. Hoffmann

Michael H.G. Hoffmann

This map is also available online: http://tinyurl.com/23vweqm

Lam Map Of Thomas Nagel (2005), The Problem Of Global Justice, Michael H.G. Hoffmann

Michael H.G. Hoffmann

This map is also available online: http://tinyurl.com/22o9q9q

The Debate About The Stern-Review And The Economics Of Climate Change, Michael H.G. Hoffmann

Michael H.G. Hoffmann

This map is -- in a different form, with linked sub-maps -- also available online: http://tinyurl.com/y9jlsxv