Higher Education and Teaching Commons^™

Increasing Awareness Of Inclusive Stem Education Through A College-Level Student Research Group, Sami Kahn, Tiffany Agyarko, Grace Lanouette, Sean Lee, Courteney Wiredu

Journal of Science Education for Students with Disabilities

The underrepresentation of persons with disabilities in STEM reflects not only a moral failing in society’s commitment to equity but also a practical dilemma as science benefits from the contributions of people with diverse perspectives. While teacher education programs attempt to address equity at the K-12 level, societal biases and misconceptions about who is “able” in science present persistent barriers for people with disabilities throughout the STEM pipeline, in higher education, employment, and beyond. How can we ensure that students with disabilities will encounter professors, employers, coworkers, and peers who are supportive of their efforts in STEM? To address this …

What Is The Impact Of Work-From-Home (Wfh) Arrangements On The Quality Of Life (Qol)?, Jordan Lee, Mykyta Pervak, Augustine Peh, Jun Hao Tang, Eoh Jin Cho, Calister Tan

Introduction to Research Methods RSCH 202

The ongoing pandemic has forced countries’ education systems to continue to operate in a fragile and uncertain environment. Given the limited existing literature regarding the pandemic’s impact on the Quality of life (QoL) for teachers, this study aims to bridge the gap and provide a detailed analysis of how the extent of providing online courses and time to transition online during the pandemic could impact a tertiary educator’s QoL. The factors defining the dependent variable, QoL, were derived from past studies and made applicable within the confines of our research. The independent variables are the amount of time spent …

Rewriting The Graduate Experience: A Study Of The Writing Experiences Of University Of Texas At El Paso Graduate Students Across Disciplines, Jennifer L. Wilhite

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Graduate writing can manifest as a barrier to successful and timely degree completion as writing is the primary modality in which graduate programs use to evaluate depth of learning and quality of knowledge created. Native language status, inexperience with advanced academic genres, time away from the academy, and socialization struggles are factors that can aggravate writing challenges. The purpose of this qualitative study is to better understand the graduate writing experiences of twelve women returning to the academy. The study asks if writing manifests as a barrier to completing their graduate programs, ascertains what kinds of graduate-level writing supports they …

¡Sí Se Puede!: Understanding The Experiences Of Latina Students During Their Doctoral Journey At A Hispanic-Serving Institution, Flor Del Rocio Acevedo

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

The existing body of literature on Latinas has mostly been focused on the undergraduate student experience (Hernandez, 2002; Hurtado et al., 1996; Kena et al., 2016; Tinto & Goodsell, 1994; Torres, 2004). Additionally, despite the increasing participation of women in graduate education since the 1980s (Walker et al., 2008), Latinas have been and continue to be underrepresented in doctoral programs and the professorate (Myers, 2016). In spite of recent increases in enrollment, Latinas attained just 8.8 percent of the doctoral degrees awarded from 2018-2019 (National Center for Education Statistics, 2020). As Latinas are projected to account for a third of …

Developing And Validating The Student Assessment-Based Feedback Literacy (Safl) Instrument: A Mixed-Methods Approach, Yiyu Liao

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Feedback has great influences on student retention and completion, especially on the minority students in higher education. However, the debates on the paradoxical difference between feedback’s theoretical potential and its effect in actual practice remain unsettled. This study seeks to address some primary issues in feedback research by conceptualizing student assessment-based feedback literacy (SAFL) and developing the SAFL instrument. The systematic literature reviews in the study identify two trends of assessment-based feedback in higher education: no universal definition of assessment feedback and the lack of explicit understanding of how assessment and feedback literacies interacted. By building on the exiting student …

Reflective Conversations: Exploring Faculty’S Perceptions Of Reflection To Enhance Teaching Effectiveness, Jonna Lynn Myers

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this pragmatic qualitative research study is to examine the impact of a faculty development program’s reflection component on teaching effectiveness as perceived by the faculty participants. This study utilizes Schön’s (1983) reflective practice, which calls professionals to move from the technical rationality position of development and practice (theoretical and detached) into a reflective position (practical and applicable). Schön contends that this movement occurs by focusing on reflection in the forms of reflection-in-action, reflection-on-action, and reflective conversations. This study specifically examines the reflection component embedded into the inaugural class of the Excellence in Teaching Program (ETP) at pseudonymous …

Creating Inclusivity While Providing Accommodations: A Practical Guide To Champion Individuals With (Dis)Abilities On Campus, Amy E. French, Sarah E. Schoper

Department of Educational Leadership

No abstract provided.

Accessibility Of Virtual Instruction In Higher Education: Challenges Caused By The Covid-19 Pandemic, Carlie L. Cooper

Georgia Journal of College Student Affairs

In 1990, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) was passed. It prohibits discrimination against individuals with disabilities. Institutions of higher education are included under Title III of the ADA, and as such are required to provide the same access to services and education to qualified individuals with disabilities as individuals without. A review of the literature of accessibility of online programs and courses in higher education shows that compliance to the ADA is sporadic due to several challenges. In Spring 2020, all institutions of higher education transitioned to some form of online instruction due to the COVID-19 pandemic. This created …

Perceptions Of Classroom Management Coaching At District A Independent School District, Ashley L. Brittain

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This study addressed teacher retention and research-to-practice gaps in the literature related to classroom management coaching and what types of teacher support are the best and why. The purpose of this qualitative case study was to explore the perceptions of teachers, campus administrators, and campus intervention coaches regarding District A Independent School District’s campus intervention coach model. This study attempted to understand better the perceptions of how the campus intervention coach model influences teachers’ decisions to remain in the profession; how teachers, campus administrators, and campus intervention coaches perceive the campus intervention coach model’s effectiveness in reducing the percentage of …

Supporting Students With An Autism Spectrum Disorder In Engineering: K-12 And Beyond, Jennifer L. Kouo, Alexis Hahn, Sarah Morton, Jay Gregorio

Journal of Science Education for Students with Disabilities

Individuals with disabilities, including individuals with an autism spectrum disorder (ASD), are underrepresented in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields. With the importance of STEM skills in future employment and other disciplines, effective instructional strategies must be identified to enhance early and sustained access to STEM for students with ASD. However, the literature identifying effective STEM-specific supports and practices for this population of students is sparse and regarding engineering, there are no empirical studies that focus on teaching engineering skills to students with ASD. Therefore, the article aims to provide an overview of the available literature on the perspectives …

Supporting Faculty As Writers And Teachers: An Integrative Approach To Educational Development, Jennifer Ahern-Dodson, Monique Dufour

To Improve the Academy: A Journal of Educational Development

In this article, we explore how supporting faculty writers can also help them to become more effective teachers of writing in their disciplines. Based on over ten years of facilitating and studying faculty at our writing retreats, we demonstrate how understanding and improving their own writing experiences can spark insight into their students as writers. Furthermore, we suggest that helping faculty make this “turn to teaching” exemplifies the potential for an integrative model of educational development, one that leverages connections across faculty roles and responsibilities.

Place-Based Educational Development: What Center For Teaching And Learning Spaces Look Like (And Why That Matters), Laura Cruz, Karen Huxtable-Jester, Brian Smentkowski, Martin Springborg

To Improve the Academy: A Journal of Educational Development

This study seeks to explore the physical spaces centers for teaching and learning (CTLs) occupy; with an emphasis on gaining a better picture of what CTL spaces look like; where they are located; how they developed: and what these spaces represent. We gathered visual, empirical, and qualitative data to take the first steps towards developing a shared vision of not only of our physical spaces, but also as a jumping off point for further analysis of the CTL as a meaningful place.

What Really Matters For Instructors Implementing Equitable And Inclusive Teaching Approaches, Tracie Marcella Addy, Philip M. Reeves, Derek Dube, Khadijah A. Mitchell

To Improve the Academy: A Journal of Educational Development

Supporting instructor implementation of equitable and inclusive teaching approaches is a critical area of focus in educational development. However, there is limited empirical evidence on factors that either support or hinder instructors’ implementation of inclusive teaching. The results of this national survey study reveal several predictors of instructors’ utilization of inclusive teaching approaches and reported obstacles faced. For this sample, knowledge of inclusive teaching was a statistically significant predictor of implementation, as was being from a non-STEM discipline. Responses highlighted promising approaches, several of which can inform the efforts of educational developers.

Longitudinal Impact Of Faculty Participation In A Course Design Institute (Cdi): Faculty Motivation And Perception Of Expectancy, Value, And Cost, Cara Meixner, Melissa Altman, Megan Good, Elizabeth Ben Ward

To Improve the Academy: A Journal of Educational Development

Course design institutes (CDIs), which systematically guide faculty through the (re)design of courses, often transpire in an intensive residency or learning community format. Little is known, to date, of the long-term impact of such initiatives, particularly in the context of faculty motivation. This longitudinal study explores changes in faculty attitudes toward teaching, offering insight into the multifaceted gains and limiting factors influencing motivation as conceptualized by the expectancy-value-cost model (Barron and Hulleman, 2015). Findings reveal that CDI engagement bolsters the value placed on teaching, but arrives at a noteworthy cost to faculty. Implications for CTLs and instructional faculty are explored.

Where Are The Students In Efforts For Inclusive Excellence? Two Approaches To Positioning Students As Critical Partners For Inclusive Pedagogical Practices, Alison Cook-Sather, Tracie Marcella Addy, Anna Devault, Nicole Livitskiy

To Improve the Academy: A Journal of Educational Development

Most educational development for inclusive excellence does not draw directly on the experiences and perspectives of students. This article presents two different approaches to positioning undergraduate students as critical partners in developing inclusive pedagogical practices. Co-authored by the directors of and student partners who participated in each approach, the article defines inclusive excellence and inclusive teaching and provides selected examples of partnership work that strives for equity and inclusion. It then describes our different approaches, discusses potential benefits of launching student-faculty partnership work through these approaches, and offers recommendations for developing pedagogical partnership efforts for inclusive excellence at other institutions.

Preparing The Next Generation Of Institutional Leaders: Strategic Supports For Mid-Career Faculty, Vicki Baker, Caroline Manning

To Improve the Academy: A Journal of Educational Development

Calls for leadership development and associated supports for faculty members are growing in prominence in higher education. Yet, traditional leadership development efforts in higher education fail to account for both individual and institutional needs as critical to fostering a leadership pipeline with multiple entry points. This manuscript offers succession management and onboarding as important and necessary steps to facilitating a more deliberate, strategic approach to supporting the next generation of institutional leaders – mid-career faculty members.

#Iteachmsu: Centering An Educator Learning Community (Elc), Erik Skogsberg, Makena Neal, Melissa Mcdaniels, Madeline Shellgren, Patricia Stewart

To Improve the Academy: A Journal of Educational Development

Many scholars recommend preparing faculty for educator roles. Faculty Learning Communities, The Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL), and teaching centers represent common preparatory approaches. But faculty and teaching assistants report time, disciplinary disconnects, and lack of incentives as ongoing barriers. Inspired by K-12’s professional learning networks and “hashtag activism,” the authors’ university launched #iteachmsu. #iteachmsu combines practices of social networking with a digital and in-person teaching “commons.” Through #iteachmsu, the authors hope to further shift campus cultures in the age of COVID-19, centering teaching and learning as a valuable and ongoing focus for an educator learning community (ELC).

Cultivating An Institutional Culture That Values Teaching: Developing A Repository Of Effective Practices, Lindsay Shaw, Jill Grose, Erika Kustra, Lori Goff, Donna Ellis, Paola Borin

To Improve the Academy: A Journal of Educational Development

Educational researchers developed an online repository of effective practices contributing to or enhancing the teaching culture at multiple higher education institutions as part of a larger project exploring institutional teaching culture. The repository was designed to be a companion document to the Institutional Teaching Culture Perception Surveys (ITCPS), a resource for administrators, educational developers, and Centers for Teaching and Learning (CTL) striving to cultivate institutional cultures that support the development of teaching and learning. This paper outlines the methods for developing this repository, summarizes findings, identifies some of the practices included and highlights areas for future development.

Making Scientific And Technical Materials Pervasively Accessible, Jason J.G. White

Journal of Science Education for Students with Disabilities

In this paper, the question is explored of what policies, standards and practices are desirable to ensure that hardware, software and publications in the sciences and associated disciplines are created from the outset to be accessible to people with disabilities. Insight into this question can be obtained by considering the unique accessibility challenges that these materials pose, including complexities of notation, language, and graphical representation.

Having analyzed what sets this problem apart from broader issues of accessibility, the advantages and limitations of current international standards are reviewed, and contemporary developments in standards and policies are considered from a strategic perspective. …

The Perceptions Of Teachers Of Students With Visual Impairments On Students With Visual Impairments And Graphing: How To Teach, Ashley N. Nashleanas Ph.D.

Journal of Science Education for Students with Disabilities

Many gaps exist in what is known around teaching students with visual impairments (SVI) about how to use graphs (Rosenblum et al., 2018; Rosenblum & Herzberg, 2015; Zebehazy & Wilton, 2014a;2014b;2014c). When teachers first experience a student with a visual impairment, some of the questions that come to mind are: How can I be sure this student understands what I am saying about these graphs I show on the board? Will this student be able to keep up? The study herein, based on findings from Author (2018), serves as a guide for teachers to consider in the case that SVI …

Hbcu Administrators And The Covid-19: Dealing With The Pandemic Under The Pressure Of Funding And Self-Care, Jerry Crawford

Journal of Research Initiatives

Historically Black Colleges and University presidents and chancellors have been facing challenges similar to administrators at other institutions of higher learning. These demands center on accreditation, federal and state funding, and enrollment. COVID-19 has heightened each of these essential functions that administrators have as priorities.

There has been a lot of research on the roles and responsibilities of HBCU administrators and how there has been a seemingly revolving door at these institutions, and how many have found them to be more autocratic than inclusive in governance. In addition, the coronavirus pandemic has added to the pressure and expectations administrators must …

Leading Leaders In Rethinking Grading: A Case Study Of Implementation Of Standards-Based Grading In Educational Leadership, Erin E. Lehmann

Journal of Research Initiatives

The purpose of this paper is to share the process of how one university instructor worked toward a shift to standards-based grading (SBG) in a graduate Educational Leadership program. Educational leadership programs use standards to guide coursework and instruction in an accountability era, but grading practices remain as subjective as they were 50 years ago. Educators of future leaders must address this need. In addition, instructors need to effectively communicate essential learning to students to understand their learning progression clearly; standards-based grading is designed to do this. The author shares best practices in grading as well as the challenges of …

Black Women Leaders Professional And Social Experiences In Higher Education: A Review Of The Research Literature, Marian E. Truehill

Journal of Research Initiatives

The purpose of this review of the research literature was to offer a critical take on the current body of research focusing on the aspect of how Black women are affected by their experiences in higher education. Some of the themes discussed in this review include discrimination, social conditions, and lack of advancement in academic institutions. Implications for these issues is discussed and delineated.

Listen To Your Doppelganger! Global Cultural Empathy For Educators: A Literature Review Based Conceptual Model, Papia Bawa Dr.

Journal of Research Initiatives

Our student populations' diversity now includes African Americans, Native Americans, and Latinos, as classrooms represent various cultural backgrounds. This shift in student population dynamics brings fresh challenges to educator's unpreparedness to identify with the unique cultural identities of international students. The cultural dissonance that international students face compounds this challenge since the cultural unawareness and misconceptions may be generated from both educators and student groups. The Doppelganger Inspired Change Effect model or DICE discussed in this article is inspired by an extensive literature review. It elucidates a process of fostering global cultural empathy and preparedness of educators by linking such …

A Student Conduct Administrator’S Journey To Wellness, Corie Amanda Marie Mccallum

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

This dissertation research chronicles my experiences with emotions and learning as a student conduct administrator throughout the arduous process of investigating, becoming, and transforming by engaging sociocultural theory. Grounded in Authentic Inquiry (Tobin, 2006), this research centers my lived-experience and nuances the role of emotions in student affairs and especially student conduct practices. Throughout this dissertation I address themes surrounding reflexivity (Bourdieu, 1992), emotions (Turner, 2002) (Collins, 2004), and self-care. Each chapter is interpretive and impressionistic and represents my thinking as a researcher and conduct administrator. Throughout the chapters I narrate salient events and experiences in my student conduct practice …

Advances In Global Education And Research: Volume 4, Waynne B. James, Cihan Cobanoglu, Muhittin Cavusoglu

University of South Florida (USF) M3 Publishing

This is the fourth volume of the Advances in Global Education and Research Book Series. This volume has the following parts:

• Part 1: Adult Education
• Part 2: Curriculum and Instruction Development
• Part 3: Educational Technology
• Part 4: Education in Other Specialties
• Part 5: English as a Second Language
• Part 6: Global Competence
• Part 7: Higher Education and Educational Leadership
• Part 8: Inclusive Education
• Part 9: International Education
• Part 10: PreK-12
• Part 11: Research Methods in Education

ISBN: 978-1-955833-04-2

Adult Education

• Teaching for knowledge transfer: Best practices from a graduate-level educational psychology distance learning program
  • Bobby Hoffman
• A study on the …

Eyes Wide Shut: Using Accreditation Regulation To Address The “Pass-The-Harasser” Problem In Higher Education, Susan Saab Fortney, Theresa Morris

Faculty Scholarship

The #MeToo Movement cast a spotlight on sexual harassment in various sectors, including higher education. Studies reveal alarming percentages of students reporting that they have been sexually harassed by faculty and administrators. Despite annually devoting hundreds of millions of dollars to addressing sexual harassment and misconduct, nationwide university officials largely take an ostrich approach when hiring faculty and administrators with little or no scrutiny related to their past misconduct. Critics use the term “pass the harasser” or more pejoratively, “pass the trash” to capture the role that institutions play in allowing individuals to change institutions without the new employer learning …

Teacher Professionalism In Light Of Biometric Controls On Teacher Mobility And Autonomy, David L. Knott

The Qualitative Report

In this paper, I investigate the introduction of biometric technology, specifically fingerprint scanners, for the purposes of managing faculty members’ working hours at a higher education institution (HEI) located in the Middle Eastern Gulf States. Utilizing semi-structured interviews to collect qualitative data, three expatriate teachers of English discussed their experiences before and after management installed the fingerprint scanners, discussing the influence such a change has on their professional identities and the additional impacts on their teaching, their identification with the institution, and the overall culture of the HEI. The results show that the existence of the fingerprint scanners adversely affects …

Experiences That Support Persistence And Retention Of Latinx First-Generation College Students (Fgcs) At Community Colleges, Veronica Rios

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this instrumental case study was to describe experiences of successful Latinx first-generation college students that support persistence and retention toward graduation for Latinx first-generation college students at California community colleges. The study was framed using Tinto’s retention theory. Successful Latinx first-generation college students were defined as those who have attained graduation from a California community college. This study focused on Latinx first-generation college students not persisting toward graduation at California community colleges, a situation that extends to the national level. This case study included nine Latinx first-generation college students, and the researcher collected data through virtual semistructured …

Equity By Design And Delivery Model In Online Learning: Educator And Student Perceptions And Behaviors As Leading Indicators Of Systemic Change, Miebeth Bustillo-Booth

Ed.D. Dissertations in Practice

The purpose of this study is to explore educator and student perceptions of and behaviors in the Equity by Design and Delivery (EDD) model and its online courses as leading indicators of systemic change. The EDD model is a pilot intervention to eliminate opportunity to learn gaps at the program level in a mid-sized northwestern college in the United States. It shifts instructional behavior from individual efforts to collective approaches to limit quality variances in online courses, theorized to be a major contributor of missed opportunities to learn at high levels, by developing and delivering reliable quality courses based on …