Completing The Faculty Development Cycle: Using Data From Syllabi Review To Inform Action,
2011
University of the Sciences in Philadelphia
Completing The Faculty Development Cycle: Using Data From Syllabi Review To Inform Action, Phyllis Blumberg
To Improve the Academy: A Journal of Educational Development
Consistent with the mission of the University of the Sciences in Philadelphia, the Teaching and Learning Center has emphasized implementation of learner-centered practices for eight years. To assess the impact of these development efforts, I reviewed syllabi and course approval forms of seventy-two recently approved courses. The documents revealed a disappointing lack of evidence of learner-centered course design features. Voluntary faculty development programming cannot force faculty to change their course designs. However, the results prompted discussions with administrators and faculty and yielded calls to action for greater implementation of learner-centered practices.
Teaching And Learning Together: College Faculty And Undergraduates Cocreate A Professional Development Model,
2011
Bryn Mawr College
Teaching And Learning Together: College Faculty And Undergraduates Cocreate A Professional Development Model, Alison Cook-Sather
To Improve the Academy: A Journal of Educational Development
Most models of professional development assume that faculty learning is the purview of faculty colleagues or teaching and learning center staff. A program at Bryn Mawr College challenges that assumption by inviting undergraduate students to serve as pedagogical consultants to faculty members. Feedback from participants suggests that this approach affords faculty and students an unusual opportunity to coconstruct a more informed model of faculty development, deepens the learning experiences of both faculty and students, and recasts the responsibility for those learning experiences as one that faculty and students share.
Using Students To Support Faculty Development,
2011
Howard University
Using Students To Support Faculty Development, Teresa M. Redd, Carl E. Brown Jr.
To Improve the Academy: A Journal of Educational Development
Howard University’s Center for Excellence in Teaching, Learning, and Assessment (CETLA) provides faculty development for more than fifteen hundred facuity. Yet it is CETLA’s students who make the difference. They are both the motivation for improving teaching and the means to that end. Students have contributed to everything from the design of CETLA’s infrastructure, to the implementation of instructional technologies, to the assessment of student learning. Meanwhile, supporting faculty development has contributed to the students’ own development. A cost-benefit analysis as well as survey data confirms that working with students at CETLA is a win-win opportunity for the university, faculty, …
Distribution And Penetration Of Teaching-Learning Development Units In Higher Education: Implications For Strategic Planning And Research,
2011
Western Kentucky University
Distribution And Penetration Of Teaching-Learning Development Units In Higher Education: Implications For Strategic Planning And Research, Sally Kuhlenschmidt
To Improve the Academy: A Journal of Educational Development
This chapter presents descriptive information about 1,267 U.S. teachinglearning development units (TLDUs). It provides strategic planning and research tools previously unavailable. Results indicate that TLDUs occur in at least 21.2 percent of U.S. higher education institutions, and their presence is correlated at a higher level with student enrollment than with number of faculty. The study provides normative data on the nature of higher education in the United States and on TLDUs by Carnegie classification, location, and type of institution. Additional information is provided about the presence of centers at special-focus institutions such as Hispanic-serving institutions.
Introduction, Volume 30 (2011),
2011
University of North Florida
Introduction, Volume 30 (2011), Judith E. Miller
To Improve the Academy: A Journal of Educational Development
Introduction to volume 30 (2011) of To Improve the Academy: A Journal of Educational Development, by Judith E. Miller of University of North Florida.
Writing Groups For Work-Life Balance: Faculty Writing Group Leaders Share Their Stories,
2011
Alabama State University
Writing Groups For Work-Life Balance: Faculty Writing Group Leaders Share Their Stories, Dannielle Joy Davis, Kara Provost, Amanda E. Major
To Improve the Academy: A Journal of Educational Development
Faculty writing groups can promote both the work-life balance and productivity of members of the professoriate. The benefits of such development initiatives expand beyond productivity to include retention, promotion, and improved teaching. Through the development of writing groups, faculty developers can empower faculty to meet research obligations, establish equilibrium in their work practices, and maintain work-life balance.
Reflecting Together About Tenure And Promotion: A Faculty Learning Community Approach,
2011
Portland State University
Reflecting Together About Tenure And Promotion: A Faculty Learning Community Approach, Leslie G. Mcbride, Janelle Decarrico Voegele
To Improve the Academy: A Journal of Educational Development
What happens when faculty representing various disciplines and career stages reflect together on the tenure and promotion process? How does the learning community they form facilitate development of their academic portfolios, and what insights into various forms of scholarship does it provide? This chapter addresses these questions. It describes the learning community over a five-month period, explains how academic portfolio development was used as a common reference point for addressing tenure and promotion issues, and summarizes insights and perspectives shared among faculty members as they tried to understand the value of diverse forms of scholarship.
The Citizenship Imperative And The Role Of Faculty Development,
2011
Eastern Michigan University
The Citizenship Imperative And The Role Of Faculty Development, Jeffrey L. Bernstein, Rebecca S. Nowacek, Michael B. Smith
To Improve the Academy: A Journal of Educational Development
By teaching the capacity for citizenship across the curriculum, colleges and universities can better serve their role as socially responsive institutions. We argue that citizenship themes can be more central to a wide variety of classes, including some in disciplines not considered traditional homes for civic education. Faculty development centers can play a critical role in helping facuity integrate citizenship into the curriculum and evaluate the learning that occurs in their citizenship-oriented classes. We offer guidelines for how learning communities can best serve these purposes.
Curriculum Revision And Cultural Change: A Joint Faculty Development And Faculty Governance Approach,
2011
California State University, Long Beach
Curriculum Revision And Cultural Change: A Joint Faculty Development And Faculty Governance Approach, Terre H. Allen, David A. Horne, Ingrid M. Martin, Michael E. Solt
To Improve the Academy: A Journal of Educational Development
Typically faculty development is not closely aligned with faculty governance. However, faculty development and faculty governance can find opportunities to work together to achieve transparent, rapid, and systematic curriculum revision and cultural change. Specifically, we describe the process of revision of a master’s of business administration (M.B.A.) curriculum in which faculty development and faculty governance worked together to provide continuous assistance, opportunities for frequent discussion, periodic review, and faculty programming to achieve curriculum and course redesign for integrative learning and integrative teaching practice.
Defining Critical Thinking In Higher Education: Determining Assessment Fit,
2011
University of Massachusetts, Amherst
Defining Critical Thinking In Higher Education: Determining Assessment Fit, Martha L. A. Stassen, Anne Herrington, Laura Henderson
To Improve the Academy: A Journal of Educational Development
Critical thinking is an important learning outcome for higher education, yet the definitions used on campuses and national assessment instruments vary. This article describes a mapping technique that faculty and administrators can use to evaluate the similarities and differences across these definitions. Results demonstrate that the definitions reflected by standardized tests are more narrowly construed than those of the campus and leave dimensions of critical thinking unassessed. This mapping process not only helps campuses make better-informed decisions regarding their responses to accountability pressures; it also provides a stimulus for rich, evidence-based discussions about teaching and learning priorities related to critical …
Working Effectively With Psychologically Impaired Faculty,
2011
Marymount University
Working Effectively With Psychologically Impaired Faculty, Carolyn B. Oxenford, Sally L. Kublenschmidt
To Improve the Academy: A Journal of Educational Development
More than one-fourth of all residents of the United States experience mental health disorders in any given year. Evidence suggests that faculty are more likely to suffer from psychological impairment than the general population. This chapter reviews evidence on faculty stress and impairment and helps facuity developers recognize signs that mental health issues may be affecting faculty performance. It also will help faculty developers understand legal issues in relation to facuity impairment and help them work effectively with colleagues who are coping with psychological impairments.
Difficult Dialogues And Transformational Change Through Cross–Cultural Faculty Development,
2011
University of Alaska, Anchorage
Difficult Dialogues And Transformational Change Through Cross–Cultural Faculty Development, Elizabeth Roderick
To Improve the Academy: A Journal of Educational Development
Across the globe, our current way of life is taking us to the edge of the cliff The systems and consciousness that we have used to try to solve problems are not working. Young people need to think and work in new ways.
Faculty Development As A Hazardous Occupation,
2011
Clemson University
Faculty Development As A Hazardous Occupation, Linda B. Nilson, Edward B. Nuhfer, Bonnie B. Mullinix
To Improve the Academy: A Journal of Educational Development
"Hazardous" describes events and conditions that produce an undesired, involuntary, career-changing disruption of a developer’s professional practice. While faculty development is an immensely valuable asset to an institution that knows how to make use of it, the unique nature off acuity development centers within varied academic institutions brings occupational hazards to those who direct or work in such centers. Our study synthesizes and identifies patterns among over thirty cases furnished by developers, primarily center directors, who experienced career disruptions. We conclude by offering evidence-based counsel on how to recognize the hazards and mitigate damage.
How Mature Teaching And Learning Centers Evaluate Their Services,
2011
Saint Mary’s University of Minnesota
How Mature Teaching And Learning Centers Evaluate Their Services, Susan R. Hines
To Improve the Academy: A Journal of Educational Development
This study investigated facuity development program evaluation practices at thirty-three established, centralized, university-funded teaching and learning centers (TLCs). My prior statewide study (Hines, 2009) revealed that limitations of time, resources, and assessment knowledge resulted in superficial evaluation practices. Since the majority of respondents in the previous study were part-time faculty developers with limited funding and staff, I assumed that established, centralized TLCs would have the knowledge and resources to conduct a more rigorous evaluation. This study reveals that established centralized TLCs have significantly stronger practices for evaluating their services.
Community College Student Engagement Patterns: A Typology Revealed Through Exploratory Cluster Analysis,
2011
University of Texas at Austin
Community College Student Engagement Patterns: A Typology Revealed Through Exploratory Cluster Analysis, Victor B. Sáenz, Deryl K. Hatch, Beth E. Bukoski, Suyun Kim, Kye-Hyoung Lee, Patrick Valdez
Department of Educational Administration: Faculty Publications
This study employs survey data from the Center for Community College Student Engagement to examine the similarities and differences that exist across student-level domains in terms of student engagement in community colleges. In total, the sample used in the analysis pools data from 663 community colleges and includes more than 320,000 students. Using data-mining techniques to discover a parsimonious number of natural clusters and, in turn, a k-means cluster analysis as a means of revealing a naturally occurring typology of engagement patterns, our findings reveal that support service utilization is the most distinguishing feature of the similarities and dissimilarities across …
A Mixed Methods Study Of How The Transition Process Impacts The Autonomy Of Pre-Service Secondary Mathematics Teachers,
2011
University of Nebraska-Lincoln
A Mixed Methods Study Of How The Transition Process Impacts The Autonomy Of Pre-Service Secondary Mathematics Teachers, Linda Kasal Fusco
Department of Educational Administration: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research
This mixed methods study sought to identify the impact that transition into the practice of teaching had on the autonomy of pre-service secondary teachers of Mathematics. It was based on the belief that a Mathematics teacher’s autonomy depended on: beliefs about Mathematics and how it was learned, reflections on the teaching practice, and social constraints of a secondary school culture. Data was collected between January 2009 and March 2010. In Phase I (Quantitative) the participants (N = 30), selected from ten State University of New York teacher preparation colleges and universities, completed five instruments to quantify the three factors of …
Special Education, Poverty, And The Limits Of Private Enforcement,
2011
Georgetown University Law Center
Special Education, Poverty, And The Limits Of Private Enforcement, Eloise Pasachoff
Georgetown Law Faculty Publications and Other Works
This Article examines the appropriate balance between public and private enforcement of statutes seeking to distribute resources or social services to a socioeconomically diverse set of beneficiaries through a case study of the federal special education law, the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). It focuses particularly on the extent to which the Act’s enforcement regime sufficiently enforces the law for the poor. The Article responds to the frequent contention that private enforcement of statutory regimes is necessary to compensate for the shortcomings of public enforcement. Public enforcement, the story goes, is inefficient and relies on underfunded, captured, or impotent …
The Impact Of Inclusion On The Achievement Of Middle School Students With Mild To Moderate Learning Disabilities,
2011
Walden University
The Impact Of Inclusion On The Achievement Of Middle School Students With Mild To Moderate Learning Disabilities, Ruth Carol Hawkins
Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies
According to IDEA and NCLB requirements, students with disabilities are held to the same standards established for nondisabled students. The purpose of this quantitative study was to examine the impact of a special education inclusion program for middle school students with mild to moderate learning disabilities. Student outcomes were measured based on the Tennessee Comprehensive Assessment Program (TCAP) test scores for reading/language and mathematics. The theoretical foundation for this study was Vygotsky's social development theory applied to special education inclusion programs to support learning within the general curriculum for students with mild to moderate learning disabilities. An independent samples t …
Skill Versus Will: An Investigation Of A Relationship Between Motivation To Read, Oral Reading Fluency, And Demographics For Third-Grade Elementary Students,
2011
Walden University
Skill Versus Will: An Investigation Of A Relationship Between Motivation To Read, Oral Reading Fluency, And Demographics For Third-Grade Elementary Students, Stephanie Lee Embrey
Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies
With the demands of the No Child Left Behind legislation to utilize research-based instructional practices and teach all children to read by the end of third grade, teachers find themselves going beyond teachers' editions and curriculum guides to the research on best reading practices. The purpose of this quantitative nonexperimental cross-sectional correlational study was to examine the strength and direction of the relationship between motivation to read, oral reading fluency, and demographics for third-grade elementary students (N=112). An analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) was used to quantitatively analyze archival data to assess the relationship between motivation to read, oral reading fluency, …
Research-Based Characteristics Of Professional Learning Communities At The High School Level,
2011
Walden University
Research-Based Characteristics Of Professional Learning Communities At The High School Level, Rebecca Lindahl
Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies
An educational problem facing high schools in 2 Midwestern school districts is that few local contextual experiences exist for developing professional learning communities that contain research-based characteristics. Identifying such experiences is important to school leaders and teachers. The purpose of this study was to examine 2 local high school professional learning communities to identify research-based characteristics such as practice-based discussions and a focus on learning and results. Constructivism and social change theory provided the theoretical foundation. A single research question sought the presence of research-based characteristics. The characteristics formed the conceptual framework and emerged from many voices in the field. …
