Digital Commons Network^™

Part-Time Faculty In Higher Education, Carla Weiss, Robert Pankin

Faculty Publications

At this writing (Fall 2011), two-thirds of the faculty in higher education are contingent part-time or full-time. Only one-third of the faculty is tenured or on the tenure-track. This selected, annotated bibliography is organized by year of publication, from 1977 to 2010. (An earlier version was published in 2008). It is the purpose of this publication to facilitate understanding of the meaning and implications of this major change in the structure of higher education. The annotations in the bibliography were written from the perspective of a part-time faculty member, unlike most of the literature, which is written from a management …

Urban Early Adolescent Narratives On Sexuality, Linda Charmaraman, Corinne Mckamey

Faculty Publications

In this paper, we examine the ways that early adolescents talked, interacted, and made references to events in their individual and collective lives during photography-based focus groups about sexuality and relationships. Twenty-three participants (10 boys and 13 girls) were recruited from three urban schools participating in a comprehensive sex education impact evaluation in the Northeast. We analyzed conversational narratives that were elicited in a group process while sharing photos of important people, contexts, and situations, showcasing participants' exploration of sexuality and relationships. Our analysis revealed four main themes: (a) Direct and indirect family communication about sexuality, (b) Accidental and intentional …

Characteristics And Predictors Associated With Teacher And Faculty Use Of Online Data Collection In Teacher Preparation Settings, Susan Gracia

Faculty Publications

The purpose of this study was to examine some of the gaps in the research around the use of online surveys in teacher preparation settings by exploring the attitudes toward technology and online evaluations, as well as predictors of user assessment of online data collection methodology, among 222 College Supervisors and Cooperating Teachers. Research questions centered around the status of and relationships among College Supervisor/Cooperating Teacher demographic variables, level of computer experience, computer proficiency, attitude toward technology, perceived ease of use, perceived usefulness, facilitating conditions, and overall assessment of online student teacher evaluations. Findings indicated that Cooperating Teachers experienced far …

What Do We Want Them To Want To Do? , Alexander M. Sidorkin

Faculty Publications

A significant body of research in psychology demonstrates how extrinsic rewards undermine intrinsic motivation of students. The conceptual weakness of the notion of intrinsic motivation makes the research findings at least suspect, and for sure excessively generalized. The research is often used to argue against compensating students for their academic work. It contributed to expansion of false beliefs about the possibility of significant increase of intrinsic learning motivation. These beliefs are grounded in several false assumptions: 1. The assumption of abundant curiosity; or a belief that children are all motivated to learn everything that is offered to them. It is …

The Face Of Society, Roger D. Clark, Alex Nunes

Faculty Publications

We have updated Ferree and Hall's (1990) study of the way gender and race are constructed through pictures in introductory sociology textbooks. Ferree and Hall looked at 33 textbooks published between 1982 and 1988. We replicated their study by examining 3,085 illustrations in a sample of 27 textbooks, most of which were published between 2002 and 2006. We found important areas of progress in the presentation of both gender and race as well as significant areas of stasis. The face of society we found depicted in contemporary textbooks was distinctly less likely to be that of a white man, very …

The Student Error, Alexander M. Sidorkin

Faculty Publications

This essay is an analysis of what one might call the student error. The aim is to understand where the error comes from, and what truth about education and schooling can it reveal. I will also consider some implications of such a truth.

Panopticon Of The Second Kind, Alexander M. Sidorkin

Faculty Publications

Era of Excellence is a period of educational reforming in the United States from 1980 until now; in all likelihood, it will extend into the future. The name applies to a _generation of educational policies intended to enhance student learning._ This paper uses Michel Foucault_s general framework to report on an important innovation in the political economy of power, and suggest possible strategies of resistance. This is not a case of Foucault scholarship; my intentions are limited to use of his concepts and do not include a fuller understanding or a new interpretation of his work.

Student Labor And Evolution Of Education, Alexander M. Sidorkin

Faculty Publications

Schooling in its contemporary form is but one particular phase of a technology of teaching. Although most social animals can transmit significant knowledge to their young, humans have developed a process of conscious separation of important knowledge from unimportant. While human babes possess significant capacity and powerful instinct to learn, teaching is a way of channeling this ability into carefully selected sets of knowledge, skills, and attitudes.

Balancing Yin And Yang, Roger D. Clark, Angela Lang

Faculty Publications

The first three-quarters of the semester flew by. We learned about quantitative data analysis and I loved it. I really enjoyed the numerical manipulations and seeing how it all related to people. Everything was there in front of me. Not too much imagination on my part was really needed. Then it all ended. Professor Clark introduced qualitative methods and the anxiety began. I soon realized I had to reinvent my creative side, which is something that as an undergraduate I am not required to do very often. I was nervous that I would discover that I was not creative at …

Staff Development Strategies And Contexts Associated With Positive Impacts On Teachers_ Attitudes And Practices, Susan Gracia

Faculty Publications

The purpose of this study was to identify staff development strategies, organizational contexts, and teacher characteristics that were associated with positive impacts on teachers_ attitudes and practices. The study focused on 89 elementary teachers in 11 schools across 5 districts, all of whom participated in a state-sponsored staff development project during the 1999/2000 academic year. This staff development initiative was designed to assist teachers in acquiring the knowledge and skills necessary to develop and implement standards-based math instruction and assessment in their classrooms.

Using surveys, interviews, and written teacher logs, data were gathered regarding the amounts and types of staff …

Toward A Pedagogy Of Relation, Alexander M. Sidorkin

Faculty Publications

One of the main intellectual trends in American educational philosophy could be described as a shift from the pedagogy of behavior to the pedagogy of relation. Not a widely used term, pedagogy of relation nevertheless captures the shared intent of otherwise widely diverse group of writers. It is mainly, but not exclusively, associated with feminist thinkers like Nel Noddings, Jane R. Martin, and Carol Gilligan. Among non-feminists, one can mention a group of philosophers who support one or another form of proceduralism (often inspired by Jurgen Habermas), Gert Biesta_s communicative pedagogy, and Frank Margonis and his relational ontology.

Authoritarianism And Education In Soviet Schools, Alexander M. Sidorkin

Faculty Publications

Here is a perfectly plausible theory, even more so as the two last American presidents seemingly supported it. Once upon a time there were two military and ideological blocks: the Western democracies and Communist totalitarianism. They fought the Cold war, which the Western block has won, and the Communist block has lost. Two main strategies greatly contributed to the fall of the Communism: an arms race that exhausted Soviet economic power, and an ideological struggle that weakened the Soviet regime from inside. If this is true, American governments may rightfully claim credit for the victory. Moreover, if this is true, …

Academic Motivation And Youth-Culture Involvement, John A. Finger Jr.

Faculty Publications

The increased pressure for enrolment forces more and more colleges to be selective in their admissions procedures. This selection is customarily achieved through the use of aptitude tests combined with a student's high school record. Students are therefore selected on two bases: intelligence and academic motivation, for high school record is one index of the latter. As a result, admission is denied to students with low academic motivation.