Digital Commons Network^™

Pedagogy Of Belonging: Pausing To Be Human In Higher Education, Narelle Lemon

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

Valuing care and self-care in higher education requires a conscious pause and rethinking of how we are together as educators and students. The pandemic caused various complexities, including changes in curriculum delivery, deadlines, and assessment modes, leading to feelings of overwhelm, anxiety, and change fatigue, which contributed to the emergence of panicgogy. This paper argues for the need to disrupt this way of being and experiencing the pandemic through valuing humanity and repositioning self-care and care by and for academics to inform their pedagogy. Presented is the narrative and the design story behind Pedagogy of Belonging (PoB), a systems informed …

Student Evaluation Of Teaching: Reactions Of Australian Academics To Anonymous Non-Constructive Student Commentary, Marie Hutchinson, Rosanne Coutts, Debbie Massey, Dima Nasrawi, Jann Fielden, Megan Lee, Richard Lakeman

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

Within Australian higher education, student evaluation of teaching (SET) is regularly conducted and data are utilised for quality control and staff appraisal. Within current methodologies, students can anonymously provide further feedback as written commentary. There is now growing evidence that, once this narrative becomes derogatory or abusive, it may have the potential to create harm. To investigate staff reactions to receiving anonymous non-constructive commentary, a one group point in time design was constructed, and a survey conducted. Participants (N = 741) from a broad cross-section of Australian universities responded to Likert questions asking about their reactions. A significant impact was …

International Café: A Collaborative Approach To International Student Wellbeing And Support, Yohann Devezy, Braden Hill, Liz Beresford, Rose Williams, Shirley Farr, Em Readman, Clair Mermejo

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

Prior to 2020, ongoing discourse in the higher education sector underscored the increasingly complex mental health and wellbeing challenges faced by students. The “post-COVID-19” period witnessed a resurgence of international students arriving in Western Australia. Emerging cost of living pressures, accommodation shortages, and changing visa work hours have amplified the distinct challenges international students encounter, prompting renewed discussions surrounding a need for effective support interventions. Drawing inspiration from successful initiatives at Edith Cowan University, Murdoch University introduced the Murdoch International Café—a program focused on providing distinct spaces of support for international students. This supportive environment enables social connection, effective information …

Student Motivations, Perceptions And Opinions Of Participating In Student Evaluation Of Teaching Surveys: A Scoping Review, Daniel Sullivan, Richard Lakeman, Debbie Massey, Dima Nasrawi, Marion Tower, Megan Lee

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

Several times each year the teaching performance of academics at higher education institutions are evaluated through anonymous, online student evaluation of teaching (SET) surveys. Universities use SETs to inform decisions about staff promotion and tenure, but low student participation levels make the surveys impractical for this use. This scoping review aims to explore student motivations, perceptions and opinions of SET survey completion. Five EBSCO® databases were searched using key words. Thematic analysis of a meta-synthesis of qualitative findings derived from 21 papers identified five themes: (i) the value students’ place on SET, (ii) the knowledge that SET responses are acted …

Effects Of Synchronous And Asynchronous Online Instructional Approaches On English-Learning Undergraduate College Students: An Exploratory Study, Ivana Markova, Cristina Azocar

Journal of English Learner Education

Although the significance of the use of online classes remains evident due to their growing prevalence at US universities, they still remain an untested experience for countless English learners (ELs). This research explores EL students’ perceptions of the opportunities for interaction in synchronous and asynchronous online university classroom modalities. It also examines how socioacademic relations and Bandura’s social learning theory can explain the interactions between students and instructors that influence EL students’ literacy development. Participants (n=105) were selected from a large sample pool of 261 EL undergraduate student participants aged 18 to 35. A mixed methods design was …

Role Modeling As A Computing Educator In Higher Education: A Focus On Care, Emotions And Professional Competencies, Virginia Grande, Paivi Kinnunen, Anne Kahtrin Peters, Matthew Barr, Asa Cajander, Mats Daniels, Amari N. Lewis, Mihaela Sabin, Matilde Sanchez-Pena, Neena Thota

Applied Engineering and Sciences Scholarship

This paper provides insights into role modeling by educators in computing that is beyond the technical, theoretical and rational perspectives which have historically been described as dominant in computing. Surveying 199 educators in higher education, we have built on frameworks of role modeling, care, emotions, and professional competencies as a lens to see different ways of engaging in computing.

Our quantitative and qualitative findings show how educators model ways of caring (for oneself, other humans and living species, technology, and the planet), emotions, professional competencies and other types of role modeling. Examples of contexts within computing and reasons why an …

A Phenomenological Study Of African-American Students' Spiritual And Identity Development At Predominantly White Institutions, Jeffery Clayton Smith Ii

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this transcendental phenomenological study is to document the lived experiences of African American (AA) students attending predominantly White institutions (PWI’s). The importance of capturing these experiences is to better understand how PWIs are properly equipped to serve the needs of their AA students. This study describe how AA students are experiencing spiritual and identity development while they are enrolled at a PWI. The two guiding theories of this study are Fowler’s Faith Development Theory and Erikson’s Identity Development Theory. These guiding theories have been paired together to address students’ spiritual development during their emerging adulthood years. The …

Understanding Student Experiences Of College Mental Health-Related Resources And Policies Since The Covid-19 Pandemic: A Qualitative Study, Donna Aron Sepulveda-Shelton

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this qualitative study was to understand the experiences regarding mental health-related resources and policies since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic for undergraduate students at higher education institutions in northern Georgia. The theory guiding this study is Bandura’s social cognitive theory, as it explores motivators and factors for human behavior and attitude. A phenomenological research design was used to determine common themes among college students enrolled in higher education institutions in northern Georgia before and throughout the entirety of the COVID-19 pandemic. The higher education institutions were within an 80-mile radius, as these colleges were required to …

A Case Study Of Transformational Leadership Practices Utilized To Increase National Rankings Of An Hbcu Through Strategic Planning, Titilayo B. Evans

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this single instrument case study was to explore the transformational leadership practices utilized by university leaders in the implementation of a strategic plan first executed in 2011 at Pride University, a pseudonym used for the setting of the study, a Historically Black College or University (HBCU). The central research question of this study was, “How were transformational leadership strategies utilized in the execution of the strategic plan implemented at Pride University?” Over the years, transformational leadership has been commonly embraced by organizations and has worked well for leaders and followers alike. Although there has been much research …

Canadian And Iranian Graduate Students’ Conceptions Of Critical Thinking: A Comparative Study, Farzaneh Ojaghi Shirmard

Journal of Comparative & International Higher Education

This study compares Canadian and Iranian international students’ conceptions of critical thinking during their graduate studies in Canada. Critical thinking is an essential skill in Canadian higher education. It enables students to make reasoned judgments from their observations and experimentation. This narrative inquiry using open-ended interviews describes the narratives of eight students from different master’s programs at a university in western Canada to examine their experiences and notions of critical thinking. The preliminary findings reveal that while all Canadian participants had knowledgeable perspectives about critical thinking, Iranian participants required more knowledge to build their critical thinking conceptualizations. Moreover, content knowledge, …

The Role Of Academic Mobility In The (De)Construction Of Internationalization: Dialogues And Perspectives From, In And On Global South & Global North, Ana Rachel M. Mendes

Journal of Comparative & International Higher Education

International mobility has played a central role in the views, policies, and actions of internationalization of higher education, despite representing a highly excluding, elitist process with flows that tend to reinforce asymmetrical relationships and colonial domination by the Global North of the Global South. Therefore, this study seeks to investigate how the international mobility is related to the construction of internationalization. To this end, the views of students and professors participating in the academic mobility of one university in Brazil, the Global South, and another in Spain, the Global North, will be analyzed through interviews and later they will be …

Introduction: 14(6) 2022: Emerging Scholars Issue

Journal of Comparative & International Higher Education

No abstract provided.

Developing A Healthy Masculinities Program On A University Campus, David A. Scott, Freeman Woolnough, Tony W. Cawthon

New York Journal of Student Affairs

Amid increased concerns about mental health, sexual violence, and substance use among college students, college campuses are looking toward developing targeted programming to help counteract these concerning trends. This practitioner paper highlights the development and impacts of a program at a Canadian institution, which focuses on healthy masculinity and identity development. Although still in the early stages, the feedback and observations are indicative of the powerful potential of this type of programming to improve healthy masculinity on college campuses.

Spatial Metaphors In Introductory Statements Of Humanities And Stem Disciplines: A Study Of English And Mechanical Engineering Departments, Olalekan T. Adepoju

Publications and Research

Advances in higher education, specifically in science and technology, have engendered a significant shift of interest from a mainly liberal arts curriculum to STEM-related fields of study, creating a rift in the value systems undergirding the two academic domains. One of the ways the disciplinary disparity is institutionally expressed is through the language used in describing the core values of these disciplines, specifically in the introductory statements of departments. Using the lens of spatial metaphor to consider how the language expresses distinct realities that align with the public perceptions of the disciplines, this paper examines the metaphorical framings in the …

The Effectiveness Of Project-Based Learning On Emirati Undergraduate Students In A Microbiology Course, Carole Ayoub Moubareck

All Works

Purpose: A composting project was introduced into an undergraduate microbiology course, to evaluate its efficacy against traditional lecturing for teaching environmental sustainability. Design/methodology/approach: The research project was a semester-long intervention. Three groups of students participated in the study: a group of 47 female undergraduate students were involved in a composting project, a group of 43 female students were exposed to a traditional lecture and a group of 34 students were the control group. A pretest and a posttest were used, along with poster presentations for the composting project students. In addition, a questionnaire was used to examine students' attitudes toward …

A Phenomenological Study Of Collegiate Recovery Leadership, Marni Goldberg

Teacher Education, Educational Leadership & Policy ETDs

Due to the marginalized status of the population they serve, collegiate recovery programs are generally underfunded and employ one staff member who typically holds other job tasks in addition to those of collegiate recovery leader. The consequence of the varied nature by which collegiate recovery programs are founded and implemented is inconsistency, which can threaten the longevity of the field. The purpose of this phenomenological study was to elicit information directly from collegiate recovery leaders to gain a deeper understanding of their lived experience, in order to determine how to best serve and support higher education students in recovery from …

How Universities Use Twitter To Communicate About Mental Health, Sarah Elizabeth Polhill

Theses and Dissertations

From a sample of over three million tweets from universities in the US, we described the characteristics of universities' communication about mental health on Twitter, including common keywords, bigrams, linked resources, and hashtags, as well as the frequency of dialogic communication and mental health tweets over time, especially in the context of the COVID-19 Pandemic. This study uses data mining to collect tweets from official university Twitter accounts and selected accounts of university wellness and counseling programs. Relevant tweets were collected from a large sample using keywords and bigrams relevant to mental health from the Twitter accounts of IACS accredited …

The Effects Of Professional Experience On Ethical Profiles Of Housing And Residence Life Staff, Sirena L. Cantrell, Sirena L. Cantrell

Theses and Dissertations

The intent of this study was to explore and understand the effects of professional experience on the ethical profiles of housing and residence life staff. Through a survey design, this study used the Managerial Ethical Profile (MEP) to analyze the professional experience of members of the Association of College and University Housing Officers – International (ACUHO-I). The MEP scale measures the range of influences on respondents and describes the major tendencies by placing respondents in ethical profiles. Results from this study indicated that professional experience does influence respondent ethical profiles. This study contributes to the field of higher education by …

A Transcendental Phenomenological Study Exploring The Perception Of Scholarship Requirements For Tenure And Promotion In Health Professions Programs, Harrynauth Persaud

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this study is to explore the perception of scholarship requirements for faculty members teaching in Health Professions Programs (HPP) at a public institution of higher learning located in NYC. This research was guided by the self-determination theory (SDT), which examines how an individual's social interaction can influence different types of motivations. Guided by a central research question and two sub-questions, this study utilized a transcendental phenomenological approach to gain a better understanding of HPP faculty perceptions regarding the requirements for academic scholarship. Three different data collection approaches were used, including individual in-depth interviews, word association, and journal …

Faculty Senate Meeting Minutes Dec 2, 2022, A-State Faculty Senate

Faculty Senate Minutes

Meeting minutes for the Faculty Senate held on December 2, 2022.

Singapore Management University Report To Stakeholders 2021/2022, Singapore Management University

Report to Stakeholders

The title of the annual report, “Our Evolving Garden”, points to how the University continues to develop and progress as “One SMU”. With the world now learning to live with COVID-19 as endemic, the last year has been one in which SMU students have been able to resume many of the activities that contribute towards providing a transformative education. For example, they were able to attend many more events on campus and to travel overseas for internships, exchanges, and community service projects. Faculty too were able to attend academic conferences and meet with educational partners, business connections and research associates …

Presidential Perceptions Concerning Human Capital In College Student Enrollment And Persistence, David V. Tolliver Iii, Michael T. Miller, Daniel P. Nadler

Journal of Research on the College President

With a declining population of traditional college aged students, institutions must find both new student groups to recruit and do a better job at retaining them. One obvious pool for institutions to consider are first-generation students who do not have family traditions of going to college. This population, along with others, require institutions to understand the personal development of young adults and the factors that might lead to their college enrollment. The purpose for conducting the study was to identify how college presidents perceive the importance of human capital capacity for college students in their decision to enroll in college. …

Presidents And The Campus Mental Health Crisis: Challenges, Options, And Strategy, Charles P. Ruch, Kenneth M. Coll

Journal of Research on the College President

The COVID-19 pandemic has impacted every institution of higher education differently. It is recognized that a return to pre-pandemic institutional life is no longer possible. Presidential leadership is being required to reposition the institution to face this new era. One of the most vexing results of the pandemic is the emergence of student, faculty and staff mental health and wellness as a priority issue. Upon examination, the campus mental health crisis encompasses most aspects of campus life. The purpose of this review is threefold: 1) to illuminate the impact of campus mental health and wellness issues 2) to outline institutional …

Full Issue: 14(5s) 2022: Emerging Scholars Issue

Journal of Comparative & International Higher Education

No abstract provided.

Exploring Culturally Relevant Responses To Latinx Student Mental Health, Sarah Elizabeth Herrera

Social Work Dissertations - Archive

Social workers have an ethical obligation to challenge systemic oppression. Within the context of Latinx college students, there are many systemic barriers that negatively impact their mental health. Previous research focuses on identifying individual characteristics among Latinx students that promote academic success and psychological wellbeing. However, it is important to hold postsecondary education accountable for creating more inclusive environments that welcome the increased enrollment of Latinx students. The following dissertation explores culturally relevant responses to Latinx college student mental health. The first article is a qualitative interpretive meta-synthesis that explores how Latinx-specific programming shapes ethnic identity and psychological wellbeing among …

Open Educational Resources And Institutional Repositories: Roles, Challenges, And Opportunities For Libraries, James Hutson, Susan Edele, Elizabeth Macdonald, Paul Huffman, Nancy Messina, Maggie Pavone, Carla Mueller, Gabriela Romero

Faculty Scholarship

The adoption of digital-born, Open Educational Resources (OER) has been proven to improve student retention and learning outcomes, and OER has the flexibly to support multiple modalities of instruction. Institutional Repositories are uniquely situated to act as a platform to support and distribute content that can be created collaboratively between faculty researchers as well as students. However, faculty are still largely hesitant to adopt OER sources for a variety of reasons, not least among them being a lack of exposure and understanding of the potential benefits for both faculty and students in keeping curriculum affordable, up-to-date, and nimble through media-rich, …

Advancing Women For The Presidency In Higher Education: Communication Competencies And Gender, Maria Dwyer, Surabhi Sahay

Journal of Research on the College President

The typical image of the academic president is shifting, with women occupying more presidential offices at colleges and universities, constituting an upward trend toward gender equity. An analysis of communication competencies and behaviors of academic presidents and governing board members in the context of hiring was conducted via interviews and surveys. Universities and colleges in the U.S. that had recently hired new presidents were sampled. Communication skills were identified as important factors that influenced board member’s perceptions of the candidates.

The Pacifican December 2022, University Of The Pacific

All Issues - Student Newspaper, The Pacifican, Pacific Weekly

No abstract provided.

Evidence Of Emotional Intelligence In College Presidents’ Public Writing: Does Their Emotional Intelligence Change Over Time?, Karen Powers Liebhaber

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Higher education (HIED) presidents face a wide variety of competing demands and pressures. High emotional intelligence (EI) has been found to be effective in good leadership, but few studies exist which examine HIED presidents’ EI. This quantitative growth model study attempted to expand the understanding of EI and its source of change among HIED presidents. Several conceptualizations link together in this study to better understand HIED presidents’ EI. First, higher EI has been linked to strong leadership and strong communication. Studies show EI can change over time and EI is associated with certain demographic factors. Further, language, particularly written language, …

Introduction: 14(5) 2022: Independent And Special Issue, Rosalind Latiner Raby

Journal of Comparative & International Higher Education

No abstract provided.