Education Commons^™

Umass-Amherst Open Education Initative: A Grant Incentive Program For Faculty To Create Free Textbooks, Matthew Sheridan, Sarah Hutton, Charles Schweik

Sarah C Hutton

To combat the rising cost of textbooks, the University Libraries and Provost funded ten $1,000 grants for faculty who would replace their current textbook with one that would be openly accessible and free. The end result of this program will see nearly 700 students affected by these new textbooks for a recurring savings of over $72,000. In this session the challenges and opportunities of using open educational resources and library materials to replace traditional print textbooks will be discussed from a faculty point of view, as well as this program’s impact on the student learning experience. Librarians will also have …

Proactively Supporting Active Learning For The 21st Century Learner: Collaborative And Team Based Student Spaces In The Learning Commons, Sarah Hutton, Robert Davis

Sarah C Hutton

No abstract provided.

National Assessment Program : Ict Literacy Technical Report, Eveline Gebhardt, Julian Fraillon, Wolfram Schulz, Kate O'Malley, Chris Freeman, Martin Murphy, John Lindsey

Martin Murphy

This report is concerned with procedures, processes and technical aspects of the National Assessment Program - ICT Literacy 2011 Literacy (NAP - ICTL 2011) and should be read in conjunction with the Public Report from Literacy NAP - ICTL 2011 which focuses on results and interpretation of results from that assessment. The first cycle of the NAP - ICTL was held in 2005 and provided the baseline against which future performance would be compared. The second cycle of the program was conducted in 2008 and was the first cycle where trends in performance were able to be examined.

Finding Leadership For The Internationalization Of U.S. Higher Education, Michael Smithee

Michael B. Smithee

The internationalization of U.S. higher education has depended on leadership from a variety of sources in different strengths and purposes over time. The leadership shifted from President Lyndon Johnson's sponsorship of legislation, as part of a trilogy of legislation known as the Great Society, to a collaborative and at times competitive leadership marked by a struggle to establish international education as legitimate focus for higher education institutions. Leadership came in the form of advocates for international education who were drawn from the stakeholders. These advocates included practitioners, researchers, professional organizations, and alliances. Leader-advocates also contended with philosophical changes in the …

Mapping Uk Eportfolio Developments Within A European Context, Gordon Joyes, Elizabeth Hartnell-Young

Dr Elizabeth Hartnell-Young

This chapter outlines the European context of lifelong learning and educational cooperation across member states and the relationship of eportfolios to current development. It focuses specifically on the priority given to portfolio developments in Higher Education in the UK through reports and policy documents and particularly through the extensive funding distributed via the Joint Information Systems Committee of the Higher Education and Further Education Funding Councils (JISC). The chapter provides an overview of current eportfolio use and points to future trends for technical and pedagogical development, drawing on the extensive JISC project archive, which covers examples from many disciplines and …

Editorial: Social Inclusion--Are We There Yet?, Kimberley Mcmahon Coleman, Alisa Percy, Bronwyn James

Alisa Percy, PhD

This special edition of the Journal of Academic Language and Learning arose out of a Forum titled Critical Discussions about Social Inclusion held at the University of Wollongong, Australia in June 2011. It was organised by academic language and learning educators from five different universities: Ingrid Wijeyewardene from the University of New England, Helen Drury from the University of Sydney, Caroline San Miguel from the University of Technology Sydney, Stephen Milnes from the Australian National University, and ourselves from the University of Wollongong. Initially funded by a grant from the Association for Academic Language and Learning, this funding was later …

Group Of National Experts On The Ahelo Feasibility Study : Engineering Assessment Framework : Ahelo Feasibility Study, Hamish Coates, Sarah Richardson, Jacob Pearce, Julian Fraillon

Dr Jacob Pearce

This AHELO Engineering Assessment Framework describes and illustrates the domain of engineering competency that is used in the AHELO Feasibility Study. The framework gives an organisational structure for the domain in terms of engineering knowledge, processes and contexts; describes the types of assessment items that have been developed; and details how reporting will be carried out. - p.4

Poverty Reduction And Vincentian Higher Education Institutions, Marco Tavanti, Craig Mousin

Craig B. Mousin

Dr. Marco Tavanti and Craig Mousin discuss with Dr. Scott Kelly the university's responsibility for poverty reduction as expressed in the conferences and special number of Vincentian Heritage "What would Vincent do? Vincentian Higher Education and Poverty Reduction"

A Preliminary Report On Non-Faculty Bargaining At Colleges And Universities - 1993, Richard Hurd, Elizabeth O'Leary

Richard W Hurd

[Excerpt] Although we will present more detailed data in subsequent sections, we would like to present a few key pieces of information here. Public sector campuses are substantially more likely to be unionized than private sector, with 55.7% of public and 16.8% of private reporting one or more non-faculty bargaining units. Geographically, non-faculty unionization is notably more prevalent in the Northeast, the Midwest and on the Pacific coast than elsewhere. Among non-faculty employees, there are notable variations in unionization rates. Approximately 43.8% of blue collar employees are unionized (substantially more than reported two years ago), compared to approximately 31.1% of …

Online Teaching: Recent Perceptions Of Faculty At A Doctoral Research University, Charles Hodges, Raleigh Way, Sonya Shepherd

Sonya S. Gaither

As learning moves into a more innovative and technological environment, it becomes increasingly important that library education continues to adapt and understand the resources that are available.

Advancing Library Education: Technological Innovation and Instructional Design aims to provide relevant theoretical frameworks, empirical research, and new understandings for those interested in Library and Information Science and the impact new techniques and technologies are having in this area. Librarians, academics, and researchers will benefit from this careful look into current advancements in their field.

Pad-Agogy: A Quasi-Experimental And Ethnographic Pilot Test Of The Ipad In A Blended Mobile Learning Environment, Jeffrey Brand, Shelley Kinash

Jeffrey Brand

Does student use of mobile technologies make a difference to their learning? Many educators make this claim. This research will test and report the learning outcomes, technology orientations, attitudes, times on task & exposure frequencies with iPad tablet computers and make comparisons of these groups using other mobile devices and groups not using mobile devices. Methods include a quasi-experiment and design-based research (DBR) and ethnography. Participants will be 150 students over 2 semesters randomly assigned to rotating a comparison group using a traditional bound textbook and regular access to a Blackboard subject site, another comparison group using their existing mobile …

'It Happened Just Like We Talked About' : Using Scenarios To Develop Professional Identity In Pre-Service Teachers, Ruth Hickey, Pauline Taylor

Associate Professor Pauline Taylor-Guy

Indigenous Literacy Policy Implementation In Queensland Schools : An Evaluation, Pauline Taylor

Associate Professor Pauline Taylor-Guy

Using Scenarios To Train Peer Mentors Online, Jenny Worsley, Pauline Taylor

Associate Professor Pauline Taylor-Guy

The Spectre Of Class: Educating And Advising For Self-Efficacy, Mikaila Arthur

Mikaila Mariel Lemonik Arthur

In her essay “The Spectre of Class: Educating and Advising for Self-Efficacy” Mikaila Mariel Lemonik Arthur discusses the importance of building student self-efficacy. However, as Arthur points out, creating an environment where students believe in their capabilities to learn and perform at a particular level is deeply influenced by one’s class background. As Arthur states, “These students have grown up in a culture that values individualism and places responsibility for success and blame for failure squarely on the shoulders of each person.” Arthur speaks more generally about creating self-efficacy and offers insight in how to maneuver around and transcend the …

Poverty Reduction And Vincentian Higher Education Institutions, Marco Tavanti, Craig Mousin

Marco Tavanti

Dr. Marco Tavanti and Craig Mousin discuss with Dr. Scott Kelly the university's responsibility for poverty reduction as expressed in the conferences and special number of Vincentian Heritage "What would Vincent do? Vincentian Higher Education and Poverty Reduction"

The Power Of A Promise: Education And Economic Renewal In Kalamazoo, Michelle Miller-Adams

Michelle Miller-Adams

In the first comprehensive account of the Kalamazoo Promise, Michelle Miller-Adams addresses both the potential and challenges inherent in place-based universal scholarship programs and explains why this unprecedented experiment in education-based economic renewal is being emulated by scores of cities and towns around the nation.

Fulfilling The Dream : An Online Early Childhood Teacher Education Course, Pauline Taylor

Associate Professor Pauline Taylor-Guy

Education Research With Electronic Focus Groups, Kathryn Moyle, R Fitzgerald

Professor Kathryn Moyle

An emerging trend in education research methods is to integrate digital technologies into the research process. Electronic focus groups represent one such innovation. Drawing on four examples of research and practice undertaken using a synchronous, digital system, this chapter reflects on how an innovative tool can assist in focus group research in the fields of school and higher education. The examples presented illustrate how some of the theoretical, practical and ethical problems that have arisen with traditional approaches to focus groups research can be overcome. It is anticipated that reflecting on such experiences and building upon the findings of these …

Immigration Dialogue: The Immigrant In Our Midst, Theron Ford, Jen Merritt

Theron N Ford

No abstract provided.

When Two Universities Meet : Fostering Research Capacity Among Early Career Researchers, Kathy Mann, Kathryn Moyle, Andrea Reupert, Jane Wilkinson, Gary Woolley

Professor Kathryn Moyle

Between one-third and one-half of all presently employed academics will reach retirement age in the next decade. A challenge facing universities in this current environment is to continue to sustain their research capacities. Policy-makers and universities have developed various strategies to support ongoing development of different cohorts within the broader research community. One strategic approach has been to foster the research capabilities of Early Career Researchers (ECRs). This paper describes and analyses the features of one promising program collaboratively developed to support ECRs from education faculties within the University of Canberra and Charles Sturt University. The program was initiated by …

The Impact Of Eportfolios On Learning, Elizabeth Hartnell-Young, Colin Harrison, Charles Crook, Gordon Joyes, Lindsay Davies, Tony Fisher, Richard Pemberton, Angela Smallwood

Dr Elizabeth Hartnell-Young

This report presents the potential impact of e-portfolios on learning and teaching. It is based on case studies of eight projects that are in the early stages of e-portfolio use within the primary, secondary, further education (FE), higher education (HE) and adult and community learning (ACL) sectors. The report is primarily aimed at policy-makers. Harnessing Technology: Transforming Learning and Children’s Services, the e-strategy published by the DfES in 2005, sets a target of providing a ‘personalised online learning space for every learner that can encompass a personal portfolio’; this should be available to every school by 2008 (DfES, 2005). In …

Increasing The Economic Development Benefits Of Higher Education In Michigan, Timothy Bartik

Timothy J. Bartik

No abstract provided.

The Effect Of Test-Taker Sex, Audience And Topic On Task Performance In Tape-Mediated Assessment Of Speaking, Tom Lumley, Barry O'Sullivan

Dr Tom Lumley

There is growing interest in the effect on candidate performance of characteristics of the interlocutor in tests of speaking. A range of variables associated with the interlocutor may cause systematic variation in linguistic performance, and consequently in scores awarded. This paper hypothesises that there may be effects on performance attributable to an interaction of these variables; in the present study, the task topic, the sex of the person presenting the topic and the sex of the candidate. This investigated in the context of a tape-mediated test of speaking, where no interlocutor is actually present; instead, stimulus material is presented by …

Ethical Dilemmas Of Intellectual Property Policies At Sreb Institutions, Diana Sanders, Sonya Shepherd

Sonya S. Gaither

No abstract provided.

Patterns Of Participation In Year 12 And Higher Education In Australia : Trends And Issues, Gary Marks, Nicole Fleming, Michael Long, Julie Mcmillan

Nicole Wernert

The report examines participation in education in Australia. It addresses several policy and conceptual issues relevant to educational participation. These include rurality, ethnicity, Indigenous status, socioeconomic background, part-time work, individual schools, and psychological factors.

Measuring Student Knowledge And Skills : The Pisa 2000 Assessment Of Reading, Mathematical And Scientific Literacy, Andreas Schieicher, Claudia Tamassia, Geoff Masters, Ray Adams

Prof Ray Adams

Implications For Higher Education Of A Competency-Based Approach To Education And Training, John Bowden, Geoff Masters

Prof Geoff Masters AO

This report presents a summary of the data collected by the project, and an analysis, using a view of competence through a relational model, of some of the issues that emerged. The authors suggest that universities, the professions, employers and the community have much to gain from the activities of the past few years concerned with the development of competency-based standards by the professions, although they do not believe that a full-blown competency-based approach to education will become dominant in university courses.

Postsecondary Education As Triage: Returns To Academic And Technical Programs, Kevin Hollenbeck

Kevin Hollenbeck

No abstract provided.

Fundraising And Ethics, Harlan Stelmach

Harlan Stelmach