Education Commons^™

Promoting And Retaining Minorities In Technology, Soumia Ichoua

Soumia Ichoua

This paper presents an on-going research project which is motivated by the lack of minorities in technology fields. This shortage typically results in stereotypes amongst minority students and is likely to prevent them from effectively competing with others. The problem motivated us to encourage middle school students to dispel stereotypes and embrace technology fields by engaging them in hands-on activities that initiate them to programming and Robotics. Students are also introduced to various aspects of the IT field including HTML and Microsoft Office. Surveys are used to measure the students’ attitudes and knowledge about technology before and after the program.

Inclusive And Catholic: Challenging The Myth With Reality, Nasser A. Razek

Nasser A Razek

The Aging Of The American Law Professoriate, David Barnhizer

David Barnhizer

A recent (rather tasteless) article argued: “Professors approaching 70 … have an ethical obligation to step back and think seriously about quitting. If they do remain on the job, they should at least openly acknowledge they’re doing it mostly for themselves.” In “The Forever Professors: Academics Who Don’t Retire Are Greedy, Selfish, and Bad For Students”, the insensitive author added: “the number of professors 65 and older more than doubled between 2000 and 2011.” The author’s most intellectually savage comments were that: “faculty who delay retirement harm students, who in most cases would benefit from being taught by someone younger …

The Hidden Curriculum: Candidate Diversity In Educational Leadership Preparation., Zorka Karanxha, Vonzell Agosto, Aarti A. Bellara

Vonzell Agosto

The authors describe a process of self-assessment attuned to equity and justice in the policies and practices that affect student diversity, namely, those associated with the selection of candidates. The disproportionate rate of rejection for applicants from underrepresented groups and the unsystematic process of applicant selection operated as hidden curriculum affecting the opportunities for the program to enhance meaningful relationships among diverse groups of students. The authors describe institutional and sociopolitical conditions, and individual actions reflecting a faculty’s will to policy. Faculty efforts supported and challenged systemic change to increase racial and ethnic diversity among aspiring educational administrators.

Attracting Black Male Students To Research Careers In Education: A Report From The Grad Prep Academy Project, Shaun R. Harper, Ph.D., Andrew C. Porter, Ph.D.

Shaun R. Harper, Ph.D.

This report is about the University of Pennsylvania’s Grad Prep Academy, a project that prepares Black undergraduate men for graduate study and research-related careers in the field of education. The project is also a longitudinal research study that enables us to analyze Black men’s trajectories from undergraduate study through graduate degree programs and eventually into their careers. Eighteen students participated in our first two cohorts of Academy Scholars. The project described in this report, as well as the recommendations we offer, can be instructive for other schools of education and a range of stakeholders who are concerned about the diversity …