Higher Education and Teaching Commons^™

What Happens When You Close The Door On Remote Proctoring? Moving Toward Authentic Assessments With A People-Centered Approach, Sarah Silverman, Autumn Caines, Christopher Casey, Belen Garcia De Hurtado, Jessica Riviere, Alfonso Sintjago, Carla Vecchiola

To Improve the Academy: A Journal of Educational Development

The COVID-19 pandemic made traditionally proctored in-person exams impossible. This article provides a summary of the arguments against institutional adoption of remote proctoring services with a focus on equity, an account of the decision to avoid remote proctoring on the University of Michigan–Dearborn campus, and conclusions and suggestions for other teaching and learning professionals who would like to take a similar approach. Remote proctoring services require access to technology that not all students are guaranteed to have, can constitute an invasion of privacy for students, and can discriminate against students of color and disabled students. Administrators and teaching and learning …

Rebuilding A Teaching Conference In A Pandemic: User-Centered Guiding Principles And Lessons Learned, Laura A. Lukes, E. Shelley Reid

To Improve the Academy: A Journal of Educational Development

The COVID-19 pandemic challenged educational developers, like instructors across the world, to pivot their traditionally face-to-face faculty development programs to online formats. At the Stearns Center for Teaching and Learning at George Mason University (classified as research-intensive and the largest public institution in Virginia, United States), we faced the challenge of reimagining our annual pedagogy conference that scaled from 497 registered in 2019 when it was face-to-face to over 800 in 2020 as it was moved online. Under pressures of limited resources and increased uncertainty, leaders can find it difficult to imagine pathways toward innovation rather than just daily responses …

Special Research Edition, Lori Gwyn, Cj Smith, Jennifer Cook-Johns

The Source

Emily Bedea became SWOSU’s third grand prize winner in the 26 years of Research Day at the Capital.

A Recreation Department’S Response To The Covid-19 Pandemic, Steve Chen, Michael Simmons

Faculty Research at Morehead State University

The novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has severely impacted the operation and financial vitality of recreation, fitness, and sports industries (Byrne, 2020; Dolesh & Colman, 2020). This case study addressed how recreation and fitness sectors were impacted by the outbreak of virus and described how the Recreation, Parks and Cultural Activities (RPCA) department of a satellite city near the National Capital, Washington D.C., operated its facility with proper emergency responses and best practices under the guidelines of Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the State Health Department. In addition, challenges (i.e., staffing and financial compensation) faced during different phases …

Student Perceptions Of Advising For Retention At A Midwestern Technical College, Joseph Mollner

Education Doctorate Dissertations

Student retention continues to be an issue across the United States, with only 69% of students remaining in their higher education institution until graduation. This number drops dramatically to 59.1% at two-year public schools, including technical schools. Past studies proved that proper advising is the cornerstone of improving student retention. In this phenomenological study, ten participants shared their experiences with advising at a technical college in the midwestern United States. Four common advisor-centered themes appeared from technical students’ advising experiences: these themes were flexibility, compassion, helpfulness, and the ability to provide constructive feedback.

There were significant differences in advising experiences …

Perceptions On Implementing A Comprehensive Athletic Website And Online Streaming Service For Kentucky High Schools, Steve Chen, Adrienne Hall

Faculty Research at Morehead State University

Student participation in interscholastic athletics reached record levels in 2019-20 for the third consecutive year in Kentucky (KHSAA, 2020). Sport marketers have strongly advocated social media as a powerful and effective tool to promote sporting events at all levels. However, existing studies rarely focus on the trend for promoting interscholastic sports through social media platforms. This study examined the potential of an interactive website and online streaming service focusing on interscholastic sports may provide to high schools in Kentucky. After evaluating more than 102 high school athletic websites, the authors found schools were in need to improve the current website …

Stem Education As A Vital Preventive Response To A Pandemic, Emily Faulconer, Katherine Baker, Oliver Grundmann, Sarah Haines, Tyra Hall-Pogar

Publications

T he extraordinary work to develop feasible vaccines, effective medical treatments, and accurate epidemiological studies to alleviate the SARS-CoV2 pandemic would not have been possible without collaboration between academia, industry, government laboratories, and regulatory agencies that speak the common language researchers around the world know—science!

Legal Research & Writing: An Undergraduate Pre-Law Course Design, Rachel Kathleen Strieber

Senior Theses

The purpose of this project-based thesis is to develop an undergraduate pre-law course that teaches legal research and writing (LRW) and to design its respective description, topics, reading materials, sample syllabus document, and a sample lesson plan. The research portion of this thesis will study the pedagogy of LRW and the connection between LRW skills and the students’ success in law school and careers in law. Preparing students to excel in LRW skills prior to law school through the proposed undergraduate pre-law LRW course will yield a stronger performance in a first-year law LRW course to follow and amplify students’ …

Transcending Adversity: Trauma-Informed Educational Development, Mays Imad

To Improve the Academy: A Journal of Educational Development

The purpose of this article is to reflect on the pertinence and utility of using a trauma-informed lens in educational development. A trauma-informed approach is a framework grounded in an understanding of and responsiveness to the impact of trauma. After I describe the primary source of traumatic stress many faculty members are experiencing, I offer trauma-informed suggestions for how educational developers can help mitigate the effects of that stress. Importantly, in order to do this work of supporting faculty effectively and sustainably, it is critical that educational developers continue to attend to their own well-being. The overarching theme of this …

How A Small Teaching Center Made A Big Impact During The Pandemic Crises, J. A. Carter, Bradford Mallory, Brenda Refaei, Ruth Benander

To Improve the Academy: A Journal of Educational Development

For many faculty developers, 2020’s challenges changed our approach to our work. We found that by expanding our networks and relying on our collaborative spirit, we were able to adapt quickly and effectively to changing events. Each member of our four-person Learning + Teaching Center (LTC) team brings expertise and skills for faculty development. We employ a holistic approach to faculty development that not only provides programming for teaching improvement but also addresses the social and emotional needs of faculty and staff. The challenges of 2020 forced faculty and staff to work remotely, which necessitated more programming in how to …

Building Bridges In First-Year Composition: Investigating The Support Of Threshold Concepts In Writing-Related Transfer Across The Curriculum, Elise Antoinette Green

English Theses & Dissertations

Drawing on a multiple-case, embedded design (Yin, 2018), I highlight the in-depth differences and similarities that exist across students’ experiences in first-year composition (FYC), looking specifically at whether learners used genre and rhetorical situation as threshold concepts to transfer writing-related knowledge and skills across the curriculum. I designed and conducted this research by drawing on theories of learning transfer (Perkins & Salomon, 1988; 1989; 1992; Salomon & Perkins, 1989), writing-related transfer (Moore, 2017; Nowacek, 2011; Yancey, Robertson, & Taczak, 2014; Yancey et al., 2019), and threshold concepts (Meyer & Land, 2006). Across this study, I collected data as I facilitated …

Faculty Of Color Viewpoints Regarding Recruitment, Retention, And Academic Climate At Texas Community Colleges, Caitlin Alexa Graves

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The recruitment and retention of faculty of color is a critical issue within higher education institutions, however, the research is lacking within community colleges. Community colleges enroll over half of all non-White students in higher education, more than any other type of higher education institution; however, the faculty do not reflect the student population. Faculty of color face potential suppression, omission, isolation, and lack of belonging. This study illuminated faculty of color’s experience at community colleges and the culture at community college for these faculty. In this qualitative, interpretative phenomenological study, the researcher explored the viewpoints of faculty of color …

Attachment And Identity In Higher Education: Lived Experiences Of Korean Adoptees, Janeice A. Garrard

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Abstract

South Korea has been the largest sending country of adoptees since the Korean War. Many of the adoptees were placed in predominantly White communities in the Midwest United States. In the existing literature, researchers revealed that Korean adoptees expressed feelings related to loss of ethnic identity, birth culture, and place of belonging. It has not been fully understood how attachment and identity influence Korean adoptees in their pursuit of a higher education. Therefore, this study sought to examine the impacts of attachment to birth culture, adoptive culture, and adoptive family combined with issues of ethnic identity in the lived …

Taking Into Account Interpersonal Aspects Of Teacher Feedback: Principles Of Responding To Student Writing (Republication), Elena Shvidko

Journal on Empowering Teaching Excellence

Providing feedback on student work is a fundamental aspect of instruction and an important part of the learning process. A considerable amount of literature describes the pedagogical value of different types of feedback—explicit vs. implicit, comprehensive vs. selective, direct vs. indirect, and feedback on content vs. feedback on form—thus treating feedback primarily as an instructional/informational phenomenon. It must be remembered, however, that there is a real person behind each paper; therefore, interpersonal aspects of teacher feedback should not be disregarded. This article discusses five principles of responding to student writing that take into account this interpersonal nature of feedback: providing …

Religious, Secular, And Spiritual Diversity On Campus: Book Review Of Goodman, Giess & Patel (2019) Educating About Religious Diversity And Interfaith Engagement, Karin Dejonge-Kannan

Journal on Empowering Teaching Excellence

Book review of

Goodman, K.M., Giess, M.E., & Patel, E (2019). Educating about religious diversity and interfaith engagement: A handbook for student affairs. Stylus Publishing.

Pivoting At The Midpoint: How Midpoint Course Adjustments Influence Student Engagement, Alexander C. Romney, Mitchell Pound

Journal on Empowering Teaching Excellence

In higher education, instructors must often pivot to new methods, approaches, and exercises to help students achieve learning objectives in a particular course. These course pivots can be challenging to navigate; however, they are often the difference between a successful course and an unsuccessful one. Research on the punctuated equilibrium model of group development provides important insights for instructors on managing and navigating course pivots. This article reviews research on midpoint transitions and discusses the benefits of implementing midpoint pivots. It then introduces an example of a midpoint course pivot: The Stop-Start-Continue exercise. It concludes with a discussion of the …

Through The Eyes Of The Mentor: Understanding The Adolescent Developing Reader, Joanna C. Weaver, Cynthia D. Bertelsen, Timothy Murnen, Jessica N. Glanz

Journal on Empowering Teaching Excellence

While some teacher candidates may believe reading instruction is the responsibility of English teachers, providing teacher candidates across all content areas with opportunities to develop skills working with developing readers may impact this misconception. Since some teacher candidates have limited experience, confidence, and/or reading strategies to instruct developing readers, this study examines the individual experiences of reading mentors at a midwestern university and the effect of their experience on developing readers. This mentoring experience revealed an impact both for the teacher candidates and developing readers. This opportunity proved to be rewarding while providing a glimpse of the reality of working …

The Value Of Instructor Interactivity In The Online Classroom, Greg Lucas, Gary Cao, Shaunna Waltemeyer, B. Jean Mandernach, Helen G. Hammond

Journal on Empowering Teaching Excellence

As the number of faculty teaching online continues to grow, so has the interest in and understanding of the role of instructor interaction in the online classroom. Online education provides a unique platform in which course design and teaching are independent factors. Understanding faculty and student perceptions about the shifting role of instructor interaction in the online classroom can provide insight on policies and procedures that can support student learning through student-instructor interaction. Participants included faculty and students responding to an anonymous online survey who indicated “online” as their primary mode of teaching. Three key “value” themes emerged as significantly …

About This Issue - Spring 2021

Journal on Empowering Teaching Excellence

The articles in this issue are unified in offering valuable insight and actionable ideas about how to engage students in their own learning. Instructors can implement these strategies across many content areas and delivery methods.

Full Issue: Journal On Empowering Teaching Excellence, Volume 5, Issue 1, Spring 2021

Journal on Empowering Teaching Excellence

The full Spring 2021 issue (Volume 5, Issue 1) of the Journal on Empowering Teaching Excellence

Studenting And Teaching With Chronic Pain: Accessibility At The Intersection Of Contingency And Disability, Beth Greene

Academic Labor: Research and Artistry (2017-2022 archives)

While much attention is given to undergraduate students with disabilities, far less is devoted to graduate students, particularly those who also act as faculty: Graduate Teaching Assistants (GTAs). This article discusses issues of accessibility encountered by these contingent faculty members, specifically GTAs who have invisible disabilities, and how approaching discussions of contingency and disability with an ethos of transparent vulnerability—a level of transparency that necessarily leads to vulnerability—can help combat the stigma that continues to surround contingency and disability in higher education.

The Work Is Within: My Buddhist Faith As I Reckon With Police Shootings & Racial Unrest, Vicki Mokuria

The Journal of Faith, Education, and Community

Based on the author’s life story in which her husband was shot and killed by police officers in front of her and their two young children, she provides a first-person narrative of her experience, linking the ways her Buddhist faith and practice have sustained her over the years. She recounts snippets of her privileged childhood growing up Jewish in the South before meeting and marrying her Ethiopian husband and beginning a family with him, along with beginning their Buddhist practice. Specific aspects of Buddhist philosophy are incorporated in this piece to provide insights into a Buddhist lens on our current …

Close Encounters: Mass Incarceration Tactics, Kevin L. Jones

The Journal of Faith, Education, and Community

As a Black man living in America, my Christian faith walk began at an early age. Growing up in a suburban environment, I had several encounters with law enforcement that shaped my belief system. These encounters were and still are a stark reminder that Black boys and men are under attack. Policing negatively impacts Black boys and men when compared to other races of people. I realized that I was in their cross hairs and I was almost consumed by the criminal justice system on many occasions. Through the lens of Critical Race Theory, this work focused on the centrality …

Pedagogical Practices And Collaborative Conversations: Teacher Candidates’ Approaches For Supporting Students’ Motivation In Writing, Michelle M.Z. Ohanian, Ernest Solar, Kara J. Brady, Carolyn Cook, Barbara Marinak

Teaching/Writing: The Journal of Writing Teacher Education

Writing is a multi-layered endeavor that calls on the writer to use their technical skills and rely on their emotional investment to realize a desired outcome. New practitioners need approaches for supporting students’ motivation and as well as skill development in writing. However, explicit attention to supporting students’ motivation to write has not been largely addressed in teacher preparation programs. The Motivation to Write Profile – College (MWP-C) instrument was developed to assess teacher candidates’ self-concept as a writer and value of writing. This qualitative study analyzed the open-ended responses of 96 teacher candidates to prompts related to self-concept as …

Cultivating Dialogic Reflection To Foster And Sustain Preservice Teachers’ Professional Identities, Katie Alford, Amber Jensen

Teaching/Writing: The Journal of Writing Teacher Education

This article explores how two teacher educators cultivated dialogic partnerships in an English teaching methods course and during student teaching. The goal was to foster reflection and professional identity development among preservice teachers. We share our approaches to integrating dialogic journals into coursework and student teaching praxis and offer initial observations about ways we see dialogic reflection as a practice that can support and sustain preservice teachers through early teaching transitions and into their careers.

Exploring How A University’S Veteran Services Office Supports Their Students’ Civilian Career Readiness And Transition, Sasha M. Vanterpool

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this explanatory case study was to learn how a designated veteran services office on a university campus supports student veterans preparing to transition into the civilian workforce after their college graduation. This study provided an in-depth understanding of the operations of a nationally recognized veteran services office by sharing the perspectives of the office staff as well as the experiences of the veteran students who have used the office. Qualitative research methods for data collection and analysis were incorporated through semi-structured interviews, observations, and thematic coding analysis guided by a constructivist paradigm and Schlossberg’s Transition Theory as …

Cleaning Up China's Air: The Effectiveness Of The Eep Plan In Beijing, James R. Masterson

Faculty Research at Morehead State University

China’s economy has developed rapidly in the past 40 years since the reform and opening up. However, China’s irrational economic structure, low efficiency of resource utilization and serious environmental pollution have become important factors restricting the long-term healthy development of China’s economy. More importantly, pollution issues in China seriously affect the development of the regime due to public concerns in terms of health issues. In 2014, senior government officials said publicly that China would “declare war on pollution.” Since then, air pollution has improved to a certain extent, with PM 2.5 levels falling 23.6 percent from 2013 to 2015, but …

The Writing For Healing And Transformation Project, Heather Elizabeth Osborn

Education Doctorate Dissertations

As a qualitative action research study, the purpose of The Writing for Healing and Transformation Project was to facilitate more inclusive writing strategies and to promote individual and collective healing on issues of social suffering and oppression (Kleinman, Das, & Lock, 1997; Pennebaker & Smyth, 2016) for diverse students at a community college located in the northeastern United States. The 18 participants in the study included students in my English II literature and composition course. The theoretical framework encompassed Pennebaker’s (2016) “writing for healing” paradigm, advocating the use of expressivist writing and “social suffering theory,” examining how power structures affect …

Exploring Professional Development Models For Dei Pedagogies, Melanie Sellar

Staff publications, research, and presentations

While our institution has provided many workshops to kick-start DEI awareness, we are exploring different professional development (PD) models for the library. There are many possible ways to structure our professional learning, from reading groups, caucus or affinity groups, communities of practices, and professional learning communities. This lightning presentation reviews and analyzes different PD models for supporting information literacy instructors’ growth in DEI pedagogies and will share the path that SCU Library has chosen for our work.

Pornography: Social, Emotional And Mental Implications Among Adolescents, William Kelly Canady

National Youth Advocacy & Resilience Conference

This presentation will explain the historical development of pornography. It will highlight four segments: 1- Porn’s impact on brain development of reward pathways, ultimately increasing the appetite for more porn. 2- Porn can be a false substitute for real intimacy, resulting in decreased sexual satisfaction with a real person and increased verbal and physical aggression. 3- Porn promotes sex trafficking, promotes multiple sex partners and reduced STD prevention. 4- A review of interventions available to assist clients in navigating a lifestyle away from pornography.