Select a title to access full article at SpringerLink. Volume 42 / Issue 1 Disruption in Economies, Industries, and Political Affairs: Can Postsecondary Education Be Far Behind? - Editor's Page Libby V. Morris “I Bought My Degree, Now I Want My Job!” Is Academic Entitlement Related to Prospective Workplace Entitlement? Amy Peirone, Eleanor Maticka-Tyndale Abstract: Academic entitlement, a term that defines students’ expectations of academic success independent of performance, has been linked with a number of maladaptive behaviors. This study examined the potential relationship between academic entitlement and prospective workplace entitlement in a sample of Canadian students (N=1024) using an online survey. Multivariate analyses produced a significant (p<0.05) positive relationship between academic entitlement and prospective workplace entitlement. Graduate students had higher levels of prospective workplace entitlement than did undergraduates, and those pursuing degrees in Education and Law had significantly lower levels of prospective workplace entitlement than students in other areas of study. Results support a need to develop strategies to minimize entitlement beliefs prior to an individual’s entry into the workforce. Course Factors that Motivate Students to Submit End-of-Course Evaluations Caroline M. Jaquett, Victoria G. VanMaaren, Robert L. Williams Abstract: We surveyed students (N = 152) in several sections of an undergraduate educational psychology course to determine what course factors would most motivate them to submit course evaluations. The survey directed students to choose among several pairs of course characteristics as to their relative impact on their decision to submit a course evaluation. After tabulating their choices, we ranked the course characteristics for the total sample and then for various demographic and performance subgroups. In general, students indicated that positive aspects of a course would motivate them to submit course evaluations more than would negative aspects. The Effect of Informational Characteristics and Faculty Knowledge and Beliefs on the Use of Assessment Jessica L. Jonson, Robert J. Thompson Jr., Timothy C. Guetterman, Nancy Mitchell Abstract: Increasing the use of learning outcome assessments to inform educational decisions is a major challenge in higher education. For this study we used a sense-making theoretical perspective to guide an analysis of the relationship of information characteristics and faculty assessment knowledge and beliefs with the use of general education assessment information at three research institutions with similar organizational contexts. Study findings indicate that the likelihood of using assessment information increases when assessment evidence is action oriented and viewed as of high quality and when faculty members are knowledgeable, have positive dispositions toward assessment, and have a perception of institutional support for engagement in assessment. Localizing College Retention Efforts: The Distance between Theoretical Orientation and Institution-Specific Needs Yonghong Jade Xu Abstract: The study used a theoretically guided questionnaire to examine student experience in college and to gain a better understanding about how college environment affects student persistence. Data were collected from a single four-year institution; the findings suggest that institutional control over academic quality is the most critical factor in reducing students’ dropout intention along with their ability to pay for college education. The results highlight the inconsistency between the specific needs of students in their particular academic settings and the dominant theoretical frameworks that focus on academic and social engagement, and these results offer encouragement for localized retention interventions based on sufficient understanding of students’ experiences. Student Engagement in Research, Scholarship, and Creative Activity (SERSCA) Program: Sharing a Program Model from Design and Development through Evaluation Shawna Young, Ana Uy, Joyce Bell Abstract: The Student Engagement in Research, Scholarship, and Creative Activity (SERSCA) Program at California State University, Stanislaus provides support for student engagement in these areas from idea conception through dissemination. Through assistantships, mini-grants, the Student Research Competition, and travel grants, the Program is designed to improve the overall quality of education and increase retention, GPA, the number of units completed, degree completion, and enrollment in graduate or professional school. In this article we provide an overview of the SERSCA Program and preliminary evaluation findings from the first year of implementation. Partnerships in Learning: A Collaborative Project between Higher Education Students and Elementary School Students Peggi E. Hunter, Nisha D. Botchwey Abstract: Higher education and K-12 school partnerships are typically designed with an end-goal that serves the instructional needs of one group over the other. For this project, a university professor and elementary school instructor used problem-based and project-based learning strategies to design a curriculum that served the academic needs of both groups of students. Undergraduate students in an urban planning course partnered with elementary students from a local school to work on an interdependent civic engagement project. The partnership provided innovative, twenty-first teaching for both groups of students while also reinforcing public service. Volume 42 / Issue 2 Foundations and the Advancement of Postsecondary Education - Editor's Page Libby V. Morris Institutional Uses of Twitter in U.S. Higher Education Royce Kimmons, George Veletsianos, & Scott Woodward Abstract: This study employed data mining and quantitative methods to collect and analyze the available histories of primary Twitter accounts of institutions of higher education in the U.S. (n = 2411). The study comprises a sample of 5.7 million tweets, representing 62 % of all tweets created by these accounts and the entire population of U.S. colleges and universities. With this large, generalizable dataset, researchers were able to determine that the preponderance of institutional tweets are 1) monologic, 2) disseminate information (vs. eliciting action), 3) link to a relatively limited and insular ecosystem of web resources, and 4) express neutral or positive sentiment. While prior research suggests that social media can serve as a vehicle for institutions to extend their reach and further demonstrate their value to society, this article provides empirical and generalizable evidence to suggest that such innovation, in the context of institutional social media use, is limited. Workplace Faculty Friendships and Work-Family Culture Megumi Watanabe & Christina Falci Abstract: Although various work-family policies are available to faculty members, many underuse these policies due to concerns about negative career consequences. Therefore, we believe it is important to develop an academic work culture that is more supportive of work-family needs. Using network data gathered from faculty members at a Midwestern university, this study investigated the relationship between friendship connections with colleagues and perceived work-family supportiveness in the department. It also explored the role of parental status in the relationship for men and women. Results show that faculty with larger friendship networks have more positive perceptions of work-family culture compared to faculty with smaller friendship networks, for all faculty except women without children. Documenting the Aspiration Gap in Institutional Language About Undergraduate Research, Scholarship, and Creative Work Vicki L. Baker, Jane Greer, Laura G. Lunsford, Meghan J. Pifer, & Dijana Ihas Abstract: We conducted a content-analysis of the websites of 100 institutional members of the Council of Undergraduate Research in order to examine the relationship between messages communicated on websites as compared to messages expressed within institutional procedures and policies. Findings show that public research institutions were more likely than baccalaureate institutions to have an Office of Undergraduate Research. Further incentives and supports provided by such offices are predominantly directed to students. Lastly, our analysis of promotion and tenure policies reveals that only 14 institutions out of the 100 in our sample explicitly mentioned mentoring undergraduate researchers in the evaluation criteria for faculty members. We offer implications for research and practice. The Development of Intra-Departmental Stratification and Competition for Resources: A Case Study of a Non-Research Based Higher Education Institution Neva E. J. Sanders-Dewey & Kyle Liszewski Abstract: Fluctuations in the financial welfare of institutions of higher education have long been tied to our country’s economic well-being. For many institutions the most recent financial downturns have led to historic revenue and enrollment difficulties that have necessitated the use of cost containment strategies to conserve dwindling resources. Included in these tactics are resource allotment decisions that reflect administrative favor towards some academic departments, leading to the development of a prestige-based stratification system and competition driven funding. A case study of a non-research based institution is used to take a preliminary look at the impact of institutional resource conservation on intra-departmental competition for resources and disparate funding allocations across disciplines in this setting. Special attention is given to the trends in enrollment and the selection of particular academic majors that have occurred across time and in response to the institution’s continued fiscal difficulties. The Benefits of Intergenerational Learning in Higher Education: Lessons Learned from Two Age Friendly University Programs Mikulas Pstross, Trudy Corrigan, Richard C. Knopf, HeeKyung Sung, Craig A. Talmage, Carmel Conroy, & Cathy Fowley Abstract: This article focuses on the role of universities in the promotion of intergenerational learning and the facilitation of reciprocal sharing of expertise among learners of all ages. The principles of the Age Friendly University are used as a particular lens for interpreting two university programs, one in the United States and one in Ireland. Though different in operational implementation, core commonalities emerged within the nature of benefits to younger learners, older learners, the university, and the community. A review of these benefits illustrates how universities can provide opportunities for older and younger learners to co-create experiences and mutually enrich each other’s lives. A Phenomenology of Transfer: Students’ Experiences at a Receiving Institution Anne-Marie Nuñez, & Jeffrey Yoshimi Abstract: This study advances a conceptual framework to examine how students who had transferred into a four-year institution described their transition experiences. We used phenomenology as a source of theoretical constructs to interpret their experiences and as a research method. Key themes included the importance of online resources in facilitating the transfer process, the importance of supportive institutional agents, the importance of academic and career goals, and the comparative lack of emphasis on having a more social “college experience.” We discuss implications of these findings for future research, policy, and practice. This study contributes to a better understanding of (a) transfer students’ experiences in an understudied institutional setting, (b) the factors distinguishing persisting and non-persisting transfer students, and (c) ways that receiving institutions can be more responsive to the needs of transfer students. Volume 42 / Issue 3 Letter to Parents: The Purpose of College - Editor's Page Libby V. Morris The Dynamic between Knowledge Production and Faculty Evaluation: Perceptions of the Promotion and Tenure Process across Disciplines J. Kasi Jackson, Melissa Latimer, Rachel Stoiko Abstract: This study sought to understand predictors of faculty satisfaction with promotion and tenure processes and reasonableness of expectations in the context of a striving institution. The factors we investigated included discipline (high-consensus [science and math] vs. low-consensus [humanities and social sciences]); demographic variables; and institutional support including mentoring, collegiality, work-life integration, and college commitment to faculty members’ fields. High-consensus faculty members were less satisfied with promotion and tenure processes than were low-consensus faculty members (p < .01). Faculty members who were more satisfied with collegiality (p < .001) and with college commitment to their fields (p < .05) were more satisfied with promotion and tenure processes. Faculty members who were more satisfied with work-life integration and mentoring were more satisfied with reasonableness of expectations (p < .05). Retrospective Integration of Research Conducted on a Multi-Section Educational Psychology Course over a Fifteen-Year Period Robert L. Williams Abstract: This article integrates a series of studies conducted over a 15-year period in a multi-section educational course taught by the same supervising professor and his GTAs . The purpose of each study was to determine whether particular interventions or student characteristics affected performance levels in the course. Over the extended period of research, approximately 6000 undergraduate students, with 25 to 55 students in each of more than 200 sections, participated in a variety of research projects related to student performance in the course. The principal research themes addressed were (1) critical thinking, (2) additional cognitive measures (e.g., initial course knowledge, generic vocabulary), (3) class participation, (4) in-class writing activities, and (5) cooperative learning. Efforts to Address the Aging Academic Workforce: Assessing Progress Through a Three-Stage Model of Institutional Change Brian Kaskie, Mark Walker, Matthew Andersson Abstract: The aging of the academic workforce is becoming more relevant to policy discussions in higher education. Yet there has been no formal, large-scale analysis of institutional efforts to develop policies and programs for aging employees. We fielded a representative survey of human resource specialists at 187 colleges and universities across the United States and found that most institutions did not identify the aging workforce as a primary concern. Still, three out of every eight campuses had made some effort to implement age-targeted policies and programs; and these efforts were more likely to occur at institutions with a greater number of employees and with human resources staff who had training in issues related to an aging workforce. Self-Expression, Social Roles, and Faculty Members’ Attitudes towards Online Teaching Chris R. Glass Abstract: There is a widening gap between administrators’ and faculty members’ attitudes towards online education. This post-positivist grounded theory study explored features of the experiences that shaped sixteen faculty members’ attitudes towards online education. Two features are identified: (a) they strived to express subject matter of personal significance, and (b) they strived to take on various social roles. The degree to which these efforts were facilitated – or thwarted – shaped their attitudes towards online education. This analytical focus recognizes that online education changes not only how faculty members teach; it also introduces new activities that affect the meaning of teaching for faculty members. Negotiating Cultural Boundaries Through Collaboration: The Roles of Motivation, Advocacy and Process Carrie Klein Abstract: This case study investigated the roles of organizational culture and the individual in collaborative processes at a large, public university. Results indicate that individuals who are motivated by a belief in shared mission use their awareness of the collaborative process to advocate for themselves and others, leading to stronger and more cognitively complex collaborations across organizational cultural differences. These findings provide insight into the individual’s role in the collaborative process and are the foundation for recommendations for ways to bridge the loosely-coupled and diverse components of higher education. A Research Preparatory Program for First-Year College Students: Student Selection and Preparation Lead to Persistence in Research Rachael R. Baiduc, Denise Drane, Greg J. Beitel, Luke C. Flores Abstract: Undergraduate research experiences may increase persistence in STEM majors. We describe a research program that targets first-year students selected for their curiosity and attitudes towards science. We explain the implementation of the program over 3 years and present evaluation data using a group of matched controls. Participants and controls pursued STEM degrees at equivalent rates, but participants were significantly more involved in research. Initial laboratory interest and mentor pairing may have played a role in this finding. Female participants, particularly those with male laboratory mentors, engaged in more research than men. Volume 42 / Issue 4 Reverse Mentoring: Untapped Resource in the Academy? Libby V. Morris Academic Advising, Remedial Courses, and Legislative Mandates: An Exploration of Academic Advising in Florida Community Colleges with Optional Developmental Education Chenoa S. Woods, Keith Richard, Toby Park, David Tandberg, Shouping Hu, Tamara Bertrand Jones Abstract: In this article we report on our exploration of academic advising practices at 19 community colleges in the Florida College System after the implementation of Senate Bill 1720. This bill made developmental education optional for many students and mandated that colleges provide academic advising for all new students. Descriptive statistics of survey responses from college administrators uncovered academic advising patterns across these 19 community colleges. Our findings indicated that many administrators agreed that their advising practices were effective and that most colleges used a variety of advising tools. In an era of greater student choice, colleges diversified their advising protocols and methods of guiding students in a variety of ways. Examining the Effectiveness of a Learning Outcomes Assessment Program: a Four Frames Perspective Kevin Schoepp, Burcu Tezcan-Unal Abstract: Assessment of learning outcomes at the program level is essential to evaluate whether students are achieving what is expected of them as graduates. In this article we present the results of a study in which faculty focus groups were consulted so as to understand the subjective issues that surround the learning outcomes assessment program of an institution. We hope that our study contributes to continuous improvement in institutional assessment practices and to the improvement of student learning. We analysed the data through the lens provided by a leadership model since leadership is a key driver of assessment practices that lead to changes to improve student learning. Justice in the Higher Education Classroom: Students’ Perceptions of Unfairness and Responses to Instructors Rebecca M. Chory, Sean M. Horan, Marian L. Houser Abstract: We investigated college students’ perceptions of instructor unfairness and their emotional and behavioral reactions to perceived injustice. Results obtained from 397 undergraduates from three universities in the United States indicate that anger and dissent were the strongest emotional and behavioral responses to injustice. Furthermore, disgust mediated the influence of injustice on student behaviors most damaging to professors—taking action, expressing verbal aggression, and dissenting to authority. Stress mediated the effect of injustice on the most constructive student behaviors—changing their approach and engaging in the class. We discuss the implications of the results of our study for the student-instructor relationship and learning in the contemporary higher education environment. Examining the Impact of Interdisciplinary Programs on Student Learning Lisa R. Lattuca, David Knight, Tricia A. Seifert, Robert D. Reason, Qin Liu Abstract: We investigated how learning outcomes of students majoring in interdisciplinary fields differ from those of students in discipline-based majors. We found that students in interdisciplinary majors report less change in Critical Thinking and Need For Cognition than their peers in disciplinary majors, but no difference in change in Positive Attitude Toward Literacy. Students’ gains in Critical Thinking and Need For Cognition do not vary by the characteristics of the interdisciplinary major, but some program characteristics influence modest changes in Positive Attitudes Toward Literacy. Future research should address selection effects, develop measures of interdisciplinary learning, and further explore curricular and instructional patterns in interdisciplinary programs. Faculty Learning Matters: Organizational Conditions and Contexts that Shape Faculty Learning KerryAnn O’Meara, Mark Rivera, Alexandra Kuvaeva, Kristen Corrigan Abstract: This study explored the relationships between faculty scholarly learning, faculty teaching learning, institutional support, faculty demographics, disciplinary groups, working conditions, and career outcomes such as retention, productivity, satisfaction, and career agency. We found that the stronger the scholarly learning faculty members reported, the more institutional and unit support they perceived for learning, the more satisfied they were, the less likely they were to intend to leave their institution, and the more career agency they reported. Similarly, we found that faculty members who reported more learning related to teaching reported a decreased intent to leave the institution and increased career agency. We draw implications for the development of work environments that support scholarly and teaching learning. Volume 42 / Issues 5-6 Moving beyond Critical Thinking to Critical Dialogue Libby V. Morris Animal-assisted Stress Reduction Programs in Higher Education Julie M. Haggerty, Megan Kiely Mueller Abstract: This study investigated the prevalence of increasingly popular animal-assisted stress relief programs at higher education institutions across the United States. Although research on animal-assisted programs is increasing, there is still a lack of information documenting implementation of these programs. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to explore the prevalence, structure, and policies around animal-assisted programs. Data from 68 schools across the U.S. revealed that animal visitation at higher education institutions is popular, and some schools have instituted formalized programs. However, there is an overall lack of knowledge regarding standards and requirements that would increase the safety and effectiveness of these programs. Reducing Inequality in Higher Education: The Link between Faculty Empowerment and Climate and Retention Lori L. Taylor, Molly I. Beck, Joanna N. Lahey, Jeffrey E. Froyd Abstract: Since 2001 the National Science Foundation’s ADVANCE program has distributed over $130 million in grants to improve work climate, enhance professional success, and increase recruitment and retention of female faculty in STEM fields. The process by which each institution designs and implements these interventions is seldom studied, however. Using climate surveys, administrative records, and a difference-in-differences regression approach, we assessed whether exposure to the design and implementation process helps explain improvements in climate and retention during the early years of ADVANCE implementation. We found that departments wherein at least one faculty member participated in ADVANCE committee work experienced significant improvements in job satisfaction among female faculty members and significant reduction in turnover among female full professors, suggesting that the ADVANCE design process was itself an intervention. Identifying and Overcoming Challenges in STEM Reform: a Study of four National STEM Reform Communities of Practice Samantha Bernstein-Sierra, Adrianna Kezar Abstract: In this article we report on our examination of the challenges faced by four successful and long-standing national STEM reform communities. Drawing primarily on interview data from a large-scale, multi-year study informed by literature on “communities of practice” (CoPs) (Wenger et al. 2002), we describe five categories of challenges faced by the communities and the solutions employed to overcome them in order to sustain themselves and meet their goals. We chose to focus on these large and dispersed CoPs because, although on-campus CoPs have received some scholarly attention, no research has been conducted on national or regional CoPs. Based on our findings, we conclude that the solutions used to address these challenges reflected a meta-theme of flexibility in matters of design, leadership, and decision-making that contributed to the communities’ success and longevity. Key Strategies for Building Research Capacity of University Faculty Members Laura F. Huenneke, Diane M. Stearns, Jesse D. Martinez, Kelly Laurila Abstract: Universities are under pressure to increase external research funding, and some federal agencies offer programs to expand research capacity in certain kinds of institutions. However, conflicts within faculty roles and other aspects of university operations influence the effectiveness of particular strategies for increasing research activity. We review conventional approaches to increasing research, focusing on outcomes for individual faculty members and use one federally-funded effort to build cancer-related research capacity at a public university as an example to explore the impact of various strategies on research outcomes. We close with hypotheses that should be tested in future formal studies. Using Concepts from Complexity Science to Accelerate Curricular Revision Ellen F. Goldman, Matthew L. Mintz Abstract: Curricular revision can be an arduous and challenging process. The literature favors a rational planned process for doing so, but offers little advice regarding how to proceed when the time required for such an approach is not available. This article describes our use of four concepts from complexity science to revise a medical school curriculum in 11 months: process emergence rather than prescription, simple rules to guide and align faculty members, consistent application of fractals to provide a coherent image of organizational activity, and continuous adaptation of the revision process. These concepts can be applied to curricular revision in any field of study. Managing the Process of International Collaboration in Online Course Development: A Case-Example Involving Higher Education Institutions in Ireland, Switzerland, Austria, and the United Kingdom Cathal Ryan, Michael Bergin, Sylvia Titze, Wolfgang Ruf, Stefan Kunz, Riccardo Mazza, Trudie Chalder, Sula Windgassen, Dianne Cooney Miner, John S.G. Wells Abstract: There has been significant growth recently in online learning and joint programmes of education involving collaborative partnerships between and among higher education institutions in different jurisdictions. Utilising an interdisciplinary team model (Care and Scanlan 2001), we describe in this article the process of collaboration among four European institutions in Austria, Ireland, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom in order to develop and deliver an accredited online course on the management of work-related stress for health and social care workers. This course was also one of the first to pilot a system of equivalency between two European vocational and higher education credit schemes to promote learner mobility and recognition of a new international qualification. Although this process of collaboration occurred within a pan-European context, important lessons may be drawn from this explanation that are of potential interest to the wider international audience. An Examination of the Outcomes of a Brief and Innovative Partnership: SJSU and Udacity Erin L. Woodhead, Preston Brown, Susan Snycerski, Sean Laraway, Nicholas Bathurst, Greg Feist, Ronald F. Rogers Abstract: In an examination of a brief and innovative partnership, we compared outcomes for two disciplines, Elementary Statistics and General Psychology, across three formats: online as part of the San José State University-Udacity partnership (termed SJSU Plus), face-to-face (FTF), and online in a redesigned course offering. We also examine predictors of student performance in the SJSU Plus courses. The first offerings of the SJSU Plus courses showed poorer performance compared to their FTF and redesigned online equivalents. Redesigned online courses and FTF courses had similar pass rates. SJSU Plus course performance was significantly improved in the second offering of the Elementary Statistics course. More completed assignments in the SJSU Plus courses were associated with higher exam scores and final grades. We conclude that mode of delivery did not contribute significantly to variations in pass rates. Is More Always Better? The Curvilinear Relationships between College Student Experiences and Outcomes Nicholas A. Bowman, Teniell L. Trolian Abstract: Many higher education studies have examined linear relationships between student experiences and outcomes, but this assumption may be questionable. In two notable examples previous research that assumed a linear relationship reached different substantive conclusions and implications than did research that explored non-linear associations among the same constructs. Indeed, many relationships between college experiences and outcomes may actually be curvilinear; this study explored that possibility within a large, multi-institutional, longitudinal dataset. As expected, most of the significant positive relationships were accompanied by significant curvilinear associations, such that the magnitude of the relationship decreased with higher levels of involvement. Pathways to Undergraduate Research Experiences: a Multi-Institutional Study Duhita Mahatmya, Janet Morrison, Rebecca M. Jones, Pamela W. Garner, Shannon N. Davis, Jill Manske, Nancy Berner, Ann Johnson, Jayna Ditty Abstract: The positive impact of undergraduate research experiences on students’ post-secondary success is well-documented. However, these conclusions are drawn from undergraduate students who already participate; very little research has explored the pathways by which students enter these experiences. Using data from a multi-institutional survey, we examined students’ reasons for participating and differences across institutions and demographic groups. Overall, students cited social and experiential reasons as key motivators for participation and a perceived lack of research readiness as a key barrier. Differences were also found across academic year. Implications from this study address issues of access, preparation, and institutional policies around undergraduate research. a focus on faculty retention. We draw lessons about the impact of consolidation for policy makers considering this avenue for reorganization within public higher education. Shared Governance among the New Majority: Non-Tenure Track Faculty Eligibility for Election to University Faculty Senates Willis A. Jones, Neal H. Hutchens, Azalea Hulbert, Wayne D. Lewis, David M. Brown Abstract: Non-tenure track faculty members (NTTF) constitute what has been referred to by scholars as the new faculty majority. The growing numbers of NTTF have led to debates about the role they should play in shared governance. Currently, however, an overall lack of empirical knowledge exists regarding the status of their involvement in institutional governance. Using data from highest research activity doctoral universities, this study investigated current standards related to NTTF eligibility for election to institution-wide faculty senates. We also explored what these faculty governance standards and criteria reveal about the status and position of NTTF within the professoriate. Once More into the Breach: Examining the Human Capital Impact of a University Consolidation over Time Saundra J. Ribando, Catherine P. Slade, C. Kevin Fortner Abstract: Little research examines the sociocultural aspects of consolidating two post-secondary educational institutions. In a previous study we collected baseline data and reported on the initial impact of consolidation of a research-oriented, health sciences university with a teaching-oriented, comprehensive university. In the study we report here we compared our baseline data with data collected two years after consolidation in order to explore the organization’s evolving culture and the effect of that evolution on faculty members, with a focus on faculty retention. We draw lessons about the impact of consolidation for policy makers considering this avenue for reorganization within public higher education. View this issue at Springer >>
