The Active Skim: Efficient Reading as a Moral Challenge in Postgraduate Education

2017 ◽  
Vol 45 (3) ◽  
pp. 220-227 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hannah Wohl ◽  
Gary Alan Fine
Keyword(s):  
Graduate Students ◽  
Social Science ◽  
Graduate School ◽  
Graduate Training ◽  
Postgraduate Education ◽  
Interview Study ◽  
Appropriate Use ◽  
Process Information ◽  
Self Image

Faculty and students recognize that to succeed in graduate school, the ability to read efficiently and with comprehension is crucial. Students must be able to process information newly presented to them, even when that information seems overwhelming. Comprehending, discussing, and utilizing relevant texts are central to the production of scholars. But what constitutes appropriate techniques of reading, when does one employ various strategies, and for what purposes? In a world in which more is assigned than can reasonably be processed, what constitutes a legitimate practice? In this conversation essay, we discuss the role of skimming, building upon an interview study of 36 social science graduate students in history, economics, and sociology. We ask what students believe about the necessity and appropriateness of skimming, how they honed their skills, and what constitutes normative standards. We treat skimming as a form of “legitimate deviance,” necessary for occupational survival but a strategy that is potentially a challenge to an academic self-image. Students learn techniques that allow them to read rapidly and recall information for later use, but the appropriate use of these techniques is rarely discussed openly in graduate training.

scholarly journals Graduate Students as Independent Instructors: Seven Things to Know about Teaching Your Own Course while in Graduate School

2010 ◽  
Vol 43 (03) ◽  
pp. 557-560 ◽  
Author(s):  
Edward M. Burmila
Keyword(s):  
Graduate Students ◽  
Novice Teachers ◽  
Student Perceptions ◽  
Graduate Student ◽  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Graduate School ◽  
Teaching Assistants ◽  
Undergraduate Instruction ◽  
Graduate Instructors

AbstractDespite being responsible for a large percentage of undergraduate instruction, graduate students often receive little preparation for their first solo teaching assignments (J. D. Nyquist et al.,Change31 (3): 18, 1999). Furthermore, the existing literature on pedagogy fails to address the unique challenges faced by graduate students who are asked to serve as course instructors rather than teaching assistants. This article presents seven pieces of advice intended to better prepare the predoctoral graduate student to assume the role of the professor before assuming the title. By understanding the attitudes of undergraduate students toward graduate instructors, preparing in advance to handle the mistakes that novice teachers often make, and recognizing the correlation between outward confidence and student perceptions of instructor quality, graduate students can derive the most benefit from a stressful and time-consuming assignment. Most important, graduate instructors can learn to effectively manage the time spent on teaching duties to ensure that other responsibilities such as coursework, qualifying exams, and dissertation research do not suffer.

Improving the organization of modern postgraduate studies: system approach

2020 ◽  
pp. 49-61
Author(s):  
Nonna Antonovna Morozova
Keyword(s):  
Graduate Students ◽  
Graduate School ◽  
Academic Writing ◽  
Systematic Approach ◽  
Positive Impact ◽  
Postgraduate Education ◽  
Training Programme ◽  
Practice Research ◽  
Postgraduate Studies

The article deals with the problems of training scientific and pedagogical personnel in Russia at the present stage of postgraduate education, which caused the need to discuss them, both at the level of the country’s leadership, and at the level of the scientific and University community. The directions of improving the organization of modern postgraduate studies in the context of a systematic approach are proposed. The directions of improving the training of postgraduates and the organization of the modern Russian postgraduate school in the context of its two types - scientific and University with the organization of different types of practice: research and teaching. The most significant among the directions proposed in the article are the following: improving the quality of recruitment of applicants to graduate school on the example of a pre-admission system of two-stage training of applicants in the system of professional development of the Research center for problems of quality of training of specialists; the implementation of master’s training programme “graduate student researcher” and “student-expert” on the basis of the principle of continuity of training programs for “masters-postgraduate” and implementation of the program and the model of problem-designresearch teaching academician I.A. Zimnyaya; formation of academic literacy in the process of formation of communicative competence of graduate students by means of educational disciplines «Academic writing» / «Scientific text», «Academic speech»; improving the organization of classroom and extracurricular independent work of postgraduates and its material and technical support; financing of postgraduate education; and a number of others. Along with the actualization of a systematic approach to improving the organization of modern graduate school activities, personal-activity, convergent and scenario approaches to improving the training of graduate students are identified. The proposed ways to solve the existing problems of the organizational plan of the postgraduate school in some of the indicated areas can have a positive impact on its improvement.

Educating Graduate Students

2012 ◽  
Vol 14 (2) ◽  
pp. 134-139
Author(s):  
Bertram P. Karon ◽  
Anmarie J. Widener
Keyword(s):  
Graduate Students ◽  
Department Chair ◽  
Graduate Training ◽  
Faculty Members ◽  
Clinical Observations ◽  
New Information ◽  
The Difference ◽  
Intellectual Creativity

Excitement, the strong positive affect engendered by new information, plays a key role in creative learning. The department chair noted as problematic for all programs that very few of our graduate students became faculty at major universities. But many of the students of Karon did become faculty at major universities, one index of quality of graduate training, as well as becoming competent psychotherapists. This was not because of any direct encouragement to become faculty members. The difference in his approach to graduate education from that of his colleagues can be summarized in four principles. First, remember that graduate students are just like the faculty, except that they are younger. Consequently, they have done less and read less. Second, teach what you know. Particularly if you have done original work, teach that. Your excitement will communicate itself. Third, encourage them to take their own work seriously, including their own research and clinical observations. Their own ideas are as valuable and as worth exploring and developing as any in the literature. Finally, if they are bright, get out of their way. This is related to Tomkins’ theory of the role of affects, especially interest-excitement, in learning and intellectual creativity.

scholarly journals PLACE AND ROLE OF "PREPARATION AND PRESENTATION OF RESEARCH RESULTS RESEARCH" DISCIPLINE IN TERMS OF TRAINING OF PH.D. WITHIN THE FIELD OF THE POSTGRADUATE HIGHER EDUCATION (RESEARCH INSTITUTIONS)

2021 ◽  
pp. 7-14
Author(s):  
Serhiy Lytvyn
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Graduate Students ◽  
Graduate School ◽  
Analytical Description ◽  
Research Project ◽  
Holistic View ◽  
Research Results ◽  
Public Defense ◽  
Analysis And Synthesis

The purpose of the article is to highlight the place and role of the discipline "Preparation of a research project and presentation of research results" as part of the educational and scientific program of training doctors of philosophy in the graduate school of higher education (scientific institutions) and its importance in the acquisition of professional competencies, systems knowledge, and skills preparation of scientific research and presentation of its results. The methodology consists of the application of general scientific methods of analysis and synthesis, induction and deduction, generalization and abstraction, review-analytical, description, and comparison, which made it possible to identify the place and role of this discipline. The scientific novelty of the work lies in the generalization and systematization of knowledge about the discipline "Preparation of a research project and presentation of research results", in focusing on its features in terms of the present and prospects for its development. Conclusions. A feature of the discipline "Preparation of a research project and presentation of research results" is the consideration of all stages of preparation of graduate students: from admission to graduate school and choosing a dissertation research topic and to public defense of the dissertation and certification in the light of modern requirements. In the process of studying the course graduate students will be able to form a holistic view of science as a system of knowledge and tools of knowledge, to form views on the methodology of scientific knowledge, the essence of general and special methods and principles of research and presentation of their results.

scholarly journals PhDepression: Examining How Graduate Research and Teaching Affect Depression in Life Sciences PhD Students

2021 ◽  
Vol 20 (3) ◽  
pp. ar41
Author(s):  
Logan E. Gin ◽  
Nicholas J. Wiesenthal ◽  
Isabella Ferreira ◽  
Katelyn M. Cooper
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Graduate Students ◽  
Graduate School ◽  
Life Sciences ◽  
Interview Study ◽  
Teaching And Research ◽  
Graduate Teaching ◽  
Research And Teaching ◽  
Graduate Research ◽  
Phd Programs

This interview study of 50 biology PhD students with depression examines how aspects of graduate teaching and research affect depression and how depression affects students’ experiences teaching and researching. This work identifies aspects of graduate school that PhD programs can target to improve mental health among graduate students.

scholarly journals Chapters, Volumes, Editors! Oh My! Reassessing the Role of Edited Volumes in the Social Sciences

2013 ◽  
Vol 46 (02) ◽  
pp. 380-382 ◽  
Author(s):  
David L. Leal
Keyword(s):  
Social Sciences ◽  
Graduate Students ◽  
Social Science ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
The Social

AbstractMany scholars discount the value of edited volumes and book chapters to the social science enterprise. Nevertheless, these unique formats advance scholarship, help faculty and graduate students achieve their goals, and enhance teaching and learning. This article therefore assesses the criticisms of volumes and chapters, reconsiders the contributions of these publications, and makes recommendations for improving their accessibility and status.

scholarly journals Social Science Mechanics: A Graduate Training Module that “Looks under the Hood” at Innovative Research Designs

2015 ◽  
Vol 48 (02) ◽  
pp. 373-377
Author(s):  
Katie A. Cahill ◽  
Michael R. Brownstein ◽  
Amanda E. Burke ◽  
Christopher Kulesza ◽  
James A. McCann
Keyword(s):  
Graduate Students ◽  
Social Science ◽  
Graduate Training ◽  
Research Process ◽  
Training Module ◽  
Innovative Research ◽  
Complex Processes ◽  
Trade Offs ◽  
Research Designs ◽  
Graduate Seminars

ABSTRACTScholars in the fields of instructional development and pedagogy note that learning outcomes can be improved when teachers use “narratives” to communicate how complex processes work or how problems are addressed. In this article, the authors describe a narrative-centered approach to graduate-level instruction in research methodology. This approach is intended to supplement, not replace, conventional graduate seminars in quantitative or qualitative methods. In a series of lectures, scholars reflected on how their published articles originally were framed, the trade-offs that were necessary to advance the investigation, the methodological challenges and non-findings that had to be addressed—but may not have been printed—and the evolution of a piece as it progressed through the peer-review stages. This approach to exposing graduate students to the entirety of the research process is termedSocial Science Mechanics: A Look under the Hood at Innovative Research Designs. Surveys used to evaluate the series confirmed that graduate students who attended the presentations found them to be highly engaging and beneficial. Many faculty members also attended and found the lectures to be equally instructive.

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