Exploring Instructor Evaluation, Affective Learning and Teacher Credibility in International Classrooms

Author(s):  
Peter de Boer ◽  
Prantik Bordoloi

In recent years the globalization trend in higher education has continued. This borderless educational world provides students opportunities to select and follow a study programme anywhere in the world. The resulting international classrooms create challenges and opportunities for international study programmes in preparing their diverse student populations for the demands posed by today’s fast-paced (business) environment. The teacher plays a pivotal role in accommodating the increasingly diverse student body and facilitating learning while being mindful of different learning styles, expectations and needs. Whereas initially the consequences of having an international classroom was taken for granted, higher education institutions have increasingly become aware that it involves more than offering the curriculum in English. In this study we explore the linkages between the student diversity, in terms of self-reported nationality, ethnicity and native language, affective learning and teacher credibility in the context of international classrooms. A key objective of this study was to check the reliability of the measurement items and scales for use in research pertaining to international classrooms. For this study, data was collected from 183 students following the International Business programme at an undergraduate level at one of the most international Universities of Applied Sciences in the Netherlands. The study sample had students from 35 different countries with the Dutch (42%) and German (19%) students constituting the largest group. The sample was divided into two groups: those with the same ethnicity, nationality and native language as the teacher (student-teacher congruence), and those who were different (student-teacher incongruence). The results of this research suggest that the measurement tools for teacher credibility and affective learning are valid, whereas the tool for nonverbal immediacy did not prove reliable. In addition, the theory-driven hypotheses were not supported as no significant difference was found between the scores of affective learning and teacher credibility between the two different groups of students.

2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (2) ◽  
pp. 1-8
Author(s):  
Mikaël De Clercq ◽  
Ellen Jansen ◽  
Taiga Brahm ◽  
Elke Bosse

Transition into higher education (HE) remains at the forefront of policy and practice in education worldwide (Gale & Parker, 2014). Transition as a process (Nicholson, 1990) in which individuals move from one stage to another may cause stress and discomfort that possibly lead to negative outcomes. Transition into HE is a particularly challenging process for the student due to a large variety of difficulties and requirements which could impede study success (Trautwein & Bosse, 2017). Moreover, increasing student numbers and diversity in European HE have reinforced concerns about study success in general and the successful transition to university in particular (Abbott-Chapmann, 2006, 2011; Vossensteyn et al., 2015; Wolter, 2013). Consequently, it is important to further develop our understanding of factors that can contribute to a successful and less stressful transitions into higher education for a diverse student body. In this special issue, we go beyond considering individual factors, such as student characteristics (micro level). In addition to student diversity, we investigate the impact of the learning environment/ institution (meso level) and national educational policies (macro level). Each study contributes to this endeavour by connecting two of the three levels of higher education.


Author(s):  
Debbie Holley ◽  
Martin Oliver

Higher Education Institutions have worked to make equality of access to electronic curriculum resources the ‘status quo’. However, there is evidence that simply providing e-learning – no matter how well intentioned – is insufficient to address the problems that students are experiencing. A three stage model has been developed through analysis of students’ learning experiences at an inner-city, post-1992 University to illustrate how students have to negotiate their engagement with Higher Education. The model provides a way of mapping aspects of course design to different portraits of students, enabling students to be considered as high, medium and low risk in terms of retention. The value of this model for design and analysis of courses is located within the debate of how inclusive business schools curricula are for a diverse student body.


2019 ◽  
Vol 37 (3) ◽  
pp. 341-364
Author(s):  
Nicole M Elias ◽  
Madeleine Marrin

Student engagement in institutions of higher education has become a central priority for educators and administrators. What “student engagement” means for a diverse student body is an important question for public institutions with justice-related missions. As social welfare policy shifts to allow more recipients of public assistance access to higher education, research regarding their engagement experiences remains scarce. To support a socioeconomically diverse student body, consistent with the Network of Schools of Public Policy, Affairs, and Administration (NASPAA) standards, this project explores the nature of engagement among student recipients of public assistance by asking the following research questions: what forms of engagement with students on public assistance take place? Why is engaging students on public assistance important? How can we foster greater engagement with students on public assistance? To answer these questions, student and faculty focus groups are conducted. From this analysis, we highlight normative implications of engaging a socioeconomically diverse student population and present recommendations for fostering greater engagement.


2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
pp. 221258682110062
Author(s):  
Adrianna Kezar

While there have long been campus efforts to better support students from diverse backgrounds, these programs, services and interventions have not been systemic. This paper documents student success infrastructure elements which share similar features that enhance their effectiveness, suggesting some basic ways of re-orienting the way higher education is organized that better support student success. The shared features of effectiveness within the student success infrastructure include broad stakeholder engagement, collaboration, learning, clarity & transparency, equity, and alignment.


2016 ◽  
Vol 13 (2) ◽  
pp. 28-45 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marina Harvey ◽  
◽  
Greg Walkerden ◽  
Anne-Louise Semple ◽  
Kath McLachlan ◽  
...  

As the number of students engaging in higher education increases, so too does their diversity. Additionally, there is growing pressure on universities to better prepare graduates for the varied paths they will pursue beyond study. In responding to these conditions it is important to develop pedagogical approaches that are both inclusive and engaging. One adaptation needed is in relation to the practice and documentation of reflection for learning. Reflection is widely practiced across higher education, and is favoured by the Work-Integrated Learning field for the ways it helps students make sense of their learning. The ongoing reliance on journals for practising and documenting reflection has several benefits; however, a diverse student body, engaging with diverse learning experiences, is likely to benefit from being offered diverse, flexible ways of engaging with reflective practice. Informed by student and practitioner reflective data gathered at an Australian university, this conceptual paper accepts the challenge to “disrupt” (deFreitas 2007) the text and “move beyond the diary” (Harvey et al. 2012) to present an argument for the value and role of alternative modes of reflection, spanning arts-based, embodied, mindful and technological approaches. Underpinning this advocacy of diverse mediums for reflection are the principles of inclusivity and universal design.


2017 ◽  
Vol 7 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Águeda Benito ◽  
Neal A. Green ◽  
Deborah R. Popely ◽  
Phuong M. Thai-Garcia ◽  
Art T. Schneiderheinze

The article addresses the importance of incorporating faculty development as a key priority of higher education institutions. A literature review and some face-to-face and online interviews were conducted at various U.S. institutions, to identify common and best practices regarding this important matter. The article offers some ideas about what is done, and how it is done, to help faculty be ready for the challenging role they need to play: to be effective developers of a diverse student body that meets the evolving needs of industry and that utilizes technological tools that never existed before. 


Author(s):  
Jacqueline M. Dewar

In Chapter 9 the authors give their perspective on the benefits of scholarship of teaching and learning (SoTL) to faculty, to their institutions, to the academy, and to students. Among these are helping faculty and their institutions respond to new developments in higher education: a more diverse student body, increasing calls for accountability, new technologies for teaching, and new understandings of how people learn. The authors describe three pathologies of teaching and discuss how SoTL can serve as an antidote to each, thereby making progress toward the ultimate goal of improving student learning. Examples are given of ways that investigating each type of question in the SoTL taxonomy might address one or more of the three pathologies.


2018 ◽  
Vol 11 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Miriam Sorrentino

Personal tutoring is an essential part of higher education however, while the need for it has increased year on year, time for it has decreased (Select Committee on Education and Employment, 2001). Many students need a diverse range of support (Department for Education and Skills, 2003) and there is growing pressure to include 'soft skills' within higher education (NCIHE, 1997; Skillset, 2011). These requirements often fall to personal tutors. A small working group in the department of Creative Professions and Digital Arts at the University of Greenwich tried to find a solution that could help our diverse student body find some of the support and skills they need. This decision to make personal tutoring a departmental responsibility, rather than one linked to programmes or courses, completely changed our thinking about what we could achieve. This project became STEPS, a course co-designed with students with a consistent feedback loop through the Unitu online platform.


Author(s):  
Neagheen Homaifar ◽  
Ben Nelson ◽  
Stephen M. Kosslyn

When we started Minerva, we had the opportunity to define the type of students we wanted to accept and also the unique privilege and challenge of creating an admissions process to identify these pioneering students. Rather than inherit a legacy system of standardized tests (e.g., the SAT), resumes and cookie-cutter essays that distort student profiles and reward wealth over merit, we built our process from the ground up. We created a holistic admissions process that values a combination of curiosity and intelligence, passion and humility, open-mindedness and cultural awareness, and persistence and hard work. This chapter reviews how we built a technologically innovative, globally accessible and algorithmically guided admissions process that has now been used to evaluate nearly 50,000 applicants from over 160 countries. This process has resulted in the most diverse student body of any American institution of higher education without giving any institutionalized advantage to diversity in the process.


Author(s):  
Chloe Robinson ◽  
Tomicka N. Williams

Since the cultural landscape of most higher education institutions is changing, it is paramount that colleges and universities make a concerted effort to connect with students from various backgrounds. The academic advising department could be the catalyst for change for many institutions of higher learning when seeking to support a diverse student body. Despite an increase in enrollment of students from various backgrounds on many college campuses, various challenges remain when attempting to advise and mentor diverse student populations. This chapter will examine some of the demographical changes taking place on college campuses across the U.S., the importance of multicultural advising and core components of this approach. Finally, the ways in which multicultural advising can be implemented within higher education will be examined.


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