scholarly journals Assessing teaching competency of academic staff at university level: Are we competent?

2021 ◽  
Vol 8 (3) ◽  
pp. 01-08
Author(s):  
Reihaneh Shagholi ◽  
Zahra Naimie ◽  
Rana Ahmed Abuzaid
Keyword(s):  
Academic Staff ◽  
Analysis Data ◽  
Study Data ◽  
Faculty Members ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Step Method ◽  
Faculty Recruitment ◽  
Teaching Competence ◽  
Competence Evaluation ◽  
University Level

The purpose of study is to assess the teaching competence of faculty members who are applying for a job at university from both Board of Examiners and Invitees perspectives. This qualitative study was conducted using non-guided content analysis. Data were collected via semi-structured interviews with 22 expert Board of Examiners. In addition, 22 applicants for faculty recruitment who achieved the required score for participation in the 'teaching competence evaluation' station were enrolled in the study. Data analysis was performed using the step-by-step method and Strauss and Corbin analytic techniques. The finding was classified into three main categories of before, during, and after teaching. We extracted 52 indices, 10 subcategories, five general categories, and three main categories, which were formulated based on the teaching competence of the faculty members from the perspective of the board of examiners.  the results could be used for the recruitment of capable faculty members.   Keywords: Teaching Competence, Higher Education, Faculty Members, Academic staff, University level

scholarly journals Cultural Perspectives on Social Responsibility in Higher Education

2016 ◽  
Vol 6 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Iris M Yob
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Social Responsibility ◽  
Curriculum Design ◽  
Common Good ◽  
Cultural Context ◽  
Faculty Members ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Faculty Recruitment ◽  
Student Preparation ◽  
Cultural Perspectives

<p>The writers of the UNESCO document, <em>Rethinking education: Towards a global common good? </em>challenge educators to address their efforts to meet the current threats to sustainable life for all who share this planet. One way that higher education has been attempting to do this is through campus-community partnerships working to solve social problems locally or further afield. In this exploratory study, answers were sought to the question of why faculty members and administrators participate in these service partnerships, both in terms of what motivates them to do so and what they hope to accomplish, and how cultural context may influence their answers. Answers to these questions may have implications for faculty recruitment and support and for curriculum design and student preparation for serving the common good as well as for the larger vision of how institutions might fulfill their social responsibility. Using one-on-one semi-structured interviews in a number of different countries, some trends could be identified. Responding to a sense of duty was found across all cultural contexts as a primary motivator for faculty members and administrators, but how duty was interpreted and legitimized depended on their various religious and political grounds. Cultural context also influenced whether participants saw their impact as empowering their service partners or establishing social justice. </p>

scholarly journals Peer Review of Teaching

2007 ◽  
Vol 21 (2) ◽  
pp. 154-161 ◽  
Author(s):  
Charles E. Fernandez ◽  
Jenny Yu
Keyword(s):  
Peer Review ◽  
Faculty Members ◽  
Clinical Settings ◽  
Teaching Competence ◽  
Competence Evaluation

This article provides an overview and description of peer review of teaching for faculty members and administrators who would like to implement a peer review program. This may include classroom and clinical settings. A brief overview, procedure, and a teaching competence evaluation rubric are provided.

scholarly journals Academic English education through research-informed teaching: Capturing perceptions of Bangladeshi university students and faculty members

2020 ◽  
pp. 136216882094381
Author(s):  
Md Golam Jamil
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
English Education ◽  
Learning Experience ◽  
Study Data ◽  
Faculty Members ◽  
Academic English ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Conceptual Base ◽  
Research Literacy ◽  
Guiding Principles

This article arose in response to the recent impetus for embedding inquiry-based approaches in higher education. It draws upon the perceptions of students and faculty members regarding inquiry-based education in Academic English (AE) programmes at universities in Bangladesh within an English as a Foreign Language (EFL) context. Research-informed teaching (RIT), an intellectually stimulating and inquiry-based learning approach, is the conceptual base of the study. Data were collected from four Bangladeshi universities using a learning experience survey with students ( n = 319) and semi-structured interviews with six EFL faculty members. The findings provide four guiding principles on the design and implementation of RIT-based AE programmes: (1) addressing wider educational objectives in AE education, (2) incorporating applied features in the learning activities, (3) building faculty members’ research literacy and practice, and (4) establishing academic collaboration across disciplines. While the findings are derived from Bangladesh higher education, the guiding principles and strategies have resonance internationally.

scholarly journals An Analysis of Meaningless and Absurd Experiences in Unsuccessful Suicide Attempts in Iran

2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 60-70
Author(s):  
Mahdi Khatami ◽  
◽  
Anahita Khodabakhshi-Koolaee ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health Professionals ◽  
Sampling Method ◽  
Attempted Suicide ◽  
Suicide Attempts ◽  
Study Data ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Step Method ◽  
Descriptive Phenomenology ◽  
Qualitative Descriptive ◽  
Underlying Causes

Objective: Suicide is a multidimensional phenomenon, and examining each of its dimensions can help control this destructive social phenomenon. This study aimed to investigate meaningless and absurd experiences in people who attempted suicide in Iran. Methods: The present study was conducted using a qualitative-descriptive phenomenology. The participants were selected using the purposive sampling method from persons who attempted suicide and were admitted to the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) of Loghman-e Hakim Hospital in Tehran City, Iran, in 2020. The study data were collected via semi-structured interviews. The collected data were theoretically saturated after interviewing 15 participants. All data were also recorded, transcribed, and analyzed using Colaizzi’s seven-step method. Results: The initial codes identified in this study were categorized into 4 main themes and 22 sub-themes. The main themes were “underlying and revealing causes of suicide”, “outburst of feelings and thoughts before suicide”, “reaction of those around to suicide”, and “the overall meaning of life and a looking at life after suicide”. Conclusion: This study showed that those who attempted suicide for at least one of the reasons of poverty, lack of financial independence, love failure, and not being understood by parents or the spouse experienced a sense of meaninglessness and absurdity. An awareness of the experiences of people who attempted suicide can help mental health professionals understand its underlying causes and make subsequent clinical and treatment decisions.

scholarly journals Perceived Effectiveness of Tenure Track System and Basic Pay Scale among Academic Staff of Higher Education Institutions

2020 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
pp. 110-131
Author(s):  
Sobia Sultana ◽  
Shaista Jabeen
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Public Sector ◽  
Higher Education Institutions ◽  
Academic Staff ◽  
Faculty Members ◽  
Tenure Track ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Track System ◽  
Process System ◽  
Full Capacity

The Tenure Track system was introduced in Pakistan in 2002 to improve higher education in the country by recruiting qualified faculty members in higher education institutions, particularly in public sector universities. The main advantage of this system is to grow talented researchers within the faculty to obtain optimal benefits. Much i known about the system, but more is needed to explore. Another system is the Basic Pay Scale. It is a structure that regulates how much an employee is rewarded as salary or wages, depending on the rank, status, position, or tenure in an organization and the effort made to perform a specific task. The objective of this study is to explore the perception and effectiveness of the systems. An explanatory approach is used to address the research questions. Semi-structured interviews were utilized as a source of data collection. The 14 interviews were conducted from faculty members of higher education institutions of public sector universities. The data is converted into transcripts and main themes emerged with the help of the coding technique. The findings reveal the effectiveness of the two system, its process, system preference, and sources of stress. The results show the aspects where the two systems differentiate each other, their recognition, potential sources of stress, and the perception about the available information. The findings also depict that for a better implementation of the system (TTS) and to achieve its basic objective, it is necessary that the system must aware of its full capacity.

scholarly journals Students' perspectives in relation to academic counseling in the university: A qualitative study using Content analysis

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
F Rezapur-Shahkolai ◽  
N Salimi ◽  
Kh Ezzati Rastgar ◽  
E Gheysvandi ◽  
P Parsa ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Content Analysis ◽  
Qualitative Study ◽  
Organizational Factors ◽  
Study Data ◽  
Faculty Members ◽  
Main Theme ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Counseling Process ◽  
Academic Counseling ◽  
The University

Introduction: Proper counseling are very important to improve the quality of life and progress in society, especially in educational centers. The present qualitative study was designed and implemented according to the importance of deep students' opinions to improve the counseling process. Methods: This present study was a qualitative study which was conducted using Content analysis. Participants in this study were 30 students who were selected through purposive sampling, with maximum diversity. In this study, data were obtained using semi-structured interviews and were analyzed using Conventional content analysis. Result: From the students' point of view, the challenges facing academic counseling included two main themes, four main categories and seven sub-categories. Main themes included “need to improve the organizational factors related to consulling process” and “need to improve the individual factorsamong faculty members and student” and the main categories included lack of proper information to the student, unavailability of consultant faculty members, to select consultant faculty members without considering a student opinion and to be improper the communication between consultant faculty members  and student. Regarding the facilitators of the counseling process, one main theme (strengthening the organizational factors related to consulling process), three main categories and four sub-categories were obtained. The main categories included the separation of the counselor from the faculty members, empowerment of the counselors and student’s freedom to choose a counselor. Conclusion: The results of the present study show that the process of academic counseling in the university faces organizational and individual challenges such as lack of proper information to the student, unavailability of consultant faculty members, to select consultant faculty members without considering the students opinion, and to be improper the communication between consultant faculty members  and students. Based on the students' views, it seems that by separation of the counselor from the faculty members, empowerment of the counselors and student’s freedom to choose a counselor, the academic counseling process in the university can be improved.

Students' Independent Professional Activity in Pedagogical Practice

2010 ◽  
Vol 12 (2) ◽  
pp. 38-58
Author(s):  
Aina Strode
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Comparative Analysis ◽  
Empirical Study ◽  
Qualitative Data ◽  
Academic Staff ◽  
Professional Activity ◽  
Pedagogical Practice ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Criteria And Indicators ◽  
Study Process

Students' Independent Professional Activity in Pedagogical PracticeThe topicality of the research is determined by the need for changes in higher education concerned with implementing the principles of sustainable education. The article focuses on teacher training, highlighting the teacher's profession as an attractive choice of one's career that permits to ensure the development of general and professional skills and an opportunity for new specialists to align with the labour market. The empirical study of students' understanding of their professional activity and of the conditions for its formation is conducted by applying structured interviews (of practice supervisors, students, academic staff); students and experts' questionnaire. Comparative analysis of quantitative and qualitative data and triangulation were used in case studies. As a result, a framework of pedagogical practice organisation has been created in order to form students' independent professional activity. The criteria and indicators of independent professional activity have been formulated and suggestions for designers of study programmes and organisers of the study process have been provided.

scholarly journals Analysis of the early mother-child relationship in schizophrenic patients

2021 ◽  
pp. 002076402199118
Author(s):  
Marziyeh Khoshgoftar ◽  
Anahita Khodabakhshi-Koolaee ◽  
Mohammad Reza Sheikhi
Keyword(s):  
Cultural Context ◽  
Phenomenological Approach ◽  
Sampling Procedure ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Step Method ◽  
Child Relationship ◽  
New Information ◽  
Data Saturation ◽  
Schizophrenic Patients ◽  
Mother Child Relationship

Background and Aim: The mother as the first caregiver plays a significant role in the formation of the child’s behavior, growth, and communication. The present study aimed to analyze the early mother-child relationship in schizophrenic patients. Materials and Methods: This qualitative study employed a descriptive phenomenological approach. The participants were male patients with schizophrenia who were hospitalized in Qazvin Bahman Psychiatric Hospital from March to September 2020 with an age range of over 18 years. Given the objective of the study, the data were collected using semi-structured interviews. The participants were selected using purposive sampling and the sampling procedure continued until data saturation as the point when no new information is observed in the data. Accordingly, the data were saturated after interviewing 15 participants. The data were analyzed using Colaizzi’s seven-step method. Results: The analysis of the data revealed four main themes including ambivalent attachment to the mother, feelings of constant fear and worry, a sense of constant care for the mother, and a cold and emotionless relationship with the child. Conclusion: The present study suggested that schizophrenia is a disorder that affects the mother-child relationship, and does the term “schizophrenic mothers” need to be reconsidered? However, the result of this research has been done according to the nature and cultural context of Iranian society.

scholarly journals An intervention to decrease burnout and increase retention of early career nurses: a mixed methods study of acceptability and feasibility

BMC Nursing ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 20 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Judy Brook ◽  
Leanne M. Aitken ◽  
Julie-Ann MacLaren ◽  
Debra Salmon
Keyword(s):  
Mixed Methods ◽  
Nursing Students ◽  
Focus Groups ◽  
Academic Staff ◽  
Skills Training ◽  
Early Career ◽  
Mixed Methods Study ◽  
Healthcare Organisation ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Over Time

Abstract Aims To understand the experiences of nursing students and academic staff of an intervention to decrease burnout and increase retention of early career nurses, in order to identify acceptability and feasibility in a single centre. Background Internationally, retention of nurses is a persistent challenge but there is a dearth of knowledge about the perspectives of stakeholders regarding the acceptability and feasibility of interventions to resolve the issue. This study reports an intervention comprising of mindfulness, psychological skills training and cognitive realignment to prepare participants for early careers as nurses. Methods This is an explanatory sequential mixed methods study, conducted by a UK university and healthcare organisation. Participants were final year pre-registration nursing students (n = 74) and academics (n = 7) involved in the implementation of the intervention. Pre and post measures of acceptability were taken using a questionnaire adapted from the Theoretical Framework of Acceptability. Wilcoxon Signed Ranks test was used to assess change in acceptability over time. Qualitative data from semi-structured interviews, focus groups and field notes were thematically analysed, adhering to COREQ guidelines. Data were collected February to December 2019. Results One hundred and five questionnaires, 12 interviews with students and 2 focus groups engaging 7 academic staff were completed. The intervention was perceived as generally acceptable with significant positive increases in acceptability scores over time. Student nurses perceived the intervention equipped them with skills and experience that offered enduring personal benefit. Challenges related to the practice environment and academic assessment pressures. Reported benefits align with known protective factors against burnout and leaving the profession. Conclusion Planning is needed to embed the intervention into curricula and maximise relationships with placement partners. Evaluating acceptability and feasibility offers new knowledge about the value of the intervention for increasing retention and decreasing burnout for early career nurses. Wider implementation is both feasible and recommended by participants.

scholarly journals Aging out of foster care: The experiences of former foster youth who successfully navigated this transition

2021 ◽  
pp. 251610322110194
Author(s):  
Margot Hedenstrom
Keyword(s):  
Foster Care ◽  
Foster Youth ◽  
Life Experiences ◽  
Study Data ◽  
Aging Out ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Former Foster Youth ◽  
Making A Difference ◽  
Human Costs ◽  
Poor Outcomes

Foster youth face high risks and poor outcomes after aging out of care resulting in great economic and human costs to society. The purpose of the study was to describe life experiences of children aging out of the foster care system from the perspectives of adults who have successfully navigated this transition. Their life experiences during this period provided meaningful information for this study which helped to identify themes. Their perceptions of the periods during and after their transitions were explored to investigate supportive relationships, education, and workplace stability. Phenomenology was used to describe the experiences of nine young adults who had aged out of foster care. Participant ages ranged from 20 to 25 years old. Audiotaped semi-structured interviews were conducted for the study. Data analysis was ongoing throughout data collection. Four themes were identified: (1) “Facing a transition”; (2) “Depending on adults for help”; (3) “Making a difference for others”; and (4) “Moving forward with my life.” These four themes highlighted the participants’ experiences as they aged out of foster care. This study contributes to our understanding of the life experiences of former foster youth who are successful after the transition out of foster care. Recommendations for practice and research are identified.

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