scholarly journals Teaching and assessment practices for academic writing: an analysis of teacher profiles

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dyanne Escorcia ◽  
Mayilin Moreno
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Cluster Analysis ◽  
Data Analysis ◽  
Academic Writing ◽  
Teaching Practices ◽  
Research Study ◽  
Health Sciences ◽  
Assessment Practices ◽  
Effect Hypothesis ◽  
Teacher Age

The present research study aimed to determine what teachers do to promote the learning of academic writing. In particular, we studied how teachers teach and assess writing in higher education based on their self-reported teaching practices. We asked 64 teachers working in a Colombian university to fill in a questionnaire that we constructed for the purposes of the present study. The participants were teachers in the field of Health Sciences, the majority of whom were female (58%), with a mean age of 44 years. Data analysis consisted of cluster analysis based on items relative to teaching and assessing academic writing in order to determine teacher profiles. A Kruskal-Wallis H-test was then conducted to distinguish the found profiles as a function of teacher age. The results revealed three significantly different profiles: transmitting, assessing and no-adherence profiles. These profiles also varied as a function of age. These results will be discussed, taking into account a generational effect hypothesis, with regard to the tendency/lack of tendency for teachers to stimulate the learning of different components of academic writing (norms, methods and reflexive practices).

scholarly journals Appraising the Attitude towards Information Communication Technology Integration and Usage in Kazakhstani Higher Education Curriculum

10.28945/4403 ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 18 ◽  
pp. 355-378
Author(s):  
Nazym Suleimen
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Data Analysis ◽  
Research Study ◽  
Negative Attitude ◽  
Faculty Members ◽  
Ict In Education ◽  
Information Communication ◽  
Ict Integration ◽  
Actual Usage ◽  
Ict Tools

Aim/Purpose: The purpose of the study is to examine and understand the attitude of Kazakhstani universities’ instructors towards ICT integration into the curriculum and to find out the relationship between instructors’ attitudes towards ICT and their actual usage of ICT for teaching and learning processes. Background: The Kazakhstani government has taken initiatives and developed state programs to integrate information communication technologies (ICT) into all levels of education. According to previous research studies, instructors’ negative attitude towards ICT integration into curriculum can affect the implementation of ICT-related initiatives in education including higher education. Therefore, this research study examines the attitudes of Kazakhstani higher education instructors towards ICT integration into curriculum. Methodology: The study implemented an explanatory sequential mixed methods design. For quantitative and qualitative data collection paper-based questionnaires and semi-structured interviews were used, respectively. Convenience sampling was conducted, and the sample consisted of 102 instructors working in two universities in Kazakhstan. In quantitative data analysis, descriptive and inferential statistics were used; Spearman’s rho correlation coefficient was used to identify the relationship between variables. Contribution: Understanding instructors’ attitude towards ICT in education and exploring reasons behind attitudes might be beneficial in accomplishing aims and purposes of governmental ICT-related programs in the higher education system. Findings: Quantitative data analysis reveals that instructors generally possess positive to very positive attitude towards using ICT in education. Instructors often use simple basic tools such as multimedia presentation software; however, they very rarely use more advanced tools such as discipline-oriented software. No statistically significant relationship was found between attitude and advanced ICT tools. Qualitative data analysis identifies several barriers to ICT usage: insufficient or lack of provision of ICT tools and software, lack of technical support, and lack of technical knowledge among instructors. Recommendations for Practitioners: As a result of the study, it is firstly recommended to university administrations to create and add positions of information technology (IT) specialists, to each department and on a permanent basis. Secondly, it is recommended to provide faculty members with training courses that focus on ICT in pedagogy. Thirdly, universities could ask for guidance from their existing faculty members who are advanced ICT integrators, that is to say, collegial learning should be encouraged more strongly. Finally, universities are recommended to reward those faculty members who are active and effective in their attempts to integrate ICT into teaching. Future Research: As I was not able to interview those instructors who possessed negative attitude towards ICT in education, I would recommend filling this gap in the future. Interviewing instructors who are reluctant to integrate ICT into teaching can help identify more issues related to using ICT in education which were not discovered in the current research study. Also, the current research study did not investigate instructors’ attitudes in relation to their demographic background. Further research studies can examine how instructors’ age, gender, place of study, place of work, academic degree, or subject area of teaching influence their attitude towards using ICT in education and their actual usage of ICT in teaching practices.

scholarly journals The appearance of voice: EAP and academic literacies approaches to teaching reflective writing

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Simon A. Williams
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Academic Writing ◽  
English For Academic Purposes ◽  
Reflective Writing ◽  
Assessment Practices ◽  
Academic Literacies ◽  
Student Writers ◽  
Student Cohorts ◽  
Private And Public ◽  
Novice Writers

The increasingly common requirement for higher education courses to include reflective writing as part of assessment practices places additional demands on novice writers. Complex and self-referential assessment criteria mean that students on foundation and pre-sessional courses in particular find it hard to decode and match descriptors, and to balance subjectivity and critical analysis. English for Academic Purposes (EAP), the most widely adopted approach to teaching academic writing in higher education, prioritises objectivity, and teaches students to recognise generic patterns of text organisation – though it seldom includes reflective writing itself as a genre. In contrast, the less familiar teaching approach of academic literacies explores students’ subjectivity, more obviously relevant to reflection, often through the development of an authentic narrative voice. As in other forms of academic writing, voice in reflective writing can be seen as a construct. It conveys a persona via the narrative, and an ethos via its specialised content. However, unlike other forms of academic writing, the personain reflective writing must simultaneously communicate the author’s private and public self.With the purpose of developing students’ persona, an academic literacies intervention in two transition courses invited students to complete a piece of timed writing in response to an autobiographical prompt. Compared with the EAP writing produced by the same student cohorts, the autobiographical writing contained a clear persona and consistent ethos. The assessed reflective writing later produced by the same students showed little change, however, particularly in its handling of ethos. The findings suggest that teachers of reflective writing need simultaneously to develop students’ ability to communicate a credible persona and to handle a specialised ethos of formal academic content. A more principled combination of the two approaches, EAP and academic literacies, could best provide the optimum learning environment for novice student writers to develop a balanced voice and achieve reflective writing fluency

Theory into practice:: Challenges and implications for information literacy teaching

IFLA Journal ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 46 (2) ◽  
pp. 133-142
Author(s):  
Deborah Schachter
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
British Columbia ◽  
Mixed Methods ◽  
Information Literacy ◽  
Teaching Practices ◽  
Mixed Methods Research ◽  
Research Study ◽  
Higher Education Institutions ◽  
Literacy Teaching ◽  
Value Of Learning

This article is informed by a mixed-methods research study into librarians’ critical information literacy awareness and teaching practices in higher education institutions within British Columbia, Canada, and the literature related to critical pedagogical and literacy theory. I explore the perceived gap in librarian knowledge of theories that underpin their pedagogy, the value of learning about and applying theories to information literacy teaching, and strategies that can enable improved awareness and application of theory to librarians’ practices in higher education.

Institutional Plagiarism Policy (Georgian higher education institutions’ case)

2018 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Natela DOGHONADZE ◽  
Ekaterine PIPIA ◽  
Nikoloz PARJANADZE
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Social Media ◽  
Literature Review ◽  
Foreign Language ◽  
Academic Writing ◽  
Higher Education Institutions ◽  
Survey Questionnaire ◽  
Existing Problems ◽  
Copyright Violation ◽  
University Policies

The article deals with various aspects of plagiarism: definition (discriminating it from cheating and copyright violation), types (intended / unintended), involved people, causes, prevention, detection and punishment of plagiarism. A survey (questionnaire containing 42 items to be assessed in a 5-point Likert scale and one open- ended item) was conducted in Georgia. The questionnaire developed based on the literature review was uploaded on social media in three variants (to analyze the results separately and compare them): for students, for researchers and for assessors. The obtained results revealed that the opinions of the three groups of respondents differed to a certain degree, but were quite similar, eventually. The survey disclosed the existing problems, such as: lack of academic writing (in the native and especially foreign language) and research skills, lack of training in avoiding plagiarism, insufficiently clear university policies in the area, the emphasis on punishment instead of prevention, etc. Based on the obtained results recommendations for universities are given concerning plagiarism policies. 

scholarly journals A News Big Data Analysis of Issues in Higher Education in Korea amid the COVID-19 Pandemic

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (13) ◽  
pp. 7347
Author(s):  
Jangwan Ko ◽  
Seungsu Paek ◽  
Seoyoon Park ◽  
Jiwoo Park
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Big Data ◽  
Data Analysis ◽  
College Education ◽  
Big Data Analysis ◽  
Second Phase ◽  
Public Attention ◽  
Job Market ◽  
Media Reports ◽  
The Government

This paper examines the main issues regarding higher education in Korea—where college education experienced minimal interruptions—during the COVID-19 pandemic through a big data analysis of news articles. By analyzing policy responses from the government and colleges and examining prominent discourses on higher education, it provides a context for discussing the implications of COVID-19 on education policy and what the post-pandemic era would bring. To this end, we utilized BIgKinds, a big data research solution for news articles offered by the Korea Press Foundation, to select a total of 2636 media reports and conducted Topic Modelling based on LDA algorithms using NetMiner. The analyses are split into three distinct periods of COVID-19 spread in the country. Some notable topics from the first phase are remote class, tuition refund, returning Chinese international students, and normalization of college education. Preparations for the College Scholastic Ability Test (CSAT), contact and contactless classes, preparations for early admissions, and supporting job market candidates are extracted for the second phase. For the third phase, the extracted topics include CSAT and college-specific exams, quarantine on campus, social relations on campus, and support for job market candidates. The results confirmed widespread public attention to the relevant issues but also showed empirically that the measures taken by the government and college administrations to combat COVID-19 had limited visibility among media reports. It is important to note that timely and appropriate responses from the government and colleges have enabled continuation of higher education in some capacity during the pandemic. In addition to the media’s role in reporting issues of public interest, there is also a need for continued research and discussion on higher education amid COVID-19 to help effect actual results from various policy efforts.

scholarly journals Multilingualism and internationalisation in doctoral education: Discourse, positioning and agency

2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 257-277
Author(s):  
Stephanie Hofmann
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Academic Success ◽  
Cultural Diversity ◽  
Academic Writing ◽  
National Language ◽  
Macro Level ◽  
Lingua Franca ◽  
Diversity In Higher Education ◽  
Linguistic Repertoire ◽  
Education Discourse

AbstractDespite the growing linguistic and cultural diversity in higher education and research, little is known about how students and researchers use their plurilingual repertoire for writing and publishing. In particular, the roles of the national language(s) and the linguistic repertoire(s) vis-à-vis English as the lingua franca for academic writing and publishing have not been closely examined. This paper explores how doctoral researchers in Luxembourg position themselves in relation to macro-level discourses about language and academic success within their complex lingua-cultural and socio-economic setting. By analysing interview transcripts of two multilingual doctoral researchers from Russia and Germany, I show how in spite of their similar starting situations they negotiate agency to varying degrees. In particular, the prevalence of English and the pressure to publish in international journals seem to make them struggle to use their full linguistic repertoire in writing their theses.

Embedding employability within higher education for the profession of policing

2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (3) ◽  
pp. 319-328
Author(s):  
Ian Pepper ◽  
Ruth McGrath
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Research Study ◽  
Longitudinal Research ◽  
Evidence Base ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Educational Provision ◽  
Professional Body ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Practical Implications

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the impact of an employability module, the College of Policing Certificate in Knowledge of Policing (CKP), on students’ career aspirations, their confidence and wish to join the police along with the appropriateness of the module. This will inform the implementation of employability as part of the College of Policing-managed Police Education Qualifications Framework (PEQF). Design/methodology/approach A three-year longitudinal research study used mixed methods across four points in time to evaluate the impact on students studying the employability module. Findings The research suggests that the employability-focussed CKP was useful as an introduction to policing, it developed interest in the police and enhanced the confidence of learners applying to join. Lessons learnt from the CKP should be considered during the implementation of the PEQF. Research limitations/implications The ability to generalise findings across different groups is limited as other influences may impact on a learner’s confidence and employability. However, the implications for the PEQF curriculum are worthy of consideration. Practical implications As the police service moves towards standardised higher educational provision and evolution of policing as a profession, lessons can be learnt from the CKP with regards to the future employability of graduates. Originality/value Enhancing the employability evidence base, focussing on policing, the research identified aspects which may impact on graduates completing a degree mapped to the PEQF. The research is therefore of value to higher education and the professional body for policing.

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