scholarly journals Teaching Students to Think - Faculty Recommendations for Teaching Evaluations Employing Automated Content Analysis

2019 ◽  
Vol 8 (3) ◽  
pp. 83 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nitza Davidovitch ◽  
Eyal Eckhaus
Keyword(s):  
Student Evaluations ◽  
Point Of View ◽  
Faculty Members ◽  
Academic Institutions ◽  
Senior Faculty ◽  
Statistical Research ◽  
Teaching Evaluations ◽  
Automated Content Analysis ◽  
Academic Faculty ◽  
Research Findings

Many studies have been conducted on teaching evaluations completed by students and on myths and facts concerning these evaluations performed by students at academic institutions. The current study is unique in examining the meaning of teaching evaluations as perceived by academic faculty members in Israel through direct questions, with an emphasis on faculty's recommendations for improving the evaluations to make students' comments meaningful for enhancing and advancing their teaching. The perception of evaluations is unique too. Evaluations are part of faculty's learning outputs in their courses, with the aim being for graduates of academic systems to have the ability to provide objective and fair assessments.One hundred seventy seven questionnaires were gathered from senior faculty at several academic institutions. Qualitative and statistical research tools were used in order to form a model that expresses the negative implications as seen by faculty members and alternatives for measuring the performance of faculty in academic teaching. The research findings indicate that lecturers note "professional" alternatives and see teaching evaluations as a populist rather than a professional tool. Moreover, although the lecturers gauge the damage caused to them as a result of student evaluations, where the enormous damage caused to them is disproportionate to the number of respondents, and although faculty members believe that student evaluations are untrustworthy, students' opinions on the courses are important. Their recommendation is that the evaluation should be a tool for teaching how to perform evaluations and convey criticism – and in this field not much has been done in academic institutions, if at all. Academia sees evaluations as a technical matter, a means of satisfying students by letting them express their opinions and of giving students a feeling that the system is attentive to their voice, to their views.Indeed, students' voice is important to the lecturers – their opinions of teaching are important – and that is precisely why action should be taken to render these evaluations fair. Students should understand the power of the words that express their evaluation of the lecturers. This point of view is a first of its kind, where academic faculty members support students' opinions and provide recommendations aimed at their improvement.

scholarly journals How do Academic Faculty Members Perceive the Effect of Teaching Surveys Completed by Students on Appointment and Promotion Processes at Academic Institutions? A Case Study

2019 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 171 ◽  
Author(s):  
Eyal Eckhaus ◽  
Nitza Davidovitch
Keyword(s):  
Research Performance ◽  
Student Evaluations ◽  
Faculty Members ◽  
Academic Institutions ◽  
Senior Faculty ◽  
Statistical Research ◽  
Academic Appointment ◽  
Academic Faculty ◽  
Research Findings

It is commonly thought that the promotion of faculty members is affected by their research performance. The current study is unique in examining how academic faculty members perceive the harm or damage to academic appointment and promotion processes, as a direct effect of student evaluations as manifested in teaching surveys. One hundred eighty two questionnaires were collected from senior faculty members at academic institutions. Most respondents were from three institutions: Ariel University, Ben Gurion University, and the Jezreel Valley College. Qualitative and statistical research tools were utilized, with the goal of forming a model reflecting the effect of the harm to academic appointment and promotion processes, as perceived by faculty members. The research findings show that the lecturers find an association that causes harm to their promotion processes as a result of student evaluations. Assuming that students' voices and their opinion of teaching are important – the question is how should these evaluations be treated within promotion and appointment processes: what and whom do they indicate? Do they constitute a reliable managerial tool with which it is possible to work as a foundation for promotion and appointment processes – or should other tools be developed, unrelated to students' opinions?

scholarly journals Student Evaluation of Lecturers – What do Faculty Members Think about the Damage Caused by Teaching Surveys?

2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (3) ◽  
pp. 12
Author(s):  
Nitza Davidovich ◽  
Eyal Eckhaus
Keyword(s):  
Structural Equation ◽  
Teaching Practice ◽  
Student Evaluation ◽  
Faculty Members ◽  
Equation Modeling ◽  
Senior Faculty ◽  
Student Surveys ◽  
Teaching Evaluations ◽  
Academic Faculty ◽  
Research Findings

Many studies have been conducted on teaching evaluations and student surveys. The current study is unique for examining, by means of direct questions, the meaning of teaching surveys as perceived by academic faculty in Israel. Senior faculty members at academic institutions completed questionnaires, with a total of 182 questionnaires collected. We employed mixed research methods, beginning with qualitative analysis followed by Structural Equation Modeling (SEM), with the goal of developing a model that reflects faculty members’ beliefs on teaching surveys. The research findings show that the lecturers find that student evaluations are detrimental to their relationship with their students, and adversely affect their teaching practice and interpersonal interactions with their students. In view of the importance attributed to students' voices and their opinions of teaching, the question is how should these evaluations be addressed, Do teaching surveys constitute a reliable managerial tool and a foundation for improving teaching – or should other tools be developed to improve teaching practices, independent of students' opinions?

scholarly journals Effect of Personal and Occupational Characteristics on Attitudes to an Obligatory Retirement Age—A Content Analysis Investigation

2019 ◽  
Vol 8 (6) ◽  
pp. 169
Author(s):  
Eyal Eckhaus ◽  
Nitza Davidovitch
Keyword(s):  
Personal Characteristics ◽  
Faculty Members ◽  
Academic Rank ◽  
Retirement Age ◽  
Senior Faculty ◽  
Statistical Research ◽  
Academic Field ◽  
Academic Administration ◽  
Occupational Characteristics ◽  
Academic Faculty

This study is a pioneer study examining the effects of personal and occupational background variables on the attitude of faculty members to an obligatory retirement age in academia. Previous studies on performance measures of academic faculty in research, teaching, academic administration, and contribution to the community, testified to associations between faculty member achievements and their personal characteristics (gender, age) as well as features related to their academic field of occupation (faculty, academic rank, tenure). Hence, these quality measures of academic faculty have meaning for and influence on research, even after the customary retirement age. Obligatory retirement age is a well-known issue and it is arousing much interest in general, and in academia in particular. Academic work includes activity focused on research, teaching, advisory work, participation in academic committees and conferences—namely, activities that require human thinking. This leads to the question of whether and to what degree personal and occupational characteristics are associated with the attitude of faculty members to retirement age. One hundred and eight questionnaires administered to senior faculty were collected in a case study of a single university. Qualitative and statistical research tools were employed, with the aim of creating a model that expresses the association between faculty members’ personal and occupational characteristics and their attitude to retirement age in academia. The research findings show that the background variables affecting the attitude of faculty members to retirement are age and tenure—faculty members’ age and status as tenured faculty determine their objection to the obligatory retirement age.

scholarly journals Senior Faculty Opinions on the Significance of Retirement Age - Employing Natural Language Processing

2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 38
Author(s):  
Nitza Davidovitch ◽  
Eyal Eckhaus
Keyword(s):  
Language Processing ◽  
Faculty Members ◽  
Academic Institution ◽  
Retirement Age ◽  
Senior Faculty ◽  
Research And Teaching ◽  
Academic System ◽  
Academic Faculty ◽  
Research Findings

This study is a pioneer study examining the significance of retirement in terms of lost investments and outcomes. Research findings on the output of academic faculty and on measures of excellence in higher education indicate that upon retirement the academic institution as an organization loses not only faculty who are still capable of contributing both to research and to teaching, but rather also two other important products: valuable knowledge and experience accumulated by senior faculty in the academic system in light of the institution’s investments in them. 107 questionnaires were collected from senior faculty members in a case study of one academic institution. A combined research method was utilized, consisting of qualitative and statistical analysis, with the aim of exploring the significance of retirement in terms of lost input and output, as perceived by academic faculty members. The research findings indicate that indeed, as perceived by the faculty, academic institutions as an organization lose faculty who are still capable of contributing to both research and teaching, as well as valuable knowledge and experience accumulated by senior faculty members within the academic system, after being nurtured by the academic institution.

scholarly journals Argument for Tenure in the American Higher Education

2020 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
pp. 62-65
Author(s):  
Majed s Allehaibi
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Faculty Members ◽  
Research Projects ◽  
Academic Institutions ◽  
Advantages And Disadvantages ◽  
American Higher Education ◽  
Social Sanctions ◽  
Research Findings

The article presents the arguments concerning tenure in academic institutions. Proponents of tenure argue that it protects professors from social sanctions such as criticism by political or religious powers outside campus that may disagree with the professor’s research findings and thus might pressure the institution to fire him or her. Opponents of tenure argue that the security that comes with tenure allows professors to become incompetent and slothful. After assessing the advantages and disadvantages of tenure, this article concludes that tenure could be an incentive attracting competent faculty members and allowing them to embark on long-term, risky research projects.

scholarly journals The Influence of Birth Country on Selection of Conference Destination - Employing Natural Language Processing

2018 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 92 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nitza Davidovitch ◽  
Eyal Eckhaus
Keyword(s):  
Language Processing ◽  
Faculty Members ◽  
Birth Country ◽  
Academic Faculty ◽  
Research Findings ◽  
Israel Studies ◽  
Former Ussr ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Academic Conferences

This study deals with immigrant scientists integrated in academia in Israel. Studies on the subject indicate the contribution of immigrant scientists to research. The current study focuses on the influence of scientists' birth country on selecting destinations for academic conferences, as well as on the influence of one's native language on the academic output resulting from research conferences. This is a pilot study exploring the effect of academic conferences from the perspective of birth country - comparing Israeli born and USSR born academics - on the motivation of faculty members to attend conferences, the nature of the conferences they select, the differences between Israeli natives and non-natives with regard to how their perceive the influence of conferences and their contribution to their academic work. This research offers a case study, investigating the effect of scholars from two different countries and cultural background, Israel and USSR. This pioneering research provides the grounds for many extensions, studies that will investigate the impact of other countries and their effect on conference selection. The study addresses a case study of a single university in Israel that absorbed many immigrant scientists from the former USSR in the 1990s. Ninety-four academic faculty members from various departments answered the questionnaire, of them 60.9% women and 39.1% men. Faculty members referred to the conference's contribution with regard to their professional development. In addition, the greater inclination of Israeli researchers than researchers born in the USSR to take their family members with them when travelling for conferences was noted. Since the contribution of immigrant scientists was found to be significant and since academic conferences are a significant part of the work of faculty members and receive considerable funds from academic institutions, the research findings might illuminate the choice of conferences by immigrant scientists and their preferences - compared to native born scientists - with the purpose of examining whether conferences are perceived by Israeli born faculty members as productive.

scholarly journals Organizational Political Tactics in Universities

2016 ◽  
Vol 1 (2) ◽  
pp. 65
Author(s):  
Bahareh Azizi Nejad ◽  
Mir Mohammad Seiied Abbaszadeh ◽  
Mohammad Hassani
Keyword(s):  
Political Behavior ◽  
Research Method ◽  
T Test ◽  
Faculty Members ◽  
State Universities ◽  
Inferential Statistics ◽  
Political Tactics ◽  
Academic Faculty ◽  
Research Findings ◽  
Descriptive Survey

The present research aimed to promote understanding of political tactics in organizations. Political behavior innowadays-complex conditions is a process that the conflicts, contrasts and differences among interested groups areresolved. It means dialogue, attention to different goals in organizations, regarding the interest of different groups,attraction of staff cooperation, and acquisition of the worker’s support in management decisions, therefore technicaland organizational wisdom are not sufficient. Managers along the development of organizations need to havepolitical wisdom. In this study we surveyed political tactics perceptions of 1263 academic faculty members in WestAzarbaijan State Universities. The research method was a descriptive-survey. Among these academic members, 376individuals were chosen randomly as research sample. Questionnaire of ‘political tactics’ (r= 0.9) was used to collectdata. The data were analyzed by using descriptive and inferential statistics as well as t-test, MANOVA, andFreidman test. Research findings showed that there were significant differences between academic degrees of theacademic faculty members and political tactics used in the universities, whereas there was no any differencebetween gender of faculty members and political tactics. The survey revealed that the perceptions of political tacticsamong faculty members were different in West Azarbaijan State Universities; therefore, some practical suggestionsare recommended.

Flipped pedagogy and student evaluations of teaching

2019 ◽  
pp. 146978741985518
Author(s):  
Michelle L Samuel
Keyword(s):  
Student Perceptions ◽  
Flipped Classroom ◽  
Student Evaluations ◽  
Faculty Members ◽  
Classroom Setting ◽  
Student Evaluations Of Teaching ◽  
Traditional Lecture ◽  
Teaching Evaluations ◽  
Subject Design ◽  
Set Up

A common concern of faculty members is student evaluations of teaching scores. Many factors influence student evaluations of teaching including how the course is designed. This study investigated student evaluations of teaching across three pedagogical techniques: the traditional lecture (where lectures were not recorded), recorded lectures, and a flipped classroom model. A between-subject design was used over three semesters. Student evaluations of teaching showed that students rated the instructor significantly higher in a flipped classroom setting. Students also reported liking the course more using the flipped pedagogical technique. Since the flipped format improved both teaching evaluations and student perceptions of the class, this could be useful for instructors when they are deciding how to set up the format of their class.

The usefulness of accounting research: A practitioner's point of view

2017 ◽  
pp. 67-74
Author(s):  
Giovanni Andrea Toselli
Keyword(s):  
Point Of View ◽  
Chief Financial Officers ◽  
Industrial System ◽  
Academic Institutions ◽  
Accounting Research ◽  
Strong Feeling ◽  
Financial Communication

This paper represents a contribution from the point of view of a practitioner who strongly believes that it is essential to continue to invest in accounting research. The cooperation between chief financial officers, auditors and academic institutions is central not only for improving the process of accounting regulations but also for relaunching, at the same time, the industrial system (and not only it), by creating a strong feeling of trust in general economic and financial communication, thus fostering higher level of accountability.

THE METADIALOGUE CONCEPT IN ITS LINGUISTIC ASPECT

2019 ◽  
Vol 29 (5) ◽  
pp. 721-726
Author(s):  
Yu.V. Kupriyanova ◽  
I.M. Vasilyanova
Keyword(s):  
Subject Matter ◽  
Dynamic Structure ◽  
Point Of View ◽  
Semantic Relations ◽  
Human Cognition ◽  
Main Research ◽  
Key Points ◽  
Research Findings ◽  
The Subject ◽  
Linguistic Aspect

The article summarizes the key points in the development of the metadialogue phenomenon from a linguistic point of view. Some stages of the development of this concept and the difficulties associated with its structuring are covered. The main research findings of modern foreign and domestic experts on its study are considered. Some characteristics of the subject of the research from the standpoint of various pragmatic installations are given. On the basis of the dynamic structure of the metadialogue development, certain principles of semantic relations connected with the dialectical nature of human cognition are presented. Excursion into the history and evolution of the concept is presented. Several types of formulation of the subject matter are given. In accordance with the goal of speech exposure, internal problems of the development of metadialogue are highlighted and the critical points related to solving these problems are described. The rules of metadialogue flow are explained at the level of steps, the success/failure of which directly affects the final result of communication. The prospects of development of the concept research in accordance with various types of discourse are indicated.

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