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This document provides abstracts of papers presented at the Society of Dairy Technology 80th Anniversary Conference, covering a range of topics in the dairy industry. One paper examines the impact of process conditions on water evaporation and energy usage in spray drying, while another explores the use of near-infrared spectroscopy to analyze the composition of raw milk. Other papers discuss the development of high-protein soft cheese alternatives, plant-based cheese analogues, and sustainable cleaning strategies in dairy facilities. The document also mentions a project focused on characterizing the milk metabolome and developing biomarkers for milk processability and methane production. Additionally, the document highlights a study that modified sediment quantification tests for dairy powders to improve image analysis capabilities, with promising results. Further research is planned to investigate the effects of robotic agitation and test additional powders. [Extracted from the article]

Background Research theses can have a significant impact on the development of applied sciences, especially when their results are published. Objective This study aims to determine publication rate of papers extracted from the medical residency and master’s degree theses of Guilan University of Medical Sciences (GUMS) during 2008-2018. Methods This is a descriptive cross-sectional study. The data were collected from the medical residency and master’s degree theses of GUMS from 2008 to 2018. Then, they were searched in international and national databases according to the title, keywords, and names of supervisors, advisors, and students. Results Of 774 theses, 449 (58 %) papers had been extracted and published in journals indexed by ISI/ PubMed (41.2%), Scopus (11.8%), BIOSIS, Chemical Abstract, and Embase (0.44%) and others (46.56%). Most of them (98.66%) were original research. Moreover, in 383(85.3%) of the theses, there was no statistician or data advisor. The median time from defending theses to the publication of a paper from them was two years. Conclusion The publication of papers extracted from the theses of GUMS has increased, and more than 50% of them have been published in journals indexed by ISI, PubMed, and Scopus. However, the factors associated with the publication of papers need to be surveyed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Over the last decade, British universities have become increasingly reliant on an instrumentalist rhetoric to defend the ongoing relevance of research and teaching in the Humanities. This has resulted in a new chapter in the long-running saga concerning the crisis (purported or real) of Modern Languages alongside the study of literature. The very flexibility condemning traditional Modern Languages curricula to the past nevertheless offers new opportunities for literary study when used for the development of new skills. In this article, I employ my experience of a research-led undergraduate project on the UK stage legacy of Federico García Lorca as a case study to suggest ways in which the study of literature and theatre might be revamped. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Agricultural and applied economists have maintained a public discourse at the Agricultural and Applied Economics Association (AAEA) meetings and subsequently published papers discussing the mission of land‐grant institutions and the role of AAEA members in that mission. With a content analysis of 4001 Invited Papers and Presidential Speeches, we find agricultural and applied economists questioned their profession's purpose and role within the land‐grant system. The reflective questions still apply to land‐grant institutions and the agricultural and applied economics profession. We argue that AAEA members are crucial in addressing the food and agricultural challenges connected to society's deepest needs today and into the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

All universities mandate research, one of the institution's pillars and core mission. Over the last decades, ASEAN nations have been in a rapid transition to motivate and entice their faculty to increase and improve on research productions toward Indexed journals and proceedings. While papers submitted to proceedings have a lower bar in acceptance, Scopus or ISI-indexed journals are something that these institutions strive for, as they are critical to their accreditation and ranking. Unfortunately, journals have mushroomed overnight, and these seemingly suspicious journals collect monetary benefits like reviewing and publication fees to outright fly-by-night research predatory scammers. This has resulted in potential researchers using these and inadvertently sending them to reputable journals. Due to these unfortunate circumstances, this paper aims to support good paper development and submission and dispel beliefs of easy and potentially frustrating efforts. This paper attempts to provide retrospect and reflections on the "frustrations" of an Editor that papers should avoid in a Scopus Indexed Journal. It attempts to identify researchers' innocent or non-intentional practices by providing a set of dos and don'ts that are personalized based on retrospect and reflections of the paper submitted, rejected, and accepted in this Journal. It attempts to share "overlooked" practices that the researchers can use to ensure their papers stand a higher chance of acceptance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aims to explore the implementation of scorecards and dashboards in assessing internationalization activities in universities. The methodology of this concept paper is referencing secondary data comprising established academic databases from Scopus, Web of Science (WOS), and Google Scholar, focusing on aspects related to the benefits, monitoring, and effectiveness of scorecards and dashboards in evaluating an internationalization process or activity carried out by a university. The improvement of a university's reputation and ranking should be based on several key factors such as academic reputation, employer reputation, faculty/student ratio, citations per faculty, international faculty ratio, and international student ratio. These are the same criteria considered by institutions such as Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) and Times Higher Education (THE), which rank and rate universities and institutions of higher education around the world. This study found that implementing scorecards and dashboards in evaluating a university to improve its reputation and ranking is indeed effective. This is due to various factors, including the benefits, effectiveness, and accurate measurement offered by the scorecards and dashboards and their widespread use in universities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Teachers are considered a nucleus of educational institutes, their dire efforts act as the accelerating engine of the students' minds that nurture their minds with the best, most incumbent, authentic, resilient and creative thoughts, knowledge, reasoning and information that play a back-supporting role to the future emperors of the countries in their professional life. To do such a huge and exhaustive job, teachers often encounter various challenging situations and circumstances in which stress can be placed at the top among all other issues. This delicate issue has been identified as common among Chinese university lecturers and this issue has been influencing their mental states causing a damaging effect on their job performance. To understand this deliberate scenario, this study has reviewed the previous literature to explore the level of stress and psychological well-being and some helping strategies to sustain psychological well-being and stress adaptation as it is a part of every job and propose a conceptual framework. This proposed framework will have many useful settings for the literature scholars and the targeted units which have been illustrated in the concluding remarks section. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The implementation of Good University Governance (GUG) in higher education institutions has an impact on the performance of the respective institutions. GUG is a system that regulates and controls higher education institutions to create added value, benefiting all stakeholders. The objective of this research is to compile a systematic literature review scientifically, starting from data collection, selection, reading, and finally data analysis. This analysis relates to the study of GUG implementation's impact on higher education performance. The research method used in this study is a systematic literature review (SLR) approach on journal papers published from 2019 to 2023. There are three Research Questions (RQs) and three Quality Assessments (QAs) defined in this study. The impact of GUG on the performance of higher education institutions is positive and significant. The findings indicate that studies from 2019 to 2023 on the impact of GUG on performance have predominantly been conducted in public universities, using SEM PLS data analysis methods, with the "transparency" variable being the most frequently used GUG principle. Moreover, the results demonstrate that GUG implementation positively influences the performance of higher education institutions. The managerial implications of this research support Permendikbud No 4 of 2020 regarding the transformation of state universities (PTN) into state universities with legal entity status (PTNBH). Article 2 states that one of the requirements for PTN to become PTNBH is to manage the organization based on GUG principles. Thus, this research provides insights for regulators in measuring the implementation of GUG. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the shifting landscape of higher education in Turkey, highlighting a disconcerting trend of politically motivated appointments, coined as "parasailing." Departing from traditional merit-based norms, this practice of appointing professors without necessary approvals disrupts the academic environment, prompting concerns about the integrity of higher education institutions. The paper introduces the term "parasailing" to elucidate this phenomenon, emphasizing the connection between the appointed professor and their academic destination. In contrast to the widely used term "parachuting," in Turkish academia the proposed terminology offers a better understanding of the appointment process. The subsequent sections provide an overview of the Turkish academic landscape, explore the origin of the term "parachuting," review existing literature, define "parasailing," and connect it to different philosophical thoughts. Overall, this paper contributes to a broader comprehension of the challenges facing Turkish higher education, urging a reconsideration of appointment procedures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It is rather easy to identify the leading universities in a country, there are different established methods and indicators of excellence. Generally, it is more challenging to find 'the second best' universities which have the potential to become leaders, 'the firsts'. In Russia, such an attempt has been made. The program of 'Pillar Universities' was realized in 2016–2020, in two stages. This paper analyzes the initial stage of the project and its outcomes. We aim to investigate how the program affected the output of the universities from the bibliometric point of view. The results, obtained by bibliometric methods, are encouraging. There is an increase in publication output above the Russia's average growth. Multidisciplinarity, domestic and international collaboration also increase. Those universities which had no papers in the top journals started publishing their research there. The overall effect of the 'pillar project' is found to be positive. Bibliometrics is widely used for assessing higher education institutions and is free from local peculiarities. This allows using the observations of this study in a broader context. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: With the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, online assessment has become the dominant mode of examination in higher education institutions. However, there are contradictory findings on how students perceive online assessment and its impact on their academic performance. Thus, the purpose of this study is to evaluate the potential impact of online assessment on students' academic performance. Design/methodology/approach: This study proposes a research model based on the task–technology fit theory and empirically validates the model using a survey from students in the UK. In addition, the study conducted four experiments based on paper-based and online assessments and analysed the data using paired sample t test and structural equation modelling. Findings: The findings show that the use of online assessment has a positive impact on students' academic performance. Similarly, the results from the experiment also indicate that students perform better using online assessments than paper-based assessments. Practical implications: The findings provide crucial evidence needed to shape policy towards institutionalising online assessment. In addition, the findings provide assurance to students, academics, administrators and policymakers that carefully designed online assessments can improve students' academic performance. Moreover, the study also provides important insights for curriculum redesign towards transitioning to online assessment in higher education institutions. Originality/value: This study advances research by offering a more nuanced understanding of online assessment on students' academic performance since the majority of previous studies have offered contradictory findings. In addition, the study moves beyond existing research by complementing assessment results with the views of students in evaluating the impact of online assessment on their academic performance. Second, the study develops and validates a research model that explains how the fits between technology and assessment tasks influence students' academic performance. Lastly, the study provides evidence to support the wide use of online assessment in higher education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The use of information and communications technology (ICT) in higher education institutions has increased in the past 20 years. While ICT has brought many benefits to students and faculty, research shows that it also creates barriers and challenges for students with disabilities due to the inaccessibility of digital tools and learning materials. Faculty members play an important role in inclusive higher education. Previous studies have emphasised the need to train faculty about digital accessibility to achieve inclusion in higher education. This systematic literature review aims to study existing work on increasing the faculty members' competence in providing accessible and inclusive digital learning materials and environments to students in higher education. Sixteen peer-reviewed papers were included and analysed. Most trainings included topics on disability and awareness, legislation, and methods of producing accessible digital materials and providing inclusive digital learning environments. While surveys and interviews were mostly used to evaluate training outcomes, there was a lack of objective data and commonly accepted instrument for evaluation. Good practices and further research opportunities are identified. This study has implications for researchers and higher education institutions that are interested in research and practice on increasing general competence in digital accessibility and inclusive education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The call for the intellectualisation of African languages has become a topical agenda towards their use as languages of teaching and learning in institutions of higher learning in Africa. In their enunciation of language policies, South African universities are guided by the Department of Higher Education and Training (DHET)'s Language Policy Framework for Public Higher Education Institutions (LPFPHEI). The thrust of this paper is to interrogate how the language policy of one university in South Africa enables the intellectualisation of African languages. The study deploys Ruiz's notion of language as a resource to examine the potential embedded within the university's language policy to foster the intellectualisation of Sesotho and Setswana for use as LoTLs in a variety of disciplines. The university is one of the institutions of higher learning with the most recently revised language policy approved in 2022, hence its selection as the case study. The paper concludes that an enabling language policy that speaks to the linguistic realities, coupled with a variety of support structures within the university and also spelling out the implementation plan is what will result in the fruitful re-intellectualisation of African languages. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper focuses on how Asante's idea of Afrocentricity could assist in the understanding of the main challenges and opportunities associated with curricula in Africa's post-colonial universities. In terms of methodology, the paper constitutes a conceptual treatise that draws from previous empirical research that focused on Afrocentricity and a plural programme - the extended curriculum programme within a university context where neoliberalism remains dominant. In this regard, the paper combines an extensive review of empirical cases and the authors' experiences of the extended curriculum programmes in diverse South African universities. Literature was reviewed from a wide range of sources that included Afrocentricity and curriculum transformation through plurality at individual and institutional pedagogic levels. The paper explores the complex nature of pedagogic transformation mainly due to the persistence of Western ideals under a resurgent neoliberal philosophy that shapes practices in contemporary university spaces. The paper thus highlights how Afrocentricity transcends simplistic notions of intellectual discussions as it highlights serious and practical realities that shape the identities, ideals, aspirations, and values of students from disadvantaged backgrounds. In the process, ways in which pedagogic educational aspirations of the students could be redefined through an Afrocentric approach together with constraints are discussed. The individualist-oriented complications posed by neoliberal ideals that tend to contradict and, in some instances, hinder the Afrocentric core principle of inclusivity have left African universities at a crossroads with little to show in terms of progress in the transformation agenda. The paper concludes that Afrocentricity and its basis in cultural reconfiguration aims to ensure that people recognise their agency and affirm their identity and ability to draw from their existing agency to holistically transform the various aspects of their lives by overcoming the socio-economic and intellectual constraints. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Internationalization has been a paramount objective for higher education institutions (HEIs) for decades. However, the landscape of education underwent significant transformation due to the COVID-19 pandemic, leading to altered contexts, challenges and opportunities for HEI internationalization. This paper aims to critically evaluate the dimensions of internationalization strategies in HEIs and the opportunities within each dimension. Adopting a reflexive approach, the study focused on non-Western HEIs, recognizing the diverse approaches to internationalization within higher education contexts. Design/methodology/approach: Using the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) methodology, this paper covered 74 articles published in Web of Science database from January 2019 to December 2023. Findings: The study organized dimensions related to internationalization strategies in non-Western HEIs, offering a comprehensive framework comprising six dimensions: students, programs, faculty, research, international ventures and other sources; and nine internationalization facilitators: international partnerships, funding, government education, international policies, technology, internationalization culture, diversity and inclusion, staff competence and attitude, student/faculty engagement, intercultural experience and satisfaction, English as a medium of instruction (EMI), and knowledge transfer mechanisms. Furthermore, the study delineated strategies within each dimension and highlighted prevalent performance indicators utilized by HEIs. Originality/value: The study's primary contribution is a conceptual framework designed to assist HEI directors and academics. This framework delves into dimensions, strategies and indicators of internationalization particularly relevant in the post-pandemic era. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates the application of data mining based on a correlation-rule algorithm in business English performance in colleges and universities. The extracted correlation degree rules are screened by adopting three indexes of support degree confidence degree and lifting degree to measure the correlativity. Experimental validation is carried out on different sets of data sets, and the experimental results show the effectiveness of the Lift-Apriori-DP algorithm. Based on the improved Lift-Apriori-DP algorithm, it is applied to the analysis of students' performance. Taking the chapter test scores of students in business English courses in colleges and universities as an example, the student's achievements are extracted and analyzed, and the final appropriate parameter values are selected according to the evaluation of the extraction results under different privacy pre-estimation. The experimental results verify the effectiveness of the Lift-Apriori-DP algorithm in the analysis of student grades and evaluate the accuracy of the algorithm application. The results of this paper show that data mining based on the correlation degree rule algorithm has a wide range of applications in business English grades in colleges and universities, which can provide useful references for teaching and at the same time protect students' private information from being leaked. In addition, this paper also explores the evaluation class method of the mining results under different privacy pre-estimation, which provides a useful reference for the application of privacy-protecting relevance degree rule mining type algorithms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The European Universities Initiative (EUI) was established in 2017. Its aim is to strengthen strategic partnerships between higher education institutions across the EU by building networks of universities. At the end of 2023, there were already 50 European University Alliances gathering 430 higher education (HE) institutions. In each of these Alliances, academic libraries are members, too. These libraries are already involved in intra-alliance projects, and these alliances will probably happen more often due to the EU's project-driven approach. This practice paper is, to the authors' knowledge, the first attempt to describe another challenge that European academic libraries currently face i.e., project management practice. The alliance partner universities operate under distinct national laws and institutional practices, making it challenging to easily align them for effective cross-university collaborations. Familiarity with the theoretical principles of EU project management and project management methodology greatly facilitates the preparation of the proposal and the work of the project. It also allows more effective management of the project as a whole or its individual parts. This paper maps the challenges that work in international projects brings and provides suggestions on how EUI libraries can utilize project management techniques, while also aiming at showing the paths to facilitate cooperation. Drawing from an analysis of the literature on project management that might apply in library-led projects to strengthen communities of purpose, the paper is based on the example of the work experience on the project TRAIN4EU, that was co-led by the academic librarians from the University of Warsaw Library, Poland, and run by 4EU + universities. The paper concludes with a set of recommendations based on TRAIN4EU practices, lessons learned, as well as pitfalls to avoid. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fragmented reading is convenient for Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) students to obtain massive information at any time, but it does harm to students' ability to concentrate attention and deep thinking. On the basis of collecting and sorting out literature, this paper applied questionnaire survey to investigate the fragmented reading of life science students in Zhengzhou Normal University. The purpose of this study was to understand the fragmented reading habits of respondent students, and to summarize the characteristics of fragmented reading content, purpose, time and frequency. This paper analyzed the positive and negative effects of fragmented reading from three aspects: reading purpose dimension, content selection dimension and attention processing dimension. Finally, suggestions and countermeasures for HEIs students to make better use of fragmented reading were put forward from the aspects of individuals, Library and HEIs. The results showed that students can strengthen self-management and discipline to develop good reading habits and lifestyles. HEIs should set up public accounts and reading corners to recommend good books, and library can carry out reading lectures and other related activities to guide students to plan their time reasonably and make full use of fragmented reading. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The aim of this paper is to contribute to the discussion of wellbeing within the university education system by outlining the key issues and benefits and recognising future research on digital well-being for students. The JISC Digital wellbeing paper highlights the many positive and negative impacts associated with digital wellbeing. This paper explores how some of these features have been considered within institutions within the UK and Vietnam and highlights the emerging research in one Vietnamese institution in relation to student wellbeing, where digital wellbeing was identified as a key concern. Design/methodology/approach: This is a technical review article which summarises key guidance for organisational digital wellbeing and then reflects on the application in the UK (a developed economy) and in Vietnam (one of the fastest growing economies). This is the first time a review has been conducted from the perspective of different countries. There are two aspects to digital wellbeing, individual and the social or organisational perspectives. Findings: The JISC Digital wellbeing paper highlights the many positive and negative impacts associated with digital wellbeing. This paper explores how some of these features have been considered within institutions within the UK and Vietnam and highlights the emerging research in one Vietnamese institution in relation to student wellbeing, where digital wellbeing was identified as a key concern. The context of digital wellbeing within higher education is then discussed drawing similarities between the UK and Vietnamese student experiences whilst acknowledging the limitations of current research within the field. Originality/value: Many institutions have seen a rise in the number of wellbeing challenges, and there are few examples of specific initiatives aimed at addressing digital wellbeing challenges for their stakeholders. Existing research on students' wellbeing is predominately focused on undergraduate students and does not differentiate between undergraduate and postgraduate students, nor between masters, doctoral and professional level students and does not explore the impact of digital wellbeing discretely; this is an area which would benefit from future research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: We sought to understand the relative impact of fielding mode on response rate among public health alumni. Methods: As part of the 2021 Career Trends Survey of alumni from the University of Minnesota School of Public Health, we designed a fielding mode experiment to ascertain whether a paper survey, a postcard with a custom survey link ("postcard push-to-web"), a mobile telephone call or text (mobile), or an email invitation would garner the highest response rates. Invitations were randomly assigned from available contact information. Results: Of 8531 alumni invited, 1671 alumni (19.6%) completed the survey. Among the initial fielding modes, the paper survey had the highest response rate (28%), followed by mobile (19%), email (10%), and postcard push-to-web (10%). More robust recent engagement with alumni relations, paper survey invitation or mode switch, and recent graduation were all significantly associated with a higher likelihood of response. Conclusions: Paper and mobile invitations had the highest response rates to our survey among public health alumni. Findings from this fielding mode experiment are relevant to schools and programs of public health seeking to capture similar information among their alumni, especially given current trends in investment in the public health workforce. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Through addressing female academics in four public universities in Egypt, the author of this paper aims to answer the question: How do female academics cope with the career shock resulting from the spread of COVID-19? Design/methodology/approach: The author used a qualitative research method through semi-structured interviews with 32 female academics from four public universities selected from among 26 public institutions of higher education in Egypt. Thematic analysis was subsequently used to determine the main ideas in the transcripts. Findings: The findings assert that the following three strategies: heroism, cronyism and temporalism are used by female academics in the Egyptian context to cope with the career shocks they feel during the time of COVID-19. The findings assert that female academics try to reassert their professionalism in their academic duties and familial obligations even after the spread of COVID-19. Moreover, they tend to use forms of cronyism behaviour to alleviate the effect of the career shock, mostly via hypocritical phrases. Furthermore, the thought that COVID-19 is a temporary stage helps female academics to actively accept their challenging new work conditions. Originality/value: This paper contributes by filling a gap in human resources management and higher education in which empirical studies on the career shock of female academics have been limited so far. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper outlines the efforts to establish Western-style astronomical observatories in India made by colleges and universities over the last century prior to Indian independence in 1947. The focus is therefore on the nineteenth-century emergence of the Presidency College Observatory in Calcutta, St. Xavier's College Observatory in Calcutta, Takhtasinghji Observatory in Poona, and Langat Singh College Observatory in Muzaffarpur. Three of these observatories were established either to aid educated Indians in gaining a realistic knowledge of Western astronomy, or so that India itself could contribute to that body of research knowledge. The fourth observatory, at the Presidency College in Calcutta, was a local government initiative founded primarily to provide a local time service and meteorological data. Unlike the observatories discussed in the first paper in this series, none of the observatories reviewed in this paper was set up primarily to further Britain's colonial ambitions. All were local Indian initiatives, but the critical involvement of Western astronomers or academics at three of the four observatories reveals that a colonial link was still there, albeit as an underlying element. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents a perspective on delivery of 'Pride in Place' based on a multidisciplinary researcher/policy/practitioner forum discussion. Injecting dynamism and breaking the cycle of spatial inequality are core aims of the Levelling Up White Paper. A mission is 'to restore a sense of community, local pride and belonging, especially in those places where they have been lost'. But how will this be delivered and measured? Much more policy thinking is needed to connect the mechanisms identified as drivers — the UK Shared Prosperity Fund (UKSPF) spending, local leadership and civic institutions — into a joined-up strategy. This paper focuses on issues that need to be addressed: what we mean by pride in place, how to engage with felt experience, how to build pride in place at local and regional level, and what role, if any, universities might play. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This autoethnographic (AE) paper draws directly from a national collaborative project called the New Academics Transitioning into Higher Education Project (NATHEP), which is funded by the University Capacity Development Grant (UCDG). We adopted evocative and narrative AE methodology to confront, interrogate, and uncover our own biases, assumptions, and preconceptions of induction before NATHEP, how it is now, and how it should be understood and conducted after being part of the NATHEP project. Our AE showcases our critical and reflective thoughts on the learning acquired throughout the journey, consciously and intentionally asking ourselves whether the NATHEP journey was worth it and how it benefitted the induction programme we conceptualised and implemented. Through a combined autoethnography study design and technique, we were able to gather qualitative data from the two of us and present it as written reflective narratives. Together, we developed an openended questionnaire in which we asked questions that sought to elicit our experiences throughout the journey as a way of reflecting on the overall learning acquired by being part of the NATHEP project. Our responses and narratives are reflectively and thematically analysed to make sense of how we interpret our eventful NATHEP journey thus far. We conclude and submit that this paper has implications for academic development practice and academic developers who aspire to be reflective practitioners, constantly reflecting on their practices to dismantle and disrupt cultural tendencies in their quest to transform their context of work and induction practices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years, policymakers and academics have shown interest in understanding how universities could drive regional innovation. Universities are not solely focusing on research and education as their primary missions but are also asked to participate in the development of their regions. This has compelled universities to forge what is called a third mission, encompassing all social and economic activities of universities. Several attempts have been made to evaluate this concept, aiming to highlight the evolving role of universities and their relevance to policy and society. In this vein, this paper showcases existing attempts that aim to measure the impact of the third mission in European universities. This study consists of a systematic literature review studying journal articles published between 2001 and 2021. The purpose of this paper is to enumerate the existing measurements of the third mission and identify the different tensions related to it. This study shows that the literature encompasses three approaches for assessing the third mission. First, some studies incorporated the third mission into the overall evaluation of university performance. Second, other investigations aimed to capture this concept as a whole. Finally, several studies evaluated individual dimensions of the third mission independently. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although learning analytics (LA) often processes massive data, not all courses in higher education institutions are on a large scale, such as courses for employed adult learners (EALs) or master's students. This places LA in a new situation with small datasets. This paper explores the contemporary situation of how LA has been used for small datasets, whereby we examine how the observed LA provisions can be validated in practice, which opens up possible LA solutions for small datasets and takes a further step from previous studies to enhance this topic. By examining the field of LA, a systematic literature review on state-of-the-art LA and small datasets was conducted. Thirty relevant articles were selected for the final review. The results of the review were validated through a small-scale course for EALs at a Swedish university. The findings revealed that the methods of multiple analytical perspectives and data sources with the support of contexts and learning theories are useful for strengthening the reliability of results from small datasets. More empirical evidence is required to validate possible LA methods for small datasets. The LA cycle should be closed to be able to further assess the goodness of the models generated from small datasets. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Universities are a formative scenario that transforms reality and their actions must go beyond commitment and citizen solidarity. The objective of this review article is to present a study on the conceptualization, definition and education in values, and an analysis of the theoretical-methodological referents of University Social Responsibility. Systematic literature review and bibliometric analyses were carried out in the programs VOSviewer version 1.6.19 and Connected Papers. The results show that strengthening the sense of identity and belonging of the competent professional committed to academic, economic, social and environmental actions, with respect to the place where he/she studies, lives and works, is fundamental to achieve transformations in order to improve the quality of citizenship education. In conclusion, it is necessary to continue stimulating the apprehension of the value of university social responsibility in higher education institutions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Internationally, the emphasis on school reforms is increasing, and school leaders play a key role in realising reform initiatives for school development and change. Often, the formation of partnerships between researchers and practitioners for school improvement is promoted to facilitate professional development and enhance student learning. However, limited attention has been directed towards the underlying ideas, values and beliefs in government-initiated strategies for partnership in the policy context of educational reform. This paper examines how partnerships between schools and higher education institutions are conceptualised and legitimised in Norwegian reform policy documents. We analyse three government white papers, each coupled with an executive partnership strategy document. The analysis applies a discourse analytical approach to policy as text and transmission. Our findings show a shift in the official national discourse on partnerships in education, underscoring new tensions regarding the power to define focus areas in the local reform work. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The valorization of skills in English higher education policy-making is a long-standing refrain, informing both rhetoric and investment from government and shaping university behaviour. Critiques of the 'skills agenda' are equally established, on grounds of its contested evidence base, manner of implementation and even its very definition. This paper draws on Bacchi's 'What is the Problem Represented to Be?' (WPR) approach (Bacchi, in: Bletsas, Beasley (eds) Engaging with Carol Bacchi: strategic interventions and exchanges, The University of Adelaide Press, Adelaide, 2021a; Bacchi and Goodwin in Poststructural policy analysis: a guide to practice, Palgrave Macmillan, New York, 2016) to examine how the UK Department for Education's nascent Lifelong Loan Entitlement (LLE) policy represents, and therefore in Bacchi's sense produces, problems in the English tertiary education system. Through its WPR analysis of a significant contemporary shift in the English funding system, this paper demonstrates how the LLE policy replicates but also extends certain key features of the skills agenda and the dominant presuppositions of current English higher education policy-making. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Developing a school as a learning community is a complex process necessitating active engagement from the entire school community. This paper reports on a study from Finland that focused on exploring learning community development grounded in a shared vision. We sought to investigate the development of a school community with a separate primary and lower secondary school as it progressed towards becoming a unified comprehensive school. The research involved close school-university collaboration to support the community's transformative journey. Our particular interest in this paper is the relationship between the shared vision and learning community development. At the conclusion of the development project, seven semi-structured interviews were conducted with members of the school management team. Thematic analysis of the interview data was undertaken to identify their perceptions of how the shared vision was linked to learning community development. The in-depth analysis revealed five major themes: (1) communication of the shared vision and transparency; (2) present and absent themes in the shared vision; (3) tradition and innovation; (4) the long-term nature of school development; and (5) the role of the vision in everyday school life. The analysis drew attention to how a school's past and present influence a shared vision and school development. This study provides insights into how the preconditions of a school community contribute to the implementation of a shared vision as a catalyst for change. Recognising the distinct needs and starting points of schools is crucial, emphasising the importance of understanding the pre-existing context in school development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Scrutiny about and controversy regarding the use of college admissions tests have increased since COVID‐19 eliminated mass face‐to‐face testing. At that time, many selective colleges chose to make their admissions decisions without using such tests. More recently, the controversy has been sustained as some selective colleges and universities have reinstated requiring test scores. These tests, primarily the ACT and SAT, have received empirical support but also have faced substantial criticism from test critics and researchers. This paper examines contributions of admissions tests for predicting college outcomes in the presence of additional information available for making college decisions. We investigate relations of ACT tests with academic outcomes for four successive (2011–2014) first‐year cohorts at a large, moderately selective Midwestern Research 1 university. Analyses examine how strongly ACT college admissions tests are related to short‐ and long‐term college success for students controlling for their backgrounds (citizenship, race/ethnicity, first‐generation, sex, socio‐economic status). ACT tests contributed modestly to the prediction of first‐year performance. However, with first year college GPA included, ACT tests failed to add to the prediction of GPA in years 2, 3, and 4, and to prediction of dropout and graduation. These findings inform conversations about the use of college admissions tests post‐COVID. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article addresses the ethical challenges posed by generative artificial intelligence (AI) tools in higher education and explores the first responses of universities to these challenges globally. Drawing on five key international documents from the UN, EU, and OECD, the study used content analysis to identify key ethical dimensions related to the use of generative AI in academia, such as accountability, human oversight, transparency, or inclusiveness. Empirical evidence was compiled from 30 leading universities ranked among the top 500 in the Shanghai Ranking list from May to July 2023, covering those institutions that already had publicly available responses to these dimensions in the form of policy documents or guidelines. The paper identifies the central ethical imperative that student assignments must reflect individual knowledge acquired during their education, with human individuals retaining moral and legal responsibility for AI-related wrongdoings. This top-down requirement aligns with a bottom-up approach, allowing instructors flexibility in determining how they utilize generative AI especially large language models in their own courses. Regarding human oversight, the typical response identified by the study involves a blend of preventive measures (e.g., course assessment modifications) and soft, dialogue-based sanctioning procedures. The challenge of transparency induced the good practice of clear communication of AI use in course syllabi in the first university responses examined by this study. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The COVID-19 pandemic significantly affected students studying in higher education (HE) institutions in the UK and international contexts. Black and Asian Minority Ethnic (BAME) university students faced massive pressure during and post COVID-19 pandemic, alongside trying to meet their education goals. Our research project was with postgraduate students from two HE institutions, and this paper highlights participants' lived experiences and perspectives, including emotional stress, the need for greater support to access learning resources, financial issues and physical and mental health issues. Our paper suggests that HE institutions need to provide democratic spaces to encourage all students, including BAME students, to engage in dialogues among themselves and with other key players in HE, such as policymakers, and local and international communities, to address issues of inequality. It is important for HE institutions to listen to students' voices, reflect on the impact of the pandemic on their lives and make strategic planning for mitigating negativities and uplifting quality learning experiences post the pandemic. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper takes on and explores the disturbing and perhaps counter-intuitive notion that the university is the place where the intellect goes to die. This idea is explored alongside Georges Bataille's suggestion that the death of thought might actually be a worthy pursuit and only thought which seeks its own limits is worth striving for. The deleterious effects of the university upon thought are nonetheless contrasted to Bataille's own attempts to take thought to the point of its expiration. The key difference between the 'teaching of death' that Bataille has in mind, and the enactment of the death of thinking that the university achieves is this: Bataille seeks, however impossibly, to bring death "into the field of vision". Academic knowledge production, by contrast, with its systematism, its rigor, its proceduralism and its subsumption by work, merely abandons the thinking subject to the inevitable result, which for Bataille, is unthinking servility, a premature, utterly suppressed, and domesticated, death-in-life. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: In recent times, there has been a notable increase in the demand for accreditations, driven by their essential role in recognizing diplomas, elevating the quality of higher education, facilitating student mobility, enabling the pursuit of multiple degrees, and influencing university rankings. This surge in demand reflects the evolving landscape of higher education in a world that is becoming progressively interconnected and competitive. Methods: This paper presents a comprehensive methodology for accrediting study programs in French higher education institutions worldwide that are seeking the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET) accreditation. ABET accreditation is a globally recognized organism of quality for education programs in engineering, computer science, and related fields. The methodology proposed in this paper focuses on aligning ABET's requirements and standards with the specific context of the French Education System (FES). It provides clear guidelines and practical steps for higher education institutions to effectively navigate the accreditation process. The methodology covers the verification of existing study programs, identification of areas for improvement, implementation of corrective actions, and continuous progress monitoring. It emphasizes the importance of continuous improvement and aligning programs with the Program Educational Objectives (POEs). Concrete examples and best practices are shared to illustrate successful implementation of the methodology developed based on the example of the engineering college programs at our university. Results and Discussion: The results obtained in this case study demonstrate the applicability and effectiveness of this approach within a specific educational context. The approach presented in this contribution can serve as a model for other countries seeking to adapt ABET accreditation requirements to their own higher education systems, further promoting diversity and openness. This reinforces the credibility of the methodology and paves the way for its use in other institutions and programs that operate within similar systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores the challenges of implementing STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) education in higher education institutions in Georgia. The study employs a quantitative research method, surveying academic staff and undergraduate students to identify key issues hindering the effective development of STEM programs. The findings reveal several significant challenges, including insufficient funding for STEM programs and infrastructure, limited access to advanced technologies and laboratory facilities, a shortage of qualified STEM instructors, and difficulties in integrating interdisciplinary STEM concepts into curricula. The results also indicate that while gender inequality is perceived as a relatively less critical issue, there is st ill a need for further efforts to overcome gender stereotypes and encourage girls and women to fully engage in STEM education and careers. Additionally, the study highlights varying levels of interest among students towards different STEM fields, with computer science, mathematics, biology, and medical sciences being the most popular. The paper concludes by emphasizing the necessity of comprehensive institutional efforts, including adequate financial support, infrastructure improvement, faculty development, curriculum modernization, and the strengthening of interdisciplinary and practical components to enhance the quality and competitiveness of STEM education in Georgian universities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores the tensions, disjunctures and politics that evaluators experience when tasked with evaluating widening participation programmes in English Higher Education Institutions (HEI). While much research has been conducted concerning the importance of evaluation in widening participation, comparatively little has been written about how the socio-organisational position that evaluators are situated in may impact the quality and 'rigour' of the evaluation exercises themselves. Consequently, this paper is intended to act as the starting point for discussions within the field of widening participation that critically reflect on the optimal circumstances in which we can evaluate widening participation initiatives. Drawing from the analysis of semi-structured interviews with 21 practitioners at four HEIs, four pressures are identified that act upon evaluators, namely: reputational concerns; personal involvement; accountability for donors, alumni and other interested parties; and position within an organisation. These pressures are outlined and explored in relation to how they shape the evaluation process. The implications of this research concern institutional change at both the HEI and the regulatory body level, movement towards methodological pluralism and an easing of the pressures that confront widening participation practitioners when tasked with evaluation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of China Sciencepaper is the property of China Sciencepaper and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Purpose: Higher education institutions (HEIs) offer courses and programmes focusing on sustainability in economics, as courses on sustainable development (SD), which examine the economic, social and environmental dimensions of SD. This paper aims to examine sustainability integration in economics degree programmes. Design/methodology/approach: Through an extensive literature review in Web of Science (WoS) and information search in Google, conducting to 28 relevant case studies, this paper elucidates the emphasis given to sustainability as part of economics degree programmes in HEIs. Findings: The results suggest that, whereas the inclusion of sustainability components in this field is a growing trend, much still needs to be done to ensure that matters related to SD are part of the routine of university students studying economics. Research limitations/implications: It is worth noting that the literature review conducted in WoS was primarily aimed at assisting in the selection of university case studies. The 28 university case studies scrutinised in this study may lack sufficient representation from numerous developing countries. Practical implications: This study highlights challenges in integrating the SD into economics degree programmes, suggesting the need for curriculum adjustments as underscoring operational issues, acting as barriers. The inclusion of sustainability in economics programmes must navigate operational issues stemming from packed timetables and busy schedules, requiring innovative solutions. Social implications: As far as the authors are aware, this study holds substantial importance in its emphasis on implementing sustainability within HEIs' economics programmes, assisting in pursuing SD. Originality/value: The novelty of this study lies in addressing sustainability with the specific economics focus programmes within the HEIs context. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Constructive criticism plays a crucial role in professional development of individuals within higher education institutes (HEIs). It serves as a valuable tool for improvement, growth, and continuous learning. As all HEIs consists of educators, administrators and students who are engage in the continues pursuit of knowledge and skill enhancement, the exchange of constructive criticism emerges as an invaluable tool. It not only contributes to individual growth but also fosters an environment conducive to innovation, collaboration and the cultivation of future leaders. This research paper will emphasis on the impact of constructive criticism in professional development, advocating for its proactive incorporation into organizational practices and the employee retention and satisfaction at HEIs and also considering how feedback processes influence motivation, self-esteem and overall professional well-being of those involved in higher education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The current growth of competitive project-based funding (CPBF) as a funding instrument for academic science reveals that public funding plays a critical role in the spreading of the capitalist relations of production in academia. However, this issue has not been properly addressed in the extant literature. This paper examines CPBF in the light of the determinations of capitalist relations of production captured by the Marxist notion of 'formal subsumption of labour under capital'. It will then show that CPBF mediates commodity-based productive relations between funding agencies and academic institutions, and that the latter are, in turn, premised on the separation of academic labour from the objective conditions of knowledge production. It will be also demonstrated how CPBF reproduces and deepens that split, leading from the partial to the complete formal subsumption of academic labour under capital. Our analysis challenges the assumption that increased public funding will put to a halt the commodification of academia and academic research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The overall quality of education may be compromised due to the limited availability of safety and security (S&S) courses in professional teacher education. The purpose of this paper is to identify the main safety-related training needs of a higher education institution, which may provide insights for improving the quality of education from a safety perspective. Design/methodology/approach: This study included 17 interviews with students and staff experienced in S&S due to their professions. The study also used Laurea University of Applied Sciences' (Laurea) S&S reports, which have a variety of S&S events from 28 October 2020 to 20 December 2021. Both data sets were analyzed using qualitative theory-driven content analysis. Findings: Safety risks at schools are mainly constructed through the negative psychosocial atmosphere and lack of safety knowledge and/or skills. There is a need for safety training covering key topics such as crime prevention, violence, fire safety and understanding inclusion and diversity. Practical implications: The study proposes a new risk-based training and development management model for school management and the planning of training activities. Social implications: The analysis offers valuable perceptions of the S&S challenges of educational institutions, which can be used as a starting point to enhance overall educational quality and safety. Originality/value: This paper provides a novel way of improving the safety of education by approaching training needs from a risk assessment perspective. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Chinese higher education institutions have adopted a US-style tenure track system since the 1990s. This is an important reform aimed at modernizing China's higher education system. In response, authors have begun to carry out close examination of the career system and analyse its implications in a national context (Republic of China). This study aims to present the key research themes, identify research gaps and offer recommendations from the increasing pool of Chinese-language literature on the tenure track system. A scoping review of Chinese language papers was conducted using the China National Knowledge Infrastructure (including the China Academic Journals Full-text Database, China Core Newspapers Full-text Database, China Doctoral Dissertations Full-text Database, China Masters' Thesis Full-text Database, and China Yearbooks Fulltext Database) (CNKI) database. Four major research themes were identified in Chinese discourse: (1) examining the tenure track system, (2) providing suggestions for better adaptation of the tenure track system in the Chinese context, (3) analysing the negative effects of the tenure track system, and (4) analysing the positive effects of the tenure track system. Generally, authors were concerned with the adaptation and cultivation of the US-originated tenure track system in the Chinese context and emphasized the importance of acknowledging its perceived negative influences on early-career scholars who have not received adequate attention. Overall, the authors demonstrate increasing interest in the tenure track system in China, and the literature is of variable quality. Further empirical studies are needed to analyse, evaluate and guide future improvement of the career system in the Chinese context in practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper discusses why higher education professors are not retiring in due time and how economic programmes play a role in such a decision. We discuss public policies of higher education institutions to understand 1) why labour ageing occurs and 2) the challenges faced by professors and institutions. Our discussion focuses on showing how a series of policies and organisation-led rules can condition practices, thus contributing to labour ageing, by discussing the case of a country: Mexico. Due to public and university policies, labour ageing presents a challenge for university education. In that case, these policies must be accompanied by training processes for the lifelong productivity of professors. This paper shows the need to reevaluate practices to constantly address labour ageing in design academia, so that it might evolve and remain up-to-date with emerging trends and technologies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]