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Start-up packages are a tool for a successful transition to an academic career. This institutional case study examined the faculty experience with start-up packages at one public university in the Southeastern United States, including gender differences, content, negotiation, and perceived outcomes. A mixed-method research design was utilized to answer the study research questions. Data were gathered through an online survey with quantitative and qualitative questions. Data from 121 participants were analyzed using descriptive statistics, chi-square tests of independence, and thematic analysis. Most start-up package agreements included moving expenses, personal computers and software, and start-up funds. Conversely, child daycare, guaranteed junior sabbatical, and salary advancement were the most missing benefits in the agreements. Male faculty obtained, significantly more often than female faculty, a specific number of years for secure funding, laboratory space, and student or postdoc funding in their agreements. Faculty, in general, were not well prepared for the negotiation process and were not aware of what they needed to establish a successful research program. Universities should focus more on the influence of start-up packages on faculty careers because perceived unfair treatment during the negotiation process or administration can influence faculty performance and turnover intentions.

In this article, we argue that current assessment practices in higher education require urgent examination and should be re-imagined in culturally responsive ways to ensure fairness for all. From sociocultural and social justice perspectives, we highlight examples of cultural and linguistic bias in assessment that disadvantages many First Nations students. Incorporating a constructivist viewpoint, we argue that assessment practices must keep pace with culturally responsive pedagogical practices to improve assessment validity for First Nations students and to maintain constructive alignment between learning, teaching, and assessment. Based on qualitative interviews with stakeholders in the "On Country Teacher Education" program, we describe how university lecturers changed their approaches to assessment and modified their assessment tasks to enact and create culturally responsive assessments. These practices, whilst beneficial for First Nations students, are viewed as being 'responsive' rather than 'proactive'. Recommendations include shifting to a 'proactive' stance by evaluating the validity of student learning outcomes and assessment design from the onset.

Time to degree completion is an important metric of academic progress and success for doctoral students. It is also a common way for educational stakeholders to compare programs even if the content of the degree programs varies. But what types of behaviors and experiences are associated with faster times to degree? In this study, we examine the relationship between receiving competitive research awards (e.g., grant writing) and time to degree for PhD students. We organize our analyses by student identities, specifically gender and underrepresented racial minority (URM) status, to examine differences in time to degree based on student demographics. Our dataset included students that graduated between academic years 2008 to 2009 through 2018 to 2019. We also interviewed students currently enrolled in these same programs. We find that underrepresented minority women who won competitive research awards graduate faster than all other students who also won awards but also report lower levels of advisor support. Underrepresented minority women and all underrepresented minority students who won research awards tended to graduate faster compared to other groups of students who did not win awards. Students who reported feeling supported by their advisors, most of which reflected hands-on guidance through the writing process, in the interviews were more likely to apply for grants. Combined, these results highlight that writing grants and specific types of advisor support may influence faster times to degree for biosciences PhD students. This study suggests similar introspective analyses at other institutions and databases are needed.

Academics at Griffith university envisioned a complementary learning and supportive relationship could be developed between Bachelor of Information Technology (BAIT) students and Master of Social Work (MSW) students. Discussions between discipline specific staff highlighted that each discipline had strengths and expertise that could assist students to overcome challenges brought about by systemic changes in tertiary education, gaps in skillsets and curriculum, and workforce expectations. Pressures included students attending university from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds, the increasing importance of information technology (IT) in the classroom and workplace, as well as the requirement to communicate effectively across a range of disciplines. Working, interacting, and communicating effectively in cross-discipline and culturally diverse environments is a requisite for all graduates, however academics found there were few opportunities for students to partner across disciplinary silos. Staff from both disciplines collaborated to develop a conversational pedagogical framework to underpin a pilot program to support peer learning, using active problem-based learning with IT and social work students. The pilot program evidenced a complementary transdisciplinary, learning partnership and enabled students from IT to help students from social work develop IT skills, while social work students assisted IT students to become more confident in their interpersonal communication skills.

While potential teaching activities in the online classroom are unlimited, an instructor's teaching time is not. As such, it is essential that online instructors prioritize limited time to instructional strategies that have the greatest impact on student learning. A survey of 413 faculty and 2386 students examined faculty and student perceptions about instructional components or strategies that have greatest impact on student learning in the online classroom. Findings revealed significant differences in faculty and student perceptions with faculty giving the highest value ratings to non-instructor generated content and students prioritizing text-based instructional content (regardless of source). Overall, faculty tended to place more value on instructional components compared to students. Students rated faculty interaction and feedback as the most valuable component of their online learning experience. Findings explore how institutions can utilize teaching supplements to support faculty's desire to provide content so that instructional time can focus on interaction and feedback.

Objective: To determine differences in glucose control and cardiovascular disease risk factors following three weeks of added soda, 100% fruit juice, or water in apparently healthy, college-aged adults. Participants: Thirty-six adults (18 males; 18 females) between the ages of 18 and 30 years of age. Methods: A 3-arm randomized controlled parallel-arm trial; at baseline and after three weeks consuming the assigned beverage, participants completed glucose control and cardiovascular disease risk factor assessments. Results: There were no significant differences between beverage conditions for glucose control or cardiovascular disease risk factors (ps > 0.05). There were no significant changes in caloric intake or differences in caloric intake between conditions, p = 0.17. p Conclusions: In healthy, young adults, under free-living conditions, short-term consumption of two commercially packaged servings of SBs did not lead to significant glucose control or cardiovascular disease risk factor changes, indicating potential compensation and/or resilience to negative short-term effects.

Despite best efforts, the student experience remains poorly understood. One under-explored approach to understanding the student experience is the use of big data analytics. The reported study is a work in progress aimed at exploring the value of big data methods for understanding the student experience. A big data analysis of an open dataset of student comments is being undertaken. The first and simplest use of big data analytics is for the identification of high frequency keyword groups, which, without big data analytics, would be extremely time consuming. However, the lack of context surrounding keyword groups severely limited the ability to draw meaningful conclusions and highlighted the need for human intervention in the analysis process. Future work includes sentiment analysis. This initial work is an impetus for further exploration of big data analytics methods in qualitative contexts, especially in dynamic contexts where rapid data analysis can form a basis for timely interventions.

Assessing student knowledge based on their writing using traditional qualitative methods is time-consuming. To improve speed and consistency of text analysis, we present our mixed methods development of a machine learning predictive model to analyze student writing. Our approach involves two stages: first an exploratory sequential design, and second an iterative complex design. We first trained our predictive model using qualitative coding of categories (ideas) in student writing. We next revised our model based on feedback from instructor-users. The model itself highlighted categories in need of revision. The contribution to mixed methods research lies in our innovative use of the machine learning tool as a rapid, consistent additional coder, and a resource that can predict codes for new student writing.

Supplemental instruction (SI) has been shown to be effective in increasing student success in a wide variety of disciplines. Our study investigated the impact of the number of SI sessions attended on student success on exams and the effectiveness of remote SI compared to face-to-face (FTF) SI. Data were gathered for nearly 1,200 students enrolled in the first semester of a sophomore-level anatomy and physiology course at the University of Nebraska at Kearney (UNK). The number of SI sessions each student attended, if any, prior to each exam was compared to exam performance. Results for 2013-2017 demonstrated that attending even one SI session had a positive impact on exam performance, and an increase in exam performance was seen with additional SI attendance up to three sessions prior to each exam. We took advantage of the remote SI offered in the Fall of 2020, due to COVID-19, to investigate a potential effect of delivery format on SI effectiveness. There was no difference in exam performance for students attending SI FTF (2019) compared to students attending remote SI (2020), while attending SI in either format was associated with better exam scores. Our study is unique in examining the effectiveness of SI attendance at the level of individual exam performance and adds to the body of evidence that SI, whether FTF or remote, is effective in improving student success.

Service-learning is often identified as a pedagogy to prepare undergraduates for life beyond college. However, research suggests service-learning courses rarely challenge learners to explore structural causes of inequity or engage in transformative action. This study explores how one college professor positioned students as they engaged in service-learning. Through document analysis of nine semesters of one course, researchers sought to understand how positioning of university students shapes the effectiveness of service-learning coursework with a justice orientation.

Transfer students account for growing numbers in four-year music education programs. To better understand this increasing population of students, researchers employed parallel method design. One strand investigated music education faculty members' (n = 83) perceptions of transfer student preparedness, procedures, and expectations to understand admissions processes (e.g., curricula, assessments) employed to evaluate incoming transfer students. The other strand examined music education transfer students' (n = 12) academic, social, and personal preparedness to study music education in a comprehensive four-year music education program. The following research questions served as a guide for data collection and analysis: (a) What themes emerged for students throughout the investigation of the transfer process? (b) What are transfer students' perceptions of academic and musical preparedness once making the transition to four-year institutions? and (c) What are college professors' perceptions of transfer students' academic and musical preparedness upon arrival at four-year institutions? Findings from both student and faculty perspectives suggest that transfer students exhibit three common concerns throughout the transfer process. These concerns were academic, social, and personal. Further, transfer students' preparedness also emerged as a theme mentioned by music faculty as an obstacle for incoming students. Themes also included performance on departmental diagnostic assessments, various modes of communication among music faculty (i.e., applied, classroom), students, and university/college administrative personnel. Researchers provide an analysis and suggestions for addressing these concerns from multiple perspectives as well as suggestions for future research.

This study sought to define and measure online undergraduate students' perceived value of instructor presence techniques across five communication mediums per pedagogical goal (connection to course content, connection to classmates, connection to the instructor, foster interest, and facilitate immediate feedback). Students found personalized written messages from an instructor (M=4.61) as most valuable due to their ability to provide immediate feedback. Interactive phone calls (M=3.24) were the least valuable in the area of familiarity. Results indicate all instructor presence techniques had value, but some were more valuable than others.

Objective: The purpose of this study was to understand what online adjunct faculty value as support services, specifically professional development opportunities, provided by their respective higher education institutions. Method: This qualitative narrative inquiry study centered on exploring perceptions and experiences of online adjunct faculty members from higher education institutions and their experiences and expectations of professional development (PD), prior to and during COVID-19. Results: The study resulted in the identification of possible improvements and enhancements to existing PD content that would further support faculty personal development, mental health, wellbeing, and academic growth. Conclusions: This study reminds us that there are numerous variables, including unforeseen crises such as the COVID-19 pandemic, that need to be considered when developing, implementing, and presenting PD for online adjunct faculty professional and personal growth. Because faculty want to be listened to and heard, the PD development and implementation process needs to be interactive to support online adjunct faculty, regardless of whether the university is for-profit or not-for-profit. Implication for Practice: The results based on online adjunct faculty experiences could lead to updating professional development opportunities employed in different higher education institutions to promote faculty self-actualization and ultimately, student success.

The purpose of our mixed-methods study was to examine the motivations and obstacles associated with curricular revisions in music education degree programs. During Phase I, we surveyed a nationwide sample (N = 533) of music education program coordinators. Participants who had engaged in the curriculum revision process within the previous decade were asked to report the extent of the curricular change implemented, the relative importance of several factors driving the decision to revise curricula, and the primary goals, impact, and barriers/challenges faced during the curricular change process. In Phase II, we interviewed volunteers (n = 8) from Phase I to provide further insight regarding the revision process. Primary factors affecting the process of curricular change included the influence of accrediting bodies and the relationship between the music education area and the education program. Motivations for pursuing curricular revisions included changing content requirements for the degree program and priorities and desires of music education faculty. Music education faculty members who view these revisions as positive and important steps toward providing students with better and more relevant degree programs may be provided a deeper understanding of how to better navigate the revision process and develop more effective curricula overall.

This exploratory case study (N=18) took place within a merged special education and elementary education teacher preparation program in which all coursework was co-taught by university faculty. Through interviews and focus groups, participants described their perceptions of the benefits of co-teaching; candidates reported participating in models of co-teaching as they learned through multiple perspectives, and faculty felt they grew through collaboration. They also experienced challenges, which included increased time commitment, coordination, and consistent use of co-teaching strategies. Participants indicated that positive relationships, co-planning practices, balanced roles and responsibilities, and administrative support make co-teaching work. Implications suggest approaches to magnifying benefits while minimizing challenges, such as pairing co-teachers with intentionality, developing communities of practice, and providing compensation for increased workload.

The purpose of this study was to examine music education faculty members' perceptions of admissions and selection criteria for entering master's students in music education degree programs. Using multistage sampling, we distributed a questionnaire to music education faculty at National Association of Schools of Music (NASM)-accredited institutions in the United States that offered master's degrees in music education. Results indicated that music education faculty were involved in most admission decisions, and that transcripts, interviews, and letters of recommendation were the most common materials submitted for review. In response to open-ended questions, participants reported that their admission decisions are usually determined by four criteria: academic skills, demonstration of potential as a graduate student, demonstration of teaching ability, and less measurable indicators. This exploration of the admissions and selection criteria that music education faculty use when making admission decisions provides music teacher educators a greater understanding of this important transition point.

Science content, teaching, and teacher preparation are all political acts. However, accepting the political nature of science as well as that of science teaching has proven to be a hard shift for many in the science community. In this paper, we suggest a shift away from an apolitical teaching of science toward a system of practices that transforms the purposes of science education through a justice-centered science pedagogy approach. For science teachers to engage their students in this type of transformative teaching and learning, we argue that the science teachers themselves need to be immersed in conditions under which their learning experiences foregrounds the transformative power of justice centered science pedagogy. In this study, we explore a residency program, and in particular, a secondary science methods course in which pre-service teachers engaged in a social justice project exploring social justice science issues to illustrate preservice teachers' conceptualizations of justice-centered science teaching and learning.

The purpose of this study is to describe the conditions under which diffracting noticing becomes both a process and product in dynamic relations to re-imagine preservice science teachers' becoming as ethical mattering, a concept rooted in a relational ontology of change and emergence. Drawing on theories of posthumanism, this study theorized pre-service teachers' "becomings" as ethical mattering which pays attention to two events: 1) the differences produced when participants engage in diffracting noticing by placing themselves in the middle of where they are in their "becomings," and 2) the effects or a material mark on bodies, things, and other actants left by these differences. During these events, intra-action and entanglement with other actors produced differences and juxtapositions about how they understood and enacted equitable science teaching. Preservice teachers began to re-imagine what they would do differently to enact more equitable and inclusive teaching practices. Preservice teachers who participated in diffracting noticing could "see" their teaching practices in relation to and entangled with others, and therefore became differently and ethically mattered. In doing so, teachers rendered themselves and each other response-able and accountable for the knowledge that was collectively co-constructed about equitable teaching. The notion of becoming as ethical mattering illustrated in this study contributes to a new thought and re-imagines the traditional notion of change-in-practice, as preservice teachers could not be the same person as they were prior to intra-acting and thus seeing-becoming differently.

There is no single agreed-upon definition of data literacy because expectations of what it means to be data literate varies across contexts. The lack of agreement on a definition of data literacy across contexts is therefore necessary. However, definitions are important. Definitions embody our understanding of concepts and are the foundation for operationalization of concepts. The work reported in the chapter is motivated by the observation that despite no shortage of university graduates, organizations are struggling to find data-literate talent. There is an apparent disconnect between data literacy as taught in the academic domain and data literacy as expected by businesses in the public domain. An exploration of definitions of data literacy in academic and public domains is undertaken to gain insight in why the disconnect exists. A thematic analysis and comparison of definitions in the two domains were conducted. The differences identified provide some broad directions for developing data literacy capabilities in students that better fulfil the needs of business organizations.

A significant number of university students are leaving their institutions before completing their degrees. The present research project applied embeddedness theory, from organizational research, to understand student retention in a tertiary student population, and develop a quantitative instrument that measured university student embeddedness. In Study One, a mixed-methods approach was employed to determine whether the Fit (similarity between the student and the university), Links (count of relationships at university), and Sacrifice (losses upon leaving university) dimensions of embeddedness related to students' self-reported reasons for remaining enrolled at their university. Qualitative results from 15 undergraduate students indicated that intent to remain could be understood within the embeddedness dimensions of Fit, Links, and Sacrifice. These themes were employed to build the University Student Embeddedness (USE) scale. The measure was examined against Rasch measurement model assumptions for each of its subscales using data collected from 299 Australian tertiary students. Study Two sought to examine exploratory evidence of the concurrent validity of the scores from this developed measure. Responses from a separate sample of 196 Australian tertiary students showed only the Fit scale significantly related to student intentions to stay at university. All USE scales correlated with academic-related skills and motivations. These results suggest that the Fit scale may be valuable in identifying students at risk of dropout. Early identification of "at risk" students may lead to the development of targeted retention interventions. However, the USE's role in detection requires further validation and the development of consistent findings within other student cohorts.

In higher education, the role of assessment has evolved from serving only the purpose of evaluation of the outcomes of the learning process to assessment as part of the learning purposes. Summative or formative, the potential of assessment to facilitate learning is now recognised. Feedback is one of the most influential factors on learning but is also one of the least satisfactory elements of the student experience. How has interest in, understanding of, and implementation of feedback changed over time? What are the general characteristics of feedback implementation found in literature? To what productive directions might future research feedback on assessment take? To gain these insights, a systematic quantitative review of literature on feedback on written assessment in higher education was undertaken, revealing that feedback as a field of inquiry, despite burgeoning interest, remains nascent, mostly 'stuck in old ways'.

Background: Perceptual, cognitive and previous clinical experience may influence a novice Videofluoroscopic Swallowing Study (VFSS) analyst's trajectory towards competency. Understanding these factors may allow trainees to be better prepared for VFSS training and may allow training to be developed to accommodate differences between trainees. Aims: This study explored a range of factors previously suggested in the literature as influencing the development of novice analysts' VFSS skills. We hypothesised that knowledge of swallow anatomy and physiology, visual perceptual skills, self-efficacy and interest, and prior clinical exposure would all influence VFSS novice analysts' skill development. Methods & Procedures: Participants were undergraduate speech pathology students recruited from an Australian university, who had completed the required theoretical units in dysphagia. Data assessing the factors of interest were collected--the participants identified anatomical structures on a still radiographic image, completed a physiology questionnaire, completed subsections of the Developmental Test of Visual Processing--Adults, self-reported the number of dysphagia cases they managed on placement, and self-rated their confidence and interest. Data for 64 participants relating to the factors of interest were compared with their ability to accurately identify swallowing impairments following 15 h of VFSS analytical training, using correlation and regression analysis. Outcomes & Results: Success in VFSS analytical training was best predicted by clinical exposure to dysphagia cases and the ability to identify anatomical landmarks on still radiographic images. Conclusions & Implications: Novice analysts vary in the acquisition of beginner-level VFSS analytical skill. Our findings suggest that speech pathologists who are new to VFSS may benefit from clinical exposure to dysphagia cases, sound foundational knowledge of anatomy relevant to swallowing and the ability to see the anatomical landmarks on still radiographic images. Further research is required to equip VFSS trainers and trainees for training, to understand differences between learners during skill development.

The article is a critical reflection on a study conducted to evaluate the student-perceived value of instructor presence techniques. The study utilized the author-created Instructor Presence Technique Value Scale (IPTVS) in attempts to measure variations in the value of differing instructor presence techniques across communication media. The authors reflected on the data and the presentation of results to determine what key changes were needed to create a more valid and reliable iteration of the IPTVS. This reflective article includes the lessons learned and clarifications of value indicators.

With the proliferation of students' abilities to use technology, in particular virtual reality (VR) applications, teachers are experimenting with VR in virtual learning environments (VLE) to engage students; but clear ethics and safety guidelines are not available. Within the field of education additional research is needed to determine how VR is employed in VLEs. Additionally, what are the decision-making processes of educators for the VR programs chosen for classroom use based on ethics and student safety? Through qualitative inquiry, educators from K-12 and higher education shared their perceptions of ethics and safety concerns in VR applications for use in the classroom. We collected data from a sample of K-12 and higher education professionals from the Association for Educational Communications and Technology (AECT) membership, an educational organization emphasizing technology integration and learning. Data analysis from the individual interviews with open-ended questions revealed five primary themes and twelve sub-themes. Participants agreed that they need ethical and safety guidelines as they embark on new horizons that influence student well-being. The findings from this study may provide an in-depth understanding of the importance of developing ethics and safety guidelines for educational VR programs when used by students.

This study investigated online faculty familiarity, course design use, and professional development interest regarding universal design for learning (UDL) guidelines. The researchers surveyed all 2017 to 2018 online faculty at a large university in the southeastern United States. Findings included 71.6% of faculty reporting familiarity with at least one UDL guideline, with most respondents indicating familiarity with guidelines relating to perception, expression, and communication. Faculty reported the highest implementation of UDL guidelines was for those suggesting options for comprehension as well as expression and communication; the lowest implementation was for those suggesting options for physical action as well as language and support. Survey results also indicated high to moderate interest in learning more about all UDL guidelines, with emphasis on comprehension, persistence, and expression. This study suggests that faculty members desire UDL training and offers possibilities for planning and implementing such professional development in areas targeted to best meet the needs of online faculty.

Students' perceptions of challenges in biology influence performance outcomes, experiences, and persistence in science. Identifying sources of student struggle can assist efforts to support students as they overcome challenges in their undergraduate educations. In this study, we characterized student experiences of struggle by (1) quantifying which external factors relate to perceptions of encountering and overcoming struggle in introductory biology and (2) identifying factors to which students attribute their struggle in biology. We found a significant effect of Course, Instructor, and Incoming Preparation on student struggle, in which students with lower Incoming Preparation were more likely to report struggle and the inability to overcome struggle. We also observed significant differences in performance outcomes between students who did and did not encounter struggle and between students who did and did not overcome their struggle. Using inductive coding, we categorized student responses outlining causes of struggle, and using axial coding, we further categorized these as internally or externally attributed factors. External sources (i.e., Prior Biology, COVID-19, External Resources, Classroom Factors) were more commonly cited as the reason(s) students did or did not struggle. We conclude with recommendations for instructors, highlighting equitable teaching strategies and practices.

Learning molecular biology involves using visual representations to communicate ideas about largely unobservable biological processes and molecules. Genes and gene expression cannot be directly visualized, but students are expected to learn and understand these and related concepts. Theoretically, textbook illustrations should help learners master such concepts, but how are genes and other DNA-linked concepts illustrated for learners? We examined all DNA-related images found in 12 undergraduate biology textbooks to better understand what biology students encounter when learning concepts related to DNA. Our analysis revealed a wide array of DNA images that were used to design a new visual framework, the DNA Landscape, which we applied to more than 2000 images from common introductory and advanced biology textbooks. All DNA illustrations could be placed on the landscape framework, but certain positions were more common than others. We mapped figures about "gene expression" and "meiosis" onto the landscape framework to explore how these challenging topics are illustrated for learners, aligning these outcomes with the research literature to showcase how the overuse of certain representations may hinder, instead of help, learning. The DNA Landscape is a tool to promote research on visual literacy and to guide new learning activities for molecular biology.

The article draws on concepts from speculative design to explore an alternative educational group existing outside the boundaries of an accredited university. Inspired by the imaginative approach of speculative design, I propose a small-scale reading and discussion group as a pathway to explore possible futures open to aspects of humanities education. The concept aims to reposition elements of the humanities from within the degree-granting Canadian university space to engage the wider public through a network meant to ideally foster an interconnected community of learners. This rhizomatic network would provide avenues for those without the means, access, or desire to pursue post-secondary education in the humanities to engage in questions that are relevant to their lived experience. I use an inquiry-based model of learning to explore probable, plausible, and preferable futures for liberal arts education as a way to challenge some current modes of thinking and provoke further discussion and research.

The purpose of this study was to examine the impact of active learning on student performance in a sophomore-level anatomy and physiology course. Exam grades of students from two consecutive fall semesters were compared. In the first year of the study, students (n=180) used skeletons, plastic muscular manikins, and illustrations to learn the musculoskeletal system while in the second year of the study, students (n=186) also constructed clay models for more active learning. There was no significant difference in average final grade between years, suggesting no difference in overall student ability. For the two laboratory exams over the musculoskeletal system, students who participated in clay modeling performed lower than students who had only skeletons, manikins, and illustrations, and significantly fewer students earned a grade of C (70%) or better on the exams. Surveyed students found active learning useful for visualizing the muscles but few thought clay modeling improved their exam performance.

Assessment is and has been a deliberate and essential piece of education. However, with the recent emergence and popularity of online education, faculty members have to find new ways to engage online learners with formative assessments. While much of the online learning environment can be self-guided, faculty interventions can make the content more engaging for the learner. Biggs and Tang (2011) note the term "backwash" which refers to the direct effect assessments have on a student's learning. Baleni (2015) further expounded on this point by stating that the assessments, not the curriculum, can define how and what a student learns. Using technology to create engaging formative assessment is one way that faculty members can enhance student learning while helping learners prepare for a summative assessment. However, one of the important findings of this study is the time and effort saved by online faculty members using this type of technology for formative assessment. Using an independent samples t-test, this study found a nonsignificant difference in quiz scores between the two formats (paper or Socrative) for formative assessment. The results suggest that Web 2.0 tools can be just beneficial in helping students prepare for a summative assessment. In addition, when chosen wisely, these tools can also influence participation, student wait time for feedback, and teacher grading time.

More than 5.8 million students are currently enrolled in online courses; this equates to one in four higher education students taking an online course (OLC, 2016). With so many students enrolled in online education, it is imperative that institutions examine factors that lead to their success. This article summary provides a structure to think about instructional strategies, best practices, and online pedagogy as it applies to teaching. The authors offer a brief discussion of key contextual factors that may influence the generalizability of the online teaching suggestions provided throughout this special issue. In addition, the authors offer reflective questions to guide application of the instructional approaches discussed.

Most individuals in the field of academic advising know Virginia Gordon through the dedicated and transformative work she did for NACADA. Less well known is the equally creative and transformative work she engaged in for most of her professional life at Ohio State University. This article addresses how her ideas and convictions about academic advising became the blueprint for how she created advising programs at Ohio State's University College from the mid-1970s to her retirement in the mid-1990s. The work she did during that time anticipated many of the ideas and practices adopted later by the academic advising field.

The aim of this study is to evaluate factors contributing to poor academic performance of students in higher education. Data was collected in 2017 from 216 students enrolled in different programmes at a higher education provider in New Zealand. The effect of factors relating to family obligations, work and social commitments, and financial concerns were analysed. Results showed significant relationship between academic performance of students and their attendance. Other significant findings included the relationship between attendance and the level of study; work shift; ethnicity; whether participants had any dependents; and how studies were funded. Implications and limitations of this study are presented.

Research clearly establishes the value of online education to foster students' cognitive understanding of course material. However, engagement in the learning experience requires more than mere acquisition of new knowledge; to be fully engaged in the learning process, students must also connect with their peers and instructor in a meaningful way. The purpose of this study is to examine the value of instructor-personalized audio lectures as means of fostering students' engagement with course content and the online learning experience. Qualitative data on the student experience found that instructor-personalized audio lectures enhanced students' perceptions of value and engagement; quantitative data using a standardized engagement measure revealed no significant differences. Students' qualitative feedback about their online learning experience indicated that instructor-personalized audio lectures fostered greater student-instructor connections and significantly impacted the likelihood of students' engaging with course material. Recognizing the value of student engagement for ongoing satisfaction and retention in online learning programs, findings suggest that the creation of personalized audio lectures provides an efficient and effective means for faculty to positively impact students' online learning experience.

Teachers' intercultural understanding has a growing importance in teacher education. In a society with more diverse classrooms, there is an increasing need for teachers with a broad intercultural understanding. Student teachers who have had school practice in different cultural settings have a broader understanding of their multicultural pupils and are better equipped for related challenges and opportunities. This is paramount in classrooms including pupils of migrant and refugee backgrounds. In the field, there has been a growing understanding for this matter and there have been multiple studies of multicultural student teacher practice. However, further research is needed to understand the competence student teachers get from diverse school practice. Therefore, our focus is to explore to what extent student teachers can gain intercultural competence and professional development from practice in different cultural contexts.

Design is a quality of the material world and refers to the production of objects and the processes used to make them. In the physical world, design refers to form and function. In the digital world, the construct of design embodies meaning making. Immersed in a digital world, the ability of individuals to fully participate in contemporary society is significantly impacted by their ability to derive meaning from their interactions with multi-modal digital texts. Understanding, using, and producing knowledge in the digital world requires literacy competencies beyond those needed for the traditional reading and writing. 'Design' is therefore an essential literacy for the 21st century. In the present article, the authors trace the evolution of the concept of design literacy, frame design literacy as a human-centred literacy, and argue for the imperative of the inclusion of design literacy in higher education.

A host of scandals related to poor leadership in higher education has been reported in recent years, ultimately leading to leader turnover at the highest levels of the organization. But just how common is destructive leadership in U.S. higher education? This study sought to answer that question and others through descriptive, quantitative research using a modified version of the Destructive Leadership Questionnaire. Three-hundred ninety-seven faculty and professional staff from both public and private higher education institutions, working in various areas of their organization, indicated destructive leadership is not as common as one might think; however, several components of the study highlighted areas for future research.

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to explore emerging synergies and tensions between the twin moves to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDGs) and online learning and teaching (L&T) in higher education institutions (HEIs). Design/methodology/approach: A preliminary global exploration of universities' SDG-based L&T initiatives was undertaken, using publicly available grey and academic literature. Across a total sample of 179 HEIs -- identified through global university rankings and analysis of all 42 Australian universities -- 150 SDG-based L&T initiatives were identified. These were analysed to identify common approaches to embedding the SDGs. Findings: Five key approaches to embedding the SDGs into online (and offline) HEI L&T were identified: designing curricula and pedagogy to address the SDGs; orienting the student experience towards the SDGs; aligning graduate outcomes with the SDGs; institutional leadership and capability building; and participating in cross-institutional networks and initiatives. Four preliminary conclusions were drawn from subsequent analysis of these themes and their relevance to online education. Firstly, approaches to SDG L&T varied in degree of alignment between theory and practice. Secondly, many initiatives observed already involve some component of online L&T. Thirdly, questions of equity need to be carefully built into the design of online SDG education. And fourthly, more work needs to be done to ensure that both online and offline L&T are delivering the transformational changes required for and by the SDGs. Research limitations/implications: The research was limited by the availability of information on university websites accessible through a desk-top review in 2019; limited HEI representation; and the scope of the 2019 THE Impact Rankings. Originality/value: To date, there are no other published reviews, of this scale, of SDG L&T initiatives in universities nor analysis of the intersection between these initiatives and the move to online L&T.

Background: Despite the growing popularity of transnational education, there is a dearth of quantitative research regarding how transnational students experience higher education. Aims: This comparative study sought to explore differences in educational experiences between transnational and onshore domestic students enrolled either at the Australian (domestic) or Singapore (transnational) campus of an Australian university. Sample and Methods: An online survey gathered responses from 199 domestic students and 313 transnational students. Results: Results indicated transnational students to be significantly lower than domestic students on social and academic integration, institutional commitment, and satisfaction. No group differences were found in persistence intentions. A series of regression analyses showed integration and commitment significantly predicted student persistence intentions, across both cohorts, beyond demographic and course characteristics. Conclusions: This study offers several recommendations for how universities can better foster integration and commitment in their transnational students, including better funding the development of student societies and providing realistic course previews and career advice to students upon entry into their courses. Further, universities are encouraged to reconsider their transnational staffing models to provide more opportunities for academic support and student consultation beyond the classroom.

The purpose of this study was to compare instruction effectiveness between a regional approach and a systems approach in teaching the musculoskeletal system to sophomore-level anatomy and physiology students. Exam grades from two consecutive fall semesters were compared. Laboratory materials for the second and third exams were presented using a systems approach first, followed by using a regional approach. This order was used with students (n=139) in the first year of the study. In the second year of the study, the order of presentation was reversed for students (n=144) so that the regional approach was used first, followed by a systems approach. There was no significant difference in the test scores for the first exam between the years, suggesting that there was no difference in overall student ability between years. The overall class average on the third exam was significantly higher (p<0.05), both within year and between years, when the material was presented in a regional approach first. However, correlation analysis did not suggest an increase in individual student performance. Results suggest that spaced repetition and testing of the course material may enhance learning.

The authors consider STEM and STEAM education initiatives as forms of integrated teaching and learning. With evidence from education research and the neurosciences, a case is made for the inherent connections between emotion and learning as essential to STEAM pedagogy. In this article, the authors' "ArtScience" integration project for teacher candidates (TCs) is described, and elicits the following questions: "do teacher candidates (TCs) exhibit emotions directly related to the ArtScience integration project? If so, what are those emotions? How do those emotions connect with the TCs' perceptions of integration?" Anecdotal evidence and collected data in the form of reflection papers are analyzed and discussed. The authors suggest that STEAM integrations take into account the importance of emotion in multidisciplinary teaching and learning.