<p> In their seminal 1995 article, Barr and Tagg encouraged higher education to think differently about undergraduate education and suggested that a new paradigm be adopted that focused less on what is taught and more on what is learned. Dubbed the learner-centered paradigm, this reframing of education challenges long standing practices and removes the instructor as the literal and figurative center of the classroom, requiring that students take a more active role in their education and in the creation of knowledge. </p><p> Despite the fact that empirical research consistently finds that practices congruent with the learner-centered paradigm greatly benefits students, full-scale adoption of the paradigm has been slow across the higher education landscape. The SCALE-UP program that emerged out of North Carolina State University, however, has provided institutions with a model for how learner-centered teaching techniques can be leveraged in large enrollment courses and hundreds of institutions across the globe have successfully adopted this program. </p><p> In this multiple case study of two large, public institutions that have adopted SCALE-UP, this study provides insight into how faculty implementation of learner-centered teaching and learning practices is influenced by organizational structures and policies and how they can encourage and support faculty transition to a learner-centered practice. Findings suggest that these included policies and structures that involve: 1) institutional leadership; 2) finance and academic departmental influence and configurations; 3) faculty training and development programs; 4) physical facilities; and 5) incentives to learn, develop, and maintain new practices. </p><p> Extrapolated from the findings that emerged through this research are a number of implications and recommendations: Support and advocacy from institutional leadership is critical for the initiation and sustainment of paradigm change, academic departments can create learner-centered cultures that encourage and support learner-centered teaching practices, provide meaningful opportunities for faculty to become exposed to the learner-centered paradigm and create ongoing training and professional development to support related teaching and learning practices, invest in the creation of physical active-learning structures, create policies and structures that provide meaningful incentives for faculty to adopt learner-centered teaching practices, and strategically connect learner-centered practices and initiatives taking place across campus. </p>

<p> Some scholars have formed a more expansive view of knowledge that moves beyond the cognitive notion of intellect. For example, emotional intelligence (EI) theory posits that human intelligence encompasses both cognitive and emotional competencies, providing a framework for the concept of contemplative practices in an endeavor to support an eclectic understanding of cognition. Contemplative practices may benefit graduate student disposition and inform areas of educator preparation through the use of emotional adeptness in higher education. The purpose of this study was to: (a) develop a self-report measure: <i> Scale of Contemplative Practice in Higher Education</i> (SCOPE); (b) address the issues of validity and reliability related to the SCOPE; and (c) expand the understanding of contemplative practices in the literature. Data collected from an extensive review of the literature, reference to personal experiences, and consultation with an expert panel were used to generate scale items. Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses were conducted to test the factor model. Analyses resulted in a 30-item factor model with strong reliabilities.</p>

This study examines the practice of educational developers as a professional, or sub-professional group working in UK higher education. It examines the historical moment and convergent pressures on the higher education system out of which educational development arose in the period from the mid 1960s until the present. (Chapter 1). From a perspective of 'agent context analysis' it considers the 'strategic terrain', in terms of the organisational cultures and structures of higher education, in which educational developers practise and against which they adapt their strategic stance (Chapter 3). The substantial centrepiece of this study is the development of a set of 12 analytic categories of practice or 'orientations' to educational development which were derived from a qualitative analysis of a series of 32 interviews undertaken in a broad range of institutions of higher education across the United Kingdom. These orientations were then mapped against prevailing organisational cultures, identification of stakeholder groups and particular bodies of procedural knowledge to create a model of educational development practice. (Chapter 4). This model is further expanded to map these orientations against the perceived notions of organisational change held by developers (Chapter 5), as involvement in change processes is a commonly agreed attribute of this professional group. The thesis contains a methodological chapter (Chapter 2) and further methodological perspectives in the Appendices. The study demonstrates the complexity and heterogeneity of educational development practice and the somewhat fractured nature of the professional group. It highlights the emerging prevalence of discipline-based educational development and recommends further educational development research 10 this area.

<p> Serving over two million students, the California Community College (CCC) system is a powerhouse in the nation for academics. Though many students attend and successfully complete this educational system, challenges for Black females are often overlooked for the mere fact that they complete at a slightly higher rate compared to their Black male counterparts. The purpose of this study is to explore how Black females within the CCC system make sense of their journey as they move towards graduation and/or transfer. To gain a better understanding of the lived experiences of Black women in the CCC, qualitative ethnographic interviews were conducted. The sample group included 15 Black female participants who are currently attending a community college in California. Four major themes emerged: support systems, educational awareness and expectations, self-awareness and foresightedness. These findings provide a new perspective that can assist in the promotion of programs, policies and resources specific to the needs of this population in order for them to be successful.</p>

<p> Many colleges and universities offer their commitment to partnering with local communities, and often do so with the goal of addressing societal needs. A growing field, such engagement between higher education institutions and community partners continues to evolve, including the purpose and rationale for this work, how engagement is accomplished, theoretical contexts, and how success is viewed by stakeholders. A qualitative case study was undertaken with the following questions at the fore: how does a self-described &ldquo;engaged&rdquo; university center function when viewed through the prism of an ethic of care? What are the characteristics of engagement efforts undertaken by staff, faculty and community partners associated with this center? What is a cultural description for the work associated with this center? The case studied was the Center for Community Research and Engagement (CCRE) at the University of Massachusetts Lowell. Data collection included a combination of participant-observation, document analysis, and open-ended interviews. Overall findings point toward many aspects of an ethic of care that can be understood to be prominent characteristics of CCRE, including the dynamic of relationships, longevity, and a focus on needs and attention paid. Further, acknowledgement of care is not one-directional, with undergraduate students, and by proxy the university, recipients of care. Findings suggest that relationships are the tough work, easily overlooked because they are difficult to quantify and capture in forms other than the perceived experience between people. The challenge of funding is also an ever-present reality, and contributions by university staff is a new and novel finding given the previous focus on faculty and students. A description of CCRE necessitates an understanding of context, core center efforts, and additional cultural dynamics that include a changing university. Findings from this research contribute to the theoretical development of engagement through the consideration of Care Theory, and also deepen understanding of community-university engagement by describing the complexity of human relationships.</p>

Kresge College is located on the innovative and interdisciplinary campus of the University of California at Santa Cruz. Kresge was begun in the early 1970's as an experiment in undergraduate education that was deeply influenced by humanistic psychology and encounter and sensitivity training groups. During the late 1970's, U. C. Santa Cruz was transformed into a mainstream liberal arts university, in which disciplinary boards of study became predominant. At the same time Kresge College was redefined as a humanities oriented liberal arts college, focused upon the modernist and post-modernist perspectives. This ethnographic study suggests that, in the late 1980's, students and faculty at Kresge College still maintained some remnants of the original founding ethos. The elements which have persisted include: a personal classroom interaction atmosphere open to intimacy between teachers and students; the use of a consensus decision making process by student organizations; an array of educational values focused upon the realization of human possibilities; and the display of awareness of the power of personal and social transformation, in the celebration of public ritual occasions.

This study illuminates the perceptions of dental school administrators and faculty of a new, non-traditional dental school and the extent to which these perceptions influence the processes of dental education within their school as well as their perceptions of crises in dental education.Using an instrumental case study approach, an intrinsic case study examines perceptions that developed a non-traditional dental school. The case study is then instrumental in examination of the influences of the new economy and networks within the theory of academic capitalism that influence the formation and operation of this new school as well as influences on perceptions of crises in dental education as defined by organized dentistry.All characteristics of the new economy (globalization, knowledge as raw material, non-Fordist manufacturing, educated/tech savvy workers) are perceived as profoundly influencing the processes of dental education at the new school. Of four networks within the theory of academic capitalism (new circuits of knowledge, interstitial organization emergence, intermediating networks, extended managerial capacity) only new circuits of knowledge are perceived to have profound influence on the formation and operation of the school.The perceptions of characteristics of the new economy and networks of the theory of academic capitalism have established a dental school decidedly distinctive in the approach to dental education with the crises in dental education perceived as real and influencing this distinct approach taken by this school in providing dental education.Salient characteristics of the new economy and networks within the theory of academic capitalism, when operationally defined, serve as powerful tools as explanatory vehicles to define the extent of their influence on the foundations and operations of this dental education institution and the extent to which these foundations and operations may influence the crises in dental education.

Today large research projects require substantial involvement of researchers from different organizations, disciplines, or cultures working in groups or teams to accomplish a common goal of producing, sharing, and disseminating scientific knowledge. This study focuses on the international research team that was launched in response to pressing calls for internationalization. This study seeks to understand the social structure of the international research team and perceptions of team members on this structure by challenging social networks and social capital fields. By bridging social networks with social capital, the study examines social structures at the individual, subgroup, and team levels and adds complexity to different levels of analysis by stressing context through qualitative research methods. The results imply that hierarchical relations do not stand separately from the horizontal relations among team members in the international research team. Therefore, the construct of group social capital should be based on a multilevel model of combined moderate closure with horizontal bridging roles in international research teams.

This study examines the spatial distribution of educational attainment and then builds upon current predictive frameworks for understanding patterns of educational attainment by applying a spatial econometric method of analysis. The research from this study enables a new approach to the policy discussion on how to improve educational attainment for the states and nation; a dialogue where states are viewed not as independent, isolated observations but as a part of a larger system or cluster of observations. This research utilized data from the U.S Census Bureau, American Community Survey of 2009 and examined the percent of the workforce population with a baccalaureate or higher degree. Exploratory spatial data analysis was conducted to study the spatial distribution of educational attainment. Based on initial results, both classic linear regression and spatial autoregressive models were used. The findings from this study indicate that educational attainment is spatially dependent and furthermore, the consideration of the spatial context through spatial autoregressive models can provide greater insight and understanding into educational attainment. This research was able to distinguish significant geographic location effects on educational attainment from funding, economic and industry effects. In particular, spatial concentration of educational attainment was proven to be significant. Several important policy implications were derived from these findings. These policies relate to the following issues: a) allocation of funds to postsecondary education, b) consideration and promotion of industry, and c) acknowledging spillover effects from adjacent states.

Academic librarianship is a profession in the midst of change. Embedded within multiple social spheres, academic librarians are adapting to changes in higher education, the sociotechnical environment of information, and the system of professions. This research investigates the ways in which academic librarians publicly present the ways in which they are aligning themselves in the face of academic capitalism. Using a qualitative approach of document analysis of research library strategic plans, this study explores the ways in which academic librarians express their perceptions of changes in higher education, of changes in the sociotechnical environment of information, and of changing professional jurisdiction and relationships. The theoretical framework, based on Abbott's System of the Professions and Linked Ecologies. The study analyzes strategic plans from 75 American research universities from the membership of the Association of Research Libraries and the Association of American Universities. Academic librarians were found to be re-establishing claims to existing jurisdictions while also making new claims. They described their roles in 4 ways: Supporting, Collaborating, Competing, and Leading. These relationships demonstrate attempts to demonstrate centrality to the campus by strengthening institutional prestige and quality by strengthening the library itself, by contributing to the academic activities of faculty and students through supportive and collaborative activities, and by leading change in academia by leading changes in the system of scholarly communication. They also exhibited entrepreneurial behaviors by seeking to connecting to external sources of income, particularly through grant-seeking and private fundraising. There was also evidence that academic librarians perceived impacts of changes in the sociotechncial environment on their instructional roles, and on the ways they provide and manage scholarly research collections. Finally, there was some evidence of linkages between higher education and information environments, with mass digitization and search as hinge issues and librarian activities in publishing a scholarly communications as avatar activities.