The study was undertaken as the first cycle of an action research project. It presents a case study that explores the potential of the combined use of self-, peer-, and tutor-driven assessment in enhancing students’ learning in a professionally orientated postgraduate media management course. The study also explores how such a process can contribute to students developing the skills and dispositions required by autonomous learners and professionals. In approaching these questions the study draws directly on students’ own accounts of their experiences and contrasts these accounts with the growing body of literature on participative assessment in higher education that has emerged over the past decade. The study begins by exploring how action research can aid in the development of valuable insights into educational practice. It draws on educational theorists’ use of Habermas’s (1971, 1972 and 1974 in Grundy, 1987: 8) theory of knowledge constitutive interests in developing a conceptual framework against which assessment practice can be understood and argues against instrumental approaches to assessment. Set against a background of outcomes-based education, the study presents an argument for privileging the role of assessment in promoting learning above its other function. It contends that this function is undermined if students are excluded from direct involvement in assessment practice. Informed by research into participative assessment, the study presents a thick description of a particular approach used during the action research cycle and explores how students experienced this process. The findings of the study support theories favouring the involvement of students in their own assessment and suggest that such processes can contribute to meeting students’ present and future learning needs.

Esta dissertação se insere na linha de Pesquisa de Gestão da Inovação e Competitividade, vinculada ao curso de Mestrado em Administração da Universidade de Caxias do Sul (UCS), que tem por objetivo estudar a relação entre a gestão da inovação e a competitividade no contexto global, tendo em vista a inserção da UCS na região de abrangência da Serra Gaúcha. Especificamente, a pesquisa caracterizou e analisou as inovações implementadas nas Práticas de Gestão nos cursos de Mestrado Acadêmico em Administração da Universidade de Caxias do Sul (UCS), Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Rio Grande do Sul (PUCRS), Universidade do Vale do Rio dos Sinos (UNISINOS), Universidade Federal de Santa Maria (UFSM) e Universidade do Vale do Itajaí (UNIVALI). Por meio da metodologia de estudo de caso, descritivo e exploratório, a pesquisa relata as práticas de gestão e os processos inovadores que estão sendo realizados nestes cursos. A literatura abordada delineia os conceitos de inovação e tipos em quatro dimensões – inovações em produto, processo, marketing e organizacional. A análise de dados obtidos nas entrevistas realizadas revelou que estas universidades investem em inovações nas linhas de pesquisa e projetos que envolvem discentes, docentes e parcerias de instituições internacionais, oferecendo o curso de Mestrado como um produto de qualidade. Os cursos de MAA também apresentam uma integração com professores de universidades do exterior, fornecendo inovação em projetos. Verificou-se que os investimentos na inovação de um corpo docente podem modificar as linhas de pesquisa em parceria com empresas. Também foram considerados os investimentos em fomentos e editais que geram a aquisição de bolsas de pesquisa e recursos para as próprias universidades. Os resultados demonstraram que os cursos pesquisados são inovadores, porque realizaram pelo menos uma inovação no período da pesquisa, conforme indicado no Manual de Oslo (2009). Em sua maioria, as inovações estavam relacionadas a processos. / Submitted by Ana Guimarães Pereira (agpereir@ucs.br) on 2015-08-06T17:21:19Z No. of bitstreams: 1 Dissertacao Flavia Marcolina.pdf: 1731049 bytes, checksum: 29e3067e93a389075c4cb127cfb1dd6a (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2015-08-06T17:21:19Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Dissertacao Flavia Marcolina.pdf: 1731049 bytes, checksum: 29e3067e93a389075c4cb127cfb1dd6a (MD5) / This project fits within the Research for the Management of Innovation and Competitiveness program, linked to the Master of Administration at the University of Caxias do Sul (UCS), which aims to study the relationship between the management of innovation and global competitiveness, with a view to their inclusion in the south of the country, area covered by the UCS. Specifically, the search feature and discuss the innovations implemented in Management Practices in the Master in Academic Administration, University of Caxias do Sul (UCS), University Católica do Rio Grande do Sul (PUCRS), University of Vale do Rio dos Sinos (UNISINOS), Federal University of Santa Maria (UFSM) and University of Vale do Itajaí (UNIVALI). Through case study methodology, descriptive and exploratory, this research reported management practices and innovative processes that have been made in these courses. Through the concepts and types of innovation discussed in the literature in its four dimensions – innovation in product, process, organizational and marketing – the analysis of the collected data revealed that the universities invest in innovations in the projects of research which involve alumni, professors and partnerships with international institutions, offering the Masters Course as a quality product. Universities also have a knowledge innovation and integration with teachers from universities abroad by providing innovative design and stock paid in marketing strategies and Administration and Information. It has been verified that investments in innovation of an university can modify the projects of research in partnerships with other companies. The results also showed that the researched universities are innovatives, because effected at least one type of innovation during the data collection.

CAPES / Os programas de pós-graduação em Administração cresceram 40% entre os anos de 2009 e 2014, tornando necessária uma avaliação para assegurar a qualidade desses cursos, identificar as assimetrias regionais e de áreas estratégicas do conhecimento. O objetivo desta dissertação é utilizar a Analise por Envoltória de Dados (DEA – data envelopment analysis) e DEA Window para analisar a eficiência dos cursos e sua evolução entre os triênios. De acordo com as entradas e saídas adotadas essa dissertação contribui para a análise da eficiência acadêmica dos cursos. Foram utilizados dados da pós-graduação em Administração nas universidades brasileiras, dos programas que possuem doutorado em Administração, entre os anos de 2004 a 2006, 2007 a 2009 e de 2010 a 2012. No triênio de 2004 a 2006 23,5% dos programas avaliados foram eficientes. Entre 2007 e 2009 39% dos programas foram eficientes e entre 2010 a 2012 48,6% dos programas atingiram eficiência máxima. Ao resolver o DEA Window o período que se destacou foi 2007 a 2009 com o maior número de programas com eficiência máxima, na média por janelas mais da metade dos cursos estão com eficiência entre 99% e 80%. Observa-se o aumento das publicações qualificadas e no número de teses. Em compensação o número de docentes permanentes diminuiu em quase todos os programas. Diminuiu também o número de trabalhos publicados em anais de eventos técnico-científicos, já que, esses não contaram como produções bibliográficas. / The postgraduate programs in business grew 40% between 2009 and 2014, therefore, an assessment is necessary to ensure the quality of these courses, identify regional asymmetries and strategic areas of knowledge. The purpose of this work is to use the Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) and DEA Window to analyze the efficiency of the courses and their evolution between the years. According to the inputs and outputs adopted this dissertation contributes to the analysis of academic efficiency of the Business in postgraduate couses. The data used is from programs in Brazilian universities that have a PhD in Business, between the years 2004 to 2006, 2007 to 2009 and 2010 to 2012. In the period from 2004 to 2006 23.5% of the evaluated programs were effective. Between 2007 and 2009 39% of the programs were efficient and between 2010 to 2012 48.6% of programs reached maximum efficiency. To solve the DEA Window the period that stood out was from 2007 to 2009 with the largest number of programs with maximum efficiency on window average more than half of the courses have efficiency between 99% and 80%. Observed an increase in qualified publications and the number of theses. In contrast the number of permanent teachers decreased in almost all programs. also decreased the number of papers published in proceedings of technical-scientific events as these did not count as bibliographic productions.

CAPES / Os programas de pós-graduação em Administração cresceram 40% entre os anos de 2009 e 2014, tornando necessária uma avaliação para assegurar a qualidade desses cursos, identificar as assimetrias regionais e de áreas estratégicas do conhecimento. O objetivo desta dissertação é utilizar a Analise por Envoltória de Dados (DEA – data envelopment analysis) e DEA Window para analisar a eficiência dos cursos e sua evolução entre os triênios. De acordo com as entradas e saídas adotadas essa dissertação contribui para a análise da eficiência acadêmica dos cursos. Foram utilizados dados da pós-graduação em Administração nas universidades brasileiras, dos programas que possuem doutorado em Administração, entre os anos de 2004 a 2006, 2007 a 2009 e de 2010 a 2012. No triênio de 2004 a 2006 23,5% dos programas avaliados foram eficientes. Entre 2007 e 2009 39% dos programas foram eficientes e entre 2010 a 2012 48,6% dos programas atingiram eficiência máxima. Ao resolver o DEA Window o período que se destacou foi 2007 a 2009 com o maior número de programas com eficiência máxima, na média por janelas mais da metade dos cursos estão com eficiência entre 99% e 80%. Observa-se o aumento das publicações qualificadas e no número de teses. Em compensação o número de docentes permanentes diminuiu em quase todos os programas. Diminuiu também o número de trabalhos publicados em anais de eventos técnico-científicos, já que, esses não contaram como produções bibliográficas. / The postgraduate programs in business grew 40% between 2009 and 2014, therefore, an assessment is necessary to ensure the quality of these courses, identify regional asymmetries and strategic areas of knowledge. The purpose of this work is to use the Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) and DEA Window to analyze the efficiency of the courses and their evolution between the years. According to the inputs and outputs adopted this dissertation contributes to the analysis of academic efficiency of the Business in postgraduate couses. The data used is from programs in Brazilian universities that have a PhD in Business, between the years 2004 to 2006, 2007 to 2009 and 2010 to 2012. In the period from 2004 to 2006 23.5% of the evaluated programs were effective. Between 2007 and 2009 39% of the programs were efficient and between 2010 to 2012 48.6% of programs reached maximum efficiency. To solve the DEA Window the period that stood out was from 2007 to 2009 with the largest number of programs with maximum efficiency on window average more than half of the courses have efficiency between 99% and 80%. Observed an increase in qualified publications and the number of theses. In contrast the number of permanent teachers decreased in almost all programs. also decreased the number of papers published in proceedings of technical-scientific events as these did not count as bibliographic productions.

Esta dissertação se insere na linha de Pesquisa de Gestão da Inovação e Competitividade, vinculada ao curso de Mestrado em Administração da Universidade de Caxias do Sul (UCS), que tem por objetivo estudar a relação entre a gestão da inovação e a competitividade no contexto global, tendo em vista a inserção da UCS na região de abrangência da Serra Gaúcha. Especificamente, a pesquisa caracterizou e analisou as inovações implementadas nas Práticas de Gestão nos cursos de Mestrado Acadêmico em Administração da Universidade de Caxias do Sul (UCS), Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Rio Grande do Sul (PUCRS), Universidade do Vale do Rio dos Sinos (UNISINOS), Universidade Federal de Santa Maria (UFSM) e Universidade do Vale do Itajaí (UNIVALI). Por meio da metodologia de estudo de caso, descritivo e exploratório, a pesquisa relata as práticas de gestão e os processos inovadores que estão sendo realizados nestes cursos. A literatura abordada delineia os conceitos de inovação e tipos em quatro dimensões – inovações em produto, processo, marketing e organizacional. A análise de dados obtidos nas entrevistas realizadas revelou que estas universidades investem em inovações nas linhas de pesquisa e projetos que envolvem discentes, docentes e parcerias de instituições internacionais, oferecendo o curso de Mestrado como um produto de qualidade. Os cursos de MAA também apresentam uma integração com professores de universidades do exterior, fornecendo inovação em projetos. Verificou-se que os investimentos na inovação de um corpo docente podem modificar as linhas de pesquisa em parceria com empresas. Também foram considerados os investimentos em fomentos e editais que geram a aquisição de bolsas de pesquisa e recursos para as próprias universidades. Os resultados demonstraram que os cursos pesquisados são inovadores, porque realizaram pelo menos uma inovação no período da pesquisa, conforme indicado no Manual de Oslo (2009). Em sua maioria, as inovações estavam relacionadas a processos. / This project fits within the Research for the Management of Innovation and Competitiveness program, linked to the Master of Administration at the University of Caxias do Sul (UCS), which aims to study the relationship between the management of innovation and global competitiveness, with a view to their inclusion in the south of the country, area covered by the UCS. Specifically, the search feature and discuss the innovations implemented in Management Practices in the Master in Academic Administration, University of Caxias do Sul (UCS), University Católica do Rio Grande do Sul (PUCRS), University of Vale do Rio dos Sinos (UNISINOS), Federal University of Santa Maria (UFSM) and University of Vale do Itajaí (UNIVALI). Through case study methodology, descriptive and exploratory, this research reported management practices and innovative processes that have been made in these courses. Through the concepts and types of innovation discussed in the literature in its four dimensions – innovation in product, process, organizational and marketing – the analysis of the collected data revealed that the universities invest in innovations in the projects of research which involve alumni, professors and partnerships with international institutions, offering the Masters Course as a quality product. Universities also have a knowledge innovation and integration with teachers from universities abroad by providing innovative design and stock paid in marketing strategies and Administration and Information. It has been verified that investments in innovation of an university can modify the projects of research in partnerships with other companies. The results also showed that the researched universities are innovatives, because effected at least one type of innovation during the data collection.

“Under Wendy Bishop’s Eye” examines the teaching, learning, and social environment of a graduate student in an American creative writing MFA program in the early years of the 21st century. This dissertation is a work of autofiction; it is both an autoethnography and a fictionalized story written in the form of a novel. The project uses the scholarship of writing studies’ leader Wendy Bishop to discuss and analyze the dynamics of graduate student learning in creative writing courses, undergraduate learning in creative writing courses, graduate student teaching in creative writing courses, and graduate student teaching in expository writing or first-year composition courses at a four-year college. The project addresses the limitations of the “workshop method” for teaching creative writing, while supporting the benefits of writing pedagogy that includes cross-genre writing exercises in all university-level writing courses, specifically bringing “personal writing” and creative non-fiction into both creative writing and first-year composition course.

This dissertation includes three essays that examine the economics of internationalstudents from three different perspectives in various contexts. The first essay examined the economic (monetary) return of international students who pursue prestigious graduate degrees in the United States. I studied the impact of attending graduate programs at prestigious U.S. institutions on graduates’ earnings for international students in the U.S. labor market. Using a combination of identification strategies including the propensity score matching (PSM) strategy as well as Oster’s (2017) selection on an unobservable approach, I found that international students who have attended graduate programs at more prestigious institutions in the United States have an earning premium of between 19% and 27%, compared with those who attended non-Tier 1 institutions in the United States. In the second essay, co-authors with X. Y. Ye and S. H. Yang, I investigated the graduateschool choice of a specific group of international students coming from one of the largest international student-sending countries, China (my home country). I provided new evidence on the factors influencing Chinese students’ graduate school choices internationally. I also constructed counterfactual policy simulations by examining what would have happened under different potential scenarios in both China and destination countries. The simulation results showed that the changes in Chinese college quality and family income are likely to affect the number of Chinese students studying abroad but not their distribution patterns among destination countries. In the meanwhile, factors including scholarship opportunities, work visa policies, and recruitment efforts in the destination countries would substantially shift Chinese students’ choice of destination country and, therefore, the specific graduate school location. The third essay examined whether the enrollment of international students at the graduatelevel impacts the domestic graduate student enrollment in the United States. Using data from the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) from 1998 to 2017 and fixed effects modelling to account for time and institutional trends, I found the enrollment of foreign graduate students crowds in domestic graduate student enrollment rather than displaces it. On average, for every 10% increase of international graduate students, the number of domestic graduate students increases from 1% at non-research universities to approximately 2% at research universities domestic graduate students. The magnitude of impact at research universities reduces as additional state-year and institutional type-year controls are added. Taken together, the dissertation contributes to the nuanced understanding of the return to studying abroad in the United States for international students, the behind-the-scenes factors that motivate and drive up such behaviors, and finally the impact that international students bring to the U.S. community when it comes to learning opportunities. The implications and ongoing discussions about international students will help further the collaboration agenda between the United States and the rest of the world in higher education.

The purpose of this project is to update the architecture and design of the California State University San Bernardino Graduate Advisor System. This system allows potential students into the Master of Science degree program in Computer Science to complete their application online.

Submitted in fulfillment of 1he requirements of the Master of Technology degree in Commercial Administration, Department of lnformation and Corporate and Management, Durban University of Technology, Durban, South Africa, 2015. / The higher education landscape in South Africa has undergone significant change and transformation in recent decades, obliging all higher education institutions to be more competitive and provide services of quality to attract and retain students. Since their emergence as universities in the years of 2003-2004 Universities of Technology (UoTs) have been required to engage in research and to improve research output and throughput rapidly despite having their roots in a former colonial and apartheid era in which they were required to play a purely technical role. Importantly, the government funding formula for universities in South Africa is now the same for all public universities (based on publications and throughput) even though traditional universities were always research-oriented. This makes it likely that UoTs will continue to lag behind traditional universities if drastic measures to increase research capacity are not put in place. In order to service the provision of this sustainable research output different measures and research structures have therefore been designed by UoTs to support the increasing pressure to produce M and DTech graduates and upgrade the qualifications of teaching staff. The purpose of this study was therefore to investigate the administrative support of research services and structures at faculty level at a selected UoT; to provide insights in terms of staff and student perceptions of postgraduate support and to make recommendations as to how to enhance existing research services and improve research structures to support research functions. The study was a case study of a selected UoT. It used mixed method research to enable the researcher to collect both qualitative and quantitative data from academics and M and DTech students and Faculty Research Office staff members. Questionnaires and interviews were used as data collection instruments. Supported by the Gap Model of service quality and delivery and an adapted SERVQUAL instrument, the study sought to determine staff and postgraduate students' perceptions and expectations of research structures and service quality across four dimensions, namely reliability, responsiveness, assurance and empathy. Analysis of the data revealed that Faculty Research Offices across each of the six faculties were lacking in certain respects in providing research support and development in each of the four identified service dimensions. They were particularly lacking in terms of communicating the nature and details of the research support services they offer. The study concluded that with improved research structures and more skilled personnel all research activities could be incorporated and be facilitated by Faculty Research Offices, taking these functions away from departmental research committees where these exist. It also concluded that by communicating these research services through faculty orientations, workshop sessions, and online forums, academics and students' awareness would be enhanced. This could also have a positive impact on handling research matters and processes, improving the reliability of the research office services and allowing students to associate with the research office on a more regular basis. This study therefore recommended that the identified quality gaps should be attended to in order to improve research services. Further, issues of research capacity development and support and service quality need to be urgently considered by the institution in order in the longer term to be in a position to improve enrolment and graduation rates, increase scholarly publications and contribute to the knowledge society. Inviting research experts and drawing on the greater experience and expertise of their Australian counterparts in the ATN network (with whom SA UoTs have a formal MoU) could lead to further research and development in the area investigated. This should go a long way in ensuring progress and growth in research output within the faculties of the institution investigated and could be of interest to other UoTs facing similar challenges.

A presente dissertação tem como objetivo construir um modelo singular de avaliação de desempenho para atender a Diretoria de pesquisa e pós-graduação da Universidade Tecnológica Federal do Paraná, Câmpus de Pato Branco, utilizando a visão da MCDA-C –Metodologia Multicritério de Apoio à Decisão Construtivista, levando-se em consideração as percepções do decisor por meio dessa metodologia.A pesquisa caracteriza-se como exploratória, descritiva e quali-quantitativa. Os instrumentos utilizados para a coleta e análise dos dados são: Knowledge Development Process- Constructivist (Proknow-C) e metodologia MCDA-C. Em relação ao Proknow-C, esse processo permitiu selecionar 15 artigos internacionais e 15 artigos nacionais alinhados ao tema, tendo como principais resultados: (i) a análise bibliométrica permitiu identificar os principais autores, artigos e periódicos; (ii) a análise sistêmica permitiu chegar aos seguintes resultados: a) os modelos de avaliação de desempenho propostos e/ou aplicados nas pesquisas não demonstram preocupação em desenvolver um modelo singular, específico para o contexto que lhe deu origem, ou o que é importante medir segundo os valores do decisor; b) verificou-se que a maioria dos modelos realiza a mensuração, porém, não realiza a integração dos critérios; c) a maioria dos modelos permitiram diagnosticar os pontos fortes e fracos dos contextos avaliados; d) os modelos demonstraram preocupação em propor ações para gerar ações de aperfeiçoamento, destacando-se o portfólio internacional. Por meio da MCDA-C foram obtidos os seguintes resultados: (i) identificação de 64 elementos primários de avaliação (EPAs)os quais foram explorados e discutidos originando 89 conceitos orientados à ação; (ii) constatação de duas grandes dimensões de preocupação do decisor - qualidade e gestão, sendo que a primeira grande área está relacionada à pesquisa e pós-graduação stricto sensu, aos grupos de pesquisa e à pós-graduação lato sensu; e a segunda está relacionada à imagem e aos processos internos; (iii) criação de 5 mapas de relações meios e fins, nos quais, conforme as dimensões identificadas,as preocupações operacionais (conceitos meios) e as preocupações estratégicas (conceitos fins)foram alocadas; (iv)formulação de 51 indicadores de desempenho com a participação integral do decisor; (v) construção dos descritores por meio de escalas ordinais e forma determinados os níveis de referência para cada indicador; (vi) transformação das ordinais em escalas cardinais (quantitativas); (vii) realização da análise de independência; (viii) construção das funções de valor; e (ix) determinação das taxas de substituição.Concluise a partir da filiação teórica adotada, que a estruturação do modelo de avaliação de desempenho proposto será útil para dar apoio à gestão da diretoria de pesquisa e pós-graduação da UTFPR, Câmpus de Pato Branco, bem comoo cotejamento dos indicadores da literatura com o modelo desenvolvido contribui teoricamente para a literatura. / The present work aims to build a unique model of performance evaluation to meet the Research and Graduate Directorate of the Federal Technological University of Paraná, Pato Branco Câmpus, using the MCDA-C vision - Multicriteria Decision Support Methodology Constructivist, taking into account the perceptions of the decision maker through this methodology. The research is characterized as exploratory, descriptive and qualitativequantitative. The instruments used for data collection and analysis are: Knowledge Development Process- Constructivist (Proknow-C) and MCDA-C methodology.In relation to Proknow-C, this process allowed the selection of 15 international articles and 15 national articles aligned to the theme, with the following main results: (i) bibliometric analysis allowed to identify the main authors, articles and periodicals; (ii) the systemic analysis allowed the following results to be obtained: a) the performance evaluation models proposed and/or applied in the researches do not show concern in developing a singular model, specific to the context that gave rise to it, or what is important Measure according to the values of the decision maker; b) it was verified that most of the models carry out the measurement, however, it does not integrate the criteria; c) most of the models allowed to diagnose the strengths and weaknesses of the contexts evaluated; d) the models showed concern in proposing actions to generate improvement actions, highlighting the international portfolio.The following results were obtained through MCDA-C: (i) identification of 64 primary evaluation elements (EPAs) which were explored and discussed, giving rise to 89 action-oriented concepts; (ii) finding two major dimensions of decision-maker concern - quality and management, the first large area of which is related to the research and graduate studies stricto sensu, to the research groups and to the lato sensu graduate studies; And the second is related to the image and internal processes; (iii) creation of 5 maps of means and ends relationships, in which, according to the identified dimensions, operational concerns (means concepts) and strategic concerns (concepts ends) were allocated; (iv) formulation of 51 performance indicators with the full participation of the decision maker; (v) construction of the descriptors by means of ordinal scales and form the reference levels for each indicator; (vi) transformation of ordinals into cardinal (quantitative) scales; (vii) conducting the independence analysis; (viii) construction of value functions; and (ix) determination of replacement rates. It is concluded from the theoretical affiliation adopted that the structuring of the proposed performance evaluation model will be useful to support the management of the UTFPR research and graduate board, Câmpus de Pato Branco, as well as the comparison of the indicators of the Literature with the developed model contributes theoretically to the literature.