Academica Top Ten, Chronicle of Higher Education, and other sources are a great way to stay connected. Some of the full text articles are open access and others have premium content to which the Library subscribes to help satisfy your professional growth and development. Below are recent articles on boosting retention, leadership/life balance, quiet hallways, working with unreasonably passionate colleagues and more…
Online writing assignment for entering students can boost retention: HEQCO Study (2017) Higher Education Quality Council of Ontario
Participation in an online, goal-setting writing program could help reduce student attrition rates, particularly among those who are most likely to leave early, according to a new report by the Higher Education Quality Council of Ontario. The study found that participants in the Future Authoring program had an overall leaving rate that was 3.3 to 4.3 percentage points lower than those in the control group. The effects were more pronounced for students who typically have higher leaving rates, including male students, those enrolled in certificate programs and interdisciplinary studies, and those with lower high school grades. Full report
Balancing leadership and life (2017) Inside Higher Ed blog by Joya Misra and Jennifer Lunquist
Many senior faculty members take on an administrative position, serving as chair of their department, undergraduate or graduate program director, or in upper administrative levels outside the department. Academic leaders step up for many reasons, including because they believe they can make a positive difference. Yet academic leadership comes with substantial challenges. In order to maintain a work-life balance as an administrator, Misra and Lundquist recommend: learn to delegate duties, schedule face time, set clear expectations around online and in-person availability, organize your schedule to clarify and meet priorities, listen to criticism with an open mind, and schedule (and take) holidays that fully remove you from the workplace.
How a university fights to keep students’ demographics from becoming their destiny (2017) The Chronicle of Higher Education (premium) by Audrey Williams June
As class disparities in the broader society have worsened and as increasing numbers of minority and first-generation students come to campus, the task of helping students from these vulnerable groups get to and through college has become central to the future of higher education. Although the case study refers to black student, the idea that combining “hard-core data analysis with an emphasis on the human touch” can help institutions overcome demographic trends in student attrition. The strategy includes identifying key student groups that are at a higher risk of dropping out, as well as the creation of a “Students First Office,” which serves as a first responder for any academic, social, or financial challenges a student might be facing.
Why liberal arts degrees are more valuable than you might think (2017) Globe and Mail by Scott Sirrett
“What are you going to do with your humanities degree? This is a question that almost anyone who has studied the humanities faces at some point from a skeptical relative or friend”. Stirrett insists that a diversity of academic backgrounds is crucial to building a successful team noting “through studying and reading about the history, religion, culture, and philosophy of other countries, an individual is able to develop a heightened understanding of how different societies function, which can help in everything from small-talk to closing international sales deals”
Why we want to work with unreasonably passionate colleagues (2017) Inside Higher Ed by Joshua Kim
“It is not necessary that potential colleagues share the same professional obsessions. Rather, the most important thing is to be obsessively curious about something”. Kim praises the academic’s tendency to pursue their career “not out of any rational career calculus,” but out of internal motivation and curiosity.
Our hallways are too quiet (2017) The Chronicle of Higher Education by Deborah K Fitzgerald
“Where did everybody go?” Noting the sudden quiet of the hallways after returning to faculty from an administrative position, Fitzgerald discusses the possible reasons behind the vacancy, including technological developments and a cultural push for improved family/life/work balances. The article discusses the negative impacts this trend can have the academic community, and highlights a number of ways to reverse it. We need to revisit the commitments “to serve our students, our colleagues, and our institutions with integrity and energy” and “figure out how to become a flesh-and-blood community once again.”
Pathway programs: the interest is there, but is the awareness? (2017) Academica Forum
Across Canada, universities and colleges are partnering to give students the opportunity to have a postsecondary education that includes experience from both types of institutions. They may have different names –2+2 pathways, diploma-degree pathways, etc. — but what they all have in common is the opportunity they offer students to enjoy the unique benefits of both college and university through a clearly defined pathway.
But how many of these pathways are created or advertised with a clear understanding of students’ awareness and motivations?
Library resources… not just for students!
- Chronicle of Higher Education – full premium access
- Faculty Focus
- College Teaching
- lynda.com
