Academic Path Research Articles

Warunki i strategie działalności naukowej polskich akademiczek na niwie pedagogiki i psychologii w latach 1918–1939

The article is connected with the conditions and strategies of the Polish psychologists’ and pedagogues’ scientific work in the interwar period. None of them pursued the ‘classical’ academic path, in terms of official employment status and promotion within a university. Most of them worked in the Wolna Wszechnica Polska. Women who were distinguished by their activity in the field of research were Helena Radlińska, Maria Grzegorzewska, Józefa Joteyko, Ludwika Karpińska-Woyczyńska. They attended the internal and transnational scientific life taking part in conferences and conventions, publishing scientific papers in Polish and foreign scientific journals. The significant strategy of the women handling the science was also their participation in the social and learned societies.

Ks. Adolf Józef Bożeniec Jełowicki (1863-1937) – pierwszy Polak w jerozolimskiej szkole biblijnej

The aim of this paper is to discuss and answer for the first time the question of the earliest Polish presence at the École biblique et archéologique française de Jérusalem. As an outcome of archival research carried out at St. Stephan’s Convent in Jerusalem following conclusions can be drawn. First of all, the attendance of Poles at the École biblique dates back to the very beginning of the school. As early as in 1892 that is only two years after its first commencement a Polish priest from the Archdiocese of Warsaw, Rev. Adolf Józef Bożeniec Jełowicki started his biblical studies there. He had an occasion to meet in person the founder of the school and the famous professor Fr. Marie-Joseph Lagrange. Rev. Jełowicki was also a witness to the creation of the important periodical “Revue Biblique”. Lectures at that time were few, and in the process of studying, the emphasis was put not only on theoretical knowledge, but also on discovering the Holy Land through practical classes in archeology and topography. Lastly, the stay of Rev. Jełowicki at the École biblique was only one year long nevertheless it resulted in the publication of a professional guide to Jerusalem and its surroundings, as well as several dozen encyclopedic entries on biblical topics. However, after returning to the homeland, Jełowicki could not pursue an academic career path, but the lessons learned at the École biblique became his important asset to future pastoral challenges as a rector in Warsaw, and then as an auxiliary bishop in Lublin.

The Duplicity of Equality: An Analysis of Academic Placement in a Racially Diverse School and a Black Community

Background/ContextFor more than four decades, researchers have shown that African American students are overrepresented in lower-track classes, while their White peers tend to be in advanced courses. In the past twenty years, school districts have implemented detracking reforms that stressed self-selection policies as an alternative to separate academic paths, yet quantitative data still show that most African American students are not attending upper-level or advanced classes in racially diverse schools.Purpose/Objective/Research Question/Focus of studyThis study explores how African American parents come to terms with academic placement, and the mechanisms that impact their child's educational experiences in a racially diverse school while coming from a segregated high-poverty African-American community.SettingResearch took place in a racially diverse suburban school and city. The suburban city is a microcosm of the United States, not only because of the racial and economic diversity of its school district, but also because its story encapsulates the plight of many African Americans in relation to the Great Migration, segregation, disinvested neighborhoods, and systemic inequalities.Population/participants/SubjectsParticipants included 26 African American parents, many of whom attended the same school district and experienced their own lower-track placement.Research DesignEthnographic methods, which include interviews and observations, were used to explore the research questions. African American parents were individually interviewed about their own educational experiences, children's academic placement, family background, interactions with the school system, community issues, and perceptions of the middle school and city.Findings/ResultsAfrican American students and their parents were a product of intergenera-tional tracking. Parents and their children had experienced lower-track courses. In addition, the exposure of African American students and parents to systemic inequalities in their home and community heavily influenced their academic placement and overall educational experiences. Moreover, tracking in this school was not necessarily about abilities and skills but also about separating African American students and creating a formal semblance of equality that actually reinforced systemic inequalities, a reality captured in the phrase “duplicity of equality.”

Does health literacy explain the link between structural stratifiers and adolescent health?

The concept of health literacy (HL) may help us to better understand the mechanisms leading to health disparities, and to focus on the factors that can be influenced. However, not much is yet known about how HL is related to health disparities, or whether the association exists among adolescents. The aim of the study was to examine the associations between structural stratifiers, HL and health indicators among adolescents. The nationally representative Finnish Health Behaviour in School-aged Children survey data (n=3833) were collected from 13- and 15-year-old pupils in the spring of 2014. Pearson correlation coefficients were calculated, and separate path models were estimated for the perceived health and health behaviour measures. HL was found to be an independent factor explaining disparities in health. Higher HL was related to positive health outcomes. HL also acted as a mediator between health behaviours and structural stratifiers, except for gender. School achievement and educational aspirations were among the factors explaining the HL level, which in turn, explained the health indicators. The concept of HL is of use in understanding health disparities. In particular, HL provides a mechanism via which school achievement and educational plans affect health outcomes. Low HL places adolescents who have poor school achievement and who do not intend to continue on an academic path in an unequal position with respect to their health.

Women and academic careers in obstetrics and gynaecology: aspirations and obstacles among postgraduate trainees - a mixed-methods study.

To examine the relationship between gender and a career in academic medicine. Mixed-methods study. Obstetrics-gynaecology postgraduate training programme in Paris, France. Postgraduate trainees in obstetrics-gynaecology (n=204). Statistical analysis of quantitative survey data, thematic analysis of qualitative interview data and integrative analysis. Women's aspirations and obstacles related to their decision about a career in academic medicine. A career in academic medicine was envisaged by 13% of the women residents and 27% of the men (P=0.01). Women reported receiving advice from a mentor less often than men (38.8% versus 52.9%, P=0.002). Overall, 40.6% of women and 2.9% of men reported experiencing gender discrimination (P<0.001). In response to the question 'Do you have doubts about your ability to pursue or succeed at an academic career?', 62.4% of the women and only 17.7% of the men answered yes (P<0.001). The global analysis identified the following obstacles: persistent gender stereotypes that produce everyday sexism, lack of identification with male role models, lack of mentors, perceived discrimination, an ideal of professional excellence that is difficult to attain, constraining professional organisational norms, inequality between men and women in the domestic and family spheres, and finally self-censorship and important doubts about their ability to combine a demanding career and a fulfilling personal life. Women reported the desire to follow a career in academic medicine half as often as men. Improving the presence and visibility of role models for residents and combating workplace discrimination will address some of the barriers to women choosing a career in academic medicine. Women obstetric trainees in France are only half as likely as men to envisage following an academic path.

Men Pursuing an Undergraduate Psychology Degree: What’s Masculinity Got to Do with It?

Using discursive psychology as its theoretical and methodological framework, the present study explored male Canadian undergraduate students’ accounts of their reasons for studying psychology, their experiences of being male undergraduate psychology students, and their anticipated future careers. Ten men (19–29 years-old) who were at least in their second year of study in the psychology major program were interviewed. Contrary to survey research concluding that men who make gender-atypical vocational choices conform less to masculine norms than do men who make typical academic and career choices, our participants produced contradictory accounts. On the one hand, in talking about their experiences as psychology students in the context of the gender gap, they argued that gender does not matter. On the other hand, they showed that gender does matter in brief “boy moments” when they shared tacit gender knowledge with the interviewer and in justifying their academic paths toward futures that involved leaving psychology for a male-concentrated field. Thus, gender-does-not matter was the preferred argument when gender was an explicit topic of conversation, and the doing of gender occurred in unacknowledged ways.

Getting Started on the Tenure Track: Challenges and Strategies for Success

Tenure-track positions at institutions of higher education are often highly coveted because they offer job stability, academic freedom, and higher pay. Despite this allure, the academic career path is fraught with challenges, particularly during the first few years of a tenure-track position where one must balance new demands and escalating expectations. We synthesized existing literature with data collected through an online survey of leisure academics and discussions derived from the “Growing Up Academic” panel sessions that took place during the 2016 Academy of Leisure Sciences Teaching Institute to examine the challenges and opportunities that individuals must navigate during the early years on the tenure track. Challenges identified included concerns about transitioning identities, divergent responsibilities, insecurities, and uncertain expectations regarding tenure and promotion. Many of these issues were more pronounced for faculty of color. However, participants also highlighted some key strategies that could be employed to address challenges: (a) Know expectations and document progress, (b) Collaborate regularly, (c) Seek professional mentors, (d) Develop an academic identity, (e) Be proactive and strategic in all areas of scholarship, and (f) Be realistic. Emerging scholars who heed this advice will be better equipped to navigate the early stages of academic life and successfully achieve tenure.

Examining self-regulated learning through a social networking ePortfolio in higher education

The use of social media applications can have negative effects on performance and as a result the need for interventions supporting learners to self-monitor, manage technology use and academic performance is pressing. The main focus of this research is the implementation of an ePortfolio through a course in higher education for empowering students to manage their academic path. An ePortfolio, as a dynamic social networking tool, was developed along the lines of self-regulated learning (SRL) with the aim of influencing student's self-regulatory capacity. To satisfy the purpose of the study a paired-samples t-test and correlations were employed to explore statistical differences on the levels of SRL processes. The findings reveal that there is a significant increase on the means across SRL processes. Future research needs to explore SRL effects on learning in the context of an ePortfolio using a set of assessment tools for capturing learning outcomes with greater precision.

Today, I Am a (Black) Man

8 | BLACK HISTORY BULLETIN VOL. 82, NO 1 82 No.1 TODAY, I AM A (BLACK) MAN Submitted to the AFRO by Dr. Kaye Wise Whitehead By Kofi Elijah Whitehead I have spent the last four years trying to find answers to the questions that were posed to me by my mother when I first entered high school: Who are you? How do you want to change the world? What type of man do you want to be? Important questions, I know, and I have spent more nights than I would like to admit trying to come up with answers. There are some things that I know like I am the son of Johnnie and Karsonya Wise Whitehead, and I am the descendant of enslaved Black men and women who chose to survive. I know that I love to read and write and that I want to become the type of scholar who fights for social justice and seeks to make the world a more just and verdant place. I know that I want to travel beyond Baltimore, see the world, and carve out my own academic path and journey. I also know that when I walk outside of my door, none of that matters because in the eyes of White America, I am Black and I am a man. And there are some things that I do not know, because at 18, a newly minted man I still have not figured out who I want to be in the world. I do not really understand racism or White supremacy, why they continue to exist or how to end them. I am still not completely comfortable confronting toxic masculinity in my peers, though I do believe that I will get there. On the eve of turning 18, I sat at the foot of my bed and thought about what it meant to be a Black man in America. I thought about what Martin Luther King, Jr. said in 1967 when he told a group of high school students that they needed to say to themselves that they were Black and they were beautiful. I tried so hard to look at myself through my own eyes and not, as W.E.B. Du Bois once wrote, through the eyes of others. Du Bois wrote about double consciousness; but, I am wrestling with multiple consciousnesses: I am Black, I am male, and I am an American. I am the greatgrandson of people who could not read or write, but who sent all of their children to college. I am the descendant of people who were enslaved, but chose to live so that I could one day be free. I grew up in Baltimore, but there are places in this city that do not feel like home. Does my life matter? What type of man do I want to be in this world? I have so many questions. What does it mean to stand up for something I believe in? What is my purpose? Why am I here? How can I fix Baltimore? In less than 150 days, I will graduate from high school. I will walkacrossthatstageandgetthediplomathatIhaveearned. I will look back and remember who I was when I walked into high school and who I am as I walk out of it. When I walked in, America was in the second term of the first Black president, and we were talking about being post-racial and celebrating diversity. As I leave, America is halfway through the first term of a whitelash president who seems to have given voice and space and legitimacy to white supremacy and white nationalism. When I entered, the lunchtime conversations and hallway debates were about Black Lives Matter and All Lives Matter. Today, we talk about gun control, government shut downs, undocumented residents, and babies being held in cages at the border. When I entered, Baltimore had just come out of the Baltimore Uprising and had ended the year with 344 homicides. I was afraid. My parents were outraged. They were concerned, and they built this tiny little net around me to try and keep me safe. They laid out a city map and told me the neighborhoods and...

Benefits of participating in mastermind groups

The academic career path is seldom straightforward. Many health professionals and researchers face stress and uncertain employment opportunities. Joining a collegial support group, a so-called “mas ...

Impact of academic origin and career path of supervisors on scientific productivity of students

Impact of academic origin and career path of supervisors on scientific productivity of students

Writing and Metacognition: How Italian Students Represent the School Organization and the Assessment Processes

The importance of involving students in writing activities that encourage them to work on metacognitive processes is shared by educational experts (Albanese et al., 2003; Harris et al., 2010; De Simone et al., 2015). During the formative process, activities that require students to use judgment and critical thinking skills, as well as challenging them to reflect on themes close to their daily-life, are those reported to be more effective (Bruning - Horn, 2000; Boscolo - Gelati, 2007; Smith et al., 2007). The paper presents the results of a writing laboratory developed with Italian undergraduate students. The students were freshmen at the Department of Education of the Roma Tre University. The main objective was to work on the metacognitive skills of students, asking them to clarify their idea of "school organization and assessment processes in Italy", through a written paper. In addition to argumentative texts, students were asked to identify one or more illustrations to support their own judgment. The research hypothesis was that ideas that students have about scholastic organization and about assessment processes could considerably influence the way in which they approach their academic path. The products of the laboratory were systematically shared and discussed with the students. The result of the research confirms the importance of working with students on writing skills and on metacognition. These are shown to be relevant to the students' educational and professional future.

The Life and Achievements of Eugeniusz Piasecki: A Renowned Polish Co-founder of Physical Culture Sciences

Professor Eugeniusz Piasecki’s multiple contributions to the development of physical education as well as his activities in various educational, scientific, and social organizations place him among the elite physical education theorists in Poland and abroad. Until 1918, Piasecki was active in the cities of Kraków, Lvov, Kiev, and Zakopane, and in the years 1919–1939 and 1945–1947, he became firmly associated with the city of Poznań. Eugeniusz Piasecki was persistent in implementing his reformist ideas, especially in the field of training of physical culture professionals. Piasecki’s activities brought about significant advances in the theory and practice of physical education – called later physical culture sciences. Despite hardships and obstacles in his school and academic path, Eugeniusz Piasecki displayed a unique talent for propitiating medical and pedagogical professionals and for contributing to the development of the Scout Movement, school sports clubs, therapeutic gymnastics, university departments, and the League of Nations. The aim of the paper is to discuss and evaluate the original achievements of Eugeniusz Piasecki – a Polish scholar, physician, polymath, role model, and a co-founder of physical culture sciences, who made invaluable contributions to the training of PE teachers and instructors and the development of school and extra-school sport movement.

Academic Career Progression of Chinese-Origin Pharmacy Faculty Members in Western Countries.

Background: The field of Pharmacy education is experiencing a paucity of underrepresented minorities (URMs) faculty worldwide. The aim of this study is to investigate the current professional status of Chinese-origin pharmacy faculty members, who are considered as a good model of URMs at pharmacy academia in western countries, and identify the influencing factors to their academic career progression in academic careers. Methods: An online questionnaire was sent to Chinese-origin academic staffs at pharmacy schools in US, UK, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand. The survey comprised demographic information, educational background, and the influencing factors to academic career progression. Results: The vast majority of Chinese faculty members who worked in US were male. Individuals with junior academic title comprised the largest proportion. Over 75% of Chinese-origin pharmacy academics were involved in scientific disciplines (e.g., pharmaceutics, pharmacology, and medicinal chemistry). Usually, Chinese-origin academic members spent 4 years obtaining their first academic jobs after finishing PhD degree, and need 5–6 years to get academic promotion. The contributing factors of academic promotion were high quality publications and external funding. Conclusion: Our research offers a deep insight into academic career progression for URMs and give some valuable advice for their pharmacy academic paths.

Afraid to fail? Reach out.

Many years ago, a trusted professor suggested I make a radical change in my academic path and pursue a doctorate in psychology. That sounded impossible! I was interested in the subject matter, but my training was in English and philosophy. I was petrified that seeking a science Ph.D. would bring rejection and failure. For months, I looked into programs, only to get cold feet and back away—until my curiosity spurred me down the road again. Now, years after successfully completing my doctorate, I realize that I was actually facing two distinct fears during that tortured time. And I realize that I could have eased my path by seeking outside perspectives. ![Figure][1] ILLUSTRATION: ROBERT NEUBECKER > “People who have no skin in the game … can offer fresh perspectives.” One fear was simply that, in trying to make a dramatic career change, I would fail. Given my training and connections in the humanities, who could write letters recommending me for a science program? Who would mentor me along the way? What could I point to as evidence that I was a credible candidate? Even if I were accepted, did I really believe that I could succeed? The risk seemed overwhelming. I thought I would suffer for years, if not my entire life, if I didn't get into a program or was unprepared and had to leave. My other fear was that such a bold move would disappoint important people in my life. This fear is not unique to academia, but university culture can make it hit particularly hard. Many advisers see students as academic progeny, and when we make career choices that don't match our advisers' ideas of what we should do, we may feel we are betraying them. When I told one of my humanities professors that I was serious about applying to doctoral programs in psychology, he expressed grave concern that I was making the wrong choice (although, to his credit, he wrote a wonderful letter of recommendation). Beyond academic colleagues, it was difficult to face the prospect of disappointing family and friends who had supported me—emotionally and in some cases financially—during the ups and downs of my studies. I worried that if I pursued what might appear to be a pipe dream, they would feel I was turning my back on all they had done. Or they might conclude that all my efforts up to that point had been a failure. When I talked with my parents about making the leap to psychology, they questioned whether it was the right choice and wondered when I would be settled. Now, though, I realize that I probably exaggerated the strength of others' feelings. My colleagues, friends, and family may have felt a bit rejected or confused by my actions, but they had their own lives to think about. Ultimately, I needed to make the decision that was right for me, not for them. My parents came around to the idea that I was going to be a “professional student” for a while, and many friends and colleagues eventually offered support, though I lost touch with that professor. I didn't have a good strategy for dealing with my fears at that time. But I have since learned a valuable approach that I wish I had known then: Reach out to people beyond your immediate circle for input and advice. People who have no skin in the game—your neighbors, your hair stylist, even strangers you strike up conversations with at the airport—can offer fresh perspectives that may help you see your options more clearly. Reach out to people in jobs you're interested in to find out how they got where they are. As someone who now receives these types of inquiries, I can tell you that it's not a burden at all. In fact, it's a compliment—plus I enjoy helping the next generation. If the first person you ask doesn't respond, try again. Chances are you will be pleasantly surprised. There are more people than you may think who have made bold career moves. Talk to them. Your future is your own. Reach out and see what happens. [1]: pending:yes

Early segmentation of students according to their academic performance: A predictive modelling approach

The early classification of university students according to their potential academic performance can be a useful strategy to mitigate failure, to promote the achievement of better results and to better manage resources in higher education institutions. This paper proposes a two-stage model, supported by data mining techniques, that uses the information available at the end of the first year of students' academic career (path) to predict their overall academic performance. Unlike most literature on educational data mining, academic success is inferred from both the average grade achieved and the time taken to conclude the degree. Furthermore, this study proposes to segment students based on the dichotomy between the evidence of failure or high performance at the beginning of the degree program, and the students' performance levels predicted by the model. A data set of 2459 students, spanning the years from 2003 to 2015, from a European Engineering School of a public research University, is used to validate the proposed methodology. The empirical results demonstrate the ability of the proposed model to predict the students' performance level with an accuracy above 95%, in an early stage of the students' academic path. It is found that random forests are superior to the other classification techniques that were considered (decision trees, support vector machines, naive Bayes, bagged trees and boosted trees). Together with the prediction model, the suggested segmentation framework represents a useful tool to delineate the optimum strategies to apply, in order to promote higher performance levels and mitigate academic failure, overall increasing the quality of the academic experience provided by a higher education institution.

Las revistas científicas en educación y el contexto académico-administrativo. Algunas propuestas de cambio

This piece argues that the Revista de Educacion, and the other academic journals on education in Spain, are in general fully integrated into the academic-administrative system and that the rules that shape university life also affect academic journals. Two types of measure are proposed to maximise the benefit from these journals’ contribution to university life: measures relating to the academic career path, which would maximise the importance of published research, and measures relating to the evaluation of academic publications, in which the need to improve awareness of evaluation criteria and their quality is emphasised. With regards to the academic career, it is argued that this should have a better model for progression and feature more incentives linked to six-year periods of research activity (sexenios), and that a more objective and automatic process for attaining a chair is necessary, one which is linked to individual merits and not to the specific circumstances of the universities. To this end, it is proposed that: the number of pay grades on the academic career path should be increased, increasing the distinction in pay and standing between the entry level and top level; the number of steps on the academic career should be increased; and that the system should be more objective. This would result in a professional career that would go from having two steps (profesor titular and catedratico) to having six, linked to sexenios. This whole design is based on recognition of sexenios and so it would be necessary to make changes to them. A system for evaluating research activity is proposed in which the evaluation criteria for academic journals are more transparent, more objective, more automatic, and, importantly, consistent over time. This piece concludes that to optimize evaluation of academic activity, its subjects should receive feedback. If neither journals nor researchers know in detail the criteria on which they will be evaluated or the detailed results of this evaluation, this judgement becomes a summary trial and so its chances of influencing the system are severely reduced.

Preparing adult learners for collegiate success starts at orientation

Your institution's new‐student orientation is the first step to setting up students for a successful academic career and path to graduation. Is your institution optimizing this opportunity to ensure that students are not only prepared for life at your institution, but also retain key points months after orientation? And how do you cater to the needs of your different student groups, who expect different types of information at orientation?

Jesús Martín Barbero y su condición de cartógrafo de América Latina: entrevista

La entrevista parte de la tesis de doctorado del profesor Jesús Martín-Barbero titulada La palabra y la acción: por una dialéctica de la liberación, escrita en 1972 y publicada en libro recientemente, la cual sirve como punto de partida de su amplia e importante trayectoria académica. El punto clave en esa trayectoria fue su contacto e inmersión en América Latina a partir de su apropiación del lenguaje como herramienta de liberación – que toma prestado de Paulo Freire – y estrategia de mediación, y de su aproximación a lo popular como práctica comunicativa. Todo esto contribuye para afianzar su condición de cartógrafo de la comunicación.

Preface: A biographical note on prof. Gaetano Giaquinta, a mentor and a friend

We provide some biographical information about Prof. Gaetano Giaquinta, who passed away on the 13th of August 2016, after a long disease. Prof. Gaetano Giaquinta was for us a mentor, a guide, and ultimately a friend. His words have assisted us not only along our scientific and academic path - as students first and as professors afterwards - but also in our everyday lives. His teachings are a reference, to which we still confidently turn, when we need solace or advise.