Campus Members Research Articles

Challenges of teaching large classes at UNAM

This article is part of a thesis study that sought to investigate challenges experienced in teaching large classes at UNAM, Hifikepunye Pohamba Campus. Lecturing in large classes can be of grave concern to anyone because of the various challenges involved. Employing a qualitative case study design, this article explores the challenges experienced by lecturers and student teachers in large classes.The participants for the study were three teacher educators who teach classes with one hundred students or more, nineteen student teachers and three campus management members. Data were collected through face- to- face semi-structured interviews, focus group interviews, non-participant classroom observations, and document analysis. Data were analysed through means of thematic and content analysis. The results revealed that large class sizes hinder implementation of active teaching approaches and strategies, impact negatively on the learning activities, assessment tasks and feedback given to student teachers. Among others, the article recommends provision of appropriate resources in creating a conducive teaching and learning environment for large classes. It also recommends that teacher educators should be provided with continuous professional development programmes in how they could handle large classes as well as various assessment strategies that they could use in such classes.

LANGUAGES OF EMPATHIC TEACHING: AN OVERVIEW OF BulSU HAGONOY CAMPUS FACULTY MEMBERS’ ROLE AS SECOND PARENTS TO STUDENTS

One of the fundamental aspects of achieving quality teaching and student learning is the development of positive teacher-student relationships. Positive teacher-student relationships promote a sense of belongingness as well as encourages the students to actively and cooperatively participate in school. The confidence of students to explore learning and their ability of becoming successful is developed thru an environment which is not constrained by their fear of failure. Teachers motivates the students in setting their goals and maximize their potential towards the achievement of their goals. In addition, teachers are responsible for the students holistic development. The impact of teacher-student relationships upon a student’s mental health should not be ignored. With the help of a support framework, it is thought that the risk of young people struggling with mental illness can be diminished. In this instance, teachers act as a powerful and effective means of support and encouragement when this may not always be available in the students home environment. For such reasons, the young generation of today search for great teachers who shows kindness to colleagues, parents, and to other persons they dealt with specially to the students. A teacher changes the atmosphere inside and outside the classroom and school where the students feel welcomed, loved and cared for. Teachers have their own unique ways of making things better and improve things inside and outside of the classroom. One more integral aspect of teaching is empathy which is an important trait for educators to have and to develop since they have a powerful impact on the actions, decisions and overall development of the students inside and outside the school. An empathic teacher has a strong desire to educate students by establishing a genuine connection and understanding inspite and despite of the diversity of their origin and individual peculiarities. A teacher modeling empathy in the classroom also have the ability to foster it to the learners which is an effective pathway of imparting knowledge and lifelong learning. Significantly, teachers can have a great impact on the students well being if they involve themselves to both intellectual and emotional development of their students. The study is only intended for the benefit of BulSU Hagonoy Campus faculty members since they are the key components of the continuous growth and development of the campus and of the success of every students. The researcher have utilized quantitative method of research to realize the objectives of the study. Through the conduct of this study, the researcher had determined that the faculty members of BulSU Hagonoy Campus are empathic teachers and that they their varied languages of employing empathy to their teaching profession. Also, distinguishing affective empathy from cognitive empathy is sometimes hard because a person needs to develop first empathy within themselves before they understand it thoroughly. But it should be noted that affective empathy is automatic while cognitive empathy is a skill that can be deliberately learned and is required to acquire by everyone.

A Proposed Framework of Campus-Oriented Online Text Messaging System

Nowadays, the rapid advancement of mobile software development has triggered to emerge of more online text messaging applications. In the environment of higher education institutions, it is also widely utilized to support the communication process between campus members. This research proposed a system of campus-specific online text messaging that is expected to improve academic activities. As a case study, the system was implemented using <em>React Native</em> framework and <em>Push Notification Service</em> for use in State Polytechnic of Malang, Indonesia. The system consists of three main subsystems that work together, including <em>Client Application</em>, <em>Server Application</em>, and <em>Push Notification Manager</em>. To evaluate the proposed system, we conducted a survey. The result of the user satisfaction test shows that most users consisting of lecturers, staff, and students felt more helped in the communication process in the campus environment.

Campus Free Speech in Polarised Times

Tensions around open expression at universities in the United States and around the world arise mainly from two sources. Campus members increasingly call to restrict hurtful and hate-based speech, and demand silencing, ‘cancelling’ or ‘de-platforming’ outside speakers and campus members who espouse extreme ideological views. At the same time, public and political actors from outside the university attempt to undermine its independence by demanding greater voice to conservative speakers, in an effort to rebalance the ideological makeup of the university. Inclusive freedom – an approach that focuses on ways to promote both open expression and an inclusive climate in contemporary universities – is presented as a theoretical and a practical response to these tensions. Inclusive freedom is anchored in the university’s core mission, bounded by its educational and research goals, and reflects a practical commitment to allowing everyone to participate in an open exchange, which starts from all participants recognising their equal standing and dignity.

Frontline Support for Concealed Carry on Campus: A Case Study in a Border Town

An increasing number of states have passed legislation allowing individuals to carry concealed weapons on university campuses. Past research has examined the perceptions of campus carry among college students, but most of the extant literature represents efforts occurring prior to these legislative changes and seldom explores the perceptions of minority populations. Current scholarship also lacks research on how faculty, staff, and administrators perceive campus carry policies. This study investigates all campus stakeholders’ knowledge of the campus carry policy and their support for it in a university located in a U.S.-Mexico border town. Results from the structural equation modeling indicate that campus members have limited knowledge of the campus carry policy and expressed low support for the policy. Assimilation of Hispanics significantly impacted their support for concealed carry on campus both directly and indirectly.

The Effects of Self vs. Group Affirmation and Message Framing on College Students’ Vape-Free Campus Policy Support

ABSTRACT A growing number of American colleges and universities have become vape-free campuses in response to the high e-cigarette use prevalence among young adults. However, little is known about communication or social-psychological factors associated with campus members’ support for a tobacco policy prohibiting e-cigarette use on the campus (vape-free policy support). The present study explores the main and interaction effects of affirmation and message framing on the vape-free policy support among college students who vary in their vaping status. We conducted a computer-based experiment with a two (affirmation: self vs. group) by two (message framing: gain vs. loss) by two (vaping status: vapers vs. non-vapers) between-subjects design. Our analysis indicated that self-affirmation is associated with a higher level of vape-free policy support than group-affirmation. The main effects of message framing as well as two-way interactions between framing and affirmation were not statistically significant. A notable finding was the three-way interaction effect among affirmation, framing, and vaping status. For vapers, the level of policy support was the highest when they were self-affirmed and exposed to a gain-framed message. For non-vapers, the level of policy support was the highest when they were self-affirmed and exposed to a loss-framed message. Our findings suggest that colleges may use varied approaches in communicating a vape-free campus policy based on the target students’ vaping status, and the group-pride or collective identity appeals may not be effective in promoting such policy.

A New Hope: Shifting the Gendered Discourse Around Community College Presidential Leadership

The definition of leadership changes over time, and the language used to describe leaders is key to understanding what is acceptable and desired in those who lead community colleges at the highest level: the presidency. Language is inherently political, so the discourse around the qualifications of and expectations for presidents has the power to shape who sees themselves in those roles and whose image is forefront in the minds of search committees and campus members. We engaged in feminist critical discourse analysis of job postings for community college presidents at two points in a 20-year span, 1996 and 2016, to better understand how leadership is defined at the presidential level in the community college environment and, more importantly, who fits the profile of a leader. We found that although a counterdiscourse exists, the predominant discourse remains couched in outdated ideals of hero leadership that favors men.

Walkability 101: A Multi-Method Assessment of the Walkability at a University Campus

The aim of this study is to evaluate objective and perceived campus walkability as an environmental support for physical activity within a large Southeastern university. Ten university routes were evaluated twice for 24 key walkability characteristics. Eighty-three campus member surveys (62 students, 21 faculty/staff) were administered and assessed campus members’ familiarity with walkability, attitudes about walking as a form of physical activity, and perceptions of whether specific elements of the campus layout encouraged physical activity. At least 90% of routes had sidewalks, curb cuts, and crosswalks. Likewise, over 85% of participants perceived the campus layout to encourage physical activity. Faculty/staff members were more familiar with the term walkability and considered walking as a form of physical activity than students ( p < .05). Both campus members’ perceptions and environmental audits identified strengths and weaknesses for diverse walkability attributes. Results will be used to improve campus infrastructure and promote increased walking and physical activity at the university.

Hesitant to pull the trigger: how the perceived impact of guns on campus influences support or opposition to campus carry laws

ABSTRACT A growing body of research has examined the factors that determine support for campus carry among campus populations, however, most have only focused on how demographic characteristics, campus safety measures, and gun ownership and attitudes impact support for campus carry. Another important, yet unstudied factor relates to how campus members think having guns on campus will impact their campus life activities. This study fills this gap in past research by exploring how the perceived academic- and employment-related impacts of campus carry influence support for the law. Stepwise multivariate logistic regression models were estimated by campus population using a sample of faculty, staff, and students from a large public university in Georgia (N = 2,545). Academic- and employment-related perceived impacts had a significant impact on support for the campus carry law across each of the campus groups even after controlling for empirically supported and relevant theoretical predictors such as campus safety concerns and gun attitudes and exposure. This study illustrates the need to include perceived impacts of the law in future research on campus carry and sheds light on the implications of campus carry on the routine activities of campus members.

How do colleges communicate about E-cigarettes? The presentation of risk, policy, and cessation resources on college websites

Objectives We examine colleges’ current practices for communicating about e-cigarettes in terms of risk, campus policy, and cessation resources based on the American College Health Association (ACHA)’s and other tobacco-free campus policy guidelines. Methods: Websites of 581 universities prohibiting e-cigarette use on campus were analyzed. The relationship between the presence of e-cigarette information and campus characteristics was examined. Results: There was a lack of e-cigarette risk information. Health and other risks of e-cigarette use were rarely or never mentioned. One fifth did not specify e-cigarettes to be prohibited. While many colleges were promoting the health benefit of a tobacco-free policy, the financial/professional benefits were rarely mentioned. Less than half mentioned on-campus tobacco cessation resources and less than one third listed off-campus resources. A few campus characteristics (e.g., the U.S. census region of campus, campus housing, funding type) were associated with presence of e-cigarette information on websites. Conclusion: Our findings suggest the need for colleges to make e-cigarette risk, policy, and cessation information more accessible via official college websites for students and other campus members. This may increase students’ support for vape-free policy and assist successful adoption of complete tobacco-free policies on campus.

Technological Determinism, New Literacies And Learning Process And The Impact Towards Future Learning

The interest of this research is to investigate technological change, new literacies and learning processes which impact future learning. With technological determinism, the members of the university need to have technological knowledge, belief of change and adopt the technology. The problem in this research is the habits in the individual who works within our campus that would not change, because with the new literacies used and introduced in communication, besides learning in using online systems will continue to be implemented. The research sampling is conducted of 76 respondents, consisting of students, lecturers, employees, staff and technicians. And this research method uses is quantitative methods and semi-structured qualitative methods. The result obtained that there are members of campus who are willing to change in communication and the ways of thinking and acting to follow the change in future learning 4.0 industrial revolutions

Evaluation of a University's Institutional Review Board Based on Campus Feedback: A Cross-Sectional Study.

IntroductionMaintaining research ethics within a university and monitoring the campus Institutional Review Board (IRB) are essential responsibilities not to be taken lightly. IRBs occasionally need to be reviewed to see that they, as well as researchers, are adhering to rules and regulations on ethics through their submission and review procedures. Since there are no established measures for assessing IRB quality, it is unclear how to determine whether IRBs are achieving their intended aims. This study used the feedback and input of campus members at a newly-established, private, non-profit university within the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) to evaluate their campus IRB.MethodsFollowing the university’s IRB approval, and in close collaboration with the Saudi National Committee of Bioethics (NCBE), this cross-sectional study was conducted from February through May of 2019. Self-administered surveys were sent out via university emails to faculty and students at Alfaisal University in Riyadh of Saudi Arabia. The questions in the surveys included inquiries on participants’ demographics, their familiarity with campus IRB research ethics, their satisfaction with IRB procedures, the challenges encountered during the IRB submission and review process, the effectiveness of a recent IRB-coordinated research ethics campaign, and any suggestions for IRB improvement. Surveys were sent to faculty members and students at five colleges on campus.ResultsOf the campus members who were sent surveys, 8% responded (175). Of those who responded, 29.7% had submitted at least one research proposal for IRB review during the past three years (2016-2019), and more than half of this group were satisfied with the IRB submission and review procedures. For those who had submitted at least one research proposal, respondents reported the more usual challenges that researchers tend to encounter, such as time-consuming and tedious IRB review processes and ambiguous IRB guidelines and regulations. The less typical IRB challenges that were reported, and that are unique to academia, include the IRB tendency to deny undergraduate student requests to serve as principal investigators of their research projects. Concerning IRB efforts to educate and train campus members on research ethics, only 26.3% of the participants were aware of the recently performed research ethics campaign, and 7.6% of the participants attended the end-of-campaign workshop. Of those who attended the workshop, 76.9% reported that the campaign and workshop effectively met their expectations.Conclusions This study revealed several issues encountered by university faculty and students seeking campus IRB approval for their research projects. The main academia-specific challenge was over whether undergraduate students could serve as PIs for research projects, and a universal one was that they find the IRB process to be very time-consuming and tedious, which is a situation that has already been relayed in several other articles on IRB issues. About two-thirds of respondents reported a lack of familiarity with the topic of research ethics. This challenge makes it clear that information on research ethics is not effectively reaching enough campus members in the busy environment of academia.

Predicting mental health help seeking orientations among diverse Undergraduates: An ordinal logistic regression analysis✰

BackgroundRecent years have seen a steady increase in college students reporting mental health issues, though only approximately one-third of these students seek treatment. The present study examines: a) students’ perceptions of access to campus provided mental health care; b) student stigma attitudes based on social distance and willingness to disclose mental health issues to campus members who might support help-seeking efforts; and c) the predictive value of five factors (aged older than 22, female gender, completed two or more psychology courses, low stigma, and high perception of access) on help-seeking orientation (HSO). MethodsWe performed an ordinal logistic regression (OLR) on data from a diverse sample of undergraduates (n = 1,272). The OLR statistical model is more appropriate for measurement of Likert style data than commonly employed statistical models, which may oversimplify attitudinal data by assuming equal intervals between response categories. ResultsMost students did not know that campus-provided counseling was free or confidential, and almost half did not perceive these services as timely or adequate. Students reported more stigma related to disclosing their own problems than to supporting someone else. All five study predictors retained positive and statistically significant slope associations with a positive HSO. Unexpectedly, we found a statistically significant gender interaction with psychology coursework. LimitationsData were obtained through self-report measures. ConclusionsResults are discussed in relation to the possibility that campus-based mental health interventions may remove roadblocks to healthy help-seeking behaviors, particularly for male students.

Efforts to Reduce Cigarette Smoke Exposure through Non-Smoking Area Regulation

Pollution caused by cigarette smoke causes health problems and even death in humans. Active smokers contribute to this. The number of smokers increases every year, including among the students. This study aimed to develop a Non-Smoking Area model in campus area. This study used quantitative approach supported by qualitative data. The population was every campus members in the Faculty of Sports Sciences, Semarang State University (UNNES). In the quantitative approach, a sample of 170 respondents was determined by accidental sampling technique. We used questionnaire as the instrument and the data obtained were analyzed by correlation test. We involved 10 respondents in Focused Group Discussion (FGD) to obtain the qualitative data. The results showed that 1) 25.88% smoked actively; 2) 91.2% knew about cigarette and its health risks; 3) 68.2% supported smoking ban regulations on campus; 4) respondents’ knowledge and attitude influenced smoking behavior; 5) promotional messages about the dangers of cigarettes on health must be campaigned in a communicative and effective language at a strategic location; 6) Written regulation from campus officials is critical to strengthen the implementation of No Smoking Area policy on campus.

Nutritional Status Influences High-Molecular Weight (HMW) Adiponectin levels in Breast Cancer Patients: Comparison with Healthy Controls

Introduction: Breast cancer is the leading killer of women in Malaysia. Nutritional status and adiponectin are modifiable risk factors for breast cancer occurrence which can be efficiently targeted. The purpose of this study was to determine the relationship between nutritional status and high molecular weight (HMW) adiponectin levels among breast cancer patients as compared to controls. Methods: This was a case- control study, conducted in Hospital Universiti Sains Malaysia and Universiti Sains Malaysia campus. Newly diagnosed breast cancer cases (n=55) were assigned as cases while healthy controls (n=58) were staff members of HUSM and USM campus. Sociodemographic and reproductive data were obtained with a standard questionnaire while the dietary data was obtained from a validated diet history questionnaire. Anthropometric assessments [weight, height, hip, waist circumference (WC) and body fat composition] were measured while overnight fasting venous blood samples were analysed for lipid profiles, glucose, insulin, high sensitivity C-reactive protein and HMW adiponectin. Results: A significant linear negative relationship exists between WC and HMW adiponectin (β=-0.05; p=0.005) among breast cancer cases. Additionally, HDL cholesterol was positively associated with HMW adiponectin (β=1.83; p=0.010) among the cases. BMI was negatively associated with HMW adiponectin (β=-0.02; p=0.001) among healthy controls. Conclusion: Our findings suggest that WC, BMI and HDL cholesterol had significant relationship with HMW adiponectin. Low levels of HMW adiponectin, low WC and high HDL levels may be protective against breast cancer

Adoption of Big Data in Higher Education for Better Institutional Effectiveness

Big data provides many opportunities to broaden existing insights in different fields and higher education also can use the big data for the better institutional performance. This study examines the conceptual models to adopt big data for institutional effectiveness on higher education system. Based on the three relevant entities including institution, faculty, and student, this research provides the relationship between them and construct the negotiable environment as well as the characteristics of relevant indicators. This research suggests the conceptual model that provide how relevant campus members pursuit the better institutional performance and what the individual targeting is. Conceptual model indicates the three main stakeholders exchange specific values under certain type of negotiable interactions and the trade makes better outcomes for institutional effectiveness in the long run. This relationships between the stakeholders generate potential connections with other players outside and the relation creates another chance to broaden range of institutional growth in the higher education system.

Sources of Free Speech in U.S. Higher Education: What the Law Tells Us

This critical literature review discusses how U.S. law has addressed the issue of free speech on college campuses. Ultimately, colleges and universities are tasked with balancing First Amendment rights with the safety of their students, faculty, staff, and campus members. In the future, more legislation should continue to inform how colleges and universities draft hate and bias policies and campus speech policies, meant to balance First Amendment rights and the aforementioned safety of educational stakeholders and the general public.

Find ways to work with faculty on the campus's sexual assault response

WASHINGTON, D.C. — In an ideal world, students who survived sexual assault or violence would disclose immediately to a member of your campus security team, but the reality is that students — or staff or faculty — may be more comfortable disclosing to members of your campus they see more regularly. Do your faculty members know the appropriate steps to take in case a student discloses an assault to them? Assuring that faculty and staff know what to do in the face of such revelations can go a long way toward strengthening campus safety.

Intercultural Contact in Short-term Study Abroad Programs

Traditionally in the United States, study abroad has been regarded as the primary source for meaningful interaction with members of the target language (TL) community, particularly at the post-secondary level. Today, more than 300,000 college students study abroad every year, and most of them do so in short-term island programs (defined as programs arranged by a sponsoring university, lasting less than eight weeks, aimed primarily at students from that institution, and often taught by faculty members of the home campus). This exploratory study analyzes the change in intercultural contact (i.e., frequency and quality of interaction with members of the second language community) as a result of participation in a short-term study abroad program. Furthermore, it investigates whether those changes are influenced by specific study abroad program features (such as homestays, cultural visits, and service learning), or by the student's level of experience with the TL. Thirty-nine participants in five different short-term island programs (based in Argentina, Chile, Costa Rica, Panama and Spain) were examined to determine the impact of foreign sojourns on the nature and extent of their intercultural contact with the host community, using an adapted version of the Intercultural Contact Questionnaire (ICQ) (Kormos, Csizer and Iwaniec 2014). The results of this investigation highlight the cultural limitations of short-term study programs abroad, as well as the challenges faced by second language learners when trying to engage members of the TL community. The pedagogical significance and curricular implications of the findings are discussed.

NCAA Division I Athlete STEM Graduates: Stereotypes, Microaggressions, Race, and Gender

The purpose of this study was to explore how NCAA Division I athlete STEM graduates viewed their undergraduate experiences with members of the campus community such as academic advisors, other athletes, faculty, nonathlete students, and coaches. Using several interpretive frameworks, this study found that stereotypical assumptions, whether positive or negative, were conditional upon the athlete’s gender. Moreover, male athletes reported feeling a level of acceptance from campus members, although this same experience was eventually interpreted as token or conditional acceptance, largely because they were subjected to salient athlete microaggressions and considered exceptional but not entirely accepted by the academic community. The study also discovered that athletes who pursued degrees in STEM fields engaged in in-group stereotyping of other athletes, and some were aware of the social significance of race and intersectional identities in shaping the quality of their college experiences. These findings hav...