Collegial Environment Research Articles

A Clearer Vision: Creating and Evolving a Model to Support the Development of Science Teacher Leaders

This paper describes a professional development model for developing science teacher leaders that has evolved and been refined through working with 16 high school chemistry and physics teachers in high-needs schools over the past 3 years. The theoretical framework draws upon Goodwin’s notion of professional vision and Dempsey’s four metaphors to inform an understanding of professional identity consistent with innovation and empowerment in (a) the classroom setting with students and (b) with teachers in collegial environments. Thus, leadership practices and purposes are discussed at two distinct levels and contexts, which interact reflexively. Sociolinguistic discourse analysis of multiple data sources enabled us to identify the professional development features that promoted or hindered the teachers’ growth toward a leadership perspective and disposition. Implications for science teacher renewal and retention as well as limitations of the study and proposed leadership model are also shared and discussed.

Nursing perceptions of patient safety climate in the Gaza Strip, Palestine.

This study was undertaken to assess the perception of nurses about patient safety culture and to test whether it is significantly affected by the nurses' position, age, experience and working hours. Patient safety has sparked the interest of healthcare mangers, yet there is limited knowledge about the current patient safety culture among nurses in the Gaza Strip. This was a descriptive cross-sectional study, administering the Arabic Safety Attitude Questionnaire (Short Form 2006) to 210 nurses in four public general hospitals. Job Satisfaction was the most highly perceived factor affecting patient safety, followed by Perception of Management. Safety culture varied across nursing position, age, work experience and working hours. Nurse Managers had more positive attitudes towards patients than frontline clinicians did. The more experience nurses had, the better their attitudes towards patient safety. Nurses who worked the minimum weekly required hours and who were 35years and older had better attitudes towards all patient safety dimensions except for Stress Recognition. Nurses with a positive attitude had better collaboration with healthcare professionals than those without a positive attitude. Generalization is limited, as nurses who worked in private and specialized hospitals were excluded. Evaluation of the safety culture is the essential starting point to identify hindrances or drivers for safe patient care. Job Satisfaction, Perception of Management and Teamwork necessitate reinforcement, while Working Conditions, Stress Recognition and Safety Climate require improvement. Ensuring job satisfaction through adequate staffing levels, providing incentives and maintaining a collegial environment require both strategic planning and institutional policies at the higher administrative level. Creation of a non-punitive and learning environment, promoting open communication and fostering continuous education should be fundamental aspects of hospital management. A policy of mixing experienced nurses with inexperienced nurses should be considered.

An exploration of trans* kinship as a strategy for student success

Although the notion of queer kinship has been well discussed within literature on queer individuals, it has not been used as a lens to make sense of how trans* college students successfully navigate rigidly gender dichotomous collegiate environments. Using interview data from the National Study of LGBTQ Student Success, this study explores the narratives of 18 trans* students concerning their experiences of success in college and the role of queer kinship in supporting their success. Analysis documented three domains of kinship (i.e. material, virtual, and affective), which promoted students’ success.

Exploring the Ways Trans* Collegians Navigate Academic, Romantic, and Social Relationships

The number of studies on lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) students has grown over the past years. Nevertheless, a small amount of research exists examining the lives of our trans* collegians. This article adds to this scholarship by exploring the nature of trans* students' relationships within collegiate environments. Specifically, this study elucidates the different discourses on gender identity that influence students forming academic, romantic, and social partnerships on campuses. Findings reveal how participants resist societal expectations of educating others on their gender identity. Implications of this research illuminate how student affairs professionals assist trans* students in creating relationships, as well as highlighting the responsibility of staff/faculty in higher education.

The Verse Nobody Knows: Rare or Unique Poems in Early Modern English Manuscripts

This essay examines the phenomenon of rare or unique poems found in sixteenth- and seventeenth-century manuscript collections, positioning them within the familial, collegial, or coterie environments within and for which they were written. These include verses composed by compilers, politically dangerous or obscene texts, and texts related to scandals or topical events of local interest. These poems rarely feature in literary surveys, but they open a unique window onto early modern society and its mores, and indicate the social breadth, depth, and extent of literary composition.

Editor's Introduction

Editor's Introduction Catherine Chatterley, Founding Editor-in-Chief It is my pleasure to introduce the inaugural issue of Antisemitism Studies. The scholarly study of antisemitism has been closely tied to the study of the Nazi German Holocaust, which was the most violent and catastrophic eruption of Jew-hatred in human history. Today, a number of scholars, worldwide, are engaged in an attempt to enhance our understanding of this 2000-year-old phenomenon, which survived the Holocaust and continues to adapt to ever-changing circumstances. Antisemitism Studies is designed to help foster this diverse field of international scholarship on antisemitism and to provide the leading venue for intelligent discussion and productive debate on our subject. There are no temporal, geographical, cultural, or disciplinary boundaries to the research we publish on antisemitism; however, the selection process for publication in our journal is rigorous as we adhere to a double-blind peer review process. This means that authors and peer-reviewers are matched anonymously by the editor, and the research submitted must pass the evaluation of readers who are experts in the specific area in which the author is writing. Such an exacting scholarly process guarantees a high degree of accuracy, originality, and clarity in subject matter that is burdened by journalistic manipulation, Jewish identity politics, and a heavy degree of politicization across the spectrum. Today, there is no general consensus on a universal definition of antisemitism—be it legal or otherwise—nor are people very clear on the differences between anti-Zionism and antisemitism, or to what extent hostility toward Israel is antisemitic. We hope that this forum will allow those trained in the long history of antisemitism to come to more convincing and conclusive definitions of [End Page 1] these inter-related but distinct phenomena. Antisemitism Studies is dedicated to as complete an understanding as possible of antisemitism and welcomes research on its origins in the early Church (or in antiquity, as some argue), through the Middle Ages, modern enlightened Europe and the New World, the Holocaust and the postwar period, into the present. Also welcome is expert discussion of the origins, history, and nature of antisemitism in the Arab and Islamic worlds and the specific dynamics of Muslim-Jewish relations. While English is our language of publication, we welcome work from scholars across the globe and across all disciplines in the humanities and social sciences. The range of scholarship in this first issue—from 12th century Europe to the contemporary Arab world—is reflective of our desire to cover as many different contexts as possible to better understand the phenomenon as a whole. The journal will also include extended reviews of current publications of significance in our field and will periodically dedicate a special issue to one topic in detail. Our third issue (Spring 2018), for example, will focus on Contemporary Antisemitism in East Central Europe and will feature Joanna B. Michlic as guest co-editor, with articles by Victoria Khiterer and Oleg Kozerod (Ukraine), Violeta Davoliute (Lithuania), Ferenc Laczo (Hungary), Grzegorz Krzywiec (Poland), Matthew Kott (Latvia), Michal Frankl and Vojtech Ripka (the Czech Republic), and Miloslav Szabo (Slovakia). We are grateful for the participation of the authors, book reviewers, and peer review readers in this issue and those of the future—thank you for sharing your hard work and expertise with us and our readers. This new publication is sponsored by the Canadian Institute for the Study of Antisemitism (CISA) and published by Indiana University Press. For helping to bring this journal into existence, the following people deserve our thanks: Sandy Shindleman, Ida Albo, Deborah Schnitzer, Penny Jones Square, Dee Mortensen, Michael Regoli, Alvin Rosenfeld, and the members of our esteemed Editorial Board. We all hope this collective intellectual effort creates [End Page 2] and reinforces a productive collegial environment for scholars in our field and results in a better understanding of antisemitism so that it can be clearly identified and resisted by a growing consensus of people. [End Page 3] Copyright © 2017 Canadian Institute for the Study of Antisemitism

Susan Lindquist: Visionary scientist and peerless mentor.

The science universe is dimmer after one of our brightest stars, Susan Lee Lindquist, was taken by cancer on October 27, 2016. Sue was an innovative, creative, out-of-the-box scientific thinker. She had unique biological intuition—an instinct for both the way things worked and the right questions to ask to uncover new research insights. Her wide-ranging career began with the study of protein folding and molecular chaperones, and she went on to show that protein folding can have profound and unexpected biological effects on such diverse processes as cancer, evolution, and neurodegenerative disease. As Sue's laboratory manager, I would like to offer a ground-floor perspective on what made her an exceptional scientist, mentor, and leader. She created a harmonious, collegial environment where collaborative synergy fueled meaningful progress that will impact science for decades to come.

Relationship between English Language Proficiency and Intercultural Communication Competence among International Students in a Malaysian Public University

Postgraduate students from different nationalities and cultural backgrounds enrol at Malaysian universities to have better learning opportunities, and gain new social and cultural skills. Students may also gain essential competence through their contacts with their peers from different cultures, but some factors may affect their daily interactions. English language is the main means of interactions among international students in Malaysian universities. This study therefore was conducted to examine the relationship between English language proficiency (ELP) and intercultural communication competence among international postgraduate students at a Malaysian public university. A mixed method research design which includes quantitative and qualitative data was employed. Participants were 120 postgraduate students from 17 different countries, in which, 12 participants were interviewed. The findings confirm that ELP is among the main factors that influence interactions among international postgraduate students in a Malaysian public university. The students’ ELP has helped them to have more interactions and improve their intercultural communication competence. The results also illustrate that daily interactions have helped the students to improve their ELP and discover new strategies to deal with different linguistic and communicative challenges while they are in a multicultural collegiate environment.

Profile of a Strength and Conditioning Coach: Backgrounds, Duties, and Perceptions

ABSTRACT THERE IS CURRENTLY A PAUCITY OF ANALYSIS AND COMPARISON REGARDING THE PREVIOUSLY REPORTED DATA ON BACKGROUNDS, DUTIES, AND PERCEPTIONS OF STRENGTH AND CONDITIONING (SC) COACHES. THE COACHING POPULATIONS PREVIOUSLY STUDIED HAVE PREDOMINANTLY BEEN FROM PROFESSIONAL, COLLEGIATE OR HIGH SCHOOL ENVIRONMENTS IN THE UNITED STATES. COACHES WERE MOSTLY COLLEGE EDUCATED AND WERE CERTIFIED SC SPECIALISTS THROUGH THE NATIONAL STRENGTH AND CONDITIONING ASSOCIATION. COACHES GENERALLY REPORTED GOOD JOB SATISFACTION AND STATED THEY HAD EFFECTIVE WORKING RELATIONSHIPS WITH THEIR ATHLETES. THIS REVIEW PROVIDES A DETAILED SOURCE OF INFORMATION REGARDING THE BACKGROUNDS, DUTIES AND PERCEPTIONS OF SC COACHES.

Do college faculty embrace Web 2.0 technology?

ABSTRACTThe authors sought to determine if Rogers's Innovation Decision Process model could analyze Web 2.0 usage within the collegiate environment. The key independent variables studied in relationship to this model were gender, faculty rank, course content delivery method, and age. Chi-square nonparametric tests on the independent variables across Rogers's typology revealed significant differences at p < .05. The two-way analysis of variance tests between gender across Rogers's typology disclosed main effects and a two-way interaction effect on the derived factor labeled effective delivery, at p < .01. Gender was significant in terms of Web 2.0 usage and adoption.

Health administration faculty diversity in the United States with recommendations to China

Research hospitals/academic medical centers have a threefold mission of patient care, research and education. The meaning of education is to train students with both clinical and administrative personnel in order to better suit themselves in the health care industry. Health administration programs are proliferating in China and the United States due to the influence of their recent health reform movements. In China, health administration programs are staffed with faculty from clinical medicine and management, mostly from their university affiliated medical centers. However, health administration program faculty in the United States have a diverse set of industry backgrounds and bring an invaluable wealth of experience into the classroom. The authors provide a literature background on the often-followed paths that a person in the US might take while pursuing a full time teaching career in higher education. A health administration faculty typology has been well developed, and concentrating on the following professional roles: a healthcare operator, an academic/educational administrator, a consultant, a clinician and a researcher. Thus, the authors discuss anecdotal data that they have collected on the perceived positives and negatives associated for each type. The authors conclude with providing recommendations to both Chinese and American programs to produce a more collegial and collaborative academic environment.

College environment, student involvement, and intellectual development: evidence in China

China’s higher education system has been marked by dramatic growth since 1999. In response to calls for quality assurance, substantial efforts have been made to improve collegiate environments and enhance student learning. However, only limited empirical research has been conducted to investigate the effects of the college environment on student gains in the Chinese context. Drawing on data from 1121 students at a prestigious four-year university, this study investigated how college environmental factors (i.e., course challenge, faculty guidance, academic climate, and interpersonal relationships) and student involvement affected students’ intellectual development. The results of the structural equation modeling indicated that academic involvement mediated the relations between college environmental factors and intellectual development. Among the four environmental factors studied, faculty guidance was the strongest predictor of intellectual development. The results highlight the pivotal role of teachers in student involvement and development. Practical implications for the design of college environments conducive to student learning are discussed.

The Sport Chaplain's Role in the Holistic Care Model for Collegiate Athletes in the United States

More than 460,000 National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) student–athletes compete in twenty-three sports each year. These student–athletes receive a spectrum of services that include academic support to medical care. This paper examines the role and function of sport chaplains who work in a collegiate (colleges and university) athletics in the United States. The role of the collegiate sport chaplain in the provision of holistic care in a collegiate athletics environment is examined. Additionally, a conceptual model of holistic care is presented that includes traditional and emerging parties in the chain of care. More student–athletes are aware of the importance of spirituality in their lives, and the role of the sport chaplain's ministry becomes increasingly important to the individual player and the team. Finally, a practical theology of sport chaplaincy includes the primacy of the ‘shepherding’ function in the holistic care model.

Teachers’ Cultural Capital: Enabling Factors for Māori Teacher Success.

Five factors for Maˉori teacher success in Aotearoa/ New Zealand are identified in the success narratives of alumnae of a pre-service teacher education programme: whaˉnau support, collegial working environments, feeling valued, risk-taking, and pursuing ongoing learning opportunities. Strong links to key Maˉori values are evident within these factors. Using a kaupapa Maˉori approach to qualitative research design and implementation, the interplay of these factors is described in relation to how they can support Maˉori teacher success, and how they can enhance the design and delivery of teacher education programmes.

Instruments of Change: An Action Research Study of Studio Art Instruction in Teacher Education

&lt;p class="apa"&gt;This article narrates a nine-month action research project conducted in order to improve studio art instruction in a preservice art education programme in Turkey. Setting out to determine the relevant problems through interpretation of conversations, anecdotes, essays and observations of 16 third-year BA students, the instructional atmosphere was rearranged with respect to three themes deduced in the action research process: “us and them,” “old-fashioned curriculum,” and “caring”. The principal results illustrate the concrete examples of “instruments of change” that integrate these themes in studio art teaching: Design of the studio, willing participation, guidance on demand, collegial environment, inclusive curriculum, language, social media and music, and casual interaction. The study presents articulations of participants on each one of these instruments through direct quotes along with links to the broader educational literature. The final concentration is on a discussion based on the changes in the instructional setting conveying the essential role of “caring” in the processes of forming “instruments of change” for art education professionals.&lt;/p&gt;

Stakeholder Perspectives on Implementing Menu Labeling in a Cafeteria Setting.

Mandatory and voluntary menu-labeling policies are increasingly common to support informed food choices among consumers. This study sought to examine stakeholder perspectives of developing, implementing, and maintaining a voluntary menu-labeling program in a hospital cafeteria setting. Semi-structured qualitative interviews were conducted with 9 key cafeteria stakeholders. Data were coded by 2 independent researchers. Themes were generated deductively around 4 key themes: (1) motivation for the program; (2) program and menu development; (3) program implementation process; and, (4) "lessons learned," and inductively as they emerged from interview transcripts. These themes were mapped onto Damschroder's Consolidated Framework for Implementation Research. Motivations for the program were both internal and external to enable consumers to make educated food choices. Barriers to implementation included financial resources, digital menu board maintenance, and availability of healthy options from providers. Supports included availability of nutritional analysis software and nutritional information, and controlled food preparation. Ownership, program adaptation, a supportive collegial environment, a program champion and a culture valuing healthy eating were conducive to successful implementation. Both internal and external factors can support the voluntary implementation of menu-labeling programs.

Writing for publication: institutional support provides an enabling environment.

BackgroundDue to the excessive service delivery loads in public hospitals supported by academic institutions in developing environments, researchers at these institutions have little time to develop scientific writing skills or to write up their research. It is imperative to expand the writing skills of researchers and train the next generation of health sciences academics in order to disseminate research findings. This study reports on the implementation of approaches for writing and publication and the extent of support to staff suffering from the overload of service delivery and of heavy teaching duties.MethodsWorkshops in scientific writing and writing retreats were initiated and were offered to all staff.ResultsFeedback from participants of the writing skills workshops indicated that the workshops provided an injection of confidence and proficiency. Protected writing time resulted in 132 papers submitted to journals and 95 in preparation from 230 participants of the writing retreats over a two year period. Staff commended the off-site, collegial environment, which also supported future collaboration with new-found colleagues.ConclusionThis enabling environment facilitates not only the development of writing skills per se, but also the dissemination of the generated scientific knowledge. In addition, the training in writing skills of this generation will be of value in the training of future cohorts in countries with similar health care deliverables.

Mindfulness and Nutrition in College Age Students

Primary Objective: The obesity rate among young Americans is now almost 25% with higher rates found in minority populations; lack of exercise and poor eating habits are some of the leading causes. The collegiate environment provides a unique opportunity to share nutrition-related knowledge while enhancing students’ awareness,both of which may ultimately lead to changes in health-related behaviors. Mindful eating is associated with a lower Body Mass Index (BMI) and an increased intake of fruits and vegetables. A semester-long nutrition course may result in an increased awareness of eating patterns and may be associated with improvements in dietary intake over time.Methods: Of the 38 students registered for a college-level nutrition course held during an almost four-month-long-semester, 37 self-selected to complete an anonymous Mindful Eating Questionnaire (MEQ) before and after taking the nutrition course; the participants also answered two open-ended questions for qualitative data collection post-test.Results: Of the 37 students 22 were female and 16 male between the ages of 18 and 24; 35 % self-identified as African American, 29% self-identified as white, 22% as self-identified as Latino/Hispanic, 10% self-identified as other and 2% self-identified as Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander. No significant change in the MEQ score occurred from pre to post-test; however, there was a trend towards improvement. The students’ answers to open-ended questions regarding any shifts in understanding, approach, or changes in eating habits, revealed overwhelming increases in mindful eating and dietary changesConclusions: A collegiate course taught over a semester is a unique opportunity to introduce nutrition information, emphasizing the connection between nutrition, optimal health, and disease prevention. A student’s exposure to nutrition information while also observing their own eating patterns over time can provide a non-judgmental informed space that allows for the development of a heightened awareness. In turn, the heightened awareness can lead to changes in eating behaviors as evidenced here.

Factors that Contribute to the Adjustment of International Students

Leaving home to attend college is an important milestone for college students. However, the transition from home to college can be challenging, especially for students studying abroad. In this article, the authors explore factors that contribute to the academic, cultural, social, and psychological adjustments of international students. Adjustment issues include psychological distress such as homesick, depression, and anxiety. This article seeks to increase the reader’s understanding of some of the issues faced by international students during the process of adjusting to a new collegiate environment. More specifically, the article discusses factors that contribute to adjustment and different phases of cultural adjustment. This article may help the students, educational institutions, and policy makers to provide the resources necessary for a seamless transition for international students to overcome the issues.

“Just Go In Looking Good”: The Resilience, Resistance, and Kinship-Building of Trans* College Students

This article explores the strategies transgender college students use to navigate gender-dichotomous collegiate environments. Using a critical collaborative ethnographic methodology (Bhattacharya, 2008), this 18-month ethnographic study alongside 9 transgender students elucidated how gender operates as a discourse to regulate the collegiate life as well as the various spaces through which the participants traversed. Study data also highlight the pervasive intersections of participants’ various social identities as well as speak to the importance of developing kinship networks among transgender students as a strategy to remain resilient and successful in college.