Israeli University Research Articles

‘Please tell me all you remember’: a comparison between British and Arab interviewees’ free narrative performance and its implications for lie detection

We examined how much information British and Arab truth tellers and lie tellers volunteer in an initial free narrative. Based on cultural differences in communication styles we predicted that British interviewees would report more details and more complications than Arab interviewees (culture main effect). We further predicted that truth tellers would report more details and complications than lie tellers (veracity main effect), particularly in the British sample (Veracity × Culture interaction effect). A total of 78 British and 76 Israeli-Arab participants took part. The experiment was carried out at a British university and an Israeli university. Participants carried out a mission. Truth tellers were instructed to report the mission truthfully in a subsequent interview whereas lie tellers were asked to lie about certain aspects of the mission. The three hypotheses were supported for details, whereas for complications only the predicted veracity main effect occurred.

Challenges of being a graduate teaching assistant

ABSTRACT Employing graduate students in undergraduate courses is common practice in higher education. This study focused on the concerns of graduate teaching assistants (GTAs) to learn how their work performance could be improved. GTAs (N = 158) at a major research university in Israel provided written recommendations for enhancing their work. Thematic analysis revealed 11 categories which were grouped into four main areas of concern: employment conditions, job definition, competency, and work management. Some GTAs’ personal and job characteristics were found to be associated with the frequency at which the different categories of concern were mentioned. The findings have implications for actions that can be taken by higher education institutions to improve work conditions for GTAs with the aim of assuring the quality of their teaching.

Reliability and Preliminary Outcomes of a Protocol for Selection of Test Accommodations for Higher Education Students With Dysgraphia: A Pilot Study.

Students with dysgraphia often receive test accommodations to enhance their handwriting legibility or speed. However, these accommodations are seldom individualized to ensure that they actually improve the performance of a specific student. Therefore, a need exists for an evidence-based protocol (henceforth, the Protocol) for selecting individually tailored test accommodations for students with dysgraphia. To establish the Protocol's content validity, interrater reliability, and preliminary outcomes through a pilot study. Descriptive and exploratory design. Research laboratory at a large university in central Israel. The sample consisted of 25 students (mean age = 24.9 yr, standard deviation = 2.1), of whom 88.0% were male. Inclusion criteria included a previous diagnosis of a specific learning disability and handwriting difficulties. Exclusion criteria were a physical condition or medication intake that may have affected students' handwriting or typing ability. The Protocol was found to have face validity and high interrater reliability (κ = .80). Its initial use showed that the most suitable accommodations for students with dysgraphia varied and were not always intuitive (e.g., extended time was not always the best accommodation for students with slow handwriting). The Protocol appears to be a promising tool to assist occupational therapists in selecting the most appropriate accommodations for students with dysgraphia in a systematic manner. However, additional studies are required to further support these results. This study indicates that the selection of the most appropriate accommodation for students with dysgraphia is not always intuitive. It describes a Protocol that enables occupational therapists to select accommodations that are tailored to students' writing abilities, following a systematic process, while considering the students' writing performance with and without accommodations.

Integration of Arab Female Students at a Technological University—Narratives of Identity in Figured Worlds

This study deals with the academic identities of 13 female Arab students upon their entrance to STEM studies in a university in Israel. Female Arab students in a predominantly Jewish Israeli engineering institution face conflicting narratives regarding their ethnicity, gender, and its relation to possible success in university-level studies in general and mathematical studies in particular. To exemplify this, we focus on two students, Lena and Mira, who both encountered difficulties upon entering the institute, yet of different kinds. While Mira was mostly preoccupied with ethnic and religious conflictual narratives, Lena was occupied with gender-inferiority narratives. We use the concepts of current and designated identities and space of authorship within figured worlds to explain how different conflictual narratives permeated the identities of the two students. At the same time, we relate the findings from the two case studies to the more general findings from the 13 participants of the study.

Can doctors be taught virtue?

Medical schools and residency programs have become very adept at teaching medical students and residents an enormous amount of information. However, it is much less clear whether they are effective at fostering virtuous qualities like empathy or professionalism in trainees. This would come as no surprise to Plato, who famously argued in the Meno that virtue cannot be taught. This pedagogical challenge threatens to stymie medical educators, who increasingly recognize the importance of professionalism, compassion, and empathy in the practice of good medicine. As medical educators, we are motivated to demonstrate that virtue is teachable and to find a way to do so, as this is how we will be able to improve the conduct of physicians and the quality of their care of patients. As such, we address the question of the teachability of virtue in the realm of medicine, analysing Plato's contradictory analyses in the Meno and Protagoras, and drawing upon modern neuroscience to turn an empirical lens on the question. We explore the ways in which Noddings' Ethic of Care may offer a way forward for medical educators keen to foster virtue in trainees. We conclude by demonstrating how, by harnessing the power of caring relationships, the principles of Noddings' Ethic of Care have already been applied to medical education at a university in Israel.

The effect of evidence-based practice perception, information literacy self-efficacy, and academic motivation on nursing students' future implementation of evidence-based practice.

Evidence-based practice (EBP) in nursing is an important tool for promoting quality care and improving patient outcomes. Global evidence suggests that the rate of EBP implementation among nurses and nursing students is low. The effects of EBP perception, information literacy self-efficacy, and academic motivation on nursing students' future implementation of EBP have not been fully explored. To examine the effect of EBP perception, information literacy self-efficacy, and academic motivation on future implementation of EBP among pre-registration nursing students. A cross-sectional study used a self-administered structured questionnaire and analyzed data from 148 pre-registration nursing students at a university in central Israel. A hierarchical forced steps regression analysis was conducted to predict future implementation of EBP. Information literacy self-efficacy, EBP perception, and intrinsic academic motivation to experience stimulation, may predict EBP future implementation. The model explained 46.3% of the variance. The results indicate the importance of information literacy skills and positive attitudes to EBP, as well as of intrinsic academic motivation, for enhancing future implementation of EBP among nursing students.

Higher education professionals in the age of NPM and digital knowledge: distinction strategies for forming new occupational capital

ABSTRACT The present study examines how changes in higher education systems — caused mostly by neoliberal ideologies and the knowledge revolution — affect non-faculty professionals such as academic librarians, and how they cope with these changes. Specifically, relying on Bourdieu’s theory of distinction, we show how Israeli academic librarians adopt three types of distinctions — cultural, aesthetic, and professional — and construct occupational capital that bestows on them power and renewed legitimacy in the face of threats to their professional identity and to their role in academic studies. The study in based on interviews with librarians working in the leading universities in Israel, and it examines the librarians’ experiences and attempts to adjust their professional identities to the emergence of neoliberal ‘new public management’ (NPM) culture within academia.

Yasir Sakr, The Subversive Utopia: Louis Kahn & the Question of the National Jewish Style in Jerusalem

Figure 1: Hurva Synagogue, Jerusalem (Israel), second floor plan. Source: Philadelphia (USA), University of Pennsylvania, architectural archive, Louis I. Kahn collection, call number 030.I.A.755. This reader’s first visit to Israel was in 2012, for a program evaluation at an Israeli university. In the course of that visit I spent a day in Jerusalem. It was unforgettable. I had known people of all three monotheistic traditions, but had never...

University faculty attitudes and knowledge about learning disabilities

ABSTRACT Adults with learning disabilities (LD) constitute one of the fastest growing populations of students attending institutions of higher education. Faculty members play an important role in the adjustment and success of these students. The current study investigated the perceptions towards LD of faculty members at a public university in Israel. Specifically, the study examined the level of contact, attitudes, knowledge, and training of faculty members with respect to students with LD. The results demonstrated that faculty members overall had a significant amount of contact with and held positive attitudes towards students with LD. However, it appeared that faculty members would benefit from information regarding the current definition of LD, related legislation about LD and other disabilities, and training and support services for LD. Implications for practice and further research are discussed.

The costs of ‘free listening’: negotiating the moral economy of the university

ABSTRACT This paper adopts the concept of a moral economy as a lens through which to analyze the neoliberalisation processes that have transformed the field of higher education in recent decades. Specifically, I consider a case study of the commodification of a senior citizen course-auditing program at an Israeli university in the early 2000s. The program, which was initiated in the late 1970s, began as a free public service to the elderly population, yet was later redefined and remodelled as a profitable economic activity. Drawing on extensive archival research, I focus on the debate between the decision’s opponents and its supporters, who represent, respectively, the traditional moral economy of the university on the one hand, and emerging market-oriented values on the other. In particular, I illuminate changes in university managers’ practices and perceptions regarding the public roles and societal obligations of public higher education institutions.

Graduate teaching assistants: motives, difficulties and professional interactions and their relationship to perceived benefits

ABSTRACTGraduate students play a major role in teaching in higher education, particularly in undergraduate programs. The purpose of the present study was two-fold: first, to identify graduate students’ motives for working as graduate teaching assistants (GTAs), describe some aspects of their work, and ascertain their perceived benefits; second, to predict GTAs’ benefits as a function of their individual background characteristics, motives, job difficulties, and richness of professional interactions with the course instructor. Data were collected from 189 GTAs who led discussion groups at a large research university in Israel by means of an internet questionnaire. Findings revealed that graduate students accepted the position of GTA mainly for extrinsic reasons, such as salary and convenience. They claimed to have faced few difficulties and that their professional interactions with the course instructors focused more on job responsibilities and less on pedagogical issues. They reported having gained a greater understanding of course content and improved teaching skills due to their experience as GTAs. Richness of contact with the course instructor, motives, difficulties, and faculty match significantly contributed to predicting perceived benefits. The implications of the results are discussed.

University faculty perceptions about accommodations for students with learning disabilities

ABSTRACT Researchers have identified accommodations as important determinants of academic performance among students with learning disabilities (LD) in post-secondary education. The purpose of the current study was to examine the willingness of university faculty members in one northern university in Israel to provide accommodations for students with LD, using quantitative and qualitative measures. The 56 faculty members who participated in the study generally had positive attitudes towards accommodations for students with LD. Differences in willingness to provide technological accommodations were found between the Arabic- and Hebrew-speaking faculty members. When asked how they could support students with LD, faculty members mentioned outside sources of support, such as accommodations and referral to other assistance providers, but also saw themselves as agents of support through personal assistance and modified teaching methods. Interestingly, faculty members did not refer solely to academic support, but also to emotional support and empathy. Practical and theoretical implications are discussed.

Exposure to Family Violence in Childhood, Self-Efficacy, and Posttraumatic Stress Symptoms in Young Adulthood.

This study aimed to examine the relationship of exposure to family violence (i.e., experiencing parental physical violence [PH] and psychological aggression [PA] and witnessing interparental PH and PA) during childhood and adolescence with posttraumatic stress symptoms (PTSS) during young adulthood. In addition, the mediating role of self-efficacy in this relationship was investigated. Data were collected from a convenience sample of 516 university and college students in Israel (90.7% female and 9.3% male; Mage = 24.9, SD = 2.7). The results revealed that experiencing parental violence and witnessing interparental violence during childhood and adolescence were associated with high levels of current PTSS. The results also indicate that experiencing parental violence was associated with lower levels of self-efficacy, whereas no such significant relationship was found between witnessing interparental violence and self-efficacy. Furthermore, a negative relationship was found between self-efficacy and PTSS. In addition, the results show a partial mediation effect of self-efficacy only on the relationship between experiencing parental violence and PTSS. The findings are interpreted in light of Bandura's Social Cognitive Theory. The strengths and limitations of the study as well as implications for future research are discussed.

The relationship between exposure to family violence in childhood and post-traumatic stress symptoms in young adulthood: The mediating role of social support.

Extensive research has examined the relationship between exposure to family violence and its long-term mental health effects. Social support has been found to moderate this relationship, but there is a dearth of research on its mediating role. The article presents the results of a study on the relationship between witnessing interparental violence and experiencing parental violence during childhood and adolescence on the one hand, and post-traumatic stress symptoms (PTSS) during young adulthood on the other. In addition, the article presents results on the role of social support as a mediator in this relationship. A cross-sectional survey was conducted among 516 Israeli university and college students (90.7% female, and 9.3% male; M age = 24.9, SD = 2.7) using a retrospective, self-administered questionnaire. The results revealed that exposure to each pattern of family violence (i.e., witnessing interparental violence and experiencing parental violence) predicted higher levels of PTSS. Furthermore, social support was found to partially mediate the relationship between exposure to family violence during childhood and adolescence and current PTSS as well as its four symptoms, i.e., depression, sleep disturbance, dissociation, and anxiety. The results of the current study highlight the important role of social support in the association between adversities experienced early in life and young adulthood outcomes. The findings are interpreted on the basis of Conservation of Resources Theory (Hobfoll et al., 1990), which served as the conceptual framework for the study. The limitations of the study and implications for future research are discussed.

Integration of Israeli Students of Ethiopian Origin in Israeli Universities

The current criterion for acceptance to universities in Israel is based on psychometric testing that presents a strong barrier for acceptance of students of Ethiopian origin (SEO) to the universities. Based on the sociocultural theories of Vygotsky and Feuerstein, we suggest an intervention aimed at integrating SEO, considered to be “culturally different,” in universities. The intervention includes a novel screening process (based on dynamic assessment [DA] and an interview), academic oriented metacognitive course, and supportive counseling. A group of SEO (n = 665) with low psychometric scores, applied for assistance in admission to university, in seven cohorts (2010-2016). A group of 174 (26%) candidates were selected for the project and enrolled for studies in university; 49.4% enrolled in prestigious departments (e.g., medicine). The findings showed that despite the significant lower psychometric scores of the SEO as compared with the national average, only 4.6% have withdrawn at the end of first year as compared with 10.8% of the national Jewish sample and 12.4% among SEO population. A higher percentage of SEO in the current sample enrolled in high prestige departments than SEO in the population. No significant differences were found between dropped-out and continuing students in the psychometric test. Prediction of three-years' grade point average (GPA) by psychometric scores were not significant (R2 = .03, p > .05) as compared to the prediction in SEO population (R2 = .10, p < .001). The findings support Vygotsky's and Feuerstein's approach that standardized tests of students with deprived cultural backgrounds do not reflect their learning potential and that the use short-term intervention may be an effective mechanism of preparing students for academic success.

“Everyone Is Normal, and Everyone Has a Disability”: Narratives of University Students with Visual Impairment

University students with visual impairment in Israel and worldwide face multiple academic and social barriers and must develop techniques, strategies and skills to adjust to the university environment. The current article is based on a longitudinal qualitative study aimed at incorporating students’ voices and offers some insight into the ways students experience their academic journeys. The research method combined grounded theory with the emancipatory disability research paradigm, which draws explicitly from people with disabilities’ collective experience and thus directly challenges this group’s widespread social oppression. This combination allowed the researcher to focus on students’ initial experiences as subjectively perceived. Sixteen students all defined as legally blind, from four universities in Israel, were interviewed over a 2-year period of their studies. The findings present two complementary narratives the interviewees used while configuring their identities. The article will focus on findings that suggest that during their academic journeys, students needed to manage a process of integrating their identity both as disabled and as students, choosing when and where to perform each identity and determining what the implications of each choice were along with each one’s related costs and benefits. The study’s implications and recommendations can help professionals and support services improve inclusion and equality in higher education.

Editorial 2017 Best Paper Award

Each year the Transactions on Semiconductor Manufacturing recognizes the best paper published during the previous calendar year. This year 9 papers were nominated by our reviewers and members of our Editorial Board and Steering Committee, out of a total of 78 papers published in our pages in 2017. From among these, the members of the Editorial Board and Steering Committee selected the paper entitled “A Novel Dynamic Process Control Scheme to Improve Cycle Time in Fabs” by Dr. Michael Hassoun of the Department of Industrial Engineering and Management of Ariel University in Israel. This paper continues an ongoing line of research examining the impact of process control policies on the tradeoff between cycle time and yield in wafer fabrication. The primary finding is that modest relaxation of process control parameters to reduce time spent adjusting production equipment when it is in high demand can often reduce cycle time with minimal negative impact. A number of fruitful extensions for future work are also discussed, holding out the possibility of improved integration of scheduling and process control techniques. On behalf of the TSM community, I have the pleasure of congratulating Dr. Hassoun on this recognition, and of wishing him continued success in future.

Complementary medicine for laboring women: a qualitative study of the effects of reflexology

Background Despite pharmacological interventions, labor pain and anxiety still remain a challenge, and can carry long-term psychological complications. The goal of this study was to assess the effect of reflexology on these symptoms and to explore the physical and psychological components of women's experience associated with this treatment. Methods This qualitative study was conducted in an Israeli university hospital that offers integrative medicine services. Reflexology was offered to laboring women in the hospital, by the medical staff. In-depth, open interviews were conducted with 36 women, still in hospital, who consented to be interviewed, within 48 h after delivery. Questions referred to their labor experience with reflexology treatment. Results Of the 36 participants, 34 (94%) described a positive and empowering experience. They reported reduced pain and anxiety, and an increased sense of self-efficacy brought about by the ability to become active and manage labor. Conclusions Using reflexology as one of the complementary medicine treatment available can contribute greatly to the entire labor experience as it empowers women and increases self-confidence and ability to self-manage labor and delivery.

Improving Academic Conferences – Criticism and Suggestions Utilizing Natural Language Processing

<p style="text-align:justify">This study focuses on the evaluation of academic conferences and ways of improving them. The study includes a case study of one university in Israel. Sixty two academic faculty members from varied departments completed a questionnaire, including 61.7% women and 38.3% men. The research participants were asked a single open question: "What do you think could be improved at conferences?" In addition, age, seniority, and the number of times the respondents had initiated or served as a partner in initiating a conference were also examined. The main findings are as follows: Age predicts seniority. Seniority has a positive effect on the number of times the respondent organized or was a partner in organizing a conference. Seniority has a negative effect on time, i.e., the more senior the faculty member the more he or she would like conferences to be short and to the point. Moreover, the amount of initiatives to organize a conference or to be a partner in establishing a conference has a negative effect on interaction, i.e., the more initiating the faculty member the less he or she is interested in interpersonal interactions at conferences. The wish to space out sessions and lectures has a positive effect on the need to improve the quality of the lectures.</p>

Designing for online computer-based clinical simulations: Evaluation of instructional approaches

BackgroundOnline computer-based simulations are becoming more widespread in nursing education. Therefore, an understanding of when and how to implement the variety of instructional strategies related to these simulations is fundamental. ObjectivesThis study compares the effectiveness of online computer-based simulations designed using two alternative instructional approaches—Productive Failure and Simple-to-Complex sequencing—on learning of clinical reasoning skills. ParticipantsParticipants in this study were undergraduate nursing students (n = 103, mean age = 23.4 ± 2.1) enrolled at a university in Israel. MethodsParticipants completed two online simulations designed using Productive Failure approach (emergency medicine, mental health) and two online simulations using Simple-to-Complex approach (cardiovascular health, pediatrics). Pre- and post-test clinical reasoning evaluations were administered prior to and immediately following each simulation. ResultsClinical reasoning learning gains were significantly higher for online simulations designed with the Simple-to-Complex approach than simulations designed with Productive Failure approach (F (3, 288) = 9.656, P < 0.001). Students devoted significantly more time (F (1, 102) = 260.15, P < 0.001) and more attempts (F (1, 102) = 167.39, P < 0.001) in learning with Simple-to-Complex simulations than they did with Productive Failure simulations. The amount of time that students were engaged in learning with simulations was significantly associated with learning gains scores. ConclusionsThis study proposes that well-designed online simulations can improve nursing students' clinical reasoning. The Simple-to-Complex approach was found to be more efficient than Productive Failure for online learning. Learning with Simple-to-Complex approach was behaviorally more engaging and students' achievements were higher, which implies that instructional process facilitates learning, and therefore have to be taken in consideration by nurse educators. Integration of computerized educational modalities within nursing education is discussed.