Israeli University Research Articles

Instructors’ Perceptions of the Use of Learning Analytics for Data-Driven Decision Making

In recent years, much effort has been put into developing dedicated dashboards for instructors, in which data about students’ activity are presented. However, in many cases, such endeavors take a top-down approach and do not involve instructors in the design process. In this paper, we present a study of instructors and teaching assistants in a research university in Israel (N = 253) who responded to an online questionnaire regarding their perceptions of data on students’ activity on course websites. Specifically, they were asked about the types of data they were most interested in, the aspects of student learning that they would consider important, and the actions they would take upon viewing the data. Overall, we found that participants’ scores were medium-high (2.5–3.5 on a 5-point Likert scale), with scores being higher for women compared with men and positively correlated with experience with Moodle. An overarching theme arises from our analyses of instructors’ interests and intentions, which portrays their idea of teaching as somewhat traditional and instructor-centered; however, their declared actions make it clear that they are willing to make some desirable changes to the benefits of students. Finally, we found that instructors’ perceptions of data use and data importance are positive predictors of taking action upon viewing student data.

On the Way to Be(Coming) a Social Worker: Phenomenological Reflections by Social Work Students on Their Final Year as a Site of Professional Identity Exploration

Abstract In the field of social work research and practice, considerable focus has been placed on the preparedness of students as they transition from being students to becoming professionals. However, insufficient attention has been paid to the processes that occur during the final academic year of their training—a critical transition period that requires a deeper examination. Using a qualitative approach, the study examined the phenomenological perspectives of twenty-nine social work students at an Israeli university during the final academic year of their bachelor’s degree, employing the photovoice methodology. Content analysis of the results identified four key characteristics of the final academic year: (1) the liminal-transitional nature of identity work during the final year; (2) separation from the student identity; (3) the doorknob effect; and (4) entering the professional shoes. The research results are discussed and conceptualised within the framework of the theory of liminality, highlighting its relevance to understanding the transition processes that characterise professional identity work. Additionally, the study explores the implications of liminality in preparing students for entering the job market, particularly considering the distinction between being a professional and becoming a professional.

חבלי הלידה של אוניברסיטת חיפה

The University of Haifa was founded in 1972 and was the first university in Israel to be established in a city that already had an academic institution, namely the Technion. The article discusses the principal questions and practical issues on the university’s journey from an affiliate of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem to an independent institution and analyzes the political struggles against both its parent institution and the Technion. The research period spans a decade: from the summer of 1962 with the initial contacts between the Haifa Municipality and the Hebrew University of Jerusalem until the summer of 1972 when it became an independent university. The article clarifies the motives for the Haifa Municipality's decision to establish a separate academic institution in the city, examines the responses of the Technion and the Hebrew University, and addresses how and why the University of Haifa became an independent university rather than merging with the Technion. These questions are discussed while examining the different interests of the three institutions involved—the Hebrew University, the Haifa Municipality and the Technion—and the power relations between them, against the backdrop of the political processes in the local and national arenas. The article surveys the relationships between the institutions, their collaborations, and the difficulty in merging them. The Technion was a national-state institution, which is closely aligned with state institutions and enjoys a reputation as a national institution, while the University of Haifa developed as a local-municipal institution, established by the municipality to serve the residents of Haifa and the North and to promote the city's status in the country. With the emergence of these two different models of academic institutions—national-state and local-municipal—the broader dilemma in the development of higher education in Israel comes into focus: centralization versus decentralization and the budget distribution between the small number of existing institutions versus the establishment of new institutions with particular characteristics.

Key Learnings and Perspectives of a Newly Implemented Sex-and Gender-Based Medicine Modular Course Integrated into the First-Year Medical School Curriculum: A Mixed-Method Survey.

Sex and Gender-Based Medicine (SGBM) addresses the influence of sex and gender on health and healthcare, emphasizing personalized care. Integrating SGBM into medical education is challenging. This study examines the implementation of an SGBM course in an Israeli university during the first year of the medical school. The course integrated lectures, group work, online gender studies resources, workshops, teacher training, and essential literature. The curriculum spanned pre-clinical and clinical aspects, featuring seven 90-minute sessions. Surveys assessed course structure, content, and lecturers using a 5-point Likert scale and qualitative feedback. Quantitative analysis involved descriptive statistics, and thematic analysis was used for qualitative data. Of the 84 students surveyed, 35 (41.7%) responded to the first part, and 30 (35.7%) to the second. The SGBM course received high satisfaction with an average score of 3.63, surpassing other first-year courses (average 3.21). Students appreciated the supportive academic atmosphere (mean score 4.20) and diverse teaching methods (mean score 4.03), while the development of feminist thinking was less appreciated (average score 3.49). Lecturers received high ratings (average score 4.33). Qualitative feedback highlighted the value of group work, the significance of the subject matter, and the helpfulness of supplementary videos. Students requested more content on contemporary issues like gender transition and patient perspectives. The feminist medicine aspect was contentious, with students seeking better gender balance and scientific evidence. Introducing SGBM into the first-year curriculum yielded positive results with high student satisfaction for content and lecturers. An expanded course module is planned, to be assessed at the end of the next academic year.

'They don’t really know what they’re getting into': the impact of neoliberal and colonial policies within Israeli institutions of higher education on Palestinian Jerusalemite students

ABSTRACT This study presents the case of Palestinian students from East Jerusalem studying at the education department at a major Israeli University. We conducted a qualitative study using semi-structured interviews with nineteen Palestinian students. The study found that the government’s neoliberal and colonial policies in East Jerusalem influence the students’ motivation, available options and the ability to compete within Israeli institutions of higher education. Furthermore, once the students manage to penetrate Israeli institutions of higher education, they are disillusioned with the experiences they are offered, they do not manage to study the fields that they desire and they are not offered sufficient support within the institution. We contend that this failure on the institutional level to address issues of multiculturalism and Indigenous populations’ unique needs makes the university complicit in maintaining a cultural and epistemic hierarchy.

Social support and academic experience among higher education students in Israel during the COVID-19 pandemic.

This study focused on the implications of the COVID-19 pandemic on the academic experience of university students and their plans for dropping out. We examined how their health, exposure to COVID, and personal COVID-related health risk were associated with perceived social support and a positive academic experience versus plans to drop out of academic studies. We questioned 10,635 students from six research universities in Israel in a cross-sectional online survey. Our findings confirmed that exposure to COVID-19 was positively associated with perceived social support and plans to drop out of academic studies, but negatively associated with a positive academic experience. The greater the perceived social support, the more positive the academic experience, with fewer plans to drop out academically. The more negative students' perceptions of their general health, the more frequent the plans to drop out of academic studies. Also, perceived social support and a positive academic experience mediated the associations between COVID-19 exposure and health status, and plans to drop out of academic studies. This study highlights the potentially positive role of social support and positive academic experiences as significant resources and potential protective factors against plans brought on by COVID to drop out of academic studies.

«TECHNOLOGY OF LANDSCAPING EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTIONS» PROJECT AS A BASIS FOR ENVIRONMENTAL EDUCATION OF PHYSICS TEACHERS DURING THEIR FUNDAMENTAL TRAINING: ISRAELI EXPERIENCE

This article addresses the pressing issue of fundamental training for future physics teachers, emphasizing the need to bridge theory and practice, integrate natural sciences with environmental education, and develop students’ research and environmental competencies. The focus is on the importance of collaborative project activities between educators and future physics teachers as a cornerstone of comprehensive training. The author introduces the project “Technology of Landscaping Educational Institutions” as a key method for environmental education during the fundamental training of physics teachers at a pedagogical university. Key project tasks included: 1) identifying ecological foundations for creating green spaces in educational institutions; 2) describing functional zones within the institution for potential improvements; 3) substantiating the roles of green spaces in the educational yard; 4) developing landscaping technology for the institution’s courtyard; and 5) exploring international landscaping practices through the example of Ariel University in Israel. The project was carried out through partnership pedagogy, cross-cultural communication, and inter-university cooperation between V.G. Korolenko Poltava National Pedagogical University and Ariel University. During the project, students, who are future physics teachers from V.G. Korolenko Poltava National Pedagogical University, engaged with scientific sources and the website of Ariel University. They participated in virtual tours of Ariel University’s campus and attended online consultations to assist with project tasks. As a result, Ukrainian students developed and presented reports on the technology of environmentalization for educational institutions and proposed their own landscape design concepts for the Poltava National Pedagogical University’s grounds. The project “Technology of Landscaping Educational Institutions” is a paragon of partnership pedagogy, cross-cultural communication, and inter-university collaboration. Knowing the nature, students become harmoniously developed and comprehensively aware personalities, which is an important element of modern educational process.

The role of perceived stress and social support in nursing students’ satisfaction with their initial clinical placement: A cross-sectional study

AimTo explore: a) students’ perceived stress, social support and satisfaction with their initial clinical placement; and b) identify the relationship between perceived stress, social support and student’s satisfaction with their initial clinical placement. BackgroundClinical placements are a central element in shaping future nursing professionals. Students’ satisfaction with clinical placements influences their learning outcomes and intention to continue their studies. Students experience stress from various sources during their clinical placements and social support has been found to moderate their stress. However, there is a paucity of studies addressing the associations between perceived stress, social support and satisfaction with the initial clinical placement. DesignQuantitative cross-sectional study. MethodsParticipants included 165s-year nursing students enrolled in the bachelor’s program at a central university in Israel during their initial clinical placement. Data were collected between December 2022 and February 2023 using an online questionnaire that contained four parts: personal details, perceived social support, perceived stress and satisfaction with clinical placement. ResultsStudents’ perceived stress was found to be negatively correlated to satisfaction with their clinical instructor (r = -0.47, p < 0.001) and with their clinical placement (r = -0.47, p < 0.001). Positive associations were found between satisfaction with the clinical placement and satisfaction with the clinical instructor (r = 0.67, p < 0.001). Significant differences were found in perceived stress and social support according to sociodemographic characteristics. Students perceived stress, social support from family and friends and satisfaction with their clinical instructor explained 54% of their satisfaction with their initial clinical placements. ConclusionsClinical instructors and nurse educators are central to students’ initial clinical experience. It is recommended that they assess students’ perceived stress in the clinical environment, integrate stress reduction strategies into the curriculum and encourage students to turn to various sources for social support. These can promote students’ satisfaction and success in their studies.

Understanding Clinical Learning Quality Aspects in Mental Health Nursing Practice Course among Students: A Comprehensive Examination.

There is a growing demand for comprehensive evaluations of the clinical learning quality of nursing education and the necessity to establish robust predictors and mediators for enhancing its outcomes within the context of mental health practice. This study is threefold: 1. Evaluating nursing students' clinical learning quality before and after mental health nursing practice; 2. Establish if the grade of a theoretical course in mental health nursing and the student's perception of their theoretical knowledge level predicts the grade of mental health nursing practice; 3. Explore how model learning opportunities, self-directed learning, safety, and nursing care quality mediate learning environment quality and tutorial strategies quality following mental health nursing practice. Using a before and after the study, 107 undergraduate nursing students at an Israeli university completed a questionnaire and the Clinical Learning Quality Evaluation Index tool to assess their perceptions of clinical learning quality before and after mental health nursing practice. The results showed a decline in students' perceptions of tutorial strategy quality following mental health practical learning in clinical settings, with the theoretical course grade predicting the practical experience grade and underscoring the mediating role of learning opportunities between the learning environment and tutorial strategies. The study's findings emphasize the importance of an adaptive learning environment and a solid theoretical foundation in fostering effective tutorial strategies and enhancing the overall learning outcomes for nursing students in mental health education.

Match Pathways and College Graduation: A Longitudinal and Multidimensional Framework for Academic Mismatch

Academic mismatch, the incompatibility between applicants’/students’ aptitude and their desired/current academic program, is considered a key predictor of degree attainment. Evaluations of this link tend to be cross-sectional, however, focusing on specific stages of the college pipeline and ignoring mismatch at prior or later stages and their potential outcomes. We developed and tested a longitudinal and multidimensional framework that classifies mismatches along the college pipeline by direction (match, overmatch, undermatch) and stage (application, admission, enrollment). We combined them into match pathways and evaluated how these configurations shape graduation outcomes. Analyses of administrative data on all applicants and students at universities in Israel between 1998 and 2003 demonstrate the added value of this framework. We show that academic mismatch is substantially more prevalent and complex than previously depicted, with only a third of all students fully matched at all stages. Mismatch at each stage affects graduation chances, but the effect is also path-dependent. Thus, it is important to study the entire match pathway to understand how academic mismatch shapes inequality in graduation outcomes. Our findings have important implications for policies designed to increase degree attainment and diversity.

Choosing a nursing specialty: connection to nursing students’ personality traits, clinical self-efficacy, adoption of technology changes, and specialty prestige; a cross-sectional study

BackgroundChoosing a field of specialization within the nursing profession is affected by nurses’ personality traits, self-confidence in performing clinical skills, and the field’s prestige. A successful choice of area of expertise may improve nurses’ job satisfaction and reduce job mobility. This study aims to examine the relationship between personality traits, clinical self-efficacy, perceived prestige, adoption of technological changes, and choice of specialty field among nursing students.MethodsA cross-sectional study was conducted. One-hundred-twenty-seven undergraduate nursing students in their fourth year of studies at a large university in Israel participated in the study. The questionnaire administered was comprised of six parts: demographic data, personality traits, adoption of technological changes, clinical self-efficacy, perceived prestige, and intention to select a field of specialization.ResultsAcute disciplines were rated more prestigious than chronic disciplines, with intensive care and emergency medicine considered the most prestigious, while mental health and geriatrics were the least prestigious. Students’ mean perceived confidence in performing nursing clinical skills was high and more than half considered themselves open to technology changes. Positive correlations were found between prestige and intention to choose a field of expertise (r = 0.41, p < 0.001) and the personality trait of openness and the intention to choose an acute care area (r = 0.26, p < 0.01).ConclusionsDespite the gradual aging of the population and the increase in chronic morbidity, which demand a greater nursing focus on older adults, and notwithstanding the mental health reforms, nursing students perceive geriatrics and mental health as less prestigious fields. A career development path can be applied by developing a tool for occupational guidance designed to rank students’ suitability for specialty fields and thus help them choose the area that best suits them.

Employment of academic faculty after reaching retirement age: an asset or a burden? – Ariel University as a case study

ABSTRACT This study centers on public policy concerning the retirement age in Israeli academia. The purpose of this study is to analyze the justification for the existing policy on this issue that allows academic institutions to end the employment of faculty when reaching the legal retirement age. The research method is based on analysis of the research and teaching data for 485 senior faculty members at Ariel University in Israel, which constitutes a case study. The research findings show on one hand higher research output among faculty who have passed the retirement age versus those who have not reached retirement, and on the other lower mean teaching evaluation scores received by faculty above retirement age that those received by younger faculty. The research conclusions determine that reaching retirement age does not necessarily affect the professional output of faculty or justify their removal from the academic institution. Even if the teaching capabilities of older faculty members are negatively affected over the years, their contribution to the academic institution is mostly influenced by their scholarly output, positive impact on the institution's image, and not inconsiderable contribution to it, deriving from their considerable experience that is utilized for supporting and directing younger faculty. Therefore, a possible conclusion is that faculty members who have reached retirement age constitute an asset rather than a burden for the academic institution. Hence, the findings question the justifications for the public policy implemented in Israel in this area and call for its reexamination.

Eliciting ethical guidelines for school middle leaders in a social-ecological framework via role-play simulations

ABSTRACT The study aims to elicit ethical guidelines for school middle leaders as derived through role-play simulation training, and frame them within the social-ecological model (SEM). Using stratified sampling, this qualitative study was conducted during one academic year and included 30 school middle leaders from different Israeli high schools and districts who participated in the study during a course given as part of a Master’s degree program in educational leadership at a large university in Israel. Drawing on 30 role-play simulations and group debriefings involving ethical dilemmas in leadership that were filmed in a studio, the authors elicited ethical guidelines developed by the research participants. The findings uncovered five core themes of ethical guidelines for school middle leaders, framed within the layers of the SEM: interpersonal relationship aspects, individuals’ professional aspects, organizational relationship aspects, public policy aspects, and community relationship aspects. The study revealed ethical guidelines developed specifically for school middle leaders and framed them within the SEM. Hence, it promotes a holistic understanding of the various social contexts in which school middle leaders operate and may help explore their ethical conduct and assist them in overcoming professional challenges.

Integrating Social Robot in a Jigsaw Cooperative Activity: Insights from an International Workshop with Students from Universities in Germany and Israel

A Jigsaw activity represents an educational approach providing students opportunities to exercise collaborative learning targeting topics from across domains and levels including those addressing innovative technologies. This paper presents our efforts targeting a Jigsaw workshop addressing educational activities enhanced by Social Robots (SR). SR includes AI-enabled features becoming accessible through software affording to develop motivating and engaging cooperative learning processes. In light of these trends, we present a Jigsaw learning activity we conducted and supported by a Social Robot (SR). We conducted the activity as part of a mutual effort exercised by the authors of this paper in the framework of an Erasmus+ project in Social Robotics involving German and Israeli higher education Institutions. We examined this activity while focusing on various aspects corresponding to its interrelated phases and the educational interactions exercised by students. Results reveal a high potential for applying Jigsaw learning activities in groups of international students. The positive effects seem to be enhanced by choosing to focus the collaboration on an innovative learning environment such as social robots, designing the activity to maximize creativity, autonomy, and ownership, and addressing authentic application contexts to enhance the quality of the educational experience.

Alone together: experiences of Palestinian East Jerusalem students studying at an Israeli university

Alone together: experiences of Palestinian East Jerusalem students studying at an Israeli university

Precarity in Higher Education: Perspectives From The 1.5 Generation in Israel

ABSTRACT We examined perceptions of precarity in higher education by conducting interviews with a cohort of academics in Israel. The participants were 1.5 generation immigrants who were born in the former Soviet Union (FSU) and then moved to Israel as children or teenagers with their family, typically in the 1990s. Using a narrative research approach, we examined the personal perceptions of 43 academics employed at colleges and universities in Israel. Despite differences in their employment status and contract conditions, our findings made clear that all the academics in our cohort had experienced employment precarity. Using a Bourdieusian framework, we attribute Israeli academic precarity to a deficiency in the cultural and social capital necessary for establishing relevance. Although they had been relatively successful in integrating into Israeli society, and had decades of living within it, our interviewees from all types of academic institutions reported feelings and experiences of extreme precarity. This precarity was ascribed by interviewees to the structure of the Israeli higher education market, which is characterized by an unstable, hyper-competitive, and neoliberal environment, leaving minority groups employed within it particularly vulnerable.

Remembering Dr Mark/Meir Dvorjetski: Physician, Survivor, Teacher, Historian, and Pioneer of Shoah Medicine Research.

Meir Dvorjetski was a Holocaust survivor, teacher, and historian. He is best remembered for his descriptions of the medicine practiced by the Nazis during World War II, as well as the diseases, disorders, syndromes, and deaths resulting from such practice-particularly, though not solely, on the Jewish race. Dvorjetski's contributions to Holocaust research at Bar-Ilan University in Israel, his underground partisan work, his contributions to society, and his testimony at the Eichmann trial have all been well documented. However, his earlier years-including his survival of the Holocaust, and his less-known medical achievements and contributions to historical records regarding the Holocaust-have not been covered as thoroughly. These latter items are the focus of this paper, with a closing commentary on the relevance of his work for the 21st century.

The elephant is in the room: Diversity regimes, liminality and play in a dialog program for Palestinian-Arab and Jewish students in an Israeli university

How do higher education institutions “do” diversity in the context of protracted national conflict? The present study examines a diversity and inclusion program in an Israeli university through a case study of one of the program’s initiatives in practice: a dialog workshop for Palestinian-Arab and Jewish students. Analyzing observational, interview and documentary data, and drawing on the theoretical constructs of liminality and play, we explore the workshop as a liminal space within a de-politicized diversity regime. We contribute to critical diversity literature by exploring the unfolding of inclusion work in the context of protracted national conflict, in which the university’s policy of imposing a strict apolitical agenda resulted in benign commitment to diversity and inclusion, as well as silencing of staff and students who attempted to bring up “off-limits” topics. We also contribute to research on liminality and play in organizational contexts by examining the dialog workshop as a case of a structured and regulated liminal space. In particular, we reveal how leisure time and play, specifically role play and role reversal, serve as “small openings”: outlets for experimentation and reflection within the predetermined confines of the liminal space.

University students' psychological distress during the COVID-19 pandemic: A structural equation model of the role of resource loss and gain.

Using the Conservation of Resources (COR) theory, we aimed to determine whether university students' loss and gain in resources during the pandemic mediated the relationships between COVID-19 exposure/concern and depression and anxiety. In 2021, 7013 Israeli university students completed online questionnaires. We assessed the data using structural equation modeling. We found that resource loss was directly related to concern (β = 0.32, p < 0.001). Depression and anxiety were both directly related to loss of resources (depression: β = 0.75, p < 0.001; anxiety: β = 0.69, p < 0.001) and concern (depression: β = 0.06, p < 0.001; anxiety: β = 0.12, p < 0.001). Resource loss had an indirect effect on the relationships between concern and depression (β = 0.24, p < 0.001) and concern and anxiety (β = 0.22, p < 0.001). COR theory may help explain the mechanisms behind university students' mental health during the pandemic and provides a framework to better understand preparedness for future pandemics, epidemics, and major disasters. Governments and universities should help prevent the loss of resources during future emergencies.

Issues of integration, language and identity among Palestinian students at an Israeli “Hebrew‐speaking” University

AbstractThis study examines the experiences of Palestinian students at one of the largest universities in Israel, where most of the faculty members and students are Jewish and the language of study is Hebrew. A thematic content analysis of 15 in‐depth interviews was conducted with Palestinian students who are citizens of Israel or permanent residents living in East Jerusalem. It revealed the challenges at a Jewish‐dominated university on both an academic and a social level. Participants reported that increased exposure to their Jewish counterparts and acquiring greater proficiency in Hebrew facilitated improved intergroup contact with Jewish students. In contrast, the constraints of asymmetry, political tension, and a lack of Hebrew proficiency acted as barriers and were described as major causes of division between Palestinian and Jewish students. Furthermore, constant exposure to Jewish majority culture and the Hebrew language is found to be linked to a strong sense of Palestinian group identity. These findings expand our understanding of the interrelations between language, power and identity in asymmetric intergroup relationships.