This article discusses "Universities of the Third Age", whose function is quite distinct from established universities' traditional role in teaching, research, and community services. Consequently, there is an urgent need to develop a model of partnership between traditional universities and Universities of the Third Age, ensuring better…

A qualitative study of faculty members participating in a campus-wide problem-based learning initiative examined the process of transforming faculty pedagogical content knowledge. Researchers found that faculty existing knowledge and the institutional intervention influenced new knowledge of faculty roles, student roles, disciplinary structures,…

This article describes the successful use of videoconferencing in a sociology capstone course as a way to introduce students to eminent scholars and authors across the country. The author begins by discussing the institutional context, and how videoconferencing fits with the departmental capstone philosophy and with her course goals. This is…

Theatre and drama are areas of performance and inquiry which usually assume engagement and commitment to the ensemble or group process, supported by strong individual input. How can this "dynamic" be brought into a fully online distance course? In this article we analyse and reflect on the design and implementation of an online theatre…

Purpose: The applicability of total quality management (TQM) to higher education instruction is controversial. The purpose of this paper is to help clarify the application of TQM to higher education instruction by identifying and analyzing the dual roles played by both students and instructors. The authors also offer an improvement to the…

Many proven research-based instructional strategies have been developed for introductory college-level physics. Significant efforts to disseminate these strategies have focused on convincing individual instructors to give up their traditional practices in favor of particular research-based practices. Yet evidence suggests that the findings of…

This chapter examines several aspects of the instructional development (ID) process as it occurs in higher education, and presents arguments: (1) in favor of using students in various aspects of the instructional development process; (2) in favor of "shotgunning" rather than taking on only large projects; and (3) against confusing instructional…

Student appraisal of faculty instructional competencies is commonplace. Although several logics account for sponsorship of student evaluation schemes, the ultimate product of student evaluation ought to be improved instruction. The purpose of this paper is to investigate relationships between student evaluating and better teaching. A mandatory…

Compares university life in the United States and Sweden and indicates similarities. (DS)

Discusses the accomplishments of black studies programs in U.S. colleges and universities and what contributions these studies have made to improving the world of higher education. A group of four scholars provide their opinions. (GR)

An important ethical task is for the college faculty member to handle the teacher-student relationship well outside the classroom. May Sarton's novel "The Small Room" depicts both success and failure. The teacher should always act as a friend, seeking the good of the student for the student's own sake and recognizing this as a unique…

An ever-increasing proportion of high school students in the United States today aspire to graduate from college. Yet statistics indicate that the percentage of college students receiving bachelor's degrees has remained relatively constant over the past 25 years, that it now takes on average 6 years to get a four-year college degree, and that…

The role of university faculty and students in respect to political activism is examined. The apolitical mission of the university is stressed which in turn requires apolitical roles of faculty and students. (DE)

Surveyed 151 graduate assistants (GAs) and 72 faculty members to determine congruence between the role expectations of these two groups. Expectations were incongruous; GAs viewed themselves as possessing certain skills to a greater extent than faculty indicated they expected students to possess. Suggests ways to enhance GAs' professional…