I found a recent article in Science and Engineering Ethics on the ethics of peer reviewers to be very interesting and thought some readers might also find it to be interesting. I have included a citation for the article as well as the abstract below:
Resnik, D., Gutierrez-Ford, & Peddada, S. (2008). Perceptions of Ethical Problems with Scientific Journal Peer Review: An Exploratory Study. Science and Engineering Ethics, (14)3, 305-310.
Abstract: This article reports the results of an anonymous survey of researchers at a government research institution concerning their perceptions about ethical problems with journal peer review. Incompetent review was the most common ethical problem reported by the respondents, with 61.8% (SE = 3.3%) claiming to have experienced this at some point during peer review. Bias (50.5%, SE = 3.4%) was the next most common problem. About 22.7% (SE = 2.8%) of respondents said that a reviewer had required them to include unnecessary references to his/her publication(s), 17.7% (SE = 2.6%) said that comments from reviewers had included
personal attacks, and 9.6% (SE = 2.0%) stated that reviewers had delayed publication to publish a paper on the same topic. Two of the most serious violations of peer review ethics, breach of confidentiality (6.8%, SE = 1.7%) and using ideas, data, or methods without permission (5%, SE = 1.5%) were perceived less often than the other problems. We recommend that other investigators follow up on our exploratory research with additional studies on the ethics of peer review. (Springer Link)
Friday, August 29, 2008
Thursday, August 28, 2008
Expanding Student Choices in Study Abroad
In case readers missed it, Richard Sutton who is the Assistant Vice Chancellor for International Programs at the University System of Georgia Board of Regents wrote a very interesting opinion piece on the business of study abroad for the August 22nd edition of insidehighered.com.
You can access the piece here: http://www.insidehighered.com/views/2008/08/22/sutton
You can access the piece here: http://www.insidehighered.com/views/2008/08/22/sutton
Wednesday, August 27, 2008
Three Social Theoretical Perspectives Concerning Education
The three social theoretical perspectives concerning education are Functionalism, Conflict Theory, and the Interpretivist Approach. For this blog post I will discuss the “Education and Societal Inequality: Race, Gender, Class, and Ethnicity” and “Education as Cultural Transmission” themes to illustrate and compare the three social theoretical perspectives concerning education and how they contribute to an understanding of the sociology of education.
The theme of Education and Societal Inequality: Race, Gender, Class and Ethnicity offers an excellent opportunity to compare the three theoretical perspectives. In the Banks article on multicultural education we can compare the three social theoretical perspectives of education by looking at his five dimensions of multicultural education typology he provides. To briefly review, the five dimensions of multicultural education (according to Banks) are: content integration; knowledge construction; prejudice reduction; equity pedagogy; and, empowering school culture. The functionalist perspective, for example, can be found in the prejudice reduction dimension of Banks’ multicultural education typology. As cited by Banks, the prejudice reduction dimension of multicultural education “is designed to help students develop more democratic attitudes, values, and behaviors.” When students develop more democratic attitudes, values, and behaviors they become more socialized and are better able “to adapt to the economic, political and social institutions of that society” (Feinberg and Soltis).
Both the equity pedagogy and empowering school culture dimensions of Banks’ multicultural education typology demonstrate the conflict theory approach. Teachers in the equity pedagogy dimension attempt to use teaching strategies that “facilitate the academic achievement of students from diverse, racial, ethnic, and social-class groups…to help students who are members of low-status population groups to increase their academic achievement” (Banks). In particular, it’s the cultural deprivationists approach that focuses on social class and the culture of poverty that best demonstrates the conflict theory approach. According to Banks, “social scientists developed the culture of poverty concept to describe experiences of low income populations and in education this concept became known as cultural deprivation or the disadvantaged.” In many ways, the equity pedagogy dimension is quite similar to the empowering school culture dimension. The idea of the empowering school culture dimension, according to Banks, is “the process of restructuring the culture and organization of the school so that students from diverse racial, ethnic, and social-class groups will experience educational equality and cultural empowerment.” Banks notes that to achieve an empowering school culture for minority students and students from low social economic status backgrounds schools must “restructure” their culture and organization.
The interpretivist perspective can be found in both the content integration and the knowledge construction dimensions of Banks’ multicultural education typology. Content integration, according to Banks, “deals with the extent to which teachers use examples, data, and information from a variety of cultures and groups to illustrate key concepts, principles, generalizations, and theories in their subject area or discipline. Similarly, with the knowledge construction dimension, “teachers help students to understand how knowledge is created and how it is influenced by the racial, ethnic, and social-class positions of individuals and groups” (Banks). These two dimensions of Banks’ multicultural education typology seem to fit Feinberg and Soltis’ description of the interpretivist perspective as quite well. Feinberg and Soltis describe the interpretivist who “sees the social world as a world made up of purposeful actors who acquire, share, and interpret a set of meanings, rules, and norms that make social interaction possible. The social forces at work are shared meanings and interpreting individuals who interact in particular social contexts.”
Education ad Cultural Transmission is the second theme analyzed to complete this discussion. In her introduction to this theme, Strouse identifies the following three questions that come from the selected readings: What are the key values reflected in U.S. culture?; How is contemporary U.S. culture transmitted and maintained?; and, What are the roles of schools and teachers in promulgating these values, attitudes, and beliefs, or in fostering changes in them in anticipation of our society’s future needs? I won’t attempt to answer each of these questions with examples of each of the three social theoretical perspectives concerning education. Instead, I plan to look at Spindler’s account of modernizing cultures and what is the purpose of education? Spindler discusses the Sisala of Northern Ghana and the developing relationships among educated children and their parents and/or elders in the Sisala society. Specifically, Spindler looks at fathers and sons and how education has affected their relationships. From a functionalist perspective, the schools of the Sisala are socializing the children to learn and adjust to the changing and modernizing world around them. As Spindler states “the new schools, with their curricula and the concepts behind them, are future oriented.” They recruit students into a system that does not yet exist, or is just emerging.” This most certainly will create conflicts with their “illiterate” or uneducated fathers. In the Sisala schools the conflict theory perspective is most evident in the example Spindler provides of the teacher-student interaction. Spindler states that the “interaction between the teacher and his students is characterized by an authoritarian rigidity.” For example, students rise from their desks as the teacher enters the room as a sign of respect and students are not expected to ask questions of the material but rather are to give the “correct” answer when asked.
It's important for all educators (both teachers and administrators), researchers, and policy makers to have a “grasp” or knowledge of the three social theoretical perspectives concerning education if they are to have a good understanding of the sociology of education. Regardless of how one views education and the role schools play in society, without an understanding of the major theoretical perspectives and how different viewpoints interact with one’s own positions they are a less effective educator.
References
Banks, James A. “Multicultural Education: Historical Development, Dimensions, and Practice,” in Exploring Socio-Cultural Themes in Education: Readings in Social Foundations (Ed. Joan H. Strouse). (2001): 248-282.
Feinberg, Walter & Jomas F. Soltis. School and Society. (4th ed.). (2002). New York: Teachers College, Columbia University Press.
Spindler, George, D. “The Transmission of Culture,” in Exploring Socio-Cultural Themes in Education: Readings in Social Foundations (Ed. Joan H. Strouse). (2001): 5-28.
The theme of Education and Societal Inequality: Race, Gender, Class and Ethnicity offers an excellent opportunity to compare the three theoretical perspectives. In the Banks article on multicultural education we can compare the three social theoretical perspectives of education by looking at his five dimensions of multicultural education typology he provides. To briefly review, the five dimensions of multicultural education (according to Banks) are: content integration; knowledge construction; prejudice reduction; equity pedagogy; and, empowering school culture. The functionalist perspective, for example, can be found in the prejudice reduction dimension of Banks’ multicultural education typology. As cited by Banks, the prejudice reduction dimension of multicultural education “is designed to help students develop more democratic attitudes, values, and behaviors.” When students develop more democratic attitudes, values, and behaviors they become more socialized and are better able “to adapt to the economic, political and social institutions of that society” (Feinberg and Soltis).
Both the equity pedagogy and empowering school culture dimensions of Banks’ multicultural education typology demonstrate the conflict theory approach. Teachers in the equity pedagogy dimension attempt to use teaching strategies that “facilitate the academic achievement of students from diverse, racial, ethnic, and social-class groups…to help students who are members of low-status population groups to increase their academic achievement” (Banks). In particular, it’s the cultural deprivationists approach that focuses on social class and the culture of poverty that best demonstrates the conflict theory approach. According to Banks, “social scientists developed the culture of poverty concept to describe experiences of low income populations and in education this concept became known as cultural deprivation or the disadvantaged.” In many ways, the equity pedagogy dimension is quite similar to the empowering school culture dimension. The idea of the empowering school culture dimension, according to Banks, is “the process of restructuring the culture and organization of the school so that students from diverse racial, ethnic, and social-class groups will experience educational equality and cultural empowerment.” Banks notes that to achieve an empowering school culture for minority students and students from low social economic status backgrounds schools must “restructure” their culture and organization.
The interpretivist perspective can be found in both the content integration and the knowledge construction dimensions of Banks’ multicultural education typology. Content integration, according to Banks, “deals with the extent to which teachers use examples, data, and information from a variety of cultures and groups to illustrate key concepts, principles, generalizations, and theories in their subject area or discipline. Similarly, with the knowledge construction dimension, “teachers help students to understand how knowledge is created and how it is influenced by the racial, ethnic, and social-class positions of individuals and groups” (Banks). These two dimensions of Banks’ multicultural education typology seem to fit Feinberg and Soltis’ description of the interpretivist perspective as quite well. Feinberg and Soltis describe the interpretivist who “sees the social world as a world made up of purposeful actors who acquire, share, and interpret a set of meanings, rules, and norms that make social interaction possible. The social forces at work are shared meanings and interpreting individuals who interact in particular social contexts.”
Education ad Cultural Transmission is the second theme analyzed to complete this discussion. In her introduction to this theme, Strouse identifies the following three questions that come from the selected readings: What are the key values reflected in U.S. culture?; How is contemporary U.S. culture transmitted and maintained?; and, What are the roles of schools and teachers in promulgating these values, attitudes, and beliefs, or in fostering changes in them in anticipation of our society’s future needs? I won’t attempt to answer each of these questions with examples of each of the three social theoretical perspectives concerning education. Instead, I plan to look at Spindler’s account of modernizing cultures and what is the purpose of education? Spindler discusses the Sisala of Northern Ghana and the developing relationships among educated children and their parents and/or elders in the Sisala society. Specifically, Spindler looks at fathers and sons and how education has affected their relationships. From a functionalist perspective, the schools of the Sisala are socializing the children to learn and adjust to the changing and modernizing world around them. As Spindler states “the new schools, with their curricula and the concepts behind them, are future oriented.” They recruit students into a system that does not yet exist, or is just emerging.” This most certainly will create conflicts with their “illiterate” or uneducated fathers. In the Sisala schools the conflict theory perspective is most evident in the example Spindler provides of the teacher-student interaction. Spindler states that the “interaction between the teacher and his students is characterized by an authoritarian rigidity.” For example, students rise from their desks as the teacher enters the room as a sign of respect and students are not expected to ask questions of the material but rather are to give the “correct” answer when asked.
It's important for all educators (both teachers and administrators), researchers, and policy makers to have a “grasp” or knowledge of the three social theoretical perspectives concerning education if they are to have a good understanding of the sociology of education. Regardless of how one views education and the role schools play in society, without an understanding of the major theoretical perspectives and how different viewpoints interact with one’s own positions they are a less effective educator.
References
Banks, James A. “Multicultural Education: Historical Development, Dimensions, and Practice,” in Exploring Socio-Cultural Themes in Education: Readings in Social Foundations (Ed. Joan H. Strouse). (2001): 248-282.
Feinberg, Walter & Jomas F. Soltis. School and Society. (4th ed.). (2002). New York: Teachers College, Columbia University Press.
Spindler, George, D. “The Transmission of Culture,” in Exploring Socio-Cultural Themes in Education: Readings in Social Foundations (Ed. Joan H. Strouse). (2001): 5-28.
Tuesday, August 26, 2008
Wissenschaft Weltoffen 2008 Facts and Figures on the International Nature of Studies and Research in Germany
In July, the DAAD and the University Information System (HIS) in Germany released the most recent data on foreign students in Germany in their Wissenschaft weltoffen 2008. You can access Wissenschaft weltoffen 2008 here: www.wissenschaft-weltoffen.de
Monday, August 25, 2008
MIUSA Videos Now Free Online
Mobility International USA has now made all of their videos available for free on YouTube! High quality DVD videos for presentations or organizational use are also available for purchase from MIUSA by emailing: info@miusa.org. View the videos online by searching YouTube for “Mobility International USA” as a keyword to bring up all the videos or by visiting MIUSA's website at: http://www.miusa.org/publications/videos
Friday, August 22, 2008
FREE INQUIRY AT RISK: UNIVERSITIES IN DANGEROUS TIMES
I recently came across information about this upcoming conference and I think it sounds facinating so I'm posting a description as I think readers may find it very interesting:
A Social Research Conference at The New School
FREE INQUIRY AT RISK: UNIVERSITIES IN DANGEROUS TIMES
A commemoration of the 75th anniversary of the University in Exile at The New School. Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday, October 29, 30, and 31, 2008
Rapid globalization, international collaborations, massification, corporate partnerships, increasing number of franchises, regime change, and other conditions of duress are reshaping universities around the world. What are the benefits and what are the risks to academic freedom and free inquiry as universities navigate these trends? This conference will look backward at the role of academic freedom and free inquiry in research universities and forward to what the future may have in store.
John Tishman Auditorium, 66 West 12th Street, NYC
Full conference $30, $10 per session (Students are free)
contact socres@newschool.edu or 212-229-5776 x3121
for more information and to register: www.newschool.edu/FreeInquiry
A Social Research Conference at The New School
FREE INQUIRY AT RISK: UNIVERSITIES IN DANGEROUS TIMES
A commemoration of the 75th anniversary of the University in Exile at The New School. Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday, October 29, 30, and 31, 2008
Rapid globalization, international collaborations, massification, corporate partnerships, increasing number of franchises, regime change, and other conditions of duress are reshaping universities around the world. What are the benefits and what are the risks to academic freedom and free inquiry as universities navigate these trends? This conference will look backward at the role of academic freedom and free inquiry in research universities and forward to what the future may have in store.
John Tishman Auditorium, 66 West 12th Street, NYC
Full conference $30, $10 per session (Students are free)
contact socres@newschool.edu or 212-229-5776 x3121
for more information and to register: www.newschool.edu/FreeInquiry
Thursday, August 21, 2008
Growth in International Graduate Admissions Continues to Slow
Today, the Council on Graduate Schools (CGS) released the phase II findings of their annual report on graduate student admissions in the United States. Since 2004, CGS’s annual report has provided the field with valuable data and insight into the patterns of international student enrollments in graduate schools across the United States. You can access the 2008 CGS report here: http://www.cgsnet.org/portals/0/pdf/R_IntlAdm08_II.pdf
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