INTERNATIONAL STUDENT AFFAIRS

Eldaba, Abir. An Innovative Model to Design an Academic and Social Development Pro-
gram for International College Students. College Student Journal, 2016, 50 (Summer) pp.
171–178.

A proposed model for facilitating the college adjustment of international students begins
with a needs assessment, conducted by surveys or focus groups, and the establishment of
goals and objectives. Goals are broad by definition, and may include the initiation of support
activities and educational programs for international students. Objectives are more specific,
such as providing international students with the information necessary to succeed in col-
lege, providing faculty and staff with the information that they need to help international
students, and engaging international students in peer and business mentoring programs.
After taking stock of the available inputs and resources, activities to benefit international
students may include an orientation program and cooperative activities with domestic stu-
dents. Outcomes can be short-term, medium-term, and long-term. Examples of outcomes
include providing information on the services and activities on campus and teaching about
class expectations and requirements (short-term), encouraging international students to join
student clubs and organizations and advising faculty members on the teaching strategies
best suited for international students (medium-term), and establish specific mentoring and
other programs for international students (long-term). (18 ref)—Tennessee Tech University.

Zhang, Yi. Intercultural Communication Competence: Advising International Students in

a Texas Community College. NACAD Journal, 2015, 35 (Fall) pp. 48–59.

At a multicampus community college in Texas, 20 full-time counselors were interviewed

about their experiences as academic advisers to international students. As challenges to
advising international students, the counselors reported the lack of English proficiency,
unfamiliarity with U.S. higher education, problems with credit recognition and transfer, and
cultural differences pertaining to gender and the international students’ penchant for trying
to negotiate courses and credit hours. As strategies for advising international students, the
counselors showed respect for cultural differences and the decisions made by international
students, exercised patience, displayed empathy, and strove to build connections. (52 ref)—
Department of Educational Leadership and Policy Studies, University of Texas, Arlington.

LEARNING AND TEACHING

EDUCATIONAL TECHNOLOGY

Kear, K., Donelan, H., & Williams, J. Using Wikis for Online Group Projects: Student and
Tutor Perspectives. International Review of Open and Distance Learning, 2014, 15 (Septem-
ber) pp. 70–90.

In a study of the use of wikis to support online group projects at the United Kingdom’s
Open University, students and tutors participated in a mixed-methods study. By using a
wiki, the learning groups could work with a centralized resource and exchange updated ver-
sions of the material that they produced. In response to the quantitative portion of the study,

HIGHER EDUCATION ABSTRACTS [395

the students reported that it took under 30 minutes to learn how to use the wiki (84 percent),
it was easy to use (93 percent), and it was useful for collaborative work (82 percent). The
overwhelming majority of the students favored the wiki because it allowed group members
to edit the contributions of others and allowed for equal access. The students’ interview
comments focused on the wiki’s advantage in providing a central repository for group work.
The tutors found that the wiki encouraged collaboration and enabled students to keep track
of their work. (38 ref)—Open University, United Kingdom.

Ludvigsen, K., Krumsvik, R., & Furnes, B. Creating Formative Feedback Spaces in Large
Lectures. Computers and Education, 2015, 88 (October) pp. 48–63. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.
compedu.2015.04.002.

In large lecture classes in Norway, students used feedback clickers as a strategy to promote
classroom engagement. The clickers allowed students to respond to questions during the lec-
tures. Questionnaire responses from 149 students showed that high percentages of the stu-
dents agreed that the use of clickers helped them to clarify misunderstandings, gave them
insight concerning their academic progress, made them reflect more on the subject matter,
gave them a greater understanding of what they should know, promoted more discussions
between students, and was useful for learning. With the use of clickers, the students proved
more capable of monitoring their learning and actively engaging with the subject matter. (55
ref)—Department of Education, University of Bergen, Norway.

Novak, E., & Tassell, J. Using Video Game Play to Improve Education Majors’ Mathemati-
cal Performance: An Experimental Study. Computers in Human Behavior, 2015, 53 (Decem-
ber) pp. 124–130. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2015.07.001.

At a university in Kentucky, 30 undergraduate education majors were assigned to an action

video game (AVG) intervention or to a non-AVG condition to investigate whether AVG
participation enhanced their attentional capabilities and reduced mathematics anxiety. The
students spent 10 hours playing an AVG or a non-AVG. A second sample of experienced
AVG players showed that they had higher levels of working memory, spatial ability, and
geometry abilities than did the non-gamers. Both the AVG and the non-AVG groups
improved their spatial ability, work memory, and geometry abilities from pretest to posttest,
reaching the point where they rivaled the abilities of the expert gamers. (40 ref)—School of
Teacher Education, Western Kentucky University.

GRADING SYSTEMS

O’Halloran, K. C., & Gordon, M. E. A Synergistic Approach to Turning the Tide of Grade
Inflation. Higher Education, 2014, 68 (December) pp. 1005–1023. http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/
s10734-014-9758.5.

Grade inflation is a longstanding problem in U.S. higher education, resulting from many
causes. These causes include exogenous and endogenous factors, accountability pressures,
the competitive environment, institutional-level factors, pressure for good teaching evalua-
tions, departmental-level factors, instructor status, and the tendency toward conflict avoid-
ance. Efforts to limit grade inflation run up against the autonomous, decentralized structure
of the academy. Because of the many causes of grade inflation, any reform must involve
synergistic institutional initiatives, such as prescribing the percentage of A and B grades

396] HIGHER EDUCATION ABSTRACTS

allowed in each department per year. An institutional initiative to enforce more rigorous
teaching and learning and course-based performance expectations is bound produce a great-
er variability in student performance, and using multiple sources to evaluate teaching would
counter the outsized reliance on student ratings of instruction. By following specific grade-
distribution rules, instructors can curtail grade inflation without taking personal blame.
Moreover, students are more inclined to accept lower grades without protest if they perceive
grading procedures as fair and they have received sound instruction. (123 ref)—College of
Education and Human Services, Montclair State University.

LEARNING ASSESSMENT

Crimmins, Gail, et al. A Written, Reflective and Dialogic Strategy for Assessment Feedback
That Can Enhance Student/Teacher Relationships. Assessment and Evaluation in Higher
Education, 2016, 41 (February-March) pp. 141–153. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/02602938.2014.
986644.

A written, reflective, and dialogic feedback (WRDF) strategy was introduced as a strategy
to enhance the learning experiences of students in a large, first-year core course at an Aus-
tralian university. In the WRDF system, students receive electronically created written feed-
back in the form of in-text comments and two key areas for further development, for which
they are guided through a “reflection on feedback” exercise in preparation for a consultation
with the tutor. The WRDF was evaluated through student surveys, student focus groups, and
a teacher survey. The findings from the student surveys revealed that 88 percent of the stu-
dents had not requested a consultation with their teacher prior to participating in the WRDF,
but 84 percent of the students reported that they would be comfortable having a consultation
after the WRDF. In addition, 90 percent of the students rated their feedback experience as
good or excellent after participating in the WRDF. The focus-group participants appreciated
the iterative process of the WRDF. In response to the teacher survey, 75 percent of the
teachers had positive attitudes about the WRDF and 83 percent thought that it enhanced stu-
dent understanding in all or most cases. Based on these findings, the WRDF strategy can be
used to personalize assessment in large classes. (31 ref)—Faculty of Arts and Business,
School of Communication, University of the Sunshine Coast, Australia.

Hughes, G., Wood, E., & Kitagawa, K. Use of Self-Referential (Ipsative) Feedback to Moti-
vate and Guide Distance Learners. Open Learning, 2014, 29 (February) pp. 31–44. http://dx.
doi.org/10.1080/02680513.2014.921612.

In a master’s program in applied educational leadership, delivered online by a research uni-

versity in the United Kingdom to mainly international students, problems arose with a lack
of student motivation and self-reliance. Ipsative feedback was introduced as a remedy.
Unlike criterion-based or norm-based assessment, ipsative assessment compares students’
current performance against their past performance. The students reviewed past feedback,
completed an ipsative self-assessment in response to the previous feedback, and had their
new assignments assessed based on the developmental feedback previously supplied. After
the introduction of ipsative feedback, tutors became much more likely to offer detailed
developmental feedback, the students were more likely to view feedback as helpful, and the
students reported higher expectations and levels of engagement. (39 ref)—Department of
Lifelong and Comparative Education, Institute of Education, London, United Kingdom.

HIGHER EDUCATION ABSTRACTS [397

Li, Hongli, et al. Peer Assessment in the Digital Age: A Meta-Analysis Comparing Peer and
Teacher ratings. Assessment and Evaluation in Higher Education, 2016, 41 (February-March)
pp. 246–264. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/02602938.2014.999746.

A meta-analysis of studies comparing peer assessments to assessments from teachers relied

upon 69 studies published since 1999. A moderately strong Pearson correlation of 0.63 was
found between the peer and teacher ratings. This correlation was higher when the peer
assessment was paper-based rather than computer-based, the subject area was not medical
or clinical, the course was graduate level rather than undergraduate, individual work rather
than group work was assessed, the assessors and assesses were matched at random, the peer
assessment was voluntary rather than mandatory, the peer raters also provided qualitative
comments, and the peer rates were involved in the development of the rating criteria. (56
ref)—Educational Policy Studies, Georgia State University.

Myers, C. B., & Myers, S. M. The Use of Learner-Centered Assessment in the United
States: The Influence of Individual and Institutional Contexts. Studies in Higher Education,
2015, 40 (December) pp. 1904–1918. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/03075079.2014.914164.

Using data from the 2004 wave of the National Study of Postsecondary Faculty, the
instructor-related variables that influenced the use of learner-centered assessment (LCA) were
investigated. The study covered six LCA practices: (1) research papers and writing assign-
ments; (2) multiple drafts of written work; (3) oral presentations; (4) group and team projects;
(5) student evaluations of each other’s work; and (6) service learning, cooperative experien-
ces, or assignments requiring interaction with the community or business. Institutional charac-
teristics had little effect on the probability of adopting LCA practices. On the other hand,
instructor characteristics mattered: the instructors with heavier teaching loads and who taught
larger classes were less likely to use LCA, while the instructors more involved in advising,
service, administration, and research were more likely to use LCA. By Holland disciplinary
type, the instructors in the Enterprising disciplines that emphasized hands-on learning and
leadership were the most likely to use LCA, followed by the Social disciplines and the Artistic
disciplines. (58 ref)—Department of Education, Montana State University.

Zlatovic, M., Balaban, I., & Kermek, D. Using Online Assessments to Stimulate Learning
Strategies and Achievement of Learning Goals. Computers and Education, 2015, 91
(December) pp. 32–45. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.compedu.2015.09.012.

In a study of whether the type of online assessment influences the learning strategies used
by students, 351 students in an informatics course were told that they would be assessed
through an online essay or online multiple-choice test. The students completed question-
naires asking about their choice of study strategy and perceived achievement of learning
goals. The results revealed that the announcement of an essay assessment prompted the stu-
dents to engage in deep learning strategies, but the announcement of a multiple-choice test
caused the students to engage in surface learning. The students’ use of deep learning
resulted in better academic performance and perceived attainment of learning goals. (43
ref)—Faculty of Organization and Informatics, University of Zagreb, Croatia.

LEARNING PREFERENCES AND STYLES

Hailikari, T. K., & Parpala, A. What Impedes or Enhances My Studying? The Interrelation
Between Approaches to Learning, Factors Influencing Study Progress and Earned

398] HIGHER EDUCATION ABSTRACTS

Credits. Teaching in Higher Education, 2014, 19 (October) pp. 812–824. http://dx.doi.org/10.
1080/13562517.2014.934348.

In the faculty of arts and humanities at the University of Helsinki, 93 students responded to
the Learn-questionnaire, designed to assess the factors that enhanced or impeded their study
progress. Multiple regression analysis revealed that employment impeded studying and
interesting teaching enhanced studying in terms of credits earned. Additionally, a surface
approach to learning was related to impeding factors such as doubting one’s ability and per-
ceptions of inadequate instruction, while a deep approach to learning was positively related
to the enhancing factors of high interest, enthusiasm, and previous studying. Organized
studying was positively related to the enhancing factors of diligence, high interest, and
enthusiasm, and negatively related to the impeding factors of experiencing instruction as
inadequate and doubting the usefulness of one’s studies for the future. (50 ref)—Institute of
Behavioral Sciences, University of Helsinki, Finland.

Sadykova, Guinara. Mediating Knowledge Through Peer-to-Peer Interaction in a Multicul-

tural Online Learning Environment: A Case Study of International Students in the US.
International Review of Research in Open and Distance Learning, 2014, 15 (July) pp. 24–49.

Twelve international students who had taken at least one online course at a large research
university participated in a mixed-methods study to explore the roles that peers may play in
the multicultural online learning environment. The participants valued learning from peers
and favored group discussions as a course activity. Group activities and discussions allowed
the international students to connect with and learn from peers, compensating for the lack of
the psychological tools needed to function in U.S. academic discourse. These findings con-
tradict the stereotype of international students as disfavoring constructivist learning. (47
ref)—Kazan Federal University, Russia.

LEARNING PROCESSES

Bravo, R., Lucia-Palacios, L., & Martin, M. J. Processes and Outcomes in Student Team-
work: An Empirical Study in a Marketing Subject. Studies in Higher Education, 2016, 41
(January-February) pp. 302–320. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/03075079.2014.926319.

In a marketing course at a Spanish university, 129 first-year students participated in a study

designed to test the connection between teamwork processes and outcomes. The teamwork
processes of transition, action, and interpersonal processes were hypothesized to influence
perceptions of goal attainment, improved skills, and overall attitude toward the team. Struc-
tural equation modeling showed that the teamwork process influenced the students’ per-
ceived goal attainment and improvement of skills, which, in turn, determined their overall
attitudes toward team. The most important team activities were establishing goals, rules,
and guidelines for the team and assessing the areas of expertise of the team members. Inter-
personal processes were relatively less important. (59 ref)—Faculty of Economics and Busi-
ness Administration, University of Zaragoza, Spain.

Brooks, Sara, et al. Learning About Learning Outcomes: The Student Perspective. Teaching in
Higher Education, 2014, 19 (August) pp. 721–733. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/13562517.2014.901964.

At the University of Leicester in the United Kingdom, 918 students in the fields of biology,
English, and medicine completed a questionnaire and a subsample participated in focus groups

HIGHER EDUCATION ABSTRACTS [399

about their perceptions and use of expected learning outcomes. The results from the question-
naire revealed that 81 percent of the students agreed that expected learning outcomes publicized
by the instructor at the start of the course were useful aids to learning, and 46 percent reported
that the learning outcomes became more useful as the course progressed. The students most fre-
quently used the learning outcomes for revising their work and assignments. The findings from
the focus groups showed that they used the learning outcomes to structure their study and note-
taking and especially for end-of-year revising to make sure they could answer questions about
each outcome. On the negative side, the students complained that they were often confused by
the instructor’s poor working of the outcomes and that the outcomes sometimes caused them to
underestimate the level of learning required for the course. (20 ref)—Department of Medical
and Social Care Education, Leicester Medical School, University of Leicester, United Kingdom.

de Bruijn-Smolders, Monique, et al. Effective Self-Regulatory Processes in Higher Educa-

tion: Research Findings and Future Directions. Studies in Higher Education, 2016, 41 (Jan-
uary-February) pp. 139–158. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/03075079.2014.915302.

A systematic literature review identified 10 studies that explored whether self-regulated

learning (SRL) interventions influenced self-regulatory processes and learning outcomes.
Overall, the SRL interventions were positively related to both outcomes. These interventions
included coaching, instruction, and the use of SRL-stimulating learning environments. As
learning outcomes, SRL fostered the use of metacognitive strategies, motivation, self-
efficacy, coping with task difficulty and demands, and resource management. (50 ref)—
Institution for Health, Rotterdam University of Applied Sciences, Netherlands.

Reeves, Philip M., & Sperling, R. A. A Comparison of Technologically Mediated and Face-
to-Face Help-Seeking Sources. British Journal of Educational Psychology, 2015, 85 (Decem-
ber) pp. 570–584. http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/bjep.12088.

In an introductory psychology course, 226 students self-reported their current course grade
at the semester’s midpoint, help-seeking preferences and frequencies, and intention to seek
help from different sources. The results revealed that he students most preferred to seek help
before, after, and during class, and least preferred to seek help during online office hours
and on the discussion board. Analysis of variance showed that the students tended to use dif-
ferent help sources depending on their current grade. The higher achieving students were
more likely to seek help before and after class and were less likely to use the discussion
board, while the lower achieving students were more likely to use the online office hours
and the discussion board. (43 ref)—Pennsylvania State University.

Scotland, James. How the Experience of Assessed Collaborative Writing Impacts on Under-
graduate Students’ Perceptions of Assessed Group Work. Assessment and Evaluation in
Higher Education, 2016, 41 (February-March) pp. 15–34. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/02602938.2014.
977221.

At a public university in Qatar, 50 undergraduate students participated in a longitudinal study

designed to assess their perceptions of group work in a writing course. The students’ attitudes
toward group work improved over time, especially after receiving the first round of grades. The
students became receptive to the ideas that they would get a higher grade by working in a group
rather than individually, that it was fair for everyone in the group to receive the same grade, and
that they should be able to give grades to other members of the group. These findings showed
collaborative writing can be an effective pedagogical took in the context of Arabic undergradu-
ate education. (38 ref)—Foundation Program, Qatar University, Qatar.

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Travers, C. J., Morisano, D., & Locke, E. A. Self-Reflection, Growth Goals, and Academic
Outcomes: A Qualitative Study. British Journal of Educational Psychology, 2015, 85 (June)
pp. 224–241. http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/bjep.12059.

In a module on the theoretical and practical approaches to personal growth setting, 92 final-year
business students in the United Kingdom kept diaries as they worked on three goals each and
responded to pretest-posttest measures of the impact of goal setting on academic growth and
achievement. The students chose academic performance-related growth goals in the areas of
personal organization and time management, psychological and emotional control, and interper-
sonal skills. The themes associated with reflective goal setting were subgoals and proximal tar-
gets, new study approaches and techniques, psychological mechanisms, and social support and
accountability. For these students, reflective goal setting was associated with academic growth.
(54 ref)—School of Business and Economics, Loughborough University, United Kingdom.

TEACHING PROCESSES

Allendoerfer, Cheryl, et al. Mapping Beliefs About Teaching to Patterns of Instruction With-
in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics. Teaching in Higher Education,
2014, 19 (October) pp. 758–771. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/13562517.2014.901962.

Forty-eight faculty members from the STEM disciplines participated in a qualitative study
regarding their attitudes toward different approaches to teaching. All 48 participants
endorsed a knowledge-centered learning environment, with fewer participants including ele-
ments of community-centered, assessment-centered, and learner-centered elements in their
classrooms. Knowledge-centered learning still predominated among the participants who
made some use of student-centered learning, which limited the effectiveness of the latter
approach. (34 ref)—Department of Electrical Engineering, University of Washington.

Hu, Yanjuan, et al. The Role of Research and Teaching: A Comparison of Teachers from
Research Universities and Those from Universities of Applied Sciences. Higher Education
Policy, 2015, 28 (December) pp. 535–554. http://dx.doi.org/10.1057/hep.2014.19.

In language and culture departments at Dutch research universities (RU) and universities of
applied sciences (UAS), 132 teachers responded to a survey about their incorporation of
research into teaching. Both the RU and the UAS teachers held positive beliefs about the
role of research in teaching, saw a substantial gap in the actual role of research, thought that
the incorporation of research best served the students’ development of a creative and critical
disposition, and agreed that student participation in research was the least important aspect
of the role of research in teaching. Even with these areas of agreement, the RU teachers held
significantly more positive views of the role of research in teaching than did the UAS teach-
ers. This difference could be attributed to the fact that the RA teachers spent more time
doing research and perceived a stronger institutional research culture. (30 ref)—ICLON
Graduate School of Teaching, Leiden University, Netherlands.

Song, H., Kim, J., & Luo, W. Teacher-Student Relationship in Online Classes: A Role of
Teacher Self-Disclosure. Computers in Human Behavior, 2016, 54 (January) pp. 436–443.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2015.07.037.

In online and face-to-face classes at a large public university, 534 undergraduate students
completed measures of teacher self-disclosure, emotional responses to teacher self-

HIGHER EDUCATION ABSTRACTS [401

disclosure, and satisfaction with the teacher-student relationship. Structural equation model-
ing revealed that teacher self-disclosure had a stronger effect on student satisfaction in
online than in face-to-face classes. These findings suggest that instructors should make a
special effort to talk about themselves and personalize their teaching in the online environ-
ment. (61 ref)—Department of Communication, University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee.

Tews, Michael J., et al. Fun in the College Classroom: Examining Its Nature and Relation-
ship with Student Engagement. College Teaching, 2015, 63 (January-February) pp. 16–26.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/87567555.2014.972318.

In a summer orientation program, 722 entering freshmen completed the newly developed Fun in
the Classroom Scale and measures of peer socializing, praise from the instructor, and engage-
ment. Fun was operationalized as activities and delivery. Activities included friendly small-group
competitions, games, hands-on activities, playing music, and food brought in by the instructor,
while delivery included the use of creative examples, humor, interactive lectures, and attention
getters to stimulate student interest. The hypothesis that fun in the classroom would be positively
related to student engagement received partial support: fun delivery was positively related to
overall engagement, cognitive engagement, emotional engagement, and physical engagement,
but fun activities did not influence engagement. Praise from the instructor was unrelated to
engagement. (67 ref)—School of Hospitality Management, Pennsylvania State University.

PLANNING AND MANAGEMENT

Cox, Helen. A Model for Creating a Campus Sustainability Plan. Planning for Higher Educa-
tion Journal, 2015, 44 (October-December) pp. 89–100.

Using a case study from California State University, Northridge, the steps and consider-
ations involved in creating a campus sustainability plan are elaborated. The first step entails
goal setting. After goals are established, the planning steps, in order, are (1) form a steering
committee and gain the backing of senior leadership, (2) conduct research and determine the
plan’s format, (3) identify section leaders and authors, (4) develop section templates, (5) gather
data, (6) draft plan sections and review with the relevant stakeholders, (7) request feedback and
edit the document, (8) present the draft plan to the campus leadership, (9) conduct surveys and
focus group meetings, (10) incorporate feedback into the plan and establish priorities, (11) pre-
sent the plan to the executive and faculty leadership, and (12) adopt the plan and announce it to
the campus. (39 ref)—Department of Geography, California State University, Northridge.

Vaughter, P., Wright, T., & Herbert, Y. 50 Shades of Green: An Examination of Sustainability
Policy on Canadian Campuses. Canadian Journal of Higher Education, 2015, 45 (4) pp. 81–
100.

Institutional websites, annual reports, and other documents from Canada’s 220 postsecondary
institutions were reviewed for evidence of sustainability-related policies. Overall, 110 of the
200 institutions had an environmental or a sustainability policy. By province, the institutions
with sustainability policies were most likely to be located in Quebec (85 percent) and British
Columbia (67 percent). The existence of a sustainability policy was not correlated with whether
the institution had signed an international or national sustainability declaration. Conversely,
having a policy was strongly and positively correlated with having completed at least one cam-
pus sustainability assessment and the presence of a sustainability office or officer. The

402] HIGHER EDUCATION ABSTRACTS