This ground-breaking and exhaustive analysis of university ranking surveys scrutinizes their theoretical bases, methodological issues, societal impact, and policy implications, providing readers with a deep understanding of these controversial comparators. The authors propose that university rankings are misused by policymakers and institutional leaders alike. They assert that these interested parties overlook the highly problematic internal logic of ranking methodologies even as they obsess over the surveys assessment of their status. The result is that institutions suffer from short-termism, realigning their resources to maximize their relative rankings. While rankings are widely used in policy and academic discussions, this is the first book to explore the theoretical and methodological issues of ranking itself. It is a welcome contribution to an often highly charged debate. Far from showing how to manipulate the system, this collection of work by key researchers aims to enlighten interested parties."

"Teaching the Early Modern Period" is an innovative project bringing together leading early modernists from a wide geographical and disciplinary background. Scholars from English, History and French Studies unite in this unique volume to examine the challenges which the early modern period provides in the third-level classroom. Alongside nine essays the volume is interspersed with shorter reflections of fourteen invited professors from Ireland, the UK, France, the Netherlands, South Africa, Canada and the USA. The contributors provide a rare transcontinental insight into current pedagogical praxis in a number of Western national traditions, presenting a wide range of case-studies of how research can inform teaching from scholars who refuse to accept a divorce between the two.

"Teaching the Early Modern Period" is an innovative project bringing together leading early modernists from a wide geographical and disciplinary background. Scholars from English, History and French Studies unite in this unique volume to examine the challenges which the early modern period provides in the third-level classroom. Alongside nine essays the volume is interspersed with shorter reflections of fourteen invited professors from Ireland, the UK, France, the Netherlands, South Africa, Canada and the USA. The contributors provide a rare transcontinental insight into current pedagogical praxis in a number of Western national traditions, presenting a wide range of case-studies of how research can inform teaching from scholars who refuse to accept a divorce between the two.

This book explores educational and cultural experiences of "part-time unveilers" during their degree programs in public institutions in Turkey. The term "part-time unveiler" is coined to refer to undergraduate female students who cover their hair in their private lives, but who remove the headscarf while at a Turkish university as a result of the higher education headscarf ban policy. The book is based on a qualitative study that involved one-on-one interviews with thirty participants. The book highlights how part-time unveilers understand and negotiate the policy, the challenges and opportunities associated with unveiling and the strategies they use in response to these, and the impact of the headscarf ban on part-time unveilers' sense of identity.

The importance of science fiction to undergraduate literary studies cannot be underestimated. Its capacity to challenge students' social, political and cultural perspectives makes it invaluable in highlighting the contingent nature of contemporary society and the potential for change. "Teaching Science Fiction" is the first book in thirty years to address how science fiction might be taught to this effect. It presents comprehensive treatments of the major phases in the development of the genre including the scientific romance, Golden Age science fiction, the New Wave and science fiction's engagement with the postmodern. The book identifies and explores innovative teaching strategies which will both engage and challenge students whilst providing practical advice on how an sf course can be designed, delivered and evaluated. Sample syllabuses, a detailed chronology, a compact history of the genre and an extensive bibliography make this an invaluable guide for anyone teaching, or considering teaching, science fiction at undergraduate level.

The importance of science fiction to undergraduate literary studies cannot be underestimated. Its capacity to challenge students' social, political and cultural perspectives makes it invaluable in highlighting the contingent nature of contemporary society and the potential for change. "Teaching Science Fiction" is the first book in thirty years to address how science fiction might be taught to this effect. It presents comprehensive treatments of the major phases in the development of the genre including the scientific romance, Golden Age science fiction, the New Wave and science fiction's engagement with the postmodern. The book identifies and explores innovative teaching strategies which will both engage and challenge students whilst providing practical advice on how an sf course can be designed, delivered and evaluated. Sample syllabuses, a detailed chronology, a compact history of the genre and an extensive bibliography make this an invaluable guide for anyone teaching, or considering teaching, science fiction at undergraduate level.

Universities have been propelled into the center of the global political economy of knowledge production by a number of factors: mass education, academic capitalism, the globalization of knowledge, the democratization of communication in the era of the Internet, and the emergence of the knowledge and innovation economy. The latest book in the International Studies in Higher Education series, Universities and the Public Sphere addresses the vital role of research universities as global public spheres, sites where public interaction, conversation and deliberation take place, where the nature of the State and private interests can be openly debated and contested. At a time of increased privatization, open markets, and government involvement in higher education, the book also addresses the challenges facing the university in its role as a global public sphere.
In this volume, international contributors challenge prevalent views of the global marketplace to create a deeper understanding of higher education's role in knowledge creation and nation building. In nearly every national context the pressures of globalization, neo-liberal economic restructuring, and new managerial imperatives challenge traditional norms of autonomy, academic freedom, access and affordability. The authors in Universities and the Public Sphere argue that universities are uniquely suited to have transformative democratic potential as global public spheres.

Teaching Theory offers a selection of essays on the pragmatics, benefits and shortcomings of Theory as a key aspect of literature teaching in universities. They range from reflective discussions of Theory as an intellectual challenge for undergraduates to accounts of the day-to-day problems of planning and teaching courses and implementing Theory.

Teaching Theory offers a selection of essays on the pragmatics, benefits and shortcomings of Theory as a key aspect of literature teaching in universities. They range from reflective discussions of Theory as an intellectual challenge for undergraduates to accounts of the day-to-day problems of planning and teaching courses and implementing Theory.

Based on research conducted in a three-year, mixed-method, multi-site National Science Foundation, Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics Talent Expansion Program (STEP) Project, this book offers a comprehensive look into how engineering department culture and climate impacts the successful retention of female and under-represented minority college students. The editors provide valuable insight into how engineering programs support female and minority students and what strategies students employ to successfully complete engineering programs, while also addressing policies and practices that will best serve engineers in the 21st century.  

There is no single idea of the university. Ever since its medieval origin, the concept of the university has continued to change. The metaphysical university gave way successively to the scientific university, and then to the corporate and the entrepreneurial university. But what, then, might lie ahead? Being a University both charts this conceptual development and examines the future possibilities for the idea of the university. Ronald Barnett pursues this quest through an exploration of pairs of contending concepts that speak to the idea of the university -- such as space and time; being and becoming; and culture and anarchy. On this foundation is developed an imaginative exposition of possible ideas of the university, including the liquid university and the authentic university. In the course of this inquiry, it is argued that: * Any thought that the idea of the entrepreneurial university represents the end-point of the evolution of the idea of the university has to be abandoned. The entrepreneurial university is excessively parochial and ill-matched to the challenges facing the university * A responsibility of the university is precisely that of working out an imaginative conception of its future possibilities. The boldest and largest thinking is urgently required * The fullest expression of the university's possibilities lies in a reclamation of the universal aspirations that lay in earlier ideas of the university. The ecological university represents just such a universal aspiration, suited to the unfolding demands of the future. Being a University will be of wide interest, to institutional leaders and managers, higher education planners, academics in all disciplines and students of higher education, in educational policy and politics, and the philosophy, sociology and theory of education, and indeed, anyone who believes in the future of the university.

Practical and down-to-earth, the second edition of Action Research in Teaching and Learning is an ideal introduction to the subject, offering a distinctive blend of the theoretical and the practical, grounded firmly in the global higher education landscape. Written in an accessible style to build confidence, it provides easily adaptable, practical frameworks, guidelines and advice on research practice within a higher education context. The reader is guided through each stage of the action research process, from engaging with the critical theory, to the practical applications with the ultimate goal of providing a research study which is publishable. Supplemented by useful pedagogical research tools and exemplars of both qualitative and quantitative action research studies, this new edition features chapters engaging with teaching excellence and analysing qualitative and quantitative research, additions to the resources section and a new preface focusing more explicitly on the ever-growing number of part-time academics. Action Research in Teaching and Learning combines a theoretical understanding of the scholarly literature with practical applications and is an essential, critical read for any individual teaching or undertaking action research.

Informative as well as entertaining, this volume offers many interesting facets of the first hundred years of anthropology at Oxford University.

Student Plagiarism in Higher Education is a crucial read for any university teacher concerned about plagiarism. It provides the tools and information needed to assess this often complex international phenomenon constructively and effectively from a variety of angles, and provides a framework for further discussion and research. Each chapter poses a question about an essential aspect of plagiarism and examines the central theoretical, ethical and technical questions which surround it. Providing a unique perspective on the topic of academic plagiarism, this book: addresses questions which are vexing in teaching practice, but for which ready answers are not available in professional skills development materials; relates plagiarism to wider issues of learning and intellectual development; collates the thinking of international leading experts on the topic of plagiarism from different areas of the academy. Student Plagiarism in Higher Education provides an excellent insight which thoroughly interrogates all aspects of the plagiarism argument. Theoretically based and carefully considered contributions from international experts ensure that this volume is an invaluable asset to anyone wishing to read more, learn more and think more about plagiarism.

Traditionally academia has been seen as an elite profession, for those with an academic background and from the middle/upper classes. This is what makes the life of a working class academic all the more interesting, rich and powerful. How have they become who they are in an industry steeped in elitism? How have they navigated their way, and what has the journey been like? Do they continue to identify as working class or has their social positioning and/or identities shifted? Iona Burnell Reilly presents a collection of autoethnographies, written by working class academics in higher education - how they got there, what their journeys were like, what their experiences were, if they faced any struggles, conflicts, prejudice and discrimination, and if they had to, or still do, negotiate their identities. Told in their own words the academics chart their journeys and explore their experiences of becoming an academic while also coming from a working class background. Although a working class heritage under-pins the autoethnography of each of the writers, the interlocking sections between class, race, gender and sexuality will also be relevant.

***** Amazon reviews for the second edition: "Again, Rowena Murray nails it! A perfectly balanced guide outlining truly useful tips to getting through your viva from someone who knows." "This is an excellent book. I found the book helpful in giving me a good understanding of what to expect, how to start with focusing on the specific areas suggested and how to develop my own style in marking up my thesis ... It certainly reduced my nerves going in knowing I had suggested areas fully prepared. A must have for anyone doing a viva!"How to Survive Your Viva 3e is a concise, practical introduction that equips students with the skills they need to defend their thesis or dissertation. The oral examination requires the highest standard of communication skills. The book ensures you are ready for what can be a complex and intimidating experience, telling you what to expect, how to practise and prepare, what questions you might be asked and how to ensure your responses support your thesis. Written in an accessible style, this book draws on the tried and trusted material and activities created for viva preparation workshops run by the author over many years.Thoroughly updated but retaining its well-loved style, this 3rd edition provides: Planning tools for you to employ, plus summaries at the start of each chapter to help you prepareChecklists of how to do well in your oral examination, with action points to clarify what you should do nextExample questions with samples of strong and weak answers, plus narratives of students' real viva experiences More on research into viva questions and different types of questions you may be asked, including specialist ones in your disciplineAdvice on condensing your rationale, framework, methods and findings into a short verbal statementNew material on maintaining positive body language, posture and eye contact for an assertive and calm viva The third edition is the essential handbook for all students and researchers anticipating an undergraduate, Masters or doctoral examination. It is also an invaluable reference for supervisors, tutors and examiners.

Higher education reforms have been on the agenda of Western European countries for 25 years, trying to deal with self governed professional bureaucracies politically weakened by massification when an emerging common understanding enhanced their role as major actors in knowledge based economies. While university systems are deeply embedded in national settings, the ex post rationale of still on-going reforms is surprisingly uniform and de-nationalized . They promote (1) the organizational turn of universities, to varying extent substituting collegial loosely coupled entities by integrated, goal-oriented entities deliberately choosing their own actions (and therefore open to differentiation), that can thus be held responsible for what they do (2) the diversification of stakeholders, supposedly offering solutions to problems as various as the democratisation of universities, the shrinking of State budget resources and the diversification of university missions offering answers to changes in the making and in the use of science.

When it comes to accounting for these reforms, two grand narratives of public management share the floor. NPM implies a strengthening of the capacity of the core State to direct public services organizations through management by objectives and results or contractualization, assessment, evaluation and. Governance focuses on network-based governance systems, where coordinating power and control are collectively shared between the major social actors or partners at all levels of the decision-making system. Our results suggest that all higher education systems under study were more or less transformed according to both these narratives. It is therefore needed to understand how they combine or create contradictions. This leads us to test a third neo-weberian model. This model reaffirms the role of the State, of representative democracy, (central, regional and local), of public law (suitably modernized), preserves the idea of a public service with a distinctive status, culture and terms and conditions. It shifts from an internal orientation to bureaucratic rules towards an external orientation in meeting citizens needs and wishes by means of standardization of work processes and their products, based on a distinctive public service and a particular legal order survived as the foundations beneath the various packages of modernizing reforms.

This book traces the national dynamics of public policies, organizational design and steering tools in seven European higher education and research systems, using these narratives to interpret and test the actual changes and the degree of national specificities and European convergence.

This book is not a sum of national chapters like other presumably comparative. It does not intend to tell once again the story of the transformation of the relationships between the state and universities. It tries to use Higher education system to discuss issues on state intervention and steering and more generally the NPM, governance and neo-weberian models in a specific field.

Furthermore, this book intends breaking the walls between specialists in higher education and specialist in public management and research policy. This well rooted division of labour is less that ever justified as the university mission in research (fundamental, applied, strategic) is underscored by commentors and reformers themselves. For that reason, we have chosen to observe the consequences of the dynamics of public policies, organizational design and steering tools on two specific issues related to the development of research training and organizing within universities: the transformation of research funding on the one hand and the expansion of graduate studies and doctoral schools on the other."

Public interest in the religion of Islam and in Muslim communities in recent years has generated an impetus for Western Universities to establish an array of Institutes and programs dedicated to the study of Islam. Despite the growth in number of programs dedicated to this study, very little attention has been paid to the appropriate shape of such programs and the assumptions that ought to underlie such a study. The Teaching and Study of Islam in Western Universities attempts to address two central questions that arise through the teaching of Islam. Firstly, what relation is there between the study of the religion of Islam and the study of those cultures that have been shaped by that religion? Secondly, what is the appropriate public role of a scholar of Islam? After extensive discussion of these questions, the authors then continue to address the wider issues raised for the academic community having to negotiate between competing cultural and philosophical demands. This edited collection provides new perspectives on the study of Islam in Western Institutions and will be an invaluable resource for students of Education and Religion, in particular Islamic Studies.

What is the purpose of black colleges? Why do black colleges continue to exist? Are black colleges necessary? Historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs) are at the same time the least studied and the least understood institutions of higher education and the most maligned and the most endangered. This unique study examines the mission of four-year HBCUs from the perspective of the campus president, as a foundation for understanding the relevance and role of these institutions. This is the first research to focus on the role of presidents of black colleges; is based on extensive interviews with fifteen presidents; and takes into particular account the type of campus environments in which they operate. Unlike community colleges, women's colleges, men's colleges, and Hispanic-serving colleges, Black colleges are racially identifiable institutions. They also vary significantly in, among other characteristics: size, control (public or private), religious affiliation, gender composition, and available resources. Although united in the historic mission of educating African Americans, each black college or university has its own identity and set of educational objectives. The book examines how presidents define and implement mission in the context of their campuses, view the challenges they face, and confront the factors that promote or hinder implementation of their missions.

This book offers examples of how experience and innovation can be combined to create something new, with a particular emphasis on practical implementation, such as generating successful solutions by merging Information and Communication Technology (ICT) and managerial concepts.

University teaching and learning take place within ever more specialized disciplinary settings, each characterized by its unique traditions, concepts, practices and procedures. It is now widely recognized that support for teaching and learning needs to take this discipline-specificity into account. However, in a world characterized by rapid change, complexity and uncertainty, problems do not present themselves as distinct subjects but increasingly within trans-disciplinary contexts calling for graduate outcomes that go beyond specialized knowledge and skills. This ground-breaking book highlights the important interplay between context-specific and context-transcendent aspects of teaching, learning and assessment. It explores critical questions, such as: What are the 'ways of thinking and practicing' characteristic of particular disciplines? How can students be supported in becoming participants of particular disciplinary discourse communities? Can the diversity in teaching, learning and assessment practices that we observe across departments be attributed exclusively to disciplinary structure? To what extent do the disciplines prepare students for the complexities and uncertainties that characterize their later professional, civic and personal lives? Written for university teachers, educational developers as well as new and experienced researchers of Higher Education, this highly-anticipated first edition offers innovative perspectives from leading Canadian, US and UK scholars on how academic learning within particular disciplines can help students acquire the skills, abilities and dispositions they need to succeed academically and also post graduation. Carolin Kreber is Professor of Teaching and Learning in Higher Education and the Director of the Centre for Teaching, Learning and Assessment at the University of Edinburgh

The first in-depth look at how women have shaped the history and legacy of Indiana University. Women first enrolled at Indiana University in 1867. In the following years they would leave an indelible mark on this Hoosier institution. However, until now their stories have been underappreciated, both on the IU campus and by historians, who have paid them little attention. Women at Indiana University draws together 15 snapshots of IU women's experiences and contributions to explore essential questions about their lives and impact. What did it mean to write the petition for women's admission or to become the first woman student at an all-male university? To be a woman of color on a predominantly white campus? To balance work, studies, and commuting, entering college as a non-traditional student? How did women contribute to their academic fields and departments? How did they tap opportunities, confront barriers, and forge networks of support to achieve their goals? Women at Indiana University not only opens the door to a more inclusive and accurate understanding of IU's past and future, but also offers greater visibility for Hoosier women in our larger understanding of women in American higher education.

Oxford has arguably contributed more to our understanding of tribal societies than any other department of anthropology in the world. Through creating a virtual community, by uniting their work and their lives, by their assurance, generations of Oxford scholars have been able to make the leaps which take us into new and previously unsuspected worlds. They had the privileges, the shared zeal and the shock of similarity-with-difference which engenders true creativity and they made good use of it. (from the Preface by Alan MacFarlane, Cambridge University). Informative as well as entertaining, this volume offers many interesting facets of the first hundred years of anthropology at Oxford University.