A Collaborative Project to Increase the Participation of Women and Minorities In Higher Level Mathematics Courses

In this article, the authors describe a program developed to encourage women and minorities to continue their study of mathematics in high schools until graduation. The 3- year program was a collaborative effort by professors and students from Bryant University, local businesses, and local high schools. During the 3 years, the program evolved from the development and presentation of reality-based mathematical modules taught in the high school classrooms to an interdisciplinary enrichment activity at Bryant University. The university students acted as mentors or tutors to the high school students. Throughout the program, the business representatives, university personnel, and high school teachers collaborated to bring mathematics alive to the students through real-world applications

Female Under-Representation in Computing Education and Industry - A Survey of Issues and Interventions

This survey paper examines the issue of female under-representation in computing education and industry, which has been shown from empirical studies to be a problem for over two decades. While various measures and intervention strategies have been implemented to increase the interest of girls in computing education and industry, the level of success has been discouraging. The primary contribution of this paper is to provide an analysis of the extensive research work in this area. It outlines the progressive decline in female representation in computing education. It also presents the key arguments that attempt to explain the decline and intervention strategies. We conclude that there is a need to further explore strategies that will encourage young female learners to interact more with computer educational games

Science, Engineering, and Mathematics Education: Status and Issues

[Excerpt] An important aspect of U.S. efforts to maintain and improve economic competitiveness is the existence of a capable scientific and technological workforce. A major concern of the 110th Congress may be regarding the future ability of the U.S. science and engineering base to generate the technological advances needed to maintain economic growth. Discussions have centered on the quality of science and mathematics education and training and on the scientific knowledge of those students entering other disciplines. Even students pursuing nonscientific and nonmathematical specialities are likely to require basic knowledge of scientific and technological applications for effective participation in the workforce. Charges are being made that many students complete high school scientifically and technologically illiterate

Engaging Undergraduates in Science Research: Not Just About Faculty Willingness.

Despite the many benefits of involving undergraduates in research and the growing number of undergraduate research programs, few scholars have investigated the factors that affect faculty members' decisions to involve undergraduates in their research projects. We investigated the individual factors and institutional contexts that predict faculty members' likelihood of engaging undergraduates in their research project(s). Using data from the Higher Education Research Institute's 2007-2008 Faculty Survey, we employ hierarchical generalized linear modeling to analyze data from 4,832 science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) faculty across 194 institutions to examine how organizational citizenship behavior theory and social exchange theory relate to mentoring students in research. Key findings show that faculty who work in the life sciences and those who receive government funding for their research are more likely to involve undergraduates in their research project(s). In addition, faculty at liberal arts or historically Black colleges are significantly more likely to involve undergraduate students in research. Implications for advancing undergraduate research opportunities are discussed

Enhancing Departments and Graduate Education in Geography

This paper describes the development, implementation, and preliminary outcomes of Enhancing Departments and Graduate Education (EDGE) in Geography, a multi-year project begun in 2005 to study the process of professional development in graduate geography in the U.S and sponsored by the National Science Foundation. As a research and action project responding to the needs of graduate geography programs, EDGE seeks to provide academic geographers with an empirical perspective of disciplinary as well as interdisciplinary and generic skills that M.A./M.S. and Ph.D. students develop as a result of graduate education. Related objectives are to understand how disciplinary skills are applied by geography graduates once they enter the professional workforce in both academic and non-academic professional settings, and to gauge the extent graduate programs are sufficiently preparing geography graduates for those careers. We begin by summarizing the research goals and design of EDGE, highlighting the roles and contributions of geographers and educational researchers, and noting the interplay and synergy between disciplinary and interdisciplinary methodologies and practices. To date, research has focused on: 1) assessing contemporary workforce competencies in professional geography and 2) examining the role of department climate and culture on student experience and faculty development within masters and doctoral programs. Although the EDGE research efforts are still underway, we present some preliminary research findings and discuss the implications of those outcomes for professional development in geography and related social and environmental sciences. Also discussed is the complementary nature of discipline-based and interdisciplinary professional development efforts

Conscientious objection – does it also apply to nursing students?

The conscientious clause in nursing can be defined as a kind of special ethical and legal regulation which gives nurses right to object to actively perform certain medical procedures which are against their personal system of values. Usually these values are associated with nurses’ religious beliefs, but not always. Scope of this regulation differs throughout the world. However, it is emphasized that right to the conscientious objection is not absolute and this regulation can not be used in cases of danger to life or serious damage to the health of the patient. Medical procedures to which nurses hold conscientious objection are often within reproductive health services. However, we can also find reports on the use of this right i.e. in end-of-life care and in the process of the implementation of medical experiments. The main issue underlined in the discussion regarding practising conscientious objection in the clinical setting is the collision of two human rights: the right to conscientious objection of medical personnel and the right of patients to specific medical procedures which are legal in their country. If a procedure is legally available in a country it means that patients can expect to receive it, on the other hand, all citizens, including health care workers, have the right to protect their moral identity and the right to object to the implementation of a procedure to which they have a specific objection. It is very difficult to find good ethical and legal balance between these two perspectives

Academic careers: the value of individual mentorship on research career progression

The paper discusses how individual mentoring may impact positively on career pathway development for potential and future clinical academic researchers in nursing and allied health professions. Methods: The paper draws on a number of data sources and methodologies in order to fulfil the aims. Firstly, international literature provides an insight into mentoring processes and impact on career development. This is followed by a review of the mentoring experiences based on a UK study on the professorial populations in nursing and allied health professions. The final section reports on results of interviews with early and advanced researchers on their experiences of mentoring. Results: Individual mentoring is valued highly by health care professionals at all stages of career development. It is considered particularly useful when people are in transition towards a more challenging career role.Individuals in receipt of mentoring both formal and informal, report improved confidence in their cability to achieve their career goals. Mentees report improved levels of competence achieved through knowledge aquisition, networking and ability to probelm solve. Conclusions/Summary: Mentoring is considered an important process for health care professionals at all stages of their career. Opportunities to access and receive mentoring support for health care staff in the UK remain limited and sporadic in nature. There are examples of excellent mentoring schemes in place within some institutons and organisations but a national strategy to support mentoring has yet to be developed Key words: Clinical academic careers, mentoring, nursing, allied health profession

Mentoring, Educational Services, and Incentives to Learn: What Do We Know About Them?

This paper reviews recent studies on the effectiveness of services and incentives offered to disadvantaged youth. We focus our analysis on three types of interventions: mentoring, educational services, and financial rewards. The objective of this article is threefold. First, we explain alternative theoretical points of view in favor (or against – when applicable) each of these interventions. Then, we discuss how recent empirical work has affected that view, and we summarize the latest findings. We conclude with a discussion on what questions remain to be examined. Our hope is that this article will serve as a resource for those seeking to understand what educational interventions work and for whom, and to use as a starting point to illuminate the debate on where to go next.cognitive and non-cognitive skills, intrinsic and extrinsic motivation, at-risk youth, resilience, deviancy training, deterrence, primary- and high-school, post-secondary education, remedial programs, incentives on inputs and outputs

Learning for the Future: Changing the Culture of Math and Science Education to Ensure a Competitive Workforce

This report argues that improving the math and science skills of our nation's youth is an important step in ensuring and promoting innovation-led economic growth in the coming decades. The report calls for the implementation of a strategic plan that will increase student "demand" for and achievement in mathematics and science