Chapter 7: Institutional Support

The OTiS (Online Teaching in Scotland) programme, run by the now defunct Scotcit programme, ran an International e-Workshop on Developing Online Tutoring Skills which was held between 8–12 May 2000. It was organised by Heriot–Watt University, Edinburgh and The Robert Gordon University, Aberdeen, UK. Out of this workshop came the seminal Online Tutoring E-Book, a generic primer on e-learning pedagogy and methodology, full of practical implementation guidelines. Although the Scotcit programme ended some years ago, the E-Book has been copied to the SONET site as a series of PDF files, which are now available via the ALT Open Access Repository. The editor, Carol Higgison, is currently working in e-learning at the University of Bradford (see her staff profile) and is the Chair of the Association for Learning Technology (ALT)

Time, institutional support and quality of decision making in child protection:A cross-country analysis

This paper examines perceptions of time and institutional support for decision making and staff confidence in child welfare staffs ultimate decisions – examining differences and similarities between and within the service-oriented Nordic countries (Norway and Finland) and the risk-oriented Anglo-American countries (England and California). The study identifies a high degree of work pressure across all the countries, lines of predominantly vertical institutional support and relatively high confidence in decisions. Finland stands out with higher perceived work pressure and with a horizontal support line, whereas England stands out with workers having a lower degree of confidence in their own and others’ decisions

An Added Dimension to the Faculty Role: The Accelerated Student

Nursing faculty work hard at helping students achieve academic success by utilizing a variety of support services. The question guiding this study is: Do accelerated and traditional BSN students have different characteristics or different valued support services? The characteristics of accelerated and traditional BSN students were obtained from a larger longitudinal study (N=93). The Support Services Questionnaire collected data from a convenient sample of two groups of BSN students: accelerated (n=26), traditional (n=49). The results presented accelerated students as primarily female, financially supported, and holding a variety of college degrees. Traditional students were represented as female, younger, working and not having any baccalaureate degrees. The implications are accelerated students preferred non-institutional support services, while traditional students preferred institutional support services. Recommendations for nursing schools and faculty are offered

Native Artists: Livelihoods, Resources, Space, Gifts

Examines the experiences of Ojibwe artists in Minnesota, including access to training, funding, space, paying markets, and institutional support; discrimination and isolation; and relationships with communities. Profiles artists and makes recommendations

Building research capacity in Education: evidence from recent initiatives in England, Scotland and Wales.

There is a pressing need to build research capacity in Education across the UK to combat the effects of the ageing research population and the increasing polarisation between research-intensive institutions and the remainder of the field. This paper draws data from three evaluations of recent initiatives across the UK to explore the necessary conditions for effectively building research capacity. Technicist and situated learning models are explored in relation to the immediate and longer term professional development of the research workforce, and we identify that central to the effectiveness of this professional learning is: (1) interpersonal support from more experienced colleagues; and (2) institutional support for research engagement, primarily in the provision of time and an infrastructure which can support research activity. We conclude that the development of, and engagement with, inter-institutional, inter-project communities is imperative to this process

Rightsizing Congregate Care: A Powerful First Step in Transforming Child Welfare Systems

Outlines Casey's initiatives in four sites to help child welfare systems reduce institutional placements, improve outcomes, and support community services by changing the array of services, frontline practice, finances, performance management, and policy