Women Leaders in Higher Education: Organizational Cultures and Personal Resilience

In this article, findings are presented from a study of women leaders in higher education, carried out in two universities in England, focusing particularly on the perspectives of women in a range of leadership roles in a new university. 18 women leaders were interviewed about their experiences of leadership, including day to day and strategic work, relationships with colleagues and forms of support. The analysis draws on a feminist theoretical framework in a changing global context for women in higher education. As in Airini et al. (2011), findings show a close interaction between personal, professional and organizational factors. The new university provided a positive context in terms of numbers of women in senior positions, as well as leadership training, mentoring and female role models, in contrast to the old university where women leaders were still in the minority. The women leaders demonstrated highly skilful, principled leadership styles and a blend of inclusive, collegial approaches with direction and vision. It is argued that a balance was maintained at the new university between new managerialism and a caring ethos, which provided a supportive context for women leaders

motivation, prior experience and entry requirements

In this paper preliminary findings are presented from exploratory studies in Portugal, Greece and England, within the context of widening participation in higher education. The focus of the enquiry is to investigate the personal and professional identities of adult learners entering or re-entering higher education, to highlight their characteristics and learning needs and identify key factors affecting their entry and progress in education related and other courses. Quantitative and qualitative data are presented and discussed on mature students' prior experience, motivation and application process in two university departments of education and one college of education of a polytechnic institution. Mature women students predominated in all three institutions. All the adult learners were highly motivated to enter or return to higher education and had considerable prior experience, especially in the areas chosen to study. However, the very different application procedures in the three countries, including quotas for mature student entry in Portugal and Greece, led to differing opportunities for adult learners. The writers conclude that considerable progress still needs to be made to improve access for mature entrants to higher education.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Landmarks in the professional and academic development of mid-career teacher educators

This paper focuses on the professional and academic development of mid-career teacher educators from two universities in England. The objectives of the study were to analyse and compare the career experiences of teacher educators; in particular, to identify stages of development, landmark events and contextual factors affecting professional learning and academic identities. In-depth biographical interviews were carried out with 12 teacher educators, together with living graphs of their career paths. Clear landmarks were identified in both contexts, with development in teaching seen as largely positive, while research development was much more varied. Teacher educators who were further on in their careers saw research development as transformative personally as well as academically. In analysing the findings within a sociocultural learning framework, the authors draw in particular on Swennen et al.’s model of teacher educators’ sub-identities, Akerlind’s categorisation of an academic identity and Eraut’s contextual and learning factors

Career changers and fast-track induction: teacher perspectives on their early professional development

In this article, the early professional development of mature, early career teachers who entered the profession via an employment-based route to teaching in England is presented and explored from the teachers’ own perspectives. From a larger sample in a longitudinal study, the development of four career changers is traced in detail, using a model of professional learning which highlights teaching and professional skills. There is some evidence that those who undertake the programme experience a smoother induction into teaching than those from more traditional routes, although the internship year itself is challenging and demands a high level of commitment and resilience on the part of the pre-service teachers. Contextual factors, such as school support and learning from experienced teachers, are vital in enabling early professional development and the absence of these can hinder learning and self-confidence. Findings are analysed with reference to the model, as well as research on teachers’ development, within a socio-cultural learning framework. The study makes a valuable contribution to knowledge about the professional development of mature entrants to teaching

Psychosocial impact of undergoing prostate cancer screening for men with BRCA1 or BRCA2 mutations.

OBJECTIVES: To report the baseline results of a longitudinal psychosocial study that forms part of the IMPACT study, a multi-national investigation of targeted prostate cancer (PCa) screening among men with a known pathogenic germline mutation in the BRCA1 or BRCA2 genes. PARTICPANTS AND METHODS: Men enrolled in the IMPACT study were invited to complete a questionnaire at collaborating sites prior to each annual screening visit. The questionnaire included sociodemographic characteristics and the following measures: the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS), Impact of Event Scale (IES), 36-item short-form health survey (SF-36), Memorial Anxiety Scale for Prostate Cancer, Cancer Worry Scale-Revised, risk perception and knowledge. The results of the baseline questionnaire are presented. RESULTS: A total of 432 men completed questionnaires: 98 and 160 had mutations in BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes, respectively, and 174 were controls (familial mutation negative). Participants' perception of PCa risk was influenced by genetic status. Knowledge levels were high and unrelated to genetic status. Mean scores for the HADS and SF-36 were within reported general population norms and mean IES scores were within normal range. IES mean intrusion and avoidance scores were significantly higher in BRCA1/BRCA2 carriers than in controls and were higher in men with increased PCa risk perception. At the multivariate level, risk perception contributed more significantly to variance in IES scores than genetic status. CONCLUSION: This is the first study to report the psychosocial profile of men with BRCA1/BRCA2 mutations undergoing PCa screening. No clinically concerning levels of general or cancer-specific distress or poor quality of life were detected in the cohort as a whole. A small subset of participants reported higher levels of distress, suggesting the need for healthcare professionals offering PCa screening to identify these risk factors and offer additional information and support to men seeking PCa screening

Finishing the euchromatic sequence of the human genome

The sequence of the human genome encodes the genetic instructions for human physiology, as well as rich information about human evolution. In 2001, the International Human Genome Sequencing Consortium reported a draft sequence of the euchromatic portion of the human genome. Since then, the international collaboration has worked to convert this draft into a genome sequence with high accuracy and nearly complete coverage. Here, we report the result of this finishing process. The current genome sequence (Build 35) contains 2.85 billion nucleotides interrupted by only 341 gaps. It covers ∼99% of the euchromatic genome and is accurate to an error rate of ∼1 event per 100,000 bases. Many of the remaining euchromatic gaps are associated with segmental duplications and will require focused work with new methods. The near-complete sequence, the first for a vertebrate, greatly improves the precision of biological analyses of the human genome including studies of gene number, birth and death. Notably, the human enome seems to encode only 20,000-25,000 protein-coding genes. The genome sequence reported here should serve as a firm foundation for biomedical research in the decades ahead

Reflections of a Researcher Teacher

In this retrospective, autobiographical account, the author traces her career as a teacher, teacher educator and researcher, identifying critical incidents and key influences alongside changes in education and teacher education. The persistence of teacher and researcher identities, stemming from the early influence of Lawrence Stenhouse, is highlighted, as well as a continuing commitment to feminist research and innovative practice; but identity shifts and transitions are also prominent, according to personal and external contexts, policies and communities of practice

Living graphs as a methodological tool: representing landmarks in the professional development of teacher educators

This article relates to the use of an innovative visual research method, living graphs, to capture and represent the life experiences of teacher educators in two universities in the UK. Six mid-career teacher educators from each university were asked to map their personal biographies, career landmarks, academic and research highs and lows, using a graphic format. This was then used as a basis for discussion and exploration in the interviews. Narrative analysis was used to examine the teacher educators’ accounts and themes were identified which related to professional and academic development. Living graphs were found to be a rich data source to identify and explore career landmarks: enhanced verbal input resulted from using graphics to represent highs and lows of experience, including the visual representation of emotion. This is a useful research tool but needs further clarification and guidelines for use. Keywords Living graphs; visual methods; teacher educators; professional development; career landmarks

The Early Career Experiences of Newly Qualified Primary Teachers in the UK

This paper presents the findings of a one-year research project, funded by the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC), on the preparedness of newly qualified primary teachers in the UK (Griffiths & Jacklin 2002). Using questionnaires and follow up interviews, new teachers from three local education authorities (LEAs) in the south of England were asked about their initial teacher training and preparation for teaching, and about their experiences in their first year of teaching. New teachers felt very well prepared to teach literacy and numeracy, but less well prepared in teaching arts and humanities subjects, and in professional issues such as special educational needs. Key factors in the first year were school leadership, organisational culture and support from colleagues. A model of early professional development is proposed from the findings