This research delves into the reasons and expectations, indicated by three samples of MA students--16 attending a state university, 26 a private college, and 21 an extension of a foreign university, all located in Israel--for choosing an institution of higher education. It was assumed that high cost (tuition) motivates development of high…

This paper examines the way in which a cohort of first year Chemistry students interpreted commonly used assessment task verbs and compared these responses with their lecturers' usage of these terms. The results of the research suggest that the gap between the understandings held by students new to university, and those held by lecturers, is of…

Teacher-educators' conceptions of teaching may influence their teaching practice in a variety of ways. The concept of dilemma may provide an adequate framework to disclose how teacher-educators realise their conceptions of teaching in actual teaching practice. In our view, dilemmas constitute a powerful conceptualisation to find out about the…

Numerous explanations have been offered to explain the ubiquity and enduring nature of academic dishonesty in post-secondary education and professional programs, including dissatisfaction with curricula, disengagement from academic institutions, and poor admissions criteria for students. A pilot study in Canadian pharmacy education was undertaken…

This paper considers the impact of neo-liberal modes of governance on the ways in which we make sense of our world, as individuals, as academics and professionals. Traditional notions of academic freedom, autonomy and purpose, which have been central signifiers of academic identity no longer hold and bring into question what we are doing, of our…

This paper explores the ways in which student health professionals undergo a transformation in their sense of identity as they engage with caring discourses that underpin healthcare. I argue that caring is a "threshold concept" by virtue of the "troublesome knowledge" with which students are confronted on meeting patients in practice. When…

The purpose of this paper is to explore the journey of the scholarship student as he or she becomes a responsible scholar. We present three narratives, each one providing a different lens through which we view the journey of the scholarship student. We use transformative learning (as expounded by Mezirow) as a framework to discuss this transition,…

This article is an account of my search for professional identity as a new university lecturer through the use of the peer observation of teaching (POT) techniques. Through a synthesis of selected theoretical literature, associated critical reflection, and my own experiences of professional development through POT, the paper presents a conceptual…

This article focuses on the construction and development of cross-cultural analysis tools for students in Colombian universities. Primarily, it is a reflective piece of research which shows how ethnographically based constructs when combined with appropriate curricular platforms can constitute valuable tools in the acquisition of complex concepts…

This paper questions how far it is possible to teach for critical hope in English higher education given changes now taking place and that can be anticipated from the self-styled "free-market reform" introduced by the 2003 HE Act. It draws upon Gramsci and Freire to develop a dialogic pedagogy with students at two former polytechnics. It then…

Fundamentalism and democracy are presented as opposing forces in a world in conflict. Fundamentalism is described both as a threat to democracy itself and also to supposedly democratic institutions such as the university. First, fundamentalism is defined in its various guises: Christian, Islamic and economic. Each of these forms is pernicious in…

This paper addresses the theme of the special issue by looking at the development of student autonomy in learning in the French programme at the University of the West Indies St Augustine, Trinidad and Tobago. The paper explains why a focus on autonomy is apt to meet both the programme's linguistic goals and its larger societal goal of preparing…

Currently most academic literacy (AL) courses in South Africa are decontextualized and generic, suggesting an autonomous view of literacy. This view is challenged by the new literacy studies, which see literacy as social practices embedded in context. Recent developments in AL research emphasize the need to focus on discipline-specific strategies…

If school is a child's "workplace," the daily trip to school is the child's "commute." This trip may be taken in a car or bus, but if it is taken on foot or by bicycle, it offers children multiple opportunities for regular physical activity--a vitally important benefit at a time when overweight and related disorders are increasingly common. This…

Young children come to the gym expecting to move, so when they are asked to sit and are told that they can't participate until they are quiet, they become frustrated, turned off, bored, and often upset. This consumes valuable learning time, contradicts the physical education mission, and promotes discipline problems. Instant activity, whether…