By Any Other Nerd

Citation :  Smerek, R., & Peterson, M. (2007). Examining Herzberg’s theory: Improving job satisfaction among non-academic employees at a university. Research in Higher Education, 48 (2), 229-250. Summary :   Understanding and designing to optimize human capacity in higher education is a challenging obstacle when looking toward operational staff at a given university.  Herzberg’s duality their offers interesting insights but has yet to be actually proven sufficiently in general and less so within higher education.  Given the limited resources available in higher education, administrators must find ways of increasing job satisfaction to avoid the financial and human-resource loss of productive employees. This study studies the how Herzberg’s duality theory of motivators and hygiene might be useful to understanding and applicable to job satisfaction in higher education among business operational staff at a large public university.  In particular, the autho...

Citation : Cornwell, Christopher and David Mustard. 2002.  “Race and the Effects of Georgia’s HOPE Scholarship.” Pp. 59-72 in Donald Heller and Patricia Marin (Eds.), Who Should We Help? The Negative Social Consequences of Merit Scholarships . Cambridge: Civil Rights Project, Harvard University.   http://eric.ed.gov/?id=ED468845  Summary :   Georgia's HOPE program provides a large amount of money for Georgian students to attend colleges and universities within Georgia (surpassing the amount of PELL money students in the state receive).  The merit-based program is split between scholarships for students attending degree-granting 4-year institutions and grants for students attending largely technical schools.  This chapter explores how despite the increase in students meeting the merit-requirements to qualify for the lottery to receive the scholarship or grant and entering college, it is contributing to stratification of race by institutional type. ...

Citation :  Kezar, A. (2006). Redesigning for collaboration in learning initiatives: An examination of four highly collaborative campuses. Journal of Higher Education , 77 (5), 804-838. Summary :  The increased external pressure, the decrease in support, and the burgeoning research on collaboration encourage institutions to look internally at opportunities for cross-discipline, cross-departmental, and cross-function collaboration.  However, institutions are not set up to do this in a smooth or sustainable manner.  Few models exist to encourage collaboration within higher education, but there are models to borrow from in the corporate sector.  The study looks at four institutions that engage in collaborative activities to deduce how those institutions are using and adapting strategies that already exist and are promoted within corporate literature.  More specifically, this study looks at how institutions create the institutional context that fosters coll...

Citation : Morphew, C. (2009). Conceptualizing change in the institutional diversity of U.S. colleges and universities. Journal of Higher Education, 80 (3), 243-269.  Summary :   The diversity of higher education in the United States has always been seen as important in contributing to matching students with the right learning environment, creating a more dynamic society, and reducing the chance for indoctrination.  Birnbaum's study (1983) of institutions from 1960 to 1980 indicated a shift towards homogeneity among institutions. Morphew starts with this study and looks to recreate it to understand what has occurred since Birnbaum's study, particularly the period from 1972 to 2002.  Morphew wants to see what type of changes have occurred to institutional diversity in higher education in the United States between 1972 and 2002 and whether institutional theory can shed any light on the changes or lack thereof.  Morphew builds a five-item matrix (including ...

Citation :  Neumann, A. (1995). On the making of hard times and good times: The social construction of resource stress. Journal of Higher Education , 66 (1), 3-31 Summary :   Neuman explores how much of how college leaders—particularly presidents—are reacting to or shaping the experience of financially strapped institutions.  He recognizes that many institutes rely upon contingency theory in making financial decisions and determining the future of the college.  By solely approaching college finances without considering the role of social construction, Neuman believes that leaders may significantly add to the experience and the stress that a college community feels and thus acts upon because of those feelings.   Neuman’s goal is “to turn from contingency theory to social constructivism as a vantage point for examining leadership and resource realities in higher education.”  He wants to provide an example of how a social construction theoretical approach w...

Citation :  Middleton, A. (2016). Reconsidering the role of recorded audio as a rich, flexible and engaging learning space. Research in Learning Technology, 24. http://www.researchinlearningtechnology.net/index.php/rlt/article/view/28035 Summary :  This article looks at the role of podcasts in learning.  Specifically, it explores a case study of how recorded audio was used within a specific course and the different approaches to learning the it represented through a given course.  The first part of the article tackles the literature around learning and learning with sound.  Middleton explains there is a limitation in the technical definition of podcasts which focuses on how they are produced and released, especially when contrast with the pedagogical definition, which focuses more on the how recorded audio made easily available to students can be learned.  He emphasizes that recorded audio offers tone and academic flexibility that allows for more informati...

Citation : Xu, D., & Jaggars, S. S. (2014). Performance Gaps between Online and Face-to-Face Courses: Differences across Types of Students and Academic Subject Areas. Journal Of Higher Education, 85(5), 633-659. Summary : This article assessed the performance gap between F2F and online courses along ethnicity, gender, age, study, and academic preparation.  The authors used a dataset of 500,000 online and F2F courses and 40,000 students from Washington State's community college system. The results showed that enrollment patterns vary according to subject area (higher in humanities and social sciences, lower in sciences, math, and engineering).  The performance gap between online and F2F courses according to subject area was also identified, though education, mass communication, and health and physical education were not significant.  The authors revealed a 3% gap in completion and .20 difference in grades of the courses.  All subgroups studied showed ...

Citation : Wladis, C., Hachey, A. C., & Conway, K. M. (2015). The Representation of Minority, Female, and Non-Traditional Stem Majors in the Online Environment at Community Colleges: A Nationally Representative Study. Community College Review, 43(1), 89-114. Summary : By analyzing a 2300 student data-set, this article examined what differences and similarities exist among community college STEM majors who enroll or not in online courses with particularly attention to ethnicity, genders, and student status (traditional vs. nontraditional) and whether there was proportional representation in the online courses.  This analysis was compared to another data-set of 18,400 STEM majors enrolled in four-year programs at public and not-for-profit colleges.  The analysis revealed that Hispanic students were less likely to enroll online courses at a community college than a four -year school while women were more likely to enroll at a community college than a four-year co...

Citation : Wladis, C., Conway, K. M., & Hachey, A. C. (2015). The Online STEM Classroom--Who Succeeds? An Exploration of the Impact of Ethnicity, Gender, and Non-Traditional Student Characteristics in the Community College Context. Community College Review, 43(2), 142-164. Summary : This study examined a data-set of 3600 students to understand how their performances in online and F2F STEM courses at Northeast Hispanic-serving community college to determine what factors (gender, ethnicity, and non-traditional student characteristics) correlate with the attrition gap.  They particularly targeted online and F2F courses taught by the same instructor to control for course and instructor variance.  The analysis suggested several points about online STEM courses:  men and older students do better than females and younger students, there was no significant correlation between ethnicity and success in online courses, and students exhibited different levels of succ...

Citation : Tynes, B. M., Rose, C. A., & Markoe, S. L. (2013). Extending Campus Life to the Internet: Social Media, Discrimination, and Perceptions of Racial Climate. Journal Of Diversity In Higher Education, 6(2), 102-114. Summary : This article explained the results of an online survey of 217 students (directed towards African American and European American students) with particular attention to attitudes and perceptions around racial groups, discrimination, and tension in the online and offline worlds and how such experiences and perceptions relate to campus racial climate.  The survey collected data on ethnicity, social media usage, school-related social media usage, network diversity in online and offline environments, online racial discrimination and stress, and racial climate. The survey revealed that European Americans had smaller degree of ethnically diverse interactions (14%).  African American students also engaged more intensely and with a wider ran...

Citation : Slate, J. R., Manuel, M., & Brinson Jr, K. H. (2002). The "Digital Divide": Hispanic college students' views of educational uses of the Internet. Assessment & Evaluation In Higher Education, 27(1), 75-93. Summary : The author identified a digital divide specifically for Latina/os populations in high school and explored how this divide impacts beginning Hispanic college students in terms of their computer and internet skillset and techno-disposition, with particular attention to gender, first generation college student status, and primary language at home.  They surveyed 226 Hispanic students at Southwestern university on topics including attitudes towards the Internet and its educational use, personal computer and Internet access and usage, personal learning experiences on the internet, frequency of Internet use, and demographic content.  The analysis revealed gender differences in terms of disposition, usage, value of information on the Interne...

Citation : Lu, C., & Straubhaar, J. D. (2014). The influence of techno-capital and techno-disposition on the college-going processes of Latina/o college students in Central Texas. Learning, Media and Technology, 39(2), 184-198. Summary : The authors pointed out that current research shows Latina/os have less access than whites and focused this qualitative study (20 semi-structured in-depth interviews with Latina/o students) on a predominantly white institution in Texas to understand how techno-capital and techno-disposition influence the daily lives and college-going process for Latina/o (particularly along class and gender lines).  The authors used the Bourdieu inspired term, techno-capital to capture the essence of access and knowledge to technology.  Techno-disposition refers to how one’s attitude towards technology. The interviews produced two major themes: complex dynamics between techno-capital and techno-disposition and differences in approaches and use...

Citation : Lane, A. (2009). The Impact of Openness on Bridging Educational Digital Divides. International Review Of Research In Open And Distance Learning, 10(5) Summary : This essay juxtaposed the potential of open educational resources (OER) with the limitations of the digital divide. The author explained the types of open (access, licensed, format, and software) and their inherent barriers that exist to actually appropriate them for learning. He addressed the numerous types of divides beyond digital (geographical, cultural, social, income, and physical. Lane posited that the digital divide is multi-layered, going beyond the access to computers and including access to the right networks, and technical skills divide.  Technical skills are not merely a simple set, but break down into basic, structural and strategic skills of operating in the digital world.  These digital literacies are in constant flux against a changing landscape of technology, making investing ...

Citation : Gorski, P. C. (2009). Insisting on Digital Equity: Reframing the Dominant Discourse on Multicultural Education and Technology. Urban Education, 44(3), 348-364. Summary :  Gorski argues for equity and social justice at the center of discussions with multicultural education and computer technologies in this essay. Using a multicultural education framework coupled with critical analysis, he illustrates the need for systematic and equitable education and resources for instructional technology. Gorski challenges the idea of computers and internet as equalizers, identifies ways in which computers and technology reinforce inequities, and shifts the dialogue from physical access to social, cultural and political access and what that would mean for those previously with limited or no access.  He examines different practices and biases in teachers and education that reinforce the different divides (racial, gender, linguistic, ability). He highlights specific actions ...

Citation : Gorski, P., & Clark, C. (2001). Multicultural Education and the Digital Divide: Focus on Race. Multicultural Perspectives, 3(4), 15-25. Summary : This literature review examined the racial digital divide through a sociopolitical, multicultural education framework to capture the implication of the divide and provide recommendations for improving access for racial minorities. The authors split access to computers and to the internet to show that even those with computers may still not have internet access, creating more divides. Even at schools, universal access to computers, never mind the internet, had not been achieved and access clearly correlated with racial make-up of the students. They identified trends in usage for students and teachers that reinforced Eurocentric views in classrooms and schools that further alienate racial minorities. The authors provided the following research-based tactics to help bridge the divide: computer loan programs, aftersch...

Citation :  Goodfellow, M., & Wade, B. (2007). The Digital Divide and First-Year Students. Journal Of College Student Retention: Research, Theory & Practice, 8(4), 425-438. Summary : The authors explored the digital divide along lines of income, racial, and household type and its impact on first year college students.  888 students over three years at Penn State Schuylkill Campus filled out surveys  requesting demographics, technology access, and skill levels in the following domains: word processing, e-mail, Internet searching, library searching, computer-enhanced presentations, creating Web pages, and game playing.  The results highlighted differences that occurred over the three years.  Students surveyed in the third year reported increased access, improved word processing skills, and Internet-searching skills compared to students in the first year.  The authors noted that the improvement in skill accounts for potential changes in K-12 e...

Citation : Goode, J. (2010). Mind the Gap: The Digital Dimension of College Access. Journal Of Higher Education, 81(5), 583-618. Summary :  Goode examined the relationship of a student's personal history computer access and skills development with how such knowledge impacts their educational pursuits. Her goal was to understand how lack of access and skillset can impede performance of low-income students in higher education.  She provided a technology identity framework which she used in her mix-methods research that includes surveying (512 respondents) and hour-long semi-structured interviews (3 respondents) at UCLA. The survey focused on home technology access, technology integration and access in high school, technological social/cultural capital, ability level on specific computer activities, UCLA's access and technology integration, and attitude towards technology.  Goode developed a technology proficiency index (TPI) to rate students answers.  Goode finds t...

Citation : Gasser, H. S. (2008). Being Multiracial in a Wired Society: Using the Internet to Define Identity and Community on Campus. New Directions For Student Services, (123), 63-71. Summary :  Gasser explored how multiracial students choose to develop and express their identities as well as form communities in the digital world through Web 2.0 resources, specifically social networking sites, wikis, and blogs.  In each case, Gasser explained how multiracial students might use the tool for further self-definition and dialogue.  Her research was largely preliminary, recognizing pockets of users that engage in identity dialogue and she drew simple conclusions from each without substantive examination.  She explained that given these spaces, monoracial and multiracial people are likely to seek out these places to find community.  She encouraged student affairs practitioners to actively use the online environments as another space for outreach and inclusiveness...

Citation : Finn, S., & Inman, J. G. (2004). Digital Unity and Digital Divide: Surveying Alumni to Study Effects Of a Campus Laptop Initiative. Journal Of Research On Technology In Education (International Society For Technology In Education), 36(3), 297-317. Summary :  The authors examined Grove City College’s laptop distribution program by surveying the alumni class prior to the initiative start (control group), and two classes within the initiative (treatment groups) to explore the impact on their education, technological skills development, and preparedness for work. The survey (212 out of 600 returned) included questions addressing Kolb's Learning Style Inventory to understand overall learning styles with computers. Laptop initiative alumni were more positive about levels of campus technology, though all three groups were dissatisfied with the level of technology-supported classrooms.  Results relating to alumni's beliefs about the importance of technology has...

Citation : Czerniewicz, L., & Brown, C. (2013). The habitus of digital “strangers” in higher education. British Journal of Educational Technology, 44(1), 44-53.  Summary : This paper reported on phase three of ongoing research on “digital strangers” (college students under 22 lacking computer skills and out-of-school access), acquired through purposeful sampling for surveys and eventually, focus groups. The authors explored student's technological experience and usage through Bourdieu's concept of habitus, a frame that connects one's background with experiences to explicitly shape one's future. Since technology access impacts cultural and social capital, an absence of it, represents an absence of social and cultural capital. The group studied had access to cellphones but were rarely encouraged to view the cellphone as a learning tool. The authors illustrated that both within universities themselves and among students, the computer was given more respect than the...