Developing Social Work Education: Academic Perspectives

During the past decade, a new culture of pedagogic research has emerged in social work in the UK. A succession of child-care tragedies that have led to government and public criticism of social work have highlighted the need for improvements to professional standards and stimulated renewed interest in social work education. Research aimed at developing knowledge of ‘what works’ in the educational process have included studies of student experiences and the perspectives of other stakeholders including service users and practice teachers. However, there has been little systematic investigation of the role of academics in social work education and their perceptions of what needs to be done to improve the quality of provision. This paper aims to address this gap in research by examining the perceptions of academics about their work. The authors utilise an adaptation of the conceptual model developed by Fraser and Bosanquet (2006) as a theoretical framework for analysing the findings and exploring the complex interrelationship between academic perspectives and the variety of concepts, ideas and stakeholder expectations that shape pedagogical practice. The findings should provide important lessons of relevance to educators in the UK and in other countries seeking to develop social work education.

Pharmacy Students’ Views of Faculty Feedback on Academic Performance

Objective: To investigate students' views on and satisfaction with faculty feedback on their academic performance.

Methods: A 41-item survey instrument was developed based on a literature review relating to effective feedback. All pharmacy undergraduate students were invited via e-mail to complete the self-administered electronic questionnaire relating to their views on feedback, including faculty feedback received to date regarding their academic performance.

Results: A response rate of 61% (343/561) was obtained. Only 32.3% of students (107/331) agreed that they were satisfied with the feedback they received; dissatisfaction with examination feedback was particularly high. The provision of faculty feedback was perceived to be variable in terms of quality and quantity.

Conclusions: There are some inconsistencies relating to provision of feedback within the MPharm degree program at Queen's University Belfast. Further work is needed to close the gap between student expectations and the faculty's delivery of feedback on academic performance.

Wellbeing, academic buoyancy and educational achievement in primary school students

The study explored the relationship between student wellbeing and academic achievement among 7–11 years old students and whether the relationship was moderated by gender and deprivation. 1081 students in Northern Ireland participated in a crosssectional survey that captured data on academic achievement and a range of wellbeing indicators. Findings suggested the existence of an underlying wellbeing factor, which was positively related to achievement. The relationship was not moderated by gender and/or deprivation. Findings were explored using a model of ‘academic buoyancy’. There was no evidence that suggested efforts to improve achievement that focus on wellbeing should be targeted speci?cally at students in economically deprived areas or be modi?ed in terms of gender.

Sequencing and its consequences:Path dependence and the relationships between genetics and medicalization

Both advocacy for and critiques of the Human Genome Project assume a self-sustaining relationship between genetics and. medicalization. However, this assumption ignores the ways in which the meanings of genetic research are conditional on its position in sequences of events. Based, on analyses of three conditions for which at least one putative gene or genetic marker has been identified, this article argues that critical junctures in the institutional stabilization of phenotypes and the mechanisms that sustain such classifications over time configure the practices and meanings of genetic research. Path dependence is critical to understanding the lack of consistent fit between genetics and medlcalization.

Hierarchy as a barrier to advancement for women in academic medicine

Background: Research on barriers to professional advancement for women in academic medicine has not adequately considered the role of environmental factors and how the structure of organizations affects professional advancement and work experiences. This article examines the impact of the hierarchy, including both the organization's hierarchical structure and professionals' perceptions of this structure, in medical school organization on faculty members' experience and advancement in academic medicine. Methods: As part of an inductive qualitative study of faculty in five disparate U.S. medical schools, we interviewed 96 medical faculty at different career stages and in diverse specialties, using in-depth semistructured interviews, about their perceptions about and experiences in academic medicine. Data were coded and analysis was conducted in the grounded theory tradition. Results: Our respondents saw the hierarchy of chairs, based on the indeterminate tenure of department chairs, as a central characteristic of the structure of academic medicine. Many faculty saw this hierarchy as affecting inclusion, reducing transparency in decision making, and impeding advancement. Indeterminate chair terms lessen turnover and may create a bottleneck for advancement. Both men and women faculty perceived this hierarchy, but women saw it as more consequential. Conclusions: The hierarchical structure of academic medicine has a significant impact on faculty work experiences, including advancement, especially for women. We suggest that medical schools consider alternative models of leadership and managerial styles, including fixed terms for chairs with a greater emphasis on inclusion. This is a structural reform that could increase opportunities for advancement especially for women in academic medicine. © 2010 Copyright Mary Ann Liebert, Inc.

A study of the relational aspects of the culture of academic medicine

PURPOSE: The impact of medical school culture on medical students has been well studied, but little documentation exists regarding how medical faculty experience the culture in which they work. In an ongoing project, the National Initiative on Gender, Culture and Leadership in Medicine, the authors are investigating how the existing culture of academic medical institutions supports all faculty members' ability to function at their highest potential. METHOD: The authors conducted a qualitative study of faculty in five disparate U.S. medical schools. Faculty in different career stages and diverse specialties were interviewed regarding their perceptions and experiences in academic medicine. Analysis was inductive and data driven. RESULTS: Relational aspects of the culture emerged as a central theme for both genders across all career categories. Positive relationships were most evident with patients and learners. Negative relational attributes among faculty and leadership included disconnection, competitive individualism, undervaluing of humanistic qualities, deprecation, disrespect, and the erosion of trust. CONCLUSIONS: The data suggest that serious problems exist in the relational culture and that such problems may affect medical faculty vitality, professionalism, and general productivity and are linked to retention. Efforts to create and support trusting relationships in medical schools might enhance all faculty members' efforts to optimally contribute to the clinical, education, and research missions of academic medicine. Future work will document the outcomes of a five-school collaboration to facilitate change in the culture to support the productivity of all medical faculty. © 2009 Association of American Medical Colleges.

Collaboration in academic medicine:Reflections on gender and advancement

Purpose: Collaboration in academic medicine is encouraged, yet no one has studied the environment in which faculty collaborate. The authors investigated how faculty experienced collaboration and the institutional atmosphere for collaboration. Method: In 2007, as part of a qualitative study of faculty in five disparate U.S. medical schools, the authors interviewed 96 medical faculty at different career stages and in diverse specialties, with an oversampling of women, minorities, and generalists, regarding their perceptions and experiences of collaboration in academic medicine. Data analysis was inductive and driven by the grounded theory tradition. Results: Female faculty expressed enthusiasm about the potential and process of collaboration; male faculty were more likely to focus on outcomes. Senior faculty experienced a more collaborative environment than early career faculty, who faced numerous barriers to collaboration: the hierarchy of medical academe, advancement criteria, and the lack of infrastructure supportive of collaboration. Research faculty appreciated shared ideas, knowledge, resources, and the increased productivity that could result from collaboration, but they were acutely aware that advancement requires an independent body of work, which was a major deterrent to collaboration among early career faculty. Conclusions: Academic medicine faculty have differing views on the impact and benefits of collaboration. Early career faculty face concerning obstacles to collaboration. Female faculty seemed more appreciative of the process of collaboration, which may be of importance for transitioning to a more collaborative academic environment. A reevaluation of effective benchmarks for promotion of faculty is warranted to address the often exclusive reliance on individualistic achievement. © 2009 The Association of American Medical Colleges.

Textbook (non-) adoption motives, legitimizing strategies and academic field configuration

Textbooks are an integral part of structured syllabus coverage in higher education. The argument advanced in this article is that textbooks are not simply products of inscription and embodied scholarly labour for pedagogical purposes, but embedded institutional artefacts that configure entire academic subject fields. Empirically, this article shows the various ways that motives of the (non-) adoption of textbooks have field institutional configuration effects. The research contribution of our study is threefold. First, we re-theorise the textbook as an artefact that is part of the institutional work and epistemic culture of academia. Second, we empirically show that the vocabularies of motive of textbook (non-) adoption and rhetorical strategies form the basis for social action and configuration across micro, meso and macro field levels. Our final contribution is a conceptualization of the ways that textbook (non-) adoption motives ascribe meaning to the legitimating processes in the configuration of whole subject fields.

Psychosocial and academic characteristics of extremely low birth weight (<or =800 g) adolescents who are free of major impairment compared with term-born control subjects

To compare academic and cognitive ability, attention, attitudes, and behavior of extremely low birth weight (ELBW) adolescents who are free of major impairments at 17 years of age with term-born control subjects.