Department-Level Instructional Change: Comparing Prescribed versus Emergent Strategies

Fisher, Kathleen Quardokus; Henderson, Charles

doi:10.1187/cbe.17-02-0031

Cited by 16 publications

(9 citation statements)

References 21 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…Research shows that change aimed at the scale of the department (rather than at individual faculty or individual courses) is more likely to be effective [8,11]. Studies of systemic change efforts (e.g., Project Kaleidoscope [12]; the Science Education Initiative [13]) reveal strategies of successful change efforts, for example: providing continued resources to support change [13,14], aligning with institutional interests [15], cultivating effective change leaders [16], and celebrating short-term wins [17]. Within this body of work, some have externalized models for the stages and components of effective change efforts [15,18].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Designing for institutional transformation: Six principles for department-level interventions

Quan

Corbo

Finkelstein

et al. 2019

Phys. Rev. Phys. Educ. Res.

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Cultivating institutional transformation has been of recent interest in education research. This theoretical paper presents six principles for supporting sustained change efforts at the department level. Considering change efforts at the level of "principles" is valuable because principles are grounded in theoretical and empirical knowledge, but are abstract enough to be adapted to many contexts. For each principle we argue for its value, drawing on previous literature in higher education, organizational change, discipline-based education research, and design thinking. We then give illustrative examples of how each principle was embodied within the Departmental Action Team (DAT) project. The DAT project facilitates the implementation of effective changes within university science, technology, engineering, and mathematics departments. We conclude with a discussion of how these principles can be applicable across a variety of institutional transformation efforts.

show abstract

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Designing for institutional transformation: Six principles for department-level interventions

Quan

Corbo

Finkelstein

et al. 2019

Phys. Rev. Phys. Educ. Res.

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Further, "the department chair is at a unique intersection of resources, policy, and collegiality; they are both in power and a peer, empowering them to be important loci of organizational change" (p. 183). Quardokus Fisher & Henderson (2018) concur: Department-level change frames our argument. Recent studies of the process of change in higher education have argued it is critical to understand and focus on department-level change, because departments typically make decisions regarding curriculum and tenure, and department members often discuss their instructional views in both formal and informal venues (p. 17:ar56, 2).…”

Section: Administrative Support and Funding [2]mentioning

confidence: 85%

Sustainability Matters: Advocating for the Establishment and Continuation of Peer-Led Team Learning

2022

APLL

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The successful dissemination of the Peer-Led Team Learning (PLTL) model at multiple institutions of higher education, in the United States and other countries, is reflected in the number of publications (see www.pltlis.org). However, many PLTL campus programs are no longer active or exist. This may be due, more recently, to the COVID pandemic and its disruptions. Historically, programs no longer exist because grant funding that supported the initiative ended; other reasons include the promotion, retirement, or even death of the practitioners whose work championing their PLTL program ended. What can sustain a campus PLTL program so that its benefits continue to accrue to students and Peer Leaders, and positively affect institutions’ retention, graduation rates, and mission over decades? This paper examines the strategies used to disseminate the PLTL model; presents suggested prescriptions for institutional adoption regarding climate, culture, and organizational learning; provides case studies of possible sustainability methods and compares the PLTL critical components to suggestions for creating sustainable educational innovations.

show abstract

“…In some American universities, implementing curricular changes from the Vision and Change report has led to tangible results and improvements Schussler, 2017a, 2017b;Wienhold and Branchaw, 2018). Another possible axis for improvement is for marine science faculty to organize change themselves, as academic departments have been proven highly effective units of instituting change in higher education (Fisher and Henderson, 2018).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Big Steps, Little Change: A Case Study in French University Teachers’ Cognitions in the Context of Pedagogical Innovation

et al. 2021

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The rate of failure of French students during their first years at university is substantial, with only 42% graduating in the expected three or 4 years. As a result, French universities have called for a “pedagogical transformation” encouraging innovative teaching practices to improve undergraduate students’ academic success, notably the introduction of blended learning methods. In 2015, teachers from the three marine stations of Sorbonne Université created the online blended learning platform e-marin’lab for their marine science programs. In this paper, we investigated the participating teachers’ cognitions with regard to teaching and learning. Despite the success of the project that relied on their substantial voluntary commitment, the teachers demonstrated an adhesion to more traditional views (i.e., directive teacher-student transmission of knowledge is more efficient for students’ learning). Perhaps more paradoxically, our data reveal that the same teachers saw themselves as teaching in a student-oriented way, and that their students’ lack of engagement in class was due to their poor study skills and intrinsic motivation. Among other factors that will be discussed, we believe that these results are influenced by a context that does not provide many teacher training opportunities and that places little importance on teaching in university professors’ career recognition. Finally, the importance of the e-marin’lab platform in the context of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic situation from 2020 and the massive use of distance teaching in marine sciences during national lockdown periods is discussed.

show abstract

Department-Level Instructional Change: Comparing Prescribed versus Emergent Strategies

Cited by 16 publications

References 21 publications

Designing for institutional transformation: Six principles for department-level interventions

Designing for institutional transformation: Six principles for department-level interventions

Sustainability Matters: Advocating for the Establishment and Continuation of Peer-Led Team Learning

Big Steps, Little Change: A Case Study in French University Teachers’ Cognitions in the Context of Pedagogical Innovation

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About