The Faculty Makeover: What Does It Mean for Students?

Abstract

Over the past several years my colleagues and I have been engaged in a detailed examination of trends in faculty work and careers. Our efforts, described subsequently, have not focused on the effects of these developments on student learning. But as our research has evolved, it has become apparent that some of the most important changes that we are detailing, especially the dramatic reconfiguration of faculty appointments in recent years, have very important implications for students and the teachinglearning process.A dash of recent history will provide a context for the subsequent argument. The heightened interest in student learning outcomes has no clearly identifiable starting point. There was no flipping of a switch that raised consciousness levels, either inside or outside the academy, about the importance of trying to use actual outcomes rather than to rely on the usual array of inputs as surrogates for effective education. But it is clear that the momentum toward emphasizing student outcomes sharply increased in the 1980s, prompted especially by persistent critics, often public officials, and also by insistent academic voices that urged a laser-like focus on actual learning. Although in the discourse that ensued the pivotal role of the faculty-their training, the reward structure, and so on-was recognized, one crucial aspect of the "faculty factor" has received far too little attention: namely, the potential effects on student learning of the redeployment of the faculty in different types of appointments.This chapter is based on a presentation made at the annual meeting of the Association of American Colleges and Universities, Seattle, January 25, 2003.

Effects of Exposure to Part-time Faculty on Community College Transfer

“…For instance, academic advisors and full-time faculty familiar with articulation agreements or general transferable courses may assist in guiding community college students toward transferring to four-year institutions. In contrast, students at two-year colleges who do not connect with academic advisors or are predominantly exposed to part-time, adjunct faculty may not establish networks of information that facilitate the transfer process, given that part-time faculty generally have less knowledge about and remain more disconnected from their employing institution (Schuster 2003).…”

Faculty Appointments and Scholarly Activity: A Changing of the Guard?

“…Contingent faculty are different from tenured and tenure-track faculty in that their institutions ask for a commitment, while making little or no long-term commitment to them (Curtis & Jacobe, 2006). Based on the growing trend of colleges and universities to eliminate tenure-track positions and replace them with non-tenure-track faculty and adjunct faculty, there is a perception among those in the academy that academic quality is threatened (Curtis & Jacobe, 2006;Haeger, 1998;Roworth, 1997;Schuster, 2003;Townsend, 2003).…”

“…"Faculty and their work are the heart, and thus determine the health, of every college and university and have a lasting impact on the many lives they touch" (Gappa et al, 2005, p. 32). Based on the growing trend of colleges and universities to eliminate tenure-track positions and replace them with non-tenure-track faculty and adjunct faculty, there is a perception among many in the academy that academic quality is threatened (Curtis & Jacobe, 2006;Haeger, 1998;Jaeger, 2008;Johnson, 2011;Ochoa, 2011;Roworth, 1997;Schuster, 2003;Townsend, 2003).…”

“…Additionally, about 12% of all full-time faculty worked at institutions with no tenure system (Berger, Kirshstein, & Rowe, 2001). This is a dramatic shift from a 1969 landmark Carnegie national survey of faculty that showed only about 3% of full-time faculty were non-tenure-track (Schuster, 2003).…”

Table of Contents

“…On many campuses, faculty are often divided between tenure track and nontenure track and at times divided further between full time and part time, leading to what some call the stratification of the university (Schuster, 2003;Thompson, 2003). Moreover, faculty members, especially non-tenure-track faculty, vary greatly in terms of workload, motivations, and responsibilities; creating subgroups within groups.…”