Portfolio providers: What are some uses for ePortfolios that you believe aren’t as common at colleges as they should be? “We’d like to see more colleges using ePortfolios with guided learning pathways through a program or institution to assess learning at key points. The full potential for ePortfolios to encourage more integrative, deeper learning won’t be […]
Just as websites morphed from digital brochures into versatile multimedia portals, electronic portfolios have evolved from information repositories to robust tools for showcasing student learning. Now generally referred to as “ePortfolios,” these software systems house completed assignments, reflections on learning, photos, creative work and journal entries—all evidence of a student’s education. “It is a personal, […]
Soon after becoming president of Georgia State University in 2009, Mark P. Becker set out to answer a question: How can you create a better university, in the heart of a large, diverse city, where many of your students are first-generation or low-income, and who face challenges not seen as commonly at a typical flagship […]
Students don’t quite run the show when it comes to course scheduling. But colleges and universities are striving to make it easier for them—with their ongoing juggle of work, family and school commitments—to take the classes necessary to meet educational objectives in time to graduate. Course scheduling policies and practices tend to date back—way back—to […]
In the time since Carey Haddock was a resident assistant 10 years ago, the typical job description has expanded and the stakes are much higher. “There’s definitely an increase in pressure and responsibility for RAs today,” says Haddock, who now trains and supervises RAs as assistant director of housing and residence life at Salisbury University […]
A push for coed fraternities has spawned a lawsuit at Wesleyan University, while a directive from the administration at Trinity College, also in Connecticut, has so far failed to further integrate Greek organizations. Delta Kappa Epsilon, or DKE, sued Wesleyan in February after the fraternity’s members were informed they would not be able to live […]
The wave of first-generation and low-income students now seeking higher ed access is placing unprecedented financial strain on the full spectrum of liberal arts institutions, says James F. Jones, the interim president of Sweet Briar College. But while other higher ed leaders acknowledge this and other challenges, many say the shutting down this year of […]
Back in 1991, St. Cloud State University in Minnesota had only three classrooms outfitted with projectors. Now the 16,000-student university has built nearly 200 “smart classrooms” with projectors hooked up to laptops at instructor workstations. The vast majority of those projectors are Sony models. “Sony makes a wide range of workhorse projectors,” says Kelly Larson, […]
Higher ed’s reliance on adjunct faculty, hardly a secret anymore, has gotten much scrutiny in the past few years. Institutions of all types benefit from the fact that adjuncts—provided they don’t become eligible for health benefits by working more than 30 hours a week—can be employed for a fraction of the investment needed for full-time […]
While video’s presence in higher learning is undoubtedly expanding, the frequency and extent to which it is being used varies widely—even within institutions. At the Western University of Health Sciences in California, every lecture within the College of Osteopathic Medicine is recorded and posted to its learning management system, while in other colleges at the […]
