Papers by Camille Kandiko Howson
KWP-Creating a 21st Century Curriculum Final Report
A STUDY OF UK HIGHER EDUCATION Commissioned by the Quality Assurance Agency PROJECT REPORT STUDEN... more A STUDY OF UK HIGHER EDUCATION Commissioned by the Quality Assurance Agency PROJECT REPORT STUDENT EXPECTATIONS AND PERCEPTIONS OF HIGHER EDUCATION
A STUDY OF UK HIGHER EDUCATION Commissioned by the Quality Assurance Agency EXECUTIVE SUMMARY ST... more A STUDY OF UK HIGHER EDUCATION Commissioned by the Quality Assurance Agency EXECUTIVE SUMMARY STUDENT EXPECTATIONS AND PERCEPTIONS OF HIGHER EDUCATION
Appendix 2: Student engagement survey questionnaire 0 (Original questionnaire) 41 Appendix 3: Stu... more Appendix 2: Student engagement survey questionnaire 0 (Original questionnaire) 41 Appendix 3: Student engagement survey questionnaire 1 43 Appendix 4: Student engagement survey questionnaire 2 46 Appendix 5: Student engagement survey questionnaire 3 49 Appendix 6: Student engagement survey questionnaire (Recommended final version) 52 Appendix 7: Student engagement survey items and scales 55 3 1. Overview
Appendix 9: Student engagement survey questionnaire D 30 Students voiced a concern of how their... more Appendix 9: Student engagement survey questionnaire D 30 Students voiced a concern of how their responses would reflect on their course since they did not want to appear to be criticising it.
To compare college and university student engagement in two countries with different responses to... more To compare college and university student engagement in two countries with different responses to global forces, Canada and the United States (US), a series of hierarchical linear regression (HLM) models were developed to analyse data from the 2006 administration of the National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE). Overall, students in the U.S. are more engaged, particularly in areas of active and collaborative learning and student-faculty interaction. This study identified areas of student engagement in both countries that administrators and researchers should investigate more thoroughly: Canadian and U.S. students in education and professional fields of study were more engaged generally, whereas Canadian students in the arts and humanities, and life and social sciences were less engaged than their peers. This large-scale quantitative comparative study provides insights and recommendations for future crossnational comparisons in higher education.
London Review of Education, 2012
Many organisations are under increasing pressures to recruit and retain creative individuals as a... more Many organisations are under increasing pressures to recruit and retain creative individuals as a core asset in the emerging knowledge economy. In universities, such people are often academics who focus on high impact, innovative and interdisciplinary research. Yet, instead of feeling supported, many of these academics face structural, epistemological and socio-cultural challenges. This paper reviews the role of creativity across disciplines in higher education and draws on interviews of 10 senior interdisciplinary leaders from the UK and Australia to discuss motivational aspects of creativity, challenges of pursuing creative work and how creativity through interdisciplinarity can be supported in higher education. Leadership styles based on the various conceptions of creativity are proposed and further research is discussed.
Educational Research, 2012
Background: Concept-mapping and interview techniques are used to track knowledge and understandin... more Background: Concept-mapping and interview techniques are used to track knowledge and understanding over the duration of PhD study amongst four students and their supervisors in the course of full-time research towards their PhDs. This work is in contrast to much PhD supervision research and policy research that focuses on supervisory styles and roles and may decontextualise the topic and disciplinary setting. Purpose: The work investigates the understanding of the process and product in PhD-level research and supervision. Sample: Participants were four students and their supervisor(s). Case studies were based on longitudinal studies conducted over three to four years (the duration of a PhD). The students were all enrolled in lab-based PhDs in one UK-based higher education institution. Three of the four students were international (one EU-based) and three supervisors were from outside the UK. Design and methods: The data provide documentary evidence of the ways in which these supervisors act to facilitate learning and discovery of research processes and an understanding of lab-based science research supervision. In the initial interview (conducted separately with students and supervisors), the interviewee constructed two maps, one on the topic of the PhD and one on the process of a PhD. In subsequent interviews, the student or supervisor reviewed and updated the previously constructed maps. Transcripts of the interviews were made as well. These data draw on 72 interviews and 96 unique concept maps constructed. The challenges of a PhD being both a process of learning (for the student and the supervisor) and a product of a research project are explored using case study analysis of these four pairs. Findings and discussion: Analyses of the collected data suggested that the students focused more on the product of a PhD (completing a thesis and publication), whereas the supervisors concentrated on the process of learning and scientific development. Conclusions: Evidence in the study suggested product/process differences in the student and supervisor conceptualisation of the PhD. This paper offers development towards a research-led pedagogy of supervision that places the process and product of a PhD at the centre of the supervisory relationship.
This project uses concept mapping and interview techniques to track changes in knowledge and unde... more This project uses concept mapping and interview techniques to track changes in knowledge and understanding among students and their supervisors in the course of full-time research towards a PhD. The on-going work measures both cognitive change in the specific subjects that are the topic for research and in the understanding of the process of PhD level research and supervision. The data makes a unique contribution to our knowledge of research processes and an understanding of the ways in which knowledge is created by research. It also helps to provide documentary evidence of the ways in which supervisors can act to facilitate learning and discovery. In order to ensure that the results are applicable as widely as possible, the study group includes students and supervisors from among the natural and applied sciences, the arts and humanities and clinical practice. The approach is essentially ethnographic and comprises detailed case study analysis rather than any broad inferential comparison.
Asked questions in class or contributed to class discussions Very often, often, sometimes, never ... more Asked questions in class or contributed to class discussions Very often, often, sometimes, never Made a class presentation Very often, often, sometimes, never Worked with other students on projects during class Very often, often, sometimes, never Worked with classmates outside of class to prepare class assignments Very often, often, sometimes, never Tutored or taught other students (paid or voluntary) Very often, often, sometimes, never Participated in a community-based project as part of a regular course Very often, often, sometimes, never Discussed ideas from your readings or classes with others outside of class (students, family members, coworkers, etc.) Very often, often, sometimes, never
Research in Post-compulsory Education, 2011
This project identified academics who have been involved with interdisciplinary leadership initia... more This project identified academics who have been involved with interdisciplinary leadership initiatives and sought to find out what had motivated them, what issues they had encountered and how they had resolved them. A powerful message emerging is the central importance of motivation in interdisciplinary work. Interviewees spoke of leaving their disciplinary ‘home’ for a more complex and difficult – but often more rewarding – environment. Interviews also illuminated the impact of interdisciplinary work on academic careers and suggested that an academic’s career stage was a vital factor influencing the likelihood of pursuing an interdisciplinary initiative. The individual and systemic challenges brought on by interdisciplinary work highlight the role of structure and agency in an academic career path. These issues coalesce around reward systems, where there is a need to recognise the expanding role of academics within interdisciplinary contexts.
Research in Post-compulsory Education, 2011
The introduction of performance-related pay into universities in recent years implies a belief th... more The introduction of performance-related pay into universities in recent years implies a belief that academic behaviours are modified by money. However, many valued academic activities are poorly paid or not paid at all. Clearly other factors are at work. Academic motivation and new working patterns are explored using the literature. An anthropological term ‘prestige economy’ is defined and located as part of a three-part model, and its application to higher education is explored, using a socio-cultural approach rooted in Bourdieu’s analyses of academic life. The implications for those who seek to bring about change in institutions are considered and further research questions outlined.
To compare college and university student engagement in two countries with different responses to... more To compare college and university student engagement in two countries with different responses to global forces, Canada and the United States (US), a series of hierarchical linear regression (HLM) models were developed to analyse data from the 2006 administration of the National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE). Overall, students in the U.S. are more engaged, particularly in areas of active and collaborative learning and student-faculty interaction. This study identified areas of student engagement in both countries that administrators and researchers should investigate more thoroughly: Canadian and U.S. students in education and professional fields of study were more engaged generally, whereas Canadian students in the arts and humanities, and life and social sciences were less engaged than their peers. This large-scale quantitative comparative study provides insights and recommendations for future crossnational comparisons in higher education.
This study adopted qualitative, activity-based strategy as practice method to investigate leaders... more This study adopted qualitative, activity-based strategy as practice method to investigate leadership and management of interdisciplinary work. Interviews were conducted with ten academics in Australia and the UK. Challenges that leaders of academic work spoke of can be grouped at various levels in which problems arise. First, faculty in both countries spoke of the influence of national policy context on facilitating and impeding interdisciplinary research, particularly how interdisciplinary research is quantified under assessment schemes. At the institutional level, policies related to promotion and tenure greatly affected researchers' attitude towards interdisciplinary research, particularly for junior academics. Third, leaders at the department level and in research centres had a significant influence in the ability to create management structures to foster and promote interdisciplinary research. This study provides indicators of effective practices, suggests a number of key institutional challenges and proposes a future research agenda.
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Papers by Camille Kandiko Howson