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Survival in the Academy

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Presentation on theme: "Survival in the Academy"— Presentation transcript:

1 Survival in the Academy
A Guide for Beginning Academics Phillips, Gouran, Kuehn & Wood

2 The Nature Of the University
Gerald Phillips Artificial intelligence is the solution to natural stupidity”

3 Types of Universities Multiversity Comprehensive university
Smaller public colleges and universities Urban-centered university Community college/university branch Graduate emphasis university Where’s the University of Arizona? Multiversity - Stanford, Michigan Comprehensive – California State University system, Southern Illinois Smaller public colleges and universities – Amherst, Vassar Urban-centered universities – CUNY, Wayne State Community college/ university branch – Pima Community College, ASU – East Graduate emphasis university – Johns Hopkins, California Institute of Technology

4 History of University Private religious universities
Ministers (Harvard, Yale, William & Mary) Dartmouth (Native Americans) Land Grant Universities Higher education goes public GI Bill Higher education for everyone

5 Issues Facing the University
Money “Salad” days over? Academic freedom...if the money people approve Vocations rule Politics Have the ivy towers crumbled? Diversity What should we teach?

6 Chapter 2 –Issues Facing All Beginning Academics
Gerald Phillips

7 Campus Politics All the people who have input can control the outcome Tenure Measurement Output Input Employer Colleagues College committee Union Teaching Research Publication Communication Right Time, Right Place

8 The Nature of the Political Game
Understand the power structure Make allies, take sides; Finding knowledgeable advisors and protectors—Mentor Develop a research and publication plan Cultivate teaching skills See to the ambiance of your life style Make moral decisions about your relationships with students and administrators Be prepared to deal with the moral and political issues with which you are confronted

9 Issues Facing Nontraditional Members of Academe
Julia T. Woods

10 The Standpoint of Nontraditional Academics
- Being a “non-mainstream” in academics. Bias in Bias: Motives and behaviors in individuals; “Rules”: institutional structures, policies and practices. - The “chilly climate” “Add women and stir” V.S. “Add one and stir”; Marginalization; Tradition: “ This is how things work”.

11 Manifestations Benefit Packages; Disability/Family Leave;
Evaluating: Productivity, Scholarship, Teaching, Service and Tenure Promotion schedules; Self-identity and Allegiance;

12 Survival: who is to be blamed
Survival: who is to be blamed? Recognizing the range of biases’ existence is integral to understanding professional life; Consider others…life is fair to everybody. Anyone want to change it, prove it. Don’t get mad. Self-reflection. Self-monitoring. Constructive action. “Bias decides bias, no one is unbiased” “They do it wrong, but we can make it”

13 Securing A Position Scott A. Kuehn
Associate Professor in Communication at Clarion University of Pennsylvania

14 Starting Point of Job Hunt
The most important place to start the job hunt is with yourself Put together your job case to match career talent to career desires and goals Effective self-analysis

15 Preparation of Materials
What should you put in your applications? Interview Preparation (Start doing this early) Other supporting preparation ( Talking with others, such as assistant professors, senior PhD students) Examining the Job Market

16 All About Interview Before the interview During the interview
Researching the Department Be sure about what is expected of you during the interview Practice your talk before you go During the interview Honest, Straightforward and Confident Ask Questions Do the most you can to demonstrate your research progress After the interview Be patient and go for the sure thing Best strategy of arguing for resources

17 Other Considerations and Case Study
Considerations after you sign the contract Case Studies (Huimin Zhao…)

18 STARTING OUT Scott A. Kuehn
Associate Professor in Communication at Clarion University of Pennsylvania

19 The Nature of Tenure Tenure is a legally recognized system of due process protection for faculty Tenure is the emotional state connected with it. Tenured faculty feel accepted, more at ease, and thus more able to concentrated on their career goals

20 Beginning Tenure: The Frantic Cycle
Dealing with the frantic cycle Managing the relationships Dealing with administration Making allies Successful tenure performance

21 The decision Getting tenure is similar to having a baby, we suffer, grunt, groan, and sweat when we are in the midst of it, but we forget much of that once birthing of is over. We have a baby to nurture and play with.

22 Professionalism Gerald Phillips

23 Professionalism How to be professional? General obligations: Research;
Teaching Serving the academic community and community at large;

24 Cultural Literacy We are defining the nature of the intellectual world! Communication is the only means by which knowledge can be unified into a common wisdom. Guideline: to write and speak well, to listen attentively, and to read critically.

25 Collegiality Colleagues can be helpful or harmful??
Most of the important decisions about your career will be done by peer review. Guideline: In either case, we have to communicate.

26 To be true to yourself To Thine Own Self Be True. Choices are often difficult to make, especially in the days of fiscal attrition  In general, selection of a job depends on eight major considerations; Guideline: Select the one that enable you to use your talents and fulfill your goals for personal accomplishment. Be careful of choosing!

27 Teaching in the College and University
Gerald Phillips

28 Issues about teaching What is teaching?
Is teaching important for academics? What teaching provides? Teaching quality Teaching method Teaching evaluation To be a good teacher

29 What is teaching? What’s the responsibility of teaching?
Especially for teaching in university? What’s the ideal teacher in your mind? The importance of teaching Education is a ticket up and out Influence hundreds of lives Research and publication more important for academics? Student centered vs. research centered Do you like teaching? Any preference?

30 What does teaching provide?
Guidance of learning activity Direction of performance behavior Uncomplicated presentation of information Provocation of ideas and creative expressions

31 Some complex and abstract qualities
Distinguish what is worth learning Set a worthy model to imitate Special relationships between faculty and students Understand the teacher’s responsibility

32 Methods Lecturing Discussion Testing Experiment, project
New classroom technology What’s special in MIS?

33 Evaluate, Control, and Improve
How to evaluate? How to control time? Why you feel uncomfortable about teaching? Personality? Ways to practice

34 How to be a good teacher? Think about it now and prepare
Exercise on the teaching skill Build your own teaching style Develop Enthusiasm on courses and students be humble and objective with responses Learning more, contribute more

35 Research & Publication
Dennis S. Gouran Penn State I am a specialist in small group communication, with particular emphasis on decision-making.

36 Research and Publication
?

37 Considerations in Research
Motivations Attitudes Resources Qualifications Focus Execution

38 Publication process Deciding to publish Sources of publication
Readying the manuscript Working through the process

39 Criticism and the Academic Professional
Gerald Phillips

40 Types of Criticism Act of passing judgments as to the merits of anything Judgment of professional work Act of passing severe judgment, censure, or fault finding Industrial model – standards are known ahead of time Act of analyzing or evaluating and judging the merit of a literary work or artistic work, musical performance, art exhibit, dramatic production Applied to personal choice, consequences not quite as direct Can be a judgmental comment, article, essay, or evaluation Confined to scholars – essays, experiments, technical papers Various methods of studying artifacts, texts, or documents for the purpose of reconstructing them Applies to or by historians or students of culture, sometimes scientists Investigation of literary text or document Literary criticism

41 Applied Criticism Behavior Modification Academe
Evaluation of performance against criteria Competition Governing principle for criticism in academia Don’t criticize if you can’t offer remedy Effectiveness based on orderly procedure – standards Agreement to participate Key Elements of Criticism Critic Standards Recipient Suggestions or proposals from critic to be used by recipient

42 Applied Criticism Process of Criticism Submit work
Work is criticized Edited Re-submitted until standards met Entitled to acceptance?? Maybe not Other factors may affect acceptance Political considerations Can be arbitrary Once again, critic carries burden of proof of standards used

43 Operation of Criticism in the Academy
Contract to modify behavior Administration – teacher Use – student Critical techniques less well defined Learn how to criticize with time/experience Can criticize by offering alternatives Professionals can be resistant to change Difficult to avoid negative impacts or reception Maintain equity – minimize “behind back” criticism

44 Social Behavior and the Classical Conception of Criticism
Exchanging criticism is characteristic of the Academy Dialog evokes critical statements Statements evoke change Adjust to meet requirements/standards Or, move along

45 What We Don’t Know About Criticism
Precisely how it causes change We chose coaches as mentors and “masters” “Role Model” becomes the critic Role model doesn’t see his/her self, just see critic People influence others unpredictably To be effective Pick a critic and ask for criticism Collaboration on criticism can be very effective Takeaway: criticism prepares us for change

46 Resistance to Criticism
“Any person who is criticized is threatened” “It is easy to ignore criticism” “What is important is … to find a way to overcome” resistance It is not easy to give criticism It is not easy to handle criticism It’s important to find a balance between accepting helpful criticism and not getting affected by unhelpful criticism These are some general issues.

47 Types of Resistance (1) Denial Don’t deny your success Suspicion
Don’t allow your students to deny their success Suspicion Don’t use suspicion of bad motives as excuse Offer constructive criticism Rationalization Become skillful in researching rather than in rationalizing criticism Share the blame

48 Types of Resistance (2) Transference Refusal to Participate
Distinguish professional from personal relationship Don’t under/over-estimate your contribution Refusal to Participate Don’t try to justify failure in advance No way to help (?) Self-fulfilling Prophecy Don’t think you know the (bad) future Encourage & collaborate

49 Types of Resistance (3) Programmatic Activity Antipathy to Criticism
Don’t waste time with rituals & defensible, but ineffective activities Antipathy to Criticism Don’t hide behind counter-criticism Narcissism Don’t take criticism personal & don’t be too sensitive to social evaluation Make sure you only criticize when “invited”

50 Types of Resistance (3) Begging for Mercy
Don’t expect pity in a performance driven world Reward competent performance & ignore or extinguish inept performance

51 Future: Corporatization Professionalization Politicization
Focus on Profits and Academics Professionalization Focus on Professional Development not Intellect Politicization Federal/State Control of Resources Dennis S. Gouran Penn State

52 Corporatization: Universities maintain a for-profit mentality - organizationally and functionally. University organizational chart reads like a corporate hierarchical chart. Instructional programs treated like departments required to produce a profitable product/service. Intellectual expansion pushed aside for market demand.

53 Professionalization:
Education being restricted to occupational significance. Narrowed intellectual development. Disregard for knowledge that isn’t immediately perceived as pragmatic.

54 Politicization: Need for Government aid results in external control and imposition of political agendas. Curriculum changes, downsizing, results in political centralism. Results in competitive interplay.

55 Dangers Ideal of the Examined Life Independence of Thought
Academic Freedom Collegiality


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