April, 2009

Academic Leader - April, 2009 - Full Issue PDF
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Assessing the Degree of Learner-Centeredness in a Department or Unit
By Roxanne Cullen, PhD, and Michael Harris, PhD
Many institutions have made incremental progress in moving away from an instructional model that views learning as a passive, receptive act on the part of the student, a model that favors competition over cooperation, individual achievement over collaboration, and divisiveness and control over individual differences and choice. We talk about developing learner-centeredness at our institutions that is characterized by a new focus on active learning, collaboration, and engagement. The focus, however, has been almost exclusively on what the faculty need to achieve. Little has been said in regard to the role that academic leaders need to play to foster a true, comprehensive, systemic shift in paradigms.

Rendering Promotion and Tenure Transparent: A Faculty Learning Community Approach
By Janelle Voegele, MA, and Leslie McBride, PhD
Following Boyer’s (1990) scholarship model, many campuses have revised their promotion and tenure guidelines to reflect diverse forms of scholarship in the areas of teaching, research, and service. Yet many faculty and administrators remain unsure about the review practices associated with various forms of scholarship.

Harnessing Web 2.0 Technology for Department Chairs: Technologies That Enhance Collaborative and Effective Leadership
By Gonzalo Bacigalupe, EdD, MPH
Despite the availability of several free or very inexpensive technologies, we faculty administrators seem to be behind the curve in adopting useful technologies that may help us in our complex work.

The Academic Leader as Conductor
By Jeffrey L. Buller, PhD
In a now famous presentation at the 2008 TED (Technology, Entertainment, Design) conference in Long Beach, California, Benjamin Zander, the music director of the Boston Philharmonic Orchestra, spoke of the insights he gained into what makes a conductor great. Great conductors aren’t those who demonstrate their creativity through skill on an instrument or the beauty of their own performances. Rather, they are judged by their ability to produce an environment in which the artistry of others may emerge and the quality of that performance may be experienced. Academic administrators may be said to occupy a similar position in their institutions.

Imagining America Seeks Recognition for Nontraditional Scholarship
By Rob Kelly
Some types of scholarship do not produce artifacts that are the traditional measure of academic work—journal articles and books. As a result, faculty who are engaged in nontraditional scholarly activity such as public scholarship run the risk of jeopardizing their careers due to a lack of understanding and rewards for this type of work.