Through an extended commentary on the empirical articles in this special issue 'Signature Assessment and Feedback Practices in the Disciplines' we elaborate the concepts of signature assessment and signature feedback practices by developing a new taxonomy of their elements. We propose that signature assessments focus on conceptual,…

Patrons' information consumption behaviors of print materials are influenced by their content and tangible characteristics. This quantitative study incorporates several content-based factors widely adopted in collection management practices as well as two physical dimension-related factors, including book size and number of pages, and applies a…

This study examines gender differences and teacher's profession in teachers' use of open learning resources. It aims to help understand the way Open Educational Resources (OER) should be assimilated in the education system. This study was conducted in a qualitative research approach that checked correlations between variables. The research…

Access to information is vital for efficient research at universities. Electronic resources provide new platforms for information to aid in conducting research at universities. This study explores the perceived effect of accessibility and utilization of electronic resources on research productivity at Nigerian universities. A quantitative research…

New media, new knowledge practices, and concepts point to the need for greater understanding of cognitive processes underlying knowledge acquisition and generation in open informational worlds. The authors of the articles in this special issue address cognitive and instructional challenges surrounding multiple document comprehension--a…

Introduction: We examine doctoral students' awareness of and attitudes to open access forms of publication. Levels of awareness of open access and the concept of institutional repositories, publishing behaviour and perceptions of benefits and risks of open access publishing were explored. Method: Qualitative and quantitative data were collected…

The National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE) documents dimensions of quality in undergraduate education and provides information and assistance to colleges, universities, and other organizations to improve student learning. Its primary activity is annually surveying college students to assess the extent to which they engage in educational…

Discusses information overload and examines several ways in which actual and potential overload affects research choices for the solo researcher in interdisciplinary areas. Topics include information overload and teamwork; entry barriers to certain specialties, including necessary background knowledge; and information utilization and knowledge…

The idea of making general psychology more accessible to and/or usable by the general public is considered (i.e., the idea of giving psychology away). A larger and related question is whether general psychology, as an academic course and as an orientation to psychology, should be approached as general studies. One impediment to giving psychology…

Information from the social sciences, related to the development of substantive content for social science curricula at the secondary school level, is recorded in 16 interviews with small groups of social scientists. A cross-representational team of psychologists and educators conducted these two-and-one-half-hour interviews to obtain the social…

There are now established methods and models to assess critical thinking in any discipline. The approach selected will depend on how critical thinking is defined, whether national norms are needed, and how the results will be used. (Author)

A survey of 201 of Canada's 628 school districts found that most reported a moderate surplus of teachers overall, with shortages in technology education, science, and mathematics. Findings were distributed to key stakeholders, who assessed the value and uses of such information. Contains 28 references and a chronology of 13 teacher…

While business administration educators are increasingly using computers for instruction, incorporating administrative computing into course content and classroom activity, requiring computer literacy of students, adding courses in high-technology management, and creating departments of management information systems, no general theory of…

Argues that gaming-simulation is an appropriate vehicle for conveying research knowledge to policymakers. The appropriateness of scientific inquiry as a means for dealing with problems of a systemic nature is discussed, and questions concerning the conveyance of research knowledge in a useful format are addressed. Thirty references are cited.…

Argues that ignorance is a better criterion than truth for determining the usefulness of knowledge generated through educational research. Implications for conceptualizing and teaching research are discussed, illustrating how attention to ignorance can increase understanding in areas such as practitioner research and cooperative research. (SLD)