This article explores key roles and responsibilities undertaken by academics working in the UK hi... more This article explores key roles and responsibilities undertaken by academics working in the UK higher education in relation to the student experience. Based on a case study of a large, modern university, we explore perceptions of three management roles that academics perform alongside their academic duties; namely programme leader, year tutor and personal tutor. Drawing on Brookfield's (1995) four-lens framework, these roles are examined from multiple actors' perspectives: students, peers, educational researchers, and autobiographical experiences. This study makes an important theoretical contribution by applying Brookfield's four-lens framework not previously used in researching academic life, whilst empirically it offers insights into how each management role is enacted, and related to various aspects of the student experience. These unique theoretical and empirical insights have implications for enhancing the student experience and support academics into the enactment of management roles.
This paper reports on the use of BlikBook, a course engagement platform for tutors and students t... more This paper reports on the use of BlikBook, a course engagement platform for tutors and students that facilitates academic engagement in higher education. Based on a case study where BlikBook was essential to the design and delivery of a large undergraduate module, the paper discusses how the platform opens new avenues for student feedback, and encourages more independence in peer-led student groups. The paper makes several important contributions to knowledge and practice. Firstly, it outlines the process of introducing new software within a university context, and identifies potential pitfalls. Secondly, it off ers an assessment of BlikBook that was previously untried in the case study organisation. Thirdly, previous studies have focused primarily on students' perceptions of online platforms, rather than on the diff erences in experiences between students and tutors, whereas the present study explores both aspects. Findings suggest that incorporating BlikBook in teaching could improve student engagement.
Despite the fact that personal academic tutors are routinely assigned to students (Wheeler and Bi... more Despite the fact that personal academic tutors are routinely assigned to students (Wheeler and Birtle, 1993), the extensive time pressures involved in monitoring and supporting students have resulted in the introduction of Year Tutors (YTs) to help students confront the various difficulties they face in the current educational context (Willmot and Lloyd, 2005). Consequently, university managers and HR professionals need to ensure that the ‘right people’ are in these roles, and that their personal development takes centre stage to allow them to grow and adapt to the ever-changing educational environment. However, there is a paucity of research into how YTs are recruited and developed. This study explores these areas, and thereby provides clarity to recruiters and to the people actively involved in the role. This study examines the recruitment and selection processes to employ and develop members of academic staff as Year Tutors (YTs). It presents an empirical study of the YTs system ...
Cases on Engineering Management Education in Practice, 2021
This chapter aims to increase understanding of how engineering students can benefit from integrat... more This chapter aims to increase understanding of how engineering students can benefit from integrating emotional intelligence (EI) into engineering curricula at universities. In particular, it explores the nature of EI and argues for the greater use of EI within engineering education, but also considers the challenges of placing an emphasis on EI within this field. The chapter makes recommendations for how EI skills can be incorporated into engineering education and how universities can seize the opportunity to shape the modern engineer and advance the standing of engineering in the future. The chapter's contribution lies in raising awareness not just about the benefits of integrating EI within engineering education, but also on the challenges that an empathetic behaviour entail. The authors argue that university education needs to be able to prepare graduates with engineering fundamentals and also for success and actual on-the-job EI skills.
Innovations in Education and Teaching International, 2018
The version presented here may differ from the published version or from the version of the recor... more The version presented here may differ from the published version or from the version of the record. Please see the repository URL above for details on accessing the published version and note that access may require a subscription.
These proceedings bring together a selection of papers from the 2012 Salford Postgraduate Annual ... more These proceedings bring together a selection of papers from the 2012 Salford Postgraduate Annual Research Conference (SPARC). They reflect the breadth and diversity of research interests showcased at the conference, at which over 130 researchers from Salford, the North West and other UK universities presented their work. 21 papers are collated here from the humanities, arts, social sciences, health, engineering, environment and life sciences, built environment and business.
In a time of unprecedented change, when deregulation has swollen an already competitive market an... more In a time of unprecedented change, when deregulation has swollen an already competitive market and the client is king, lawyers must innovate and manage client relationships. The authors examine whether there is such thing as a 'typical lawyer' and the place of such a role within a working team.
This paper explores the translation and interpretation issues that arose during a grounded theory... more This paper explores the translation and interpretation issues that arose during a grounded theory study of the Hellenic health sector. It outlines the problems that were encountered when working in two languages and demonstrates how these were overcome. This is highly topical because in recent years cross-language qualitative research has become increasingly popular, although there is little literature that explores these issues from a grounded theory perspective. The issues encountered during translation in grounded theory studies are so great that if they are neglected or mismanaged, they can have a direct impact on the validity of the research itself. Implicit in Glaser's method is an assumption that all researchers fully understand the language being spoken, which is not necessarily the case when research is being conducted in a foreign language. We challenge this assumption by arguing that translation considerably aids the grounded theory methodology by providing extra levels of constant comparison, via the use of verbal memoing, audio recording, and working simultaneously in multiple languages during the coding phase. Hence, our paper adds considerably to grounded theory methodology and offers guidance to future researchers.
M o u r a ti d o u, M a ri a a n d C r o w d er, M a r k (2 0 1 9) W h a t h a p p e n s w h e n ... more M o u r a ti d o u, M a ri a a n d C r o w d er, M a r k (2 0 1 9) W h a t h a p p e n s w h e n g r o u n d e d t h e o ry m e e t s t r a n sl a tio n? R efl e c ti n g u p o n t h e c o m pl exiti e s of r e s e a r c hi n g in a fo r ei g n la n g u a g e. SAGE R e s e a r c h M e t h o d s C a s e s P a r t 2. Do w nlo a d e d fro m: h t t p://i n si g h t. c u m b ri a. a c. u k/i d/ e p ri n t/ 5 1 9 4/ U s a g e o f a n y i t e m s f r o m t h e U n i v e r s i t y o f C u m b r i a' s i n s t i t u t i o n a l r e p o s i t o r y 'I n s i g h t' m u s t c o n f o r m t o t h e f o l l o w i n g f a i r u s a g e g u i d e l i n e s .
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Papers by Mark Crowder