Learning Styles

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to describe an assessment instrument that college professors can use to identify their own teaching strategies as well as to help their students become more aware of their own learning strategies and motivation for learning. The learning styles of students in two different sections of business-economics courses at Marshall University (MU), Huntington, West Virginia, and Auckland Institute of Technology (AIT), Auckland, New Zealand are determined via the use of the VARK instrument. The information generated by the instrument informs about the general cognitive and motivational characteristics of their students. This information in turn can be used in course planning and teaching. The achievement of college students could be improved by providing instruction in a manner consistent with each student's learning style. The VARK instrument could provide both students and educators in the countries of Central and Eastern Europe with a stimulus for reflection and a change in both learning and teaching methods.     

Teaching financial literacy: a survey of community‐based educators

A nationwide online survey of financial educators in adult community‐based financial education programmes in the US was conducted to examine teaching beliefs, related curriculum and teaching strategies used to reach underserved populations. A transformative learning theoretical framework was used to discover how financial education engages learners in relation to their own lives. Survey findings indicate in community‐based settings financial educators are largely White, female, college educated and with multiple years of experience; believe their role is to provide expert information to help learners make informed financial choices; and often adapt published materials to reflect the life circumstances of learners. Learners are more racially diverse than educators, most having attended high school, who identify their own financial need to attend the programmes. Programmes do not often target specific groups, are frequently free and can take place in a variety of face‐to‐face settings. Implications indicate best practices for financial educators require inclusive, culturally responsive pedagogies.     

US government spending,the national debt,and the role of accounting educators

This article discusses the facts associated with US government deficits and the national debt. The growing problem of government debt is unsustainable and timely action is needed to avert serious economic problems in the future. While the current picture and forecast in the future are sobering, positive change that will restore fiscal balance is possible. Government spending and national debt are significant societal problems and the solutions can be facilitated by objective, non-partisan expertise from financial professionals such as accounting educators. We have an opportunity and responsibility to educate our students and others about the significance of our nation’s financial problems. The article also encourages accounting educators to be more active in researching and discussing these issues in a broader public context. Having faculty focus on federal spending in their teaching and research is consistent with recommendations by the Pathways Commission that encourage accounting faculty to focus on issues that matter to the profession and to society. The article suggests alternative methods for sharing the issues with various student audiences.     

全面落实现代教育理念，开创思想政治工作的新局面

教育理念是人们追求的教育理想。科学的教育理念是一种远见卓识,它能正确地反映教育的本质和时代的特征,科学地指明教育前进的方向。因此,在教育工作中倡导全面落实"以学生为主体",这是高校思想政治工作的核心,是现代大学教育理念的实质。本文主要从四个方面阐述了全面落实"以学生为主体"的途径,为学生工作者在思想政治工作方面提供了参考。     

Developing a measure to capture marketing faculty's perceptions of unethical behavior

The study explores the factor structure of the Sirgy et al. [Sirgy MJ, Johar JS, Gao T. Toward a code of ethics for marketing educators. Journal of Business Ethics 2006; 63(1): 1-20] measure of marketing faculty's perceptions of unethical behavior and tests its predictive validity. We surveyed members of the Academy of Marketing Science regarding their perceptions of acceptability of 142 behaviors that marketing faculty may encounter in their roles as teacher, researcher, administrator, consultant, professional colleague, and college professor. We used exploratory factor analyses to reveal the factor structures of the items grouped by four faculty roles: teaching, research, administrative service, and professional service. We then tested the measure's predictive validity by testing for demographic differences (gender, age, rank, tenure, and level of education) with respect to the 23 types of unethical faculty behaviors. The final measure can be used by marketing-related associations to gauge the norms of faculty conduct, which in turn can help them develop their own academic code of ethics.     

Management accounting curricula: striking a balance between the views of educators and practitioners

Management accounting education has been subject of considerable debate since the 1970s, particularly in terms of what topics should be taught. The research reported here set out to ascertain the management accounting topics/techniques and the skills/characteristics that are considered important for a graduate who intends to pursue careers in management accounting. Based on a survey conducted on educators and practitioners, the results indicate that educators viewed behavioural implications, activity-based costing (ABC), performance evaluation and product costing as the top four important topics. In contrast, practitioners' top four important topics were cash flow management, operational budgeting, variance analysis and performance evaluation. Overall, traditional techniques, as compared to contemporary techniques, tend to be more widely used by firms. As regards skills and characteristics, practitioners and educators placed high importance on thinking, problem solving, listening and quantitative skills.     

论网络对大学生思想政治教育的影响

网络时代以后,网络呈现出多元、复杂又开放的信息平台,青年学生尤其是大学生,容易接受新的思想,形成自己的思维,网络早已成了大学生们的交流、沟通的平台。因此,由于网络的影响形成了当代大学生的心理具有开放性和多元性、不可控性等,这对于高校的教育工作者提出了新的更高的要求,本文提出了网络时代学生心理特点的同时,对于教育工作者如何开展思想政治教育提供了建议。     

On becoming and being an entrepreneurship educator: a personal reflection

Entrepreneurship education has been studied intensively since 1990, yet little attention is given in the literature to the critical role and impact of the individuals that design and deliver it; the entrepreneurship educators. Who are they and what do we understand about them? Professor Alain Fayolle in 2013 challenged us to address this gap. In this article I aim to take on board Fayolle’s challenge and provide a single case of my own experience on the journey to becoming and being an entrepreneurship educator. After exploring the purpose and value of autobiographical methods, I then present the reader with my life story as an emerging entrepreneurship educator in the UK. This provides the basis for self-reflection and self-discovery to highlight key patterns of development that have shaped me as an entrepreneurship educator. Finally I provide personal thoughts on the important role of entrepreneurship educators as entrepreneurial leaders within their institutions. This paper has been produced in the hope that it will encourage other educators to share their journeys so that as a community we can better understand the ‘who’ of entrepreneurship educators.