Papers by Gerrie Jacobs
Tydskrift vir Geesteswetenskappe
This article reflects on the last two phases of a research project, covering a period of thirteen... more This article reflects on the last two phases of a research project, covering a period of thirteen years (1998 to 2011), conducted in four phases, and involving quality practitioners from South Africa and three other continents. The project firstly strove to identify contributors to a quality culture, and secondly to generate strategies and practices that should nurture and eventually embed an underlying quality ethos in higher education institutions. The Higher Education Quality Committee (HEQC) was assigned national oversight of quality assurance in the South African higher education sector in 2001. The HEQC encouraged institutions to promote a culture of continuous improvement via their internal quality processes, strategies and structures. However, only limited empirical (tried and tested) information was available at that stage, in respect of exactly what such a quality culture would entail and the kind ofethos that was needed to nurture and eventually embed theformer culture. T...
New Directions for Institutional Research, 2013
ABSTRACT Globalization, growth, and competition are challenges faced by many postsecondary instit... more ABSTRACT Globalization, growth, and competition are challenges faced by many postsecondary institutions across the world. Institutional researchers have a prominent role to play in examining the issues related to these challenges and alerting campus leaders to the impact they may have on the institution and higher education in general.
South African Journal of Higher Education, 2004
ABSTRACT Research conducted in the late seventies and early eighties argues that learners concept... more ABSTRACT Research conducted in the late seventies and early eighties argues that learners conceptualise information differently, if it is offered through various (multiple) instructional methods (modes). Thus the term multimodal education was created - nowadays a familiar educational approach. With the appearance of the Internet, the potential for disillusionment with multimodal education has become a possibility. This article considers the different kinds of multimodal education, as illustrated through a case study of a course where the Internet was introduced as an additional mode. The article demonstrates that the so-called channel view of multimodal education (channeling information to students through a variety of unique modes) is encompassed by the broader and more appropriate communication-view. According to this view, modes communicate different messages about the world and learning. This means that modes can easily convey inconsistent messages to learners. An awareness of potential inconsistencies is crucial to ensuring that multimodal education leads to higher quality learning.
South African Journal of Higher Education, 2001
ABSTRACT Background The practice of medicine demands that its physician practitioners are self-di... more ABSTRACT Background The practice of medicine demands that its physician practitioners are self-directed, life-long learners. The Self-Directed Learning Readiness Scale (SDLRS) intends to measure adults' readiness to engage in self-directed learning. Purpose The present study assesses the underlying factor structure of the SDLRS for a sample of entering medical students. Methods Over a period of 6 years, 972 first year medical students at the Virginia Commonwealth University School of Medicine completed the SDLRS. To summarise the inter-relationships among variables, a principal axis factor analysis with oblique rotation was used on the 58 SDLRS items. A series of confirmatory factor analyses using LISREL 8.54 was performed to further examine the measurement model underlying the SDLRS. Results A 4-factor confirmatory model representing 4 correlated substantive factors and a reverse coding method factor fits these data well. Conclusions Medical educators should hold limited expectations of the SDLRS to measure medical students' readiness to engage in self-directed learning. The definitions and theoretical assumptions that inform readiness for self-directed learning should be reconsidered. Alternative approaches to studying self-directed learning should be explored.
Quality in Higher Education, 2010
This paper speculates on the possible contribution of the quality movement to higher education an... more This paper speculates on the possible contribution of the quality movement to higher education and the perceived dividends received from this, in general, over the past two decades but also, more specifically, with reference to the author’s institution in South Africa. The first major quality contribution is a gradual broadening of higher education custodianship, ensuring that academic provision more closely resembles societal expectations. It is hoped that the dividend stemming from this will be renewed public trust in higher education. The quality movement put public scholarship globally into action via its tested strategies of self‐reflection, interrogation, assessment and, especially, via the airing, sharing and exchange of research findings and practices that work. This scholarship, which increasingly contributes to the integration of various higher education subsystems and which is also respectful of contextual difference and institutional identity, is perhaps the quality revolution’s most extraordinary contribution and dividend.
This paper aims to determine the attitudes of biomedical technology students towards a mathematic... more This paper aims to determine the attitudes of biomedical technology students towards a mathematical modelling approach. Concerns have been raised by academia in the Health Sciences that students struggle to transfer their mathematical knowledge and skills to other contexts. The International Medical Informatics Association recommends curricula that aim to integrate knowledge and skills across disciplines. To help students connect mathematics with their own field of study, a mathematically-rich newspaper article was transformed into a realistic model-eliciting task. The sample comprises 38 first year students registered for a three year National Diploma in Biomedical Technology at the University of Johannesburg. To promote a collaborative learning culture, participants were divided into groups and had to complete a worksheet. As this was a maiden exposure to mathematical modelling, the task was delineated into sub-questions to guide students through the modelling process. Feedback from students regarding their attitudes towards mathematical modelling was collected and categorised using content analysis. Students felt more motivated working on a modelling task that promoted the usefulness of Mathematics in biomedical disciplines. The task aroused students’ interest in mathematical modelling and instilled problem-solving skills that created feelings of both enjoyment and anxiety.
Navorsingsprofessor in Hoëronderwys, Fakulteit Opvoedkunde, Universiteit van Johannesburg [Kontak... more Navorsingsprofessor in Hoëronderwys, Fakulteit Opvoedkunde, Universiteit van Johannesburg [Kontakbesonderhede: [email protected] of www.uj.ac.za of http://apk-webfe-01
Quality in Higher Education, 2006
This paper reports on the self-perceived roles of Science lecturers at the University of Johannes... more This paper reports on the self-perceived roles of Science lecturers at the University of Johannesburg, who teach to first year students. Since 1990, South Africa's higher education (HE) sector transformed from a near elite towards a mass system. A marked increase in student enrolments, admitting substantially more 'non-traditionals' (who typically display academic risk profiles) into the sector, followed. The Faculty's First Year Academy (a community of practice for lecturers) supports staff to optimally engage with and to provide enabling learning environments to these students. Student transition to HE is a familiar research theme, but little is known about role perceptions of academic staff who engage with transitional students. Student transition strategies and roles of academics who deal with transitional students were explored. Science lecturer perceptions of the importance of and their competence in fulfilling eight roles were empirically interrogated and gender was found to significantly influence lecturers' views and behaviours.
Published papers by Gerrie Jacobs
South African Journal of Higher Education, 2004
Research conducted in the late seventies and early eighties argues that learners conceptualise in... more Research conducted in the late seventies and early eighties argues that learners conceptualise information differently, if it is offered through various (multiple) instructional methods (modes). Thus the term multimodal education was created ± nowadays a familiar educational approach. With the appearance of the Internet, the potential for disillusionment with multimodal education has become a possibility. This article considers the different kinds of multimodal education, as illustrated through a case study of a course where the Internet was introduced as an additional mode. The article demonstrates that the so-called channel view of multimodal education (channeling information to students through a variety of unique modes) is encompassed by the broader and more appropriate communication-view. According to this view, modes communicate different messages about the world and learning. This means that modes can easily convey inconsistent messages to learners. An awareness of potential inconsistencies is crucial to ensuring that multimodal education leads to higher quality learning.
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Papers by Gerrie Jacobs
Published papers by Gerrie Jacobs