Research in Social Sciences and Technology

i-vi

Authors: Bulent Tarman

We have been facing with several challenges in all over the World. Global and local economies are facing threats as well as the increasing numbers of migrants that have not been seen for several decades. Resources are becoming scarcer and more expensive as we consume more. Technology and especially the internet and social networking are changing the way we work, interact and communicate.The question of “Why is the study of social sciences so critical to our future?” has been asked number of times in the past! To speak of the future of the social sciences is not an easy task especially nowadays where the dynamics of the World has been dramatically changing which brings lots of crisis with pain at every level from local to global. The name of this change has been called as the “New Order of the World” as some of the players lose their power and importance while new players comes in to show themselves and claim that they are also important and cannot be ignored!

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Authors: Bonnie Bittman, Alex Davies, William B. Russell, Ekaterina Goussakova

The analysis of the College Board’s Advanced Placement (AP) enrollment focused on marginalized populations’ (i.e., African American, Hispanic, and poor students) limited access and the schools’ efforts to bridge the gaps. Little research has been done on marginalized populations’ AP passage rates. The researchers of this correlational study investigated AP enrollment and passage rates in public and charter high schools in Florida (n = 355) by comparing the enrollment and passage proportions amongst Caucasian, African American, and Hispanic students as well as the proportions of students who received free or reduced lunch. The results showed a weak, positive relationship between proportions of Hispanic, African American, and Caucasian students passing AP exams and the proportion of AP students enrolled. There was a strong, positive relationship amongst the proportions of African-American, Hispanic, and Caucasian students who passed the exam. However, a weak, negative relationship was found between the proportions of students who were enrolled in AP classes and those who received free or reduced lunch. There was also a negative relationship between Hispanic, African American, and Caucasian students passing the AP exam and the percentage of the school’s population enrolled in free or reduced lunch. The findings suggest that schools with high poverty rates have a low enrollment rate of students in AP courses. The focus on AP enrollment rates for minority students has led to increased rates of minorities successfully completing advanced coursework, but there is still a need for similar focus on high poverty schools.

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Authors: Emin Kilinc

Wilkins, A. (2016). Modernising school governance: Corporate planning and expert handling in state education. New York, NY: Routledge. 172 pp., ISBN-9781138787476. Modernising School Governance: Corporate Planning and Expert Handling in State Education is a part of Routledge Research in Education Policy and Politics series which aims to enhance readers understanding of key challenges and facilitate on-going academic debate within the influential and growing field of education policy and politics by Routledge. Andrew Wilkings, the author, is a senior lecturer in Education Studies at the University of East London. Modernising School Governance is a product of a three-year project conducted between 2012 – 2015 and supported by the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) in England.

i-ii

Authors: Bulent Tarman

Dear colleagues and readers, It is my pleasure to share with you the May 2017 issue (2/1) of Research in Social Sciences and Technology (RESSAT). I strongly believe once again that you will have a chance to meet with invaluable studies in this issue. I hope you will enjoy reading and learning about the latest studies from different parts of the world. In this issue, you will meet three new distinguished studies.

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Authors: Malia Hoffmann

This exploratory study surveyed how undergraduate students and higher education instructors at two small faith-based universities in Southern California used mobile devices in and outside of the class for academic purposes. The researcher cross-referenced the results from the two groups to make correlations. The results of this study showed that nearly all instructor participants had multiple devices and almost half of the student participants had two or more devices as well. Those devices are being used in and outside of formal class for academics in very basic and emerging way that are just touching the surface of their capabilities. This study found that students use their devices in class to read, reference, or search materials. Faculty reported using their devices as presentation devices most often.