University of Albany Education Professor David Yun Dai Travels to China as Fulbright Scholar - UAlbany Academics

Courtesy: University of Albany News

University at Albany Education Professor David Yun Dai is conducting teacher surveys on inquiry-based learning in China as part of the country's educational reform efforts.

ALBANY, N.Y. (December 23, 2008) -- University at Albany Education Professor David Yun Dai was named a Fulbright Scholar, joining an accomplished group of higher-education faculty and professionals traveling abroad for the 2008-09 academic year. Dai is conducting teacher surveys on inquiry-based learning in China as part of the country's educational reform efforts.

"It's an honor for Professor Dai to receive this important acclaim," said Interim Provost Susan D. Phillips, vice president of academic affairs. "He is a committed researcher and teacher, and this recognition will enhance his work and the School of Education's international reach and reputation."

Dai, an associate professor in the Department of Educational and Counseling Psychology, will meet with more than 50 senior high school principals who are pioneering a new round of curriculum reform in China. Dai will share his experiences and perspectives on U.S. education reform, as well as discuss implementation, obstacles and other potential issues.

"I think countries have much to learn from each other, on education or otherwise, and I am very privileged and honored to serve as a medium and facilitator in this mission," said Yun, who joined UAlbany's faculty in 2001.

At UAlbany, Yun teaches courses related to instruction, learning, motivation, and cognition. He has conducted classroom-based research on incorporating teaching cases and case methods in teacher education courses to facilitate teacher reflection and learning.

Dai will remain in China through March 2009.

Two visiting Fulbright Scholars, Vadim Kozlov, professor of mechanics and mathematics at Moscow State University in Russia and Chanyoung Park, associate professor of economics at Andong National University in Korea, will lecture and research at the University at Albany as part of the Fulbright Visiting Grantees program.

Both will remain at UAlbany through summer 2009.

Established in 1946 under legislation introduced by the late Senator J. William Fulbright of Arkansas, the Fulbright Scholar program's purpose is to build mutual understanding between the people of the United States and other countries. This year, about 800 U.S. faculty and professionals received Fulbright Scholar awards to lecture and conduct research abroad, joining nearly 100,000 scholars who have received a Fulbright award since the program's inception.

The Fulbright Scholar program, America's flagship international educational exchange activity, is sponsored by the U.S. Department of State and administered by the Council for International Exchange of Scholars. Award recipients are chosen on the basis of academic or professional achievement and because they have demonstrated extraordinary leadership potential in their fields.

University of Albany Faculty Research and Lecture Abroad on Fulbright Grants

Three University of Albany faculty have been named Fulbright Scholars, joining an accomplished group of higher-education faculty and professionals traveling abroad for the 2007-08 academic year.

Edward Schwarzschild, an associate professor of English, will teach on contemporary literature, American writers and visual arts at the University of Zaragoza in Zaragoza, Spain from February 2008 to July 2008.

Louise-Anne McNutt, an associate professor in the Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics in the School of Public Health, will lecture on the development of the School of Public Health and bloodborne pathogen transmission prevention at Tbilisi State Medical University in Tbilisi, Georgia from February 2008 to July 2008.

Robert C. Howell, a professor of philosophy, is teaching on Kantian objects and the metaphysics of art at Moscow State University in Moscow, Russia. He left in September 2007 and will return in July 2008.

Schwarzschild, who holds a joint appointment in the New York State Writers Institute, is the author of the novel, Responsible Men, which was chosen as one of the "Best Books of 2005" by the San Francisco Chronicle and was named "Best Literary Debut of 2005" by the Albany Times Union. His second book, a collection of stories entitled The Family Diamond, was published in September. He has been a finalist for the Samuel Goldberg and Sons Foundation Award for Jewish Fiction as well as the Rome Prize from the American Academy of Arts and Letters.

McNutt conducts studies on transmission of infectious diseases in developing countries with a focus on developing prevention programs to stop the progression of HIV and hepatitis. In the U.S., she conducts detailed studies of intimate partner violence (IPV) and its ramifications in other aspects of women's lives. McNutt, who spent time in Central Asia researching infectious diseases, has also conducted multiple outbreak investigations, an evaluation of a comprehensive AIDS curriculum, and continuously works on improving epidemiologic methods utilized in these studies.

Howell's research and teaching focus on the history of modern philosophy, analytical metaphysics, and aesthetics. He is particularly interested in questions about our representation of and reference to objects, as these questions emerge in the Critique of Pure Reason and related works and in the philosophy of art. Howell teaches graduate level courses at UAlbany on Kant, 19th century philosophy, aesthetics, and metaphysics.

Established in 1946 under legislation introduced by the late Senator J. William Fulbright of Arkansas, the Fulbright Scholar program's purpose is to build mutual understanding between the people of the United States and other countries. This year, about 800 U.S. faculty and professionals received Fulbright Scholar awards to lecture and conduct research abroad, joining nearly 100,000 scholars who have received a Fulbright award since the program's inception.

The Fulbright Scholar program, America's flagship international educational exchange activity, is sponsored by the U.S. Department of State and administered by the Council for International Exchange of Scholars. Award recipients are chosen on the basis of academic or professional achievement and because they have demonstrated extraordinary leadership potential in their fields.

Courtesy: Catherine Herman