Graduate teacher preparation for rural schools in Victoria and Queensland

Graduate teachers' preparedness for working in rural settings are mediated by the development of pedagogical expertise, professional engagement with parents and the community, and broader notions of preparation to teach in rural contexts. The Studying the Effectiveness of Teacher Education (SETE) project is a four-year longitudinal study tracking teacher education graduates in Queensland and Victoria to investigate the effectiveness of their programs in equipping them to meet the learning needs of students in a diverse range of school settings. A sub-set of the SETE data was examined to explore graduate teacher preparation for rural schools, specifically the authors analysed 1,539 point-in-time survey responses (April 2013) and findings from a case study exploring two teachers' transitions from teacher education into teaching positions at a rural primary school in Victoria. The case study is read iteratively with survey analysis to grapple with the issues associated with graduate teacher preparation for rural schools.

Using technology to improve peer review and collaborative conversations to benchmark academic standards

In 2010 the Australian government commissioned the Australian Learning and Teaching Council (ALTC) to undertake a national project to facilitate disciplinary development of threshold learning standards. The aim was to lay the foundation for all higher education providers to demonstrate to the new national higher education regulator, the Tertiary Education Quality and Standards Agency (TEQSA), that graduates achieved or exceeded minimum academic standards. Through a yearlong consultative process, representatives of employers, professional bodies, academics and students, developed learning standards applying to any Australian higher education provider. Willey and Gardner reported using a software tool, SPARKPLUS, in calibrating academic standards amongst teaching staff in large classes. In this paper, we investigate the effectiveness of this technology to promote calibrated understandings with the national accounting learning standards. We found that integrating the software with a purposely designed activity provided significant efficiencies in calibrating understandings about learning standards, developed expertise and a better understanding of what is required to meet these standards and how best to demonstrate them. The software and supporting calibration and assessment process can be adopted by other disciplines, including engineering, seeking to provide direct evidence about performance against learning standards. © 2012 IEEE.

Internationalisation in vocational education and training : moving from the periphery to the centre of VET?

Internationalisation has been one of the most notable phenomena facing tertiary education around the globe over the past three decades. Internationalisation is a crucial response to the demands to develop graduates who possess adequate skills, knowledge and attributes to engage and perform in a globalised and intercultural world.

Transformation from student to occupational therapist : using the Delphi technique to identify the threshold concepts of occupational therapy

BACKGROUND/AIM: Understanding and facilitating the transformation from occupational therapy student to practitioner is central to the development of competent and work-ready graduates. However, the pivotal concepts and capabilities that need to be taught and learnt in occupational therapy are not necessarily explicit. The threshold concepts theory of teaching and learning proposes that every discipline has a set of transformational concepts that students must acquire in order to progress. As students acquire the threshold concepts, they develop a transformed way of understanding content related to their course of study which contributes to their developing expertise. The aim of this study was to identify the threshold concepts of occupational therapy. METHOD: The Delphi technique, a data collection method that aims to demonstrate consensus in relation to important questions, was used with three groups comprising final year occupational therapy students (n = 11), occupational therapy clinicians (n = 21) and academics teaching occupational therapy (n = 10) in Victoria, Australia. RESULTS: Participants reached consensus regarding 10 threshold concepts for the occupational therapy discipline. These are: understanding and applying the models and theories of occupational therapy; occupation; evidence-based practice; clinical reasoning; discipline specific skills and knowledge; practising in context; a client-centred approach; the occupational therapist role; reflective practice and; a holistic approach. CONCLUSION: The threshold concepts identified provide valuable information for the discipline. They can potentially inform the development of competencies for occupational therapy and provide guidance for teaching and learning activities to facilitate the transformation to competent practitioner.

The importance of outreach programs to unblock the pipeline and broaden diversity in ICT education

There is a need for outreach programs to attract a diverse range of students to the computing discipline. The lack of qualified computing graduates to fill the growing number of computing vacancies is of concern to government and industry and there are few female students entering the computing pipeline at high school level. This paper presents three outreach programs that have the underlying assumption that students need to be reminded about the creativity and potential of computing so that it remains on the radar of their future career options. Each program instigated social and cultural change through a paradigm shift where girls moved from being ICT consumers to ICT creators. By exposing students to a wide variety of ICT activities and careers during secondary schooling, they were more likely to consider studying information systems, computer science or any other computing course at the university level. Results are presented showing student attitudinal changes as well as observed increases in enrolments at secondary school and university courses

Researching early career teachers and gender differences: ramifications for rural education

Recent research into the lives of early career teachers’ in Victoria and Queensland suggest that gender remains a significant factor in shaping the careers of those teaching in rural and regional schools. The cohort of nearly 5,000 teachers involved in the ARC-funded research project, ‘Studying the Effectiveness of Teacher Education’ (SETE) has a high proportion of females (78%). This composition is consistent with other large-scale datasets and across four rounds of SETE surveys between 2010-2014, and reflected in Case Studies of a selection of Victorian rural and regional schools. Continued perceptions of teaching as an ‘appropriate’ career for women remains - that is, it is reasonably well paid, with holidays and hours that allow a combination of responsibilities in work and family contexts (Acker, 1994). Yet, the analysis of SETE career progression data shows that employment and career chances of female and male graduate teachers diverge. Male graduates were more likely to be employed in full time positions and saw themselves in a leadership role in three years’ time, while female graduates were more likely to be employed in part-time positions and saw themselves teaching or in other education related occupations in the future. Interestingly, there was also significant difference in the perceptions of preparedness and effectiveness scores for males and females, with female teachers consistently reporting higher scores for both scales. In this paper, we examine the research data with regards to gender differences in rural and regional primary schools and ask the question: thirty years after the first Affirmative Action Plan for Women in the Victorian Teaching Service (1986), why do these gender differences in teaching careers still hold true—and does it matter in rural education?

Learning to reason: a journey of professional socialisation

One of the key attributes that health professional students and new graduates develop during professional socialisation is clinical reasoning ability. Clinical reasoning is a complex skill that is essential for professional practice. There is limited research specifically addressing how physiotherapists learn to reason in the workplace. The research reported in this paper addressed this gap by investigating how experienced physiotherapists learned to reason in daily practice. This learning journey was examined in the context of professional socialisation. A hermeneutic phenomenological research study was conducted using multiple methods of data collection including observation, written reflective exercises and repeated, semi-structured interviews. Data were analysed using phenomenological and hermeneutic strategies involving in-depth, iterative reading and interpretation to identify themes in the data. Twelve physiotherapists with clinical and supervisory experience were recruited from the areas of cardiopulmonary, musculoskeletal and neurological physiotherapy to participate in this study. Participants' learning journeys were diverse, although certain episodes of learning were common or similar. Role models, mentors and colleagues were found to be influential in the development of reasoning. An important implication for the professional socialisation of physiotherapists and other health professionals and for those involved in practice development is the need to recognise and enhance the role of practice communities in the explicit learning of clinical reasoning skills.

Identifying educational priorities for occupational therapy students to prepare for mental health practice in Australia and New Zealand: opinions of practising occupational therapists

BACKGROUND: The effective preparation of occupational therapy students for mental health practice is critical to facilitate positive consumer outcomes, underpin optimal practice and support new graduates' professional identity. This project was established to determine a set of 'educational priorities' for occupational therapy students to prepare them for current (and future) entry-level practice in mental health, from the perspective of mental health occupational therapists in Australia and New Zealand. METHODS: The study included two phases. In Phase One, participants identified what they considered to be important educational priorities for occupational therapy students to prepare them for practice in mental health. For Phase Two, an 'expert panel' was assembled to review and rank these using a Policy Delphi approach. RESULTS: Eighty-five participants provided educational priorities in Phase One. These were grouped into a total of 149 educational themes. In Phase Two, the expert panel (consisting of 37 occupational therapists from diverse locations and practice settings) prioritised these themes across three Delphi rounds. A final priority list was generated dividing educational themes into three prioritised categories: 29 'Essential', 25 'Important' and 44 'Optional' priorities. Highest-ranked priorities were: clinical reasoning, client-centred practice, therapeutic use of self, functional implications of mental illness, therapeutic use of occupation and mental health fieldwork experience. CONCLUSION: The priority list developed as part of this project provides additional information to support the review of occupational therapy curricula across Australia and New Zealand to ensure that new graduates are optimally prepared for mental health practice.

How do postgraduate qualifications in medical education impact on health professionals?

Background and Purpose: The number of degree-awarding programmes in medical education is steadily increasing. Despite the popularity and extensive investment in these courses, there is little research into their impact. This study investigated the perceived impact of an internationally-renowned postgraduate programme in medical education on health professionals’ development as educators.

Methods: An online survey of the 2008–12 graduates from the Centre for Medical Education, University of Dundee was carried out. Their self-reported shifts in various educational competencies and scholarship activities were analysed using non-parametric statistics. Qualitative data were also collected and analysed to add depth to the quantitative findings.

Results: Of the 504 graduates who received the online questionnaire 224 responded. Participants reported that a qualification in medical education had significantly (p < 0.001) improved their professional educational practices and engagement in scholarly activities. Masters graduates reported greater impact compared to Certificate graduates on all items, including ability to facilitate curriculum reforms, and in assessment and feedback practices. Masters graduates also reported more engagement in scholarship activities, with significantly greater contributions to journals. These qualifications equally benefited all participants regardless of age. International graduates reported greater impact of the qualification than their UK counterparts.

Conclusion: A postgraduate medical education programme can significantly impact on the practices and behaviours of health professionals in education, improving self-efficacy and instilling an increased sense of belonging to the educational community.

Improving student-industry engagement through project oriented curriculum

Industry expects a creative and innovative academic practice that provides students with valuable practical knowledge focused on graduate ready skills for future careers. The learning environment in engineering is inadequate for students to become a skillful graduate. The practical role of engineering is gained through working on real world problems in an industry collaborative environment through projects. Industry academia collaboration seems to be actively increasing in the development of engineering education in various parts of the globe. The close relationship between industry and academia is a vital component of the engineering pedagogy to improve student engagement in industry through projects. By engaging students with industry, students will acquire global perspective about the core attributes expected in future engineering jobs. In today’s large-scale industrial market, companies tend to prefer graduates with design skills attained through the project approach. Thus, universities should open their doors and accept the challenges of interacting with students with industrial experiences and expectations. This paper is focused on improving student industry engagement through project/design oriented curriculum. Through quantitative and qualitative research, the paper shows the industry perspectives and students views on university and industry collaboration. The research results show that students and industry can possibly maintain their engagement by providing regular feedback, reviewing goals and objectives, improving communication, keeping focused, and sharing a similar vision.

Generic skills in accounting education in a developing country: exploratory evidence from Sri Lanka

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to investigate the generic skills developed during the undergraduate degree from the perspectives of final year undergraduates and graduate employers. Design/methodology/approach - The list of generic skills tested in this study was contextualized to Sri Lanka and developed based on prior studies. Data obtained from stakeholders via a questionnaire survey was analyzed using paired sample t-test; independent sample t-test; principal component analysis; and one-way analysis of variance, with a view to explore, evaluate and compare respondents' perspectives. Findings - The findings revealed both stakeholders believe that most of the generic skills tested in this study are important for graduates' career success. Consistent with prior studies, respondents prioritized generic skills for career success above technical skills. Final year accounting undergraduates are aware of the skill expectations in the employment market. However, they perceive that most of the important generic skills are not adequately developed during the degree. Practical implications - Findings of this study inform the importance of adopting a holistic approach to the redesign of the accounting curricula to accommodate generic skill development during the degree. Suggestions include: establishing strong links between universities, professional accounting institutions and employers; introducing participatory methods of curriculum design; and assimilating continuous reviews and frequent updates to curricula. Originality/value - Sri Lanka, a developing country, was selected for this research given that little has been reported in the literature in terms of generic skills development of accounting graduates in developing countries.

Evaluating assessment practices in design based learning environment

This investigation is focused on evaluating assessment practices in design based learning environment. The School of Engineering at Deakin University practices project/design based learning as one of its learning and teaching approach. When identifying graduate attributes particularly for undergraduate engineering programs in Australia, the program accrediting body Engineers Australia (EA) initiates a set of graduate attribute elements which was mentioned in “Stage1 competencies and elements of competency”. Stage1 competencies state that one of the important engineering application ability for graduates is ‘application of systematic engineering synthesis and design processes’. By practicing the design focused learning environment and evaluating students perceptions, This investigation examines students’ experiences of assessment practices in their curriculum through an online survey given to the same cohort of students in third year and fourth year undergraduate engineering.