Childhood obesity - a sign of commercial success, but a market failure.

'Obesogenic' products, such as energy dense foods, passive entertainment products, cars, and labour-saving devices, are widely available and heavily promoted. Because they are highly consumed and very profitable, obesity becomes the inevitable consequence of their commercial successes. Contemporary market forces heavily favour behaviours for short-term preferences (i.e. over-consumption and underactivity) over long-term preferences (i.e. healthy weight) and this is especially true for children. Hence, if the market, as the main mechanism for determining choices, results in outcomes, which make our children worse off, as is occurring with childhood obesity, then the market has failed to sustain and promote social and individual goals. This is a serious market failure. In the current obesogenic environment, expecting adults, let alone children, to make food and activity choices in their own best long-term interests is, therefore, demonstrably flawed. We argue that significant government intervention is needed to correct this market failure, as has been done for other major health problems.

Evolution and everging trends of university writing groups

Writing groups have developed in universities to assist academics to publish. Knowledge of these groups and their successes and challenges is valuable, and informs the wider academic writing community. However there is a paucity of research in this support area. This article will discuss writing groups from two other universities and report on the evolution of our writing group over a three-year period. It will then compare the characteristics of the three in terms of publishing acumen, collegiality, leadership and affect, and discuss emerging trends.

Rugby league: a game in crisis

This study examines the issue of crisis and reputation management strategies in Australian sporting clubs and finds that not only are individual clubs unaware of the potential impact of such crises on their organizations, but that they also have no training, contingency plans, or strategies to handle crises of any sort either at this or at the national league level. It uses the Australian Rugby League organization as a case study f()r examining these issues and concludes with several recommendations for improving crisis management and communications policies in Australian sporting organizations and for their stakeholders.

Many public and private organizations prefer to ignore the reality that "bad things" can happen, either through denial of their vulnerabilities or through myopia about their successes and strengths (Elliott, 2002). A crisis can be defined as any problem or disruption that triggers negative stakeholder reaction and extensive public scrutiny (Newman, 2003). Effective crisis management lies in continuous learning processes designed to equip managers with the capabilities, flexibility, and confidence to deal with sudden and unexpected problems or events (Robert & Lajtha, 2002). Good crisis leaders are those who can make fast decisions under pressure and who can keep the big picture consequences of actions and words in mind when making these decisions 030in & Lagadec, 20(0). In 2004, the Rugby league in Australia was both ill-prepared and ill-advised to effectively deal with a sex scandal involving a number of their players on an official club tour. In classic crisis escalation, what should have been a serious but easily dealt with problem became a major reputational and institutional crisis for the league, its sponsors, its players, and its fans.

Class act : Melbourne Workers Theatre, 1987-2007

Celebrates the company's artistic achievements and successes over the last two decades through interviews, essays and high quality images of key productions, and recounts its history, its evolving relationship with the embattled trade union movement, and its on-going engagement with working class, indigenous and migrant communities.

Teaching with wikis : addressing the digital divide

This paper addresses some aspects of the digital divide affecting teachers and learners in higher education. These relate to divisions arising from variable rates of technology adoption by teachers, which may be especially problematic when students’ uptake of technology is much more rapid than those who teach them, and also to divisions within the student body which teachers need to accommodate when they plan the design of learning. To address these divisions, we designed a pilot online workshop to prepare a small group of teaching staff at two Australian universities for using wikis in teaching and assessment. Participants were immersed in the experience of collaborating on a project in a wiki as learners, and then asked to reflect on this experience as teachers. We used a participatory action research approach with a view to developing a community of enquiry to investigate this experience for improving future offerings, and informing the participants’ teaching practice. This paper reports on the professional development effort, reflecting on the successes and limitations of the work, and lessons learned in relation to bridging the above aspects of the digital divide. We then comment on the potential for further development in the context of the evolution of learning technology as a research discipline.

Leveraging leverage : how strategies can really work for you

The theme of the new Strategic Plan 2008-12 for Deakin University is the delivery of effective partnerships with a key focus on enhancing student experience. The Library has a key role in seeking new and improved ways to support the university’s teaching, learning, scholarship and research activities. Investigations of Web 2.0 technologies have pinpointed suitable applications to enhance student engagement with the Library and with information resources. Along with digital initiatives, the Library is creating intelligent collaborative and contemporary spaces to support and enhance students’ informal learning. Spaces will accommodate student-centred problem-based pedagogy and offer options for interactive group learning, quiet study and reflective zones.

This paper outlines a holistic approach adopted by Deakin University Library and reports on successes and challenges in meeting strategic outcomes to enhance student experience and learning discovery.

Financial crime in South Africa

During the 1990s economic crime began to spiral in South Africa. This phenomenon coincided with the country's transition to a democratic state. The article outlines a number of steps that South Africa took to align its laws with international standards and to improve the legal tools of law enforcement to address the crime wave. A number of successes, for instance the improvement in tax morality, are pointed out but it is argued that co-ordination and co-operation between law enforcement agencies require more attention.

An overview of IT outsourcing in public secto agenices

For the past 15 years, governments in the developed, Western world have been contracting out, or outsourcing, services as a key part of public sector reforms. Outsourcing has been argued to lead to cost savings, improved discipline, better services, access to scarce skills, and the capacity for managers to focus more time on the core business of their organizations (Domberger, 1998). Government outsourcing initiatives have encompassed a range of services, but given the large sums of money invested in IT assets, the outsourcing of IT services (IT outsourcing, or ITO) has been a major initiative for many agencies. Lacity and Willcocks (1998, p. 3) defined ITO as "handing over to a third party [the] management of IS/IT assets, resources and/or activities for required results." For public-sector outsourcing, this handover is usually made by way of a competitive tender. Case studies have reported ITO successes and failures (e.g., Currie & Willcocks, 1998; Rouse & Corbitt, 2003; Willcocks & Currie, 1997; Willcocks & Lacity, 2001; Willcocks & Kern, 1998), but much of the evidence presented to public-sector decision makers to justify this reform is anecdotal and unsystematic, and when investigated in depth, does not necessarily support widespread conclusions.

Power and passion:remoulded teamwork in a plastics factory

Purpose: – The purpose of this paper is to document the progress made in a specified period and the experience of managers and staff in sustaining the high performance team approach in a plastics factory.

Design/methodology/approach: – Single-case analysis was conducted on data collected through semi-structured interviews and site observations made with two managers and one team of six in a multinational plastics manufacturer (Visy) headquartered in Australia.

Findings: – Based on the authors' experiences and literature review a successful high performance team requires clear targets and efficiency standards, communication, rules of behaviour, continual input of facts and feedback, and last but not least – recognition of successes.

Research limitations/implications: – The findings are based on observations and interviews conducted in one part of a multinational organization in Australia. No follow-up interviews could be undertaken to track the progress.

Originality/value: – No other similar study had been undertaken in this organisation documenting the experiences of a quality improvement team and its interactions with managers. The findings have practical implications for industrial and other kinds of organisations engaged in implementing quality improvements through enhanced teamwork.

Enhancing nutritional research within an aged care facility

Aim: The present study examined the barriers to the implementation of a nutritional intervention project and sought ways to enhance future projects.

Methods: The study, utilising a qualitative approach, included participants from key areas involved in the project and who were employed by either the university or regional aged care facility.

Results: Through analysis the themes 'successes', 'stumbling blocks' and 'solutions' emerged. Within these themes descriptive stories of what worked, what did not work and suggestions for future projects are depicted.

Conclusions: Communication was the connecting element of each theme, suggesting effective verbal and written communication that ensures ownership by all involved is essential for successful clinical research projects. Strategies to enhance this process have been included to assist future researchers.

Academic staff take the lead : experimenting with social software at Deakin University

This paper reports on a two staged staff development exercise to help new academic staff to integrate Web 2.0 technologies including web-based communication and some digital technologies into their curricula. It involved professional development for the teaching staff in the first stage followed by these teachers providing professional development for the course participants. The teachers engaged in a blended community of inquiry with face-to-face sessions and online work while the professional development for the course participants included technical support, training and a peer group environment with formal allocation of time for the course, finally leading to an institutionally recognised qualification. Evaluations conducted through focus group interviews revealed that collegial networks and time were important for effective professional development. The paper reflects on the successes and limitations of the model and its potential for further development. It also highlights the importance of providing professional development in a safe environment for academics to adopt technologies for teaching and learning.

What are seating clinicians thinking?

In response to an influx of commercially available seating product, research was undertaken to examine how clinicians, experienced in seating prescriptions make decisions when assisting their clients to choose the most appropriate seating systems for their wheelchairs. This paper will present findings from research undertaken in 2005, into the decision-making processes (known as Clinical Reasoning) used by six clinicians working in Victoria. The paper will discuss the successes and barriers these clinicians encounter when selecting ready-made products, off the shelf, to trial and what parameters arose that required custom-made products. The research findings illuminate the clinicians' considerations for successful client collaboration and the essentials for effective supplier-clinician partnerships when selecting from an overwhelming array of new products and available technologies to accommodate generally a more informed consumer base. The availability of ready-made product has altered consumer perceptions that wheelchair seating is no longer a specialized area and that all clinicians should be competent to prescribe. This paper will reveal how experience seating clinicians assess, make decisions and evaluate the client's needs when undertaking equipment trials and prescribing seating products for complex consumer needs. This is of interest to all who are involved in prescribing and supplying products for wheelchair consumers.

Integrated governance : a pre-requisite for sustainable market-orientated development in Bangladesh

Using agriculture input sector as an exemplar, this article assesses Bangladesh's efforts towards a market-oriented development approach. It examines the changing role of the state following the market-based reforms undertaken in this sector and assesses whether the outcomes of the reforms are sustainable. Findings reveal that, although the current move towards a market-oriented approach has led to a shift away from a state-dominated hierarchical structure, it has not been associated with adequate changes in institutional arrangements, safeguards, and regulation. As a result, despite notable achievements of the reforms, the sustainability of these successes is in question. To facilitate participatory, accountable, and sustainable, market-oriented development, the paper proposes an integrated governance model linking state, business, and civil society.

Rethinking a learning environment strategy

I have committed a significant period of time (in my case five years) to the purpose development of learning environments, with the belief that it would improve the self-actualisation and self-motivation of students and teachers alike. I consider it important to record and measure performance as we progressed toward such an outcome. Education researchers and practitioners alike, in the higher (university/tertiary) education systems, are seeking among new challenges to engage students and teachers in learning (James, 2001). However, studies to date show a confusing landscape littered with a multiplicity of interpretations and terms, successes and failures. As the discipline leader of the Information Technology, Systems and Multimedia (ITSM) Discipline, Swinburne University of Technology, Lilydale, I found myself struggling with this paradigm. I also found myself being torn between what presents as pragmatic student learning behaviour and the learner-centred teaching ideal reflected in the Swinburne Lilydale mission statement. The research reported in this folio reflects my theory and practice as discipline leader of the ITSM Discipline and the resulting learning environment evolution during the period 1997/8 to 2003. The study adds to the material evidence of extant research through firstly, a meta analysis of the learning environment implemented by the ITSM Discipline as recorded in peer reviewed and published papers; and secondly, a content analysis of student learning approaches, conducted on data reported from a survey of ‘learning skills inventory’ originally conducted by the ITSM Discipline staff in 2002. In 1997 information and communication technologies (ICT) were beginning to provide plausible means for electronic distribution of learning materials on a flexible and repeatable basis, and to provide answers to the imperative of learning materials distribution relating to an ITSM Discipline new course to begin in 1998. A very short time frame of three months was available prior to teaching the course. The ITSM Discipline learning environment development was an evolutionary process I began in 1997/8 initially from the requirement to publish print-based learning guide materials for the new ITSM Discipline subjects. Learning materials and student-to-teacher reciprocal communication would then be delivered and distributed online as virtual learning guides and virtual lectures, over distance as well as maintaining classroom-based instruction design. Virtual here is used to describe the use of ICT and Internet-based approaches. No longer would it be necessary for students to attend classes simply to access lecture content, or fear missing out on vital information. Assumptions I made as discipline leader for the ITSM Discipline included, firstly, that learning should be an active enterprise for the students, teachers and society; secondly, that each student comes to a learning environment with different learning expectations, learning skills and learning styles; and thirdly, that the provision of a holistic learning environment would encourage students to be self-actualising and self-motivated. Considerable reading of research and publications, as outlined in this folio, supported the update of these assumptions relative to teaching and learning. ITSM Discipline staff were required to quickly and naturally change their teaching styles and communication of values to engage with the emergent ITSM Discipline learning environment and pedagogy, and each new teaching situation. From a student perspective such assumptions meant students needed to move from reliance upon teaching and prescriptive transmission of information to a self-motivated and more self-actualising and reflective set of strategies for learning. In constructing this folio, after the introductory chaperts, there are two distinct component parts; • firstly, a Descriptive Meta analysis (Chapter Three) that draws together several of my peer reviewed professional writings and observations that document the progression of the ITSM Discipline learning environment evolution during the period 1997/8 to 2003. As the learning environment designer and discipline leader, my observations and published papers provide insight into the considerations that are required when providing an active, flexible and multi-modal learning environment for students and teachers; and • secondly, a Dissertation (Chapter Four), as a content analysis of a learning skills inventory data collection, collected by the ITSM Discipline in the 2002 Swinburne Lilydale academic year, where students were encouraged to complete reflective journal entries via the ITSM Discipline virtual learning guide subject web-site. That data collection included all students in a majority of subjects supported by the ITSM Discipline for both semesters one and two 2002. The original purpose of the journal entries was to have students reflectively involved in assessing their learning skills and approaches to learning. Such perceptions were tested using a well-known metric, the ‘learning skills inventory’ (Knowles, 1975), augmented with a short reflective learning approach narrative. The journal entries were used by teaching staff originally and then made available to researchers as a desensitised data in 2003 for statistical and content analysis relative to student learning skills and approaches. The findings of my research support a view of the student and teacher enculturation as utilitarian, dependent and pragmatically self-motivated. This, I argue, shows little sign of abatement in the early part of the 21st Century. My observation suggests that this is also independent of the pedagogical and educational philosophy debate or practice as currently presented. As much as the self-actualising, self-motivated learning environment can be justified philosophically, the findings observed from this research, reported in this folio, cannot. Part of the reason for this originates from the debate by educational researchers as to the relative merits of liberal and vocational philosophies for education combined with the recent introduction of information and communication technologies, and commodification of higher education. Challenging students to be participative and active learners, as proposed by educationalists Meyers and Jones (1993), i.e. self-motivated and self-actualising learners, has proved to be problematic. This, I will argue, will require a change to a variable/s (not yet identified) of higher education enculturation on multiple fronts, by students, teachers and society in order to bridge the gap. This research indicates that tertiary educators and educational researchers should stop thinking simplistically of constructivist and/or technology-enabled approaches, students learning choices and teachers teaching choices. Based on my research I argue for a far more holistic set of explanations of student and staff expectations and behaviour, and therefore pedagogy that supports those expectations.

Syphilis and AIDS : historical and social comparisons

Drawing on the literatures of history, sociology, epidemiology, and microbiology, this thesis compares syphillis with human immunodeficiency virus, with special reference to the social and historical factors likely to be relevant to the control or eradication of acquired imune dificiency syndrom (AIDS). The sudden appearance of a new disease causing suffering and death in a community, engenders apprehension and fear which is often manifested as hysteria against, and vilification of, those who have the disease. This fear is greatly increased should the disease be sexually-transmitted. Syphilis in a venereal form, occured in Europe toward the end of the 15th Century. Initially it was an acute, fulminating disease which rapidly spread through Europe and Asia. Attempts to control the disease have gone through periods of either partial successes or massive failures and have ended in frustration for the authorities. When the syndrome of acquired immune deficiency (AIDS) was first reported, it was seen in Western countries in homosexual men. However, as non-homosexual community members and children became infected, it became apparent to authorities that a pandemic was accurring. Within a few years, the disease was identified worldwide. Isolation of the virus (HIV-1), and development of test for detection of carriers, plus restoration of clean blood and blood-product supplies, have reassured the community to some extent. The history of syphilis shows that neither the epidemiological medical, nor the economic political approaches to disease control work, although there are positive aspects resulting from both. It is social responses that will offer the most hope in the long term for the control of AIDS and other sexually-transmitted diseases.