Measuring work-study engagement in built environment undergraduate education in Australia

The cost of accessing higher education is expensive causing students to juggle the demands of paid work with study responsibilities. Whilst some work can be beneficial to student leaning this research seeks a more accurate understanding of why students undertake paid experience work to the level that they do. This paper examines the extent of work and study during an undergraduate program in construction at RMIT University Australia. Students responded to a questionnaire on the duration and nature of their work and study times. The results indicate that students who were involved in paid work do in excess of 20 hours per week, whist also enrolled as full-time undergraduates. The results of the study show that students in the early years of the program seem to be more engaged with study and spent slightly less time at work. This is contrasted with students in the final two years of the course spend considerable more time in paid work and less time undertaking study.
The paper concludes by suggesting that the results are partly the result of the unstructured work-experience requirements that occur from about year 3 of the program. Students who were encouraged by the university to undertake paid work-experience appeared to be increasingly disinterested in connecting with the broader university experience.

Undergraduate pre-registration nursing education in Australia: a longitudinal examination of enrolment and completion numbers with a focus on students from rural and remote campus locations

Introduction: There is much evidence to indicate a shortage of Registered Nurses (RNs) in Australia and to suggest that the shortage may be more pronounced in rural and remote locations. Attracting RNs to work in rural and remote areas may not be as simple as increasing the intake of students into university undergraduate pre-registration nursing courses. There is some evidence indicating that student nurses may be more likely to enter the nursing workforce in rural and remote locations if they have existing associations with rural and remote areas and/or their undergraduate education provides opportunities to undertake supported placements in rural and remote settings. Two important difficulties have been associated with measuring outcomes in relation to rural and remote pre-registration nursing students. One is defining what constitutes a rural or remote location and the other is suspect data on the number of nursing students enrolled in, and completing, nursing courses. The aims of this study were to provide a longitudinal profile of the number of domestic students studying and completing undergraduate pre-registration nursing courses in Australia, with a particular emphasis on identifying those at rural and remote university campuses, and to compare results across States and Territories.
Method: This study presents the combined findings from two investigative reports. Data on undergraduate pre-registration nursing student numbers were collected via electronic survey instruments completed by staff at all Australian educational institutions offering undergraduate pre-registration nursing education programs in 2001 and 2002. Australian domestic students were the focus of this study. Data included the total number of domestic students enrolled in undergraduate pre-registration nursing courses in 2001 and 2002, the number of domestic students who successfully completed courses in 1999, 2000 and 2001, and estimates for the number expected to complete in 2002. Surveys were sent to course coordinators or other staff nominated by heads of divisions of nursing at each institution.
Results: There was a 100% response rate. Twenty-four rural and remote campus locations were identified using an adjusted form of the Rural, Remote and Metropolitan Areas (RRMA) classification system. The Australian Capital Territory and the Northern Territory did not have any rural or remote campus locations. In contrast, undergraduate pre-registration nursing in Tasmania was offered at a rural campus only (for the first 2 years). From 2001 to 2002, there was an increase of just over 5% in the total number of domestic students enrolled in undergraduate pre-registration nursing courses in Australia (2002 total = 22 811 students). Rural and remote location students accounted for slightly more than 25% of these students in 2001, and almost 27% in 2002. The States Victoria, New South Wales and Queensland had the highest percentage of students enrolled at rural and remote campus locations, greater than the Australian average for both years. In contrast, South Australia and Western Australia had less than 11% of students enrolled at rural and remote campus locations for each year. Total undergraduate pre-registration course completions increased by approximately 16% across Australia between 1999 (n = 4868) and 2002 (n = 5667), although for 2002, the figure was projected. Of these total course completions, the percentage of students completing at rural and remote campus locations increased from almost 23% to nearly 28% during the same period. Of the States/Territories with both metropolitan and rural/remote campus locations, only Victoria and Queensland had more than 25% of their total student completions consisting of students enrolled at rural and remote campus locations for each year. In contrast, South Australia and Western Australia had approximately 6% of student completions consisting of students enrolled at rural and remote campus locations in 1999, increasing to approximately 12% projected for 2002.
Conclusion: In this study, the authors attempted to improve the accuracy of data collection in relation to the number of domestic undergraduate pre-registration nursing students in Australia, which is representative of the potentially new Australian domestic RN workforce. There was a trend towards an increasing number of students being enrolled in undergraduate pre-registration nursing courses, and also toward an increasing number of course completions. From the perspective of the rural and remote RN workforce, the percentage of students enrolled and completing courses at rural and remote campus locations was found to be increasing. However, there may be some areas of concern for education and workforce planners in States and Territories that are providing a smaller percentage of their undergraduate pre-registration nursing courses in rural and remote areas. Several study limitations are discussed and suggestions made for future research.

Self-reported empathy levels in undergraduate occupational therapy students.

Relevence to exploring Occupational therapy role transitions and processes: The skill of establishing an empathetic therapeutic relationship in collaboration with one’s clients is a valued professional competency. To prepare occupational therapy students for professional practice, aspects of empathy awareness should be explored early in their undergraduate education. Raising students’ awareness of empathy and transforming this into professional competency for building empathetic relationships requires time. Occupational therapy undergraduates should explore aspects of empathy, both theoretically and in practice at all levels, to ensure these developing professionals can build empathic therapeutic relationships in practice. 
Aim: This research was undertaken to determine if students in four different years of study in occupational therapy at an Australian university differed in self-reported levels of empathy.

The underlying assumption in chemistry education

The underlying assumption in chemistry education is that chemistry is real, distinct discipline, clearly differentiable from other sciences. Chemistry is the study of matter and its interactions with other matter and with energy, but the aspects which distinguish chemistry are: macroscopic observations and descriptions of properties and change; understanding in terms of atoms and molecules; abstract representations to describe and communicate chemical concepts; and occupational health and safety. These aspects are not unique to chemistry, but their combination make chemistry unique. Over the last three years, there have been major reviews of school science education through the formulation of the Australian National Curriculum and of undergraduate education through the Learning and Teaching Academic Standards Project. In both cases, individual RACI members and chemistry professionals, including school teachers, and RACI working party and workshop, have articulated the unique nature of chemistry and the need for chemistry education as a separate subject.

Concurrent undergraduate study and industry employment - the Australian experience

Undergraduate education in Quantity Surveying (QS) and Construction Management (CM) in Australia has traditionally incorporated concurrent industry experience as an important requisite prior to graduation. This has been primarily driven by accrediting professional associations but most universities have also recognized the value of this cooperative approach to education with industry. However, in recent years many universities have become concerned about the amount of time that students are spending in industry employment to the point where, for some students, their employment takes precedence over their academic studies. Past research has shown that working long hours has a negative effect on the study patterns of undergraduate students. This paper presents the results of research undertaken to examine the amount of time that Quantity Surveying and Construction Management students actually spend engaged in paid work during semester time and the impact on their studies. The methodology for the research was based on two separate questionnaire surveys distributed to undergraduate Quantity Surveying and Construction Management students at 7 universities across Australia. The questionnaires focused on the nature and extent of their paid work while enrolled in full-time study. The results indicate that students in the early stages of their program tend to undertake casual work that is not related to their degree but move to construction industry employment in the later stages of their program. The research found that students were spending an average of 18 hours per week in industry employment with this average increasing to over 23 hours in their final year. A number of students were spending well over 30 hours per week in industry employment. The implications of the extent of this concurrent industry employment are discussed.

A content analysis of early childhood teachers’ theoretical and practical experiences with infants and toddlers in Australian teacher education programs

 In Australia, the growth in the provision of early childhood services for very young children aged birth to three years has placed increased demands on pre-service teachers as new policy stipulates the need for qualified early childhood teachers. While many teacher education programs offer early childhood courses, they have traditionally had a greater focus on kindergarten and the formal years of schooling. Less is known about the amount of time devoted to developing the specialist educational capacity for teaching and caring for infants and toddlers. This paper explores 55 Australian early childhood teacher undergraduate education programs to provide data regarding what pre-service teachers learn about children from birth to three years of age during their formal program of study. It explores: if pre-service teachers engage in practical experiences with this age range; what content they learn; and how knowledge for this age range is assessed. Utilising information from fully accessible public program websites, data in the form of course details were examined to reveal the extent and nature of courses inclusive of teaching and learning focusing on children aged from birth to three years. Of the 55 programs, 18 programs provided practical experience with infants and toddlers, and to a lesser extent content was evident and assessed. Most of the programs which included a focus on birth to three years of age were delivered by Victorian institutions. Findings are important for the future of early childhood teacher education in Australia and hold key messages for teacher registration bodies.

Development, evaluation and use of a student experience survey in undergraduate science laboratories: the advancing science by enhancing learning in the laboratory student laboratory learning experience survey

Student experience surveys have become increasingly popular to probe various aspects of processes and outcomes in higher education, such as measuring student perceptions of the learning environment and identifying aspects that could be improved. This paper reports on a particular survey for evaluating individual experiments that has been developed over some 15 years as part of a large national Australian study pertaining to the area of undergraduate laboratories—Advancing Science by Enhancing Learning in the Laboratory. This paper reports on the development of the survey instrument and the evaluation of the survey using student responses to experiments from different institutions in Australia, New Zealand and the USA. A total of 3153 student responses have been analysed using factor analysis. Three factors, motivation, assessment and resources, have been identified as contributing to improved student attitudes to laboratory activities. A central focus of the survey is to provide feedback to practitioners to iteratively improve experiments. Implications for practitioners and researchers are also discussed.

Staff perceptions of the role of technology in experiential learning: a case study from an Australian university

This paper reports on a cross-disciplinary comparative study that examines the interplay between information and communications technologies (ICT) and experiential learning, in the context of seven fields of professional practice in undergraduate education. Our central claim is that academic teachers' framing of the meaning and nature of experiential learning shapes the actual and possible uses of ICT, in supporting the development of professional expertise in academic and workplace learning environments. Implicit in teaching conceptions and practices is an underlying view of the changing nature and conduct of the professions, and the requirements for effective entry level practice in relevant professional fields. The paper explores key indicators of ICT development and usage in supporting the creation of meaningful professional learning, and the design of integrated, coherent, professional learning environments.

A critical examination of ethical decision making models

This paper critically examines both the need for, and the use of, ethical decision making models (EDMMs). This paper suggests that EDMMs focus on arriving at the correct decision but ignore the action required to implement it and are therefore incomplete. In most “accounting” circumstances, finding the right decision is not what is required. Rather, a model which provides both a sound decision and, appropriate implementation would be more useful. In trying to establish a new/different EDDM that provides for this it is argued that a biblical model exists which addresses both decision making and action. This paper aims to encourage accounting ethics education to move beyond determining the right decision and focus on taking the right action.

International and interdisciplinary approach to curriculum : the Melbourne model

‘The Melbourne Model’ is a new approach to university curriculum that has been adopted recently by the University of Melbourne, Australia. It incorporates elements of the 3+2+3 or three cycle structure identified in the Bologna Process, and of the objectives of ‘liberal education’ evident in undergraduate education in North America. The Melbourne curriculum model is internationally aligned, while simultaneously responsive to the particular context of Australian higher education policy. The new curriculum also incorporates interdisciplinarity of several variants in order that all students are exposed to and learn about alternative knowledge domains, methods of investigation and enquiry, and different ways of knowing. Interdisciplinary study in the Melbourne Model is ensured through a requirement that students study one quarter of their subjects outside their core curriculum, a requirement known as ‘breadth’. This paper examines two aspects of the Melbourne Model curriculum: its international nature and interdisciplinary character.

The usefulness of a science degree : the "lost voices" of science trained professionals

This paper reports a study of science graduates who are employed in positions outside their discipline specialisation. The research was designed to uncover the reasons for them choosing to study science at university, the competencies they utilise in their work and their lives, and how these relate to their undergraduate education in science. The study is seen as important in that already about one-half of science graduates are in such positions and it is argued that there is a need in scientific and technologically based societies to have a greater representation of such people in decision-making positions in government and industry. The directions for the science degree that can be drawn from the data gathered are congruent with those arising from other relevant studies. That is, attention should be paid to widely used skills, such as communication and problem-solving, and to developing an understanding of science within its social and ethical context. An argument is mounted for considering the way the science degree is presented to potential students and to the general public.