Computer and IT skills of Australian first-year university undergraduate students

The use of computers and information technology is becoming more widespread in chemical education and in the wider community and workforce. Universities are increasing the use of computers and information technology in their teaching and learning programs. The Australian situation, reported here, can be viewed as a microcosm, reflecting a world-wide trend.

The penetration of general IT literacy and ability amongst Australian undergraduate students is rising rapidly. This paper reports surveys of the detailed IT skills of Australian undergraduate students. To the best of our knowledge, apart from our own work, there have been no other published surveys of specific IT skills. Most students have some reasonable computer skills at the start of their university studies, but the level of skill is not uniformly high. In fact, many IT literate students lack a sufficient level of skill to use the new technologies, including full use of web-based flexible learning. There is an urgent need for IT training for university students in order to achieve successful learning outcomes using IT and to satisfy the needs of future employers.

This article, which is the second in a series (1) of investigations on the computer skills of undergraduate students at the start of university, is an expanded version of a paper presented at the World Chemistry Congress held in Brisbane (Australia) during 1-6 July 2001.

Influences on undergraduate students` intentions to become qualified accountants : evidence from Australia

In this study, first year commerce students in Australia were surveyed about their perceptions of their accounting studies and their perceptions of the attributes required of professional accountants. The paper specifically addresses the factors important in determining whether first year students intend to become accountants. The study uses a logistic regression model incorporating demographic and academic factors, as well as students' perceptions of the work of accountants, to predict intention to become an accountant. The results show that the perception of importance of generic skills, intrinsic interest in the discipline area, and course satisfaction were significant in determining intention to pursue a career as an accountant. As many students formed their judgments about the work of accountants from their accounting studies, the findings have implications for accounting educators in terms of the enthusiasm and motivation required in teaching accounting, as well as curriculum development that reflects the skill set required for an increasingly sophisticated business environment.

Teaching research and epidemiology to undergraduate students in the health sciences

Objective: To identify and address particular challenges in the teaching of epidemiological concepts to undergraduate students in non-clinical health disciplines. Methods and Results: Relevant pedagogical literature was reviewed to identify a range of evidence-based teaching approaches. The authors also drew on their experience in curriculum development and teaching in this field to provide guidelines for teaching epidemiology in a way that is engaging to students and likely to promote deep, rather than surface, learning. Discussion of a range of practical strategies is included along with applied examples of teaching epidemiological content. Conclusions and Implications: Increasingly, there is a greater emphasis on improved learning outcomes in higher education. Graduates from non-clinical health courses are required to have a core understanding of epidemiology and teachers of epidemiology need to be able to access resources that are relevant and useful for these students. A theoretically grounded framework for effective teaching of epidemiological principles to non-clinical undergraduates is provided, together with a range of useful teaching resources (both paper and web-based). Implementation of the strategies discussed will help ensure graduates are able to appropriately apply epidemiological skills in their professional practice.

IT skills of university first year undergraduate students : two 2001 matriculation cohorts

The use of computers is becoming more widespread in education and in the wider Australian community. This communication reports the results of surveys of two cohorts of first year undergraduate students at The University of Western Australia and Deakin University, conducted at the beginning of the 2001 academic year. The surveys confirm that general IT skills among students are increasing, but that the level of skill is variable. This is consistent with a similar survey at Deakin University which was conducted at the beginning of 2000.

Teaching digital forensics to undergraduate students

Digital forensics isn't commonly a part of an undergraduate university degree, but Deakin University in Australia recently introduced the subject as part of an IT security course. As instructors, we've found that digital forensics complements our other security offerings because it affords insights into why and how security fails. A basic part of this course is an ethics agreement signed by students and submitted to the unit instructor. This agreement, approved by Deakin University's legal office and consistent with Barbara Endicott-Popovsky's approach, requires students to maintain a professional and ethical attitude to the subject matter and its applications. Assignments regularly cast students in the role of forensic professional. Our teaching team emphasizes throughout the course that professional conduct establishes credibility with employers and customers as well as colleagues, and is required to perform the job effectively. This article describes our experiences with this course.

Assessing epidemiological learning amongst undergraduate students

Increasingly, students from a range of undergraduate health courses are required to study epidemiology. This is, in part, due to the use of evidence-based frameworks and workforce competency programs. Resources to guide the selection of content and development of teaching strategies are available. However, there is paucity of published research on how to best assess epidemiological knowledge and skills. Using recent experience and a review of the current evidence on best practice in assessment, this paper outlines how the key principles in assessment can be used in epidemiology to encourage students to learn and apply epidemiological skills in their professional practice and promote inter-professional learning and co-operation.

The moral reasoning abilities of Australian and Malaysian accounting students : a comparative analysis

If national culture is a significant determinant of ethical attitudes, it is not unreasonable to expect ethical decision-making to be influenced by one's culture. However, problems arise when the notion of right differs from one culture to another. The question addressed in this paper is whether the moral reasoning abilities of Australian and Malaysian accounting students in their final year of study differ because of their cultural upbringing. This study uses primary data collected from 34 final year accounting students (12 Australian and 22 Malaysian) enrolled in an Australian degree program. The test scores collected at the beginning and end of the academic year indicate that culture and other explanatory variables do not have an affect on students' moral judgment. The findings in this study suggest that culture as an independent variable does not influence the way accounting students analyse and resolve ethical dilemmas.

Transitional issues of induction into design education for international undergraduate students : a case study analysis of architecture

The overarching aim of this paper is to present and discuss a collaborative undertaking between the School of Architecture and Building and the Academic Skills Unit at Deakin University, Australia in a programme called The Integrated Support Programme for Architecture. It does this in the following ways. It provides a justification for the setting up of an integrated programme for international architecture students. It describes the programme that was set up and outlines the reasons for collaboration between an academic School and an Academic Skills support services unit to prepare students both nationally and internationally as graduates of architecture. It then reports on a study undertaken to evaluate the programme in terms of student response and perception. Following this, it highlights directions for effective and strategic transition of past and present learning for international students. Using a case study analysis, the thrust of this paper is to advance knowledge and understanding of the pertinent issues related to international students either commencing or articulating into the professional course of architecture. It is envisaged that in this discussion matters may be raised for a strategic and effective transition of generic and internationalised learning for international students.

The activities and impacts of part-time employment on full time undergraduate students in property and construction courses in Australia

This paper examines the extent of part-time employment of undergraduate students enrolled in property and construction related courses in five universities across Australia. Forty five percent of the students responded to a questionnaire on their part-time work. Past research reveals that there is need for a more accurate understanding as to why students seek part-time work to the extent that they do and that working long hours has a negative effect on the study patterns of undergraduate students. Increased employer work demands results in less time available for study and an inability to attend lectures because of work. There is growing concern that students are increasingly disinterested in connecting with the broader and total university experience and are instead, seeking to adopt a minimalist approach to education.

Analysis of current research for Property and construction students’ results reveals that students are working on average 18 hours per week during semester time. The students therefore appear to be working beyond what is considered beneficial to their studies, although their contextual understanding and work ethic improves.

The paper concludes with some approaches that could re- engage students into the learning process. It may be helpful to develop a partnership between the University and the industry thereby providing work experience that complements the program of study. Otherwise students may not get the range of experience they need and may struggle to find the linkages between theory and practice.

Pathways to industry : work practices of undergraduate students in construction programs in Australia

This research reports the impact of work on undergraduate students enrolled in construction programs. Students responded to a questionnaire on the nature of their paid work while enrolled in full-time study in six universities across Australia. The results indicate that students are working on average 19 hours per week during semester time. The results indicate that students in the early years tend to undertake casual work that is not related to their degree. However, this pattern changes in the later years of the program, where students switch to roles in construction that does relate to their coursework. The students start working on average 16 hours in the first year of their degree, and the number rises to 24 hours in their final year. Past research suggests that students may be working to an extent beyond what is considered beneficial to their studies. Past research has shown that working long hours has a negative effect on the study patterns of undergraduate students. The implications of the amount of time working and the type of work are discussed. The paper concludes by suggesting that universities need a greater awareness of the impact of paid employment on student engagement.

Forgiveness, empathy and gender - a Malaysian perspective

Recent theorising has suggested that in non-Western collectivist contexts, the need for social harmony may play a greater role than empathy in motivating forgiveness, and that women may be more impacted than men by this cultural value. In this study, a sample of 233 Malaysian undergraduate students, 100 males and 133 females, recruited from four English-mediated universities completed the Interpersonal Reactivity Index (IRI) and the Transgression-Related Interpersonal Motivations Inventory-12 (TRIM-12) to assess dimensions of empathy and forgiveness. Women exhibited greater empathic concern than men, but not greater perspective-taking. Men were less forgiving in terms of revenge-seeking behaviour, but men and women did not differ in avoidance of transgressors. The relationships between empathic concern and both facets of forgiveness were similar for men and women, as was the relationship between empathic concern and avoidance. However, the relationship between perspective-taking and avoidance was stronger among men than women. We found little support for the prediction that in this collectivist cultural context, perspective-taking would play a greater role than empathic concern in forgiveness. Further research is recommended to explore empathy and forgiveness in non-Western populations, with a need to take into account cultural factors.