The enactment of formative assessment in English language classrooms in two Chinese universities : teacher and student responses

The College English Curriculum Requirements (CECR), announced by the Chinese Ministry of Education in 2007, recommended the inclusion of formative assessment into the existing summative assessment framework of College English. This policy had the potential to fundamentally change the nature of assessment and its role in the teaching and learning of English in Chinese universities. In order to document and analyse these changes, case studies involving English language teachers and learners were undertaken in two Chinese Universities: one a Key university in the national capital; the other a non-Key university in a western province. The case study design incorporated classroom observations and interviews with English language teachers and their students. The type and focus of feedback and the engagement of students in assessment were analysed in the two contexts. Fundamental to the analysis was the concept of enactment, with the focus of this study on the ways that policy ideas and principles were enacted in the practices of the Chinese university classroom. Understandings of formative assessment as applied in contexts other than the predominantly Western, Anglophone contexts from where many of its principles derive, are offered.

Submission to National Inquiry into Children in Immigration Detention from The Australian Psychological Society

Executive Summary The Australian Psychological Society categorically condemns the practice of detaining child asylum seekers and their families, on the grounds that it is not commensurate with psychological best practice concerning children’s development and mental health and wellbeing. Detention of children in this fashion is also arguably a violation of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child. A thorough review of relevant psychological theory and available research findings from international research has led the Australian Psychological Society to conclude that: • Detention is a negative socialisation experience. • Detention is accentuates developmental risks. • Detention threatens the bonds between children and significant caregivers. • Detention limits educational opportunities. • Detention has traumatic impacts on children of asylum seekers. • Detention reduces children’s potential to recover from trauma. • Detention exacerbates the impacts of other traumas. • Detention of children from these families in many respects is worse for them than being imprisoned. In the absence of any indication from the Australian Government that it intends in the near future to alter the practice of holding children in immigration detention, the Australian Psychological Society’s intermediate position is that the facilitation of short-term and long-term psychological development and wellbeing of children is the basic tenet upon which detention centres should be audited and judged. Based on that position, the Society has identified a series of questions and concerns that arise directly from the various psychological perspectives that have been brought to bear on estimating the effects of detention on child asylum seekers. The Society argues that, because these questions and concerns relate specifically to improvement and maintenance of child detainees’ educational, social and psychological wellbeing, they are legitimate matters for the Inquiry to consider and investigate. • What steps are currently being taken to monitor the psyc hological welfare of the children in detention? In particular, what steps are being taken to monitor the psychological wellbeing of children arriving from war-torn countries? • What qualifications and training do staff who care for children and their families in detention centres have? What knowledge do they have of psychological issues faced by people who have been subjected to traumatic experiences and are suffering high degrees of anxiety, stress and uncertainty? • What provisions have been made for psycho-educational assessment of children’s specific learning needs prior to their attending formal educational programmes? • who are suffering chronic and/or vicarious trauma as a result of witnessing threatening behaviour whilst in detention? • What provisions have been made for families who have been seriously affected by displacement to participate in family therapy? • What critical incident debriefing procedures are in place for children who have witnessed their parents, other family members, or social acquaintances engaging in acts of self-harm or being harmed while in detention? What psychotherapeutic support is in place for children who themselves have been harmed or have engaged in self- harmful acts while in detention? • What provisions are in place for parenting programmes that provide support for parents of children under extremely difficult psychological and physical circumstances? • What efforts are being made to provide parents with the opportunity to model traditional family roles for children, such as working to earn an income, meal preparation, other household duties, etc.? • What opportunities are in place for the assessment of safety issues such as bullying, and sexual or physical abuse of children or their mothers in detention centres? • How are resources distributed to children and families in detention centres? • What socialization opportunities are available either within detention centres or in the wider community for children to develop skills and independence, engage in social activities, participate in cultural traditions, and communicate and interaction with same-age peers and adults from similar ethnic and religious backgrounds? • What access do children and families have to videos, music and entertainment from their cultures of origin? • What provisions are in place to ensure the maintenance of privacy in a manner commensurate with usual cultural practice? • What is the Government’s rationale for continuing to implement a policy of mandatory detention of child asylum seekers that on the face of it is likely to have a pernicious impact on these children’s mental health? • In view of the evidence on the potential long-term impact of mandatory detention on children, what processes may be followed by Government to avoid such a practice and, more importantly, to develop policies and practices that will have a positive impact on these children’s psychological development and mental health?

Psychological wellbeing of refugees resettling in Australia : a literature review prepared for the Australian Psychological Society

This literature review was developed as background for the formulation of an Australian Psychological Society position on the mental health and wellbeing of refugees resettling in Australia. The major aim is to provide a broad overview of the concerns related to refugee mental health and wellbeing within the Australian context. To begin, a brief overview of the definition of a refugee and the scope of refugee movement is provided. Next, the review examines the pre-displacement, post-displacement, systemic and socio-political factors that influence the process of adaptation in refugee resettlement. It then reviews documented approaches to psychological assessment and therapeutic interventions with refugees; and finally it summarises suggestions for assessment and intervention in these practice contexts.

Chinese media

From an area of specialist research a decade ago China’s media has become now an important element of research and teaching worldwide, not only in specific Chinese cultural studies courses at the university level but increasingly in post-graduate research and in the domain of business consultancy. Edited by Michael Keane and Wanning Sun, leading experts in the field, this new title is a ‘mini library’ of the foundational and the very best cutting-edge scholarship on Chinese media

Chinese teaching English as a foreign language (TEFL) academics' perceptions about research in a transitional culture

Research capacity building has become a prominent theme in higher education institutions in China and across the world. However, Chinese Teaching English as a Foreign Language academics' research output has been quite limited. In order to build their research capacity, it is necessary to understand their perceptions about research. This case study presents the perceptions about research of six Chinese Teaching English as a Foreign Language academics in a context of growing institutional demands for research. One-on-one interviews of 35-60 minutes' duration were conducted with these academics from an institution in north China. Thematic analysis of the transcribed interviews indicated that the Chinese Teaching English as a Foreign Language academics held positive perceptions about the teaching-research nexus. However, the value of research to them seemed to be limited to teaching and career advancement. They also expressed varied concerns about the institutional research requirements. The findings suggested several implications for the institution's administrators to further enhance academics' research capacity building.

Who's afraid of China? The challenge of Chinese soft power [Review]

What role does China play in Western imagination and how does it affect Western selfconceptions? The rise of China as an alternative model to Western liberalism has created a fear that developing countries will stray from Western standards of democracy, transparency and human rights. However, such fears often say as much about those who hold them as they do about China itself. In this short and easily readable book Barr holds a mirror to Sino–Western relations in order to better understand how the West’s own past, hopes and fears shape the way it thinks about and engages with China. Focusing on three key areas—models of development, soft power and ethnocentrism—he argues that the rise of China ‘hits a nerve in the Western psyche . . . because its actions reflect the West’s own ambivalence to modernity and uncertainty over the proper role and limits of state power’ (p. 21). To make his point, Barr focuses on China’s soft power and the connections between China’s domestic politics and its attempts to shape its image internationally...

The implications of cross-regional differences for the design of In-vehicle Information Systems : a comparison of Australian and Chinese drivers

The increasing global distribution of automobiles necessitates that the design of In-vehicle Information Systems (IVIS) is appropriate for the regions to which they are being exported. Differences between regions such as culture, environment and traffic context can influence the needs, usability and acceptance of IVIS. This paper describes two studies aimed at identifying regional differences in IVIS design needs and preferences across drivers from Australia and China to determine the impact of any differences on IVIS design. Using a questionnaire and interaction clinics, the influence of cultural values and driving patterns on drivers' preferences for, and comprehension of, surface- and interaction-level aspects of IVIS interfaces was explored. Similarities and differences were found between the two regional groups in terms of preferences for IVIS input control types and labels and in the comprehension of IVIS functions. Specifically, Chinese drivers preferred symbols and Chinese characters over English words and were less successful (compared to Australians) at comprehending English abbreviations, particularly for complex IVIS functions. Implications in terms of the current trend to introduce Western-styled interfaces into other regions with little or no adaptation are discussed.

Characteristics of Chinese drivers attending a mandatory training course following license suspension

Penalties and sanctions to deter risky/illegal behaviours are important components of traffic law enforcement. Sanctions can be applied to the vehicle (e.g., impoundment), the person (e.g., remedial programs or jail), or the licence (e.g., disqualification). For licence sanctions, some offences attract automatic suspension while others attract demerit points which can indirectly lead to licence loss. In China, a licence is suspended when a driver accrues twelve demerit points within one year. When this occurs, the person must undertake a one-week retraining course at their own expense and successfully pass an examination to become relicensed. Little is known about the effectiveness of this program. A pilot study was conducted in Zhejiang Province to examine basic information about participants of a retraining course. The aim was to gather baseline data for future comparison. Participants were recruited at a driver retraining centre in a large city in Zhejiang Province. In total, 239 suspended drivers completed an anonymous questionnaire which included demographic information, driving history, and crash involvement. Overall, 87% were male with an overall mean age of 35.02 years (SD=8.77; range 21-60 years). A large proportion (83.3%) of participants owned a vehicle. Commuting to work was reported by 64% as their main reason for driving, while 16.3% reported driving for work. Only 6.4% reported holding a licence for 1 year or less (M=8.14 years, SD=6.5, range 1-31 years) and people reported driving an average of 18.06 hours/week (SD=14.4, range 1-86 hours). This represents a relatively experienced group, especially given the increase in new drivers in China. The number of infringements reportedly received in the previous year ranged from 2 to 18 (M=4.6, SD=3.18); one third of participants reported having received 5 or more infringements. Approximately one third also reported having received infringements in the previous year but not paid them. Various strategies for avoiding penalties were reported. The most commonly reported traffic violations were: drink driving (DUI; 0.02-0.08 mg/100ml) with 61.5% reporting 1 such violation; and speeding (47.7% reported 1-10 violations). Only 2.2% of participants reported the more serious drunk driving violation (DWI; above 0.08mg/100ml). Other violations included disobeying traffic rules, using inappropriate licence, and licence plate destroyed/not displayed. Two-thirds of participants reported no crash involvement in the previous year while 14.2% reported involvement in 2-5 crashes. The relationship between infringements and crashes was limited, however there was a small, positive significant correlation between crashes and speeding infringements (r=.2, p=.004). Overall, these results indicate the need for improved compliance with the law among this sample of traffic offenders. For example, lower level drink driving (DUI) and speeding were the most commonly reported violations with some drivers having committed a large number in the previous year. It is encouraging that the more serious offence of drunk driving (DWI) was rarely reported. The effectiveness of this driver retraining program and the demerit point penalty system in China is currently unclear. Future research including driver follow up via longitudinal study is recommended to determine program effectiveness to enhance road safety in China.

The judiciary in contemporary society : Australia

In Australia the appointment of judges is, by constitution or statute, universally the responsibility of the executive branch. The federal government handles all such matters relating to the High Court, the Federal Court, the Family Court and other federal judicial bodies. State governments exercise similar authority over the state supreme courts, district and magistrates' courts. All appointments are formally made by the Governor-General, or the Governor, in Council...

Private lawyers in contemporary society : Australia

Admission to practice law in Australia falls under the general supervisory power of supreme court judges in the various jurisdictions. The degree of supervision varies among jurisdictions, but the judiciary generally is responsible for setting the educational requirements for admission. A variety of admission boards perform a number of administrative and supervisory functions; for example, determining whether a particular law school's degree satisfies educational requirements for admission...

The potential contributions of traditional Chinese medicine to emergency medicine

BACKGROUND: Despite the fact that traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) has been developed and used to treat acute and urgent illness for many thousands of years. TCM has been widely perceived in western societies that TCM may only be effective to treat chronic diseases. The aim of this article is to provide some scientific evidence regarding the application of TCM in emergency medicine and its future potential. METHODS: Multiple databases (PubMed, ProQuest, Academic Search Elite and Science Direct) were searched using the terms: Traditional Chinese Medicine/ Chinese Medicine, Emergency Medicine, China. In addition, three leading TCM Journals in China were searched via Oriprobe Information Services for relevant articles (published from 1990—2012). Particular attention was paid to those articles that are related to TCM treatments or combined medicine in dealing with intensive and critical care. RESULTS: TCM is a systematic traditional macro medicine. The clinical practice of TCM is guided by the TCM theoretical framework – a methodology founded thousands of years ago. As the methodologies between TCM and Biomedicine are significantly different, it provides an opportunity to combine two medicines, in order to achieve clinical efficacy. Nowadays, combined medicine has become a common clinical model particular in TCM hospitals in China. CONCLUSIONS: It is evident that TCM can provide some assistance in emergency although to combine them in practice is stillits infant form and is mainly at TCM hospitals in China. The future effort could be put into TCM research, both in laboratories and clinics, with high quality designs, so that TCM could be better understood and then applied in emergency medicine.

The economics of awards, status and performance: the John Bates Clark Medal and the Fellowship of the Econometric Society

This thesis investigates whether receiving an important award in academia raises recipients’ subsequent research productivity and status compared to a synthetic control group of non-recipient scholars with similar previous research performance. It examines the case of being awarded the John Bates Clark Medal and becoming a Fellow of the Econometric Society finding evidence of positive incentive and status effects that raise both productivity and citation levels.

Sustainability reporting in construction contractors : a case study

Construction activities have significant impacts on the environment, economy and society. As a result, sustainability has become an agenda in construction related business. This is evidenced by an increasingly number of construction related companies adopting sustainability reporting practice. Construction contractors are no exception. This study aims to investigate the sustainability reporting practices adopted by top Chinese contractors active in the international arena. The focus is placed on those Chinese contractors ranked top 50 by the Engineering News Record (ENR) top 225 international contractors. The results showed that the sustainability reporting practices of these top Chinese contractors, in terms of both approaches and the depth, varied significantly however there is a clear trend of growing level of disclosure of sustainability related information. Similarly, environmental sustainability seems the predominate focus of sustainability reporting exercises of top international contractors from China. These findings help to assist senior management of construction contractors to form business strategies to facilitate disclosure and other sustainability related practices.

Who’s blocking the Chinese Internet? The rise of cybercultures and the generational conflicts in China

As a decentralised communication technology, the Internet has offered much autonomy and unprecedented communication freedom to the Chinese public. Yet the Chinese government has imposed different forms of censorship over cyberspace. However, the Hong Kong erotic photo scandal reshuffles the traditional understanding of censorship in China as it points to a different territory. The paper takes the Hong Kong erotic photo scandal in 2008 as a case study and aims to examine the social and generational conflicts hidden in China. When thousands of photos containing sexually explicit images of Hong Kong celebrities were released on the Internet, gossip, controversies and eroticism fuelled the public discussion and threatened traditional values in China. The Internet provides an alternative space for the young Chinese who have been excluded from mainstream social discourse to engage in public debates. This, however, creates concerns, fear and even anger among the older generations in China, because they can no longer control, monitor and educate their children in the way that their predecessors have done for centuries. The photo scandal illustrates the internal social conflicts and distrust between generations in China and the generational conflict has a far-reaching political ramification as it creates a new concept of censorship.