Education and research international collaboration - a recipe for success!

Podcast interview with Richard French, international coordinator at Jisc.

Success international English skills for IGCSE : workbook.

El libro está dirigido a estudiantes que estén preparando el examen Cambridge IGCSE (International General Certificate of Secondary Education) de inglés como segundo idioma. Contiene ejercicios prácticos para el desarrollo de vocabulario, y de ortografía y puntuación, entonación, estilo de redacción, revisión gramatical, y compresión de la información visual. Las respuestas están publicadas en el libro del profesor, Success International Teacher's Book.

Success international English skills for IGCSE : teacher's book.

El libro está dirigido a profesores que imparten inglés como segundo idioma y está orientado a la superación del correspondiente examen de Cambridge IGCSE (International General Certificate of Secondary Education). Está estructurado en diez unidades de trabajo que permitirán desarrollar sistemática y gradualmente los conocimientos de las cuatro áreas incluidas en la prueba oficial: compresión auditiva, compresión lectora, capacidad de expresión oral y escrita. Cada unidad incluye desarrollo de vocabulario, ortografía y textos de ejemplo. Contiene las respuestas a los ejercicios del libro del alumno, 'Success international English skills for IGCSE workbook'.

Success international : English skills for IGCSE.

Libro de texto para estudiantes de enseñanza secundaria de segundo ciclo en el área de 'Inglés como segundo idioma' que quieran superar el examen Cambridge IGCSE (International General Certificate of Secondary Education). Los contenidos del libro están aprobados por la University of Cambridge International Examinations según el programa de estudios revisado del 2006. Incluye actividades y ejercicios para desarrollar las habilidades de toma de apuntes, escritura esquemática, compresión lectora, redacción, comprensión auditiva y expresión oral. Al final de cada lección hay una sección con preguntas tipo examen y consejos de un examinador.

Success international English skills for IGCSE : student's book.

Libro de texto para estudiantes de enseñanza secundaria de segundo ciclo en el área de 'Inglés como segundo idioma' que quieran superar el examen Cambridge IGCSE (International General Certificate of Secondary Education). Los contenidos del libro están aprobados por la Universidad Cambridge International Examinations (CIE). Incluye actividades y ejercicios para desarrollar las habilidades de toma de apuntes, escritura esquemática, compresión lectora, redacción, comprensión auditiva y expresión oral, necesarias para superar el examen oficial. Al final de cada lección hay una sección con preguntas tipo examen y consejos de un examinador.

Collaboration between infection control and occupational health in three continents: a success story with international impact

Globalization has been accompanied by the rapid spread of infectious diseases, and further strain on working conditions for health workers globally. Post-SARS, Canadian occupational health and infection control researchers got together to study how to better protect health workers, and found that training was indeed perceived as key to a positive safety culture. This led to developing information and communication technology (ICT) tools. The research conducted also showed the need for better workplace inspections, so a workplace audit tool was also developed to supplement worker questionnaires and the ICT. When invited to join Ecuadorean colleagues to promote occupational health and infection control, these tools were collectively adapted and improved, including face-to-face as well as on-line problem-based learning scenarios. The South African government then invited the team to work with local colleagues to improve occupational health and infection control, resulting in an improved web-based health information system to track incidents, exposures, and occupational injury and diseases. As the H1N1 pandemic struck, the online infection control course was adapted and translated into Spanish, as was a novel skill-building learning tool that permits health workers to practice selecting personal protective equipment. This tool was originally developed in collaboration with the countries from the Caribbean region and the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO). Research from these experiences led to strengthened focus on building capacity of health and safety committees, and new modules are thus being created, informed by that work. The products developed have been widely heralded as innovative and interactive, leading to their inclusion into “toolkits” used internationally. The tools used in Canada were substantially improved from the collaborative adaptation process for South and Central America and South Africa. This international collaboration between occupational health and infection control researchers led to the improvement of the research framework and development of tools, guidelines and information systems. Furthermore, the research and knowledge-transfer experience highlighted the value of partnership amongst Northern and Southern researchers in terms of sharing resources, experiences and knowledge.

Firm social, cultural and intellectual capital : strategic indicators of international client satisfaction

Despite the increasing significance of the construction industry as an emerging sector of the Australian economy, there is inadequate research performed on construction design firms in terms of theoretical and empirical foundations. Although past research has identified the barriers and success factors for firm market entry, evidence suggests that to date no research has explicitly explored the sustainability of construction design firms in international markets. SMEs and their approach to firm internationalisation differ significantly from large manufacturing firms and a vast majority of construction design firms operate as SMEs. This paper develops a sustainable business model for construction design SMEs, which rely upon the development of clear Client Following (CF) versus Market Seeking (MS) strategies to support internal firm strategic and operational management. The understanding of these strategies is vital as the application of either will shape the design management approach of firms, which would in turn impact on the sustainability of these firms in foreign markets. Long-term sustainability of firms in international markets relies heavily upon client satisfaction. Client and project team participants’ communication during various design processes has often been problematic and the added difficulty of communicating across international boundaries further compounds the problem of capturing and maintaining client’s requirements. Therefore this paper develops a model for economic sustainability of Australian construction design firms working in international markets by exploring factors that affect client satisfaction across international boundaries, through the development of business performance indicators. These include not only the critical financial capital but also other ‘softer’ indicators, namely: social, cultural and intellectual capital. These act as a firm’s measure of success and the acquisition of this type of capital will provide significant advantages to firms’ success, hence sustainability in international markets.