Screening Queensland University of Technology second year architecture student films

Research Statement: In 2011 The State Library of Queensland in collaboration with Queensland University of Technology School of Design held a screening of six student urban films shot on location in several inner-city sites under my supervision. The films are now a permanent "exhibit" on The Edge State Library electronic site. The students were directed to explore the realist film ethos, which forms a platform for the research project, in its focus on the nonrepresentational aesthetics of the street, the unfinished and the sensory. The research demonstrates that film is a powerful instrument for the urban imaginary, for screening the city.

Student focus and prioritization of design parameters in first-year engineering design projects

BACKGROUND Research on engineering design is a core area of concern within engineering education and a fundamental understanding of how engineering students approach and undertake design is necessary in order to develop effective design models and pedagogies. Understanding the factors related to design experiences in education and how they affect student practice can help educators as well as designers to leverage these factors as part of the design process. PURPOSE This study investigated the design practices of first-year engineering students’ and their experiences with a first-year engineering course design project. The research questions that guided the investigation were: 1. From a student perspective, what design parameters or criteria are most important? 2. How does this perspective impact subsequent student design practice throughout the design process? DESIGN/METHOD The authors employed qualitative multi-case study methods (Miles & Huberman, 1994) in order to the answer the research questions. Participant teams were observed and video recorded during team design meetings in which they researched the background for the design problem, brainstormed and sketched possible solutions, as well as built prototypes and final models of their design solutions as part of a course design project. Analysis focused on explanation building (Yin, 2009) and utilized within-case and cross-case analysis (Miles & Huberman, 1994). RESULTS We found that students focused disproportionally on the functional parameter, i.e. the physical implementation of their solution, and the possible/applicable parameter, i.e. a possible and applicable solution that benefited the user, in comparison to other given parameters such as safety and innovativeness. In addition, we found that individual teams focused on the functional and possible/ applicable parameters in early design phases such as brainstorming/ ideation and sketching. When prompted to discuss these non-salient parameters (from the student perspective) in the final design report, student design teams often used a post-hoc justification to support how the final designs fit the parameters that they did not initially consider. CONCLUSIONS This study suggests is that student design teams become fixated on (and consequently prioritize) certain parameters they interpret as important because they feel these parameters were described more explicitly in terms how they were met and assessed. Students fail to consider other parameters, perceived to be less directly assessable, unless prompted to do so. Failure to consider other parameters in the early design phases subsequently affects their approach in design phases as well. Case studies examining students’ study strategies within three Australian Universities illustrate similarities with some student approaches to design.

Knowledge unlatched : enabling open access for scholarly books

Although digital technology has made it possible for many more people to access content at no extra cost, fewer people than ever before are able to read the books written by university-based researchers. This workshop explores the role that open access licenses and collective action might play in reviving the scholarly monograph: a specialised area of academic publishing that has seen sales decline by more than 90 per cent over the past three decades. It also introduces Knowledge Unlatched an ambitious attempt to create an internationally coordinated, sustainable route to open access for scholarly books. Knowledge Unlatched is now in its pilot phase.

Open access for scholarly books : policy and practice

Fierce debates have characterised 2013 as the implications of government mandates for open access have been debated and pathways for implementation worked out. There is no doubt that journals will move to a mix of gold and green and there will be an unsettled relationship between the two. But what of books? Is it conceivable that in those subjects, such as in the humanities and social sciences, where something longer than the journal article is still the preferred form of scholarly communications that these will stay closed? Will it be acceptable to have some publicly funded research made available only in closed book form (regardless of whether print or digital) while other subjects where articles are favoured go open access? Frances Pinter is in the middle of these debates, having founded Knowledge Unlatched (see www.knowledgeunlatched.org). KU is a global library consortium enabling open access books. Knowledge Unlatched is helping libraries to work together for a sustainable open future for specialist academic books. Its vision is a healthy market that includes free access for end users. In this session she will review all the different models that are being experimented with around the world. These include author-side payments, institutional subsidies, research funding body approaches etc. She will compare and contrast these models with those that are already in place for journal articles. She will also review the policy landscape and report on how open access scholarly books are faring to date Frances Pinter, Founder, Knowledge Unlatched, UK

Open access and scholarly books : Australian perspectives

This three-hour workshop tackles the crucial question of whether globally coordinated, market based approaches to funding open access monographs can support the unique needs of Australian research communities. The workshop takes place in the context of the release in August 2013 of the Book Industry Collaborative Council (BICC) report and especially the recommendations included in the chapter on scholarly book publishing in the humanities and social sciences. This workshop, with expert speakers from the BICC Committee and from across the scholarly publishing industry, will discuss the policy issues most likely to ensure that Australian scholarly communities and audiences are best served in an era of digital technology and globalisation. Australia must think globally and support developments that enhance the accessibility of publicly-funded research. Speakers will outline recent developments in scholarly monograph publishing including new Open Access initiatives and developments. Knowledge Unlatched, is one example of an attempt to create an internationally coordinated, market-based route to open access for Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences (HASS) monographs. Knowledge Unlatched, a not-for-profit London-based company is piloting a global library consortium approach to funding open access monographs and released its pilot program in early October with 28 titles from 13 publishers. The workshop invites discussion and debate from librarians, publishers, researchers and research funders on the role of international coordination and markets in securing a more open future for Australian HASS scholarship.

Knowledge unlatched : open access and scholarly books - workshop report

On 19 June 2013 Knowledge Unlatched and the Berkman Center for Internet and Society at Harvard Law School jointly convened a one-day workshop titled Open Access and Scholarly Books in Cambridge, MA. The workshop brought together a group of 21 invited publishers, librarians, academics and Open Access innovators to discuss the challenge of making scholarly books Open Access. This report captures discussions that took place on the day.

Validity of maternal-reported weight and height of children 2-5 year olds

To the Editor: In affluent-urban areas of India, overweight (6 %) and obesity (8 %) are prevalent in children as young as 2–5 y [1]. A potential risk factor for childhood obesity could be parent’s under-reporting their child’s anthropometry. In Indian culture, a larger body size is typically acceptable, and mothers may consider a chubby baby as healthy [2]. Therefore, it was proposed that Indian mothers may under-report their child’s weight status. The present study examined the validity of maternal reported height and weight of young, urban-affluent Indian children aged 2–5 y. After receiving approval from the QUT Human Research Ethics Committee, Australia 111 mothers with children aged 2–5 y attending private medical clinics (n = 5) in the affluent areas of Mumbai were recruited. Child’s height and weight were measured by the researcher using standard equipment/protocols. Mothers also reported their child’s height and weight.

Starting out in STEM : a study of young men and women in first year science, technology, engineering and mathematics courses

In late 2011, first year university students in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) courses across Australia were invited to participate in the international Interests and Recruitment in Science (IRIS) study. IRIS investigates the influences on young people's decisions to choose university STEM courses and their subsequent experiences of these courses. The study also has a particular focus on the motivations and experiences of young women in courses such as physics, IT and engineering given the low rates of female participation in these fields. Around 3500 students from 30 Australian universities contributed their views on the relative importance of various school and non-school influences on their decisions, as well as insights into their experiences of university STEM courses so far. It is hoped that their contributions will help improve recruitment, retention and gender equity in STEM higher education and careers.

Successful outcomes in vocational education and training courses and mathematics: how pedagogy and expectations influence achievement

This paper reports on a four year Australian Research Council funded Linkage Project titled Skilling Indigenous Queensland, conducted in regional areas of Queensland, Australia from 2009 to 2013. The project sought to investigate Vocational Education and Training (VET) and teaching, Indigenous learners’ needs, employer culture and expectations and community culture and expectations to identify best practice in numeracy teaching for Indigenous VET learners. Specifically it focused on ways to enhance the teaching and learning of courses and the associated mathematics in such courses to benefit learners and increase their future opportunities of employment. To date thirty - nine teachers/trainers/teacher aides and two hundred and thirty - one students consented to participate in the project. Nine VET courses offered in schools and Technical and Further Education Institutes (TAFE) were nominated to be the focus on the study. This paper focuses on student questionnaire responses and interview responses from teachers/trainers one high school principal and five students as a result of these processes, the findings indicated that VET course teachers work hard to adopt contextualising strategies to their teaching; however this process is not always straight forward because of the perceptions of how mathematics has been taught and learned by trainers and teachers. Further teachers, trainers and students have high expectations of one another with the view to successful outcomes from the courses.

Preparing for success in the new year

The beginning of a New Year brings with it many opportunities. Not only can you improve on the previous year, but you can also start afresh, set new goals and prepare to achieve the success you desire. Smart dancers know how important it is to consider all aspects of their dance training, especially when preparing to return to classes after the Christmas break. This includes spending some time thinking about what you want to achieve in the New Year, and what to do if challenges arise...

Pulping affirmation : Danny Wallace’s Yes Man!

If Danny Wallace is a yes man, I am most certainly a no woman. No, I will not agree to anything and everything in an attempt to make my life “more interesting”. No, I do not believe that on “one fateful day a mystery man on a late night bus” will change my life forever. I hate the bus. In fact, I don’t even catch public transport. Wallace’s recent film tie-in Yes Man reeks of such cheesy optimism. The book’s premise is simple and indeed, even alluring at first. When a stranger on the bus tells Danny to “say yes more” (9), his life takes a dramatic turn on the roundabout of possibility. Sad, single, and staying inside a lot, Danny signs himself up for a year of mishap and misadventure, accepting every request, suggestion and invitation offered to him by both friends and strangers.

Energy Transformed : Building Capacity in the Engineering Profession in Australia

Global pressures of burgeoning population growth and consumption are threatening efforts to reduce negative environmental pressures associated with development such as atmospheric, land and water pollution. For example, the world’s population is now growing at over 70 million per year or 1 billion per decade (Brown, 2007), increasing from 3.5 billion in 1970, to 5 billion in 1990, to 7 billion by 2010 (United Nations, 2002). In 1990 only 13 percent of the global population lived in cities, while in 2007 more than half did. More than 60 percent of the global population lives within 100 kilometers of the coastline (World Resources Institute, 2005) and nearly all of the population growth hereon is forecast to happen in developing countries (Postel, 1999). Future levels of stress on the global environment are therefore likely to increase if current trends are used for forecasting, which is particularly challenging as scientists are already observing significant signs of degradation and failure in environmental systems. For example, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Fourth Assessment Report (IPCC, 2007) provided an nequivocal link between climate change and current human activities, in particular: the burning of fossil fuels; deforestation and land clearing; the use of synthetic greenhouse gases; and decomposition of wastes from landfill. The UK Stern Review concluded that within our lifetime there is between a 77 to 99 percent chance (depending on the climate model used) of the global average temperature rising by more than 2 degrees Celsius (Stern, 2006), with a likely greenhouse gas concentration in the atmosphere of 550 parts per million (ppm) or more by around 2100.

Innovations in dietetic training in foodservice management : can early exposure to practice enhance final year competency development?

Student engagement in the delivery of theoretical course materials is a current challenge in the tertiary sector including for dietetic training. In 2011 with the creation of a new nutritionist position for Queensland Meals on Wheels (QMOW), a service learning approach to support this organisation was used with third year dietetic students undertaking two days of structured activities at various QMOW sites in South East Queensland, aligned with coursework in Foodservice Management (FSM). This cohort of students was then followed in their final year post successful completion of five weeks professional practice in FSM to see if this experience supported readiness for placement and competency development. Evaluation was undertaken of eligible students (n = 50) via paper based survey (response rate 94%) with all participating in targeted focus groups. Findings showed that students acknowledged the QMOW experience (on reflection 14 months later) providing opportunity for participation and/or observation in 5 of 12 FSM areas taught in third year, including food safety, meal production, assembly, delivery and dishwashing. Over half the students identified good exposure to FSM competency areas during the QMOW experience, with 83% satisfied with their competency exposure and subsequent practice during final year placements. A consistent theme emerged from focus groups supporting inclusion of practical opportunities with the theoretical component of the FSM subject to highlight relevance to learning. These findings highlight the importance of such teaching initiatives to met student learning preferences, linking theory with practice and supporting competency development in the final year of training programs.