Comparative academic performance of medical students in rural and urban clinical settings

OBJECTIVE To determine whether the academic performance of medical students learning in rural settings differs from those learning in urban settings. DESIGN Comparison of results of assessment for 2 full cohorts and 1 part cohort of medical students learning in rural and urban settings in 2002 (209 students), 2003 (226 students) and 2004 (220 students), including results for each specialist rotation in the 3rd year and end-of-year examinations in the 2nd and 4th years. SETTING University of Queensland School of Medicine, Brisbane. Students spent the whole 3rd year (of a 4-year graduate entry programme) conducting 5 specialist 8-week rotations in either the rural clinical division (rural students) or in Brisbane (urban students), all following the same curriculum and taking the same examinations. RESULTS For the 2002 cohort there were no statistically significant differences in academic performance between rural and urban students. For the 2003 cohort the only significant difference was a higher score for rural students in the end of the 4th-year clinical skills examination (65.7 versus 62.3%, P = 0.025). For the 2004 cohort, rural students scored higher in the 3rd-year mental health rotation (79.3 versus 76.2%, P = 0.038) and lower in the medicine rotation (65.5 versus 68.6%, P = 0.037). CONCLUSION Academic performance among students studying in rural and urban settings is comparable.

Batting with occluded vision: An in situ examination of the information pick-up and interceptive skills of high- and low-skilled cricket batsmen

The capability of cricket batsmen of different skill levels to pick-up information from the pre-release movement pattern of the bowler, from pre-bounce ball flight, and from post-bounce ball flight was examined experimentally. Six highly skilled and six low-skilled cricket batsmen batted against three different leg-spin bowlers while wearing liquid crystal spectacles. The spectacles permitted the specific information available to the batsmen on each trial to be manipulated such that vision was either: (i) occluded at a point prior to the point of ball release (thereby only allowing vision of advance information from the bowler's delivery action); (ii) occluded at a point prior to the point of bat[ bounce (thereby permitting the additional vision of pre-bounce ball flight); or (iii) not occluded (thereby permitting the additional vision of post-bounce bat[ flight information). Measurement was made on each trial of both the accuracy of the definitive (forward-backward) foot movements made by the batsmen and their success (or otherwise) in making bat-bat[ contact. The analyses revealed a superior capability of the more skilled players to make use of earlier (pre-bounce) bat[ flight information to guide successful bat-bat[ interception, thus mirroring the greater use of prospective information pick-up by skilled performers observed in other aspects of batting and in other time-constrained performance domains. (c) 2006 Sports Medicine Australia. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Gender and feminine Identities - women as managers in a UK academic institution

The paper considers gender identities in higher education. It examines how people involved in university life engage in (re)creating gender identities and in (re)producing gender-related expectations (and stereotypes) of managerial behaviour. The process of construction of feminine identities is explored through the discourses of academics from a UK university (mainly women who hold managerial positions). The paper reports findings from a series of in-depth interviews with women managers (dean, associate deans and heads of departments) and with university academics (men and women) from a Business School, part of a large British new university. The school was of special interest because women held the majority of senior managerial posts. It appears that the process of construction of femininities is mainly developed around four (stereo-)typical aspects generally associated with feminine management practices (multi-tasking, supporting and nurturing, people and communication skills, and team-work).

Do pharmacy graduates possess the necessary professional skills?

Background - Expansion of the pharmacists' role within the United Kingdom has raised the question as to whether pharmacy graduates are equipped with the professional skills and attributes they will need to fulfil such roles. Aim - To describe the professional skills and attributes pre-registration recruiters perceive pharmacy graduates should exhibit and to establish whether final year students perceive they possess these skills and attributes. Method - Five individuals were interviewed from a variety of pre-registration employers; 90 final year students completed a questionnaire (response 69.2%). Results - The recruiters thought that whilst graduates possess sufficient knowledge, they show weaknesses such as inability to apply theoretical knowledge into practice and the lack of good communication and interpersonal skills. Conversely, a majority of students felt that they did possess the necessary skills to enter pre-registration training. Conclusion - Schools of pharmacy need to ensure that students have an opportunity to develop key professional skills to assist students in securing pre-registration positions. © 2010 FIP.

Becoming a psychology undergraduate:integrating study skills and integrating students

Three years of action research into a study skills and transition programme for psychology undergraduates are reported. The programme began as a ‘bolt-on’ response to perceptions of student deficit and developed to focus on transition to university. Data from three cohorts and over 600 students show attendance to be associated with higher academic grades and progression rates. The programme has also helped to establish relationships with peers and staff, prepare students for assessments, set expectations about study, and provided an opportunity to ask questions, to work collaboratively and to learn about referencing and plagiarism. Concerns with study skills highlighted by Wingate (2006) and others are discussed.

'I felt that I do live in the UK now':international students' self-reports of their English language speaking experiences on a pre-sessional programme

This article focuses on the English language experiences of a group of pre-sessional students, an under-represented group in the literature on language and education. In particular, it investigates the opportunities that such students have to use English outside the classroom, shown to be a key factor in student satisfaction with their study abroad experience. Drawing on data from questionnaires, interviews and on-line diaries, we show that students have a variety of opportunities to use English; however, these opportunities may require students to engage in complex negotiations right from the beginning of their sojourn in the UK. Micro-analysis of the data shows that agency is a key construct in understanding students' representations of their English encounters as they begin their lives in the UK. The article concludes with some suggestions as to how pre-sessional courses may develop students' linguistic and socio-cultural skills in order that they may interact successfully in English outside the classroom. © 2011 Taylor &Francis.

The development of collaborative skills in young children

This thesis examines young children's early collaborative development when engaged in joint tasks with both a peer and a parent. It begins by examining how the term "collaborative" has been applied and researched in previous literature. As collaboration is found to usually require dialogue, and intersubjectivity is seen as an important component in the construction of both collaboration and dialogue, the ability to construct intersubjectivity is the subject of the rest of the chapter. The chapter concludes by introducing the research questions that underpin the experiments that follow. A number of experiments are then described. Experiments 1 and 2 investigate age differences in interaction styles and the communication strategies used by similar aged dyads. Experiments 3 and 4 investigate differences due to the age of the child and/or the status of the information giver (either parent or child) in the styles of interaction and the communication strategies used by parent and child dyads. Experiment 5 investigates the benefits of collaborating with a parent, and finally, Experiment 6 examines the collaborative ability of pre-schools. The thesis identifies a series of skills required for successful collaboration. These include recognition of a joint goal and the need to suppress individual desires, the ability to structure joint interaction, moving from role-based to a negotiating style, and communicative skills, for example, asking for clarification. Other reasons for children's failure in collaborative tasks involve task-related skills, such as the development of spatial terms, and failure to recognise the need for accuracy. The findings support Vygotsky's theory that when working with an adult, children perform at a higher level than when working with a peer. Evidence was also found of parents scaffolding the interaction for their children. However, further research is necessary to establish that such scaffolding skills affect the child's development of collaborative interactive skills.

A systems approach to students' motivation and academic achievement

This research followed earlier work (reported in a thesis presented in 1970) on factors associated with the academic performance of a sample of technical college students, which recommended the further study of students' motivation. The technical college then became part of a polytechnic, but the courses chosen for the continuation of the research were all of a specifically vocational character. The approach was influenced by Angyal (1941) in seeking to relate symbolic processes to broader behaviour patterns within a systems framework. Forms of semantic differential were developed to obtain the students' responses to words representing various activities and various people both within and outside the academic environment. Also, a "!growth motivation questionnaire" was produced using ideas from self-actualisation, job satisfaction and expectancy theory and examination marks were recorded. From pre-coded responses to the growth motivation questionnaire, scores on a 'study satisfaction' factor were calculated, and subsamples of students were taken at the extremes of this scale. Wriitten responses from the same questionnaire and semantic differential factor scores showed contrasting patterns between the two subsamples. Interpretation of these patterns suggested a diversity of approach to academic work among the students which calls for greater flexibility in the educational system serving them.

The development and operation of the effective interpersonal relationship skills relevant to career development problems from staff assessment at an industrial research laboratory

This study concerns the application of a model of effective interpersonal relationships to problems arising from staff assessment at I.C.I. Ltd. Corporate Laboratory between 1972 and 1974. In collaboration with academic and industrial supervision, the study commenced with a survey of management and supervisor opinions about the effectiveness of current staff (work) relationships, with particular reference to the problem of recognising and developing creative potential. This survey emphasised a need to improve the relationships between staff in the staff assessment context. A survey of research into creativity emphasised the importance of the interpersonal environment for obtaining creative behaviour in an organisation context. A further survey of theories of how inter­personal behaviour related to personal creativity (therapeutic psychology) provided a model of effective interpersonal behaviour (Carkhuff, 1969) that could be applied to the organisation context of staff assessment. The objective of the project was redefined as a need to improve the conditions of interpersonal behaviour in relation to certain (career development) problems arising from staff assessment practices. In order to demonstrate the application of the model of effective interpersonal behaviour, the research student recorded interviews between himself and members of staff designed to develop and operate the dimensions of the model. Different samples of staff were used to develop the 'facilitative' and the 'action oriented' dimensions of bahaviour, and then for the operation of a helping programme (based on vocational guidance tests). These interactions have been analysed, according to the scales of measurement in the model ana the results are presented in case study form in this thesis. At each stage of the project, results and conclusions were presented to the sponsoring organisation (e.g. industrial supervisor) in order to assess their (subjective) opinion of relevance to the organ­ isation. Finally, recommendations on further actions towards general improvement of the work relationships in the laboratory were presented in a brief report to the sponsor.

Placement year academic benefit revisited:effects of demographics, prior achievement and degree programme

Investigations of whether students taking undergraduate work placements show greater academic improvement than those who do not have shown inconsistent results. In most studies, sample sizes have been relatively small and few studies have taken into account pre-existing student differences.Here data from over 6000 students at one university over six cohorts and a range of programmes are analysed. Consistent academic benefit from placement experience, regardless of ethnicity, gender, socioeconomic background and subject is shown. However the impact of demographic factors on both achievement and on the probability of taking a placement suggests that future research should take these factors into account. The role of placements in promoting employability is contextualised as a secondary benefit to the primary goal of educating the mind in the Newman (1852) tradition. Possible causes of, and further research into, the improved academic performance identified are discussed.

The influence of learning styles, enrolment status and gender on academic performance of optometry undergraduates

Purpose: This cross-sectional study was designed to determine whether the academic performance of optometry undergraduates is influenced by enrolment status, learning style or gender. Methods: Three hundred and sixty undergraduates in all 3 years of the optometry degree course at Aston University during 2008–2009 were asked for their informed consent to participate in this study. Enrolment status was known from admissions records. An Index of Learning Styles (http://www4.nscu.edu/unity/lockers/users/f/felder/public/Learning-Styles.html) determined learning style preference with respect to four different learning style axes; active-reflective, sensing-intuitive, visual-verbal and sequential-global. The influence of these factors on academic performance was investigated. Results: Two hundred and seventy students agreed to take part (75% of the cohort). 63% of the sample was female. There were 213 home non-graduates (entrants from the UK or European Union without a bachelor’s degree or higher), 14 home graduates (entrants from the UK or European Union with a bachelor’s degree or higher), 28 international non-graduates (entrants from outside the UK or European Union without a bachelor’s degree or higher) and 15 international graduates (entrants from outside the UK or European Union with a bachelor’s degree or higher). The majority of students were balanced learners (between 48% and 64% across four learning style axes). Any preferences were towards active, sensing, visual and sequential learning styles. Of the factors investigated in this study, learning styles were influenced by gender; females expressed a disproportionate preference for the reflective and visual learning styles. Academic performance was influenced by enrolment status; international graduates (95% confidence limits: 64–72%) outperformed all other student groups (home non graduates, 60–62%; international non graduates, 55–63%) apart from home graduates (57–69%). Conclusion: Our research has shown that the majority of optometry students have balanced learning styles and, from the factors studied, academic performance is only influenced by enrolment status. Although learning style questionnaires offer suggestions on how to improve learning efficacy, our findings indicate that current teaching methods do not need to be altered to suit varying learning style preferences as balanced learning styles can easily adapt to any teaching style (Learning Styles and Pedagogy in Post-16 Learning: A Systematic and Critical Review. London, UK: Learning and Skills Research Centre, 2004).

A soft-computing-based method for the automatic discovery of fuzzy rules in databases:uses for academic research and management support in marketing

The study here highlights the potential that analytical methods based on Knowledge Discovery in Databases (KDD) methodologies have to aid both the resolution of unstructured marketing/business problems and the process of scholarly knowledge discovery. The authors present and discuss the application of KDD in these situations prior to the presentation of an analytical method based on fuzzy logic and evolutionary algorithms, developed to analyze marketing databases and uncover relationships among variables. A detailed implementation on a pre-existing data set illustrates the method. © 2012 Published by Elsevier Inc.

Today's pupils tomorrow's engineers! Pedagogy and policy:a UK perspective

Purpose – This paper aims to provide a critical analysis of UK Government policy in respect of recent moves to attract young people into engineering. Drawing together UK and EU policy literature, the paper considers why young people fail to look at engineering positively. Design/methodology/approach – Drawing together UK policy, practitioner and academic-related literature the paper critically considers the various factors influencing young people's decision-making processes in respect of entering the engineering profession. A conceptual framework providing a diagrammatic representation of the “push” and “pull” factors impacting young people at pre-university level is given. Findings – The discussion argues that higher education in general has a responsibility to assist young people overcome negative stereotypical views in respect of engineering education. Universities are in the business of building human capability ethically and sustainably. As such they hold a duty of care towards the next generation. From an engineering education perspective, the major challenge is to present a relevant and sustainable learning experience that will equip students with the necessary skills and competencies for a lifelong career in engineering. This may be achieved by promoting transferable skills and competencies or by the introduction of a capabilities-driven curriculum which brings together generic and engineering skills and abilities. Social implications – In identifying the push/pull factors impacting young people's decisions to study engineering, this paper considers why, at a time of global recession, young people should select to study the required subjects of mathematics, science and technology necessary to study for a degree in engineering. The paper identifies the long-term social benefits of increasing the number of young people studying engineering. Originality/value – In bringing together pedagogy and policy within an engineering framework, the paper adds to current debates in engineering education providing a distinctive look at what seems to be a recurring problem – the failure to attract young people into engineering.

A pre-post test evaluation of the impact of the PELICAN MDT-TME development programme on the working lives of colorectal cancer team members

Background - The PELICAN Multidisciplinary Team Total Mesorectal Excision (MDT-TME) Development Programme aimed to improve clinical outcomes for rectal cancer by educating colorectal cancer teams in precision surgery and related aspects of multidisciplinary care. The Programme reached almost all colorectal cancer teams across England. We took the opportunity to assess the impact of participating in this novel team-based Development Programme on the working lives of colorectal cancer team members. Methods - The impact of participating in the programme on team members' self-reported job stress, job satisfaction and team performance was assessed in a pre-post course study. 333/568 (59%) team members, from the 75 multidisciplinary teams who attended the final year of the Programme, completed questionnaires pre-course, and 6-8 weeks post-course. Results - Across all team members, the main sources of job satisfaction related to working in multidisciplinary teams; whilst feeling overloaded was the main source of job stress. Surgeons and clinical nurse specialists reported higher levels of job satisfaction than team members who do not provide direct patient care, whilst MDT coordinators reported the lowest levels of job satisfaction and job stress. Both job stress and satisfaction decreased after participating in the Programme for all team members. There was a small improvement in team performance. Conclusions - Participation in the Development Programme had a mixed impact on the working lives of team members in the immediate aftermath of attending. The decrease in team members' job stress may reflect the improved knowledge and skills conferred by the Programme. The decrease in job satisfaction may be the consequence of being unable to apply these skills immediately in clinical practice because of a lack of required infrastructure and/or equipment. In addition, whilst the Programme raised awareness of the challenges of teamworking, a greater focus on tackling these issues may have improved working lives further.