Student satisfaction in tourism education : The case of Dalarna University, Borlänge, Sweden

The students' expectations must be met to ensure their overall satisfaction. Because of this student satisfaction has become a measurement tool with which the universities can compete against each other in order to attract potential students and also a higher level of internal and external funding. This thesis deals with students' overall satisfaction in tourism education at Dalarna University in Sweden. It is important to understand what it takes for the universities to be able to produce a motivated workforce for the communities and how satisfied students could help in achieving this goal. Sweden was selected because of the recent introduction of tuition fees, in 2010, which has made it even more crucial to understand the factors affecting students' satisfaction. The method chosen for conducting this study was a questionnaire where the students of Dalarna University were asked to rate different aspects of their overall experience on a Likert scale. The research was conducted via Facebook and email questionnaire. The results show different levels of satisfaction based on the tourism programmes and gender for example. The major finding from this research implicate that the social conditions and surrounding city categories are the most influential when it comes to the overall satisfaction of students at Dalarna University. The results give the university and the city of Borlänge an insight on issues that really matter to the students and how to improve them.

Student Thesis Level: Master’s Thesis in Business Administration Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) networking : A case study on why members join CSR network and why are they sharing their knowledge

Purpose – This research focuses on finding the reasons, why members from different sectors join a cross-sector/multi-stakeholder CSR network and what motivates them to share (or not to share) their knowledge of CSR and their best practices. Design/methodology/approach – Semi-structured interviews were conducted with members of the largest cross-sector CSR network in Sweden. The sample base of 15 people was chosen to be able to represent a wider variety of members from each participating sectors. As well as the CEO of the intermediary organization was interviewed. The interviews were conducted via email and telephone. Findings – The findings include several reasons linked to the business case of CSR such as stakeholder pressure, competitive advantage, legitimacy and reputation as well as new reasons like the importance of CSR, and the access of further knowledge in the field. Further reasons are in line with members wanting to join a network, such as access to contact or having personal contacts. As to why members are sharing their CSR knowledge, the findings indicate to inspire others, to show CSR commitment, to be visible, it leads to business opportunity and the access of others knowledge, and because it was requested. Reasons for not sharing their knowledge would be the lack of opportunity, lack of time and the lack of experience to do so. Originality/value – The research contributes to existing studies, which focused on Corporate Social Responsibility and cross-sector networking as well as to inter-organizational knowledge sharing in the field of CSR.

Experiential learning in social science theory: an investigation of the relationship between student enjoyment and learning

This paper provides an analysis of student experiences of an approach to teaching theory that integrates the teaching of theory and data analysis. The argument that supports this approach is that theory is most effectively taught by using empirical data in order to generate and test propositions and hypotheses, thereby emphasising the dialectic relationship between theory and data through experiential learning. Bachelor of Commerce students in two second-year substantive organisational theory subjects were introduced to this method of learning at a large, multi-campus Australian university. In this paper, we present a model that posits a relationship between students' perceptions of their learning, the enjoyment of the experience and expected future outcomes. The results of our evaluation reveal that a majority of students:

•enjoyed this way of learning;
•believed that the exercise assisted their learning of substantive theory, computing applications and the nature of survey data; and
•felt that what they have learned could be applied elsewhere.

We argue that this approach presents the potential to improve the way theory is taught by integrating theory, theory testing and theory development; moving away from teaching theory and analysis in discrete subjects; and, introducing iterative experiences in substantive subjects.

Role of knowledge and ability in student nurses` clinical decision-making

Little is known about the acquisition of decision-making skills in nursing students as a function of experience and academic ability. Knowing how experience and academic skills interact may help inform clinical education programs and formulate ways of assessing students' progress. The aims of the present study were to develop a problem-solving task capable of measuring clinical decision-making skills in novice nurses at different levels of domain-specific knowledge; and to establish the relative impact on decision-making of domain-specific knowledge and general ability as determinants of the acquisition of decision-making skills. Three types of clinical problems of increasing complexity were developed. Sixty second-year and third-year student nurses with high and low academic scores were studied in terms of their ability to generate hypotheses for a hypothetical case, recognize disconfirming information and the need to access additional information, and diagnostic accuracy. The results showed that general academic ability and knowledge function partly independently in the acquisition of expertise in nursing. Academic ability affects decision-making in low complexity tasks, but as case complexity increases, domain-specific knowledge and experience determines decision-making skills. There are important differences in the way novices with different levels of knowledge and ability make clinical decisions and these can be studied by systematically increasing the complexity of the decision task. These results have implications for the way in which clinical education is structured and evaluated.

Student experiences of work placement in school-based vocational programs

Using a sample of 446 secondary students who had participated in a vocational education and training in school (VETiS) program, compares the experiences and perceptions of students who had undertaken a work placement with those who had not. Shows that students who had participated in work placement enjoyed the VETiS experience more than those who had not, and that the work placement had assisted them in their decision whether to stay at school or not. A factor analysis of results showed a factor associated with self-confidence about employability, and a factor associated with assistance in achieving specific post-school employment. Students who had completed a work placement were significantly higher on both these factors than students who had not. Results are consistent with other research in the field, and it is argued that the work placement experience plays a considerable part in developing student agency in the decisions and the journey that they make in their transition from school to work.

(Re)examining identities: working with diversity in the pre-service teaching experience

Australia, like the United States (US) and the United Kingdom (UK), continues to experience a mismatch between the cultural backgrounds and socio-economic class of teachers and those of the students they work with. This article reports on a study that explored how a group of Australian teacher-education students understand their own ethnic and socio-economic class identities and how they work with students of ethnic and class backgrounds different from their own. Analysis of data from interviews and focus groups with the student-teachers is presented to highlight how they make sense of difference and how they take up the challenges of teaching for diversity. The paper raises issues and concerns regarding how diversity and difference might be addressed in teacher education.

Rural youth education and support program: the Casterton experience

Young people's lives have been directly and indirectly affected by the dynamics of decline in rural Australia. In early 1999, the Casterton region experienced the suicides of two young people. These events led to the funding of a rural youth education and support program at the town's secondary college. The program adopts a multi-layered approach to reduce risk factors and strengthen the protective factors amongst students at the college through the enhancement of social connectedness, personal safety and freedom, and educational participation. The program provides interventions at the individual, school and community levels through case management, the delivery of group programs and opportunities for community participation. This approach recognises the importance of early intervention and a holistic approach to health and well-being in the student population. This paper provides an overview and preliminary evaluation of the program undertaken in 2002.

The impact of teaching models, group structures and assessment modes on cooperative learning in the student design studio

As a result of ever diminishing teaching resources, an increasing number of architectural educators are setting group design projects, rather then spreading their time thinly over a large number of individual projects. This allows them to co-ordinate longer and more in-depth review sessions on a smaller number of assignment submissions. However, while the group
model may offer an authentic learning model by reflecting design in practice, the approach is not without its obvious shortcomings as a teaching archetype for the assessment of the knowledge and skill competencies of individual students. Hence, what is clear is the need for a readily adoptable andragogy for the teaching and assessment of group design projects.
The following paper describes the background, methodology and findings of a Strategic Teaching and Learning Grant funded research project carried out in the year 2005 at the School of Architecture and Building at Deakin University. The project aimed to inform a change of classroom/studio practice governing the assemblage, teaching and assessment of student design teams. The development through these changes of cooperative and student centred learning principles focused on effective design collaboration and fair assessment should, it will be argued, lead to an enhanced group-learning experience in studio, which will subsequently and ultimately enhance professional practice.

Understanding student expectations in developing environmental science courses

Developing relevant and innovative University courses is a complex and often difficult task. This is particularly true when developing environmental science courses as the banner of environmental science has the potential to include an extremely vast array of subject material and course content. Added to this is the diversity of students entering these courses, and their associated course expectations and aspirations. A third component that cannot be ignored when developing courses includes employer demands and expectations of graduates at course completion. As tertiary educators we therefore have the challenge of developing innovative environmental science courses that are academically challenging, but meet the expectations of students, staff and potential future employers. To ensure that we meet this challenge it is vital that we determine the expectations of all relevant parties (students, staff, and potential employers) and develop our courses accordingly.  Here we report on the 'student expectations' component of this. To determine student expectations we conducted a survey of all commencing first year environmental science students. The survey asked students to provide information on drivers for course selection, preferred learning styles, the importance of different approaches to teaching, subject interest areas and employment aspirations. Our results found that environmental science students have a preference for fieldwork and hands-on experience and are very supportive of teaching that combines different teaching methods. On-line teaching was not supported by commencing environmental science students. Commencing students showed a very strong interest in key subject areas of environmental science such as Wildlife, animal conservation, national and marine parks, conservation and marine Wildlife; however, some of the critical areas of environmental science such as population statistics, social sciences and chemistry did not attract the same level of interest. Most commencing students had some idea on where they would like to gain employment on course completion. Knowledge relating to student expectations is Vital, particularly when designing courses, developing specific unit content and undertaking marketing and course information sessions. With this knowledge we can be confident that students enrolling in environmental science will, to a large extent, have their expectations met.

Educational partnerships on-line: global collaborative learning through an on-line student exchange programme

Deakin University and the University of Calgary have used the internet to provide workplace-based learners with the possibility of a student exchange programme which does not disrupt their careers, lives or families.  The programmes involved in this on-line exchange were both developed in response to the needs of workplace learners and are representative of the role of universities in the field of life-long learning.  This paper describes the first phase of the exchange and discusses the shared pedagogical philosophies and shared implementation of on-line groupware which provided a rationale for the exchange.  The paper will explore the cross-cultural implications of the educational experience and the possibilities such an exchange opens up for life-long learners.

Managing the transition from school to university: a challenging or stressful experience?

Times of transition are stressful for most people. In this study, the aim was to investigate the stress reported by students as they commenced university, and to investigate whether stress levels, use of coping strategies, the availability of social support, and mood and anxiety differed among students who had moved house to commence university and those who had not. Results from 551 students indicate that 88% of them rated the level of commencing stress above the mid-point on a 5-pt Likert scale but there was no difference between students living at home and those not so, neither did these groups differ on their perceptions of available social support nor their use of coping strategies to deal with commencing university. There were however, gender differences on the use of appraisal of the stressor with females utilizing appraisal more so than males. Students who changed residence to study reported higher levels of depressive symptoms but not of anxiety symptoms. The strain of moving house and a deterioration in living conditions predicted scores on the stress of commencing university. These results are discussed in tenns of student welfare.

Correlates of student satisfaction with study modes

Research into the outcomes for students of different study modes has generally concluded that there is ‘no significant difference’ between outcomes for students studying face-to-face and for those studying by a variety of distance or flexible means. As the shift towards CIT-based and independent learning for oncampus students accelerates, it is important to establish how student outcomes are affected. This paper reports on a survey of the experiences and satisfaction of oncampus students with different learning environments and compares the satisfaction of those students who have experienced both on- and off-campus study. These comparisons were made based on students’ employment status and their reasons for studying off-campus. The findings revealed that students were significantly less satisfied with their off-campus than on-campus experience regardless of their work status. Further, the results indicate an association between students’ satisfaction with off-campus study and their reasons for studying off-campus. Given the evidence provided in this paper in support of face-to-face learning environments for ‘conventional’ on-campus students, both academics and administrators have an interest in ensuring that it remains central to the higher education experience of current and future students.

Developing student agency through VET in schools: the role of structured work placements

Using a sample of 446 secondary students who had participated in a vocational education and training in school (VETiS) program, this study compares the experiences and perceptions of students who had undertaken a work placement with those who had not. The study shows that students who had participated in work placement enjoyed the VETiS experience more than those who had not, and that the work placement had assisted them in their decision whether to stay at school or not. A factor analysis of results showed a factor associated with self-confidence about employability, and a factor associated with assistance in achieving specific post-school employment. Students who had completed a work placement were significantly higher on both these factors than students who had not.

These results are consistent with other research in the field, and it is argued that the work placement experience plays a considerable part in developing student agency in the decisions and the journey that they make in their transition from school to work.

Improving on- and off-campus student performance in structural mechanics

This paper investigates the performance of 329 (173 on- and 186  off-campus) students enrolled in two structural mechanics units at Deakin University, a leader in engineering distance-education in Australia. The two units experience unacceptably high rates of failure. An analysis of the assignment, laboratory and examination marks is presented. Consideration is also given to the total marks. The results show that on-campus students perform better in structural mechanics than their off-campus counterparts. Plots of the student performance distributions for the three assessment methods are provided (for each unit) and high failure rates are linked to low examination marks. Students tend to perform best in assignments and worst in examinations. Parametric statistical tests show a correlation between the continuous assessment and examination marks. To motivate students to fully participate in continuous assessment tasks the authors therefore propose several changes to the assessment criteria and marking schemes.

Teaching quality and tutorial delivery : experience of a second year marketing unit

The higher education sector, the world over, is faced with the challenging task of servicing an increasingly diverse international student community in the globally competitive education market. The rising expectation of students of education outcomes, varied learning styles and orientations of the student population have brought in challenges such as providing a high quality educational environment with changes in curricula and pedagogy (Coldrake, 2001) to negotiate the cultural and linguistic diversity and the resulting expectations of students. The 'quality' of teaching and learning is high on the agenda among the key issues that had emerged from policy developments to meet these challenges.

Using the SPQ2F instrument (Biggs, 2003) and depth interviews, this paper investigates the study 3J'PToaches of students enrolled in a second year marketing unit in an Australian university focusing on the learning contexts in which learning occurs. The findings indicate that there are no significant differences in study approaches of students and that the study approaches differ according the learning context. The paper concludes that student perceptions on learning contexts assist in the development of teaching strategies that lead to quality outcomes, higher student satisfaction and providing universities a competitive edge in marketing its services to prospective students.