Naming or creating a problem?

In this chapter, we are going to consider how language and practice interact in the process of supporting the learning of students with diverse abilities. You will learn that it is necessary for teachers to understand that while labels carry an administrative function in schools, when used carelessly they operate to stigmatise and exclude those whom we are working to include. This chapter will introduce the concept of equity and explain how the dilemma of difference emerges when we try to determine who should receive support and how. The chapter will also explain how an appreciation of language can help to inform and transform our pedagogy. An example of inclusion in action is provided to illustrate how inclusive language in practice can promote deep cultural changes that benefit both students and teachers. The process of determining appropriate and effective education of students with additional support requirements is troubled by what some refer to as the ‘dilemma of difference’. This dilemma derives mainly from the nature of language and our need to use certain words, terms and categories in order to share common understandings. Without these, educators cannot hope to arrive on the same page, yet such words can take on a life of their own; influencing thoughts, perspectives and attitudes in ways that far outstrip original intentions. The drive for clarity, however, through definition and diagnostic classification can ultimately obscure because of the cultural meanings that become invested within these terms through their use over time and in different professional contexts. In effect, trying to define “difference” in order to provide the right support to particular students is a process that entrenches normative boundaries that in turn create, accentuate and stigmatise whatever we have decided constitutes difference. Language is thus a powerful and dangerous weapon but, like other weapons, language can both hurt and defend. Understanding the power of language enables educators to use it both wisely and safely to the maximum benefit of their students. This chapter will discuss how teachers can recognise and support their students in ways that avoid stigma and the closure of stereotyping.

Website designers : how do they experience information literacy?

This paper presents the findings from the first phase of a larger study into the information literacy of website designers. Using a phenomenographic approach, it maps the variation in experiencing the phenomenon of information literacy from the viewpoint of website designers. The current result reveals important insights into the lived experience of this group of professionals. Analysis of data has identified five different ways in which website designers experience information literacy: problem-solving, using best practices, using a knowledge base, building a successful website, and being part of a learning community of practice. As there is presently relatively little research in the area of workplace information literacy, this study provides important additional insights into our understanding of information literacy in the workplace, especially in the specific context of website design. Such understandings are of value to library and information professionals working with web professionals either within or beyond libraries. These understandings may also enable information professionals to take a more proactive role in the industry of website design. Finally, the obtained knowledge will contribute to the education of both website-design science and library and information science (LIS) students.

Reducing alcohol-related driving on China's roads : Traffic police officers' perceptions and practice

Alcohol-related driving is a longstanding, serious problem in China (Li, Xie, Nie, & Zhang, 2012). On 1st May, 2011 a national law was introduced to criminalize drunk driving, and imposed serious penalties including jail for driving with a blood alcohol level of above 80mg/100ml. This pilot study, undertaken a year after introduction of the law, sought traffic police officers’ perceptions of drink driving and the practice of breath alcohol testing (BAT) in a large city in Guangdong Province, southern China. A questionnaire survey and semi-structured interviews were used to gain an in-depth understanding of issues relevant to alcohol-related driving. Fifty-five traffic police officers were recruited for the survey and six traffic police officers with a variety of working experience including roadside alcohol breath testing, traffic crash investigation and police resourcing were interviewed individually. The officers were recruited by the first author with the assistance of the staff from Guangdong Institute of Public Health, Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Interview participants reported three primary reasons why people drink and drive: 1) being prepared to take the chance of not being apprehended by police; 2) the strong traditional Chinese drinking culture; and 3) insufficient public awareness about the harmfulness of drink driving. Problems associated with the process of breath alcohol testing (BAT) were described and fit broadly into two categories: resourcing and avoiding detection. It was reported that there were insufficient traffic police officers to conduct routine traffic policing, including alcohol testing. Police BAT equipment was considered sufficient for routine traffic situations but not highway traffic operations. Local media and posters are used by the Public Security Bureau which is responsible for education about safe driving but participants thought that the education campaigns are limited in scope. Participants also described detection avoidance strategies used by drivers including: changing route; ignoring a police instruction to stop; staying inside the vehicle with windows and doors locked to avoid being tested; intentionally not performing breath tests correctly; and arguing with officers. This pilot study provided important insights from traffic police in one Chinese city which suggest there may be potential unintended effects of introducing more severe penalties including a range of strategies reportedly used by drivers to avoid detection. Recommendations for future research include a larger study to confirm these findings and examine the training and education of drivers; the focus and reach of publicity; and possible resource needs to support police enforcement.

Professional practice research : ensuring teacher development through a critical approach to professional learning

Currently the development of a national system for the ongoing enhancement of teacher professionalism across Australia is underway. The initiative led by Australian Institute of Teaching and School Leadership (AITSL) on behalf of the Ministerial Council for Education, Early Childhood Development and Youth Affairs (now SCSEEC) is progressing rapidly with a finalised set of Professional Standards for Teachers and a set of Professional Standards for Principals approved by Ministers in 2011. It is clear that there is an inextricable link between the newly proposed professional standards and the professional education of teachers and principals across Australia. Further, it is imperative that the education sector will need to work in a unified manner through ongoing consultations to ensure the standards truly reflect what teachers and principals desire of the profession, in terms of teacher preparation, professional learning and training, and professional recognition.

(Re)imagining the world : children's literature's response to changing times

(Re)Imagining the world: Children’s Literature’s Response to Changing Times considers how writers of fiction for children imagine ‘the world’, not one universal world, but different worlds: imaginary, strange, familiar, even monstrous worlds. The chapters in this collection discuss how fiction for children engages with some of the changes brought about by new technologies, information literacy, consumerism, migration, politics, different family structures, cosmopolitanism, and new and old monsters. They also invite us to think about how memory shapes our understanding of the past, and how fiction engages our emotions, our capacity to empathize, our desire to discover, and what the future may hold. The contributors bring different perspectives from education, postcolonial studies, literary criticism, cultural studies, childhood studies, postmodernism, and the social sciences. With a wide coverage of texts from different countries, and scholarly and lively discussions, this collection is itself a testament to the power of the human imagination and the significance of children’s literature in the education of young people.

Fresh frozen cadavers as a tool to educate student paramedics in procedural skills

Objectives – To describe the development of an educational workshop to develop procedural skills in undergraduate Paramedic students using fresh frozen cadavers and to report the student’s assessment of the program. Methods – A six-hour anatomy based workshop was developed using fresh frozen cadavers to teach a range of airway and invasive procedural skills to second year undergraduate paramedic students. Embedded QUAN (qual) methodology will be utilised to evaluate the student’s satisfaction, perception and quality of teaching as compared to other existing clinical teaching techniques such as high fidelity simulation. Students will be asked to complete an anonymous validated survey (10 questions formulated on a 5 point Likert scale) and provide a qualitative feedback pre and post the six-hour workshop. Results – This is a prospective study planned for September 2013. Low-risk human research ethics are being sought. Teaching evaluation results from the inaugural 2012 workshop (undergraduate and postgraduate Paramedic students) and interim results for 2013 will be presented. Conclusions – Clinical teaching using fresh frozen cadavers thus far has predominately been used in the education of medical and surgical trainees. A number of studies have found them to be effective and in some cases superior to traditional high fidelity simulation teaching strategies. Fresh frozen cadavers are said to provide perfect anatomy, normal tissue consistency and a realistic operative training experience (Lloyd, Maxwell-Armstrong et al. 2011). The authors believe that this study will show that the use of fresh frozen cadavers offers a safe and effective mode to teach procedural skills to student paramedics that will help bridge the skills gap and increase confidence prior to students undertaking such interventions on living patients. A modified training program may be formulated for general practitioners undertaking Emergency Medicine Advanced Rural Skills.

Assessing testamentary and decision-making competence/capacity in the Australian context

Australia lacks a satisfactory, national paradigm for assessing competence and capacity in the context of testamentary, enduring power of attorney and advance care directive documents. Competence/capacity assessments are currently conducted on an ad hoc basis by legal and/or medical professionals. The reliability of the assessment process is subject to the skill set and mutual understanding of the legal and/or medical professional conducting the assessment. There is a growth in the prevalence of diseases such as dementia. Such diseases impact upon cognition which increasingly necessitates collaboration between the legal and medical professions when assessing the effect of mentally disabling conditions upon competency/capacity. Miscommunication and lack of understanding between legal and medical professionals involved could impede the development of a satisfactory paradigm. A qualitative study seeking the views of legal and medical professionals who practise in this area has been conducted. This incorporated surveys and interviews of 10 legal and 20 medical practitioners. Some of the results are discussed here. Practitioners were asked whether there is a standard approach and whether national guidelines were desirable. There was general agreement that uniform guidelines for the assessment of competence/capacity would be desirable. The interviews also canvassed views as to the state of the relationship between the professions. The results of the empirical research support the hypothesis that relations between the professions could be improved. The development of a national paradigm would promote consistency and transparency of process, helping to improve the professional relationship and maximising the principles of autonomy, participation and dignity.

Beyond the modular film school : Australian film and television schools and their digital transitions

In this chapter we will describe the contemporary variety of practice-oriented training institutions in Australia. We will examine the different ways in which public and private providers are managing the challenges of digitization and convergence. We will consider the logics governing film education this mix of providers pulls into focus, and we will outline some of the challenges providers face in educating, (re)training, and preparing their graduates for life and work beyond the film school. These challenges highlight questions about the accountabilities and responsibilities of practice-oriented film education institutions. This chapter begins with an introductory section that outlines these logics and questions. It explores some of the tensions and dynamics within the spectrum of issues through which we can understand film schools. The chapter then goes on briefly to describe the multifaceted training landscape in Australia, before profiling the leading public provider, the Australian Film, Television and Radio School (AFTRS), as well as the other leading public providers the Victorian College of the Arts, and the Griffith Film School. It concludes with a short section on film education in primary and secondary schools as the education sector prepares for the implementation of a national curriculum in which ‘media arts’ has a new centrality.

A therapeutic approach to assessing legal capacity in Australia

Australia lacks a satisfactory, national paradigm for assessing legal capacity in the context of testamentary, enduring power of attorney and advance care directive documents. Capacity assessments are currently conducted on an ad hoc basis by legal and/or medical professionals. The reliability of the assessment process is subject to the skill set and mutual understanding of the legal and/or medical professional conducting the assessment. There is a growth in the prevalence of diseases such as dementia. Such diseases impact upon cognition which increasingly necessitates collaboration between the legal and medical professions when assessing the effect of mentally disabling conditions upon legal capacity. Miscommunication and lack of understanding between legal and medical professionals involved could impede the development of a satisfactory paradigm. This article will discuss legal capacity assessment in Australia and how to strengthen the relationship between legal and medical professionals involved in capacity assessments. The development of a national paradigm would promote consistency and transparency of process, helping to improve the professional relationship and maximising the principles of autonomy, participation and dignity.

University students and their working pathways

This paper examines the working pathways of young full-time university students in Australia. It draws on some of the data from a three year research project funded by the Australian Research Council. The project was called ‘Changing the way that Australian enter the workforce: Part-time working careers of young full-time school and tertiary students’. The project had three industry partners: Service Skills Australia (the Industry Skills Council for the service industries), McDonalds Australia (a fast food company) and The Reject Shop (a discount chain). Much of the research took place inside companies, in schools and with national stakeholders (eg Smith & Patton, 2011; Smith & Patton, 2013), but this paper reports on the research that took place with students in universities. In the project we were keen to explore the notion of part-time working while studying as a medium-term career, especially in the context of the need for career flexibility and adaptability (Poehnell & Amundson, 2002).

Winning the phishing war : a strategy for Australia

Phishing, a form of on-line identity theft, is a major problem worldwide, accounting for more than $7.5 Billion in losses in the US alone between 2005 and 2008. Australia was the first country to be targeted by Internet bank phishing in 2003 and continues to have a significant problem in this area. The major cyber crime groups responsible for phishing are based in Eastern Europe. They operate with a large degree of freedom due to the inherent difficulties in cross border law enforcement and the current situation in Eastern Europe, particularly in Russia and the Ukraine. They employ highly sophisticated and efficient technical tools to compromise victims and subvert bank authentication systems. However because it is difficult for them to repatriate the fraudulently obtained funds directly they employ Internet money mules in Australia to transfer the money via Western Union or Money gram. It is proposed a strategy, which firstly places more focus by Australian law enforcement upon transactions via Western Union and Money gram to detect this money laundering, would significantly impact the success of the Phishing attack model. This combined with a technical monitoring of Trojan technology and education of potential Internet money mules to avoid being duped would provide a winning strategy for the war on phishing for Australia.

Computational science for undergraduate biologists via QUT.Bio.Excel

Molecular biology is a scientific discipline which has changed fundamentally in character over the past decade to rely on large scale datasets – public and locally generated - and their computational analysis and annotation. Undergraduate education of biologists must increasingly couple this domain context with a data-driven computational scientific method. Yet modern programming and scripting languages and rich computational environments such as R and MATLAB present significant barriers to those with limited exposure to computer science, and may require substantial tutorial assistance over an extended period if progress is to be made. In this paper we report our experience of undergraduate bioinformatics education using the familiar, ubiquitous spreadsheet environment of Microsoft Excel. We describe a configurable extension called QUT.Bio.Excel, a custom ribbon, supporting a rich set of data sources, external tools and interactive processing within the spreadsheet, and a range of problems to demonstrate its utility and success in addressing the needs of students over their studies.

Salaries, recruitment, and retention for CRNA faculty - Part 1

The nature of differences in salaries between academic faculty and Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetists (CRNAs) working in clinical positions using recently collected data are explored. The differences in median salaries among program directors, assistant program directors, academic faculty, and clinical faculty are large. Furthermore, survey results imply that the most important barrier to recruiting teaching faculty is salary differentials. Part 1 of this 2-part column discusses salaries, recruitment, and retention of CRNA faculty; Part 2, to be published in the June 2008 issue, will focus on clinical faculty contributions to the education of CRNAs.

Asian international student attrition among Australian universities : are wellness programs the answer?

Education is one of Australia’s largest service-based exports. International students comprise approximately 24% of enrolments at Australian universities (Sawir, Marginson, Deumert, Nyland, & Ramia, 2008); and approximately 80% of these students are from the Asian region (Australian Federal Government, 2012). The financial cost of international student attrition for universities is significant. The Australian Federal Government Department of Education, Science and Training reports the attrition rates for first-year international undergraduate students ranged between 4% and 22.5% across all Australian Universities (2013). Academic, psychological, and sociocultural adjustments to a new environment can be challenging for international students. This process manifests from various stressors such as communication difficulties, adjustment to a new teaching style, new cultural norms and pressure on academic performance. These stressors result in an often overwhelming attempt to integrate and function effectively, and can consequently affect a student’s ability to meet academic requirements. The relationship between a student’s ability to successfully complete a higher education program is consistently related to a range of academic and non-academic factors. The role of specific Australian higher education institutions is vital in facilitating the continued education of Asian International students. Initiatives targeting an enhancement of modifiable lifestyle factors may have the potential to enhance a student’s ability to effectively and successfully transition into a lifestyle that facilitates their ability to adjust to the requirements of Australian universities. One possibility is the prospect of providing wellness programming, coaching and education targeting lifestyle behaviours for acculturation.

Web professionals : how do they experience information literacy?

This phenomenographic research investigated variation in web professionals' understanding of information literacy. The outcome is of value for the education of practitioners both in the areas of information literacy, and web design and development. Analysis of 23 in-depth interviews with web workers from different stages of web design and development process revealed that they experience information literacy as staying informed, building a successful website, solving a problem or participating in a community of practice. The present research advances the existing understanding of the concept of information literacy, especially in an occupational context. Additionally, using the web professionals' world as the context of the study, the research also contributes to the field of website design and development by shedding light on less-researched experiences of people involved in this industry.