Environmental sustainability in higher education : What do academics think?

The slow uptake of Education for Sustainability (EfS) curricula in universities has, partly, been attributed to academics' perceptions that EfS has little relevance within some disciplines. Understanding teaching academics' attitudes, values and experiences of EfS across disciplines can inform future EfS efforts in higher education. This paper presents one part of a larger study that sought the views of ≈6% of the entire university teaching workforce of Australia. One quarter of the teaching academics in every discipline of every Australian university (except one) (n = 38) was sent an online questionnaire asking for their opinions of EfS. Precisely, 1819 academics participated (26% response rate) and data was analysed with descriptive and inferential statistics. The findings suggest that academics are supportive of EfS for all university students. Support, perceived relevance and reported difficulties with EfS are discipline specific; academics would respond positively to EfS framed within their disciplinary worldviews.

Indigenous students' persistence in higher education in Australia: contextualising models of change from psychology to understand and aid students' practices at a cultural interface

The need to address the substantial inequities that exist between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians in higher education is widely recognised. Those factors that affect the performance of Indigenous students in tertiary education have been reasonably well documented across different institutions, disciplines, and programme levels but there has, to date, been less consideration of the processes by which Indigenous students either persist or desist in higher education. This paper aims to present a conceptual understanding of academic persistence that can inform the delivery of tailored academic support interventions to Indigenous students who are at high risk of leaving higher education.

Framing and enhancing distributed leadership in the quality management of online learning environments in higher education

This article reports on the findings of senior leadership interviews in a nationally funded project on distributed leadership in the quality management of online learning environments (OLEs) in higher education. Questions were framed around the development of an OLE quality management framework and the situation of the characteristics of distributed leadership at the core of the framework. The project’s premise is that distributed leadership is a descriptive reality of managing OLEs given the various leadership parties involved and the complexities of the contemporary technological landscape. Leaders’ understandings of distributed leadership were examined—its nature, value and potential for advancing the quality management of OLEs. There was confirmatory evidence of its reality, but its meaning and value were not uncritically accepted. It can be concluded that building distributed leadership must start through deliberative formal leadership commitment and action starting at the highest levels of the institution.

Leadership in higher education : The normative project of the common good in conditions of globalization, Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM), and APEX in Malaysia

In this paper, the author discusses the reform agenda undertaken by UniversitiSains Malaysia (USM) to contextualise higher education reform within culturaland social theory. It is important to understand leadership in leading reformwithin a broader and more holistic fashion that takes into account localculture, politics and history. University Sains Malaysia is embarking on what isreferred to as the APEX agenda. The APEX strategy in Malaysia is an importantapproach towards achieving world-class status university institutions. The ApexUniversities will be the nation’s centres of academic distinction. Ensuring andbuilding upon the ethical authority that APEX gives USM, the challenge of leadership in USM is to engage in the forces of globalization and modernizationwhile at the same time take cognizance of the characteristics and demands ofMalaysian culture as central still to the successful mission of USM.

Social capital and organisational commitment at higher education institutions

This study compares the extent of the influence of non-tangible forms of social capital on organisational commitment at Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM), in Penang, Malaysia and two universities in Sumatra, Indonesia, which are, Universitas Andalas and Padang State University. In this study, Universitas Andalas and Padang State University will be represented by APU. Amongst the academic staff at USM, three social capital factors-collective action and shared values, relational trust and cooperation, and cohesive bonds and connectivity through participation-have a strong positive impact on affective and normative commitments. At APU, only the factor of cohesive bonds and connectivity contributes to affective commitment. Collective action and shared values as well as cohesive bonds and connectivity were shown to have contributed to higher normative commitment. Relational trust and cooperation, which are important indicators of social capital, did not seem to have any impact on the three organisational commitments. At USM, continuance commitment was negatively related to cohesive bonds and was not related to any other predictive variables. At APU, higher collective action and shared values reduced continuance commitment.

Simulation in higher education: a sociomaterial view

This article presents a sociomaterial account of simulation in higher education. Sociomaterial approaches change the ontological and epistemological bases for understanding learning and offer valuable tools for addressing important questions about relationships between university education and professional practices. Simulation has grown in many disciplines as a means to bring the two closer together. However, the theoretical underpinnings of simulation pedagogy are limited. This paper extends the wider work of applying sociomaterial approaches to educational phenomena, taking up Schatzki’s practice theory as a distinctive basis for doing so. The question ‘What is being simulated?’ is posed, prompting discussion of multiple bodies, performances and experiences. The potential of adopting such a framework for understanding simulation as a pedagogic practice that brings the classroom and workplace together is illustrated with reference to clinical education in nursing.