Curriculum Priorities Research Articles

WellnessRx Education Initiative

Background. Health profession students require knowledge and skills in nutrition and physical activity for patient/client care and for their own wellness. This is generally lacking in their preprofessional didactic education. Method. Based on an environmental scan of health profession student education programs at our university and a conceptual framework based on adult learning theory and Kolb’s cycle, interprofessional stakeholders developed online learning modules on nutrition and physical activity for incorporation into course curricula by health science faculties. This process included articulating goals and objectives, with an outcome of enhancing student knowledge, skills, and attitudes (KSAs). Pilots of the modules included student KSA assessment and interviews/focus groups. Results. Designing learning modules on nutrition and physical activity for individualized implementation in different faculties was a priority. Two learning modules were developed and pilot-tested within one faculty. Pre- and posttests of student knowledge were used to assess effectiveness. Knowledge scores improved from pretest (54.7%) to posttest (68.2%, p < .001) for the module “Nutrition and Physical Activity Across the Life Cycle” but did not change significantly (pretest 76.3%, posttest 77.0%; p = .70) for the “Self-Health” module. Interviews/focus groups showed students perceived the two modules as influencing their learning of KSAs. Conclusions. This process addressed a curricular gap across health science faculties. The consensus-building design process helped focus curriculum priorities and develop a shared curriculum vision. Students demonstrated KSA learning as shown in their pre–post assessments and comments. Further module development and larger scale implementation and evaluation studies are proposed.

Preparing Tomorrow’s Leaders

New journalism and mass communication curricula must prepare students to lead the media revolutions of the twenty-first century. Journalism, public relations, and advertising are being transformed by new media platforms and entrepreneurship, and these fields are now defined by rapid, radical change. Yet, the corresponding—and urgent—need to incorporate leadership education has not been widely articulated as a curricular priority. Leadership education would help students develop the knowledge and skills to lead dynamic industries and a leadership mind-set oriented to innovation. Leadership education would be especially beneficial for female students entering fields in which women are underrepresented in senior leadership.

You mean I have to teach sustainability too? Initial teacher education students’ perspectives on the sustainability cross-curriculum priority

: In this paper, we report on an investigation into initial teacher education students (ITES) understandings of sustainability and the Australian National Curriculum Sustainability Cross Curricular Priority (CCP). We also explore their willingness and capacities to embed the CCP into their own teaching practices. The ITESs (N=392) completed a quantitative survey with a series of Likert Scale questions and were asked to list “5 words” when they think of sustainability. Analysis reveals that ITESs have generally limited to moderate understandings of sustainability and education for sustainability, but lesser understandings of the Sustainability CCP and the 9 organising ideas. Understandings of sustainability were dominated by an environmental focus. We conclude this paper with a discussion of the implications of narrow environmental understandings of sustainability. We explore factors that limit and enable teacher educators to embed sustainability education more explicitly. We note the importance role teacher educators play in supporting ITESs to better understand sustainability.

Report of the 2013-2014 Academic Affairs Committee

BACKGROUND AND CHARGES According to the Bylaws of the American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy (AACP), the Academic Affairs Committee shall consider: the intellectual, social, and personal aspects of pharmaceutical education. It is expected to identify practices, procedures, and guidelines that will aid faculties in developing students to their maximum potential. It will also be concerned with curriculum analysis, development, and evaluation beginning with the pre-professional level and extending through professional and graduate education. The Committee shall seek to identify issues and problems affecting the administrative and financial aspects of member institutions. The Academic Affairs Committee shall extend its attention beyond intra-institutional matters of colleges of pharmacy to include interdisciplinary concerns with the communities of higher education and especially with those elements concerned with health education. To provide direction on how academic pharmacy should engage in technology-enabled education and to elaborate on AACP's role in the development of new educational resources, technologies and learning models, President Peggy Piascik charged the Committee to consider the following questions: 1. Is there a place for Massive Online Open Courses (MOOCs) in pharmacy education? If so, what are the opportunities and barriers for developing and implementing a platform for online courses across the academy? 2. What is the potential role of games in pharmacy education? How can AACP assist colleges and schools in developing and implementing this technology? In which areas of the curriculum, do games have the most potential for impact? 3. How can AACP educate and assist schools and colleges in adopting learning analytics to maximize the use of big data for programmatic and curricular priorities? 4. How can the Academy assist faculty in scholarship endeavors with regard to the following emerging technology issues? Potential areas may include: * Quality assurance methods in technology-enabled teaching and learning * Accreditation standards revision that supports innovation in educational technology learning and assessment models * Recognition within the promotion and tenure process to faculty who are innovators in advancing technology-enabled education In August 2013, Committee members were provided with resources and background literature to read prior to the standing Committee meeting. Members were also assigned to sub-groups to delve deeper into the literature pertaining to topics of the charge. Group one considered the topics of MOOCs and gamification of learning, while group two examined learning analytics and faculty scholarship regarding emerging technology issues. At the standing meeting on October 28-29,2013 in Washington, D.C., the Committee as a whole engaged in critical dialog while considering each of the charge questions and developed recommendations, policy statements, and suggestions as appropriate. At the conclusion of the meeting, Committee members were divided into four subgroups of two members each to write and elaborate on specific sections of the committee's work. The purpose of this report is 1) to provide requisite background literature and information regarding the charges, and 2) to provide recommendations to AACP and the Academy pertaining to these emerging issues. INTRODUCTION Higher education is facing a myriad of challenges due to a rapidly-changing technological environment. The 2012-2013 Argus Commission studied game changers likely to influence pharmacy education. (1) A major theme of their report was using instructional (information) technology to its fullest capability to create better instruction and to develop and use analytics for guiding and directing faculty and students. The New Media Consortium's (NMC) 2013 Higher Education Report (2) frames new and emerging technologies in a manner that allows education leaders, policy makers, and faculty to understand the potential impact on teaching, learning, and research. …

Sustainability as a cross-curricular priority in the Australian Curriculum: a Tasmanian investigation

In this paper, we report on an investigation into sustainability education in schools in the Australian state of Tasmania following the implementation of the Australian Curriculum. Sustainability is one of three cross-curriculum priorities in the new national curriculum and is the focus of this research (sustainability cross-curriculum priority (CCP)). Principals and Curriculum Leaders (PCLs) from all schools in Tasmania were invited to complete a survey that asked them about their understanding of various aspects of sustainability and how the sustainability CCP was integrated across learning areas. Sixty-eight PCLs (24%) responded to the survey. They reported generally good understandings of sustainability and education for sustainability, but lesser understandings of the sustainability CCP and the nine organising ideas. Respondents’ understandings of sustainability were dominated by an environmental focus. The PCLs’ responses in relation to sustainability implementation across learning areas gave insights into ways that the sustainability CCP can serve as a pivot for cross-curricular teaching and learning, which is strongly advocated for achieving transformative sustainability education. We conclude this paper with a discussion of how the sustainability CCP is an important asset in the necessary reorientation of the Australian formal education system for a more sustainable future. We note the importance of professional support so that educators may better understand sustainability and its complexity as a cross-curricular priority and envision ways in which the sustainability CCP can be realised within education.

Academic Governance and Democratic Processes: The Entrepreneurial Model and Its Discontents

Institutional power over the decision-making process in post-secondary institutions has traditionally been concentrated in the academy itself and, to a lesser extent, in state regulatory offices. Recently, however, this type of governance has been challenged and, in many places, replaced by a new, entrepreneurial model emphasizing more control by college administrations, increased involvement by outside “stakeholders,” and the use of competition among and within schools for students and resources as the main criterion for determining investment and curricular priorities. This article describes the entrepreneurial model of academic governance, then shows it in action through a detailed examination of the presidential succession crisis at the University of Virginia. This case study reveals many aspects of the discourse of entrepreneurial governance and illustrates the utilitarian nature of the model. The article proceeds to consider the reasons why such a discourse developed, tying the entrepreneurial model to the promulgation of neoliberal ideologies that are remaking social institutions more generally. The effects on the role of education in democratic politics in the United States are then analyzed. The conclusion of the article speaks to the difficulties of addressing these effects and recommends ways of analyzing responses to the model by the institutions and individuals involved.

Language wars: English education policy and practice in Bangladesh

Since its relatively recent independence in 1971, a total of seven national Education Commissions were formed, all of which placed various degrees of emphasis on the planning, pedagogy and learning of English in Bangladesh. Although the first Education Commission in 1974 aimed to 'decolonise' the education system and effectively exile English from the country, English has always remained a top priority in the school curriculum. Studies have linked this to residual colonial legacy inherited from the British education system. In the backdrop of persistent nationalistic favouritism towards Bengali, English is still widely an area-specific language confined to academia, and English education is often still seen as a purely instrumentalist endeavour. However it is also important as a symbol of socio-intellectual elitism and prestige. Such mixed, often incongruous positions can be seen reflected in the way successive National Education Policies have interacted with Commissions, which some critics have pointed out were formed by various regimes to advance their political agenda and ideology rather than to further the country's pragmatic needs and achieve well-articulated and time-sensitive policy outcomes. This article critically reviews the major trends of English education policy as enacted through four decades of reform and how English has played out in the education system in a developing country fast emerging as a rich ground of alternative educational research. Through a brief chronology of education policy and commissions and drawing on the comparative shifts of emphasis on English through their recommendations over a period of four decades, the article situates the place of English within the pragmatics of a postcolonial mindset and the socio-cultural expectations of stakeholders, and deals with the complexities of transition from policy to practice. In particular it problematises the almost irreconcilable friction between English and Bengali forged through the nationalistic sentiment born in the Language Movement of 1952, an episode unique in the history of the world. Rather than looking into the politics of policy planning and implementation, it looks towards the possibility of an education system that can bring about a healthy juxtaposition between heritage and modernity.

Contested Notions of Civics and Citizenship Education as National Education in the Australian Curriculum

Civics and Citizenship (CC) education is a contested concept and a learning area that creates curriculum and implementation challenges for schools in many nations. The current development of the first national curriculum to be implemented in Australia, the Australian Curriculum, provides a national opportunity for educators to rethink curriculum priorities and to decide on new emphases for learning in schools, in response to policy that emphasizes the importance of CC for all young Australians. In this paper, we discuss the contested notion of citizenship education as ‘national education’ in Australia, the development of this learning area and some challenges schools will encounter implementing CC in the Australian Curriculum.

Prioritizing social and moral learning amid conservative curriculum trends: spaces of possibility

Conservative trends across western schooling contexts are signalling an explicit devaluing of social and moral learning within their official curriculum mandates. These mandates are increasingly privileging the ‘academic rigour’ of traditional subject disciplines. This paper draws on interview and observation data from a case study of a large and highly diverse English secondary school to explore this school’s prioritizing of social and moral learning. Such prioritizing is supported at this school by its ‘Academy’ status—which in the English context allows schools a measure of freedom over curriculum as part of broader government moves to increase school autonomy. The paper’s focus is on how these conservative trends are understood and disrupted to support a critical view of existing curriculum and a desire to modify and re-shape it to support more relevant and connected learning for students. The paper describes particular examples of practice at the school in the areas of Citizenship and Religious Education to illustrate this approach. Engaging with social and moral learning along these lines is argued as productive in working within and against the constraints of current conservative curriculum priorities.

Competence, commitment and opportunity: an exploration of faculty views and perceptions on community- based education

BackgroundCommunity-Based Education (CBE) is an instructional approach designed and carried out in a community context and environment in which not only students, but also faculty and Health Professionals’ Education (HPE) institutions must be actively engaged throughout the educational experience. Despite the growing evidence of CBE being an effective approach for contemporary HPE, doubts about its successful implementation still exist. This study has explored HPE structure, policies and curriculum from the point of view of faculty members to gain understanding about the prevailing practices and to propose recommendations that nurtures and promotes CBE.MethodA purposive sample was drawn from three major cities of Pakistan- Karachi, Rawalpindi and Islamabad. Out of twelve HPE institutions present in these cities we selected six, which provided a sound representation of medical and nursing colleges around the country. At each institution we had two Focus Group Discussions; in addition we interviewed registrars of medical and nursing councils and two CBE experts.ResultsThe factors effecting implementation of CBE as perceived by study participants are categorized as: preparation of faculty members; institutional commitment and enthusiasm; curricular priorities and external milieu. Within each theme, participants recurrently described structural and curricular deficiencies, and lack of commitment and appreciation for community based teaching, service and research permeating at all levels: regulatory bodies, institutional heads and faculty members.ConclusionsThe factors highlighted by our study and many others suggest that CBE could not perpetuate effectively within HPE. To enhance the effectiveness of CBE approach in a way that mutually benefits local communities as well as HPE institutions and health professionals, it is important that reforms in HPE must be strategized in a holistic fashion i.e. restructuring and aligning its polices, curriculum and research priorities.

Current Challenges in Pain Education

SUMMARYThe continuing high prevalence of pain, both acute and persistent, is a public health problem. Improving pain curricula for health professionals is essential if we are to change the current ineffective practices related to pain prevention and management. An important question for all educators is whether our graduates are sufficiently competent in pain knowledge and skills to give appropriate pain care. In addition, deficiencies in our current education approaches need to be examined, including the key challenges that limit our moving the pain agenda forward. Limiting factors considered in this article include issues related to regulatory system requirements, curriculum priorities and resources, faculty qualifications and the need for collaboration with clinicians, traditional beliefs about patients and opportunities for interprofessional learning. Recent innovative advances are discussed related to curriculum resources, development of core pain competencies and creative learning models, including interprofessional ones. Suggested approaches to advocating for pain education changes are also included.

The Schooling of Ethics

Growing concern about a shrinking cultural consensus on values, coupled with religious pluralisation and the realisation that schooling is not, and cannot be, value-neutral,have led to proposals to teach ethics in schools, interpreted as a contribution of the discipline of philosophy to the common curriculum. To the extent that this approach is seen to hinge on the alleged autonomy of ethics, it has the potential to indoctrinate the contestable view that rationality is the prime motivator of moral commitment. A case is made for regarding philosophical ethics and religious (or world-view) studies not as alternative avenues to values education but each as a core curriculum priority, different but complementary to the other in its content.

Concern for Pain in the Pre‐Operative Period‐ Is the Internet Being Used for Information By Patients?

This study was conducted to provide information regarding prevalence of pain, type of provider managing pain, and use of Internet for information regarding pain, among patients coming for presurgical anesthesia consultation at a major academic institution. With IRB approval, patients were invited to participate in a voluntary and anonymous 14 question survey given to them when they presented for anesthesia consultation prior to their surgical procedure. The qualitative/categorical data were summarized by number (percentage [%]) and analyzed by Chi-square test or Fisher's exact test as appropriate. All data analyses were performed using the statistical software SAS, v9.2. A total of 1039 patients were asked to complete the survey and 670 patients returned their responses (response rate = 64.5%). 83% of patients had a history of prior surgery. 57% were concerned about postoperative pain. 30% of patients had chronic pain for more than 3 months pre-operatively. 16% of patients had looked online for information regarding pain. Pain physicians were involved in pain management only in 3.8% of these patients. Patients are presenting for surgery with significant pre-operative pain issues. Knowing this information pre-operatively will help healthcare personnel manage postsurgical pain more effectively. Patients are also using the Internet to obtain information regarding pain. As providers, there may be value to directing patients to reliable information online during consultation. As all physicians will eventually be managing chronic pain in their patients, pain education should be given priority in medical school curriculum.

Abortion-care education in Japanese nurse practitioner and midwifery programs: A national survey

While various reports have been published concerning ethical dilemmas in nursing and midwifery, and while many nurses and midwives struggle with the conflict between personal feelings raised by abortion and the duties of their position, few studies investigate the extent and conditions of abortion-care education for registered nurses (RNs) and certified nurse-midwives (CNMs) in Japan. To describe Japanese abortion-care education programs and to investigate program directors' or other relevant persons' perceptions of abortion-care education. Descriptive study was used to determine the extent of abortion-care education programs and the respondents' perceptions of abortion-care education. All 228 Japanese nursing and/or midwifery schools were invited to participate in the study. The response rate was 33.8% (n=77). Response rate varied by program type: 18.4% (n=45) for nursing programs and 29.0% (n=32) for midwifery programs. A confidential survey requesting information about curricular coverage of ten reproductive health topics related to abortion was mailed to program directors. The results show that the majority of CNM and RN programs surveyed offer didactic exposure to instruction in family planning and contraception, emergency contraception, legal considerations, and possible medical complications. However, few programs offer clinical exposure to all 10 topics. Of the respondents, 36% reported that lack of time and the low priority given to abortion-care education were issues of curriculum priority. As for educational materials, few textbooks or guidebooks exist on abortion care in Japan, and most educators use general nursing textbooks to cover this topic. Regardless of interest in or intention to provide abortion services as part of their practice, all providers of abortion-care education need to be knowledgeable about the full range of reproductive health options, including family planning and abortion, and to be able to convey this information to clients.

Elevation

To elucidate the components of professionalism specific to plastic surgery, we surveyed surgeons, anesthesiologists, and fourth-year medical students at a public university. We sought to define the central components of professionalism in plastic surgery, to determine the difference in perception of professionalism by plastic surgeons (PSs), compared to other practitioners (OPs), and to improve education in professionalism by obtaining data on attitudes of professionalism among practitioners. Using SurveyMonkey, we distributed a questionnaire to members of the Departments of Surgery and Anesthesia and fourth-year medical students. The responses of PSs (n = 22) were compared to non-plastic surgeons (OPs, n = 294). Of the 594 participants, 316 completed the survey (response rate, 53%). Participants consisted of 211 (66.8%) medical students, 60 (19%) residents, 5 (1.6%) fellows, 28 (8.9%) attending physicians, 6 (1.9%) nonphysician providers, and 6 (1.9%) administrators. Both PS and OP listed "the development and conformance to a body of ethics" the most important component of professionalism. Most participants thought that professionalism could be taught, and assessed. Plastic surgeons listed "not enough mentors" (63.2%) as the main obstacle to teaching professionalism, whereas OP listed "not a priority in medical school curriculum" (48.2%). Both PS and OP cited substance abuse, fraud, and sexual misconduct as egregious displays of unprofessional behavior. Opinions differed between the groups, regarding aspects of professionalism pertaining to plastic surgery. When asked about "charity raffles" for cosmetic surgery, 72.2% of PS ranked this as a 4 or 5 (with 5 representing the most unprofessional behavior), compared to only 46.7% of OP who assigned this a 4 or 5. For the scenario of a PS deceiving patients, by showing them another surgeon's before and after photographs, 84.2% of PS assigned this a 4 or 5, whereas 71.0% of OP ranked this a 4 or 5. Both groups cited working while impaired with alcohol as the most egregious example of unprofessional behavior. The opinions of PSs mirror those of their colleagues, regarding general components of professionalism. However, PSs are more conservative and cautious than their peers, perhaps due to successful educational efforts in mentoring, training, and maintenance of certification.

The Schooling of Ethics

Growing concern about a shrinking cultural consensus on values, coupled with religious pluralisation and the realisation that schooling is not, and cannot be, value-neutral,have led to proposals to teach ethics in schools, interpreted as a contribution of the discipline of philosophy to the common curriculum. To the extent that this approach is seen to hinge on the alleged autonomy of ethics, it has the potential to indoctrinate the contestable view that rationality is the prime motivator of moral commitment. A case is made for regarding philosophical ethics and religious (or world-view) studies not as alternative avenues to values education but each as a core curriculum priority, different but complementary to the other in its content.

Developing School-Scientist Partnerships: Lessons for Scientists from Forests-of-Life

The concept of partnerships between schools and practicing scientists came to prominence in the United States in the mid 1980s. The call by government for greater private sector involvement in education to raise standards in science achievement saw a variety of programmes developed, ranging from short-term sponsorships through to longer-term, project-based interactions. Recently, school-scientist partnerships (SSPs) have been rekindled as a means of assisting schools to motivate and inspire students in science, improve levels of teachers’ science knowledge, and increase awareness of the type and variety of career opportunities available in the sciences (Rennie and Howitt, 2009). This article summarises research that used an interpretive case study method to examine the performance of a two-year SSP pilot between a government-owned science research institute, and 200 students from two Intermediate (years 7 and 8) schools in New Zealand. It explored the experiences of scientists involved in the partnerships, and revealed difficulties in bridging the void that existed between the outcomes-driven, commercially-focused world of research scientists, and the more process-oriented, tightly structured, and conservative world of teachers and schools. Findings highlight the pragmatic realities of establishing partnerships, from the perspective of scientists. These include acute awareness of the nature of school systems, conventions and environments; the science, technological and pedagogical knowledge of teachers; teacher workload issues and pressures, curriculum priorities and access to science resources. The article identifies areas where time and effort should be invested to ensure successful partnership outcomes.

Predicting India's Future: Does it Justify the Exportation of US Social Work Education?

Current social work education in India reflects globalization priorities and tendencies of neo-colonialism that emulate curriculum priorities and duplicate content developed in countries like the USA. Social work education as implemented by countries like the USA, has limited success in transnational training of social workers and their ability to address emerging social problems and deep rooted structural imbalances within non-USA social contexts. Yet, the concept of the world being an emerging global village is used to justify and reaffirm the colonial goals of universal education and pedagogies within social work and its application to starkly different contexts, such as India. This paper argues against the imperialist nature of social work education through examples from social work syllabi from Indian schools of social work. Secondly, this paper examines the role of academic collaborations and international organizations in addressing the challenges in curriculum development. Finally, through an example from a Curriculum Development Project undertaken in a sub-Saharan African country by one of the authors, the paper demonstrates ways of generating more local content for curricula that would create culturally sensitive social services.

Physical Education Curriculum Priorities: Evidence for Education and Skillfulness

One question facing kinesiologists today is how to implement findings from research into society, in this case, physical education. In this paper I examine the role of a balanced approach to educational physical education in promoting physical activity. I argue that limiting physical education to simple tasks that encourage students to workout at target heart rate to expend calories is not an effective solution to the long-term challenge of promoting physically active lifestyles. As an alternative, I discuss research findings associated with motor skill competence, perceived competence, and knowledge growth that can increase individuals' options to participate in many different types of physical activity at greater intensities and for longer durations. I conclude by considering the role of educational physical education in public health initiatives with the goal of influencing students' decisions to embrace physical activity for a lifetime.

Physical Education Curriculum Priorities: “Safe” Exercise is Medicine

Injury during sports and recreational activities is a significant negative consequence to physical activity, and consequently can become a barrier to maintaining a healthy active lifestyle. Research has pointed us toward methodologies capable of identifying predispositions to certain musculoskeletal injuries, supporting the notion that most sports and recreational injuries are largely preventable (Boling et al., 2009; Hewett et al., 2005; Lin et al., 2009; Markolf et al., 1995; McLean et al., 2008; Padua et al., 2010 Parkkari et al., 2008). Increasing physical activity among America’s youth is critical in helping to combat chronic diseases such as obesity and diabetes. Therefore, finding the right sporting activities for our youth is important, as is making appropriate biomechanical adjustments or behavior modifications that create a safer means of participation. Over the past several years, the American College of Sports Medicine has promoted the slogan “Exercise is Medicine,” but I would argue that “Safe Exercise is Medicine” sends a better message. We must be responsible in our approach to promoting physical activity and participation in sport, while minimizing the risk of injury. In this paper, I reiterate my call to researchers, educators, and clinicians in Kinesiology and the allied health sciences to continue working collaboratively to identify predispositions to sports-related injuries, but also to develop strategies for transferring the evidence-based recommendations into curricula where it can have a greater impact. During a 2007 lecture at the American Academy of Kinesiology and Physical Education, I spoke on the topic of “Sports Medicine & Athletic Training in the 21st Century: Bridging the Gap Between Research and Clinical Practice”(Guskiewicz, 2008). I attempted to illustrate the progress that had been made by athletic training and biomechanics researchers in translating their work into meaningful clinical interventions to help prevent sports and recreational injuries and promote exercise across the lifespan. Progress has continued in this regard, however, the only exit from that bridge cannot be the clinical setting. It must extend into the middle school, junior high school, and secondary school physical education curricula and coaching clinics where teachers and coaches can assist in indentifying poor mechanics which can lead to debilitating injuries. This curricular content should also become standard in the preparation of our teachers and coaches who study in areas such as physical education, fitness and conditioning, wellness, and athletic training. These are the individuals who can make a difference on the front lines in ensuring that our youth can enjoy safe participation in sports.