Degree In Australia Research Articles

Enhancing learning outcomes from industry engagement in Australian engineering education

Industry engagement, commonly implemented as a 12 week industry placement during a vacation towards the end of the degree, has traditionally been a provider-mandated component of externally accredited professional engineering degrees in Australia. Such placements are intended to bridge knowledge and capability gaps between academic study and engineering employment and contextualise the final phase of academic study. Changes in the composition of Australia’s engineering industries have made it progressively harder to source such placements. In-curriculum exposure to engineering practice has also been expected, but has been delivered with considerable variability. In 2014 the authors completed a national project, led by the Australian Council of Engineering Deans (ACED), with peak industry bodies and several partner universities, funded from the Commonwealth Department of Industry Workplace Innovation Program, to explore how improving industry engagement could contribute further to engineering graduates’ learning outcomes and employability. The data collected from the engineering students and employers, reported in this paper, can now be regarded as baseline data on industry engagement, against which subsequent developments can be referenced. For the first time, students’ ratings of the value of different methods for industry engagement are shown to be related to their ‘authenticity’. Several industry-inspired in-curriculum interventions were also trialled at partner universities. Guidelines for good practice were developed from melding the experiential findings with theoretical perspectives. In the years since completing the project, the accreditation body, Engineers Australia, has updated and intensified its focus on engagement with practice (including changing its language from ‘exposure’ to ‘engagement’), and many engineering faculties have significantly enhanced their models and requirements for work integrated learning and industry engagement. This paper outlines these changes and examples of new implementations, including virtual and electronically-mediated methods that also reflect ongoing changes in engineering industry practice.

Development of nutrition science competencies for undergraduate degrees in Australia.

The need for updated competencies for nutrition scientists in Australia was identified. The aim of this paper is to describe the process of revising of these competencies for undergraduate nutrition science degrees in Australia. An iterative multiple methods approach comprising three stages was undertaken: 1. Scoping study of existing competencies; 2. Exploratory survey; and, 3. Modified Delphi process (2 rounds) involving 128 nutrition experts from industry, community, government and academia. A ≥70% consensus rule was applied to Rounds 1 and 2 of the Delphi process in order to arrive at a final list of competencies. Stage 1: Scoping study resulted in an initial list of 71 competency statements, categorised under six core areas. Stage 2: Exploratory survey-completed by 74 Nutrition Society of Australia (NSA) members; 76% agreed there was a need to update the current competencies. Standards were refined to six core areas and 36 statements. Stage 3: Modified Delphi process-revised competencies comprise five core competency areas, underpinned by fundamental knowledge, skills, attitudes and values: Nutrition Science; Food and the Food System; Nutrition Governance, Sociocultural and Behavioural Factors; Nutrition Research and Critical Analysis; and Communication and Professional Conduct; and three specialist competency areas: Food Science; Public Health Nutrition; and Animal Nutrition. The revised competencies provide an updated framework of nutrition science knowledge for graduates to effectively practice in Australia. They may be used to benchmark current and future nutrition science degrees and lead to improved employability skills of nutrition science graduates.

Australian Honours degrees: The last bastion of quality?

Abstract The first tourism Honours degree in Australia was offered almost three decades ago, and since then Honours has become a well-recognised and important offering, particularly in terms of its role as a research pathway. The research-intensive nature of Honours degrees produces graduates who are able to plan and execute project work, undertake research, and demonstrate scholarship with some independence. These skills are highly sought after by some employers. However, Honours programs tend to be ‘boutique’ offerings and are particularly vulnerable to curriculum rationalisation efforts. The purpose of this research was to explore the value and future of Australian business Honours degrees by examining the perceptions of tourism and business educators. A survey of 100 academics from 21 Australian institutions revealed that Honours is highly valued and considered to be superior as a research training degree in comparison to Masters Coursework Degrees and Masters by Research. However, in an era of increasing austerity the Australian Honours degree has become an oddity and its reputation as the last bastion of quality in undergraduate tourism education is under threat.

Psychological challenges confronting graduate construction students in Australia

ABSTRACT Research shows that undergraduate construction students suffer from burnout and stress due to balancing study and employment in the construction industry. It is hypothesized that graduate construction students experience worse psychological symptoms because of other commitments that they have on top of their work and study. However, research on their mental health is still scarce. This research identifies the stressors and assesses the mental health symptoms of graduate students pursuing construction-related coursework degrees in Australia. In total, 107 valid responses were collected from graduate construction students enrolled in Australian universities through a questionnaire survey. Data analysis suggests that high self-expectations and worrying about under-performing in studies are the most frequent stressors faced by them. They also encounter higher levels of depression, anxiety, and stress than the general population. Furthermore, their level of depression is higher than construction professionals in Australia. These adversely affect their academic, work, and social performances. To reduce the attrition rate of graduate students caused by poor psychological health, universities should remodel the delivery methods with balanced online and face-to-face learning activities or intensive options; set the maximum academic load of two subjects per session for students working full-time; and provide in-house educational counselling services.

Is it time to consider a four year Nursing Bachelor Degree in Australia? A discussion paper

BackgroundThe need for new graduate nurses to have the capabilities to function effectively in increasingly complex, dynamic and diverse health care settings has energised debate about the need for four year nursing degrees. QuestionsWhat types of four year bachelor degrees are evident globally and what are the key arguments and evidence suggesting a need for four year nursing degrees in Australia? MethodsA scoping of contemporary literature is conducted to identify and discuss the key trends, concerns and evidence that informs the current debate on the appropriate duration of nursing degrees. FindingsA unique combination of emerging health care challenges and shifting health care priorities are fuelling the call to reconsider the duration of nursing degrees in Australia. DiscussionFuture nurses will need the capabilities to work effectively across organisational and geographical boundaries, work as partners with a well-informed public, engage with advancing technologies and work autonomously and collaboratively as equals in inter-professional teams. ConclusionThe need for nurse education to produce nurse graduates with key capability for the future, gives credence to a call for a four year nursing degree in Australia.

Attitudes of pre-service physical education teachers to healthism: Development and validation of the Attitude Towards Healthism Scale (ATHS)

Healthism is both an ideological and a regulative discourse that manifests as a tendency to conceive health as a product of individual choice. Healthism represents a collection of taken-for-granted assumptions, positioned at the intersection of morality, blame and health, that can lead to a privileging of ‘healthy’ and ‘productive’ individuals. It is argued that healthism is a key issue for physical educators and a significant focus for research. The validation of a scale – the Attitude Towards Healthism Scale (ATHS) – that seeks to quantify pre-service physical education teachers’ attitudes towards healthism is described. Participants were 201 pre-service teachers undertaking a Bachelor of Education degree in Australia. The factor structure of the initial 17-item scale was determined using an exploratory factor analysis followed by Rasch modelling and, lastly, confirmatory factor analysis. Initial exploratory factor analysis supported a unidimensional measure of healthism. Further Rasch modelling suggested that a refined 15-item ATHS scale functioned more effectively as two sub-scales that combined to provide a valid and reliable method of measuring the ideology of healthism. It is suggested that the ATHS will enable teacher educators and PSTs to discuss healthism with reference to attitudinal data, and examine how views change over time.

Students' College Preferences in Response to Tuition Changes

This paper studies the impact of changing tuition on students' preferences for college degrees. In particular, it analyzes the selective tuition policy changes for certain degrees in Australia in the 2000s. Using a logit discrete choice model, I find that while tuition increases discouraged students from choosing those degrees, the effect was small as the estimated price elasticity of students' preferences is low. The estimated responses are however heterogeneous across income groups; students in the lower socioeconomic groups are more responsive to tuition changes.

Do accredited undergraduate accounting programmes in Australia meet the needs and expectations of the accounting profession?

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to assess the overall alignment of undergraduate accounting degree programmes from all Certified Practicing Accountants Australia and Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand accredited higher education providers in Australia with the profession’s minimum educational expectations (MEEs).Design/methodology/approachThe paper uses a series of quantitative and qualitative analyses to determine whether or not the content and focus of these programmes prepares students for contemporary accounting practice.FindingsThe results of these analyses demonstrate that most accredited undergraduate accounting degrees in Australia are largely unaligned with the profession’s expectations, with 18 (out of 57) degree programmes showing no overlap between their learning outcomes and the profession’s MEEs. In addition, only two (out of 57) programmes are shown to address all of the profession’s minimum expectations. A subsequent analysis of the focus and structure of the evaluated degree-level learning outcomes revealed additional inconsistencies between the interpretation of individual MEEs by the profession and the higher education sector.Originality/valueThis paper demonstrates that accredited undergraduate degrees are predominantly unable to prepare students for entry into the accounting profession, and that the prior efforts to align accounting curricula with the profession’s needs and expectation have thus far been largely unsuccessful. The findings of this paper are relevant for higher education providers and the accounting profession because they reflect the current level of alignment between the content and focus of undergraduate accounting education and the profession’s expectations. In addition, the findings of this paper highlight that the current accreditation process of the professional accounting bodies in Australia does not generate the desired alignment between academia and accounting practice.

Addressing Graduate Competencies: Understanding the Contextual Factors Impacting the Engineering Discipline

Abstract The knowledge of contextual factors that impact the engineering discipline is one of sixteen competencies that must be demonstrated by engineering graduates upon completion of an accredited engineering degree in Australia. This research critically analyses learning outcomes, learning activities and assessment tasks associated with the knowledge of contextual factors for the Mechanical Engineering (Honours) degrees at two universities to determine how this competency is perceived and addressed within the curriculum. In the majority of cases, the learning outcomes do not address the competency and there are instances where this competency has been misunderstood and misrepresented. Various assessment tasks are used in the subjects that address this competency, including exams, tests, assignments, reports, presentations, tutorials, reflective journals and others. Universities and accreditation providers must review their processes for addressing this competency to ensure it is achieved. Further research is required to define this competency for better alignment and understanding of learning outcomes.

Primary Pre-Service Teachers’ Perceptions of Course Related Factors that Enhance Instructional Self-Efficacy

Pre-service teachers’ instructional self-efficacy, that is, their belief in their own ability to foster learning with instructional tactics, is one predictor of classroom effectiveness. This qualitative investigation used focus groups to gather data from fifty-one pre-service teachers enrolled in one Bachelor of Education (Primary) degree in Australia. Pre-service teachers were asked their perceptions of course related factors that increased their instructional self-efficacy. Focus group transcripts were themed and triangulated with prioritised lists developed by each of the focus groups. Pre-service teachers identified vicarious and enactive modelling, accompanied by professional conversations and a supportive learning culture as contributors to instructional self-efficacy. They also identified the need for continued scaffolding in mastery components of the course, recommending a specific strategy to enhance mastery learning

Solidarity and support: feminist memory work focus groups with working-class women studying social science degrees in Australia

This paper reports on our use of a two-phased, feminist memory work in a project conducted with 11 women, social science students at an Australian university. We begin by describing government-led attempts to widen participation in Australian universities because 10 of the 11 women who participated in our project were from non-traditional backgrounds. We discuss qualitative group research, identifying some of the benefits and limitations of focus groups, before differentiating them from feminist memory work and analysing key findings. Using excerpts from participants’ written stories and oral discussions, we analyse some of the obstacles the women faced trying to complete their studies. Our attention then turns to methodological concerns where we examine memory work as a feminist inquiry method. As second-wave feminists understood several decades ago through their use of consciousness-raising groups, we describe how we derived many benefits from using feminist memory work. The method invites deep reflection on the intersections between the personal and political and can be productive of insights about how people feel, not just think, about their experiences. A sense of solidarity can stem from this awareness amongst participants who have a chance to workshop and thus reinterpret their own stories and those of others, which can mean a growth in self-confidence and a reduction in self-blame.

Designing Journalism Capstone Units That Demonstrate Student Skills

There are considerable differences in the structure, content, and delivery of tertiary journalism degrees in Australia as identified in a 2014 Office for Learning and Teaching (OLT) Innovation and Development Project report on graduate qualities and journalism curriculum renewal. To address this situation, the author argues for journalism capstone units, designed by both journalism educators and news editors, to include a series of agreed criteria and standards to guide journalism educators, and for journalism students to demonstrate not only a broad knowledge base together with research and communication skills but also entrepreneurial skills to help them adapt to new media markets and jobs.

"Till Death Us Do Part": Homicide Defenses for Women in Abusive Relationships-Similar Problems-Different Responses in Germany and Australia.

Cases in which women have killed their sleeping or otherwise inattentive abusive partners to "escape" domestic violence have arisen in both Germany and Australia. In this context, the availability of defenses including provocation and self-defense for abused defendants is controversially debated due to their traditional application and interpretation. It appears that these cases have driven law reform and changed judicial interpretation of defenses to some degree in Australia, whereas the situation in Germany remains stagnant. This article argues that while the situation in Australia is not without criticism, the recent legislative developments aimed at affording abused defendants greater access to defenses could serve as food for legal thought in the German debate.

I-Kiribati nursing graduates experience of transition from university to residential aged care facilities in Australia

To explore the experience of international nursing graduates from Kiribati transitioning into practice in RACFs, upon completion of their bachelor of nursing degree in Australia. This study used an interpretive phenomenology design with two focus groups. A thematic analysis of the transcripts from the focus groups generated themes relating to the graduates personal journey through transition. This study was conducted with graduates working in residential aged care facilities [RACF]. I-Kiribati nursing graduates (N=6) who have been practicing for 1year in RACF. The experience of transition for the I-Kiribati graduates related to challenges faced during this time. Three themes were developed from the analysis: being unsure of expectations, understanding responsibilities of practice, and stepping up to the RN role. The influence of culture was apparent within the three themes. Overall, the transition to RACFs for the participants was difficult; however, students described increased confidence to work through professional and cultural challenges. They became more reliant on their own knowledge and skills as they matured as practitioners. Recommendations for improving the transition experience include transitional support and educational workshops related specifically to working in RACF. Tailoring workshops to the specific needs of international graduate nurses would assist their transition in relation to cultural differences.

Using developmental evaluation as a design thinking tool for curriculum innovation in professional higher education

ABSTRACTThis paper argues for the use of ‘developmental’ evaluation as a design-based research tool for sustainable curriculum innovation in professional higher education. Professional education is multi-faceted and complex with diverse views from researchers, professional practitioners, employers and the world of politics leaving little consensus about the nature of educational ‘problems’, let alone educational ‘solutions’. Developmental evaluation is an emerging approach to evaluating innovations and/or organisations that are in a continuous state of change; it asks the evaluators to not simply appraise a final design, but to work with designers through processes of rapid reconnaissance, mapping the territory and emergent modelling. This paper provides an account of how the adoption of the dispositions and approaches of developmental evaluation increased the trustworthiness of decision-making in the design of a new post-graduate teacher education degree in Australia. The principles of developmental evaluation as a design thinking approach have application in other complex curriculum settings.

Clinical leadership development in a pre-registration nursing curriculum: What the profession has to say about it

BackgroundIn the last decade literature, inquiries and reports into the short comings in health services have highlighted the vital role of leadership in clinical practice and the impact on patient care and effective workplace culture. Whilst there is an abundance of literature on leadership and the registered nursing workforce, an international literature review revealed there is very little known on leadership development in pre-registration nursing programmes. ObjectiveTo identify what the profession's views are on proposed indicative curriculum content suggested for clinical leadership development in a pre-registration nursing degree in Australia. DesignThis is a multi-method research study. This paper presents the development and results of one aspect of the study, a national online survey. ParticipantsNurses: clinicians, managers and academics. MethodsIn the absence of a strong evidence base in the literature review, additional pre-requisite curriculum content was augmented from the work of two published frameworks of leadership and management. From this a 67-item survey was designed to ask the profession whether the aggregated content is a reasonable view of what should be included in a pre-registration programme to develop clinical leadership. The survey sought the views of nurses on whether the proposed content was relevant (yes/no) and their opinion on whether it is significant via a 5-point Likert scale. Descriptive and chi-square analyses were performed in SPSS v.19. ResultsA total of 418 nurses completed the survey; there was consensus amongst the profession on what is considered relevant and important in a pre-registration nursing programme. ConclusionsThe content identified could be considered indicative and pre-requisite to include in a pre-registration nursing programme. Members of the nursing profession in Australia have clear views about this. The next step is to design and evaluate a purposeful pedagogical approach and curriculum, leading to the development of clinical leadership knowledge, skills and behaviours in newly graduating nurses.

Chronic care undergraduate nursing education in Australia

The Chronic Care Model developed by Wagner is recognised to provide a systematic approach to managing chronic care. It has been adapted by the World Health Organization to become the Innovative Care for Chronic Conditions Framework. Together these have been demonstrated to provide an effective framework for chronic care management in a variety of settings. In order to prepare Australian nursing graduates for a changing health system it is important to recognise global issues and to prepare them to work within well recognised models. This paper examines the publically available documentation of pre-registration nursing degrees in Australia for their alignment with the Chronic Care Model and the Innovative Care for Chronic Conditions Framework. Those aspects of each which are well addressed are identified along with those which could be improved.

What's Happened to the Rate of Return to Business Masters?

While business masters degrees are popular with students wishing to enhance their career prospects, there is little evidence available on the private rate of return to these degrees in Australia. Furthermore, there is little evidence about the effects of the huge growth in graduates in recent decades and changing business conditions on the profitability of a business masters degree from an individual's point of view. This is despite the expectation that there would be significant consequences of the changes in demand and supply to the relative income of higher degree holders. This paper presents estimates of the rate of return in Australia associated with the completion of business masters degrees over the period 2001 and 2011. The results show that for the average person, there are incentives to complete these degrees, and the private rate of return compares favourably with the real long term real bond rate. However, the profitability of an investment in a business masters has fallen significantly over time.

Embedded creative workers and creative work in education

This article is concerned with the many connections between creative work and workers, and education work and industries. Employment in the education sector has long been recognised as a significant element in creative workers’ portfolio careers. Much has been written, for example, about the positive contribution of ‘artists in schools’ initiatives. Australian census analyses reveal that education is the most common industry sector into which creative workers are ‘embedded’, outside of the core creative industries. However, beyond case studies and some survey research into arts instruction and instructors, we know remarkably little about in which education roles and sectors creative workers are embedded, and the types of value that they add in those roles and sectors. This article reviews the extant literature on creative work and workers in education, and presents the findings of a survey of 916 graduates from creative undergraduate degrees in Australia. The findings suggest that education work is very common among creative graduates indeed, while there are a range of motivating factors for education work among creative graduates, on average they are satisfied with their careers, and that creative graduates add significant creative-cultural and creative-generic value add through their work.

The private rate of return to a university degree in Australia

This article presents estimates of the private monetary benefits in Australia associated with the completion of Bachelor degrees for a range of fields of study under a range of different assumptions. For the average person, results show strong monetary incentives to complete these degrees and the private rate of return compares favourably with the real long-term bond rate. However, differences can be observed in rates of return according to gender and discipline of study with, generally, lower returns for women and for those holding degrees in the humanities. The results are calculated on varying assumptions which provide evidence of the robustness of the conclusions. Finally, implications for policy, such as university financing and increases in university places, are discussed.