Oxford Brookes University Research Articles

A l'ombre de la litterature. By Brian T. Fitch. Montreal, XYZ, 2000. 354 pp. Pb C$ 27.95.

Journal Article REVIEWS Get access A l'ombre de la htterature. By BRIAN T. FITCHMontreal, XYZ, 2000. 354 pp. pb C$27.95. SEÁN HAND SEÁN HAND OXFORD BROOKES UNIVERSITY Search for other works by this author on: Oxford Academic Google Scholar French Studies, Volume LV, Issue 2, April 2001, Pages 280–281, https://doi.org/10.1093/fs/LV.2.280 Published: 01 April 2001

From trainees to backers and agents: a programme of electronic information searching skills training for academic staff in health care

A programme of electronic information search training for health care academics was carried out at Dorset House Library, Oxford Brookes University, in summer 2000. Academic staff in health care need to be competent bibliographic searchers, but experience some barriers to learning. The author reflects on the potential benefits for academic staff and libraries when timely and appropriate training is offered to this user group.

The Student Experience of Criterion-Referenced Assessment (Through the Introduction of a Common Criteria Assessment Grid)

Growing concern over marking reliability and standards within UK higher education has led in recent years to increasing interest in criterion-referenced assessment. As part of an ongoing research project this paper examines student experience of criterion-referenced assessment and, in particular, a criteria assessment grid developed for the Business School at Oxford Brookes University. The main findings of this paper report the evident thirst students voiced for more reliable marking processes and clearer guidelines on assessment requirements and criteria. However, whilst students applauded the criterionreference grid as a 'good idea' and one that did help clarify assessment requirements they also highlighted several shortcomings. Such shortcomings included issues of subjectivity and multiple interpretations of criteria and standards. The paper concludes that the criterion-reference grid, from the student perspective, appeared to be of limited practical benefit unless presented as part of multifaceted approach including explanation, exemplars and opportunities for discussion.

The Use of LCA to Introduce Life-Cycle Thinking into Decision-Making for the Purchase of Medical Devices in the NHS

In the NHS, criteria for the selection and purchase of medical devices tend to be restricted to concerns about any risks to patients and/or staff during clinical practice, and the purchase price. In addition, the basis for taking many of these decisions about purchase may be only that of personal opinion, anecdote or limited information. We report on the application of life-cycle assessment (LCA) to a particular medical device — the suction receptacle — as a case-study to determine the potential of LCA to improve the range and quality of information available for decision-making, and act as a framework for a more holistic approach. Using LCA, substantial environmental and economic burdens were found to be associated with the different product systems in use (durable versus disposable devices). We discuss the ways in which various stakeholders in the healthcare sector could use this information, at both a strategic and operational level. We also outline possible future developments of LCA that would support healthcare managers in the drive towards evidence-based decision-making.

Edwardian Ladies and Imperial Power Julia Bush

Journal Article Edwardian Ladies and Imperial Power Julia Bush Get access Jacqueline Beaumont Jacqueline Beaumont Oxford Brookes University Search for other works by this author on: Oxford Academic Google Scholar The English Historical Review, Volume 115, Issue 464, November 2000, Pages 1357–1358, https://doi.org/10.1093/ehr/115.464.1357 Published: 01 November 2000

Geographical Information Systems and Expert Systems for Impact Assessment Part II : Expert Systems and Decision Support Systems

Journal of Environmental Assessment Policy and ManagementVol. 02, No. 03, pp. 415-448 (2000) No AccessGEOGRAPHICAL INFORMATION SYSTEMS AND EXPERT SYSTEMS FOR IMPACT ASSESSMENT Part II: Expert Systems and Decision Support SystemsAGUSTIN RODRIGUEZ-BACHILLERAGUSTIN RODRIGUEZ-BACHILLERSchool of Planning, Oxford Brookes University, Oxford OX3 0BP, UK Search for more papers by this author https://doi.org/10.1142/S1464333200000424Cited by:2 PreviousNext AboutSectionsPDF/EPUB ToolsAdd to favoritesDownload CitationsTrack CitationsRecommend to Library ShareShare onFacebookTwitterLinked InRedditEmail AbstractThis paper and another one preceding it investigate the potential of computer technologies like Geographical Information Systems (GIS) and Expert Systems (ES) to help with Impact Assessment (IA), suggesting that one way to optimise the effectiveness of GIS is to embed these systems in a more user-friendly environment. This paper explores the experience and potential of ES to provide such decision support environment, extending the argument further into the realm of Decision Support Systems (DSS). The proposition behind this paper is that these areas (IA, GIS, ES and maybe DSS) are potentially complementary and there can be mutual benefits if they are brought together. Certain tasks in IA — like screening, scoping, or statement review — already have potential for substantial automation, as an opportunity for technology transfer within organisations involved with IA, so that relatively scarce experts can be freed up for more difficult jobs while less expert staff are promoted to answer more sophisticated questions like these. More technical tasks like impact and environmental prediction also show scope for some degree of modelling-based automation, while other less routinised and more open-ended tasks involved with the management of the whole IA process probably lend themselves better to automation of a different kind, which works more as an "aid" than a substitute for the expert, for which the more flexible DSS seem more appropriate.Keywords:environmentimpact assessmentenvironmental managementgeographical information systemsexpert systemsdecision support systems FiguresReferencesRelatedDetailsCited By 2GIS and expert systems for impact assessment14 January 2010The potential of expert systems and GIS for impact assessment14 January 2010 Recommended Vol. 02, No. 03 Metrics History Keywordsenvironmentimpact assessmentenvironmental managementgeographical information systemsexpert systemsdecision support systemsPDF download

A longitudinal study of cancer-related fatigue in patients with breast cancer: research in progress

Hazel Robertshaw BSc(Hons), RGN, Lecturer Practitioner in Cancer Care, Imperial Cancer Research Fund and Oxford Brookes University. ICRF Medical Oncology Unit, Churchill Hospital, Headington,Oxford OX3 7LJUK Alison Richardson BN(Hons) MSc PhD, RGN, PGDE, RNT, Professor of Cancer and Palliative Nursing Care, Florence Nightingale School of Nursing and Midwifery, Kings College London. James Clerk Maxwell Building,Waterloo Road, London SE18WA,UK. Correspondence and oiprints requests to: Hazel Robertshaw

Communicating with students with learning difficulties in further education

The article describes the endeavours of three further education tutors to improve their ability to work effectively with students who have mild to moderate learning difficulties. The tutors sought the assistance of researchers at Oxford Brookes University who were developing a Communication Styles Questionnaire (CSQ) as a means of helping teachers to direct their own professional development. The CSQ gives tutors valid and reliable feedback about how they tend routinely to interact with learners. This may be used in a process of reflection, preferably with colleagues, leading to action to improve teaching and learning.

Shorter notice. In the Name of Liberalism: Illiberal Social Policy in the United States and Britain. D King

Journal Article Shorter notice. In the Name of Liberalism: Illiberal Social Policy in the United States and Britain. D King Get access J Stewart J Stewart Oxford Brookes University, Oxford, UK Search for other works by this author on: Oxford Academic Google Scholar The English Historical Review, Volume 115, Issue 462, June 2000, Pages 779–780, https://doi.org/10.1093/ehr/115.462.779 Published: 01 June 2000

Shorter notice. In the Name of Liberalism: Illiberal Social Policy in the United States and Britain. D King

Shorter notice. In the Name of Liberalism: Illiberal Social Policy in the United States and Britain. D King Get access J Stewart J Stewart Oxford Brookes University, Oxford, UK Search for other works by this author on: Oxford Academic Google Scholar The English Historical Review, Volume 115, Issue 462, June 2000, Pages 779–780, https://doi.org/10.1093/ehr/115.462.779 Published: 01 June 2000

Close Encounters: Ideological Invasion and Complicity on an `International Management' Master's Programme

The authors of this article are actively involved as teachers and administrators on a taught `Master's' degree in `International Management' at Oxford Brookes University. In this article, we offer a series of critical reflections on the educational process that has resulted from our close engagement with students on the Brookes MSc. In addition to careful personal introspection, with students' permission we draw on data collected from assignments and observation of tutor-led exercises. The outcome of our observation and reflection is twofold: (1) we find much of the existing international management literature to be considerably lacking, complacent and potentially harmful in a number of respects; (2) we report on the critical insights we have gleaned into the motives of students and tutors on this kind of programme. In response to these criticisms, we suggest educators might fruitfully seek to `repoliticize' their approach. Such re-politicization would entail two strategies: one reflexively intellectual and one directly participative. The educator might strive, for instance, to pay due reflexive deference to the historical, social and geographical context of the knowledge and skills he or she brings to the learning arena. The second strategy necessitates close encounters in the classroom: a meeting of and between tutors and students in an attempt to explore constructively and perhaps even transcend difference.

Assessing the Undergraduate Dissertation

This paper reports on a study of assessment of undergraduate dissertations in the seven departments which constitute the School of Social Sciences and Law at Oxford Brookes University. Information was gathered from documented material and interviews regarding criteria used in assessment of dissertations. This was analysed to identify the range of criteria across disciplines. Criteria were also examined by administration of a questionnaire asking staff to define commonly listed criteria. Finally, a content analysis of completed assessment forms was undertaken to gauge the extent to which identified criteria were actually applied and to gain insight into those that were implicit. The study revealed considerable ambiguity as regards use, meaning and application of criteria. The paper concludes by outlining the policies and practices that are now being developed in the School in the light of these findings, and situates the study in the UK national context of concern to establish graduate threshold standards.

The Failed and Postponed Millennium: Secular Millennialism Since the Enlightenment

Journal of Religious HistoryVolume 24, Issue 1 p. 70-86 The Failed and Postponed Millennium: Secular Millennialism Since the Enlightenment David Nash, David Nash Oxford Brookes University, U.K.Search for more papers by this author David Nash, David Nash Oxford Brookes University, U.K.Search for more papers by this author First published: 19 December 2002 https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-9809.00102Citations: 1AboutPDF ToolsRequest permissionExport citationAdd to favoritesTrack citation ShareShare Give accessShare full text accessShare full-text accessPlease review our Terms and Conditions of Use and check box below to share full-text version of article.I have read and accept the Wiley Online Library Terms and Conditions of UseShareable LinkUse the link below to share a full-text version of this article with your friends and colleagues. Learn more.Copy URL Citing Literature Volume24, Issue1Feburary 2000Pages 70-86 RelatedInformation

Do Initial Training Courses Have an Impact on University Teaching? The Evidence From Two Evaluative Studies of One Course

Initial training courses for teachers in higher education are now widespread in many countries and about to be given increased importance in the UK by the new Institute for Teaching and Learning but there appears to have been virtually no research into their effectiveness. This paper summarizes evidence from two evaluative studies of the initial training course at Oxford Brookes University, UK, and concludes that some claims can be made for the course's effectiveness.

Dietary change, energy balance and body weight regulation among migrating students

This study was conducted to examine how subjects modulate their food intake and energy balance when they migrate from a low energy density food intake pattern to one of high energy density. It was hypothesised that an increase in the energy density of food consumed would result in increased body weight of the migrating subjects unless food intake and energy balance could be modulated. Food selection, food intake, basal metabolic rate (BMR) and anthropometric measurements were made on 53 female and 56 male newly arrived overseas students. All subjects were from Malaysia, but the data was collected at Oxford Brookes University where the subjects were studying. Food intake using 3-day food diaries and food frequency questionnaires (FFQs), BMR and anthropometric measurements including body weight were measured on arrival in the UK and after 3 and 6 months' stay. Student's t -tests and analysis of variance (ANOVA) were used to compare the data. A significant difference (P < 0.05) was found between the energy density of the foods consumed in Malaysia and after 3 and 6 months in the UK. There was also a significant decrease (P < 0.05) in protein consumed. However, there were no differences in total energy intake. From results of the FFQs, differences were found in food selection due mainly to the lack of availability of certain foods in UK supermarkets. No significant differences were found in the BMR and anthropometric measurements made at the start of the study and later assessments. It appears that Malaysian students are able to remain in energy balance and are weight stable at least during the first 6 months of residence in the UK, despite the wider choice of energy dense food available. This suggests that at least in the short term, subjects are able to modulate their food intake in response to changes in the energy densities and free choice of food.

After inspection in special schools: action planning and making progress

As a high proportion of special schools ‘fail’ their inspections, the DfEE commissioned researchers from the University of the West of England (UWE) to examine post‐inspection improvement. Can other schools learn from the ‘best practice’ identified? John Dwyfor Davies, John Lee, Keith Postlethwaite, Jane Tarr and Wan Ching Yee (all of whom lecture and research at UWE) and Gary Thomas, now Chair of Education at Oxford Brookes University, report on their findings, which point strongly to the need for good target‐setting and monitoring, together with strong support.

Regeneration of public squares in Fribourg, Switzerland: process and results

This paper is taken from an MA thesis written in the Joint Centre for Urban Design at Oxford Brookes University. The aim is to encourage and pursue what has become, in recent years, a common goal for many European and North American town centres: a city revival movement trying to counteract a long period of exodus to suburbia, the revitalization and democratization of public space in favour of the citizen being the first step in that direction. Far from giving dogmatic answers to the complex and combined fields of public square regeneration, this paper recounts a process, elaborated for the specific case of Fribourg in Switzerland, as well as the results it has engendered.

Shorter notice. The Italian Dictatorship. Problems and Perspectives in the Interpretation of Mussolini and Fascism. R J B Bosworth

Journal Article Shorter notice. The Italian Dictatorship. Problems and Perspectives in the Interpretation of Mussolini and Fascism. R J B Bosworth Get access R Griffin R Griffin Oxford Brookes University, UK Search for other works by this author on: Oxford Academic Google Scholar The English Historical Review, Volume 114, Issue 458, September 1999, Pages 1023–1024, https://doi.org/10.1093/ehr/114.458.1023 Published: 01 September 1999

Intensive Interaction and autism: a useful approach?

The very challenging nature of many individuals with autism has meant, for some, a focus on ‘special’, as opposed to ‘naturalistic’, intervention processes. There has been much recent media interest in parental campaigns, Melanie Nind, senior lecturer in the School of Education, Oxford Brookes University, addresses the potential usefulness of Intensive Interaction for pupils whose learning difficulties are compounded by autism. She considers empirical case‐study evidence together with questionnaire and interview data from teachers using the approach.

Measured and design bond strengths of deformed bars, including the effect of lateral compression

This paper deals with research undertaken at Oxford Brookes University into the bond strength of deformed bars set in normal-weight concrete. It briefly describes pull-out tests on some 150 specimens (providing 300 results), in which the variables were the position of the bar during casting, lateral pressure, cover, bar diameter, concrete strength and bar spacing. The results of the tests are compared with the values predicted by the British and European Codes of Practice BS 8110, Eurocode 2 and CEB-FIP Model Code 1990. Generally, the British code is shown to be very conservative and to underestimate the bond strength. However, when the bars have low cover-to-diameter ratios or where the bars are spaced in pairs vertically, the code appears to give unsafe values. The European codes provide better predictions of the bond strength because they take account of the majority of the influencing factors. However, they do not adequately account for the variables over the full range and are conservative in many circumstances, particularly when lateral pressure is applied. An alternative design procedure is proposed which is based on the experimental evidence and takes account of the main factors influencing the bond.