Queen Margaret University College Research Articles

The Arts Council Touring Franchise and English Political Theatre after 1986

The pressures of Thatcherism on theatre funding in the 'eighties were severe, but the early harshness was tempered by several factors. One was the positive influence of the Cork Report, particularly on touring and experimental theatre. Another, the authors believe, was a careful strategy of reallocation of funding to support creativity in English theatre, notably through the touring franchise scheme. Here, they analyze in detail the ways in which the English Arts Council operated the scheme in an attempt to revitalize aspects of English theatre from 1986 onwards, trace the change in the values of ‘political’ theatre over that period, and critically examine some received ideas in the light of the available evidence. Ian Brown is Dean of Arts and Professor of Theatre at Queen Margaret University College, Edinburgh, Rob Brannen is a Senior Lecturer in Drama at De Montfort University, Bedford. Douglas Brown is Assistant Director, Scottish Centre for Cultural Management and Policy, at Queen Margaret University College, Edinburgh.

Blowing the railroad trumpet: public relations on the American frontier

Historical discussions of public relations tend to take a teleological view of the practice because the dominant narrative constructed about the field relates to a gradual move towards professionalism. Early examples are often cited to demonstrate crude and manipulative practice, in contrast with a more sophisticated and ethical kind of public relations to which contemporary practitioners, at least ought to, aspire. Within this historical trajectory the railroad industry in 19th century United States of America has been discussed in terms of its contribution to more primitive kinds of public relations practice. This has some misleading implications. An alternative view is presented here in which it is argued that the public relations practices of railroad companies during this era were sophisticated and managerial. The mass immigration required for the development of a railroad infrastructure in the West could not have been achieved without coordinated communication strategies, based on research and careful targeting of key publics. Furthermore, the railroads’ influence on the West was both material and ideological, for not only did they physically change the landscape, but they also played a major part in the construction of the notion of the White man’s manifest destiny. Andy Piasecki is a lecturer in Corporate Communication at Queen Margaret University College, Edinburgh.

Dietetic Education and Training in Europe and Latin America: A Multicountry Comparison

The pre- and postgraduate academic education and training of dietetic professionals was evaluated in a European Union initiative titled the Latin American Academic Training Project (Project ALFA). The principal goal was to optimize the quality of dietetics training and evaluate the potential for adapting and harmonizing course curriculums (to comply with the European Community Directive for the General System of Recognition of Higher Education Degree Titles. The objective was to establish a European and Latin American University coalition called the Adaptation and Management of Higher Education in Applied Nutrition and Dietetics Network (Red AGESNAD). The coordinating institution was CESNID, University of Barcelona, Spain. The Network AGESNAD consisted of the following members: From Latin America -National University of Cordoba (Argentina); University of Concepci6n (Chile); Autonomous University of Baja California (Mexico); from Europe - Institute Paul Lambin, University of Lovaina (Belgium); CESNID, University of Barcelona (Spain); University of Navarra (Spain); University of Pais Vasco (Spain); and Queen Margaret University College, University of Edinburg (UK). Project ALFA lasted 24 months and focused on the exchange and evaluation of course curriculums in two principal meetings - one in Barcelona reviewing undergraduate programs, and another in Mexico for postgraduate education. The participating institutions compared course curriculums for content, didactic and supervised practice credit hours and teaching methodologies. Most differences were a consequence of variations in the length of training, which lasts 5 years in Latin America and 3 or 4 years in Europe. However, all course curriculums coincided in containing the same core subjects, even though they were distributed differently under various names.

‘Alive’ on the internet: A user‐centred evaluation of BIS‐online

Recent UK government initiatives have encouraged academic staff to consider using IT to enhance students' experience of higher education in terms of its quality, flexibility and effectiveness. In 1999 second year undergraduate students studying Information Management at Queen Margaret University College in Edinburgh were invited to use a set of tailored web resources in support of the module Business Information Sources. This article presents the results of an evaluation conducted to discover the student view of the web site materials and the alternative learning methods employed for the module. Student opinions were sought on the accessibility, retrievability and usefulness of the information presented, and the ‘enjoyment’ of the learning experience. A comparison of the 1998/9 student examination performance was made with that of previous cohorts to determine whether adding another dimension to the experience of taking the module might impact the quality of the students' learning. The findings presented in the article will inform the further development of such initiatives, which in tum should improve the electronic delivery of learning materials in UK higher education.