Staff In Australian Universities Research Articles

University lecturers’ lived experiences of teaching critical thinking in Australian university: a hermeneutic phenomenological research

AbstractThe study explores insights into the phenomenon of Australian lecturers’ lived experiences of teaching standalone critical thinking units within associate degree courses at one university in Victoria, Melbourne, Australia. The study makes an original contribution by focusing upon the experiences of teaching staff in Australian universities in relation to teaching critical thinking, particularly from a Heideggerian hermeneutic phenomenological and Gadamerian hermeneutic theoretical and conceptual framework. At present, there are no unified methods, frameworks, or models of teaching critical thinking in Australian higher education. This problem for lecturers is an important aspect of a university education that is not well understood. This is a global educational issue and is a matter of teaching and learning concern worldwide in tertiary education (e.g. United States of America, New Zealand, Canada, and the UK). Although, several studies have been conducted on teaching critical thinking from the perspective of university lecturers. There is limited research that focus on teaching staff in Australian universities’ experience with teaching critical thinking that has used Heidegger’s hermeneutic phenomenology and Gadamer’s hermeneutic circle, interpretive approach in gathering data. Using interviews, data is conducted with three first-year undergraduate Australian university Ph.D. lecturers. During the analysis of the empirical data, three themes were significant in revealing the key findings: (a) Dwelling; (b) Sorge, and (c) Concern. The comprehensive understanding of the results was that the challenges university lecturers faced in developing students to thinking critically provided new pedagogical curriculum insights for the teaching and learning of a standalone critical thinking unit within the associate degree course.

Severity of Food Insecurity among Australian University Students, Professional and Academic Staff.

Assessments of the severity of food insecurity within Australian university students are lacking, and the experience of food insecurity in Australian university staff is unknown. A cross-sectional online survey in March 2022 aimed to characterize the severity of food insecurity in students, professional and academic staff at the University of Tasmania (UTAS). The Household Food Security Survey Module six-item short form assessed food security status in addition to seven demographic and education characteristics for students and six demographic and employment characteristics for staff. Participants were categorized as having high, marginal, low, or very low food security. Multivariate binary logistic regression identified students and staff at higher risk of food insecurity. Among student respondents (n = 1257), the prevalence of food insecurity was 41.9% comprising 8.2% marginal, 16.5% low, and 17.3% very low food security. Younger, non-binary, first-year enrolled, on campus, and international students were at significantly higher risk of food insecurity. Among staff (n = 560), 16.3% were food insecure comprising 3.8% marginal, 5.5% low, and 7.0% very low food security. Professional staff, staff on casual contracts, and staff recently employed, were at significantly higher risk of food insecurity. Our findings suggest a high occurrence of food insecurity in UTAS students and staff, with a large proportion of food insecure staff and students experiencing very low food security. Our findings have implications for efforts towards reducing food insecurity at university campuses through a holistic and integrated approach, advocating for food systems that support healthy, sustainable, and equitable food procurement and provision for both university students and staff.

Contrapower Harassment in Paramedicine: Experiences of Academic Staff in Australian Universities

Background Although bullying and harassment among academic staff has been well researched, research on students bullying and harassing academic teaching staff (ie, contrapower harassment) is less common. Contrapower harassment has been on the rise in academia over the last decade, partly attributable to changes in the student-faculty staff relationship. This study aimed to understand better the extent and impact of students’ contrapower harassment on paramedic academic teaching staff within Australian universities, as well as actions and interventions to address it. Methods This study used a two-phase mixed methods design. In phase 1, a convenience sample of paramedic teaching academics from 12 universities in Australia participated in an online questionnaire. In phase 2, an in-depth interview was conducted with nine participants from phase 1. Results Seventy-six academic teaching staff participated in the study. Survey results showed that most academics surveyed had experienced harassment from paramedic students, with the highest incidence of harassment occurring during student assessment periods. Alarmingly, over 30% of the academics surveyed had been ‘stalked’ by a student and over 50% had felt powerless and helpless when students had attacked them on social media. Problematic students were identified as those who presented with an over-inflated sense of entitlement or with psychological states and traits that find it challenging to accept feedback and failure, and look to externalise their failures. Reasons for increases in contrapower harassment included a complex mix of consumer and demand-driven education, on-demand (and demanding) instant gratification and degree self-entitlement, and an increase in social media and online learning (particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic of 2020). Conclusion Although most of the academics in this study experienced contrapower harassment by students, they also report that most students are level-headed and supportive, and do not carry out this type of harassment. Promoting student professionalism and reassessing student evaluations are starting points for addressing this type of harassment. Further research on the broader systemic issues that influence the contributors to contrapower harassment is needed.

Taking a break: Exploring the restorative benefits of short breaks and vacations

This paper applies Attention Restoration Theory to explore the restorative benefits of short breaks and vacations among Australian university staff (N = 156). Three groups (Vacation, Short Break and No Break) were compared using both objective (physiological and cognitive) and subjective (self-report) measures. Cognitive and self-report measures demonstrated that taking a break increases the ability to focus attention and improves restorative well-being. No consistent effects were found using physiological measures. Short breaks have an advantage over longer vacations on some measures, and this may be explained by attributes of the environment and activities in which vacationers engaged. Detachment from work is particularly important in achieving restorative benefits. Suggestions are offered for optimising the restorative effectiveness of taking a break.

A critical exploration of university policy supporting the employment and career development of people with disability in the Australian academy

Policymakers are challenged to advance diversity and inclusion throughout the Australian academy. Informing this issue, this study aims to (a) identify proportions of staff in Australian universities that are publicly reported as being represented by persons with disability; (b) identify categories of actions supporting the employment and career development of people with lived experience as reported within Australian university plans and (c) critically examine contemporary policy efforts of Australian universities by exploring the scholarly evidence base for measures with potential to support disability recruitment and advancement in the academy. The study is informed by thematic analysis as applied to 17 action plans retrieved from an internet search and 7 scholarly articles obtained from Scopus, ProQuest Central and ProQuest Social Science databases. This research offers policymakers a preliminary guide containing good practice features that they should consider when designing and developing policy endeavouring to increase the representation and advancement of persons with disability in staff at Australian universities.

Contemporary induction to teaching in Australian universities

ABSTRACTAustralia has 42 universities. In 2015/16, 30 of 40 universities reviewed provided one or more days of teaching induction for their staff, while 10 did not. Twenty-six of the 30 teaching induction program directors were surveyed and 24 of those were interviewed to provide a snapshot of professional development for new teaching staff in Australian universities. The key findings of that research showed that almost two thirds of universities did not pay sessional staff to attend a teaching induction program; just over half the programs included peer observation of teaching; only one in five programs offered mentoring opportunities; three quarters of programs included assessment; and approximately a third of programs provided credit towards an award course. We conclude that all universities need to provide new teaching staff with a longer teaching induction program, which will support them to develop student-centred, scholarly behaviours and attitudes.

What a difference a day makes: reflection retreats as academic development in higher education

ABSTRACTA growing body of research supports the learning and teaching of reflective practice in higher education; however, the application of reflective skills beyond the classroom, and specifically in professional development, is underdeveloped. While the value of reflective practice may not be clearly apparent for academic and professional staff, universities as complex organisations are searching for effective catalysts and supports for development and change. Reflective practice may be this catalyst and support. This paper introduces a new epistemological spectrum of approaches to reflection and examines a range of reflective activities from across the spectrum for their potential application in academic development. A mixed methods research approach generated findings from two reflection retreats: one for Australian university staff and one for Chinese academics. While some similarities and differences were identified across both groups, it is suggested that reflective practice activities can be a catalyst for positive academic and professional development.

Managing Expectations: A Case Study of Sessional Staff in Languages and Cultures Education in Australian Universities

In light of the increasing casualisation of the academic workforce in recent years, expectations of sessional staff in Australian universities from their academic employment are becoming more poignant. Following on from a previous report by Ferrari & Hajek (2012), this paper further highlights how these workers are affected by short-term, often only semester-long, contracts. We focus on how the brevity of employment affects sessional teachers’ perceptions of their role and perceived obligations to the university, and consequently the health of languages education. We present the results of an online survey conducted at the vast majority of Australian universities, which investigated sessional staff’s expectations. This study reveals that language sessional staff have expectations of their employment which are often at odds with their role as academics in the university environment.

Contract cheating: a survey of Australian university staff

ABSTRACTIf media reports are to be believed, Australian universities are facing a significant and growing problem of students outsourcing their assessment to third parties, a behaviour commonly known as ‘contract cheating’. Teaching staff are integral to preventing and managing this emerging form of cheating, yet there has been little evidence-based research to inform changes to their practice. This paper reports on the findings of a large-scale survey of teaching staff in Australian universities on the topic of contract cheating. It investigated staff experiences with and attitudes towards student cheating, and their views on the individual, contextual and organisational factors that inhibit or support efforts to minimise it. Findings indicate that contract cheating could be addressed by improving key aspects of the teaching and learning environment, including the relationships between students and staff. Such improvements are likely to minimise cheating, and also improve detection when cheating occurs.

Part-time work and advancement: a study of female professional staff in Australian universities

ABSTRACTOne focus of gender equity policies in universities has been the creation of ‘retention’ part-time work for professional staff, which allows employees to move between full-time and part-time hours at their request. This paper examines whether such ‘good’ part-time jobs can contribute to or at least not impede women’s career advancement. The paper examines the correlation between job classification and part-time work, and whether a period of part-time work acts as a significant ‘brake’ on a woman’s career trajectory. This study uses data from the 2011 Work and Careers in Australian Universities survey. Part-time work is used extensively by lower-classified women, but rarely by those in higher classifications. Part-time work stalls career advancement compared to working full-time, but this brake is reduced if a woman transitions back to full-time work.

A Longitudinal Study of the Predictors of Perceived Procedural Justice in Australian University Staff.

Purpose: This study examined the factors that predict employees' perceptions of procedural justice in university settings. The paper also reviews the ethical aspects of justice and psychological contracts within employment relationships.Design/Methodology/Approach: The study examined the predictors of perceived procedural justice in a two-wave longitudinal sample of 945 employees from 13 universities by applying the Job Demands-Resources theoretical model of stress. The proposed predictors were classified into two categories: Job demands of work pressure and work-home conflict; and job resources of job security, autonomy, trust in senior management, and trust in supervisor. The predictor model also examined job satisfaction and affective organizational commitment, demographic (age, gender, tenure, role) and individual characteristics (negative affectivity, job involvement) as well as Time 1 (T1) perceptions of procedural justice to ensure that tests were rigorous.Findings: A series of hierarchical multiple regression analyses found that job satisfaction at T1 was the strongest predictor of perceived procedural justice at Time 2. Employees' trust in senior management, and their length of tenure also positively predicted justice perceptions. There were also differences between academic and non-academic staff groups, as non-academic employees' level of job satisfaction, trust in senior management, and their length of organizational tenure predicted procedural justice perceptions, whereas for academics, only job satisfaction predicted perceived justice. For the “all staff” category, job satisfaction was a dominant and enduring predictor of justice, and employees' trust in senior management also predicted justice.Research limitations/implications: Results highlight the importance of workplace factors in enhancing fair procedures to encourage reciprocity from employees. As perceived procedural justice is also conceptually linked to the psychological contract between employees-employers, it is possible that employees' levels of job satisfaction and perceptions of trust in senior management, relative to other work attitudinal outcomes, may be more effective for improving the broader working environment, and promoting staff morale.Originality/value: This study adds to research on applied business ethics as it focuses on the ethical aspects of perceived procedural justice and highlights the importance of workplace factors in enhancing fair procedures in organizational policy to encourage reciprocity and promote healthy organizational environments.

Gender equality in academia: a critical reflection

Gender equality in academia has been monitored in Australia for the past three decades so it is timely to reflect on what progress has been made, what works, and what challenges remain. When data were first published on the gender composition of staff in Australian universities in the mid-1980s women comprised 20 per cent of academic staff and held 6 per cent of senior positions. Since the early 1990s many Australian universities have had policies in place to remove sex discrimination and initiatives to increase women’s representation in academia. Two decades on, women comprise 44 per cent of academic staff and hold 31 per cent of senior positions. How did this happen? What worked? Are there still challenges to be addressed? This paper provides a critical reflection on what has worked, the practical impacts on gender in academia in Australia and what challenges remain for the future.

Academic Work Cultures: Somatic Crisis in the Enterprise University

Research carried out in Australia, the UK, USA, and Europe over the last decade or so has clearly shown that large numbers of academics are stressed, anxious, depressed, overloaded, and demoralised (Barcan 2013; Burrows 2012; Court & Kinman 2008; Ditton 2009; Gill 2010; Hil 2012; Lynch 2010; Sparkes 2007; Tytherleigh et al. 2007; Watson 2010). Many are suffering from insomnia, feelings of guilt, insecurity, anger, loss, failure and disorientation, have been diagnosed with mental health conditions such as anxiety and depression, and have experienced physical illnesses related to workplace stress. In a 2002 survey of 8,732 Australian university staff, Winefield, Gillsespie, Stough, Dua and Hapuarachchi found that approximately 50% of those interviewed were at risk of psychological illness, compared to 19% of the Australian population overall (2002a: 8). There is little doubt that in the decade since this study was published, the situation has worsened. A recent (2014) Guardian survey of academics with mentalhealth problems (from Vice Chancellors to PhD candidates) from the UK, Europe, Asia, North and South America, and Australasia, found that 80% of the more than 2,500 respondents suffer from anxiety and 75% from depression, and that 77% have been prescribed medication. Moreover, almost half (49%) of the respondents claim that they had not experienced mental health problems prior to working in academia. That we are now surrounded by what British sociologist Professor Roger Burrows describes as a ‘deep affective somatic crisis’ which threatens to engulf us (2012: 356), a crisis which may

Research staff in Australian universities: is there a career path?

As universities in Australia have undergone transformation in the past two decades, the pressure on academics to gain external grant funding for research has increased. In the same time period, the number of research academic staff has increased substantially and they account for one-third of the academic workforce. Despite this expansion, there is limited research on the employment characteristics or career aspirations of the research academic workforce. The Work and Careers in Australian Universities survey of 19 Australian universities revealed that the workforce needs to be differentiated on the basis of employment contract as the overwhelming majority of research staff are on fixed term contracts. There appears to be limited means to transfer from this ‘periphery’ employment to the ‘core’ where a permanent appointment and career path are available.

Gender equity in professional and general staff in Australian universities: the contemporary picture

Most research on employment conditions of university staff has focused on academic staff and excluded all other staff who now constitute the majority of employees in Australian universities. This article presents a snapshot of these professional staff using data from a 2011 national study of 19 universities, the Work and Careers in Australia University (WCAU) survey. Analysis of responses from 10,924 general/professional university workers was undertaken and comparisons made where possible with a similar 1996 survey conducted by Probert. The article addresses the ongoing issue of women’s progress up organisational hierarchies and presents an analysis of some of the mechanisms by which gender amongst university professional staff is produced and hindered. Specifically, it addresses questions of educational level, current position in the organisation, appointments, promotion and reclassification of positions, that is advancement through the hierarchy. The article concludes that despite equal educational attainments, women remain less likely than men to reach senior positions.

Policies and practices on competing interests of academic staff in Australian universities

To document the existence and provisions of Australian universities' policies on the competing interests of academic staff and university practices in recording, updating and making these declarations publicly accessible. A 14-item survey was sent to the vice-chancellors of 39 Australian universities and university websites were searched for relevant policies. Twelve universities declined to provide any information. Of the 27 that did, all had policies on staff competing interests. Fifteen did not require regular declarations from staff and only four required annual declarations. Eight universities maintained a centralised register of COIs of all staff and six had a mechanism in place that allowed members of the public to access information on COIs. None reported that they required that staff place their COI declarations on their website profiles and none had policies that indicated that staff should declare COIs when making a public comment. Australian universities vary significantly in their approaches to the declaration and management of competing interests. While two-thirds of Australian universities require staff to declare competing interests, this information is mostly inaccessible to the public. Australian universities should adopt a standard approach to the declaration and management of competing interests and commit to meaningful transparency and public accountability. This could include frequently updated declarations on website profiles of all staff. In addition, dialogue about what is needed to effectively deal with competing interests should be encouraged.

Female administrative managers in Australian universities: not male and not academic

Women make up 65 per cent of the staff in Australian universities who do not perform academic work. While there is a growing body of research on women in senior management and the experiences of female academics in Australian universities, there is less literature on women working in the administrative stream, especially those in middle management. Using a national sample of 172 university female middle managers, the paper reports on issues for this under-researched cohort. Despite a prevailing Australian paradigm of equal opportunity and anti-discrimination, women commented on many instances of discrimination, masculine culture, inflexibility regarding their carer responsibilities, lack of recognition and opportunity and an academic/administrative divide that was gender inflected. A number of women also queried whether female managers should adopt masculine management styles. Despite indications from this research and the literature that gender issues are worse in other sectors, the numerous comments in this research paint a picture of continued male hegemony that devalues and marginalises administrative women's contribution in the management of Australian universities.

Friend or Foe? New Managerialism and Technical, Administrative and Clerical Support Staff in Australian Universities

AbstractThe aim of this paper is to assess and conceptualise the effects of new managerialism‐related organisational reforms in three Australian public universities on technical, administrative and clerical support staff job stressors and job satisfaction. Using a mixed method approach consisting of a quantitative core component and qualitative supplementary component it was found that six different types of stressors were evident: time, information; supervisory; work environment; staffing and pay; and career. Path analysis showed that these stressors were closely connected to reduced job satisfaction, which could be ameliorated by employee participation, improved communication and work‐related social support. However, the qualitative analysis suggested that the prevailing climate of managerialism was not conducive to such improvements. It is concluded that while appropriate human‐resource management strategies have the potential to prevent the worst consequences of change, there is some doubt about the ability of university managers, captured by new managerialism, to create and implement such an approach.

Occupying a ‘third space’: research trained professional staff in Australian universities

Despite the expansion and professionalisation of university administration over the past 20 years there has been no scholarly study on the extent to which universities, which promote the value of generic skills from research degrees to prospective research students and their employers, capitalize on the research and transferable skills of PhD graduates later employed in the university sector as professional staff. Findings from this study of research-trained professional staff at one research-intensive Australian university suggests that these professionals are using their research and generic skills in management roles, to the benefit of the university. In the context of the knowledge based economy, this study suggests that universities could benefit from actively targeting the products of their own system for professional roles.

Digital divides? Student and staff perceptions of information and communication technologies

This paper reports qualitative findings from a study that investigated Australian university staff and students’ perceptions and use of current and emerging technologies both in their daily lives and in teaching and learning contexts. Forty-six first-year students and 31 teaching and support staff from three Australian universities took part in interviews and focus groups. This paper examines how students and staff reported on their use of new technologies in their daily lives, their stated reasons for using those technologies, and their beliefs about the benefits and limitations of using technologies as teaching and learning tools. The findings question assumptions that have been made about a “digital divide” between “digital native” students and their “digital immigrant” teachers in higher education today, suggesting we need to develop a more sophisticated understanding about the role technologies play in the lives of both students and staff. A better understanding of student and staff perspectives will allow for more informed decisions about the implementation of educational technologies in today’s higher education institutions.