Terms Of Staff Time Research Articles

Do Placement Visits Offer Value for Money?

Educational institutions, in line with other government-funded bodies, are required to justify how they spend their money. Visiting students on placement on a routine basis is costly in terms of staff time, travelling and subsistence expenses. Therefore, this opinion piece considers whether this practice offers value for money. It examines this question from the perspectives of the student, the placement staff and the university, and suggests that the gains outweigh the costs.

Knowledge Management in UK Construction: Strategies, Resources and Barriers

Knowledge management (KM) has received considerable attention in recent years. Some consider knowledge the most strategically important resource, and learning the most strategically important capability for business organizations. Major UK construction organizations have recognized the benefits that KM can offer and have thus invested in KM. This paper reports on a survey of these companies. The purpose of the survey was: (1) to examine the importance of KM to UK construction organizations; (2) to investigate the resources used to implement KM strategies; and (3) to identify the main barriers to implementing KM strategies. The survey found that the main reasons for implementing a KM strategy was the need to share the tacit knowledge of key employees and to disseminate best practice. Also, significant resources in terms of staff time and money were being invested in KM, but the main barrier to implementing a KM strategy was the lack of standard work processes.

Health Science Curriculum Reform: A framework for evaluation

This paper presents a framework for evaluating curriculum changes undertaken in the University of Sydney's Faculty of Health Sciences. In a climate of shrinking resources for higher education in Australia and an international move away from 'mono-disciplinary' educational practices, the Faculty of Health Sciences has undertaken curriculum reform to decrease the staff time associated with preparing and delivering many versions of similar units of study and increase the opportunities for disciplinary mingling at an undergraduate level. Twenty-nine cross-disciplinary units of study in which students from a range of disciplines will work together have been introduced to replace 100 units of study unique to individual disciplines. It is expected that the curriculum changes will create savings in terms of staff time that can be diverted to other activities, such as research, reduce the workload demands of assessment on staff and students and improve students' learning experiences, particularly with regard to working in teams, multidisciplinary teaching and learning environments and overall course satisfaction. The paper presents a framework of cost-consequence analysis for evaluating the curriculum changes and presents some preliminary comparative data.

Assessment of aerobic endurance: a comparison between CD‐ROM and laboratory‐based instruction

Traditional approaches to teaching exercise physiology are costly in terms of staff time and consumable expenses. Ethical considerations, large student numbers and availability of technical expertise magnify the delivery problems. In an attempt to overcome these problems, a CD‐ROM version of a basic course in exercise physiology was designed and delivered to a group of undergraduate sport and exercise science students. It simulated five tests of aerobic endurance which are traditionally taught using laboratory methods. A controlled experiment was conducted to compare the two delivery methods, as part of an independent, formative evaluation. Although there were equal knowledge gains and the CD‐ROM design and content were well rated by students who used it, this approach has engendered less student interaction, commitment to wider reading and in‐depth understanding. Tutorials and other approaches designed to promote more active learning are now being introduced to accompany the use of the CD‐ROM.

Learning Through Web Page Design

This paper describes and evaluates the use of web page design in a first-year undergraduate Town Planning course. The initiative is part of an inter-university UK research project entitled Built Environment Appropriate Technology for Learning (BEATL). The paper begins by providing a theoretical framework for the analysis, drawing on Laurillard's (1993) seminal work, Rethinking university education: A framework for the effective use of educational technology , before detailing the design and delivery of the module and evaluating the project. The paper then develops a rationale for the use of web authoring as a learning method and assessment device. It concludes by identifying some of the issues involved when introducing Information and Communication Technology (ICT) into a module that has previously been delivered and assessed using more traditional methods. Briefly, the findings suggest that, although frustrated by the limitations of their web pages, the students were highly motivated by the innovation and considered web authoring an important skill for future employment. In terms of educational effectiveness, the paper argues that web authoring can enhance 'learning about learning', which is increasingly being recognized as an important key skill. Nevertheless, the paper also identifies some of the risks when attempting to embed new technologies, and emphasizes the pedagogical rethinking required when writing learning outcomes and assessment criteria, and, from a more practical point of view, the need to ensure the necessary resources, in terms of staff time and training, computer access and appropriate technical and institutional support.

Family work for schizophrenia: practical application.

To review the evidence for the efficacy, efficiency and effectiveness of family work for schizophrenia. The review is based on the relevant literature but is not intended to be exhaustive, except in the area of practical application. The effectiveness of family work has been established by a series of randomized controlled trials. Relatives groups are efficient in terms of staff time, and multiple family groups may be more efficacious than sessions with single families. However, a substantial proportion of relatives refuse to attend a group and need sessions in the home. Family work skills can be acquired by clinicians working in ordinary settings, although few studies have addressed this question. Problems have been encountered regularly by trained community workers trying to practise their newly acquired skills. Difficulties in implementation may be remedied by adopting a systemic approach and including the managers of the service in the initial training sessions.

Community mental health team working as a socially valued enterprise

Effective relationships between users and staff are the cornerstone of effective intensive community provision for people who are unlikely to be served by more traditional forms of provision. If the rhetoric and practice of community care means that they see CMHT involvement as socially devaluing then the aim of effective engagement is likely to be undermined. It will also devalue the meaning that staff attach to their work, with negative consequences for staff morale. Developing effective relationships means designing teams that are focused on people with complex health and social care needs, and the outcomes that users themselves value. This requires an explicit ideology of care. Teams that are not fragmented in terms of staff time or management, where staff celebrate their differences rather than aim for consensus or 'democracy' and where issues of the exercise of power and hierarchy are honestly discussed, are most likely to be successful.

Extrinsic factors affecting the management of chronic wounds.

The cost of managing chronic wounds in terms of staff time and dressing materials is phenomenal. Time and money could be better invested in planned efforts to prevent the development of certain types of wounds and, more importantly, improve the quality of life for many more patients.

Using HyperCard and Interactive Video in Education: An Application in Cell Biology

Interactive video seems to have much potential in education, particularly in areas where the use of visual material is essential to the understanding of the subject Finding effective ways of incorporating videodisc material into educational courses is not easy. Producing courseware for interactive video to intergrate with existing courses can be very expensive, particularly in terms of staff time This paper suggests an alternative model for the development of interactive video material for education using existing videodiscs and Apple's HyperCard

Stimulus factors effecting peer conversation among institutionalized retarded women.

The effect of a series of stimulus changes, including attendant present or absent and agent of token reinforcement in a sorting task, on peer interaction among retarded women was examined. Conversation was not differentially directed toward the agent of reinforcement when that agent was a peer, nor did a peer agent increase the overall rate of peer interaction. Peer interaction did increase when no attendant was present, and during the final phase of the experiment, the high rate of peer interaction was maintained while the attendant was faded back into the situation in a series of discrete steps. The procedure was found to be efficient in terms of staff time and did not adversely affect task performance.