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The Australian citizen science research programs, VegeSafe and DustSafe, are novel and wide-reaching. Together, they capture the largest number of community-generated domestic garden soil and indoor house dust samples and associated trace metal analysis of any similar programme globally, totalling 26,500 samples from 7,200 homes in Australia alone. All citizen science research programs need to balance often conflicting expectations and imperatives of the researchers and the participants. This paper assesses VegeSafe and DustSafe participant and researcher outcomes against common goals of citizen science programs, including participant engagement, accessibility, motivations and learning in order to evaluate the programs' impact and usefulness. Questionnaire data from 522 questionnaires were analysed which showed that VegeSafe and DustSafe have: enhanced participants' involvement in science (76%), understanding of science (62%); addressed specific community concerns (91%); and were considered useful (93%). The success of the VegeSafe and DustSafe programs can be measured by the number of samples received, households engaged and its geographic footprint across Australia's most populated cities. The participant questionnaire provided deeper insight into positive participant outcomes, including participant autonomy in the scientific process and changes in attitudes and behaviours towards science. Many participants adopted interventions to mitigate potential toxic trace metal exposure in their domestic spaces after receiving their results. The VegeSafe and DustSafe programs provide valuable examples of how to establish programs to meet community needs effectively, educate the community and bring about positive change to ultimately improve community health. [Display omitted] • 522 citizen scientists were surveyed about participation outcomes. • VegeSafe and DustSafe increased scientific understanding and involvement. • Participants reported ownership, changed attitudes and behaviours. • Participants prefer simplicity in presentation of results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The COVID-19 pandemic impacted education provision worldwide. In Australia, the government took a proactive stance to reduce the impact of the pandemic, temporarily banning higher education students from attending university campuses. With a lockdown in place, educational institutions required a rapid shift in approaches to teaching and learning by both educators and students. Educators throughout Australia were asked to work from home and quickly transition their face-to-face (synchronous) classes into bichronous, fully online offerings. This paper reports on the experiences of 25 educators in an enabling course in a regional Australian university who were required to make this shift. These educators not only had to navigate this complex time personally, but they also had to work in their professional role with the additional responsibility of ensuring a particularly vulnerable cohort of non-traditional students felt a sense of belonging within this new educational space. Results showed that while the educators encountered a number of challenges in their transition, they also found ways to promote student belonging in the new teaching and learning environment. With a Pedagogy of Care being central to the educators' practice, they developed strategies to create a sense of emotional engagement among students to help them feel genuinely cared for. Additionally, they were able to construct a 'we mentality' discourse to establish a sense of shared understanding with students around the situation they were in. This study shows that enabling educators are capable of responding creatively to a complex and unpredictable environment, finding ways to replicate their proven pedagogies of care in unfamiliar contexts and thus foster a crucial sense of belonging among enabling students. The implications of a discussion about 'care' and 'belonging' within the field of enabling education are critical at the intrapandemic and post-pandemic times, when traditional teaching methodologies are in flux. Practitioner Notes 1. Educators faced a range of personal and professional challenges during the COVID-19 lockdown with the shift to bichronous online education. Despite the differences between face-to-face and online classroom methods of socialisation, educators found ways to promote belonging in the online classroom. 2. Using the Pedagogy of Care framework, the notion of a caring pedagogy was evident in the educator's praxis and is instrumental in cultivating a sense of belonging within the higher education space. 3. Care as recognition - Student's need to be 'seen' as individuals with unique characteristics. Through educators sharing vicarious experiences (which may require educator vulnerability), it helps the students to identify with the lecturer and build trust in them. In an online environment, it is important to use their name and ask how they are going so they feel recognised amidst the sea of faces as it cultivates social identity. 4. Care as dialogic relationality - Through collegial conversations and allowing students to freely converse, educators build relationships between themselves and their students. This cultivates a 'we' mentality which implies acceptance and underpins a sense of safety, trust, and further emotional risk-taking. 5. Care as affective and embodied praxis - This is cultivated through emotional engagement by way of empathy, warmth, respect and fairness which promotes trust and cohesiveness within the classroom environment. Through promoting a sense of emotional safety, the classroom is a supportive space where students feel at ease to take risks with revealing aspects of self. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Access to secondary education for very remote Northern Territory Indigenous students is limited. Although many students attend distant boarding schools, very few stay to complete Year 12 (the final year of secondary school in Australia). Few families and communities are fully engaged in the whole transition process. This paper describes a case study of one very remote Indigenous community and its partnership with an interstate boarding College. The partnership is attributed with students from community staying to complete Year 12 and then seeking local employment pathways afterward. The study on which this paper is based, investigated how the elements within this partnership function. Using a qualitative methodology with a phenomenological design, two adults from the remote Indigenous Community and six staff from a partner boarding College were interviewed. Interviews were transcribed verbatim, thematically coded and participants were deidentified. Limitations included small sample size not completely representative of the students, families, Elders and staff from either the community or the college. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim is to present outcome and engagement data from the initial years of the implementation of a new teaching approach in entry to practice nursing and midwifery education. The Block Model (TBM) is a teaching approach that involves studying one unit of study at a time over a four-week period, as opposed to the traditional semester model. This paper presents data revealing the impact of TBM on student engagement and overall experience in entry to practice Bachelor of Nursing and Midwifery programs. The evaluation retrospectively compared key indicators pre- Block Model implementation with outcomes for nursing and midwifery students using TBM approach using standard data sets and external comparators such as the Student Experience Survey and National Employability Survey. The study presents a comparative analysis of key indicators and graduate outcomes for students. We use reportable data and two external comparators, the Student Experience Survey and the National Employability Survey, to gauge student learning and graduate employability. The evaluation was conducted in a tertiary institution in Australia with for nursing and midwifery students who completed their studies using TBM approach at the university. The implementation of TBM in nursing and midwifery programs resulted in improvements in learner engagement, retention rates and pass rates. Improvements were also noted graduate outcomes, with an increase in full-time graduate employment. The results suggest the Block Model is a promising new teaching approach in nursing and midwifery education, with potential benefits for learner engagement, retention and pass rates. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract School refusal (SR) can result in decreased academic achievement, impaired social connections, and family stress. Current interventions for SR include behavioral and cognitive-behavioral treatments that are not always effective. Incorporating multidisciplinary work that includes therapeutic and educational interventions may enhance outcomes for youth displaying SR. The In2School program fosters a working partnership between mental health clinicians and teachers. It was designed to meet the needs of young people missing more than 50% of school in the previous 6 weeks due to mental health disorders, including anxiety or depression. This paper reports on an action research study in which the In2School program was piloted. Over a 14-week period, therapeutic and educational interventions were integrated into the learning environment via a transitional classroom to support youths' return to school. Outcomes of this program are reported for the first cohort of 7 youth. Of these youth, 6 returned to mainstream schooling with attendance levels being maintained for 6 months after completing the intervention. Progress was observed in mental health recovery, quality of life reports, increased social interactions with peers, and positive experiences at school. The preliminary results presented in this paper suggest that a multidisciplinary, home-school-clinic intervention holds promise for helping school-refusing youth to return to school. Highlights • School refusal is a complex issue which requires multidisciplinary approaches. • Wraparound models of care may address the complex range of factors linked to school refusal. • In2School is a wraparound model involving mental health and education staff in a 'transitional' classroom. • Improved school attendance, mental health and quality of life suggest In2School is a promising model of care. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Design thinking – as a problem-solving approach – has been taught in informal and formal education settings across various disciplines globally (within both academia and industry), yet little research has focused on what level of design expertise facilitators require to educate non-design students. This paper analyses two informal immersive learning experience case studies from Australia and the Netherlands to explore the role of the facilitator in the teaching of design thinking to non-designers. Therefore, the aim of this paper is to explore the level of design expertise of the facilitator, as well as the complexity of the problem being addressed and how these impact the value of the learning experience of design thinking for a non-design audience. Fifteen (15) student group projects were observed across the two international case studies i) Brisbane, Australia ( Morehen, Wright, & Wrigley, 2013 ) and ii) Utrecht, The Netherlands ( Dijksterhuis, 2016 ) with some variances of learning experiences as well as some notable similarities. The results show in addition to design expertise levels, problem complexity impacts the facilitation of informal design thinking workshops. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the implication of language and education policies for the indigenous minority populations in two contrasting multicultural and multilingual post-colonial nations, Australia and Malaysia. By comparing and contrasting ethnolinguistic and educational policies in these two diverse nations, this paper explores how indigenous minorities have been positioned within each nation's quest for meeting the challenges of becoming multilingual and multicultural nations. The authors argue that although both countries promote multicultural ideals, they fall short in their acknowledgement of the dignity of difference for their indigenous communities. The authors assert that educational and language policies for indigenous peoples must acknowledge the importance of difference and therefore include indigenous cultural ways of knowing, being, and doing to achieve successful educational outcomes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article reports how ‘invented tradition’ [Hobsbawm, E. (2012), Introduction: Inventing traditions. In E. Hobsbawm & T. Ranger (Eds.),The invention of tradition(pp. 1–14). New York, NY: Cambridge University Press] as a long-term process has contributed to Indigenous students experiencing physical education (PE) within Eurocentric curricula that largely ignores their own culture. The study was undertaken at three high schools within the Australian Capital Territory (ACT) which come under the remit of the ACT Education and Training Directorate. Documentary evidence was the main data source and figurational sociology was used to inform the study and analyse the data. Central to figurational sociology is the notion of the figuration which refers to how individuals are located interdependently in social structures characterised by relationships of power. Historical and contemporary documents were analysed using content and thematic analysis according to the premise that the document writers are themselves included in figurations and their inclusion or presence has to be taken into account [Dolan, P. (2009), Using documents: A figurational approach. In J. Hogan, P. Dolan, & P. Donnelly (Eds.),Approaches to qualitative research: Theory and its practical application(pp. 185–208). Cork: Oak Trees Press]. The paper identifies key events and long-term processes mainly linked to Australia’s colonial past that have shaped contemporary PE curricula. Despite intent within historical PE curricula to include Indigenous perspectives in PE these have largely not translated to actual teaching. The final part of the paper suggests additional research to find ways to embed these perspectives. This is important because current curriculum requirements at a national level emphasise these perspectives. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Our research investigates the developing academic identity of engineering academics within the Australasian Association for Engineering Education (AAEE) community. This paper draws on data from interviews with nine 'emerging' authors with a first degree in engineering, from three types of Australian universities where they discuss their 2012 AAEE conference paper and the peer reviews of their paper. Identity-trajectory was used to analyse interview transcripts by focussing on the various elements of this framework of academic identity development. The findings and discussion focus on those aspects of the reviews and the authors' circumstances that appear to either enable or constrain their development as engineering education researchers. The study finds that authors belonging to a discipline-based educational research group made substantial changes to their papers before final submission and we argue that these research groups support these authors in developing their academic identity as an engineering education researcher. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper utilises the national Survey of Disability Ageing and Carers to summarise the educational disadvantages and vocational inequalities for those with disabilities in Australia. Amongst persons with a disability, there is a decidedly lower rate of school completion. Distinctly fewer persons with a disability obtain degrees. Income is markedly reduced. Labour force participation is significantly lower, and the unemployment rate in 2015 was twice that of those without a disability. Alternate duties were provided in only 2% of cases and workplace accommodation made in 4% of instances. Supported employment was available in only 2.2% of cases. A disconcerting conclusion is that, over the past decade, the unemployment rate for those with a disability has been consistently higher. Suggestions are made for career development professionals to reverse some of the disadvantages reported. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper we report the results of a survey of financial literacy levels among Australian secondary school students. While key issues concerning financial literacy among adolescents are fairly well known, and governments see the urgency of addressing low levels of such literacy among a vulnerable cohort, less is understood about the variation of knowledge levels among young people. In this paper we identify the gap between urban and rural survey participants in respect of their financial literacy, and locate the contrasting knowledge levels in a setting that includes socio-economic status and language background. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Schools in Australia are sometimes described, categorised and defined by their locations. These statistical geographical categorisations help to determine how funding is allocated. They help to determine the types of teachers that are recruited, what kinds of teachers are attracted, how they much they are paid. Geographical categories can create perceptions that sometimes end up as stereotypes in the minds of parents and students. At times remote geographical locations are associated with disadvantage. These kinds of categorisations tend to treat schools in binary terms, or on a linear continuum, which may also be associated with value judgements that can be misleading. For example, rural schools are often thought of as disadvantaged, while city schools are therefore advantaged. In this paper the authors argue that the categorisations described above are unhelpful, limiting, misrepresent and are often unwarranted. In this paper they draw from the descriptions offered by schools for the public that are presented on the My School website. They draw a line that starts in the Adelaide suburb of Paradise and runs through to the far north of South Australia. Along the line there is a mix of metropolitan, provincial and remote schools. In analysing this data from My School, they challenge the binaries and continuums associated with geographical labels and propose instead, based on geographical concepts associated with space and place, that schools could be better described in terms of socio-cultural and geographic diversity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The number of Indigenous people enrolling in and completing higher education courses in the Northern Territory slowly continues to climb. Since the first policies supporting the Australian Government's self-determination policy that encompassed training of Indigenous teachers in the Northern Territory, Charles Darwin University and Batchelor Institute of Indigenous Tertiary Education have played vital roles in increasing opportunities for Indigenous people to participate and succeed in higher education across all industries. From a policy perspective, these institutions are responsible for implementing Indigenous higher education policies at the local level in order to ensure that practice is guided by policy. Yet, there are other factors at play when considering policy implementation. This paper will provide a historical narrative around the institutional responses to national Indigenous higher education policies and summarise how implementation has often been constrained by parallel economic and socio-political forces. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Current international research suggests universities providing nursing education should focus on shifting students' attitudes towards valuing clinical learning derived from aged care settings, offering support and education for aged care facility staff supervising nursing students’ learning in the aged care setting, and encouraging nursing graduates to consider pursuing careers in gerontology nursing. Against this international backdrop, one Australian School of Nursing designed a structured clinical learning experience to offer final year nursing students an opportunity to further their knowledge and understanding of the complexities of the role of the gerontology registered nurse. Additionally, this clinical learning experience included provision for nursing academics to offer support and expertise to the aged care facility staff around the role of supervising and assessing final year nursing students’ clinical learning. The aim of this paper is to present fifteen final year nursing students' and nine registered nurse supervisors’ evaluations of the gerontology clinical learning experience and the success of the learning experience towards meeting the project aims. Mostly participants reported positive experiences and agreed the experience illuminated the role of the gerontology registered nurse. Participants in this study also provided suggestions about the benefits and barriers of the clinical learning experience. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper overviews the decline and revival of music education in New South Wales schools from 1920 to 1956. Commencing with a focus on vocal music during the period up to 1932, a time of decline in music teaching, the paper examines initiatives introduced in 1933 to address shortcomings in music education, and the subsequent changes in curriculum and teaching during the 1930s. Evidence of a variable revival lies in the school choral music movement of 1939 to 1956, and in how music education diversified beyond its vocal heritage from the late 1930s and early 1940s, with new emphasis on music appreciation, percussion, flutes, and recorders. By the mid 1950s, involvement in, and quality of, school instrumental music was continuously improving. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper begins by outlining the 'education revolution' policy direction of the Australian federal government, and the ways in which it envisages meeting its goal of having a 40% of the population between 25 and 34 with a Bachelor's degree by 2025, and ensuring that 20% of tertiary students come form LSES backgrounds. This is contrasted with the achievements of the UK government's 'Widening Participation' strategy. It then discusses the institutional and policy challenges which broad social inclusion goals generate for secondary and tertiary sectors - challenges which are likely to fundamentally reshape both sectors whilst also forcing them to become partners in a national educational mission. The article then examines a framework from the OECD designed to strengthen schools in disadvantaged areas, with disadvantaged students in order that they complete secondary schooling and proceed to tertiary education. In response to the OECD's recommendations, the paper then focuses on one example of a program in which both sectors are collaborating - for mutual benefit - to increase the numbers of LSES students aspiring to and accessing tertiary education and achieving success in tertiary studies, and makes predictions about its future success. This US initiative (AVID) has had significant success for over thirty years and is currently being trialed in a number of Australian schools and universities. It concludes by advocating that schools and universities partner more closely, and that AVID may well be a useful means of achieving this, whilst also enriching schools' cultures and facilitating greater academic success at both university and school, for disadvantaged students. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although social networking sites (SNS) are increasingly popular among students, their academic application is unfolding on trial basis and best practices for integration into mainstream teaching are yet to be fully realised. More importantly, is the need to understand how these sites shape academic relations and participation of heterogeneous students, particularly in resource-constrained African environments. The speculation about meaningful educational uses of SNS possibly rests on the complexity of grasping the multiple horizontal and vertical interactions that unfold via these sites. This study examines academic relations on Facebook with a view to generating a nuanced account of how power is reinforced or disrupted in interactions mediated by Facebook. The paper analyses the Facebook wall and forum postings of 165 first year Information Systems students and employs Anderson's model of six types of interactions to explore student experiences of the enactments of social power in Facebook engagements. Issues relating to power that emerged from Facebook interactions concerned asymmetrical engagements based on gender, breaching of hierarchical boundaries, compulsive academic use of Facebook, perceptions of vertical surveillance, lecturer and student projection of themselves and impression management. The paper recommends that learning with and from Facebook demands identification of leverage points in various stages of Facebook interaction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the increasing risk of mass casualty incidents from extreme climate events, global terrorism, pandemics and nuclear incidents, it's important to prepare nurses with skills and knowledge necessary to manage such incidents. There are very few documented accounts of the inclusion of mass casualty education within undergraduate nursing programs. This paper is the first to describe undergraduate mass casualty nursing education in Australia. A final year Bachelor of Nursing undergraduate subject was developed. The subject focused on initial treatment and stabilisation of casualties predominantly within pre-hospital environments, and included a capstone inter-professional mass casualty simulation. Students experience of the subject was evaluated using the Satisfaction with Simulation Experience Scale (Levett-Jones et al., 2011) and a subject evaluation survey. Student satisfaction and evaluations were extremely positive. As a tool for developing clinical skills, 93% (n = 43) agreed that the simulation developed their clinical reasoning and decision making skills. In particular, the simulation enabled students to apply what they had learned (77%, n = 35, strongly agree). Due to the frequency of mass casualty events worldwide, there is a need for educational exposure in undergraduate nursing curricula. We believe that this mass casualty education could be used as a template for development in nursing curricula. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nurse Practitioners (NPs) receive core clinical training at master’s level, with their employer providing the opportunity to upskill in clinical and procedural competencies. It is increasingly recognised that this generic education requires supplementary training for operating effectively within a specific clinical environment. In this paper we describe a pilot program designed to train Australian NP Candidates to work effectively within the Emergency Department Fast Track model of care. The training program consisted of a 12-month period: four hours in-house training per week over two semesters, running concurrently with the NP candidate’s University semesters, and 3 months’ clinical practice to consolidate. The training team defined milestones for Semesters one and two, and developed a case review form to assess application of the candidate’s knowledge in new clinical situations, as well as check for gaps in understanding. A clinical skills guide was developed for the candidate to work toward, and a comprehensive assessment was carried out at two time points in the training program. Feedback was obtained from the mentors and the candidate at the end point of the training program, and has been used to refine the program for 2017. This in-house training program provided specialised, evidence-based training for the emergency department environment, resulting in development of the nurse practitioner candidate as a high functioning team member. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Preparing a person-centred nursing workforce to work in diverse settings is a global health priority. Nursing students' first placement experience is a key transitional moment that shapes professional understanding and motivation to become a nurse. This paper reports the outcomes of combining flipped and simulated learning to enhance nursing students' understanding of person-centred care, the professional nursing role and preparation for placement. The study design was exploratory, the setting, an undergraduate nursing program in an Australian University. Participants included first year nursing students, academic tutors and clinical facilitators. Data collected via survey, semistructured interviews and focus group discussion were analysed descriptively and thematically. Over 90% of students surveyed considered the unit structure, content and resources prepared them well for placement. Pre-class preparation and simulated tutorial activities facilitated student engagement and knowledge translation. Students, tutors and clinical facilitators valued the person-centred approach. Tutors considered the unit materials and focus enhanced students' professional understanding. Clinical facilitators deemed students well-prepared for placement. These results from multiple perspectives, though limited, support combining the flipped classroom and person-centred simulation in nursing education as a strategy to prepare students for clinical placement, translate person-centred values into practice and promote professional understanding and role socialisation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A quality education is a basic societal right. Yet for many Aboriginal students that right is not yet a reality. This paper focuses on the situation of Aboriginal/palawa school students in Tasmania and employs a quantitative methodology to examine the comparative educational achievements of Aboriginal school students. State level Grade 3, 5, 7 and 9 numeracy and reading test results from the National Assessment Program of Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN) 2008 - 2016 support the analysis. Results indicate that Aboriginal students remain more likely to be at or below minimum literacy and numeracy standards than their non-Aboriginal counterparts. It is also found that Aboriginal students' academic achievement declines as they move through the schooling system. Further, Aboriginal students are less likely to partake in NAPLAN due to higher absenteeism on test days. These results are discussed in the context of education policy and the broader national and international literature on factors influencing academic achievement for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander school students. Despite an increasing awareness and the development of strategic policies to address Aboriginal educational inequality, it is evident that little has changed between 2008 and 2016. It is strongly argued that Aboriginal students' underachievement is more likely tied to schooling and policy environments that do not adequately meet their needs, rather than the students themselves. As such, policies and interventions that create long term, embedded improvement of Aboriginal students' schooling experiences and the engagement of their families and communities are a prerequisite for improving Aboriginal student outcomes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper discusses qualitative findings from an in-depth study of the school choices of 65 parents living in rural and remote areas of Tasmania and their views about the need for their children to move out of the area to pursue education at secondary and post-secondary level. A constructivist analysis of open-ended survey questions and focus group discussions formed part of a broader mixed-methods approach and probed the affective 'subtext' of instrumental survey responses. Findings contribute to our understanding of the interaction of affective, instrumental and structural factors influencing rural parents' educational decision-making in the neo-liberal policy context, especially with regard to decisions perceived by parents as 'risky' with respect to their own future employment and financial expectations. External threats to rural livelihoods, such as economic downturns and natural disasters create parents' feelings of anxiety about children's educational futures and are experienced differently by those living on farming properties or in small rural towns. Parents' perceptions of local and urban school availability, access and quality differ by locality and region. Educational outcomes reflect multidimensional structural, socio-economic and cultural constraints shaping school choice. Membership of voluntary associations, which provides supportive informational networks and develops shared social capital, appears to help parents to overcome socio-economic inequalities and improve their children's prospects of educational success. The interplay of social class, gender and place attachment is examined with reference to Bourdieu's concepts of habitus and disposition, as well as the processes by which parents try to transmit intergenerational advantage through educational choices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Government agencies worldwide continue their commitment to providing open data in order to increase transparency of education, healthcare and other public services. Focusing on open government information systems (IS) that provide performance-related data, this paper explores the ongoing tension between government’s goal of transparency and the resulting largely opaque datification effects. Our research insights are derived from an empirical longitudinal study of a controversial open government IS called My School, currently providing performance data on almost 10,000 schools in Australia. We investigate the tension between transparency intended with schools’ open performance data and datification effects they create within the education system and a broader society, through the theoretical lens of Complex Adaptive Systems (CAS). Our study reveals how the tension emerges due to unpredictable use, propagation and reinterpretation of open data by more and more users. Consequently, the original meaning of data gets distorted, as these users continue to reconstruct and reinterpret ‘data’ in their own contexts and adapt their behavior in pursuit of their strategic goals. We also identify and theorize seven datification patterns underlying the tension and the ways they produce various social consequences. Based on these research contributions we discuss important strategic implications for government decision makers and identify new opportunities for future research on open government IS. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper analyses the interest content of all 1016 Australian occupations. These were classified according to vocational interests (i.e. outdoor, practical, scientific, creative, business, office, people contact, health, community, and computing), educational qualifications, and skill level, as well as in terms of the six Holland (RIASEC) types. Just over half of all occupations in Australia involve a practical interest. Creative interest was the least common occupational interest (9.2% of occupations). Some 80% of occupations covered more than one interest content, and in four instances, as many as six interests. Practical and people contact interests were negatively correlated (r = −.50). Occupational interest categories were consistent with the Holland types except that outdoor and practical interests in Australia did not correlate meaningfully with realistic. Occupational interests were related to educational requirements and skill levels. Outdoor and practical occupations were focused at the lower skill levels. Scientific and computing included the highest skill levels. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bullying in health workplaces has a negative impact on nurses, their families, multidisciplinary teams, patient care and the profession. This paper compares the experiences of Australian and UK baccalaureate nursing students in relation to bullying and harassment during clinical placement. A secondary analysis was conducted on two primary cross-sectional studies of bullying experiences of Australian and UK nursing students. Data were collected using the Student Experience of Bullying during Clinical Placement (SEBDCP) questionnaire and analysed using descriptive and inferential statistics. The total sample was 833 Australian and 561 UK students. Australian nursing students experienced a higher rate of bullying (50.1%) than UK students (35.5%). Students identified other nurses as the main perpetrators (Aust 53%, UK 68%), although patients were the main source of physical acts of bullying. Few bullied students chose to report the episode/s. The main reason for non-reporting was fear of being victimised. Sadly, some students felt bullying and harassment was ‘part of the job’. A culture of bullying in nursing persists internationally. Nursing students are vulnerable and can question their future in the ‘caring’ profession of nursing after experiencing and/or witnessing bullying during clinical placement. Bullying requires a zero tolerance approach. Education providers must develop clearer policies and implement procedures to protect students - the future nursing workforce. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Many higher education institutions have adopted mentoring programs for students as a means of providing support, improve learning and enhance the student experience. The aim of this project was to improve midwifery students experience by offering a peer mentoring program to commencing students to assist with the transition to university life and the rigours of the midwifery program. This paper reports the evaluation of this specific mentoring program and the ongoing development and implementation of a sustainable program within an Australian University. A survey design was adopted to gather feedback from both mentees to evaluate if the peer mentoring program enhanced the first year midwifery student experience and ascertain how the program could be further developed. Fifty-five students engaged with the peer mentors and completed the questionnaire regarding the mentoring program. Specifically valuable was the positive impact that mentoring had on midwifery student confidence, managing the demands of the program and being motivated to keep going when the program requirements were challenging. The success of this program rested largely with mentoring students sharing their own experiences and providing reassurance that other students could also succeed [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper reports on the learning designs, teaching methods and activities most commonly employed within the disciplines in six universities in Australia. The study sought to establish if there were significant differences between the disciplines in learning designs, teaching methods and teaching activities in the current Australian context, as was reported in Scott's Course Experience Questionnaire (CEQ) analysis (2006). Although it found a broad range of teaching approaches are used in all disciplines, it emerged that there was still some bias toward the traditional discipline stereotypes, which in some cases has been found to negatively affect student engagement. Additionally, while there was a general awareness amongst study participants about the importance of responding to student evaluations of teaching, improvements to teaching and learning practice were most commonly adopted without reference to current research or professional advice, and rarely was advice sought outside their discipline. Although a small-scale study such as this could not be said to be wholly representative of the higher education sector in Australia, these initial findings might indicate a need for administrators to acknowledge the role of quality teaching in maximising student engagement and its relationship to student retention by encouraging the study of learning and teaching as a routine part of lecturers' practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Australian Learning and Teaching Council's Bachelor of Laws Learning and Teaching Academic Standards Statement identified "thinking skills" as one of the six threshold learning outcomes for a Bachelor of Laws Program, which reinforced the significance of learning, teaching and assessing "thinking skills" in law schools (Kift, Israel & Field, 2010). The fundamental conceptions underpinning "thinking skills" in a legal education context are "legal reasoning," "critical analysis" and "creative thinking." These conceptions shed light on what it means to "think like a lawyer" and help shape a professional legal identity. This paper identifies a number of acronyms used to teach traditional "legal reasoning," drawing particular attention to IRAC, which is commonly understood within the legal academy as Issue, Rule, Application and Conclusion. An incremental development approach to learning, teaching and assessing IRAC is recommended whereby first year law students use a legal reasoning grid to a simple problem-based question before applying IRAC to a more complicated problem-based question in the form of barrister's advice. An example of a criterionreferenced assessment rubric that breaks IRAC down into five performance standards is shared with the community of practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There is a wealth of research investigating the role of the clinical facilitator and the student experience of clinical education. However, there is a paucity of recent research reviewing the students' perspectives of facilitators' qualities that influence their learning. This paper explores undergraduate nursing students' perceptions of the qualities of a clinical facilitator that enhanced their learning. The study was designed as a cross-sectional survey. A total of 452 third year nursing students at one Australian University were invited to participate. A total of 43 students completed the survey and were analysed; thus, the response rate was 9.7%. Results of the study indicate that nursing students perceive availability, approachability and feedback from the clinical facilitator to be highly influential to their learning in the clinical setting. The relational interdependence of these is discussed. Clinical facilitators have an important role in student learning. The findings of this study can be used in the development of clinical facilitator models, guidelines and in continuing education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores the implications for learning design in HRM education in the 21st century. An open systems perspective is used to argue the importance of establishing productive relationships between academia, professional associations, regulators and industry (resource inputs) to support the creation of optimal learning environments (the transformation process) to generate work-ready HR graduates (the product output). A comparison of Australian and Chinese curricula indicates similarities in terms of approximate programme weightings of general business units, core HRM, and elective units. It is recommended that curriculum design take into account the need to remain research-based academically, yet industryfocused, in the context of an international workplace. A key to this is the collaboration among the resource inputs. The curriculum formulation process is examined, with implications for 21st century HRM education design. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study presents an estimate of the joint determination of labour market status and educational attainment in Australia using cross-sectional data collected by the Australian Bureau of Statistics. This paper is based on the premise that achieving an increasing level of educational attainment and labour supply does not happen in isolation, rather they are determined jointly. Applying a simultaneous system of two-equations model, the study finds that there is a feedback effect between educational attainment and labour market status. In the labour market equation the effects of achieving a higher educational attainment on the probability of being employed has been statistically significant and the effect is negative. Thus, previous studies that ignored the feedback effects and used a single equation model have produced biased and inaccurate estimates of the effects of educational attainment on labour market outcome. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In developed economies, such as Australia, schooling is heavily impacted by neo-liberal and neo-conservative agendas. Policies suggest a homogeneity in students that fails to reflect regional contexts of inequality. For the new Australian Curriculum, which includes Health and Physical Education (AC: HPE), this logic prioritises consistency in content and standards for students no matter location or socio-economic circumstances. Little is known about the ‘lived’ realities of such aspirations as they relate to teaching students from disadvantaged regions. This paper reports on practitioner inquiry into a redesigned dance unit, as part of a broader investigation into the implementation of AC: HPE with disadvantaged students. We draw on literature around student engagement and Nancy Fraser’s theorisation of justice to explore the pedagogical redesign. We conclude in arguing that enhanced learning outcomes for disadvantaged students are dependent upon rich and contextualised pedagogical practices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In contemporary higher education contexts, active learning pedagogy pervades in discourses around designing quality student experiences. Transposing student bodies from passive to active participants in learning experiences is widely considered best practice in curriculum and pedagogical design. While literature on active learning is vast and recommendations on how to transform into an active learning approach abounds, such advice is often prescribed to individual teachers or courses. What remains unknown in this transformational space is how leadership for person-centred teaching can guide a whole school to shift philosophical presuppositions and take-up active learning as the guiding pedagogy. This paper describes the challenges, processes and steps for how one school, the School of Nursing at an Australian University, invoked transformational change through a philosophical and practice-based shift across all learning spaces (online/ face-to-face/ blended, undergraduate and postgraduate domains). This paper offers recommendations for other schools interested in establishing a whole-of-school commitment to an active learning pedagogy transformation underpinned by person-centred teaching. • Curriculum transformation. • Using the Person-Centred Practice Framework as a underpinning philosophy. • Recommendations for whole School of Nursing involvement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The experience of teaching languages in rural schools differs markedly from teaching languages in urban contexts, in relation to the size and nature of communities and their interactions, numbers of teachers of languages, in and out of school contact, and in the cultural and language backgrounds of students and their likelihood of opportunities to interact with users of the language being learned. The rewards, rather than the challenges of teaching languages in rural contexts are explored in this paper by a classroom languages teacher and a tertiary languages teacher educator and researcher, in a 'sonata form' (two-voiced, dialogic and reflexive) conversation, aimed at providing insights into the importance and significance of languages education for rural Australian students, and the pleasures for teachers of this crucial work when engaged in rural settings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Discussions continue within the midwifery profession around the number of and type of clinical experiences required to ensure competent midwifery graduates. Introduction of the three year Bachelor of Midwifery in Australia, almost two decades ago, was intended to reduce the pressure students were under to complete their academic requirements whilst ensuring students developed midwifery practice that encapsulates the philosophical values of midwifery. Currently, midwifery students are mandated to achieve a minimum number of clinical skills and Continuity of Care Experience (CCE) relationships in order to register upon completion of their degree. To achieve these experiences, universities require students to complete a number of clinical practicum hours. Furthermore students are required to demonstrate competent clinical performance of a number of clinical skills. However, there is no evidence to date that a set number of experiences or hours ensures professional competence in the clinical environment. The aim of this paper is to promote discussion regarding the mandated requirements for allocated clinical practicum hours, specified numbers of clinical-based skills and CCE relationships in the context of learning to be a midwife in Australia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The objective of this paper was to evaluate pre-registration nursing students' experiences of a pilot program that placed them in community based non-government organisations for clinical placement as part of a core mental health subject. Clinical placements that adopt a Service Learning model in primary health care environments are valuable to nursing students but are not commonly available in Australia. In order to enhance student exposure to primary health care models and support experiential learning about the social determinants of health, a pilot Service Learning program was designed to provide clinical placements in nongovernment organisations. Qualitative data were collected through one focus group with program participants. The focus group was audio-recorded and transcribed verbatim. Thematic analysis of transcribed data was undertaken. The overarching theme identified was 'new ways of seeing'. Three sub-themes -- 'learning outside the box', 'confronting the real world' and 'transformative experiences' -- were also identified. The authors have concluded that nursing students in community organisations for clinical practicum facilitated valuable learning and generated professional and personal insight leading to increased understanding of the social determinants of health and increased awareness of mental health nursing in the community. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper describes the current emphasis on collecting and using quantitative data that encourages the 'quantification of everything' (Mayer-Schönberger & Cukier, 2013, p. 78). The author argues that qualitative data provides more complex and nuanced understandings of how young people engage with literacy teaching and learning opportunities in classrooms. Some useful examples of methods that teachers can use to collect and analyse qualitative data in their literacy classrooms are provided. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents findings from a Design-Based Research project undertaken in a large regional high school in Queensland. The study focused on enhancing students' writing in two Year 8 subjects: English and History. Its findings demonstrate that, despite efforts at the whole school and classroom level to support a disciplinary literacy approach to subject learning, there are considerable constraints that need to be considered and overcome in order for students to develop appropriate writing capabilities for particular discipline areas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

From the time education was made compulsory, Australian schools and education systems have been managed primarily by men, while the day-to-day running has been left to women. This imbalance, coupled with a cultural history of positioning women as emotional, has shaped the way for rational masculinity to dominate reform. Shared in this paper are insights into this practice based on Queensland's Literate Futures reform. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents the findings of a survey of Australian higher education music students on the use of technology in their instrumental skill development. Despite widespread use of technology in music classrooms and growth in innovative applications, little is known about the uptake of technology in instrumental learning. The survey focused on demographics, approaches to instrumental learning and evaluation, and ownership of technology. The data from 189 questionnaires were analysed using Chi-square tests. The findings show that higher education music students have embraced technology in their instrumental learning, in particular using YouTube as a basic tool and self-recording. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nursing students' first clinical placement experience can be a critical turning point -reinforcing professional aspirations for some, and for others, a time of emotional turbulence. There is a paucity of research focusing on students' perceptions and concerns prior to their first placement experience. Thus, the aim of this study was to explore the concerns of first year bachelor of nursing students from one Australian university as they prepared for their first clinical placement. Participants completed an online 'readiness for practice' survey consisting of 22 items. This paper focuses on participants' responses to the one open ended question: 'Please comment on any concerns that you have in relation to being prepared for your first clinical placement'. Summative qualitative content analysis was used for analysis. 144 students (55%) responded to the open ended question. Responses were categorised into six themes including: Not prepared for placement; feeling nervous, anxious and worried; bullying and belonging; practicalities; patient safety and making mistakes; and working outside of my scope of practice. It appears that activities designed to equip students with the capacity to manage the inherent challenges of undertaking a clinical placement may sometimes have a paradoxical effect by increasing students' level of stress and anxiety. An enhanced understanding of students' concerns may help educators implement appropriate support strategies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Academics in higher education institutions often experience the conflicting demands of teaching, research and administration. With the growth of online education these staff are frequently required to design, develop, teach, facilitate and, in some cases, administer online courses. Cumulatively these additional tasks challenge academics, not only in terms of the personal professional development but also in accommodating the range of tasks expected of them. This paper reports the findings of a study which investigated the lived experience of construction management academics teaching at universities in Australia. The study adopted a lived experience research approach that enabled the lives of construction management academics to be investigated through the collection of a mixture of qualitative and quantitative data. The study provides empirical evidence of a range of challenges facing those delivering online courses. Recommendations for online teachers and online course designers emerged from this study with application to both faculty-based and institution-wide practices. The findings are relevant to those in the higher education sector who are involved in online teaching, course design for online delivery and professional development related to online initiatives. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There have been numerous concerns about the lack of productivity improvement in the New Zealand construction industry. The aim of this paper, therefore, is to determine the main drivers of productivity in the industry. The research used is a two-staged data envelopment analysis approach to achieve the aim. In terms of improvements to the productivity of construction in New Zealand, the study found that although there is a potential for gains through the greater use of research and development, apprentice training and degree education, as well as the consolidation of some building companies, there will be some limits to the gains that might be made. One main implication of the findings of the study, therefore, is that a renewed focus on education and skills training should be a priority of companies and policy makers in New Zealand. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Australia is one of many countries to encourage its students to study abroad and hence develop a global perspective. Traditionally, students who have pursued this option represented a relatively privileged and demographically narrow group. More recently, governments and other agencies have been offering funding support with the aim of 'democratising' study abroad so that it is more accessible to all students. To help inform the 'democratisation' discussion, this paper presents an analysis of the demographic profile of students from Australian universities who currently study abroad, examining changing trends over time and identifying demographic groups that may be underrepresented in the current Australian study abroad population. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Health literacy research and scholarship has largely overlooked the experiences of people with intellectual disabilities (ID), though growing concern about the health inequalities they face has increasingly given rise to health promotion interventions for this group. However, these interventions reference a rather limited vision of health literacy and largely fail to offer people with ID opportunities to develop capabilities to interact with health information in a more critical manner or to develop their understandings of how the wider social context impacts on their own experiences of health and health care. In this paper I offer some explanations for why people with ID have been excluded from the critical health literacy field. I suggest ways that a critical health literacy frame can advance understandings of (1) what literacy in general means for people with ID; (2) what it means for them to take part in critical health literacy practices, and (3) the nature of health texts - what they are and what they do for people with ID. I conclude with remarks about what involvement in critical health literacy initiatives might offer people with ID and also what a consideration of the experiences of people with ID can offer critical health literacy theorizing and research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Increasingly, universities in developed countries are engaging in transnational education. Responsibilities and opportunities to exercise management and leadership in the provision of transnational education depend on the organisational model adopted and whether the academics involved are on home or international campuses. Models range from neocolonial control to transnational partnerships. In the Australian Office for Learning and Teaching study that informs this paper, good practice in allocation and exercise of management and leadership responsibilities was identified and recommendations developed. A balance was struck between the home institution's quality assurance obligations, which imply a high level of home-based control, and the value of a degree of local control to the commitment of local academics involved, to their career opportunities, and to the educational experiences of their students. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper describes the development of an online training model for teachers and teaching assistants working with students with special educational needs. Originally developed as part of a government funded initiative in the UK, the model has been successfully applied in other contexts, most notably in New South Wales, Australia where it has had a significant impact on the inclusion agenda over most of the country. The deployment of the model across public schools in New South Wales (NSW) is described. The factors leading to successful continuing professional development for teachers are identified from a literature review, and the critical success factors in the online training model are highlighted. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The complexity of teacher's work is manifest in the divergent use of digital technologies in and out of school. This paper explores the logical step of connecting students' out-of-school mediated literacy learning to the content descriptors of the Australian Curriculum. The study uses published evidence from four previous studies of young people to demonstrate the diverse ways that out-of-school practices can be linked to literacy learning in the Australian Curriculum. We frame this linking of informal literacy learning to the Australian Curriculum by highlighting the funds of knowledge' children bring through the school gate. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Australian Nursing and Midwifery Accreditation Council (ANMAC) has set regulatory standards, that require midwifery students to verify how they have met ANMAC standard 8.11 requirements prior to registration as a midwife. The most common formats for recording achievement of the ANMAC requirements are paper-based or electronic portfolios. Research was conducted to compare student's experiences of completing their university portfolio format. Focus group interviews were held at two south east Queensland universities. This study has found that there is disparity between universities in the level of detail documenting evidence of midwifery experiences. The paper-based portfolio was criticised for not having sufficient space for the students to explain the extent of their experiences, in contrast students completing the ePortfolio felt their reflective entries were excessive. Some students felt the portfolio was not being used to its full potential with suggestions that all experiences that fall within the midwife scope of practice should be recorded as evidence of practice experiences. Students felt the current ANMAC Standard 8.11 requirements limit the range of experiences and are repetitive in requiring up to 100 recordings for some experiences. No nationally agreed format exists of how students are required to document their required ANMAC experiences. • The depth of detail recorded as evidence for ANMAC differs between universities. • No national consistency exists in students' documentation of ANMAC standards. • Student's thoughts on their learning from normal experiences were unexpected. • Cognitive dissonance was experienced by students in this study. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]