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Background: Speech and language therapy (SLT) education must meet the needs of the future workforce, training enough students who are competent practitioners able to meet the workforce demands. Increasing student numbers and the impact on placement providers mean students must be equipped for learning on placement. Simulation is a way of supporting students to develop their clinical skills and decision-making in a safe, supportive environment. Aims: To explore the perspectives of SLT students who were introduced to simulation during their undergraduate degree at a UK university as part of a pilot study. The aim of the pilot was to listen to the students' voices to begin to understand their lived experiences of simulation and to gather views on how simulation can support their clinical learning. Methods & Procedures: Focus groups and semi-structured interviews were carried out with second-year BSc SLT students in semester 2 following the simulated learning activities and clinical placement. Qualitative data were gathered and thematic analysis was applied to the data to identify the barriers and enablers to students' clinical learning in simulation. Outcomes & Results: A total of 11 students responded out of a cohort of 38. Three key themes were identified from the analysis: individual learning needs, facilitator skill and programme-level organization. Conclusions & Implications: Student experience of simulation was positive. One of the key elements students found to support their clinical skills was the importance of the safe space; support for learning instead of correction led them to engage in active learning. Key barriers to simulation related to having sufficient prior knowledge, the skills of the facilitator, group size and the wider learning landscape of the programme. In response to this pilot, there are plans to continue developing this model of simulation and embed simulation across the programme, led by a sound pedagogical approach with clear preparation and planning and building the necessary infrastructure. Other SLT programmes and practice educators developing simulation as part of their programmes or placement may wish to consider some of these findings to support the use of simulation in their workplace.

Background: Objective Structured Clinical Examinations (OSCEs) are a simulation-based assessment tool used extensively in medical education for evaluating clinical competence. OSCEs are widely regarded as more valid, reliable, and valuable compared to traditional assessment measures, and are now emerging within professional psychology training programs. While there is a lack of findings related to the quality of OSCEs in published psychology literature, psychometric properties can be inferred by investigating implementation. Accordingly, the current review assessed implementation of OSCEs within psychology programs against a set of Quality Assurance Guidelines (QAGs). Methods: A systematic review was conducted according to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis (PRISMA) recommendations. Electronic databases including ProQuest Psychology, PsycArticles, Psychology and Behavioural Sciences Collection, PsycInfo and key indexing databases such as Scopus, ProQuest, and Web of Science were used to identify relevant articles. Twelve full-text articles met all inclusion criteria and were included in the review. Results: There was considerable heterogeneity in the quality of studies and reporting of OSCE data. Implementation of OSCEs against QAGs revealed overall adherence to be "Fair." Conclusion: The current review consolidated what is known on psychometric quality of OSCEs within psychology programs. A further need for quantitative evidence on psychometric soundness of OSCEs within psychology training is highlighted. Furthermore, it is recommended that future training programs implement and report OSCEs in accordance with standardized guidelines.

In the present study, the studies conducted on educational games between 1965 and 2019 were analyzed to determine the trends in research based on the year of publication, topic, publication type, country, target audience and the concepts included in the study title. In the study, 7141 studies that were accessed with "educational games" keyword on the ERIC (Education Resources Information Center) database were analyzed. The abstract data were classified by a software developed by the authors for analysis and the analysis was conducted in two stages. First, the studies on educational games were examined as a group, and then the most studied topics were analyzed separately. The study findings demonstrated that the number of studies on educational games was the highest in 2016 and the prominent topics included instructional methods, learning activities, simulations, and classroom activities. It was determined that digital games were investigated as a type of educational games extensively in studies conducted since 2000, the major type of publication was journal articles, and Australia was the leading country in publications. It was determined that practitioners were the major audience until 2000, and the studies on teachers were prominent since. It was determined that the most frequent concepts in study titles included learning, instruction, simulation, school, game-based, design, computer, science, and mathematics and games, respectively.

Mobile learning is well established in literature and practice, but under-evolved from a rigorous learning design perspective. Activity theory presents a sophisticated way of mapping and understanding learning design, but for mobile learning this does not always translate into change in practice. The reported research addresses this by coupling a mobile learning specific approach to activity theory with a practice-based framework: the design for transformative mobile learning framework mapped to the pedagogy-andragogy-heutagogy continuum matrix (the DTML-PAH Matrix). Seven case studies are analysed using this approach and presented narratively along with framework informed analysis. Findings include that the DTML-PAH Matrix can be used to provide clearer implications and guidance for mobile learning practice, and that the DTML-PAH Matrix can also be guided by the practice over time. Implications for further research and practice are discussed.

The study of educational simulations at the secondary level has typically centered on programs that are competitive, shorter in duration, and characterized by their low fidelity, or a lack of realism. The resources required to hold longer, more immersive, and nuanced programs are often prohibitive for teachers of political science programs. As such, their effects on student learning outcomes have remained relatively unknown. In this paper, we explore the impact of a Model G20 (MG20) curriculum for high school and early college-aged students on students' sense of self-efficacy and 21st century skills. MG20 is a weeklong, immersive international conference modeled after the real G20 summit. In it, students learn about global governance and roleplay as heads of state and government ministers to negotiate for their collective interests. Using a mixed methods approach, we examine student learning outcomes from two MG20 summits, held in the United States and in the UK. Results show that internationally diverse, immersive, collaborative role-playing simulations significantly improve students' self-ascribed cross-cultural communication and public speaking skills, as well as students' sense self-efficacy. This research suggests future study into new and emerging formats of educational simulations may reveal greater potential for such programs to enhance student learning.

Empathy has been recognised as a key skill by practicing designers. With rapid changes to inclusivity and accessibility in the transport sector, student designers need to appreciate and understand the way in which people of differing abilities are able to engage with and interact with transport. They need to not only develop an understanding of older and vulnerable users--how they experience products, vehicles, services and systems--but also have the confidence to try out new ways of finding information and gaining 'authentic experiences' to feed into their designs. Although empathic design is encouraged, there is often little opportunity for this to occur in a full educational curriculum. To meet this need, the authors are developing a framework for teaching empathic design using low fidelity, experiential prototypes--using material that is easily available and affordable to design students. This paper reports the first steps towards designing a brief intervention to increase the empathic horizon of transport design students. It concludes with recommendations on how to create high quality learning experiences for students that will enable enhanced empathic design outcomes as they embark upon design careers.

It is recognized that the value of entrepreneurship education and the recruitment of practising entrepreneurs for such learning programmes can be problematic. This raises an important and challenging issue for universities when they are increasingly being asked to develop the leadership and management capabilities of entrepreneurs. In this account of practice, the authors explore the role for business simulation in the development of existing entrepreneurs' and small business leaders' strategic decision-making skills. The article describes and reflects on a pilot business simulation course, considering the challenges in the planning, the engagement of entrepreneurs and the delivery of the programme. It provides insights into the value of introducing this form of learning experience and exposes the significant challenges associated with engaging small business leaders.

This McCloy Lecture sheds light on the "hidden profession" of Physical Education Teacher Educators (PETEs) by sharing my perspectives on the challenges and opportunities faced by PETE scholars and teachers globally. I begin with an overview of my biography and how it has influenced my thinking about PETE. I present some scholarly critiques of PETE, a selection of PETE research findings and address key policy issues within teacher education across several national educational systems describing how Physical Education teacher educators manage (or not) the challenges and opportunities in the practice of teacher education in modern-day universities. I draw on data from my international study of experienced Physical Education teacher educators about the nature of their work in academe and the status of physical education teacher education locally, nationally and globally. I also draw on the perspectives of Irish teacher educators about the challenges of being active producers and users of research in a challenging national policy context. I conclude with a set of observations about how best to build capacity among Physical Education teacher educators so they can thrive as research active and innovative teachers in the modern university.

In this paper, we explore the learning and teaching of a maritime simulation programme to understand its deep learning elements. We followed the mixed methods approach and collected student perception data from a maritime school, situated within a UK university, using reflection-based survey (n = 112) and three focus groups with eleven students. Findings include the needs for defining clear learning outcomes, improving the learning content to enable exploration and second-chance learning, minimising theory-practice gaps by ensuring skills-knowledge balance and in-depth scholarship building, facilitating tasks for learning preparation and learning extension, and repositioning simulation components and their assessment schemes across the academic programme. Overall, the paper provides evidence on the importance of deep learning activities in maritime simulation and suggests guidelines on improving the existing practice. Although the findings are derived from a maritime education programme, they can be considered and applied in other academic disciplines which use simulation in their teaching and learning.

Learners were separated into groups representing the interests of parties that typically negotiate environmental affairs in real world scenarios (conservationists, scientists, politicians, NGOs, stakeholders), and tasked with preparing role-play simulations using a variety of flipped learning techniques. Learners' carbon footprints were monitored pre and post intervention, and CO2 emission scores were used as a proxy for their behaviour towards the environment. Five role-play simulations were run overall. These were integrated with case studies associated with fisheries issues, and climate change. Anonymous participant surveys indicated that learners responded positively to the intervention, and participants' CO[subscript 2] emission scores improved significantly (T[subscript 1,59] = 2.723, p = 0.009). In the context of environmental sciences, learners that engage in the integrated role-play and case study approach may benefit from flipped learning techniques to prepare their simulations, and gain confidence from self-actualizing moments of achievement when they realize an improvement in their environmental behaviour.

This qualitative study indicates that Chinese origin students completing their pre-university education in a British school have particular difficulties related to sociocultural change, pedagogical differences, affective aspects, cognitive demand and language learning. These are discussed. The use of a pre-laboratory software resource to support pre-university practical work in chemistry offers considerable benefits a number of the challenges faced by these students in studying in an English setting, most notably in building confidence and cognition through the use of videos of techniques, simulations and glossaries.

The aim of the study was to investigate how raters come to their decisions when judging spoken vocabulary. Segmental rating was introduced to quantify raters' decision-making process. It is hoped that this simulated study brings fresh insight to future methodological considerations with spoken data. Twenty trainee raters assessed five Chinese students' monologic texts on vocabulary in this study. Both segmental rating and overall rating were retrieved from the raters. Rasch analysis suggested variation between raters in their judgment of vocabulary, although consistency was found in general. Besides, there was a mismatch between candidates' vocabulary scores and their lexical statistics. The raters' decision-making process was generally cumulative.

This article describes the adaptation and use of the Monopoly® board game as a simple simulator to help introduce the principles of probability and risk. It focusses on teaching experiences in an undergraduate business program and offers a new approach to teaching probability and risk with dice to produce a collaborative simulated gaming environment. It allows students to be actively involved in developing the probability of throwing dice numbers and the analysis of risk and decision making in a competitive environment. Concluding with a probability analysis technique, it allows students to reflect on formal and informal approaches to decision making in risk environments and helps build communication for discussion, collaborative learning, and self-analysis among students.

Drawing on elements of self-determined learning or heutagogy, the graduate employability impact of the UK's leading Universities Business Challenge (UBC) competition is investigated over a five year period of from 2012-17. A central research question was addressed, namely: "what do inter-university business simulations, such as the UBC, contribute to developing self-determined learner skills and graduate employability?" A mixed-methods research approach combined structured equation modelling (SEM) results of 2 student surveys from over 50 (UK) universities, with qualitative analysis of 7 student focus-groups and 15 semi-structured interviews. The article contributes to new knowledge about the role of UBC as an example of an inter-university business simulation. It models the direct and indirect effects of personal/managerial skills development and reflective learning capacity (as mediator) on perceived employability impact. There is fresh evidence to support the claim that "reflective learning" is important in the study of self-determined learning and graduate employability.

Moving freight to sustainable transport modes is one of the most frequently mentioned suggestions to decarbonize logistics. Regrettably, even with regulation and technology developing over the past years, most of the freight volumes are still shipped via road, the least sustainable means of transport. This paper presents a beer transportation game to support logistics decarbonization via a modal shift from road to rail. In the game, student teams play the role of a logistics manager of a beer brewer and decide on the transport mode and shipment volume from the brewery to a distribution center. Their decisions are evaluated by the impact on total logistics costs and emissions. The game consists of two rounds, each with a student participation part and a lecturer debriefing part. The first round helps students understand why firms are often reluctant to shift freight from road to the low-emission transport mode (e.g., rail), and the second round encourages students to overcome the obstacles and helps them design practical approaches to alter the modal split in favor of rail transport. The game can be sealed into a 90-minute session and incorporated into any courses covering the topic of sustainable logistics or supply chain management.

This paper explores trainee educational psychology doctoral students' experiences of Objective Structured Professional Assessments (OSPAs), implemented at three UK universities and involving participation in a series of timed, simulated scenarios. Focus groups were audio-recorded, transcribed, and subjected to thematic analysis. Themes linked with cognitions included identification of learning processes (reflection, discovery, reception) or practical constraints (authenticity and timing of scenarios). Statements of emotion included positive responses (containment, reassurance, and relief) as well as more adverse reactions to the experience (anxiety and anger). Overall, the findings suggest that many students valued OSPAs as worthwhile and useful in developing professional competencies.

The article is devoted to the problem on training of maritime specialists in universities of Great Britain; in particular, it is a question of training navigators. It was noted that there are dozens of maritime educational institutions and a long tradition of training maritime specialists in the country. The system of maritime education in the United Kingdom is effective, and the level of training of specialists, including navigators, allows them to qualitatively perform their official duties on ships, which, in its turn, guarantees the safety of navigation. The peculiarity of professional training of navigators is that the educational program is focused on practical activities in accordance with the requirements of the rules of the International Convention on the Training and Certification of Seafarers, recommendations of the International Maritime Organization and other regulatory documents. It was found out that the UK Nautical Institute is working on the continuous improvement of the educational level of specialists operating maritime vessels. The article also discusses the training of navigators at the Maritime Centre of the University of London and at the University of Plymouth. The training of navigators on simulators is considered as a type of practical training and is conducted in accordance with national and international requirements for a computer simulator complex and software training complexes. The author of the article draws attention to the sufficient number of modern simulators, training equipment and laboratories, which are used to work out practical skills of future navigators. It has also been clarified that in all UK maritime higher education institutions the mandatory condition for successful completion of training is the completion of maritime professional practice. The number of hours for such practices is determined by the relevant regulations. The high ranking of British maritime education institutions attracts students from around the world. For international students there are comfortable conditions for admission, study and residence. They can improve their English language skills and take preparatory courses for admission.

This paper compares the use of confidence intervals (CIs) and a sensitivity analysis called the number needed to disturb (NNTD), in the analysis of research findings expressed as 'effect' sizes. Using 1,000 simulations of randomised trials with up to 1,000 cases in each, the paper shows that both approaches are very similar in outcomes, and each one is highly predictable from the other. CIs are supposed to be a measure of likelihood or uncertainty in the results, showing a range of possible effect sizes that could have been produced by random sampling variation alone. NNTD is supposed to be a measure of the robustness of the effect size to any variation, including that produced by missing data. Given that they are largely equivalent and interchangeable under the conditions tested here, the paper suggests that both are really measures of robustness. It concludes that NNTD is to be preferred because it requires many fewer assumptions, is more tolerant of missing data, is easier to explain, and directly addresses the key question of whether the underlying effect size is zero or not.

Simulation games (SGs) offer great opportunities for students to learn and experience real-world business decisions in a risk-free learning environment. However, the impact of using SG on educational outcomes is not fully understood. Drawing on experiential learning theory, we develop a conceptual model to examine students' perceptions of the educational values generated from a SG adopted in a postgraduate programme at a UK business school. The study gathered data from 120 students by using survey data and qualitative data from students' reflective reports. Results show that SGs have positive impact on students' conceptual understanding, skills development and affective evaluation of their learning experience. The article discusses the findings and its implications for educational practitioners and offers directions for future research.

Many poverty measures are estimated by using sample data collected from social surveys. Two examples are the poverty gap and the poverty severity indices. A novel method for the estimation of these poverty indicators is described. Social surveys usually contain different variables, some of which can be used to improve the estimation of poverty measures. The proposed estimation methodology is based on this idea. The variance estimation and the construction of confidence intervals are also topics addressed in this article. Real survey data, extracted from the European Union Survey on Income and Living Conditions and based on various countries, are used to investigate some empirical properties of our estimators via Monte Carlo simulation studies. Empirical results indicate that the suggested methods can be more accurate than the customary estimator. Desirable results are also obtained for the proposed variances and confidence intervals. Various populations generated from the Gamma distribution also support our findings.

Understanding student transition into higher education is an important aspect of module design, linking content, delivery, and assessment with a student's prior educational experience and knowledge bases. However, reflections on how modules designed choices are, generally, not widely disseminated. Here, we document the reflections of a junior lecturer responsible for redesigning a Level-4 Political Systems module and analyze the intentions of change via a transition pedagogy perspective, presenting a program renewal that establishes connected curriculum as an enabling infrastructure for students to actively engage with learning. First-year experience is considered as a major impacting factor of a student's subsequent success on a program of higher education and the diversification of student cohorts requires teaching staff to consider a wider number of intersectional factors that may impact on a student's opportunity to succeed in their studies. With a focus on simulations and active-learning, by providing examples of the thinking behind the resultant activities and assessment realignment we hope to provide an example of how a transition approach to a first-year module can be explored.

The ability to innovate is an important requirement in many organisations. Despite this pressing need, few selection systems in healthcare focus on identifying the potential for creativity and innovation and so this area has been vastly under-researched. As a first step towards understanding how we might select for creativity and innovation, this paper explores the use of a trait-based measure of creativity and innovation potential, and evaluates its efficacy for use in selection for healthcare education. This study uses a sample of 188 postgraduate physicians applying for education and training in UK General Practice. Participants completed two questionnaires (a trait-based measure of creativity and innovation, and a measure of the Big Five personality dimensions) and were also rated by assessors on creative problem solving measured during a selection centre. In exploring the construct validity of the trait-based measure of creativity and innovation, our research clarifies the associations between personality, and creativity and innovation. In particular, our study highlights the importance of motivation in the creativity and innovation process. Results also suggest that Openness to Experience is positively related to creativity and innovation whereas some aspects of Conscientiousness are negatively associated with creativity and innovation. Results broadly support the utility of using a trait-based measure of creativity and innovation in healthcare selection processes, although practically this may be best delivered as part of an interview process, rather than as a screening tool. Findings are discussed in relation to broader implications for placing more priority on creativity and innovation as selection criteria within healthcare education and training in future.

Just as surveillance in general has become more sophisticated, penetrative and ubiquitous, so has the surveillance of teachers. Enacted through an assemblage of strategies such as learning walks, parental networks, student voice and management information systems, the surveillance of teachers has proliferated as a means of managing the risks of school life, driven forward by neoliberal notions of quality and competition. However, where once the surveillance of teachers was panoptic, a means of detecting the truth of teaching behind fabrications, this article argues that surveillance within schools has become a simulation in Baudrillard's terms, using models and codes such as the Teachers' Standards and the Schools Inspection Handbook as predictors of future outcomes, simulating practice as a means of managing risk. And if surveillance in schools has become a simulation, then so perhaps has teaching itself, moving beyond a preoccupation with an essentialist truth of teaching to the hyperreality of normalised visibility and the simulation of teaching. This article argues that surveillance--including external agencies such as Ofsted--no longer exists to find the truth of teaching, the surveillance of teachers exists only to test the accuracy of the models and codes upon which the simulation is based.

In recent years, NHS Ambulance Trusts throughout the UK have consistently failed to achieve their response time targets for both actual and potential life-threatening calls. To avoid a media and public outcry, the NHS response has been to change the basic parameters upon which the response time targets are calculated. An action learning study, which considered patient experience from initial response to outcome, concluded that the ambulance service must move away from the nearest crew response model to one which provides a defined multi-organisational service to specific categories of need. A key issue with the learning sets, which were made up of front-line crews, was understanding the Trust-wide picture and where acceptable new procedures could provide economic benefits to the Trust, benefits to the patients and help achieve the response time targets. A simulation model driven by parameters agreed by the action learning sets provided proof that new procedures would generate the required benefits. The learning sets also identified that the public should adjust their expectations to understanding that an immediate front-line ambulance response would only be despatched in life-threatening cases, but there would be alternative slower responses for all other cases.

Perceptual simulations are unconscious and automatic, whereas perceptual imagery is conscious and deliberate, but it is unclear how easily one can transfer perceptual information from unconscious to conscious awareness. We investigated whether it is possible to be aware of what one is mentally representing; that is, whether it is possible to consciously examine the contents of a perceptual simulation without information being lost. Studies 1 and 2 found that people cannot accurately evaluate the perceptual content of a representation unless attention is explicitly drawn to each modality individually. In particular, when asked to consider sensory experience as a whole, modality-specific auditory, gustatory, and haptic information is neglected, and olfactory and visual information distorted. Moreover, information loss is greatest for perceptually complex, multimodal simulations. Study 3 examined if such information loss leads to behavioral consequences by examining performance during lexical decision, a task whose semantic effects emerge from automatic access to the full potential of unconscious perceptual simulation. Results showed that modality-specific perceptual strength consistently outperformed modality-general sensory experience ratings in predicting latency and accuracy, which confirms that the effects of Studies 1 and 2 are indeed due to information being lost in the transfer to conscious awareness. These findings suggest that people indeed have difficulty in transferring perceptual information from unconscious simulation to conscious imagery. People cannot be aware of the full contents of a perceptual simulation because the act of bringing it to awareness leads to systematic loss of information.

Despite the widespread interest in using and researching simulation in higher education, little discussion has yet to address a key pedagogical concern: difficulty. A "sociomaterial" view of learning, explained in this paper, goes beyond cognitive considerations to highlight dimensions of material, situational, representational and relational difficulty confronted by students in experiential learning activities such as simulation. In this paper we explore these dimensions of difficulty through three contrasting scenarios of simulation education. The scenarios are drawn from studies conducted in three international contexts: Australia, Sweden and the UK, which illustrate diverse approaches to simulation and associated differences in the forms of difficulty being produced. For educators using simulation, the key implications are the importance of noting and understanding (1) the effects on students of interaction among multiple forms of difficulty; (2) the emergent and unpredictable nature of difficulty; and (3) the need to teach students strategies for managing emergent difficulty.

Wargames, especially on historical conflicts, do not currently play much part in the booming academic use of simulation and gaming techniques. This is despite the fact that they offer rich vehicles for active learning and interactive exploration of conflict dynamics. Constraints of time, expertise and resources do make it challenging to employ wargames in academia, but a greater problem is the stigma which wargaming attracts due to its association with childish enthusiasts and its perceived deficiencies as a modelling technique. This article builds on my many years of teaching and research experience with wargames to show how playing and designing them can benefit students and scholars alike.

We have used a role-play exercise to help students understand the role of the whips in British parliamentary politics, a subject with which students often struggle. In itself, this proved a valuable learning and teaching tool, but we found it became even more useful when we incorporated a practitioner into the exercise. This overcame some of the problems with role-play exercises but it also overcame some of the problems we have previously encountered with using practitioners in teaching. In this article, we outline our reasons for utilizing a role-play simulation and explain how it functioned. We then discuss the use of practitioners in teaching and learning and how the role-play overcame many of the problems we have previously encountered when using such teaching methods.

To enhance the function and quality of built environments, designers should consider all possible users in their design projects. Therefore, it is essential to incorporate inclusive design in the education of the design student. This study focuses on the educational objectives of and related learning activities in a course where inclusive design is one of the main subjects. Through empathic modelling, students' engagement with the course was enhanced. Within the course, students simulated disabled users while they experienced the campus environment using wheelchairs, crutches or blindfolds. Their experiences were reflected through descriptive texts and poster designs. Descriptive texts were analysed through developing themes and codes whereas posters were analysed through a content analysis method. Our findings showed that students developed their knowledge of inclusive design concerning the physical environment, the self and the social environment. They also developed immediate emotional responses and a positive attitude towards diversity and inclusion. Thus, empathic modelling supported the development of cognitive and affective learning domains of the novice designer, supporting inclusive design education.

The objective of the study reported here was to ascertain the impact on small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) owner-managers of simulating having and being a non-executive director (NED) within the GOLD programme at Lancaster University, the purpose of which is to help owner-managers of SMEs to become better strategic leaders of their companies. Three research approaches were used: (a) participant observation in each of the 20 businesses; (b) interviewing owner-managers; and (c) a review of materials and transcripts generated from Board meetings. Participants engaging in a higher education institution (HEI)-generated network with high levels of trust had an opportunity to behave in a different way; and owners acquired operational and strategic experience of having and being an NED. The initial results indicate that this experience results in greater strategic focus. The engagement of an HEI with SMEs through innovative processes drawn from larger organizations accelerates the creation of trust and social capital, allowing ways of working that might otherwise be dismissed. (Contains 5 tables, 1 figure, and 2 notes.)

"Ensemble" is an interdisciplinary research and development project exploring the potential role of emerging Semantic Web technologies in case-based learning across learning environments in higher education. Empirical findings have challenged the claim that cases "bring reality into the classroom" and that this, in turn, might provide the basis for an understanding of the role of Semantic Web technologies in case-based learning environments. We describe how the work of authors including Baudrillard and Deleuze has provided an alternative framework for understanding the relationships between cases and the realities with which they are purportedly associated. We discuss how the idea of the "simulacrum" has influenced our understanding of learning environments, has informed design and development practices, and has led to a shift in our understandings of the potential affordances of Semantic Web technologies in educational settings. (Contains 2 figures and 1 note.)

Virtual worlds are an important tool in modern education practices as well as providing socialisation, entertainment and a laboratory for collaborative work. This paper focuses on the uses of virtual worlds for education and synthesises over 100 published academic papers, reports and educational websites from around the world. A taxonomy is then derived from these papers, delineating current theoretical and practical work on virtual world usage, specifically in the field of education. The taxonomy identifies rich veins of current research and practice in associated educational theory and in simulated worlds or environments, yet it also demonstrates the paucity of work in important areas such as evaluation, grading and accessibility. (Contains 1 table and 5 figures.)

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the effectiveness of using several commercial tools in science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM) subjects for enterprise education at Newcastle University, UK. Design/methodology/approach: The paper provides an overview of existing toolkit use in higher education, before reviewing where and how tools are used across science and engineering disciplines. Feedback was collated from Newcastle educators and students to determine whether the projected enterprise learning outcomes were achieved. STEM learning outcomes were also mapped to the NCEE entrepreneurship learning outcomes framework. Findings: The paper investigated the use of three key enterprise toolkits across the Faculty of Science, Agriculture and Engineering and the Faculty of Medical Sciences, where the focus is on innovation and product/service development, rather than on the desire to "be an entrepreneur." This reflection on practice evaluates the benefits and student perceptions of workshop tools for enterprise, decision making and teamwork. It makes comparison between the perceived employability needs of these students, and addresses the intended and actual outcomes of these tools. Research limitations/implications: Evaluating toolkit use within a single university is constrained by common internal workings, however as exemplars of good practice this is of value to other UK higher education institutions. Practical implications: Consideration is given to entrepreneurial support and development, and whether using existing tools should be used for summative or for formative assessment. It also questions whether tools are fit for purpose. Originality/value: This paper reveals patterns of tool use and their effectiveness across science and engineering. (Contains 1 figure and 3 tables.)

Using a survey of a cohort of UK graduates, linked to administrative data on higher education participation, this paper investigates the labour market attainment of recent graduates by subject of study. We document a large heterogeneity in the mean wages of graduates from different subjects and a considerably larger one within subject with individuals with the most favourable unobserved characteristics obtaining wages almost twice as large as those with the worst. Moreover, gender differences in wages within subjects are also large. We then simulate a graduate tax to calculate a willingness to pay--in form of tuition fees--to capture these subject wage premia. (Contains 7 tables and 3 figures.)

In high-stakes selection among candidates with considerable domain-specific knowledge and experience, investigations of whether high-fidelity simulations (assessment centers; ACs) have incremental validity over low-fidelity simulations (situational judgment tests; SJTs) are lacking. Therefore, this article integrates research on the validity of knowledge tests, low-fidelity simulations, and high-fidelity simulations in advanced-level high-stakes settings. A model and hypotheses of how these 3 predictors work in combination to predict job performance were developed. In a sample of 196 applicants, all 3 predictors were significantly related to job performance. Both the SJT and the AC had incremental validity over the knowledge test. Moreover, the AC had incremental validity over the SJT. Model tests showed that the SJT fully mediated the effects of declarative knowledge on job performance, whereas the AC partially mediated the effects of the SJT. (Contains 2 footnotes, 2 tables, and 2 figures.)

This paper proposes a cross-faculty simulation model for authentic learning that bridges the gap between short group-based simulations within the classroom and longer individual placements in professional working contexts. Dissemination of the model is expected to widen the use of authentic learning approaches in higher education (HE). The model is based on a cross-faculty project in which UK HE students acted as professional developers to produce prototype educational games for academic clients from other subject areas. Perceptions about the project were obtained from interviews with project participants. The stakeholders believed the cross-faculty simulation to be a motivating learning experience, whilst identifying possible improvements. To evaluate whether the authenticity of the student-client relationship could be improved, the interview data were compared to four themes for authentic learning described by Rule in 2006. The data supported Rule's themes, whilst highlighting the added value gained from meta-awareness of the simulation as a learning opportunity. (Contains 1 figure.)

This paper reports on the construction and initial testing of a computer-based interactive flood hazard management simulation, designed for undergraduates taking an applied geomorphology course. Details of the authoring interface utilized to create the simulation are presented. Students act as the managers of civil defence utilities in a fictional town, and have to respond to changes in local conditions to prevent a flood disaster. An SMS messaging service presents the managers with real-time situation updates, and enables them to respond immediately. No significant difference is observed between the standard of student performance under these conditions of authentic assessment in the simulation and that attained in the other, more traditional, elements of assessment in the course. Future refinements intended to overcome identified weaknesses in the simulation are outlined. (Contains 2 figures, 3 tables and 1 note.)

Purpose: This paper aims to explore the role of electronic simulation case studies in enterprise education, their effectiveness, and their relationship to traditional forms of classroom-based approaches to experiential learning. The paper seeks to build on previous work within the field of enterprise and management education, specifically in relation to the role of simulations and case studies in higher-education pedagogy, which have previously been considered as distinct techniques. Design/methodology/approach: Following the use of a specifically designed simulation case study of a small and large business, 57 undergraduate students in a UK university were surveyed using an electronic voting tool and their responses used as the basis for two focus groups, which were conducted with the same students. Findings: Students saw a link between using the application and learning, found the environment to be immersive and more engaging than a text-based case study, though opinion was divided over its entertainment value. Focus group results highlighted that students believed the environment felt "real" and that students were encouraged to engage in deep and double-loop learning. Students preferred the option of a mixed range of classroom learning experiences, though experienced gameplayers were less likely to find the simulation case entertaining than non-gameplayers. Research limitations/implications: This article builds on existing research on simulations and case studies, while going some way to show the common issues that these "models of reality" share, in terms of both design and utilisation in the special context of higher education. This paper highlights the value and need for further work appraising emerging educational media and the importance students place on these experiences in their study programmes. Originality/value: Given the increasing interest in e-learning within higher education, and subsequent attempts to improve the student experience through electronic media, this paper highlights the importance of focusing on effective learning opportunities in developing experiential enterprise education tools. (Contains 4 tables and 4 figures.)

Much of the literature theorising mobile learning emphasises the importance of context with physical and social contexts identified to date. Our work to design and implement authentic mobile simulation activities using SMS text messaging suggests that a third context may also be important. This is a virtual context, the learner-created cognitive space within which the activity takes place. The arrival of a message during a simulation activity will disrupt the real world physical and social contexts in which the learner finds themselves and transfer them into the virtual context. We argue that this disruptive power of the mobile device to shift the user's presence may be one of the distinguishing characteristics of certain mobile learning applications. This paper will explore the idea of the virtual context and discuss the role of issues of context, presence and disruption, illustrating these with reference to a case study of mobile simulation learning using SMS text messaging. (Contains 2 figures.)