Students' perceptions of clinical attachments across rural and metropolitan settings

For many years, medical students at the University of Sydney undertook their clinical clerkships in traditional metropolitan teaching hospitals, which were regarded as the ‘gold standard’ for clinical training. In 2001 the university established a rural clinical school at which increasing numbers of students now complete a significant proportion of their medical education. The aim of the study reported here is to examine students’ perceptions of what facilitates their learning in clinical settings and to compare their perceptions across rural and metropolitan settings. Focus groups were conducted to collect students’ views on their experiences of learning in clinical settings. The findings were used to generate a questionnaire with items designed directly from focus‐group data ensuring content validity. The questionnaire was sent to all students in the 2004 cohort. Exploratory factor analysis was used to provide evidence of construct validity. The internal consistency reliability of the questionnaire was assessed using Cronbach’s alpha. Factor scores were computed to compare students’ perceptions across the two settings. Four factors were extracted: (1) clinical teachers’ orientation to teaching; (2) opportunities to develop clinical skills; (3) supportiveness of the clinical setting; and (4) student confidence and sense of self‐efficacy. Students rated the rural experience more highly and positively than the metropolitan hospital experience with regard to all four factors. This study highlights the positive role that rural attachments can play in providing an educationally sound learning experience. The findings are important in the context of both the drive, among medical programs worldwide, to seek out additional and alternative settings for clinical education and the national agenda to foster student interest in rural careers through positive rural training experiences.     

Factors affecting successful reintegration

This study explores the perspectives of education practitioners towards the process of reintegrating pupils (many of whom display social, emotional and behavioural difficulties), from a pupil referral unit (PRU) to mainstream educational provision in a rural bilingual Welsh authority, and examines the barriers and facilitators they identified as evident within their individual schools and catchment area served with regards to reintegrating and including pupils. The study locates the process within a specific geographical context and discusses whether there are specific reintegration barriers and facilitators inherent within the setting. Patterns of pupil referral and reintegration between the PRU and mainstream schools were examined and analysed from “pupil tracking data” which tracked pupils throughout an academic year from their arrival at the PRU before the perspectives of education practitioners towards potential reintegration barriers and facilitators were gathered through an initial expert sample and a second landscape sample postal questionnaire. Interviews were subsequently conducted with respondents from Primary, Secondary and PRU settings to drill down into the influence of specific barriers and facilitators identified earlier. This study suggests that although generic reintegration barriers and facilitators may be evident within all settings, there were specific factors inherent within this geographical context identified by education practitioners, which acted in the most part as barriers to successful reintegration and inclusion.     

基于职业能力本位的高职视听说与行业英语的教学改革实践与分析

能力本位(CBE即Competence-Based Education)的高职教育观,是指在高职教育中,强调以能力培养而不是以学术知识体系学习作为课程教学的基础、培养目标和评价标准。针对目前高职高专学生的英语现状以及公共英语教学改革现状,探索能力本位的应用人才培养的教学模式,以职业性作为高职公共英语课程发展的方向,实践性作为高职公共英语课程的实现方式,树立工学结合的概念,从而解决高职高专学生的英语课堂教学问题,提高高职高专非英语专业学生应用英语的能力和水平。     

农村基础教育目标定位的审思——基于河南省农村教育的田野调查

农村基础教育目标定位应该从农村现实状况和农村学生的真实需求出发。农村基础教育的城市化是在城市化背景下学生个体社会化的重要内容,是适应农村多种向外流通途径的需要,并且进一步明确了基础教育公民培养目标的重点,因此,应该成为真正为所有学生未来发展奠定基础的目标方向。     

电大护理学专业毕业实习考核方法初探

成功的护理人才是学历、技能皆具备的护理人员。电大开放教育专科护理学专业毕业实习成绩的评定分医院成绩和终结性考核成绩两部分。医院和学校联合对技能操作与护理运用双重测评,对于强化学生理论知识,加强护理技能,提高护理水平有非常重要的意义。终结考核在医院展开,可以带动临床护理的规范性,促使学校教学相长     

Preservice special educators’ perceptions of collaboration and co-teaching during university fieldwork: implications for personnel preparation

Abstract

Special education teachers today must demonstrate effective skills in collaboration and often engage in co-teaching with general education colleagues to meet the needs of students with disabilities. In this study, we describe a university-based early fieldwork in which university students seeking teaching licensure in special education taught children from the local urban community, thus developing their collaboration and co-teaching skills under the supervision of university faculty. Although citing challenges such as time constraints and overcoming personality differences, the majority of these preservice special educators reported growth in their teaching skills as the main outcome of this fieldwork in co-planning and co-instructing lessons to meet the diverse learning needs of children from the local community. These preservice special educators’ perceptions of this co-teaching fieldwork experience highlight the importance of special education teacher preparation programs that explicitly train students in collaboration and co-teaching skills.     

The barriers and enablers to education among scheduled caste and scheduled tribe adolescent girls in northern Karnataka,South India: A qualitative study

This qualitative study explored the barriers and enablers to scheduled caste/scheduled tribe (SC/ST) adolescent girls entering into, and completing secondary education in northern Karnataka, South India. In-depth interviews were conducted with 22 adolescent girls, their respective parent/guardian (n = 22) and 11 teachers, recruited purposively from 11 villages within two districts in northern Karnataka. Multiple barriers were identified to disadvantaged caste adolescent girls’ entry into and retention in education in this setting, and these operated at the individual, family, community and school levels. In addition, some enablers to education were also described. The study highlights the importance of involving multiple stakeholders to overcome the barriers to education for SC/ST girls, and of working to change beliefs and expectations around gender norms as well as improving the quality of education in this setting.     

Learning from migrant education: A case study of the schooling of rural migrant children in Beijing

This paper focuses on the educational opportunities available to rural migrant children in Beijing. On the basis of fieldwork conducted in migrant communities in 2004–2005, I conclude that administrative and financial barriers, as well as discrimination, prevent migrant children from entering state schools. I discuss the quality of education available in unlicensed private schools, followed by an analysis of the possible reasons for the state's exclusion of migrant children from state schools and its hostility to migrants’ self-provision of education.     

Supervisors’ experiences in supervising higher education students from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds during work-integrated learning of health and non-health courses

The growing number of students who are culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) relative to the host university undertaking fieldwork placements raises questions about how to best support their needs and the needs of their fieldwork supervisors so as to maximize the experience for both parties. This research aims to quantify and compare fieldwork supervisors’ perceptions of CALD versus non-CALD students’ performance during placements, the areas and levels of concern they experience in providing this supervision. Placement supervisors from health and non-health courses affiliated with an Australian University were randomly assigned to a survey containing question sets relating to their experiences in supervising CALD (n = 153) or non-CALD students (n = 168). The survey comprised Likert scale questions assessing “pressure points” to supervision and open-ended questions including strategies fieldwork supervisors typically used to assist students. Using univariate ordinal logistic regression analyses, “speaking” (coefficient, 95% CI 2.1 (1.56, 2.65)), “writing” in English (1.69 (1.17, 2.20)), and “adapting to culture of workplaces” (1.20 (0.71, 1.69)) were perceived by placement supervisors as the top “pressure points” in supervising CALD students. Interaction effects demonstrated that “difficulties in assessing CALD students’ competency” (coefficient, 95% CI?1.14 (?2.27, ?0.01), “feeling competent in supervising students for placements” (1.35 (0.26, 2.45)), and the “perception of lack of support” from either the university or employing organization (?1.70 (?2.83, ? 0.56)) were evident within fieldwork placement of health courses only. These results can assist universities and placement organizations to prioritize resources to address the key areas affecting CALD students’ performance on placements, and to improve supervisors’ experience in supervising CALD students on placements in health courses.

     

如何培养合格的医学人才来夯实公共卫生这道墙

要夯实公共卫生这道墙,在医学人才培养上,临床医学专业(无论是各医学专科还是全科医学)应该非常重视预防医学的教育;而公共卫生人才应该分层次培养,即以大专或本科培养在社区工作的公共卫生护士,以公共卫生硕士(MPH)培养高层次的公共卫生领导者。在能力培养上,要加强医学生预防医学的态度、知识和技能的培养,使他们在临床场所能敏锐地察觉和报告公共卫生问题,在日常的临床工作中能根据就诊者的实际情况提供个体化的健康维护计划,能参与促进社区人群健康的工作。对公共卫生专业的学生,除了教授传统公共卫生的内容(流行病学、卫生统计学、职业与环境卫生、卫生管理)外,必须加强行为科学与健康促进、信息学、基因组学、沟通、文化、社区卫生、全球卫生、政策与法律、公共卫生伦理的教学。此外,还应吸纳非医学背景的人员进入公共卫生人才培养的领域里,为公共卫生体系输送合格的领袖级人才。     

关于建立我国民办高校社会评估制度的主要分析

在认真贯彻落实国家有关建立民办高校督导制度的同时,应尽快建立民办高校社会评估制度,促使民办高校社会评估与政府督导、学校自我评估有机结合,从而建立完善的民办高校质量保障体系,推动民办高等教育质量的不断提高。     

‘We matter just the same’: students and pre-service teachers working together in an alternative educational setting

This paper examines how a clinical experience in an alternative educational setting impacted both pre-service secondary teachers and the students with whom they worked. The participants were pre-service secondary teachers completing a clinical experience at a local agency that served a population of students for whom traditional school settings were not effective, as well as students at the agency. The results indicate that for the pre-service teachers, the experience allowed them to develop a deeper understanding of learner diversity and the importance of connecting to students. For the agency students, the interactions with the pre-service teachers provided them with additional academic support, as well as resources for post-secondary education. The agency students also recognized that they had the power to show pre-service teachers how to work effectively with students for whom traditional school settings are a challenge. The authors conclude with implications for pre-service teachers, agency students, and university and clinical site instructors, as well as practical considerations for developing such partnerships.     

建筑业农民工健康保障问题探讨——基于苏州的实地调查

本文从居住状况和饮食状况、职业环境、健康意识以及公共卫生服务等四个方面分析了建筑业农民工健康保障的现状和存在的问题,建议从加大卫生监督力度、改善农民工生活和工作环境、强化农民工健康教育、以及完善农民工医疗保险制度等方面入手,保障农民工的健康,促进社会和谐。     

Recruitment and selection strategies in optometric education towards addressing human resource disparities in sub-Saharan Africa

ABSTRACT

The dire need for eye care services and a dearth of human resources (HR) in sub-Saharan Africa motivated the setting up of new optometry programmes. However, to make a meaningful impact, geographical, gender, economic and educational disparities must additionally be addressed.Aqualitative study utilizing purposive sampling to select academic leadership and students from optometry programmes in sub-Saharan Africa was conducted. Individual and focus group interviews produced data that were coded and analysed using a deductive thematic analysis approach. The themes that emerged as contributing to disparities in access through recruitment and selection were institutional barriers (student intake numbers, programme marketing, minimum entry requirements, absence of pre-medical programme) and socio-economic barriers (finance, poor secondary school education, lack of knowledge of optometry, geographic location of institutions, gender). To address equity, institutions should engage with communities, market via community radio stations, offer pre-medical and bridging programmes, partner with governments and private funders to offer loans and bursaries and affirm females and rural applicants in recruitment and selection. In conclusion, universities must be socially accountable in all facets of education including recruitment and selection.     

地学基础课程野外实习模式创新研究

传统地学野外实习涉及范围小,内容孤立、分散,学生从中仅能获得一些感性认识,不能很快地提高观察问题、分析问题和解决问题的能力。借助地理信息系统平台,通过实习过程创新和实习内容创新,培养学生系统的思维方式,让学生从认识互相联系的地理现象入手,辨识互相联系的地理现象在空间上、时间上的分布规律和发生上的因果规律,并能运用规律进行推理和判断,扩展认知范围,从而快速提高学生观察问题、分析问题和解决问题的能力。     

私立学校初中生心理健康状况调查及其分析

本研究采用自编的《初中生心理健康量表》对私立学校314名初中生的心理健康状况进行抽样调查。结果表明,私立学校初中生在学习习惯、考试焦虑、人际沟通、自制力方面较易产生困扰;初中生心理健康水平存在显著的年级差异;男女生的心理健康水平在考试焦虑、异性交往存在显著差异;私立学校初中生心理健康水平好于公立学校学生。     

Learning across silos: Design Factories as hubs for co‐creation

Collaboration through innovation is central to the discussion of how today's universities can respond to new interdisciplinary challenges, competitive environments and stakeholder complexity. Innovation hubs represent a dynamic example of how the public sector, including higher education, is responding to the need for new methods and perspectives that foster desired intra‐institutional change. This study examines one of these types of platforms, the Design Factory Global Network originating at Aalto University, in order to shed light on key enablers and barriers to furthering collaborative efforts within higher education. Based on 25 in‐depth interviews with 17 Design Factories, including perspectives from students, staff and educators, the findings show that institutional policy fostering flexibility, securing a physical cross‐disciplinary and multi‐purpose collaborative space, upper level support and building community are all vital in ensuring design‐driven experimentation that contributes to the effectiveness of higher education.     

“You Can Do it Anywhere”: Student and Teacher Perceptions of an Online Sexuality Education Intervention

Formal sexuality education in schools is declining in the United States and this is disproportionately affecting adolescents in rural settings. The purpose of this qualitative study was to assess student and teacher perception of sexuality education delivered online as a potential solution to address this gap in access. Nine gender-specific group interviews were conducted with ninth grade students (n = 29) in rural North Carolina to discuss students’ experience with an online sexuality education intervention called MyHealthEd. Interviews were also conducted with three health teachers at pilot schools. Students and teachers identified more benefits to online sexuality education including more student engagement and greater privacy and comfort, than drawbacks, such as too much student autonomy and less interaction with others. Online sexuality education is a promising and preferred method of delivery for sexuality education for students and health teachers, particularly in settings where trained health teachers are not available or less willing to deliver state-mandated content. The MyHealthEd intervention has the potential to increase availability of high quality health education to students across North Carolina, as well as students in other rural or underserved areas.     

The participation of Australian Indigenous students in higher education: a scoping review of empirical research, 2000–2016

While access to higher education has increased for Indigenous Australians, participation and completion rates remain lower than those of non-Indigenous Australians. A sound evidence base is needed to ground equity initiatives if they are to address the specific needs of Indigenous students. This paper presents the results of a scoping review of empirical research focusing on the participation of Indigenous students in higher education. The purpose of the scoping review was to synthesise empirical research on aspirations for, and barriers and enablers to, higher education that were published between 2000 and 2016 (n = 57), and identify areas where further research is needed. Despite a recent increase in research on this topic, relatively little attention has been paid to Indigenous students’ aspirations while they are at school. We argue that future research should take account of school students’ aspirations for higher education, including primary school students; the similitude of barriers and enablers across the student life cycle; differences within Indigenous community and among Indigenous students; and, the insights emerging from Indigenous methodologies and scholarship.     

乡村振兴视角下河南省基层教育资源的两极分化研究——以兰考县葡萄架乡实证研究为例

21世纪以来,中国的民办教育得到党和政府的高度重视,一系列促进民办教育发展的政策文件的出台,使得民办教育伴随着经济社会的进程不断壮大,满足了人民群众对教育多样化与选择性的需求。然而,民办教育与公办教育的功能性重合却导致了二者间的多方面冲突,部分农村地区私立中小学借助资金、生源、教师与制度优势不断挤压公立教育的发展空间进而造成教育发展失衡,知识资本在私立或者公立学校之间再一次进行了重新分配。