Defining the dynamic role of Australian academic skills advisors

ABSTRACT

In the Australian university context, Academic Language and Learning (ALL) entails advisors working with academics and students to enhance learning. It is a relatively new area, beginning around the mid-1980s, and ALL units developed within their respective institutions. Since early 2000s, there has been an increasing amount of literature discussing the work of these centres. Significantly though, academic support services remain on the periphery of higher education. This article seeks to define the dynamic role of academic skills advisors. In late 2016, we distributed a questionnaire to ALL unit managers at each of the 39 Australian universities, receiving 29 responses. Combining multiple-choice and open-ended questions, the survey investigated the location of the unit, the role of ALL advisors, the qualifications and experience asked for at recruitment, the training required, and pedagogy when working one-to-one with students. A consistent picture emerged in the responses. One key point is a growing demand for advisors with eLearning and eTeaching skills, indicative of broader changes in Australian universities. This article describes the unique set of professional and personal attributes that ALL advisors bring to the role. The survey results found that ALL advisors are responsive to change; broadly use constructivist approaches; have an extensive range of skills, experience and competencies; and are knowledgeable across a range of disciplines. Further investigation comparing the scope of work done in countries such as the UK, New Zealand and Canada could shape and define the changing role of ALL advisors in Australia.     

宁波电大学生思想工作队伍建设的实践与思考

高校扩招后，学生的文化素质与思想道德素质出现了一系列新的变化，给学生思想工作带来了严重的挑战。高校是培养社会主义现代化建设者的主阵地，在此情形下，学生思想工作队伍的地位和作用变得越来越重要。本文拟对宁波广播电视大学近几年加强普专学生思想政治工作的实践与探索作一分析，在此基础上提出尚需要加以重视的几个问题，并提出自己的若干建议。     

国家助学贷款制度与高校学生欠费问题思考

学费拖欠问题在提供国家助学贷款前提下仍然存在,原因有多个方面。完善助学政策可以使国家助学贷款的政策惠及高校每一个贫困生,又能使其自觉缴费还款。     

Whose knowledge counts in international student assessments: examining the AHELO epistemic community of economics experts

International student assessments have become the ‘lifeblood’ of the accountability movement in educational policy contexts. Drawing upon Stuart Hall’s concept of representation, I critically examined who comprises epistemic communities responsible for developing the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development’s Assessment of Higher Education Learning Outcomes economics strand. Through my analysis, I identify homogeneity among test-makers, missing voices, and western concepts as represented ideas that become fixed and circulated through policy channels. In an era of accountability and comparison, comparative international student assessments are becoming increasingly normative in educational settings. As scholars, policymakers, and educators use these test results, we must critically examine who is responsible for producing these tests.     

A conceptual framework for analysing the impact of influences on student engagement and learning

The notion that ‘customer satisfaction’ should be the ultimate measure of quality provision of any service organization is often accepted in the higher education context. However, measuring the quality of an educational institution based on students’ satisfaction is insufficient as it diverts the focus from student development, advancement and growth to an affective evaluation of the service. More appropriate measures of quality of higher education institutions are student engagement and learning. This study describes the likely impact of perceived overall quality of higher education institutions on student engagement. The contribution of this study is twofold. First, it draws attention to the importance of higher education institution quality as the main institutional-level determinant of student engagement and, second, it suggests a comprehensive multilevel conceptual framework for its empirical testing.     

Qualitative sampling in research on international student mobility: insights from the field in Germany1

ABSTRACT

Although over the past decades the numbers of studies investigating international student mobility and migration (ISM) increased, methodological challenges in empirical research on the topic have remained mainly unaddressed. This is particularly the case for sampling, which is a crucial but often less considered part of qualitative research designs. In this article, we identify three main challenges in qualitative sampling for research into ISM: time, space and international students’ heterogeneities. In addressing those challenges, we theoretically discuss their implications and give empirical examples drawing on our research experiences. We argue for a more reflexive research procedure in studying educational mobility.     

Increasing international and domestic student interaction through group work: a case study from the humanities

This article explores the use of group work strategies to increase student interaction and learning. Despite the growing linguistic and cultural diversity in tertiary institutions, there is strong evidence of minimal interaction between ‘domestic’ and ‘international’ students in classrooms and in wider university contexts. This study investigates the implementation of teaching and learning strategies in an undergraduate class comprising domestic and international students from Education and Arts. The strategies relate to in-class group work, tutorial groups and assessment design. The findings indicate greater class interaction, higher satisfaction ratings and better learning outcomes as a result of the strategies. The article argues for three key features underpinning the pedagogy: where international students can work from a position of power equality in class, where both groups of students can enact the role of ‘experts’ and where support in language and learning how to learn is embedded in assessment and outcomes.     

完善国家助学贷款工作的切入点

完善国家助学贷款工作可从以下方面切入：更新观念，建立国家助学贷款风险担保制度，明确助学贷款额度在银行贷款业务中的最低比例，制定实施国家助学贷款的具体政策，尽快建立个人信用系统，培养大学生的信贷观念和诚信意识，改变还款方式，出台国家助学贷款的减免条款。     

学生伤害案件之界定初探

学生伤害案件应被称为"学生伤害事故",仅包括学生在校期间因为各种各样的原因受到伤害的情形;侵权法对学生伤害事故进行规制的目的在于保护学生而不应限于未成年,学校的范围不应仅为中小学、幼儿园;学校无论是公立还是私立,都应对学生负有安全保护义务。     

高校辅导员微博使用状况实证调查——以上海市高校辅导员为例简

本文采用问卷调查法结合访谈法对上海14所高校的辅导员进行调研,结果表明微博尚未在辅导员工作中充分发挥优势。结合高校辅导员在学生工作中的教育、管理、服务职能,探索利用微博提高高校辅导员工作有效性的可行措施,为新形势下高校辅导员创新开展学生工作提供借鉴和参考。     

The impact of national educational policies on student achievement: a European study

This paper investigates the impact of national policies for improving teaching and the school learning environment (SLE) on student achievement. In each participating country (i.e., Belgium/Flanders, Cyprus, Germany, Greece, Ireland, and Slovenia), a sample of at least 50 schools was drawn and tests in mathematics and science were administered to all Grade 4 students (N = 10,742) at the beginning and end of school year 2010–2011. National policies were measured through (a) content analysis of policy documents, (b) interviews with policymakers, and (c) head-teacher questionnaires. Multilevel analyses revealed that most aspects of national policies for teaching and SLE were associated with student achievement in each subject irrespective of the source of data used to measure them. Implications are, finally, drawn.     

Examining the influence of international large-scale assessments on national education policies

This paper examines whether, to what extent, and how international large-scale assessments (ILSAs) have influenced education policy-making at the national level. Based on an exploratory review of the research and policy literature on ILSAs and two surveys administered to educational policy experts, researchers, policymakers, and educators, our research found that ILSAs, with their multiple and ambiguous uses, increasingly function as solutions in search for the right problem – that is, they appear to be used as tools to legitimize educational reforms. The survey results pointed to a growing perception among stakeholders that ILSAs are having an effect on national educational policies, with 38% of respondents stating that ILSAs were generally misused in national policy contexts. However, while the ILSA literature indicates that these assessments are having some influence, there is little evidence that any positive or negative causal relationship exists between ILSA participation and the implementation of education reforms. Perhaps the most significant change associated with the use of ILSAs in the literature reviewed is the way in which new conditions for educational comparison have been made possible at the national, regional, and global levels.     

A study of the validity of four types of student ratings of college teaching assessed on a criterion of student achievement gains

The purpose of the study was to investigate relationships between student ratings of college teaching using four types of student rating instruments and pre- vs. post-student achievement gains in 36 sections of an undergraduate analytic geometry and calculus course. Student rating instruments used varied according to type of items (high vs. low inference) and focus (students rating their own perceived growth vs. rating the instructor). Data were collected on 799 students (66% freshmen; 16% sophomore; and 15% juniors) at the University of Florida, and relationships were analyzed using the Pearson product-moment correlation technique. Significant relationships were not found between student ratings and student achievement.     

Determinants of timely completion: the impact of Bachelor's degree programme characteristics and student motivation on study progress

Timely completion of university degree programmes is a topic of growing concern to higher education institutions and their students. This paper reports on a study about the impact of degree programme characteristics and student motivation on study progress. The setting for the study is a Dutch law school. Data on degree programme characteristics, student ability, motivation, academic performance and academic pressure were collected from 168 first-year students six months after the start of their studies. Analysis of the effects of degree programme characteristics and students' initial motivation on study progress shows that study progress mainly depends on ability, timely completion goals and transparency of assessments. The study also shows that transparency of assessment procedures considerably lowers fear of failure and academic pressure.     

The impact of communication apprehension on college student retention and success

Communication apprehension is conceptualized as a causal agent in student success. It is implicated in both academic and interpersonal success, two factors identified by prior resesarch as primary predictors of persistence. A four year longitudinal study of the impact of communication apprehension on grade point average and persistence at the university level was conducted. Results indicated high CA students were significantly more likely to drop out and attain lower grade point averages compared to low CA students. The impact of CA was strongest during the first two years. A replication of the study confirmed the impact of CA on student persistence. It is concluded the impact of CA on the probablity of high CA students’ survival in college is substantial and this impact adds to the case favoring the provision of training programs to assist such students overcome their apprehension about communication.     

The impact of Geospatial Inquiry lessons on student interest in science and technology careers

Advances in online geospatial technologies (GST) have expanded access to K-12 classrooms which has implications for the support teachers require to effectively integrate GSTs to promote learning. Previous studies have shown the impact of GST-integrated lessons on student engagement, spatial thinking skills, and/or content knowledge; however, most of these studies have been small in scope and scale and frequently focus on the affordances of the technology, without addressing the context of the implementation and student characteristics for whom GST is most impactful. We attempt to address some of these gaps. Our program scaled an effective GST-focused professional learning and development program to a national audience through a facilitator development model. This paper explores the student characteristics and lesson factors that resulted in student interest in science and technology and careers in those fields. After teaching a Geospatial Inquiry lesson created during a teacher workshop, teachers (n = 82) submitted the lessons and surveys on the implementation of Geospatial Inquiry lessons. The implementation surveys and lessons were scored for alignment to the principles of high-quality Geospatial Inquiry. Students (n = 1924) completed a post-lesson retrospective survey and indicated the extent to which their perceptions and attitudes toward science and technology changed because of the lesson. Results indicate that teacher GST performance is associated with increases in student outcomes. Students with previous exposure to science activities were more likely to have increased interest and excitement in science and careers in science but decreased interest in technology careers. Students who had previous exposure to technology activities had increased interest and excitement in technology and careers in technology but decreased interest in science careers. Geospatial Inquiry lessons also had a significant impact on students who are traditionally underrepresented in STEM fields. After participating in the lessons, students who identify as female reported higher engagement and interest in science and higher interest in science careers. Students who identified as Black or Hispanic also reported higher interest and excitement in science and technology, and students who identified as Black reported marginally higher interest in science careers.     

对进一步提高国防生选拔培养质量的几点思考

借助普通高等教育资源培养军队干部是我军人才培养制度的重大改革,顺应了世界军事变革的潮流。在充分利用普通高等教育资源的同时,还应该从思想认识、制度保障、注重融合等方面解决当前出现的问题,确保为军队培养出高质量的复合人才。     

论教学回归生活与学生发展

随着基础教育课程改革的迅速推展,教学回归生活的重要性与紧迫性日益凸显,教学论研究者必须顺应时代发展的要求,审视与反思教学回归生活的话语,探究教学回归生活与学生发展的论题。     

Exploring the contribution of professional staff to student outcomes: a comparative study of Australian and UK case studies

This paper reports on the second stage of a comparative study between two higher education institutions: one in Australia and the other in the United Kingdom, which explored the contributions of professional staff to student outcomes. The first stage acted as a scoping exercise to ascertain how the contributions of professional staff to student outcomes could be investigated. The second stage of the study aimed to undertake a more in-depth exploration of self-reported behaviours in a range of professional staff roles, within the two case studies. The main finding of the comparative study is the broad similarities between the case studies, in self-reported behaviours that contribute to successful student outcomes. Four key factors were identified, which enable or inhibit the contributions of professional staff to successful outcomes. Three of the four factors were found to be the same in both case studies, whereas technology was more important in the Australian case study.     

Exploring the impact of faculty reflection on weekly student evaluations of teaching

This exploratory study considered Larrivee’s assessment of teachers’ reflective practice levels by using a formative, weekly, online student evaluation of teaching (SET) tool through a virtual learning environment (VLE) as a means to encourage reflective practice. In‐depth interviews were conducted with six faculty members in three departments at a university college in the UK. The study found that: (a) faculty who experienced surface‐level reflection were more likely to have a reactive reflection style; and (b) faculty who experienced higher levels of reflection were more likely to have a proactive reflection style. Overall, the tool was found to be an efficient means of encouraging reflection by all participants and demonstrated that reflective practice could come about as a result of these weekly formative SETs. The study concludes with suggestions for academic development and future research on reflection that could be conducted using SETs via a VLE.