Scholarship neglected? How levels are assigned for units of study in Australian undergraduate courses

Undergraduate units of study are typically differentiated by level as introductory, intermediate or advanced. This paper considers the processes used to create such differentiations together with their implications. Results from a survey of current policy and practice in Australian universities are presented. They reveal a paucity of guidance for lecturers as they design their unit presentations and assessment expectations to reflect the level assigned to their unit. There is also a widely held view that academics intuitively know how to interpret unit levels. The authors contend that current policy and practices associated with determining levels of units are inadequate and argue that more explicit definitions and educationally defensible processes are required.     

Efficiency in the community college sector: stochastic frontier analysis

This paper estimates technical efficiency scores across the community college sector in the United States. Using stochastic frontier analysis and data from the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System for 2003–2010, we estimate efficiency scores for 950 community colleges and perform a series of sensitivity tests to check for robustness. We find that community colleges have become more efficient over time, but no evidence of economies of scale. We also find significant variation in efficiency across colleges, with only part of this variation explained by exogenous differences by state and across student characteristics.     

A survey investigating school psychologists' measurement of treatment integrity in school‐based interventions and their beliefs about its importance

A survey of individuals holding the Nationally Certified School Psychologist (NCSP) credential was conducted via the Internet to gather information regarding their measurement of treatment integrity in school‐based interventions and their beliefs about its importance. A sample of 806 self‐selected professionals holding the NCSP credential provided data about the extent to which they measure treatment integrity and the methods they used to measure it when developing interventions via one‐to‐one and group/team consultation. Results showed that 97.6% agreed that measurement of treatment integrity was a key factor to consider and to include when evaluating interventions and when using intervention data for special education eligibility decisions. Few, however, reported regularly documenting it in one‐to‐one (only 11.3%) or group/team consultation (only 1.9%). Recommendations for how school psychologists and other school staff can increase their measurement of treatment integrity in school‐based interventions are offered. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

First- and second-generation design and engineering students: experience,attainment and factors influencing them to attend university

Challenges for students who are ‘first-in-family’ to attend university have been discussed within widening participation discourse. However, in the UK, ‘first-in-family’ or first-generation students have frequently been conflated with those experiencing poverty or from lower socio-economic groups. This research integrated survey data with assessment data from final-year design and engineering students in a UK university to examine students’ attainment, the influences on why students decide to attend university and students’ experiences during their degree programmes. Analysis of the data showed variations in the reasons for first- and second-generation students wanting to go to university, particularly a significant difference in the influence of parents. First-generation students described significantly less parental influence on the decision to attend university than second- or subsequent-generation students. Smaller differences in students’ experiences and attainment in university were also noted. Whilst first-generation students reported differences in study habits, their attainment was, on average, marginally higher than that of their peers. Building on others’ theoretical work, which suggests the importance of social capital within higher education (HE), this research highlights the difference in social influences on both university application and expectations of university for those with and without a family history of tertiary education. Further research is needed to explore, in larger samples, whether the social influences on individuals’ perception of HE are in turn shaped by whether or not their parents attended university, and further, what impact this may have, not only on degree outcomes but also on the broader benefits typically associated with graduate experience.     

Hyperinstrumentalism and cultural policy: means to an end or an end to meaning?

This paper investigates the implications for cultural policy of the logic of the instrumental view of culture taken to its conclusion. Policy developments that establish sets of justifications and rationales that have nothing to do with the cultural content of the policy concerned, but which arise from a deliberate realignment of policy frameworks, establish a form of hyperinstrumentalism. With hyperinstrumentalism the focus on outcomes and the ends of policy means that cultural policy is only as important as the ends to which it is directed. As such, hyperinstrumentalisation demonstrates the consequences for the sector of conditions where claims about the value of culture are irrelevant to political actors. The paper questions whether sense can be made of this shift as a coherent and strategic political choice, rather than as a simple assault on culture. The case of Northern Ireland’s Department of Culture, Arts and Leisure is used to illustrate this. The authors question whether hyperinstrumentalism undermines the justification for an autonomous domain of cultural policy.     

Practical considerations when using pedometers to assess physical activity in population studies: lessons from the Burnie Take Heart Study

The aim of this study was to summarize both practical and methodological issues in using pedometers to assess physical activity in a large epidemiologic study. As part of a population-based survey of cardiovascular disease risk factors, physical activity was assessed using pedometers and activity diaries in 775 men and women ages 25-64 years who were residents of Burnie, Tasmania, 1998-99. Common data problems were classified by type. The frequency of each problem and the methods used to identify it are reported along with strategies to correct or prevent each problem type. Pedometer data from 15 (1.9%) participants could not be used due to errors in completing the pedometer protocol. Among 760 participants with usable data, the median number of steps was 9,729 for men and 10,388 for women. Pedometer steps per day were modestly correlated (r = .20, p < .0001) with the duration of pedometer wear, which ranged from 4.50 to 21.75 hr. Adjustment for wear time, however, did not alter observed correlations between pedometer steps and cardiovascular risk factors. The authors conclude that pedometers can be used in large population studies with a relatively low frequency of data errors. However guidelines for consistent data collection and interpretation are needed.     

Canoe slalom--competition analysis reliability

The aim of this study was to assess intra-observer and inter-observer reliability of data gathered from a lapsed-time time-motion analysis of canoe slalom competition. The data were collected using a definition set developed in conjunction with elite canoe slalom coaches. Competition runs from four national-standard paddlers in a national selection race were analysed in random order three times by three observers. For each run, observers identified various events specific to canoe slalom, including time taken between gates, touched and missed gates, turn times, major and minor avoidance, rolls, paddle in and out of water times, and stroke classification. The error of measurement was determined for each of these variables. For time taken between gates and turn times, the error was < or = 0.21 and < or = 0.39 s for intra-observer and inter-observer analysis, respectively. The error for stroke in and out of water times was < or = 0.08 and < or = 0.13 s for intra-observer and inter-observer analysis, respectively. Analysis of stroke classification identification for intra-observer comparisons revealed that 91% of the time identical stroke identification occurred. Inter-observer analysis revealed identical stroke identification was achieved 81% of the time. These reliability data compare favourably with previous time-motion analysis in other sports using fewer variables.     

In-school and out-of-school physical activity in primary and secondary school children

The aim of this study was to compare in-school and out-of-school physical activity within a representative sample. Socio-demographic, physical activity, and anthropometric data were collected from a random sample of children (250 boys, 253 girls) aged 3-16 years attending nine primary and two secondary schools. Actigraph GT1M accelerometers, worn for seven days, were used to estimate physical activity levels for in-school (typically 09.00-15.00 h), out-of-school (weekday), and weekend periods. Physical activity as accelerometer counts per minute were lower in school versus out of school overall (in school: 437.2 +/- 172.9; out of school: 575.5 +/- 202.8; P < 0.001), especially in secondary school pupils (secondary: 321.6 +/- 127.5; primary: 579.2 +/- 216.3; P < 0.001). Minutes of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity accumulated in school accounted for 29.4 +/- 9.8% of total weekly moderate-to-vigorous physical activity overall but varied by sector (preschool: 37.4 +/- 6.2%; primary: 33.6 +/- 8.1%; secondary: 23.0 +/- 9.3%; F = 114.3, P < 0.001). Approximately half of the children with the lowest in-school activity compensated out of school during the week (47.4%) and about one-third at the weekend (30.0%). Overall, physical activity during the school day appears to be lower than that out of school, especially in secondary school children, who accumulate a lower proportion of their total weekly moderate-to-vigorous physical activity at school than younger children. As low in-school activity was compensated for beyond the school setting by less than half of children, promoting physical activity within the school day is important, especially in secondary schools.     

Patterns of core and generic skill provision in higher education

The study reported here is seeking to gain enhanced understandings of the acquisition and development of core and generic skills in higher education and employment against a backcloth of continued pressure for their effective delivery from employers, government departments, and those responsible for the management and funding of higher education. This pressure appears to have had little impact so far, in part because of tutors' scepticism of the message, the messenger and its vocabulary, and in part because the skills demanded lack clarity, consistency and a recognisable theoretical base. Any empirical attempt to acquire enhanced understandings of practice thus requires the conceptualisation and development of models of generic skills and of course provision. These models are presented together with evidence of their validity, including exemplars of the patterns of course provision identified.