An Australian＇ s Perspective of an American Unversity

Since high school I have always wanted to study in a country other than my own. However, my parents always informed me that it was too expensive. This was until luck turned my way one day while I was at university. My advisor called me and asked me to go and see him as soon as possible. I just knew it had to be good news. I could barely stand the suspense and went to his office with a nervous happiness in my tummy （肚子）.     

The new books on our shelves

Introductory Mechanical Drawing. By Albert A. Lacour and Glenn N. Shaeffer. Milwaukee: The Bruce Publishing Company, 1931. pp. 23.

Two Times Two Is Four. Adapted from the Swedish of Zacharias Topelins by Vera C. Himes. New York: Thomas Y. Crowell Company, 1931. Pp. 64.

Jean and Fanchon: Children of Fair France. By Virginia Olcott. New York: Silver, Burdett and Company, 1931. Pp. viii + 168.

Introduction to the Use of Standard Tests (Revised Edition). By Sidney L. Pressey and Luella Cole. New York: World Book Company, 1931. Pp. iii + 266.

Health Horizons. By Jean Broadhurst and Marion Olive Lerrigo. New York: Silver, Burdett and Company, 1931. Pp. i + 44.

Poems for Enjoyment. By Elias Lieberman. New York: Harper Brothers, 1931. Pp. v + 510.

Fabrics and Dress. By Lucy Rathbone and Elizabeth Tarpley. New York: Houghton Mifflin and Company, 1931. Pp. ix + 430.

Factors Influencing the Choice of Courses by Students in Certain Liberal Arts Colleges. By Helen Foss Weeks. New York: Columbia University, 1931. Pp. i + 62.

Manual for Expressing Educational Measures as Percentile Ranks. By Francis C. Buros and Oscar K. Buros. Yonkers: World Book Company, 1930. Pp. 27.

Mental and Interest Tests. By Lea Hamilton King. New York: Columbia University, 1931. Pp. 1 + 124.

The Bearing of Certain Personality Factors Other Than Intelligence on Academic Success. By Henry T. Tyler. New York: Columbia University, 1931. Pp. v + 88.

Psychology of Exceptional Children. By Norma V. Scheidemann. New York: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1931. Pp. i + 520.

Problems in School Supervision. By George C. Kyte. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1931. Pp. xiv + 214.

The Birch Bark Roll of Woodcraft. By Ernest Thompson Seton. New York: A. S. Barnes and Company, 1931. Pp. xii + 268.

How to be Interesting. By Professor Robert E. Rogers. Boston: L. C. Page & Company, 1931. Pp. xii + 170.

Grammar in Action. By J. C. Tressler. New York: D. C. Heath and Company, 1931. Pp. xii + 404.

Uncle Remus. By Joel Chandler Harris. New York: D. Appleton and Company, 1931. Pp. xxiii + 283.

Making the Most of High School. By Clyde M. Hill and Raymond D. Mosher. New York: Laidlaw Brothers, 1931. Pp. v + 288.

Modern Business Law. By Jay Finley Christ. New York: The Macmillan Company, 1930. Pp. xiv + 612.

Capital Outlay in Relation to a State's Minimum Educational Program. By Foster E. Grossnickle. New York: Columbia University, 1931. Pp. iii + 65.

Students' Marks in College Courses. By John E. Bohan. Minneapolis: University of Minneapolis Press, 1931. Pp. iii + 133.

The Influence of Training on Changes in Variability in Achievement. By Homer B. Reed. Albany: Psychological Review Company, 1931, Pp. 1+ 59.

Education and the Philosophy of Experimentalism, By John L. Childs. New York: The Century Company, 1931. Pp. vii + 264.

Progress in Adjusting Differences of Amount of Educational Opportunity Offered Under the County Unit Systems of Maryland and Utah. By L. John Nuttall, Jr. New York: Bureau of Publications, Teachers College, Columbia University, 1931. Pp. v + 105.

Modern Chemistry. By Charles E. Dull. New York: Henry Holt and Company, 1931. Pp. xii + 776.

An Introduction to Organic Chemistry. By Roger J. Williams. New York: D. Van Nostrand Co., 1931. Pp. iii + 585.

Educational Measurement in the High School. By C. W. Odell. New York: The Century Company, 1930. Pp. 641.

Furniture Boys Like to Build. By Richard Shaver. Milwaukee: The Bruce Publishing Company, 1931. Pp. 216.

General Metal Work. By Alfred B. Grayshon. New York: D. Van Nostrand Company, 1930. Pp. viii + 206.

Coloring, Finishing, and Painting Wood. By A. C. Newell. Peoria: The Manual Arts Press, 1930. Pp. 419.

A Gateway to Music. By Wilton W. Blanche and Jay Speck. Boston: D. C. Heath and Company, 1931. Pp. v + 178.

Plane Geometry Work Book, By Theodore Herberg and Sinclair J. Wilson. Boston: D. C. Heath and Company, 1931.

Standard Service Arithmetics, Grades One and Two. By J. W. Studebaker, F. B. Knight and W. C. Findley. Chicago: Scott, Foresman and Company, 1929. Pp. 154.

Introductory Algebra. By Alan Johnson and Arthur W. Belcher. Chicago: Laurel Book Company, 1930. Pp. 407.

Fabrics and Clothing. By Sara MacBride and Ellen Beers McGowan. New York: The Macmillan Company, 1931. Pp. viii + 225.

Mathematics, Seventh School Year. By Fred Engelhardt and Mary L. Edwards. New York: D. Appleton and Company, 1931. Pp. xvi + 232.     

A Testing Issue: Key skills assessment in Australia

Maintenance of academic standards, assessment and monitoring are key tasks for tertiary education, as the system attempts to meet government targets for universal participation. Tertiary education therefore demands more attention to the measurement of outcomes. However, the use of a graduate skills assessment test, we contend--particularly in the form this currently takes in Australia--implies a limited sense of the value added by a university education. We question the validity of national testing both on grounds of its suitability to assess the skills cultivated by university study and on grounds of equity and cultural inclusiveness.     

Differences in competencies between doctoral students on‐campus and at a distance

Abstract

This article describes differences between on‐campus and distance learners by knowledge, skills, and abilities. On‐campus doctoral students at Texas A&M University were compared with doctoral students enrolled in a distance education program offered jointly with Texas Tech University. Student perceptions of their competency levels were gathered using a mixed mailed/Internet questionnaire. On‐campus and distance education students had different levels of competence. Competency models can serve faculty and administrators as an assessment tool for strategic decision making and development of courses and curricula. This study provides a model for benchmarking competencies and provides baseline data for making such changes.