Understanding the factors and consequences of student belonging in higher education: a critical literature review

Student belonging is becoming an increasingly prominent concept in how universities pursue policies and practices to ensure student success. Through this increased prevalence, there has been a substantial increase in research output on this topic in recent years. This critical literature review aims to provide a comprehensive and accessible synthesis of research around the factors that affect student belonging and how it links to student success. Utilising a systematised search and appraisal method, 118 studies were included and reviewed. The existing literature has robustly shown the connections between belonging and many different aspects of student success – including student engagement levels, wellbeing, and retention. Critical analysis of the studies shows that the factors affecting student belonging are also multiple, although only some – such as experiential pedagogies and personalised support from staff – have been replicated in studies across multiple contexts and with experimental research methods. Importantly, there are also factors which negatively impact students’ sense of belonging – such as experiences of being stereotyped by staff. Utilising these findings around factors that influence student belonging, this article provides a set of recommendations for practitioners and identified gaps for future research on student belonging. Overall, this article contributes to understandings of how to impact students’ sense of belonging and how this links to student success

Signature-based security analysis and detection of IoT threats in advanced message queuing protocol

The Advanced Message Queuing Protocol (AMQP) is a widely used communication standard in IoT systems due to its robust and reliable message delivery capabilities. However, its increasing adoption has made it a target for various cyber threats, including Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS), Man-in-the-Middle (MitM), and brute force attacks. This study presents a comprehensive analysis of AMQP-specific vulnerabilities and introduces a statistical model for the detection and classification of malicious activities in IoT networks. Leveraging a custom-designed IoT testbed, realistic attack scenarios were simulated, and a dataset encompassing normal, malicious, and mixed traffic was generated. Unique attack signatures were identified and validated through repeated experiments, forming the foundation of a signature-based detection mechanism tailored for AMQP networks. The proposed model demonstrated high accuracy in detecting and classifying attack-specific traffic while maintaining a low false positive rate for benign traffic. Notable results include effective detection of RST packets in DDoS scenarios, precise classification of MitM attack patterns, and identification of brute force attempts on AMQP systems. This research highlights the efficacy of signature-based approaches in enhancing IoT security and offers a benchmark for future machine learning-driven detection systems. By addressing AMQP-specific challenges, the study contributes to the development of resilient and secure IoT ecosystems

Measuring quality in the baby room: what the global evidence says

A new research project is looking into the quality of provision in English baby rooms following the Government's expansion of subsidised education and care to infants as young as nine months. In the first of two articles, Dr Mona Sakr shares more about the project and how the quality of provision is defined and measured

Student communications: a review of current practices and scoping a new vision

Student communications has developed as a professional field in universities in recent decades, as universities seek to more strategically engage diverse student populations with ever-changing expectations and needs. Whilst most universities now have some form of function or resourcing dedicated to considering how to best communicate with current students, there is minimal research exploring the priorities of these functions. This article takes a narrative review of practice approach, critiquing and highlighting the student communications practices of 17 universities around the world. The review thematically grouped the efforts of these institutions, finding that the main activities of student communications functions are: (1) implementing structures, strategic frameworks and policies (2) creation of campaigns to build campus pride and belonging (3) development of channels to better inform students about support and opportunities (4) evaluate students’ engagement, satisfaction and trust with their institution. Following the review of current practice, this article identifies gaps that should be addressed to enhance student communications functions, as well as principles that student communicators should adopt to gain legitimacy in their work

Ensuring culturally competent nursing care for LGBT+ people

People who are lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and other sexual and gender minorities (LGBT+) can encounter various challenges when seeking healthcare. For example, many LGBT+ individuals experience discrimination and social stigma from healthcare professionals, leading to feelings of mistrust. This might manifest as explicit homophobia or transphobia, inappropriate questioning, or a lack of consideration for the sensitivities around LGBT+ identities. Similarly, healthcare organisations may have policies that lack inclusivity, with administrative forms and procedures that do not consider diverse sexual orientations and gender identities. Nurses are increasingly recognising the importance of providing inclusive care for individuals who identify as LGBT+, which involves being attentive to their specific needs. This article examines the barriers that may be encountered by LGBT+ individuals in healthcare services and offers recommendations for how nurses can deliver culturally sensitive healthcare to the LGBT+ community

A risk assessment of information security in a diet centre business: a case study

This paper employed the framework of Operationally Critical Threat, Asset, and Vulnerability Evaluation Allegro (OCTAVE-Allegro) to analyse the key risks and challenges faced by the business of Diet Centre X, particularly in terms of security, operational efficiency, and customer trust. The primary concerns identified include data input errors, outdated billing systems, weak password management practices, and a lack of comprehensive security awareness training. These issues pose significant risks to the centre’s productivity, financial health, and reputation. Contributions of this paper include the proposal of several lessons learned and solutions: creating a customer registration system that is connected to the client data validation in the management system, along with implementing a validation for all input fields to reduce human errors and upgrading the billing system to remove outdated payment methods and enhance the user interface, and conducting quarterly security awareness training for all employees to increase their preparedness against potential security threats

'Understanding domestic violence and abuse: victim, suspect and crime predictors of police outcomes'

Purpose: Domestic violence and abuse (DVA) cases remain under-reported and under-prosecuted in the criminal justice system (CJS), with researchers frequently having limited access to raw police data. Here, a range of factors relating to DVA offences occurring between 2018 and 2020 in one large English police force were described and measured. As part of the research, it was investigated if victim and suspect characteristics predicted outcome decisions, specifically charge rate, case attrition, and evidential difficulties despite victims’ support in pursuing the allegations. The number of offences meeting the DVA legal definition, and those falling outside that definition, were also explored. Methods: Univariate and multivariate logistic regressions were performed to predict the relationship between demographic information and criminal history on three coded crime outcome categories (namely, ‘charge’, ‘victim does not proceed’, and ‘law does not pursue’). Results: The dataset included 198,617 crimes, and for 94.1% of them, the suspect was not charged. Relationship type, age, crime type, and the number of victim allegations predicted all three outcomes. For instance, being partners of the victim significantly decreased the chances of a charge compared to suspects who were not partners. Conclusions: The findings are in line with evidence from the literature which highlights all-time low charge rates for DVA and high levels of victim attrition. We argue that the influence of victim/suspect characteristics and DVA-related dynamics should be considered by police personnel and members of the CJS when assessing crime reports

Neurodivergence acceptance - Embedding cultural competence in midwifery education

Background: The RCM is committed to promoting equality, diversity and inclusion within all aspects of maternity services. This starts with midwifery education. With a growing awareness of neurodivergent students and healthcare professionals, education needs to be designed to be accessible and free from obstacles to support. We have produced a unique toolkit to support midwifery educators to provide inclusive education, advocating for widespread neurodivergence acceptance. By educators developing more inclusive midwifery curricula, we hope to contribute to more equitable and accessible maternity services that better serve diverse communities. Methods: The ‘neurodivergence acceptance toolkit’ aims to prompt midwifery educators to evaluate their processes, from recruitment to qualification, to create a learning environment in which neurodivergent students can thrive. The RCM coproduced the toolkit in partnership with a range of stakeholders with lived experience and enabling educators to examine their midwifery programmes from diverse perspectives. Feedback has already shown improvements to the educational journey for midwifery students who face discrimination, ultimately improving experiences for midwives, women, birthing people and their babies. Results: Neurodivergence Acceptance Toolkit Conclusion: The toolkit advocates for accessible and inclusive education within universities and practice, ultimately improving the learning experience for all midwifery students and resulting in a more competent workforce. Potential impact: It is shown that neurodivergent people, often from intersecting identities, experience discrimination. This applies equally to childbearing women, midwives and midwifery students. If the maternity workforce is representative of the population it serves, outcomes will improve, as will the attrition rates of the neurodivergent healthcare workforce

Embracing inclusivity in student healthcare practice - educating and supporting staff

Studies show that up to 20% of the population are neurodivergent. Healthcare students and staff report experiencing bias and discrimination in the workplace. The People Plan for 2020/21 (NHS England, 2020) promotes a vision placing a compassionate and inclusive culture at the centre of the NHS. It highlights that all NHS employees and employers are accountable for tackling bullying and harassment. This resource focusses on creating a more civil and respectful culture This team utilised a wide range of ND stakeholders (nursing and radiology students, nurses, midwives and lecturers) from across the UK to develop a series of interactive resources, including animated case studies for healthcare workers working with and assessing students. An intersectional approach based on lived experience was used to ensure that diversity of all kinds (race, gender, sexual identity, age and disability) was considered. The aim was to enhance understanding of the experience and needs of the ND student community through immersion in realistic scenarios, contributing to the education and support of staff in practice settings to maximise student potential, manage student needs effectively and support retention. This project was evaluated by pairing a ND student with a Practice Supervisor (PS) and Practice Assessor (PA). The PS/PAs completed a pre-package questionnaire evaluating their understanding of neurodivergence. They then completed the package and a post-package questionnaire. A follow-up questionnaire was sent to the PA/PSs following the placement and semi-structured interviews were conducted with students either in a focus group or individually if requested. Healthcare staff stated their understanding of supporting ND students following the training. It improved their awareness and gave them tools to support students using a more personalised approach. Students reported that the tool made supervisors more receptive to discussions surrounding reasonable adjustments and that this had improved their overall experience on placement through individualised adaptations

Effect of post activation potentiation on weightlifting performance and endocrinological responses

Purpose: This study examined the acute performance enhancing effects of a supramaximal clean pull performed at 120% of clean and jerk one repetition maximum, on clean performance. Methods: Eight (n = 8) ranked collegiate level weightlifters attended two days of testing in a randomised order. A control session was used to identify a baseline measure of kinetic and kinematic clean performance and endocrinological status following three cleans interspersed with one-minute recovery between repetitions. The experimental condition required participants to perform a single clean pull at 120% of clean and jerk one repetition maximum followed by three minutes recovery, prior to executing three cleans with one-minute recovery between repetitions. All cleans were performed on a dual force plate set up, synchronised with a 3D motions capture system to simultaneously record barbell and ground reaction force data. All endocrinological data was measured prior to the participant warming up and also following each testing protocol. Results: The results indicated that no significant differences were found between the control and PAP condition (p = 0.140 - 0.902), however effect sizes from group analysis identified moderately negative to trivial effects across kinetic, kinematic and endocrinological variables (d = -0.30 – 0.14). Further analysis on an individual level, demonstrated values, both negative and positive, ranging from extremely large (d = -4.10) to trivial (d = 0.04). Conclusions: Findings suggest a potentially negative affect of PAP on kinetic and kinematic measures of clean performance. However, individual responses varied, and thus some weightlifters may find this useful