The Australian Research Quality Framework: A live experiment in capturing the social, economic, environmental, and cultural returns of publicly funded research

Copyright @ 2008 Wiley Periodicals Inc. This is the accepted version of the following article: Donovan, C. (2008), The Australian Research Quality Framework: A live experiment in capturing the social, economic, environmental, and cultural returns of publicly funded research. New Directions for Evaluation, 2008: 47–60, which has been published in final form at http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/ev.260/abstract.The author regards development of Australia's ill-fated Research Quality Framework (RQF) as a “live experiment” in determining the most appropriate approach to evaluating the extra-academic returns, or “impact,” of a nation's publicly funded research. The RQF was at the forefront of an international movement toward richer qualitative, contextual approaches that aimed to gauge the wider economic, social, environmental, and cultural benefits of research. Its construction and implementation sent mixed messages and created confusion about what impact is, and how it is best measured, to the extent that this bold live experiment did not come to fruition

Diversity in numbers – cultivating a growth mindset for numeracy development

Developing a solid foundation in quantitative skills (QS, e.g., numeracy, statistics) is essential for students’ academic success. More broadly, numeracy is a core language for understanding and developing critical thinking around current and future challenges in sustainability, artificial intelligence and climate change. However, Australian tertiary QS teaching is often limited to one 100-level unit and between 1-3 units later in the degree (Matthews et al., 2012). This provides little opportunity for vertical scaffolding of QS or even STEM students’ recognition of QS as an essential element of their learning, as QS development is not prioritised in their courses. The ACDS-funded Diversity in Numbers (DiN) project evaluates an alternative curricular model for numeracy skills development within the science curriculum: scaffolded, course-wide implementation of digital numeracy modules with embedded interactive content and rich automated feedback to maximise learning. Pilot modules have been developed, each focusing on a core QS concept (e.g., statistical testing, unit conversions). Modules are framed around a published article relevant to unit content, with the goal of broadening student awareness of how numbers can be used to explore global diversity. By promoting a culture of inclusivity and diversity, where students can see themselves within the curriculum, we aim to foster a sense of belonging among our diverse undergraduate students, supporting the emergence of an increasingly diverse scientific community. Preliminary qualitative findings from student focus groups during semester two 2022 will be presented, considering the implications of DiN modules on student engagement and learning, numeracy anxiety and awareness of diversity. A major finding of this work was that most students in the focus group displayed a fixed mindset to QS, although we did see some variability depending on the context in which students received their school-level mathematics education. While most students could recognise a fixed mindset around maths, leading to anxiety or avoidance of QS, students educated outside the Australian education system were not constrained by this. From these findings, it seems that fostering a growth mindset around QS development is a crucial first step in engaging Australian students with university-level numeracy concepts. We propose that participating in scaffolded QS modules that sit outside the graded curriculum and offer formative feedback may support students to develop a growth mindset towards QS. REFERENCE Matthews, K. E., Belward, S., Coady, C., Rylands, L., Simbag, V., Adams, P., Peleaz, N., Thompson, K., Parry, M., & Tariq, V. (2012). The state of quantitative skills in undergraduate science education: findings from an Australian study. Australian Government, Office for Learning and Teaching

Applied and conceptual approaches to evidence-based practice in research and academic libraries

Evidence-based practice is an approach to professional practice that involves a structured process of collecting, interpreting and applying valid and reliable research and evidence to support decision-making and continuous service improvement in professional practice. This paper reports on emerging initiatives in evidence-based practice at the University of Southern Queensland (USQ) Library, a regional multi-campus university in Australia. It demonstrates how evidence-based practice forms part of our organisational strategy to engage with our community and society. The case study describes a new model of embedding evidence-based practice through a role explicitly dedicated to developing the library’s evidence base. While other libraries may have a person responsible for assessment, performance metrics or data analysis, the Coordinator (Evidence-Based Practice) has a broader mandate – to work with library staff to develop tools, skills and expertise in evidence-based practice. The paper will describe why this role was created and how the Coordinator is working to engage with library staff to understand their business and the evidence needed to support service improvement for the Library. By doing this, USQ Library is building the capacity to demonstrate value to stakeholders, gain a deeper understanding of clients’ needs and experiences, promote robust decision-making and improve service delivery. The paper also outlines an initiative led by the Coordinator (Evidence-Based Practice) to develop a conceptual model of evidence-based practice within academic libraries at the organisational, rather than individual level. Current models of evidence-based library and information practice apply predominantly to individuals. Informed by relevant literature and 16 semi-structured interviews with library professionals from Australian and New Zealand university libraries, three themes emerged to describe how evidence-based practice might be experienced at the organisational level. The lived experience at USQ Library and our research investigations suggest that being evidence-based provides benefits to an academic library’s culture, practice and impact

Factors affecting academic performance of international students in project management courses : a case study from a British Post 92 University

Original article can be found at : http://www.sciencedirect.com/ Copyright ElsevierThe aim of study is to investigate the factors affecting the academic performance of international students in Project Management courses. To achieve this aim, a conceptual framework including three categories of factors: (i) Teaching Style, (ii) English Language and Communication and (iii) Assessment Methods was developed and empirically tested on a sample of international students from a British Post 92 University. The results suggest that the factors: level of details given in lectures, speed of lectures, academic internet sources, English Language skills, group or individual assessment, the qualitative/quantitative content of assessment are important drivers of the academic performance of international students in Project ManagementPeer reviewe

Is academic economics withering in Australia?

Abstract: Departments of economics in Australia have not fared well recently. Many have been closed, merged or relocated, their staff made redundant while economics degrees and majors have been eliminated. This article tries to understand why academic economics appears to be withering in this country, or at least increasingly concentrated in Group of Eight (Go8) universities, and what if anything can still be done to preserve what is left

Understanding EBLIP at an organizational level: an initial maturity model

Objective - Existing research around evidence based practice in the LIS (library and information science) professional context over the past two decades has captured the experience of individual practitioners, rather than the organization as a whole. Current models of evidence based library and information practice (EBLIP) relate to, and apply predominantly to, individuals or specific scenarios. Yet despite a growing demand from institutional and library leaders for evidence to demonstrate why investments in libraries should continue, little is known about how an organization can enhance its maturity in evidence based practice. This paper addresses this gap by seeking to understand what an evidence based university library looks like and answering the questions: how does a university library leader know the library’s service and practice is evidence based? How can a university library measure and progress its maturity in evidence based practice? Methods - Sixteen semi-structured interviews were conducted with library professionals employed at Australian and New Zealand university libraries. Transcripts were analyzed using thematic analysis techniques. The interviews, combined with a literature review and environmental scan of evidence based practices in university libraries, informed the development of a draft capability maturity model as a framework for developing evidence based practice in university libraries. Results - The model identifies and describes characteristics at five different levels of evidence based practice maturity from least mature (Ad hoc/Sporadic) to most mature (Transforming). Three dimensions of experience help to define the characteristics at each level of maturity and provide a framework to understand how a university library might develop its organizational capacity in evidence based library and information practice. Conclusion - Library leaders and practitioners will benefit from the model as they seek to identify and build upon their evidence based practice maturity, enabling more robust decision-making, a deeper understanding of their clients and demonstration of value and impact to their stakeholders

HREC members\u27 personal values influence decision making in contentious cases

This article identifies 14 contentious issues faced by Human Research Ethics Committees (HRECs). The authors argue that HREC members will respond variably to these issues based on their own fundamental values and worldview. In particular, we propose that personal interpretations of current ethics regulations and HREC members’ attitudes to consequentialism, Kantianism, and utilitarianism in some cases affect their responses to contentious research issues. We seek to promote understanding of how personal and professional back­grounds of HREC reviewers influence their approaches to value-laden issues embedded in ethics applications. Taking the form of a literature review, our con­tribution highlights the need for further exploration of how HREC members make decisions, and what factors influence the outcomes of ethics applications

How pluralistic is the research field on adult education? Dominating bibliometrical trends, 2005-2012

What the field of adult education research is and how it can be described has been a debated issue over the decades. Several scholars argue that the field today is heterogeneous, borrowing theories and methods from a range of disciplines. In this article, we take such statements as a starting point for empirical analysis. In what ways could it be argued that the field is pluralistic rather than monolithic; heterogeneous rather than homogenous? Drawing on bibliographic data of the top cited articles in three main adult education journals between 2005 and 2012, we illustrate how the citation patterns have tendencies of homogeneity when it comes to the geographical country of authorship, since the USA, UK, Australia and Canada dominate, as well as the research methods adopted, since qualitative approaches have near total dominance. Furthermore, there is a tendency to adopt similar theoretical approaches, since sociocultural perspectives, critical pedagogy and post-structuralism represent more than half of the articles in our sample. At the same time, the results of our analysis indicate signs of scholarly pluralism, for instance, in terms of authorship, since both early career researchers and established researchers are represented among the top cited publications. We conclude the article by arguing that empirical analysis of publication and citation patterns is important to further the development of reflexivity within the field, not least for early career researchers, who might benefit from knowledge about what has been recognized among peers as worth citing in recent times. (DIPF/Orig.