Why exercise is important for someone with diabetes

Unlike medication, exercise is low cost and side-effect free. Those with diabetes who don’t exercise are three times more likely to have poor diabetes control and more likely to suffer related complications

Embedding race equality and internationalising the curriculum:Abertay University case study

As part of the HEA Scotland embedding equality and diversity in the curriculum (EEDC) strategic enhancement project, Abertay University focused on developing an infrastructure for the embedding of race equality and the internationalising of their curriculum. They developed a bespoke model focused on four pillars: capacity, capability, competence and confidence. Lying on a foundation of CPD – comprising online training, workshops, online resources, mentorship and further professional development opportunities – these four pillars aim to support the development of excellence in EEDC. Abertay used their work on the SEP within the curriculum section of their application for Equality Challenge Unit’s Race Equality Charter Mark, feedback following the award of which highlighted this work as a real strength of their submission

Employability and graduate outcomes for sports students with widening participation characteristics – an analysis of a data derived from 2000-2015

The advent of the Teaching Excellence Framework has placed increased focus on graduate outcomes, widening participation and learning gain within the Higher Education sector. However, it is acknowledged that there is an ‘unequal playing field’ with regard to graduate employment with socio-economic background viewed as the primary determinant of the graduate’s future (UUK, 2016). The authors conducted a study tracking career trajectories for those students graduating from an Abertay sports degree programme in the time period 2000-2015. These programmes were originally only offered as advanced entry routes for students with further education awards enabling them to extend their qualifications and access graduate employment. The programmes have evolved over the study period and now offer a range of entry points. This presentation will consider employability outcomes for those completing studies from ‘first in family homes’, from lower socioeconomic households, and for those who enrolled with a further education qualification

An investigation into the comparative learning gain and ‘value added’ for students from widening participation and non-widening participation groups:a case study from sports degrees

Increasingly universities are expected to demonstrate the impact of students’ higher education experiences; learning gain is one of the metrics that can evidence this. The Scottish Funding Council (SFC) agrees Widening Participation (WP) objectives with the universities with an implicit expectation that Scottish higher education institutions (HEIs) work within their communities to enable those who could benefit from a university education to enrol. The Abertay sport programmes have historically supported students from diverse backgrounds. This case study focuses specifically on the graduate outcomes of WP and non-WP students graduating from these programmes in the years 2000–2015. An e-mail survey and departmental database of graduate destinations were linked with the student record. Analysis confirmed that those from WP backgrounds were equally as likely to gain a good degree as their non-WP counterparts and to be in graduate and/or sports employment. Longitudinal graduate outcomes are considered in the context of pedagogic strategy

Seeded and unseeded high order parametric down conversion

Spontaneous parametric down conversion (SPDC) has been one of the foremost tools in quantum optics for over five decades. Over that time it has been used to demonstrate some of the curious features that arise from quantum mechanics. Despite the success of SPDC, its higher-order analogues have never been observed, even though it has been suggested that they generate far more unique and exotic states than SPDC. An example of this is the emergence of non-Gaussian states without the need for post-selection. Here we calculate the expected rate of emission for nth-order SPDC with and without external stimulation (seeding). Focusing primarily on third-order parametric down-conversion (TOPDC), we estimate the photon detection rates in a rutile crystal, for both the unseeded and seeded regimes.Comment: 11 pages, 6 figure

Tracking career destinations of sports graduates 2000-2015:a longitudinal exploration of destinations and preparedness for the workplace

The advent of the TEF means that universities will be expected to evidence the impact of curriculum interactions on graduate destinations and social mobility. Over a third of sport employees are graduates but little data charts their career journeys. Key objectives: • track all Abertay sport graduates from the programmes’ inception • compare Honours and non-Honours graduates’ destination data • examine career trajectories • explore preparedness for the workplace • utilise demographic data to contextualise findings. 452 graduates were e-mailed.123 responded to the survey, 84% being in identifiable graduate level jobs. Across time, increasing proportions of students were Honours' graduates. Social class, gender and disability did not impact on this but articulation from FE was a significant factor (χ2 =84.68, p<0.01). Very few respondents (n=13) felt that their degree had not equipped them for working life. 'Placement' and 'research methods skills' were of most benefit in preparing for the workplace

Managing healthcare student wellbeing beyond the coronavirus pandemic

Student mental wellbeing has been negatively affected by the coronavirus pandemic. For healthcare students there have been the additional challenges of disrupted university and clinical education experiences as well as directly witnessing the impact of the virus on patients and their families. Government concerns about the future nursing, midwifery and allied health profession (NMAHP) workforce and their retention led to a survey of Scottish healthcare students to establish their need, knowledge and utilisation of wellbeing resources, as well as to ascertain what additional support might be required (and where best to locate this)

The healthcare academic workforce and responding to coronavirus-related challenges

Pre-pandemic there were concerns about the resilience and sustainability of the Healthcare Education workforce derived from an ageing demographic and the challenges of recruiting from practice into an academic environment where teaching and research experience are often pre-requisites. The pandemic has potentially further damaged this fragile state with more than half of all academics citing emotional burnout as a driver for their intent to leave the sector. Similar statistics exist for those in clinical practice. This presentation will reflect on survey data gained from Healthcare academics about their work-related pandemic experiences and consider how this can inform future recruitment practices

Living up to our students’ expectations – using student voice to influence the way academics think about their undergraduates learning and their own teaching

Understanding the student learning experience is essential if Higher Education Institutions (HEI) are to provide an education for the 21st century. This study investigated students’ perspectives on their learning experiences and offered undergraduates a chance to influence the way academics think about learning and teaching.Participants were drawn from two UK HEIs and a semi structured focus group approach was adopted. A total of nine focus groups consisting of 3-7 participants were drawn from across all Sport degree year groups in both institutions. Assessment, pedagogy and teacher characteristics emerged as primary concerns across both institutions. Assessment was appreciated by all students as key to their learning but was exposed as being overly traditional and rigid in its application. Students were unanimous in their support for small group pedagogies, rejecting traditional powerpoint dominated lecturing styles. The emphasis on the behaviour of, and delivery by, tutors was noteworthy.Students appraised the development of their academic skills and confidence, linking these to motivation, knowledge, self-awareness and critical reflection. In doing so they understood the impact of inconsistencies in tutors’ teaching practices. The onus is on every tutor to combine imaginative assessment with dynamic and relational experiences in order to provide a strong foundation for flexible, reflective and creative graduates