Improving the Success Rate in Statistics.

First year statistics is one of the 'problem' subjects in many institutions. At the University of Queensland in the School of Economics it is a compulsory course with a large enrolment, offered in both first and second semesters, and also across two campuses in semester one. Even though the course content, lecturing staff, mode of delivery, tutorials, PASS and online assessment are essentially the same in the two semesters, the outcomes to 2007 have been different. At the St Lucia campus the failure rate in semester 2 was over 10% higher than in semester 1. This paper explores some possible explanations for the difference as well as assessing the success of some of the changes that were implemented from 2007 to 2009.

Cultural justice, ethics and practice: Summary of presentation

The following cases and remarks are based on the author’s employment over six years in the Department of Social Welfare in Rotorua Specialist Services. The author discusses definitions that relate to the topic of cultural justice, ethics, and practice and our awareness and understanding of the issues; and presents three case studies from practitioner experience

Bringing the Outside World In: Using Mixed Panel Assessment of Oral Presentations with Electrical and Electronic Engineering Students

Engineering students have been portrayed as having poor oral communication skills despite oral communication competence being a key factor in future career success. With the aim of equipping students with attributes identified as important for Engineering graduates this paper presents a research project carried out at the University of Nottingham Ningbo China in the Division of Science & Engineering with Electrical and Electronic with undergraduate students, focusing on the use of a mixed specialist and non-specialist audience for students’ end of semester oral presentations assessment. It is known that oral presentations are an important academic genre developing communication skills and confidence in students but it is an area which has been found to be lacking in traditional engineering courses. The innovation of the mixed panel was to help prepare students for life after university by giving them experience of pitching technical material appropriate to the knowledge of the audience, which is something they will have to do when working in companies or on projects. This paper outlines the experience from the perspective of the assessors from different disciplines who were interviewed to determine what they were looking for in the presentations. It will also review the experience of the students themselves, based on a survey which considered the impact the mixed audience had on their presentation preparation in terms of language, presenting skills and content. This innovation in assessment encourages multi-disciplinary thinking in students and the impact of audience on presentation content and delivery is something which could be explored across different academic fields

Correcting for multiple destination trips in recreational use values using a mean-value approach; An application to Bellenden Ker National Park, Australia

This paper focuses on an empirical application of the travel cost method, to estimate the recreational use value of Bellenden Ker National Park, part of the Wet tropics World Heritage Area Queensland, Australia. Walking appears to be one of the main activities associated with recreational experiences in the region. Substantial socio-economic as well as environmental benefits are expected to be gained if the areas was to be developed further, with regard to walking tracks, provided that this would be done in an environmentally sustainable way. Two overnight tracks within the park have been selected to obtain information about visitors’ experiences with the tracks in the past, to address specific needs for possible future developments. A standard assumption for interpreting travel costs as a valid proxy for the price of a trip is that the travel cost be incurred exclusively to visit that particular site. However, this assumption often proves to be invalid as people tend to combine destinations. We propose a method commonly used in multi-criteria decision-making to correct for multiple trip bias. A value of $AUS 15.2 mln has been estimated as the net present value of recreational use in 2001 values at about six percent real rate of interest in perpetuity. This value appears to be rather small compared to other TCM studies undertaken in the area, for national parks that were similar in size and visitor numbers.multi-criteria analysis, multiple trip bias, travel cost method, Wet Tropics World Heritage Area, Resource /Energy Economics and Policy,

Chelmsford Borough Council: A designated International Safe Community

This article provides some background to the Safe Communities concept and sets out the criteria to be satisfied as an International Safe Community (ISC). It concludes with reflections about Chelmsford Borough Council’s responsibilities as a Demonstration Site within the UK, and how Council has contributed within an International Network.There are currently over 200 communities across the world that have been designated as International Safe Communities by the World Health Organisation (WHO), and in June 2010, the Chelmsford Borough Council became the first local authority area to achieve this recognition in the UK. International Safe Communities is a World Health Organisation initiative that recognises safety as a ‘universal concern and a responsibility for all’. 1 It is an approach to community safety that encourages greater cooperation and collaboration between a range of non-government organisations, the business sector and local and government agencies. In order to be designated as an ISC, communities are required to meet six criteria developed by the WHO Collaborating Centre on Community Safety. The ISC accreditation process provides support for communities and indicates a level of achievement by an organisation within the field of community safety

Placental Development in Ongoing Pregnancy and Miscarriage

__Abstract__ In this thesis three-dimensional ultrasound, three-dimensional power Doppler ultrasound, virtual reality and histologic examination of the chorionic villous vascularization were used to investigate early placental development in normal ongoing pregnancy as well as miscarriage. The research objectives were: 1. To establish the reproducibility of trophoblast volume measurements using 3D ultrasound and to investigate a possible difference in trophoblast volume and growth between ongoing pregnancies and pregnancies ending in a miscarriage (chapter 2). 2. To establish the reproducibility of a new placental bed volumetric measurement using 3D power Doppler and virtual reality and to investigate a possible difference in placental bed vascular volume between spontaneously conceived pregnancies and pregnancies brought about by artificial reproductive technology (chapter 3). 3. To study the correlation between chorionic villous vascularization, ultrasound findings and corresponding chromosomal analyses in early miscarriage specimens from a cohort of recurrent pregnancy loss patients (chapter 4). 4. To investigate the relationship between the severity of Chronic Histiocytic InterVillositis (CHIV) and the outcome of pregnancy, and to compare the immune response between CHIV patients and controls to explore an immunological origin of CHIV (chapter 5)

Embedding a curriculum-based information literacy programme at the University of Bedfordshire

This article describes the development of an information literacy programme that was embedded into the Psychology curriculum during 2007-2008. The programme was a collaboration between a faculty librarian and the Department of Psychology and utilized a blended learning approach along with a variety of teaching and assessment methods. This paper also reports on the initial findings from an ongoing evaluation assessing the impact of the programme on students' learning and information skills development. There had been an acknowledgement within the Department of Psychology and at broader University level of the importance of supporting students' and graduates' employability. Indeed, when the University undertook a curriculum redesign in 2008 (known as CRe8) the University recognized that 'there are four core skills areas at the core of 'graduateness' and employability that the University expects all courses to emphasise: communication; Information literacy; Research and evaluation; and creativity and critical thinking' (University of Bedfordshire, 2009). The development and implementation of an information literacy programme was therefore aligned closely with the University's goals at that time

Grabbed early by vocabulary: Nation’s ongoing contributions to vocabulary and reading in a foreign language

“I was grabbed early [by vocabulary] and never let go. That’s why it’s difficult to explain why I enjoy working in this area. I just love doing it,” said Paul Nation (in Coxhead, 2005, p. 46). How many people get grabbed by an area of research, teaching, and learning that continues to engage interest and cause excitement after 30 years? In this article, I look at Paul Nation’s ongoing contributions to pedagogy in vocabulary and second language reading. I will focus on key questions from Nation’s research that support learning and teaching and contribute to our understanding of the lexical nature of texts

Impacts and Assessment of the Endangered Snow Leopard: A Conservational Approach

Overcoming the threats of the snow leopard with immediate action may be what will save this species from extinction. This report provides a brief overview both of the challenges faced by the snow leopard and the roles local people have taken in the decline and subsequent recovery of this apex predator. Panthera uncia lives across the high-alpine regions of Central Asia, with China containing most of their habitat. It is estimated that only 550,000 km2 of this territory is good quality habitat.These predators will adjust their territory size and range in accordance with their ungulate prey. Under the Conservation Monitoring Centre of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), they have been listed as endangered since 1996. Since 1975, all international trade has been prohibited after being listed with the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Fauna and Flora (CITES). The International Snow Leopard Trust and the Snow Leopard Survival Strategy are promoting conservation through scientifically based research. Numerous threats have been identified: decline in prey populations, habitat degradation, trophy and black market hunting, ineffective law enforcement, a lack of knowledge about conservation efforts, and climate change. It is estimated that 30% of their habitat will be subject to change along the Himalayas. The Snow Leopard Survival Strategy is promoting livestock and grazing practices that will reduce vulnerability to predation, such as the use of herding dogs to ward off predators. An underlying problem that ties the numerous issues together is the poverty in most of the countries that are part of snow leopard range, and this draws a link between biodiversity conservation and the well-being of those people. Regional conservation programs depend not only on the effective enforcement of protection laws, but also on the proof that wildlife conservation can provide new opportunities to the local people who are impacted by this species. To save this species, these areas need to be conserved and managed, and the rural communities need to be educated and supported