'Duck to water' or 'fish out of water'? Diversity in the experience of negotiating the transition to university

Winstone and Hulme present a critical discussion of the notion of transition to university. They argue that the common emphasis on the challenging nature of the transition fails to acknowledge the diversity in students’ experiences; for some students, the liminality and discomfort experienced during this critical period in their educational journey can be a transformational and empowering rite of passage. Rather than homogenising students’ experiences, Winstone and Hulme argue that it is beneficial to explore the transition experience through the lens of students’ expectations and subsequent experiences and to view the transition to university as part of a trajectory of transition experience within a student’s educational journey. The chapter also presents practical suggestions for engaging multiple student voices in understanding and facilitating positive transition experiences

Breadth Experiential Courses to Meet Programme Outcomes for Engineers

International audienceIn engineering education, it is recognized that non-technical courses are to enhance student enthusiasm. Breadth courses are not part of the classical scope of the curriculum structure and expose students to a range of perspectives outside of their engineering program. For this reason, such courses reinforce the students' motivation and self-confidence, but may also strengthen transdisciplinary skills, fully aligned with the engineering profession requirements. Based on this assumption, this paper reflects, via a qualitative analysis, on a navigation and sea risks course, including in-situ real experiences, aimed at future engineers in a generalist and integrated programme. Because it triggers decision and judgment making skills, the course permits students to develop higher confidence in their ability to grasp complex situations, to adapt dynamically to unexpected circumstances, and to act in uncertain contexts

Virtsarakon katetrointi : Opetuspäivä Vaasan Validia-palveluiden henkilökunnalle

Tämän toiminnallisen opinnäytetyön tarkoitus oli järjestää opetuspäivä virtsarakon katetroinnista Vaasan Validia-palveluiden työntekijöille. Opetuspäivän aihe valittiin tekijöiden toimesta ja hyväksytettiin palvelutalon sairaanhoitajalla ja johtajalla. Opetuspäivän tarkoituksena oli muistuttaa ja ohjeistaa palvelutalon työntekijöitä oikeaoppisesta katetroinnista sekä aseptiikan tärkeydestä. Opetusmateriaalina opetuspäivänä käytettiin kuvallista PowerPoint -esitystä, jonka opinnäytetyön tekijät olivat itse tuottaneet. Opinnäytetyö toteutettiin yhteistyössä Vaasan Validia-palveluiden kanssa. Opinnäytetyön keskeiset käsitteet ovat virtsarakon katetrointi, aseptiikka ja komplikaatiot. Teoreettinen tieto haettiin Medic-tietokannasta, hoito- ja lääketieteellisestä sekä hoitotyön perusteita käsittelevästä kirjallisuudesta. Palvelutalon työntekijät kokivat opetuspäivän tarpeellisena ja hyödyllisenä, joka ilmeni kyselomakkeista. Opetuspäivänä käytetty PowerPoint -esitys annettiin palvelutalon käyttöön. Tulevaisuudessa opetusmateriaalia voidaan hyödyntää työntekijöiden koulutuksissa sekä uusien työntekijöiden perehdyttämisessä.The aim of this practice-based bachelor’s thesis was to make a PowerPoint presentation for training purposes, and to organize a staff training day on the catheterization of the urinary bladder for the employees of Validia Service Unit Vaasa. The topic of the training day was chosen by the authors and approved by the registered nurse and the manager of Validia Service Unit Vaasa. The main topics were the correct catheterization and the importance of the aseptic procedures. The staff training day was carried out in co-operation with Validia Service Unit Vaasa by using PowerPoint presentation including photos taken by the authors. Keywords in this thesis are: catheterization, urinary bladder, aseptic procedure and complications. Theoretical information was searched in Medic-database and in nursing and medical science literature. The employees evaluated the subjective benefit of the stuff training day by using a questionnaire. The training day was considered to be necessary and useful. The PowerPoint presentation will be used for teaching purposes also in the future in Validia Service Unit Vaasa

Students’ Awareness of Working Life Skills in the UK, Finland and Germany

High achievers with low self-efficacy in science lack interest in choosing science studies and careers. Wide-ranging knowledge of specific working life skills in science-related careers can help students identify their own strengths in science. This improves their self-efficacy beliefs in science and further promotes interest in pursuing science studies and careers. The purpose of this paper is to examine lower secondary school students’ knowledge of specific working life skills. The participants in this study were 215 British, 144 Finnish and 154 German students, aged 12–14 years. Using open-ended questions and content analysis, we examined students’ perceptions of working life skills needed in science-related careers. The results reveal that the students have a great deal of knowledge about working life skills, but it is often stereotypical. Students frequently mentioned sector-specific knowledge and personal attributes, but skills related to career development, organization, time and society skills were often omitted. Some variation exists between the countries. The British students linked careers in science with a great deal of thinking skills, whereas the Finnish students emphasized sector-specific knowledge. The German students described the careers more with personal attributes than in the other two countries. We conclude that the students need learning experiences including presentation of working life skills such as interacting with professionals and their real work-life problems, open-ended inquiries and balanced team working. These experiences increase students’ awareness and perceived relevance of careers and working life skills, help identifying and promoting own strengths and self-efficacy and encourage choosing science-related careers