Perspectives on Enabling Education for Indigenous Students at Three Comprehensive Universities in Regional Australia

Daniels, CR ORCiD: 0000-0002-0672-0450Indigenous students, particularly those from regional and remote areas, are under-represented in both higher education and vocational education in Australia. Enabling programs seek to address this under-representation. They offer pathways to higher education, are important in lifting participation rates and potentially encourage mobility between the sectors. However, strategic development of enabling programs is based on little evidence about student or staff experiences. This chapter presents a qualitative research project underpinned by the strengths-based approach of conscientisation, exploring how Indigenous learning journeys via enabling programs can respect and grow cultural identity, while simultaneously developing study skills. The research considered interpretations of ‘success’ from the perspectives of students and teachers participating in enabling courses. The research found that enabling programs were an ‘important’ and ‘exciting journey’ for students that brought about transformation of the inner self through the building of ‘resilience’, ‘strength’, ‘confidence’, ‘self-esteem’, ‘self-worth’, ‘cultural understanding’ and ‘identity’. Success was experienced across multiple dimensions of students’ lived experience including ‘cultural identity’, ‘voice’, self-realisation, self-acceptance and ‘pride’. Staff suggested that enabling programs imparted an ‘underlying layer’ of skills. Recognition of Indigenous people as ‘yarners’ and ‘story tellers’, along with ways of incorporating ‘both-ways’ methodologies, need to be considered when developing the curriculum. This chapter reports on research which will be used to inform the development of a best-practice framework for Indigenous education enabling programs in Australia, particularly in regional and comprehensive education settings

Women with gynaecological cancer awaiting radiotherapy: Self-reported wellbeing, general psychological distress, symptom distress, sexual function, and supportive care needs

OBJECTIVE: To better serve women with gynaecological cancers, we need a sound understanding of their health, wellbeing and needs. This study sought to explore these issues in a sample of Australian women before commencing curative radiotherapy. METHODS: We undertook a secondary analysis of baseline data from a supportive care trial (n = 311). Descriptive statistics were used to summarise responses to measures of wellbeing, general psychological distress, symptom distress, sexual function and vaginal changes, and supportive care needs. Pre-specified regression models were used to examine sources of variation in wellbeing and sexual function. RESULTS: Women reported lower emotional, functional and physical wellbeing than population norms (all p < 0.001). The prevalence of general psychological distress was 31% (95% CI 26-36%). Distress caused by physical symptoms was typically low. Health system and information needs comprised eight of the top ten moderate-to-high supportive care needs. Most women reported no change in interest for physical contact or sex compared to pre-diagnosis, but some sexually active women (16-24%) reported smaller vaginal size, increased dryness, and more pain on intercourse. General psychological distress was a robust marker of poorer wellbeing and sexual function. CONCLUSIONS: Before radiotherapy, a substantial minority of women with gynaecological cancers experience general psychological distress, reduced wellbeing and moderate-to-high health system and information needs. A model of comprehensive care incorporating assessment of unmet needs, general psychological distress, and sexual issues is recommended. Healthcare providers may require training to elicit and respond to a constellation of interrelated issues and access relevant services for women requiring additional support

The peak energies of the fits of individual measured V Kβ spectra

<p><strong>Figure 8.</strong> The peak energies of the fits of individual measured V Kβ spectra. Each of the seven lines represents an independently measured set of results from the full calibration series, derived by methodical stepping of the spectrometer arm length so that the profile stepped across the detector area. The variance is larger than the point precision, indicating sources of systematics. The characterization function drifts off towards the edges of the detector, where vignetting or other loss of efficiency may affect the calibration. Further, some of the linked series have offsets, whether from minor hysteresis or e.g. temperature variations. The overall consistency and hence robustness of the independent measurements yields a final pooled uncertainty of 0.0184 eV or 3.4 ppm.</p> <p><strong>Abstract</strong></p> <p>Transition metals have Kα and Kβ characteristic radiation possessing complex asymmetric spectral profiles. Instrumental broadening normally encountered in x-ray experiments shifts features of profiles used for calibration, such as peak energy, by many times the quoted accuracies. We measure and characterize the titanium Kβ spectral profile. The peak energy of the titanium Kβ spectral profile is found to be 4931.966 ± 0.022 eV prior to instrumental broadening. This 4.5 ppm result decreases the uncertainty over the past literature by a factor of 2.6 and is 2.4 standard deviations from the previous standard. The spectrum is analysed and the resolution-free lineshape is extracted and listed for use in other experiments. We also incorporate improvement in analysis applied to earlier results for V Kβ.</p

The peak energy of the fitted model function of the Ti Kβ spectra as a function of the instrumental broadening

<p><strong>Figure 7.</strong> The peak energy of the fitted model function of the Ti Kβ spectra as a function of the instrumental broadening. The measured broadening of the spectrum of 1.24(4) eV and the asymmetry of the peak leads to a shift of peak position of 0.25 eV or 50 ppm.</p> <p><strong>Abstract</strong></p> <p>Transition metals have Kα and Kβ characteristic radiation possessing complex asymmetric spectral profiles. Instrumental broadening normally encountered in x-ray experiments shifts features of profiles used for calibration, such as peak energy, by many times the quoted accuracies. We measure and characterize the titanium Kβ spectral profile. The peak energy of the titanium Kβ spectral profile is found to be 4931.966 ± 0.022 eV prior to instrumental broadening. This 4.5 ppm result decreases the uncertainty over the past literature by a factor of 2.6 and is 2.4 standard deviations from the previous standard. The spectrum is analysed and the resolution-free lineshape is extracted and listed for use in other experiments. We also incorporate improvement in analysis applied to earlier results for V Kβ.</p

Schematic diagram of experimental setup

<p><strong>Figure 1.</strong> Schematic diagram of experimental setup.</p> <p><strong>Abstract</strong></p> <p>Transition metals have Kα and Kβ characteristic radiation possessing complex asymmetric spectral profiles. Instrumental broadening normally encountered in x-ray experiments shifts features of profiles used for calibration, such as peak energy, by many times the quoted accuracies. We measure and characterize the titanium Kβ spectral profile. The peak energy of the titanium Kβ spectral profile is found to be 4931.966 ± 0.022 eV prior to instrumental broadening. This 4.5 ppm result decreases the uncertainty over the past literature by a factor of 2.6 and is 2.4 standard deviations from the previous standard. The spectrum is analysed and the resolution-free lineshape is extracted and listed for use in other experiments. We also incorporate improvement in analysis applied to earlier results for V Kβ.</p

Error budget for the peak energy of all the spectral profiles of Ti Kβ that go into the final energy determination

<p><b>Table 3.</b> Error budget for the peak energy of all the spectral profiles of Ti Kβ that go into the final energy determination. Since the resultant determined energies show evidence of additional variance, the final energy determination has a larger uncertainty that this ideal 1.6 ppm for an individual spectrum.</p> <p><strong>Abstract</strong></p> <p>Transition metals have Kα and Kβ characteristic radiation possessing complex asymmetric spectral profiles. Instrumental broadening normally encountered in x-ray experiments shifts features of profiles used for calibration, such as peak energy, by many times the quoted accuracies. We measure and characterize the titanium Kβ spectral profile. The peak energy of the titanium Kβ spectral profile is found to be 4931.966 ± 0.022 eV prior to instrumental broadening. This 4.5 ppm result decreases the uncertainty over the past literature by a factor of 2.6 and is 2.4 standard deviations from the previous standard. The spectrum is analysed and the resolution-free lineshape is extracted and listed for use in other experiments. We also incorporate improvement in analysis applied to earlier results for V Kβ.</p

Characterization of the Ti Kβ spectral profile

<p><b>Table 2.</b> Characterization of the Ti Kβ spectral profile. The profile is fully characterized on an absolute energy scale through a sum of component Lorentzians convolved with a Gaussian instrumental broadening. Integrated areas <em>A_i</em>, centroids <em>C_i</em> and FWHMs <em>W_i</em> of individual components were obtained from a fit of intensity against detector position. The detector position axis was transformed to an absolute energy scale via the calibration procedure. The Gaussian width σ = 1.244(41) eV. The background was <em>B</em> = 831(26) counts. The second and third components are dominant, contributing more than three quarters of the intensity of the spectrum while the fourth component is very weak. The third and fourth component widths are dominated by the Gaussian instrumental width. The first component is very broad relative to the entire Kβ spectrum.</p> <p><strong>Abstract</strong></p> <p>Transition metals have Kα and Kβ characteristic radiation possessing complex asymmetric spectral profiles. Instrumental broadening normally encountered in x-ray experiments shifts features of profiles used for calibration, such as peak energy, by many times the quoted accuracies. We measure and characterize the titanium Kβ spectral profile. The peak energy of the titanium Kβ spectral profile is found to be 4931.966 ± 0.022 eV prior to instrumental broadening. This 4.5 ppm result decreases the uncertainty over the past literature by a factor of 2.6 and is 2.4 standard deviations from the previous standard. The spectrum is analysed and the resolution-free lineshape is extracted and listed for use in other experiments. We also incorporate improvement in analysis applied to earlier results for V Kβ.</p