The importance of evidence-based enhancement of the quality of learning and teaching in research-intensive universities

Peer reviewe

Laparoscopic ureteral reimplant for ureteral stricture

PURPOSE: Evaluate the initial experience of laparoscopic ureteral reimplant for ureteral stenosis. MATERIALS AND METHODS: From January 2004 to June 2008, 10 patients underwent 11 laparoscopic reconstruction surgeries for ureteral stenosis. Seven cases of stenosis of the distal ureter, two at the level of iliac vessels, a case of bilateral distal stenosis and one in the medium third. Eight ureteroneocystotomies were performed by extravesical technique with anti-reflux mechanism, two cases of vesical reimplant with Boari technique and one case using the psoas hitch technique. RESULTS: The average surgical time was 166 minutes (115-245 min), mean blood loss was 162 mL (100-210 mL) and the average hospital stay was 2.9 days (2-4 days). There were two complications: a lesion of the sigmoid colon identified peroperatively and treated with laparoscopic sutures with good evolution, and a case of ureteral stone obstruction at the 30th day postoperative, treated by laser ureterolitotripsy. All patients had resolution of the stenosis at an average follow-up period of 18 months (3-54 months). CONCLUSIONS: Laparoscopic surgery represents a feasible, safe and low morbidity technique for ureteral reimplant in ureteral stenosis

Variations in perceptions of the learning environment and approaches to studying among university students in Pakistan

In Western countries students in higher education have been found to adopt various approaches to studying depending on their perceptions of their learning environment. There is evidence that certain constructs in this perspective transfer to other contexts such as Pakistan. In Western countries, students’ perceptions and approaches are also related to demographic and contextual factors such as age, subject of study, gender and year of study. Our aim was to determine whether similar relationships were apparent in Pakistani students. A survey was administered to 494 male and 418 female undergraduates in four subject areas across four years of study at two universities in Pakistan. The questionnaire concerned their perceptions of the learning environment, learning preferences, motivation and approaches to studying. Our research hypotheses were that their perceptions and approaches would vary with age, subject area, gender and year of study. Consistent with Western research, students in the arts and the social sciences perceived their programmes more positively and were more likely to adopt a deep approach to studying than were students in science and technology or business and management. Contrary to Western research, there were variations with age in students’ perceptions of their learning environment but not in their approaches to studying; there were gender differences in their perceptions and motivation; and there were variations in students’ perceptions but not in their approaches to studying across different years of the programmes. These variations appear to be specific to the context of higher education in Pakistan