Integrity in and beyond contemporary higher education: What does it mean to university students?

Research has focused on academic integrity in terms of students' conduct in relation to university rules and procedures, whereas fewer studies examine student integrity more broadly. Of particular interest is whether students in higher education today conceptualize integrity as comprising such broader attributes as personal and social responsibility. We collected and analyzed qualitative responses from 127 students at the National University of Singapore to understand how they define integrity in their lives as students, and how they envisage integrity would be demonstrated in their lives after university. Consistent with the current literature, our data showed that integrity was predominantly taken as "not plagiarizing (in school)/giving appropriate credit when credit is due (in the workplace)", "not cheating", and "completing tasks independently". The survey, though, also revealed further perceptions such as, in a university context, "not manipulating data (e.g., scientific integrity)", "being honest with others", "group work commitments", "conscience/moral ethics/holding true to one's beliefs", "being honest with oneself", "upholding a strong work ethic", "going against conventions", and "reporting others", as well as, in a workplace context, "power and responsibility and its implications", "professionalism", and "representing or being loyal to an organization". The findings suggest that some students see the notion of integrity extending beyond good academic conduct. It is worthwhile to (re)think more broadly what (else) integrity means, discover the gaps in our students' understanding of integrity, and consider how best we can teach integrity to prepare students for future challenges to integrity and ethical dilemmas

Identifying the cognitive predictors of early counting and calculation skills: Evidence from a longitudinal study.

The extent that phonological, visual-spatial STM and non-symbolic quantitative skills support the development of counting and calculation skills was examined in this 14-month longitudinal study of 125 children. Initial assessments were made when the children were 4:8. Phonological awareness, visual-spatial STM and non-symbolic approximate discrimination predicted growth in early calculation skills. These results suggest that both the approximate number system and domain-general phonological and visual-spatial skills support early calculation. In contrast, only performance on a small non-symbolic quantity discrimination task (where the presented quantities were always within the subitising range) predicted growth in cardinal counting skills. These results suggest that the development of counting and calculation are supported by different cognitive abilities

Implementing and operationalising integrative approaches to sustainability in Higher Education: The role of project-oriented learning.

Higher education institutions across the world are increasingly placing an emphasis on students’ acquisition of a broader range of skills or attributes within the taught curriculum, which should lead to a widening of their chances of academic success, in particular in the employment market. Among other issues, matters related to sustainable development are playing a key role, but many universities do not yet cater for integrative approaches, which may help them to approach sustainability issues in a transformative way. It is therefore necessary to develop new approaches and methods, which may address this gap. Based on the importance of meeting this perceived research need, this paper defines the role of project-oriented learning, also designated as Project Based Learning, as a tool to support integrative approaches to sustainability in a higher education context. The scientific value of the paper lies in the provision of some examples of successful approaches to Project Based Learning and the identification of some of the trends that characterise it. The paper makes clear why project-oriented learning should be more widely used in support of integrative approaches to sustainability, and why it needs to become part of the routine of higher education institutions. The outline of some of the initiatives recently and currently being undertaken may inspire others and assist in the implementation of Project Based Learning

A cohort evaluation on arterial stiffness and hypertensive disorders in pregnancy

10.1186/1471-2393-12-160BMC Pregnancy and Childbirth12-BPCM

Special education in Singapore

This article describes the development and current status of special education in Singapore. Topics include a brief history of special education services, organization of service delivery, integration, teacher training, and achievements. Highlighted within these topics are significant developments over the past decade that have influenced special education services. We conclude by noting several challenges to improve the quality of special education services through integration opportunities, preservice teacher training, greater coordination among services, current educational and social initiatives and rhetoric, and societal vision