Dr Rachael Hains-Wesson (PhD; PhD) is a Professor in Education and Associate Dean, Learning and Teaching, School of Global, Urban and Social Studies at the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology (RMIT). She holds a Masters in Creative Writing from the University of Melbourne (which ranked the top Masters in the world at the time), a PhD from the University of Western Australia, and a second PhD in Education from Deakin University. Supervisors: Advisor Address: PO BOX 404 Prahran VIC 3181
Refereed Proceedings of the 23rd WACE World Conference on Cooperative and Work-Integrated Education, 2023
Higher Education has long focused on developing graduate work-readiness. More recently, “producin... more Higher Education has long focused on developing graduate work-readiness. More recently, “producing graduates with the required cognitive, affective and social capabilities to function effectively in the workforce has become increasingly explicit” (Jackson, 2018, p. 23). Work-Integrated Learning (WIL) is a critical means for achieving this goal. WIL experiences typically assist with skill acquisition and graduate job-readiness (McHugh, 2016), particularly in supporting the development of generic skills that can be applied across sectors (Kavanagh & Drennan, 2008; Freudenberg, Brimble & Cameron, 2011), along with increased self-confidence through providing opportunities for practice and feedback (Billett, 2011b; Jackson, 2015). Yet while placements assist with the development of skills and confidence in some areas, they may not be as effective in improving problem-solving skills and confidence specifically. In one study, for example, 30% of students indicated no change had taken place in the development of problem-solving skills following placements, while up to 74% of students indicated improvement in other technical skills (Bandaranaike & Willison, 2010).
When we feel safe and are smiling, laughing, and connected to people, we are likely to perform be... more When we feel safe and are smiling, laughing, and connected to people, we are likely to perform better (Frederickson, 2001), especially in team projects (Bang et al., 2010; Edmondson, 1999). In this paper, we posit that fun influences a research team's trust and willingness to seek open and honest feedback (Karakowsky et al., 2020) and improves group interconnections. We argue that work-integrated learning (WIL) research (and more broadly all research) processes, relationships and outputs can be enhanced when teams purposely introduce, monitor, and evaluate fun as an important element. We, therefore, explore "fun" as a critical ingredient to navigating successful team-based research projects. We present our experience, provide examples, and link our claims to relevant research on the benefits and challenges of introducing fun in work and research. We synthesize our learnings by presenting an evolving fun-in-research model based on our experiences, expanding the scholarship of teaching and learning. At the same time, we hope our story adds value to WIL group-based research and other team-based WIL practices more widely.
Western Australia Institute for Educational Research Annual Conference Proceedings, 2023
Authentic assessments have been promoted for some time to improve quality of learning including d... more Authentic assessments have been promoted for some time to improve quality of learning including deep learning (Kaider, Hains-Wesson, & Young, 2017). Following the current trends in AI and its implications for assessment, as well as the focus on graduate employability in a competitive job market, there is increased pressure on higher education institutions to create assessments that are "uncheatable" and assess skills in a way that translate to the working environment graduates will enter (Hains-Wesson, Ji, & Wu Berberich, 2021). Effectively supporting teachers to construct authentic assessment tasks requires a robust process, primarily due to differing definitions and context sensitivities. There are diverse perspectives, understandings, theories, expectations, and engagement levels to contend with. Assessments are the common denominator across faculties, disciplines, and content areas. Regardless of the different experience levels of educators or attitudes educators hold towards assessment, all educators engage with assessment in some form or another. This makes for a challenging task to design a tool that can be meaningfully employed across the board. In this round table discussion, the lead author describes the crafting of a teacher-support artefact in the form of an Authentic Assessment Rubric Tool (AART) that enables teachers to self- and peer-review authentic assessment tasks. Participants will have the opportunity to evaluate and test their own assessments to measure its authenticity, and to critique the AART model to improve it for future users.
ACEN (Vic/Tas) and HERDSA (Vic) branches completed a joint workshop event that showcased a variet... more ACEN (Vic/Tas) and HERDSA (Vic) branches completed a joint workshop event that showcased a variety of authentic non-placement WIL approaches and offered opportunities to discuss them and share experiences. It is increasingly challenging to find placements for our students to have intensive WIL experiences and prepare them for employability. The majority of students don’t have access to placements and these non-placement authentic WIL activities provide them with opportunities to engage with industry and community in work-related assignments. ACEN VIC/Tas and HERDSA (Vic) hosted the workshop on non-placement Work-Integrated Learning on May 15, 2015. The workshop concluded with opportunities to discuss WIL challenges and effective ways to implement non-placement WIL with experts in the field.
Where: Deakin University's City Centre
Level 3, 550 Bourke Street, Melbourne 3000
Presenters: Karen Le Rossignol (Deakin), Sally Parrot (RMIT) & Dr Viet Le (Swinburne)
A showcase presentation at the ACEN National Conference (2014), Queensland, Australia.
The que... more A showcase presentation at the ACEN National Conference (2014), Queensland, Australia.
The quest to provide WIL experiences to increasing numbers of students is the aspiration of most universities in recognition of demand by employers for work-ready graduates. Co-op years, internships, or other types of placements which have been the hallmark of traditional WIL experiences are increasingly difficult to secure. Therefore other types of WIL have come to the fore as alternative work-related experiential learning activities. At Deakin University, a major course renewal process has provided the impetus and resources to develop a course-wide range of such alternative, but equally rich, WIL learning activities and assessments.
A case in point is a course in humanitarian assistance in which students begin their WIL activity by developing a response plan to an online simulated emergency humanitarian scenario. This is then followed by a live simulation of a different scenario in which students and sector representatives role-play operational and strategic functions. Students also interview personnel, conduct a press conference, facilitate funder and response team meetings and reflect on the development of their graduate and leadership capabilities.
This example, among others at Deakin, offers students authentic, professionally-based, integrated and scaffolded WIL learning experiences that are an alternative and complement to placements. The sharing of these initiatives may serve as a stimulus for expanding WIL offerings.
A presentation about a small mixed method research project being undertaken at a rural dual secto... more A presentation about a small mixed method research project being undertaken at a rural dual sector university. The project investigates a curricular renewal process that utilises a WIL framework in order to evaluate the assessment tasks for students' job readiness. The presentation focused on some of the findings and outcomes to date.
A panel of teachers discussed how they utilise a WIL framework to assist them to create authentic... more A panel of teachers discussed how they utilise a WIL framework to assist them to create authentic assessment tasks that mirrored what students would do in the workplace to increase students' job readiness.
A WIL workshop for teachers at Deakin University. Cloud Based Work Integrated & Career Developmen... more A WIL workshop for teachers at Deakin University. Cloud Based Work Integrated & Career Development Learning is a 2 hour workshop that will enable participants to design and develop practical cloud-based work integrated and career development learning activities to enable students to develop skills and abilities required for starting their careers. Topics covered included:
1. How online simulations can be designed to represent authentic work-Integrated Learning
2. What other learning activities can be offered as work-integrated and career development learning
3. How work-integrated and career development learning can be assessed.
Capacity Building, Deakin Learning Futures, Mar 20, 2013
An activity-based workshop about how teachers can assist students to use reflective practice to m... more An activity-based workshop about how teachers can assist students to use reflective practice to meet a changing world and to become confident global citizens.
What the participants had to say about the workshop:
"The workshop was highly experiential and interactive, and I couldn’t pretend to be able to fill you in properly"
"It was a great experience"
"Many thanks Rachael
I enjoyed the session"
"Thanks very much for an interesting session Rachael"
"Today I attended an excellent workshop on reflective practice run by Rachael.""
A series of 2.2 workshop as part of the Sandpit process at Deakin Learning Futures, Deakin Univer... more A series of 2.2 workshop as part of the Sandpit process at Deakin Learning Futures, Deakin University.
Each 2.2 workshop is a discipline specific seminar that assists academics/teachers to review CLOs and to map them across the Course at Unit level. The workshop also focuses on understanding CloudConcepts and how to enhance a unit to incorporate reimagined assessment items that engage students and delight them.
The presentation is based on a university-wide ePortfolio project that went from “test to product... more The presentation is based on a university-wide ePortfolio project that went from “test to production” and was “rolled out” using a benchmarking strategy in order to meet national standards. The ePortfolio initiative was an important element of the University’s Learning and Teaching Plan 2012-2014. The ePortfolio initiative was incorporated into the students’ learning experience to address graduate attributes and professional skills via a teacher "by-in” approach. The ePortfolio project was also used to help students implement effective reflective practice techniques within various units, courses and programs as well as to encourage lifelong learning.
The rationale behind the project was to gain insight from previous university-wide ePortfolio (nationally and internationally) initiatives and to use the findings in order to adapt learnt discoveries into a rural multi-sector University-wide ePortfolio program. The benchmarking process assisted the ePortfolio Project Officer to plan, develop and implement pertinent blended support resources as well as to determine potential pre- and post- rollout challenges and issues.
The presentation confirms the requirement for a more personal, flexible and collaborative technological and pedagogical support program that incorporates a blended and collegial approach to ePortfolio making. Recommendations are made for the careful implementation and integration of pre- and post- rollout evaluation and benchmarking processes at a rural multi-sector University that aims to meet national standards.
Highlights of the desired focus of the presentation are: the good and the bad: what will work? How to develop an integrated and effective ePortfolio platform as an eLearning tool, and ease of use to enable student and teacher adoption at a rural dual sector setting."
A seminar for staff who work with performing arts students. The presentation discussed and invest... more A seminar for staff who work with performing arts students. The presentation discussed and investigated ways in which to implement ePortfolios into the curricular in order to address graduate attributes and employability skills for performing arts students
A Professional Development workshop for VET teachers on ePortfolios as an alternative assessment ... more A Professional Development workshop for VET teachers on ePortfolios as an alternative assessment practice for Industry placement and work-skill recording.
A Professional Development workshop for VET teachers (in the Human Services Faculty) which invest... more A Professional Development workshop for VET teachers (in the Human Services Faculty) which investigated how to support VET teachers with students moving into Higher Education. This workshop offered additional support resources for the dual sector in Learning and Teaching such as Reflective Practice techniques.
A Professional Development workshop for VET apprentice teachers and students on ePortfolio making... more A Professional Development workshop for VET apprentice teachers and students on ePortfolio making as part of an eLearning project grant.
The opportunity for postgraduate candidates and early career academics to develop an ePortfolio i... more The opportunity for postgraduate candidates and early career academics to develop an ePortfolio is occurring all over the world and in numerous educational settings. This presentation acknowledges and illustrates the benefits of creating and sustaining an ePortfolio, resources for the novice ePortfolio designer and showcases examples of "Good Practice" ePortfolios. Additionally, the presentation concludes by focusing on any concerns that participants might have associated with the University of Ballarat's ePortfolio system as well as inviting feedback in order to address the postgraduate students' ePortfolio experience.
ABSTRACT: One way in which teachers can sustain and improve student led teaching and learning pro... more ABSTRACT: One way in which teachers can sustain and improve student led teaching and learning projects is to use extrinsic and intrinsic motivational techniques. However, the balance between successfully implementing these techniques simultaneously and separately and at the “right” moment is never easy. Investigating the impact of certain types of extrinsic and intrinsic motivational techniques on students’ attitudes towards an online learning experience can help better understand the relevance of such techniques. This research presentation outlines a project which: i) produced an online creative arts journal at The University of Western Australia for the first time, 2) identified four main types of extrinsic and intrinsic motivational techniques that assisted in sustaining the student led project; 3) investigated which extrinsic and intrinsic motivational techniques are “best” employed regarding the future growth of the online teaching and learning project, and in order for the project to evolve successfully into the future, and 4) surveyed students and interviewed lecturers associated with the previous three points. The results suggest that students appreciate lecturers providing opportunities concerning online, industry linked and student led teaching and learning projects. In addition, lecturers who implement certain extrinsic and intrinsic motivation techniques are viewed by students as showing passion towards the student learning outcomes which in turn encourages participation. Recommendations are made regarding ways to encourage a wider use of extrinsic and intrinsic techniques and especially within an online, industry linked teaching and learning project at the university level.
This presentation was based on a a case study that examines a theatre-in-education production The... more This presentation was based on a a case study that examines a theatre-in-education production The Small Poppies (1989) and its expression, making connections between some of the strands of research regarding the role of the imaginary companion in early childhood studies and performance theory. The premise of the presentation is that the creative work of The Small Poppies provides an alternative gateway to extend the analysis associated with the imaginary character in early childhood studies. This will be achieved by exploring the role of the imaginary character in a theatre-in-education playtext as a textual framing device as well as an opportunity for the actor to perform the invisible. Conclusions are made, revealing that The Small Poppies has not only assisted in introducing young people to a theatre-attending habit enjoyed into adulthood, but has reinforced the importance of the imaginary companion as a positive journey of discovery and not something of which to be ashamed.
Between 2 and 4 March 2011, the Amsterdam School for Cultural Analysis held a conference at the U... more Between 2 and 4 March 2011, the Amsterdam School for Cultural Analysis held a conference at the University of Amsterdam. Titled ‘Practicing Theory: Imagining, Resisting, Remembering’, the conference aimed to investigate how ‘theory’ and ‘practice’ overlap, influence and construct one another. The conference also sought to shed light on the productive intersections that arise when the boundaries between theory and practice are considered porous and the gap which lies between them is reinvented as a constructive space of opportunity. Because the conference revolved around the interrogation of the boundaries between conceptual objects of theory and practice, participants from a wide variety of disciplines were invited to submit articles and essays from the fields of science, art and politics. The conference and accompanying workshops werestructured along three central themes in which participants were asked to think and/or work through the practicing of theory and the theorising of practice. As outlined in the conference title, these three themes were ‘imagining’, ‘resisting’ and ‘remembering’.
One way to assist in transforming a lecture experience into an occasion that can attract and enga... more One way to assist in transforming a lecture experience into an occasion that can attract and engage students is with the use of acting skills. However, very few university academics have experience employing such techniques. Investigating the impact of certain types of performance skills on students' attitudes towards the learning experience can help better understand the relevance of such techniques. This presentation outlines a project which: i) surveyed students about their attitudes to face to face and online recorded lectures, ii) surveyed students about their attitudes towards performance techniques, in particular, spatial awareness, vocalisation, eye contact and passion and iii) interviewed lecturers about the potential benefits to student learning regarding performance techniques in the lecture theatre and their personal frequency of use. The results suggest that students and lecturers value face to face delivery of content, recognising the benefits of certain performance techniques in the lecture theatre. Recommendations are made regarding ways to encourage a wider use and evaluation of performance techniques in teaching and learning at the university level.
Keywords: performance techniques in the classroom, student engagement, performance-centred approach to learning
Refereed Proceedings of the 23rd WACE World Conference on Cooperative and Work-Integrated Education, 2023
Higher Education has long focused on developing graduate work-readiness. More recently, “producin... more Higher Education has long focused on developing graduate work-readiness. More recently, “producing graduates with the required cognitive, affective and social capabilities to function effectively in the workforce has become increasingly explicit” (Jackson, 2018, p. 23). Work-Integrated Learning (WIL) is a critical means for achieving this goal. WIL experiences typically assist with skill acquisition and graduate job-readiness (McHugh, 2016), particularly in supporting the development of generic skills that can be applied across sectors (Kavanagh & Drennan, 2008; Freudenberg, Brimble & Cameron, 2011), along with increased self-confidence through providing opportunities for practice and feedback (Billett, 2011b; Jackson, 2015). Yet while placements assist with the development of skills and confidence in some areas, they may not be as effective in improving problem-solving skills and confidence specifically. In one study, for example, 30% of students indicated no change had taken place in the development of problem-solving skills following placements, while up to 74% of students indicated improvement in other technical skills (Bandaranaike & Willison, 2010).
When we feel safe and are smiling, laughing, and connected to people, we are likely to perform be... more When we feel safe and are smiling, laughing, and connected to people, we are likely to perform better (Frederickson, 2001), especially in team projects (Bang et al., 2010; Edmondson, 1999). In this paper, we posit that fun influences a research team's trust and willingness to seek open and honest feedback (Karakowsky et al., 2020) and improves group interconnections. We argue that work-integrated learning (WIL) research (and more broadly all research) processes, relationships and outputs can be enhanced when teams purposely introduce, monitor, and evaluate fun as an important element. We, therefore, explore "fun" as a critical ingredient to navigating successful team-based research projects. We present our experience, provide examples, and link our claims to relevant research on the benefits and challenges of introducing fun in work and research. We synthesize our learnings by presenting an evolving fun-in-research model based on our experiences, expanding the scholarship of teaching and learning. At the same time, we hope our story adds value to WIL group-based research and other team-based WIL practices more widely.
Western Australia Institute for Educational Research Annual Conference Proceedings, 2023
Authentic assessments have been promoted for some time to improve quality of learning including d... more Authentic assessments have been promoted for some time to improve quality of learning including deep learning (Kaider, Hains-Wesson, & Young, 2017). Following the current trends in AI and its implications for assessment, as well as the focus on graduate employability in a competitive job market, there is increased pressure on higher education institutions to create assessments that are "uncheatable" and assess skills in a way that translate to the working environment graduates will enter (Hains-Wesson, Ji, & Wu Berberich, 2021). Effectively supporting teachers to construct authentic assessment tasks requires a robust process, primarily due to differing definitions and context sensitivities. There are diverse perspectives, understandings, theories, expectations, and engagement levels to contend with. Assessments are the common denominator across faculties, disciplines, and content areas. Regardless of the different experience levels of educators or attitudes educators hold towards assessment, all educators engage with assessment in some form or another. This makes for a challenging task to design a tool that can be meaningfully employed across the board. In this round table discussion, the lead author describes the crafting of a teacher-support artefact in the form of an Authentic Assessment Rubric Tool (AART) that enables teachers to self- and peer-review authentic assessment tasks. Participants will have the opportunity to evaluate and test their own assessments to measure its authenticity, and to critique the AART model to improve it for future users.
ACEN (Vic/Tas) and HERDSA (Vic) branches completed a joint workshop event that showcased a variet... more ACEN (Vic/Tas) and HERDSA (Vic) branches completed a joint workshop event that showcased a variety of authentic non-placement WIL approaches and offered opportunities to discuss them and share experiences. It is increasingly challenging to find placements for our students to have intensive WIL experiences and prepare them for employability. The majority of students don’t have access to placements and these non-placement authentic WIL activities provide them with opportunities to engage with industry and community in work-related assignments. ACEN VIC/Tas and HERDSA (Vic) hosted the workshop on non-placement Work-Integrated Learning on May 15, 2015. The workshop concluded with opportunities to discuss WIL challenges and effective ways to implement non-placement WIL with experts in the field.
Where: Deakin University's City Centre
Level 3, 550 Bourke Street, Melbourne 3000
Presenters: Karen Le Rossignol (Deakin), Sally Parrot (RMIT) & Dr Viet Le (Swinburne)
A showcase presentation at the ACEN National Conference (2014), Queensland, Australia.
The que... more A showcase presentation at the ACEN National Conference (2014), Queensland, Australia.
The quest to provide WIL experiences to increasing numbers of students is the aspiration of most universities in recognition of demand by employers for work-ready graduates. Co-op years, internships, or other types of placements which have been the hallmark of traditional WIL experiences are increasingly difficult to secure. Therefore other types of WIL have come to the fore as alternative work-related experiential learning activities. At Deakin University, a major course renewal process has provided the impetus and resources to develop a course-wide range of such alternative, but equally rich, WIL learning activities and assessments.
A case in point is a course in humanitarian assistance in which students begin their WIL activity by developing a response plan to an online simulated emergency humanitarian scenario. This is then followed by a live simulation of a different scenario in which students and sector representatives role-play operational and strategic functions. Students also interview personnel, conduct a press conference, facilitate funder and response team meetings and reflect on the development of their graduate and leadership capabilities.
This example, among others at Deakin, offers students authentic, professionally-based, integrated and scaffolded WIL learning experiences that are an alternative and complement to placements. The sharing of these initiatives may serve as a stimulus for expanding WIL offerings.
A presentation about a small mixed method research project being undertaken at a rural dual secto... more A presentation about a small mixed method research project being undertaken at a rural dual sector university. The project investigates a curricular renewal process that utilises a WIL framework in order to evaluate the assessment tasks for students' job readiness. The presentation focused on some of the findings and outcomes to date.
A panel of teachers discussed how they utilise a WIL framework to assist them to create authentic... more A panel of teachers discussed how they utilise a WIL framework to assist them to create authentic assessment tasks that mirrored what students would do in the workplace to increase students' job readiness.
A WIL workshop for teachers at Deakin University. Cloud Based Work Integrated & Career Developmen... more A WIL workshop for teachers at Deakin University. Cloud Based Work Integrated & Career Development Learning is a 2 hour workshop that will enable participants to design and develop practical cloud-based work integrated and career development learning activities to enable students to develop skills and abilities required for starting their careers. Topics covered included:
1. How online simulations can be designed to represent authentic work-Integrated Learning
2. What other learning activities can be offered as work-integrated and career development learning
3. How work-integrated and career development learning can be assessed.
Capacity Building, Deakin Learning Futures, Mar 20, 2013
An activity-based workshop about how teachers can assist students to use reflective practice to m... more An activity-based workshop about how teachers can assist students to use reflective practice to meet a changing world and to become confident global citizens.
What the participants had to say about the workshop:
"The workshop was highly experiential and interactive, and I couldn’t pretend to be able to fill you in properly"
"It was a great experience"
"Many thanks Rachael
I enjoyed the session"
"Thanks very much for an interesting session Rachael"
"Today I attended an excellent workshop on reflective practice run by Rachael.""
A series of 2.2 workshop as part of the Sandpit process at Deakin Learning Futures, Deakin Univer... more A series of 2.2 workshop as part of the Sandpit process at Deakin Learning Futures, Deakin University.
Each 2.2 workshop is a discipline specific seminar that assists academics/teachers to review CLOs and to map them across the Course at Unit level. The workshop also focuses on understanding CloudConcepts and how to enhance a unit to incorporate reimagined assessment items that engage students and delight them.
The presentation is based on a university-wide ePortfolio project that went from “test to product... more The presentation is based on a university-wide ePortfolio project that went from “test to production” and was “rolled out” using a benchmarking strategy in order to meet national standards. The ePortfolio initiative was an important element of the University’s Learning and Teaching Plan 2012-2014. The ePortfolio initiative was incorporated into the students’ learning experience to address graduate attributes and professional skills via a teacher "by-in” approach. The ePortfolio project was also used to help students implement effective reflective practice techniques within various units, courses and programs as well as to encourage lifelong learning.
The rationale behind the project was to gain insight from previous university-wide ePortfolio (nationally and internationally) initiatives and to use the findings in order to adapt learnt discoveries into a rural multi-sector University-wide ePortfolio program. The benchmarking process assisted the ePortfolio Project Officer to plan, develop and implement pertinent blended support resources as well as to determine potential pre- and post- rollout challenges and issues.
The presentation confirms the requirement for a more personal, flexible and collaborative technological and pedagogical support program that incorporates a blended and collegial approach to ePortfolio making. Recommendations are made for the careful implementation and integration of pre- and post- rollout evaluation and benchmarking processes at a rural multi-sector University that aims to meet national standards.
Highlights of the desired focus of the presentation are: the good and the bad: what will work? How to develop an integrated and effective ePortfolio platform as an eLearning tool, and ease of use to enable student and teacher adoption at a rural dual sector setting."
A seminar for staff who work with performing arts students. The presentation discussed and invest... more A seminar for staff who work with performing arts students. The presentation discussed and investigated ways in which to implement ePortfolios into the curricular in order to address graduate attributes and employability skills for performing arts students
A Professional Development workshop for VET teachers on ePortfolios as an alternative assessment ... more A Professional Development workshop for VET teachers on ePortfolios as an alternative assessment practice for Industry placement and work-skill recording.
A Professional Development workshop for VET teachers (in the Human Services Faculty) which invest... more A Professional Development workshop for VET teachers (in the Human Services Faculty) which investigated how to support VET teachers with students moving into Higher Education. This workshop offered additional support resources for the dual sector in Learning and Teaching such as Reflective Practice techniques.
A Professional Development workshop for VET apprentice teachers and students on ePortfolio making... more A Professional Development workshop for VET apprentice teachers and students on ePortfolio making as part of an eLearning project grant.
The opportunity for postgraduate candidates and early career academics to develop an ePortfolio i... more The opportunity for postgraduate candidates and early career academics to develop an ePortfolio is occurring all over the world and in numerous educational settings. This presentation acknowledges and illustrates the benefits of creating and sustaining an ePortfolio, resources for the novice ePortfolio designer and showcases examples of "Good Practice" ePortfolios. Additionally, the presentation concludes by focusing on any concerns that participants might have associated with the University of Ballarat's ePortfolio system as well as inviting feedback in order to address the postgraduate students' ePortfolio experience.
ABSTRACT: One way in which teachers can sustain and improve student led teaching and learning pro... more ABSTRACT: One way in which teachers can sustain and improve student led teaching and learning projects is to use extrinsic and intrinsic motivational techniques. However, the balance between successfully implementing these techniques simultaneously and separately and at the “right” moment is never easy. Investigating the impact of certain types of extrinsic and intrinsic motivational techniques on students’ attitudes towards an online learning experience can help better understand the relevance of such techniques. This research presentation outlines a project which: i) produced an online creative arts journal at The University of Western Australia for the first time, 2) identified four main types of extrinsic and intrinsic motivational techniques that assisted in sustaining the student led project; 3) investigated which extrinsic and intrinsic motivational techniques are “best” employed regarding the future growth of the online teaching and learning project, and in order for the project to evolve successfully into the future, and 4) surveyed students and interviewed lecturers associated with the previous three points. The results suggest that students appreciate lecturers providing opportunities concerning online, industry linked and student led teaching and learning projects. In addition, lecturers who implement certain extrinsic and intrinsic motivation techniques are viewed by students as showing passion towards the student learning outcomes which in turn encourages participation. Recommendations are made regarding ways to encourage a wider use of extrinsic and intrinsic techniques and especially within an online, industry linked teaching and learning project at the university level.
This presentation was based on a a case study that examines a theatre-in-education production The... more This presentation was based on a a case study that examines a theatre-in-education production The Small Poppies (1989) and its expression, making connections between some of the strands of research regarding the role of the imaginary companion in early childhood studies and performance theory. The premise of the presentation is that the creative work of The Small Poppies provides an alternative gateway to extend the analysis associated with the imaginary character in early childhood studies. This will be achieved by exploring the role of the imaginary character in a theatre-in-education playtext as a textual framing device as well as an opportunity for the actor to perform the invisible. Conclusions are made, revealing that The Small Poppies has not only assisted in introducing young people to a theatre-attending habit enjoyed into adulthood, but has reinforced the importance of the imaginary companion as a positive journey of discovery and not something of which to be ashamed.
Between 2 and 4 March 2011, the Amsterdam School for Cultural Analysis held a conference at the U... more Between 2 and 4 March 2011, the Amsterdam School for Cultural Analysis held a conference at the University of Amsterdam. Titled ‘Practicing Theory: Imagining, Resisting, Remembering’, the conference aimed to investigate how ‘theory’ and ‘practice’ overlap, influence and construct one another. The conference also sought to shed light on the productive intersections that arise when the boundaries between theory and practice are considered porous and the gap which lies between them is reinvented as a constructive space of opportunity. Because the conference revolved around the interrogation of the boundaries between conceptual objects of theory and practice, participants from a wide variety of disciplines were invited to submit articles and essays from the fields of science, art and politics. The conference and accompanying workshops werestructured along three central themes in which participants were asked to think and/or work through the practicing of theory and the theorising of practice. As outlined in the conference title, these three themes were ‘imagining’, ‘resisting’ and ‘remembering’.
One way to assist in transforming a lecture experience into an occasion that can attract and enga... more One way to assist in transforming a lecture experience into an occasion that can attract and engage students is with the use of acting skills. However, very few university academics have experience employing such techniques. Investigating the impact of certain types of performance skills on students' attitudes towards the learning experience can help better understand the relevance of such techniques. This presentation outlines a project which: i) surveyed students about their attitudes to face to face and online recorded lectures, ii) surveyed students about their attitudes towards performance techniques, in particular, spatial awareness, vocalisation, eye contact and passion and iii) interviewed lecturers about the potential benefits to student learning regarding performance techniques in the lecture theatre and their personal frequency of use. The results suggest that students and lecturers value face to face delivery of content, recognising the benefits of certain performance techniques in the lecture theatre. Recommendations are made regarding ways to encourage a wider use and evaluation of performance techniques in teaching and learning at the university level.
Keywords: performance techniques in the classroom, student engagement, performance-centred approach to learning
Handbook of Teaching and Learning at Business Schools: A Practice-Based Approach, 2021
This chapter, presents the findings from an evaluation research project for a large-scale, local,... more This chapter, presents the findings from an evaluation research project for a large-scale, local, and international placement program that straddled both undergraduate and postgraduate business school degrees. We conducted a mixed-methods evaluation process to help us understand how to improve a business school placement program for future deliveries. We achieved this by eliciting students’ and industry partners’ responses, via an online survey that was administered from 2017-2019, when participants prepared for or were undertaking a placement experience, increasing students’ employability for job-readiness. The results from the study, showed several key areas for amendment consideration. For example, students requested that the timing of the learning activities, preparation, and de-brief workshops, which formed an integral part of the program, required further alignment to the work placement activity. Students expressed a desire to have assessments graded by industry partners. Industry partners advocated for more involvement in the assessment requirements and to assist with the matching of students to organisational needs. The overall findings, assisted us to develop a set of specific recommendations to improve practice, adding to the research literature on placement pedagogy and practice.
This chapter applies an evaluation research framework to investigate a modest number of business ... more This chapter applies an evaluation research framework to investigate a modest number of business students’ perceptions when completing a post-practicum teamwork assessment task, which was linked to three interventions for improving professional experience. The study focused on better understanding how post-practicum teamwork learning experiences that integrate interventions might be best aligned to support professional learning. The study took place at a large Australian University where a credit elective unit of study was offered to undergraduate students via a university-wide Industry or Community Project that was part of a Work-Integrated Learning (WIL) Program. The results of the investigation illuminate on the challenges that students encountered when preparing for and undertaking a post-practicum teamwork experience. We provide some considerations and several curriculum improvement strategies for better crafting post-practicum teamwork interventions for improving professional teamwork learning.
The 'New and Selected Works' have been specifically chosen to showcase a new kind of writing that... more The 'New and Selected Works' have been specifically chosen to showcase a new kind of writing that blends and bleeds. Each narrative is either strange, a blend of ideas, or embedded with themes that have various abstract subliminal messages for the reader to discover.
"Secrets" is ever changing. The work begins with an essay that explores the nature of blended writing before continuing with a story about a peculiar relationship between a Death Adder snake and a girl who is shipwrecked off the coast of New South Wales, Australia in the late eighteen hundreds. A parallel story is then re-told in 'Killing me Softly', but with an alternative viewpoint that has been influenced by Henry Lawson's timeless short story "The Drover's Wife". The reader then meets the girl again, but this time she is trying to figure out the meaning of first love in contemporary times. However, her Doctor seems more lost than she is. The reader encounters various other crisp-like prose pieces where images, everyday objects and where characters set a fast-paced narrative to uncover mysteries of the land and mind. A selection of poetry is peppered throughout the work before the reader is brought face-to-face with a bird's life, a baby, the nature of dreams, passion, and erotic revenge that has a twist at the end.
"Refreshing theatrical experience marked by crisp direction and a keen sense of rhythm." [Canberra Times July, 2001].
"The author utilises metaphor, movement and various theatrical devices to present content which is notoriously 'difficult' in a highly original, engaging way. This is thought provoking, profound work" (Santha Press, 2000).
As teachers, we are living and working in times of abundant challenge and change. These challenge... more As teachers, we are living and working in times of abundant challenge and change. These challenges transpire across different education levels and sectors, including K–12, vocational, tertiary, and adult learning. Within this vast education ecosystem, a major challenge for all teachers is to allocate time, effort, and resources to ensure that their students receive a quality education with real-world implications, influencing soft-skill attainment, such as teamwork, communication, and critical thinking skills. In this article, the authors discuss, through a theoretical lens, the value of considering a national and universal approach to self- and peer-evaluations of authentic assessment tasks to improve teacher practice in Australia. Currently, there is modest opportunity amongst K–12 and tertiary teachers to comprehensively learn together, limiting cross-fertilisation of practice and interconnectedness, and as a national community of practice. The authors argue in this paper that offering an avenue to share knowledge and practice in authentic assessment design could potentially assist in addressing this challenge. Therefore, the article is dedicated to exploring the barriers and opportunities to advance a national and universal approach to transferable professional development in authentic assessment practice within the Australian education ecosystem.
In this study, I explore my lived experience to evaluate an established team-teaching artefact. I... more In this study, I explore my lived experience to evaluate an established team-teaching artefact. I achieve this by implementing an adapted meta-synthesis of retrospective, published individualised and co-authored autoethnography (MICA) methodology. The MICA framework was first penned by Hughes and Pennington (2021), which I adapt to determine the efficacy of a teacher-scholarship artefact, which was created to advance team-teaching practice. In this paper, I display how I evaluated the artefact's usefulness, highlighting particular areas for improvement. While MICA is known as an innovative research methodology, applying it to inform teacher-scholarship artefact making remains modest. The study's findings expand innovative methodological approaches in the scholarship of teaching and learning through autoethnography.
International Journal of Work-Integrated Learning, 2021
In this study, an in-person simulated role play as a worthwhile approach in preparation for work-... more In this study, an in-person simulated role play as a worthwhile approach in preparation for work-integrated learning (WIL) through a theater and reality of the board (TROB) pedagogical model is explored. Students participated in a twelve week, in-semester TROB program, acting out in-person board room positions, such as Chair and Secretary before observing a real boardroom meeting. One hundred and seventy pre-and post-survey responses were elicited from international business and engineering postgraduate students to ascertain perceived employability skill growth when undertaking a TROB program. Based on the findings, two recommendations are highlighted. The first, to consider in-person simulated work-integrated learning role play (SWILRP) as a viable approach in preparation for WIL that includes industry stakeholder engagement and second, to teach and assess self-reflection through a TROB pedagogical model as a key employability skill outcome.
In this study, we investigate the benefits and barriers to postgraduate students' employability s... more In this study, we investigate the benefits and barriers to postgraduate students' employability skill attainment through an in-person, boardroom role play activity titled Theatre of the Board. We use a case study approach that incorporates mixed methods to analyse 157 pre- and post-survey student responses and twelve reflective logbooks. Over a two year period we measured students' employability skill growth through a Theatre of the Board role play. Students play-acted boardroom positions, requiring highly spontaneous and creative solutions to collective problem solving. The results show that students improved their cultural awareness, reflective learning and problem-solving. On the other hand, students' self-confidence with time management, interpersonal and oral communication skills decreased over time. Based on the findings, we present key recommendations to advance role play curriculum design while considering employability skill attainment as a key component to experiential learning outcomes.
Contemporary Approaches to Research in Mathematics, Science, Health, and Environmental Education, Nov 21, 2014
The purpose of this paper is to describe briefly my “methodology” decision when developing and im... more The purpose of this paper is to describe briefly my “methodology” decision when developing and implementing a faculty-wide blended learning framework for STEM at an Australian university.
In this study, I explore a time when I crafted a philosophy of practice (PoP) to inform team-teac... more In this study, I explore a time when I crafted a philosophy of practice (PoP) to inform team-teaching encounters. I articulate my experience through a blended autoethnographical account. I propose that integrating an intentionally designed PoP for team-teaching aids in uncovering group-based responsibilities, opportunities, and limitations. The results informed the crafting of a four-staged, practitioner-based model and toolkit, helping to create a framework to establish and/or evaluate team-teaching. I make specific recommendations, affording solutions in the domain of team-teaching as an evolving practice.
This article explores how a university-wide, short-term mobility, work-integrated learning (WIL) ... more This article explores how a university-wide, short-term mobility, work-integrated learning (WIL) program at an Australian university developed students’ interdisciplinary, adaptability, and interdependence skills. We chose a case study methodology with a mixed methods approach to answer a key research question to better design online, short-term mobility programs. Data was collected from students who participated in a short-term mobility program through pre-and post-experience online surveys and recorded focus group interviews. We utilize the findings from this study to provide specific recommendations to support online, short-term mobility practice, curriculum design, and delivery. This study contributes to mobility, internationalization of the curriculum, and interdisciplinary education research fields for higher education.
In this study, I explore a time when I collaborated on an education-focused research project, whi... more In this study, I explore a time when I collaborated on an education-focused research project, which failed. I articulate my experience of failure as a positive means for improving collaborative research practice. I achieve this by repositioning the critiquing of failure through an auto-ethnographical account, integrating an adapted version of the Theory of Change framework by Hart, Diercks-O’Brien, & Powell, (2009). ([Hart, et al., (2009). Exploring stakeholder engagement in impact evaluations planning in educational development work. Evaluation, 15(3), 285–306. https://doi.org/10.1177/1356389009105882]) to better acknowledge, understand and prepare for failure. Even with careful planning to execute a purposefully designed collaborative research project, success cannot be guaranteed. When failure happens, something has gone terribly wrong. However, something has also transpired that was meaningful.
Blended learning is often viewed as a teaching mode that integrates a
combination of online inter... more Blended learning is often viewed as a teaching mode that integrates a combination of online interactive activities with face-to-face learnings. This includes a mixture of different types of teaching and learning techniques, and Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) tools. In this study, we undertook an experiment to ascertain what constituted a practitioner-based approach to team-teaching for blended learning. The experiment occurred during one teaching period (11 weeks) at an Australian University where the classroom teaching experience was accessed by students and teachers across different geographical locations, using ICT. During the experiment, we completed individual and collaborative reflections, utilised an online survey to elicit students’ perceptions about our team-teaching practice and critiqued the literature on blended learning. Qualitative analysis was conducted for each data source, revealing several key themes, which were: (1) skills, (2) student, team-teaching and teacher roles and (3) the role of ICT. This study explored these themes in detail, showing that when using ICT, specific communication processes build student and teachers’ confidence as well as facilitating trust between those involved in providing a blended classroom experience. This in turn, contributes to the flexible use of ICT tools, offering opportunities for teacher and students to participate in variety of class roles, interacting via online, face-to-face or blended methods. Overall we found that to assist with setting-up and facilitating teachteaching for blended learning, it was important to provide role clarity, an agreed-to approach for classroom communications and purposeful integration of ICT for the teaching team and students when failure occurred.
For higher education graduates to be effective in the workplace, they require strong technical sk... more For higher education graduates to be effective in the workplace, they require strong technical skills and the capability to operate across diverse knowledge landscapes to solve real world problems. At an Australian university, an interdisciplinary, short-term study tour programme was utilised to enhance students’ inexplicit employability skills with a focus on managing complexity while developing agility and creativity. To investigate the effectiveness of such a programme, we examined students’ perceptions of an interdisciplinary teamwork assessment task that was undertaken in an international context via a study tour model. We achieved this by, first, introducing a purposely designed interdisciplinary teamwork assessment task, which focused on students presenting innovative ideas to peers and industry members. Second, we elicited student responses via a case study approach that incorporated mixed methods, utilising several data collection instruments prior to, during, and after students participated in a study tour. The findings suggest that integrating a purposely designed interdisciplinary teamwork assessment task, via a short-term study tour model, uncovered certain inexplicit employability skills, namely managing complexity, developing agility and creativity. We make specific recommendations to support this insight, contributing to the mobility teaching and learning research field.
A large-scale investigation was conducted at an Australian University to document and analyze aut... more A large-scale investigation was conducted at an Australian University to document and analyze authentic work-related assessment types for a university-wide major course review (Kaider, F., and R. Hains-Wesson. 2016. Enhancing Courses for Employability. Melbourne: Australian Collaborative Education Network. Report.). This study provides further insights into Science, Engineering, Technology and Mathematics (STEM) teachers’ experiences in undertaking authentic assessment-led reform. STEM teachers participated in an online survey and a recorded interview to elicit their perceptions of authentic assessment-led activities. A mixed methods approach was used with two key themes emerging: (1) purpose and approach, which highlighted the importance of introducing a shared understanding for effective authentic assessment-led reform and (2) working with industry, which illustrated the requirement to provide teachers with additional support options when working with industry. In this paper, we discuss the implications of the findings along with the presentation of a set of key recommendations for supporting teachers when renewing STEM education.
The study investigated students’ perceptions and attitudes toward the use of ePortfolios for refl... more The study investigated students’ perceptions and attitudes toward the use of ePortfolios for reflective practice as a learning and teaching strategy. A mixed‐method approach was applied to the study in a first‐year food science unit, at a regional Australian university. Data were generated via 3 sources, in order to provide the evidential basis for the investigation, including: a mixed method survey, access to student's exam results, and students’ ePortfolio reflections. The findings identified 3 key positive aspects. First, a variety of assessment methods was key to enhancing the overall learning of 1st‐year food science students. Second, ePortfolio reflective writing can be a key aspect for improved student engagement. Finally, structured ePortfolio sessions can help food science students consolidate knowledge, while also allowing them to encounter new ideas related to food science theory and develop technical knowledge. However, technological issues with using an ePortoflio can cloud the value of the reflective task for some students. Recommendations are made for how to better support and implement reflective practice using ePortfolios to enhance the learning of food science students.
A large-scale investigation was conducted at an Australian University to
document and analyze aut... more A large-scale investigation was conducted at an Australian University to document and analyze authentic work-related assessment types for a university-wide major course review (Kaider, F., and R. Hains-Wesson. 2016. Enhancing Courses for Employability. Melbourne: Australian Collaborative Education Network. Report.). This study provides further insights into Science, Engineering, Technology and Mathematics (STEM) teachers’ experiences in undertaking authentic assessment-led reform. STEM teachers participated in an online survey and a recorded interview to elicit their perceptions of authentic assessment-led activities. A mixed methods approach was used with two key themes emerging: (1) purpose and approach, which highlighted the importance of introducing a shared understanding for effective authentic assessment-led reform and (2) working with industry, which illustrated the requirement to provide teachers with additional support options when working with industry. In this paper, we discuss the implications of the findings along with the presentation of a set of key recommendations for supporting teachers when renewing STEM education.
A current call for the reform to private providers (which also includes third-party providers (TP... more A current call for the reform to private providers (which also includes third-party providers (TPP)) who offer educational services to registered training and higher education organisations has produced an urgent space for debate around standards.
This study examines street performing arts students' responses to using improvisation for teamwor... more This study examines street performing arts students' responses to using improvisation for teamwork during a first year, non-placement, work-integrated learning (WIL) experience. The aim of the study was to investigate: (1) students' perceptions of improvisation and (2) ways in which to design teamwork assessments that utilise improvisation. Data was collected through surveying students and via a recorded, focus group discussion. The results highlighted students' understanding of how improvisation works, how it is learnt and that it requires risk taking. From the findings, specific recommendations for designing teamwork assessments that utilise improvisational processes are made via a three-stage model. While the three-stage model presented in this study is intended to advance the field of performance arts education research, the findings are relevant to learning and teaching where improvisation for teamwork is offered.
The paper explores a collaborative self-study, autoethnography research project, which aided in i... more The paper explores a collaborative self-study, autoethnography research project, which aided in informing practice for the teaching of reflective practice in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) at an Australian university. Self-report methods were used, because it enabled the collection of a variety of self-awareness data generated processes to help produce insights and understandings. This was achieved by undertaking a systematic approach to the exploration of a critical friendship between two academic support staff members alongside reflections from a recorded, focus group interview with nine STEM teachers. Four self-awareness data generated processes were used: (1) self-reflections; (2) collaborative reflections; (3) reflections on pertinent literature findings and (4) reflections from nine STEM teachers. A thematic analysis of the data was undertaken, which resulted in the discovery of three turning points such as moments of understandings that challenge assumptions and/or lead to new insights. The findings indicated that a STEM-centric, scaffolded approach that utilised the scientific method for reflective practice enabled the development of a shared understanding around teaching and assessing reflective practice for STEM teachers. First, because it boosted self-confidence and second, because it reduced scepticism around reflective practice as a non-scientific form of learning.
Design-based educational research can aid in providing a lens into understanding the complex... more Design-based educational research can aid in providing a lens into understanding the complexities around imaginative methods, while also creating an avenue to share personal insights to support the solving of teaching and learning problems to direct future efforts. In this study, the 'I' narrative was extensively utilised in the form of an autoethnography perspective. This was achieved by incorporating three self-report methods within a design experiment, in order to explore the messiness associated with showcasing the creation and modification of a faculty-wide blended learning framework for STEM teachers. Data generation procedures from three sources provided the evidential basis for investigating this process: (1) self-reflection, (2) key literature findings, and (3) critical discussions from a community of inquiry. The findings identified three particular features of the process of change that were challenging, for which STEM academics required support: educators' professional context; finding models to support change in practice; and identifying the change agent. The paper argues for the program of a personal and complex methodology to inform practice, providing insights into the change process, because process is just as important as product.
This study examines participants' responses to first year students' street performances as a non-... more This study examines participants' responses to first year students' street performances as a non-placement work-integrated learning (WIL) activity over a two year period. The purpose of the study was to determine: (1) community perception, (2) continuous improvement, and (3) future needs. Data was collected through surveying participants' post-viewing of the street performances, students' reflective notes, and a recorded focus group interview. The findings indicated that audience members require additional assistance to value the students' street performances. The results revealed that students require more guidance around researching the sites of practice, understanding group work dynamics, relaxation methods, intra- and interpersonal skill development, conflict resolution and how to effectively build community relations with the local government Council. From the findings, specific recommendations for continual improvement are made. These include offering an explanation of the street performances' historical and aesthetic connections to the building sites for audience members, affording battery operated body-microphones and light rostrum for improved sight lines, delivering group dynamics information and arranging opportunities for students to engage more effectively with the Council. While the recommendations in this study are intended to advance the field of research that evaluates non-placement WIL performing arts curriculum in higher education, the findings are relevant to any group-based performance activity in learning and teaching.
A casual review of the literature reveals a modest collection of studies that draw on personal ex... more A casual review of the literature reveals a modest collection of studies that draw on personal experience about academic development in higher education. The following Post-card outlines a strategy employed by academic development staff in an attempt to increase participation in sharing best practice at an Australian university. Our aim was to provide teaching staff with a variety of online examples of innovative teaching practice, which were accessible at any time. We titled the project Stories in Teaching.
This paper describes an ePortfolio implementation strategy at Federation University Australia, Vi... more This paper describes an ePortfolio implementation strategy at Federation University Australia, Victoria (formerly the University of Ballarat). The authors combined a personal and practical viewpoint to elicit pitfalls, challenges, and recommendations for improvement. The paper is divided
into three main areas in order to outline the experiments that occurred. The first section provides a standard literature review around ePortfolio adoption as well as a research-based analysis of available ePortfolio software at Australian universities. The second part depicts the University’s ePortfolio implementation strategy that focused on “test-to-production” and technology dissemination phases. This section is based on the authors’ personal viewpoint of ePortfolio adoption at a university where a “top-down management decision making model” (Slade, Murfin, & Readman, 2013, p. 178) was used. Third, the evaluation strategy is reported, which was based on
similar research conducted at Australian universities (Hallam & Creagh, 2010; Hallam, Harper, Hauville, Creagh, & McAllister, 2009). This part is offered as a modest-scoped, mixed methods evaluation process. The paper extends on ePortfolio implementation strategies (Bell & White, 2013;
Coffey & Ashford-Rowe, 2014; Jarrott & Gambrel, 2011; Lambert & Corrin, 2007; Ring & Ramirez, 2012; Slade et al., 2013) and software analysis (ACODE, 2011; Slade et al., 2013). Recommendations are made for the careful integration of pre- and post-rollout of ePortfolio
programs with face-to-face ePortfolio tutor support, offering online resources and alternative portfolio-making options for students with poor broadband access.
2013 Research
Background
ACEN aims to foster research and scholarship initiatives in Work ... more 2013 Research
Background
ACEN aims to foster research and scholarship initiatives in Work Integrated Learning (WIL) by endorsing research and scholarship proposals and identifying and advancing WIL research and scholarship in priority areas.
In 2013 ACEN is offering funding for two research grants to conduct an investigation into an area of Work Integrated Learning that address a theme identified through consultation with ACEN membership as part of the 2012 ACEN National Research Symposium. These themes are:
Meeting the expectations of employers/tired workforce and limited placements.
Assessing WIL outcomes/WIL and e portfolio (gathering evidence, documentation etc.)
Measurement/impact/evidence
Widening participation/equity and social inclusion/social transformative effects of WIL
Costs associated with WIL
Employability as a marketable feature of education.
Scheme Objectives
The grants are intended to: Build the capacity for members of ACEN to undertake research into aspects of work integrated learning promote and supporting scholarship in work integrated learning develop effective mechanisms for identifying, developing, disseminating and embedding researched based practice in work integrated learning programs leverage opportunities for collaboration in research into the practices of work integrated learning.
This study examines participants' responses to first year students' street performances as a non-... more This study examines participants' responses to first year students' street performances as a non-placement work-integrated learning (WIL) activity over a two year period. The purpose of the study was to determine: (1) community perception, (2) continuous improvement, and (3) future needs. Data was collected through surveying participants' post-viewing of the street performances, students' reflective notes, and a recorded focus group interview. The findings indicated that audience members require additional assistance to value the students' street performances. The results revealed that students require more guidance around researching the sites of practice, understanding group work dynamics, relaxation methods, intra- and interpersonal skill development, conflict resolution and how to effectively build community relations with the local government Council. From the findings, specific recommendations for continual improvement are made. These include offering an explanation of the street performances' historical and aesthetic connections to the building sites for audience members, affording battery operated body-microphones and light rostrum for improved sight lines, delivering group dynamics information and arranging opportunities for students to engage more effectively with the Council. While the recommendations in this study are intended to advance the field of research that evaluates non-placement WIL performing arts curriculum in higher education, the findings are relevant to any group-based performance activity in learning and teaching.
The project aims to investigate the cause, occurrence and effects of ‘starts’ for STEM educators ... more The project aims to investigate the cause, occurrence and effects of ‘starts’ for STEM educators in curricula development/renewal. What is a "start"? Appelbaum (1995) describes the "start" as a "stop", which is “a movement away from the entrapment in automatic and associative thought […] the stop is a movement of transition” (24).
There is an urgent need to undertake additional practitioner-based research experiments that are ... more There is an urgent need to undertake additional practitioner-based research experiments that are student-centred, exploring the mechanics of team-teaching for blended learning. This call to action is not only important, but it is urgent, because collectively, teachers are being required to quickly move from face-to-face to online delivery, to re-think team-teaching processes, blended learning instruction and to make sure that they are meeting the needs of a variety of learners through different contexts while integrating a diverse range of ICT tools and platforms.
Keynote outline: In the past, the University of Tasmania has focused on traditional Work-Integrat... more Keynote outline: In the past, the University of Tasmania has focused on traditional Work-Integrated Learning activity, however staff are very interested in exposure to current research and other forms of WIL. In particular, I was asked to present information on non‐traditional and alternative forms of WIL, research and practice to promote opportunities for peers to network and foster collaborative activity internally and externally for positive outcomes. The event was for the University of Tasmania's Community of Practice for WIL and was held over two days at the Launceston and Hobart campuses.
The literature points to the inherit value of reflection to make sense of experiences for deep in... more The literature points to the inherit value of reflection to make sense of experiences for deep integrated learning. We propose that a whole-of-course scaffolded approach to reflective practice, through a Work integrated learning (WIL) framework, wherein critical thinking skills are purposely geared for re-shaping knowledge, will improve Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) students’ employability. This study examines the researchers’ perceptions of creating and implementing a faculty-wide reflective practice paradigm that used a collaborative “self-report” method. Data was collected from the researchers’ reflective notes, face to face meetings, pertinent teaching and learning literature and from peers. The findings indicated that a STEM-specific suite of resources was highly beneficial for educators (in our faculty) to adopt a step-change model. While the recommendations in this study are intended to advance the field of reflective practice for STEM, the findings are relevant to any reflective practice curricula steeped within a WIL framework. This study aims to ensure that the educators teaching reflective practice have layered and various means for improving reflective practices relevant to current and future complex working worlds.
A White Paper for Australian and Chinese Employability Professionals, 2021
This white paper is most suitable for educators, government officials, higher education teachers,... more This white paper is most suitable for educators, government officials, higher education teachers, and industry practitioners who desire to learn more about the similarities and differences between Australian and Chinese business school students when they undertake work-integrated learning (WIL) programs. Therefore, the white paper is best used as a discussion prompt only. Throughout the white paper, we share ideas about WIL practice and how to best support and improve Australian and Chinese business students’ WIL learning outcomes for job readiness.
A White Paper for Australian and Chinese Employability Professionals, 2021
This white paper is most suitable for educators, government officials, higher education teachers,... more This white paper is most suitable for educators, government officials, higher education teachers, and industry practitioners who desire to learn more about the similarities and differences between Australian and Chinese business school students when they undertake work-integrated learning (WIL) programmes. Therefore, the white paper is best used as a discussion prompt only. Throughout the white paper, we share ideas about WIL practice and how to best support and improve Australian and Chinese business students’ WIL learning outcomes for job-readiness.
The following resource can be used to assist IT academics to explore, create and re-imagine the t... more The following resource can be used to assist IT academics to explore, create and re-imagine the teaching and assessing of critical thinking skills for students.
The following resource is to be used to assist course directors and teams, lecturers, sessional t... more The following resource is to be used to assist course directors and teams, lecturers, sessional teachers, STEM and design educators to improve, refine and enhance students’ laboratory and prac learning experiences. Blended Learning is highlighted throughout the resource as a major curriculum design method for improving student motivation and the acquisition of knowledge via a student-centred approach. However, there are many other learning and teaching frameworks that can be used such as problem-based learning. Blended learning is just one option from many possibilities.
This resource is for educators who desire to incorporate team-work skill development into their u... more This resource is for educators who desire to incorporate team-work skill development into their units/courses as (formative and summative) assessment task/s. It is most useful when treat-ed as a “conversation starter” around curriculum renewal when implementing a variety of assessment strategies for developing students’ teamwork skills.
The resource is for educators who desire to incorporate communication skill development into thei... more The resource is for educators who desire to incorporate communication skill development into their units/courses as (formative and summative) assessment task/s. It is most useful when treated as a “conversation starter” around enhancing curriculum for developing students’ science communication skills. The resource provides educators with ideas for learning activities for science communication skill development.
For this project, I focus on David Holman’s The Small Poppies (1989) as a case study to highlight... more For this project, I focus on David Holman’s The Small Poppies (1989) as a case study to highlight the significance of the imaginary character in a stand-out Australian theatre-in education (TIE) play. The main premise of the article is to extend the study of imaginary characters and its association with young children, using a reflective inquiry that is based on an artist-in-school practitioner’s viewpoint. Holman’s play negotiates the competing forces between a child’s positive notions about the imaginary companion and society’s varied comprehension of such imaginings, which at times is unflattering. The story of Clint and his imaginary dog, Digger, in The Small Poppies emerges as a micro-socio-psychological phenomenon in the form of: (1) an invisible, known identity; (2) an emotional stabilizer; and (3) shared imaginings. In this study, the analysis pivots solely on the imaginary character at particular performative “turning points” (Bullock and Ritter 2011) within the play. The theorization of the imaginary character in The Small Poppies offers a new perspective for young people’s relationships with imaginary characters from the field of Australian TIE.
Australia's theatre for young audiences (TYA) has concentrated on young people's interest in tech... more Australia's theatre for young audiences (TYA) has concentrated on young people's interest in techno-savvy narrative complexities since the early 1990s, and has done so with positive outcomes. Building from a reflective inquiry, which is based on a TYA practitioner's viewpoint, I explore two Australian contemporary theatre productions for mixed audiences: My Darling Patricia's Africa (2011) and Fleur Elise Noble's 2 Dimensional Life of Her (2011), which utilize old and new technologies for differing purposes. I present the following article in two parts: The first section briefly contextualizes TYA plays in Australia using digital technologies, along with a review of the literature that introduces an ongoing dialogue about digital media in theatre. The second part showcases the creative development process and the synopsis of Africa and 2 Dimensional Life of Her before I discuss the use of old technology in Africa in the form of a techno-tele-character, and the impact of new technologies in 2 Dimensional Life of Her as a transmediated theatrical occurrence. Recommendations are made for ways that TYA practitioners might consider mixing old and new technologies with the live to compete in the cultural marketplace.
Our ongoing exploration into the recognition of Work-Integrated Learning (WIL) as a discipline ha... more Our ongoing exploration into the recognition of Work-Integrated Learning (WIL) as a discipline has led us to advocate for the hiring, support, and adequate resourcing of WIL experts. This is essential to acknowledge its multifaceted nature and the importance of continued research and dialogue to fully understand its impact on education and society. WIL is a specialized field within learning and teaching, requiring proper recognition, rewards, and resources, including formal acknowledgment as a discipline.
Trove is a new online creative writing journal for students by students at The University of West... more Trove is a new online creative writing journal for students by students at The University of Western Australia. In 2011, Trove will evolve into a transmediated creative arts interactive online journal under the mentorship of The University of Western Australia's Cultural Precinct. Trove has already launched its first issue, showcasing various diverse creative writing works from emerging and established creative writers <trove.arts.uwa.edu.au>.
A play for young people that explores the violent disaffected world of three teenagers: peer pres... more A play for young people that explores the violent disaffected world of three teenagers: peer pressure, gang warfare, drugs, teenage sex and crime. The play avoids sharp moralistic overtones - instead it depicts a credible view of the enormous pressures young people face in a fast world with little time to ponder consequences. (Awarded a Powerhouse Youth Theatre, NSW Commission).
This play is about a girl's journey through first love, obsession, competitive swimming, road rag... more This play is about a girl's journey through first love, obsession, competitive swimming, road rage, fare evasion, getting fired, facing her past and moving on. Don't Breathe A Word Of It is fast-paced physical theatre which rollercoasts through an environment of hanging objects and the rhythmic click of metronomes. Post-modern theatre at its best. "a surreal peep into the world of secrets that girls must keep." Sarah Palmer, Western Australian Aug. 2002. "The performers utilise text, metaphor, movement and various theatrical devices to present content... in a highly original, engaging way. This is thought provoking, profound theatre..." Santha Press, Melbourne Fringe Judge 2000. (Awarded the Melbourne Fringe Fesitval's Youth Performing Arts Award, 2000).
In the ever-evolving landscape of higher education, where the pressures of performance, innovatio... more In the ever-evolving landscape of higher education, where the pressures of performance, innovation, and collaboration are omnipresent, an often-overlooked element can make a great difference: fun.
The concept of fun in professional settings might be met with scepticism, especially in academic environments where the stakes are high and the work is serious (Wright et al., 2021). However, integrating fun into higher education is not just a trivial pursuit; it’s a critical strategy for fostering creativity (Yang, 2020), enhancing teamwork (Michel et al., 2019), employees’ well-being (Renee Baptiste, 2009), and ultimately achieving success.
To help achieve this, we have undertaken a three-year research project, supported by the Higher Education Research and Development Society of Australasia via a small grant to explore how we can test a Fun Model first penned by Hains-Wesson et al., (2023) and how it impacts teamwork. The research took the form of group-based autoethnography where we carved out dedicated time to pursue fun as a key element in team meetings, observing, reflecting, and critiquing fun. We used our experiences to create a Fun Quick Guide for leaders, managers and people passionate about teams, which we share here and for the wider community to consider introducing fun into their higher education work lives.
Funding The authors gratefully acknowledge the grant received from the Higher Education Research and Development Society of Australasia (HERDSA) to fund this research.
Third space educationists hold significant roles, creating strong parallel links between students... more Third space educationists hold significant roles, creating strong parallel links between students, academics, and professional staff within a higher education and industry-connected context. This opinion piece highlights the importance of third spaces in higher education (cite: Hains-Wesson, R., & Rahman, N. (2023). Why are leaders making decisions to disrupt third spaces in higher education teaching and learning? Campus Morning Mail.
Our team’s research motto is to have fun through research. We firmly believe that results and rel... more Our team’s research motto is to have fun through research. We firmly believe that results and relationships are tied together. When we feel safe and connected to people we perform better as a team and achieve better results. Therefore, fun is our glue. The feature articles speaks to this point of view.
For women in higher education leadership, landing your dream role is anything but straight forwar... more For women in higher education leadership, landing your dream role is anything but straight forward. It is often not planned, even accidental and happenstance at times – but it doesn’t come without significant determination and sacrifice. This feature opinion piece helps unpack some of the challenges, barriers and opportunities women face in higher education leadership roles.
Key Takeaways
Using live streaming with blended learning helps engage off- and on-campus stude... more Key Takeaways
Using live streaming with blended learning helps engage off- and on-campus students in real time and enhances the off-campus experience by incorporating synchronous activities in addition to the usual asynchronous interactions.
Research into the effective use of blended learning frameworks offers opportunities to create course experiences that are personal, relevant, and engaging.
Challenges include integrating appropriate technology and managing it effectively throughout the course.
Results from practical experiments will likely guide future learning and teaching endeavors using technology for inclusive, interactive, and collaborative learning for on- and off-campus students.
Odd Socks Theatre Company (founding member Rachael Hains-Wesson) assisted Victorian primary schoo... more Odd Socks Theatre Company (founding member Rachael Hains-Wesson) assisted Victorian primary schools to implement anti-bullying policies (1999-). The Company's first show, Odd Socks and Neat Hair, recevied various awards and accolades and was performed over 2000 times.
Odd Socks Theatre Company (founding member Rachael Hains-Wesson) assisted Victorian primary schoo... more Odd Socks Theatre Company (founding member Rachael Hains-Wesson) assisted Victorian primary schools to implement anti-bullying policies (1999-). The Company's first show, Odd Socks and Neat Hair, recevied various awards and accolades and was performed over 2000 times.
Odd Socks Theatre Company (founding member Rachael Hains-Wesson) assisted Victorian primary schoo... more Odd Socks Theatre Company (founding member Rachael Hains-Wesson) assisted Victorian primary schools to implement anti-bullying policies (1999-). The Company's first show, Odd Socks and Neat Hair, recevied various awards and accolades and was performed over 2000 times.
The Fast Generation was first produced by Powerhouse Youth Theatre, Sydney as a part of their you... more The Fast Generation was first produced by Powerhouse Youth Theatre, Sydney as a part of their young playwrights' commission programs. The show toured throughout NSW and Canberra (2000-2001). Rachael Hains-Wesson (nee Campos).
The Fast Generation was first produced by Powerhouse Youth Theatre, Sydney as a part of their you... more The Fast Generation was first produced by Powerhouse Youth Theatre, Sydney as a part of their young playwrights' commission programs. The show toured throughout NSW and Canberra (2000-2001). Rachael Hains-Wesson (nee Campos).
The Fast Generation was first produced by Powerhouse Youth Theatre, Sydney as a part of their you... more The Fast Generation was first produced by Powerhouse Youth Theatre, Sydney as a part of their young playwrights' commission programs. The show toured throughout NSW and Canberra (2000-2001). Rachael Hains-Wesson (nee Campos).
The Fast Generation was first produced by Powerhouse Youth Theatre, Sydney as a part of their you... more The Fast Generation was first produced by Powerhouse Youth Theatre, Sydney as a part of their young playwrights' commission programs. The show toured throughout NSW and Canberra (2000-2001). Rachael Hains-Wesson (nee Campos).
A girl's journey through first love, obsession, competitive swimming, road rage, fare evasion, ge... more A girl's journey through first love, obsession, competitive swimming, road rage, fare evasion, getting fired, facing her past and moving on. Don't Breathe A Word Of It is fast-paced physical theatre which rollercoasts through an environment of hanging objects and the rhythmic click of metronomes. Post-modern theatre at its best. "a surreal peep into the world of secrets that girls must keep." Sarah Palmer, West Australian Aug. 2002. "The performers utilise text, metaphor, movement and various theatrical devices to present content... in a highly original, engaging way. This is thought provoking, profound theatre..." Santha Press, Melbourne Fringe Judge 2000.
A girl's journey through first love, obsession, competitive swimming, road rage, fare evasion, ge... more A girl's journey through first love, obsession, competitive swimming, road rage, fare evasion, getting fired, facing her past and moving on. Don't Breathe A Word Of It is fast-paced physical theatre which rollercoasts through an environment of hanging objects and the rhythmic click of metronomes. Post-modern theatre at its best. "a surreal peep into the world of secrets that girls must keep." Sarah Palmer, West Australian Aug. 2002. "The performers utilise text, metaphor, movement and various theatrical devices to present content... in a highly original, engaging way. This is thought provoking, profound theatre..." Santha Press, Melbourne Fringe Judge 2000.
A girl's journey through first love, obsession, competitive swimming, road rage, fare evasion, ge... more A girl's journey through first love, obsession, competitive swimming, road rage, fare evasion, getting fired, facing her past and moving on. Don't Breathe A Word Of It is fast-paced physical theatre which rollercoasts through an environment of hanging objects and the rhythmic click of metronomes. Post-modern theatre at its best. "a surreal peep into the world of secrets that girls must keep." Sarah Palmer, West Australian Aug. 2002. "The performers utilise text, metaphor, movement and various theatrical devices to present content... in a highly original, engaging way. This is thought provoking, profound theatre..." Santha Press, Melbourne Fringe Judge 2000.
Performers (including Rachael Hains-Wesson nee Campos) from Melbourne Workers Theatre used their ... more Performers (including Rachael Hains-Wesson nee Campos) from Melbourne Workers Theatre used their acting skills to enter a court room to challenge junior wage policies.
"John Sheedy, the new Artistic Director of Barking Gecko Theatre Company, has chosen an imaginati... more "John Sheedy, the new Artistic Director of Barking Gecko Theatre Company, has chosen an imaginative, intricate and difficult text to adapt to the stage.
Shaun Tan’s award winning children’s book The Red Tree is visually rich, however textually scarce. Nevertheless, Sheedy has skillfully directed an aesthetically rich and emotionally drenched experience for children and their families.
"A Midsummer's Night’s Dream is Black Swan's annual Shakespearean production for Perth audiences.... more "A Midsummer's Night’s Dream is Black Swan's annual Shakespearean production for Perth audiences.
Shakespeare wrote most of his known works between 1589 and 1613, however there will always be scholarly debate surrounding the question ‘was Shakespeare the only writer of all his known plays?’ Nevertheless, Shakespeare’s plays are still alluring audiences and A Mid Summer Night’s Dream is no exception."
Rising Water is Winton’s first play and it would be rather unfair to ignore this particular point... more Rising Water is Winton’s first play and it would be rather unfair to ignore this particular point. As Jonathan Levy in Theatre of the Imagination (1987) states: ‘when a playwright imagines a play, he imagines not only the play but the audience for it.’ However, there is a massive difference between writing fiction for a readership and writing a play for a live audience. Does Winton's playwriting skills succeed?
A theatre review of Black Swan Theatre Company's The White Divers of Broom by Steve Barrett - Tro... more A theatre review of Black Swan Theatre Company's The White Divers of Broom by Steve Barrett - Trove's theatre and film reviewer for 2012.
A film review of Carnage by Jen Perry for Trove, an online creative arts journal, at The Universi... more A film review of Carnage by Jen Perry for Trove, an online creative arts journal, at The University of Western Australia
Africa is not Theatre for Young People (TYP) per se; just as the boundaries between childhood and... more Africa is not Theatre for Young People (TYP) per se; just as the boundaries between childhood and adulthood in Africa are blurred so too is the line that separates TYP from adult theatre or puppetry from actor’s theatre.
My Darling Patricia’s Africa presents no obvious solutions to the ongoing predicaments that do not cease once the lights go down. The puppet-children in Africa relate to a contaminated world made by adult culture and subterfuge and must find ways to survive adult enhanced situations that are problematic. The young people who view this production will relate to Africa in diverse ways. This is mainly due to the production intentionally raising questions rather than answering them.
Pods of creative writing, fine arts, music and digital media are spread out across The University... more Pods of creative writing, fine arts, music and digital media are spread out across The University of Western Australia's campus. However, the new online multimedia journal TROVE is changing all that.
page 19 of the article has been made available as a pdf. The entire paper can be downloaded from ... more page 19 of the article has been made available as a pdf. The entire paper can be downloaded from AAET located at http://www.aate.com
Join Rachael Hains-Wesson in a two part series as she interviews Joan Pope (PhD), discussing her ... more Join Rachael Hains-Wesson in a two part series as she interviews Joan Pope (PhD), discussing her unique pathway that led her to assist Australia to become a member of ASSITEJ, the creation of Lowdown, and the founding of Perth’s first, full-time TFYP Company C.A.T.S in 1965.
The measure of any theatre movement is usually illustrated by its production narrative and the vision of its earlier pioneers and practitioners.
In this article, Rachael Hains-Wesson interviews Grahame Gavin, who speaks candidly about the var... more In this article, Rachael Hains-Wesson interviews Grahame Gavin, who speaks candidly about the various challenges and difficulties of working in theatre for young audiences, revealing some honest and interesting observations.
Trove is an online interactive creative arts journal for, by and with students from The Universit... more Trove is an online interactive creative arts journal for, by and with students from The University of Western Australia.
Trove aims to: support, nurture and provide on-going feedback to beginning, developing and emerging creative arts students in a university context. To provide students with opportunities to present their work for an online publication.
Trove endeavours to provide students with an editing experience that resembles a professional industry environment and helps them to gain future employment.
"Trove is an online interactive creative arts journal for, by and with students.
Trove aims to... more "Trove is an online interactive creative arts journal for, by and with students.
Trove aims to: support, nurture and provide on-going feedback to beginning, developing and emerging creative arts students in a university context and provide students with opportunities to present their work for an online publication.
Trove endeavours to provide students with an editing experience that resembles a professional industry environment and helps student to gain graduate attributes."
In the ever-evolving landscape of academia, the conferral of honorary Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) ... more In the ever-evolving landscape of academia, the conferral of honorary Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) degrees has become common practice. Many honorary PhDs are bestowed upon privileged white male professionals, sports people, politicians and artists for their exceptional contributions to society. While the intention behind such awards is to recognize outstanding achievements, there is a growing concern that this practice might be diluting the academic rigor and integrity associated with the prestigious title of Doctor.
Higher education research and development, Apr 13, 2017
A current call for the reform to private providers (which also includes third-party providers (TP... more A current call for the reform to private providers (which also includes third-party providers (TPPs)) who offer educational services to registered training and higher education organizations has produced an urgent space for debate around standards. In a recent article, Danckert (2015) highlighted distressing stories about private providers such as Australian Careers Network, Ashley Services and Vocation in terms of their emphasis on sales and profit rather than on quality education. In 2015, a media release from the Senator, the Hon Simon Birmingham, then Assistant Minister for Education and Training, expressed that, when Registered Training Organizations (RTOs) breach standards, they are to be issued with an immediate fine under the new infringement notice scheme (The Department of Education and Training Media Centre 2015). This is essentially a soft-touch penalty designed to eradicate dodgy marketing practices by RTOs and TPP organizations – a modest punishment! The Federal Government is presently supporting Australian universities to increase mobility programs by offering student grants and aiding institutional mobility initiatives such as the Overseas Study Higher Education Loan Program (OS-HELP), introduced in 2004, the Study Overseas website, the World Class campaign, the Asia Abroad and New Colombo Plan to name just a few (International Education Association of Australia [IEAA], 2015 ). This also means an increase in the contracting of TPPs to aid in the co-delivery of learning in-country. With this in mind, it is imperative to continue to look into how universities are determining best practice in their policy development and how ongoing relationship-forming with TPPs concerning the co-delivery of learning is to be evaluated. There is a pressing need for empirical research that is timely and relevant in this area. While TPPs can assist universities’ mobility programs to enhance the student experience, without the due diligence designed to monitor, regulate and increase collaborative efforts between TPPs and mobility stakeholders, important knowledge will be lost. Bestpractice policy guidelines, research and evaluation, and the open sharing of knowledge between universities and TPPs is therefore crucial. While there are best-practice guidelines available from the UK, USA and Australia, including the IEAA’s Guide to working with third party providers, these guidelines are based on modest empirical research. We know very little, for instance, about how educators employed by universities to support international learning experiences when students are immersed in in-country learning experiences work collaboratively and successfully with TPPs.
This chapter, presents the findings from an evaluation research project for a large-scale, local,... more This chapter, presents the findings from an evaluation research project for a large-scale, local, and international placement program that straddled both undergraduate and postgraduate business school degrees. We conducted a mixed-methods evaluation process to help us understand how to improve a business school placement program for future deliveries. We achieved this by eliciting students’ and industry partners’ responses, via an online survey that was administered from 2017-2019, when participants prepared for or were undertaking a placement experience, increasing students’ employability for job-readiness. The results from the study, showed several key areas for amendment consideration. For example, students requested that the timing of the learning activities, preparation, and de-brief workshops, which formed an integral part of the program, required further alignment to the work placement activity. Students expressed a desire to have assessments graded by industry partners. Industry partners advocated for more involvement in the assessment requirements and to assist with the matching of students to organisational needs. The overall findings, assisted us to develop a set of specific recommendations to improve practice, adding to the research literature on placement pedagogy and practice.
This chapter applies an evaluation research framework to investigate a modest number of business ... more This chapter applies an evaluation research framework to investigate a modest number of business students’ perceptions when completing a post-practicum teamwork assessment task, which was linked to three interventions for improving professional experience. The study focused on better understanding how post-practicum teamwork learning experiences that integrate interventions might be best aligned to support professional learning. The study took place at a large Australian University where a credit elective unit of study was offered to undergraduate students via a university-wide Industry or Community Project that was part of a Work-Integrated Learning (WIL) Program. The results of the investigation illuminate on the challenges that students encountered when preparing for and undertaking a post-practicum teamwork experience. We provide some considerations and several curriculum improvement strategies for better crafting post-practicum teamwork interventions for improving professional teamwork learning.
A casual review of the literature reveals a modest collection of studies that draw on personal ex... more A casual review of the literature reveals a modest collection of studies that draw on personal experience about academic development in higher education. The following Postcard outlines a strategy employed by academic development staff in an attempt to increase participation in sharing best practice at an Australian university. Our aim was to provide teaching staff with a variety of online examples of innovative teaching practice, which were accessible at any time. We titled the project Stories in Teaching.
Australia's theatre for young audiences (TYA) has concentrated on young people's interest... more Australia's theatre for young audiences (TYA) has concentrated on young people's interest in techno-savvy narrative complexities since the early 1990s, and has done so with positive outcomes. Building from a reflective inquiry, which is based on a TYA practitioner's viewpoint, I explore two Australian contemporary theatre productions for mixed audiences: My Darling Patricia's Africa (2011) and Fleur Elise Noble's 2 Dimensional Life of Her (2011), which utilize old and new technologies for differing purposes. I present the following article in two parts: The first section briefly contextualizes TYA plays in Australia using digital technologies, along with a review of the literature that introduces an ongoing dialogue about digital media in theatre. The second part showcases the creative development process and the synopsis of Africa and 2 Dimensional Life of Her before I discuss the use of old technology in Africa in the form of a techno-tele-character, and the impact of new technologies in 2 Dimensional Life of Her as a transmediated theatrical occurrence. Recommendations are made for ways that TYA practitioners might consider mixing old and new technologies with the live to compete in the cultural marketplace.
ABSTRACT Key Takeaways 1. Using live streaming with blended learning helps engage off- and on-cam... more ABSTRACT Key Takeaways 1. Using live streaming with blended learning helps engage off- and on-campus students in real time and enhances the off-campus experience by incorporating synchronous activities in addition to the usual asynchronous interactions; 2. Research into the effective use of blended learning frameworks offers opportunities to create course experiences that are personal, relevant, and engaging; 3. Challenges include integrating appropriate technology and managing it effectively throughout the course. Results from practical experiments will likely guide future learning and teaching endeavors using technology for inclusive, interactive, and collaborative learning for on- and off-campus students.
For this project, I focus on David Holman’s The Small Poppies (1989) as a case study to highlight... more For this project, I focus on David Holman’s The Small Poppies (1989) as a case study to highlight the significance of the imaginary character in a stand-out Australian theatre-in education (TIE) play. The main premise of the article is to extend the study of imaginary characters and its association with young children, using a reflective inquiry that is based on an artist-in-school practitioner’s viewpoint. Holman’s play negotiates the competing forces between a child’s positive notions about the imaginary companion and society’s varied comprehension of such imaginings, which at times is unflattering. The story of Clint and his imaginary dog, Digger, in The Small Poppies emerges as a micro-socio-psychological phenomenon in the form of: (1) an invisible, known identity; (2) an emotional stabilizer; and (3) shared imaginings. In this study, the analysis pivots solely on the imaginary character at particular performative “turning points” (Bullock and Ritter 2011) within the play. The theorization of the imaginary character in The Small Poppies offers a new perspective for young people’s relationships with imaginary characters from the field of Australian TIE.
Higher education research and development, Jun 25, 2016
ABSTRACT The paper explores a collaborative self-study, autoethnography research project, which a... more ABSTRACT The paper explores a collaborative self-study, autoethnography research project, which aided in informing practice for the teaching of reflective practice in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) at an Australian university. Self-report methods were used, because it enabled the collection of a variety of self-awareness data generated processes to help produce insights and understandings. This was achieved by undertaking a systematic approach to the exploration of a critical friendship between two academic support staff members alongside reflections from a recorded, focus group interview with nine STEM teachers. Four self-awareness data generated processes were used: (1) self-reflections; (2) collaborative reflections; (3) reflections on pertinent literature findings and (4) reflections from nine STEM teachers. A thematic analysis of the data was undertaken, which resulted in the discovery of three turning points such as moments of understandings that challenge assumptions and/or lead to new insights. The findings indicated that a STEM-centric, scaffolded approach that utilised the scientific method for reflective practice enabled the development of a shared understanding around teaching and assessing reflective practice for STEM teachers. First, because it boosted self-confidence and second, because it reduced scepticism around reflective practice as a non-scientific form of learning.
Handbook of Teaching and Learning at Business Schools, 2021
This chapter, presents the findings from an evaluation research project for a large-scale, local,... more This chapter, presents the findings from an evaluation research project for a large-scale, local, and international placement program that straddled both undergraduate and postgraduate business school degrees. We conducted a mixed-methods evaluation process to help us understand how to improve a business school placement program for future deliveries. We achieved this by eliciting students’ and industry partners’ responses, via an online survey that was administered from 2017-2019, when participants prepared for or were undertaking a placement experience, increasing students’ employability for job-readiness. The results from the study, showed several key areas for amendment consideration. For example, students requested that the timing of the learning activities, preparation, and de-brief workshops, which formed an integral part of the program, required further alignment to the work placement activity. Students expressed a desire to have assessments graded by industry partners. Industry partners advocated for more involvement in the assessment requirements and to assist with the matching of students to organisational needs. The overall findings, assisted us to develop a set of specific recommendations to improve practice, adding to the research literature on placement pedagogy and practice.
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Presentations by Rachael Hains-Wesson
Where: Deakin University's City Centre
Level 3, 550 Bourke Street, Melbourne 3000
Presenters: Karen Le Rossignol (Deakin), Sally Parrot (RMIT) & Dr Viet Le (Swinburne)
The quest to provide WIL experiences to increasing numbers of students is the aspiration of most universities in recognition of demand by employers for work-ready graduates. Co-op years, internships, or other types of placements which have been the hallmark of traditional WIL experiences are increasingly difficult to secure. Therefore other types of WIL have come to the fore as alternative work-related experiential learning activities. At Deakin University, a major course renewal process has provided the impetus and resources to develop a course-wide range of such alternative, but equally rich, WIL learning activities and assessments.
A case in point is a course in humanitarian assistance in which students begin their WIL activity by developing a response plan to an online simulated emergency humanitarian scenario. This is then followed by a live simulation of a different scenario in which students and sector representatives role-play operational and strategic functions. Students also interview personnel, conduct a press conference, facilitate funder and response team meetings and reflect on the development of their graduate and leadership capabilities.
This example, among others at Deakin, offers students authentic, professionally-based, integrated and scaffolded WIL learning experiences that are an alternative and complement to placements. The sharing of these initiatives may serve as a stimulus for expanding WIL offerings.
1. How online simulations can be designed to represent authentic work-Integrated Learning
2. What other learning activities can be offered as work-integrated and career development learning
3. How work-integrated and career development learning can be assessed.
What the participants had to say about the workshop:
"The workshop was highly experiential and interactive, and I couldn’t pretend to be able to fill you in properly"
"It was a great experience"
"Many thanks Rachael
I enjoyed the session"
"Thanks very much for an interesting session Rachael"
"Today I attended an excellent workshop on reflective practice run by Rachael.""
Each 2.2 workshop is a discipline specific seminar that assists academics/teachers to review CLOs and to map them across the Course at Unit level. The workshop also focuses on understanding CloudConcepts and how to enhance a unit to incorporate reimagined assessment items that engage students and delight them.
Workshops that have been completed:
March 2013: B.ComFinance
March 2013: B.ComMgt
"
The rationale behind the project was to gain insight from previous university-wide ePortfolio (nationally and internationally) initiatives and to use the findings in order to adapt learnt discoveries into a rural multi-sector University-wide ePortfolio program. The benchmarking process assisted the ePortfolio Project Officer to plan, develop and implement pertinent blended support resources as well as to determine potential pre- and post- rollout challenges and issues.
The presentation confirms the requirement for a more personal, flexible and collaborative technological and pedagogical support program that incorporates a blended and collegial approach to ePortfolio making. Recommendations are made for the careful implementation and integration of pre- and post- rollout evaluation and benchmarking processes at a rural multi-sector University that aims to meet national standards.
Highlights of the desired focus of the presentation are: the good and the bad: what will work? How to develop an integrated and effective ePortfolio platform as an eLearning tool, and ease of use to enable student and teacher adoption at a rural dual sector setting."
Keywords: performance techniques in the classroom, student engagement, performance-centred approach to learning
Where: Deakin University's City Centre
Level 3, 550 Bourke Street, Melbourne 3000
Presenters: Karen Le Rossignol (Deakin), Sally Parrot (RMIT) & Dr Viet Le (Swinburne)
The quest to provide WIL experiences to increasing numbers of students is the aspiration of most universities in recognition of demand by employers for work-ready graduates. Co-op years, internships, or other types of placements which have been the hallmark of traditional WIL experiences are increasingly difficult to secure. Therefore other types of WIL have come to the fore as alternative work-related experiential learning activities. At Deakin University, a major course renewal process has provided the impetus and resources to develop a course-wide range of such alternative, but equally rich, WIL learning activities and assessments.
A case in point is a course in humanitarian assistance in which students begin their WIL activity by developing a response plan to an online simulated emergency humanitarian scenario. This is then followed by a live simulation of a different scenario in which students and sector representatives role-play operational and strategic functions. Students also interview personnel, conduct a press conference, facilitate funder and response team meetings and reflect on the development of their graduate and leadership capabilities.
This example, among others at Deakin, offers students authentic, professionally-based, integrated and scaffolded WIL learning experiences that are an alternative and complement to placements. The sharing of these initiatives may serve as a stimulus for expanding WIL offerings.
1. How online simulations can be designed to represent authentic work-Integrated Learning
2. What other learning activities can be offered as work-integrated and career development learning
3. How work-integrated and career development learning can be assessed.
What the participants had to say about the workshop:
"The workshop was highly experiential and interactive, and I couldn’t pretend to be able to fill you in properly"
"It was a great experience"
"Many thanks Rachael
I enjoyed the session"
"Thanks very much for an interesting session Rachael"
"Today I attended an excellent workshop on reflective practice run by Rachael.""
Each 2.2 workshop is a discipline specific seminar that assists academics/teachers to review CLOs and to map them across the Course at Unit level. The workshop also focuses on understanding CloudConcepts and how to enhance a unit to incorporate reimagined assessment items that engage students and delight them.
Workshops that have been completed:
March 2013: B.ComFinance
March 2013: B.ComMgt
"
The rationale behind the project was to gain insight from previous university-wide ePortfolio (nationally and internationally) initiatives and to use the findings in order to adapt learnt discoveries into a rural multi-sector University-wide ePortfolio program. The benchmarking process assisted the ePortfolio Project Officer to plan, develop and implement pertinent blended support resources as well as to determine potential pre- and post- rollout challenges and issues.
The presentation confirms the requirement for a more personal, flexible and collaborative technological and pedagogical support program that incorporates a blended and collegial approach to ePortfolio making. Recommendations are made for the careful implementation and integration of pre- and post- rollout evaluation and benchmarking processes at a rural multi-sector University that aims to meet national standards.
Highlights of the desired focus of the presentation are: the good and the bad: what will work? How to develop an integrated and effective ePortfolio platform as an eLearning tool, and ease of use to enable student and teacher adoption at a rural dual sector setting."
Keywords: performance techniques in the classroom, student engagement, performance-centred approach to learning
"Secrets" is ever changing. The work begins with an essay that explores the nature of blended writing before continuing with a story about a peculiar relationship between a Death Adder snake and a girl who is shipwrecked off the coast of New South Wales, Australia in the late eighteen hundreds. A parallel story is then re-told in 'Killing me Softly', but with an alternative viewpoint that has been influenced by Henry Lawson's timeless short story "The Drover's Wife". The reader then meets the girl again, but this time she is trying to figure out the meaning of first love in contemporary times. However, her Doctor seems more lost than she is. The reader encounters various other crisp-like prose pieces where images, everyday objects and where characters set a fast-paced narrative to uncover mysteries of the land and mind. A selection of poetry is peppered throughout the work before the reader is brought face-to-face with a bird's life, a baby, the nature of dreams, passion, and erotic revenge that has a twist at the end.
"Refreshing theatrical experience marked by crisp direction and a keen sense of rhythm." [Canberra Times July, 2001].
"The author utilises metaphor, movement and various theatrical devices to present content which is notoriously 'difficult' in a highly original, engaging way. This is thought provoking, profound work" (Santha Press, 2000).
version of the Theory of Change framework by Hart, Diercks-O’Brien, & Powell, (2009). ([Hart, et al., (2009). Exploring stakeholder engagement in impact evaluations planning in educational development work. Evaluation, 15(3), 285–306.
https://doi.org/10.1177/1356389009105882]) to better acknowledge, understand and prepare for failure. Even with careful planning to execute a purposefully designed collaborative research project, success cannot be guaranteed. When failure happens, something has gone terribly wrong. However, something has also transpired that was meaningful.
combination of online interactive activities with face-to-face learnings. This includes a mixture of different types of teaching and learning techniques, and Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) tools. In this study, we undertook an experiment to ascertain what constituted a practitioner-based approach to team-teaching for blended learning. The experiment occurred during one teaching period (11 weeks) at an Australian University where the classroom teaching experience was accessed by students and teachers across different geographical locations, using ICT. During the experiment, we completed individual and collaborative reflections, utilised an online survey to elicit students’ perceptions about our team-teaching practice and critiqued the literature on blended learning. Qualitative analysis was conducted for each data source, revealing several key themes, which were: (1) skills, (2) student, team-teaching and teacher roles and (3) the role of ICT. This study explored these themes in detail, showing that when using ICT, specific communication processes build student and teachers’ confidence as well as facilitating trust between those involved in providing a blended classroom experience. This in turn, contributes to the flexible use of ICT tools, offering opportunities for teacher and students to participate in variety of class roles, interacting via online, face-to-face or blended methods. Overall we found that to assist with setting-up and facilitating teachteaching for blended learning, it was important to provide role clarity, an agreed-to approach for classroom communications and purposeful integration of ICT for the teaching team and students when failure occurred.
document and analyze authentic work-related assessment types for a
university-wide major course review (Kaider, F., and R. Hains-Wesson.
2016. Enhancing Courses for Employability. Melbourne: Australian
Collaborative Education Network. Report.). This study provides further
insights into Science, Engineering, Technology and Mathematics (STEM)
teachers’ experiences in undertaking authentic assessment-led reform.
STEM teachers participated in an online survey and a recorded interview
to elicit their perceptions of authentic assessment-led activities. A mixed
methods approach was used with two key themes emerging: (1)
purpose and approach, which highlighted the importance of introducing
a shared understanding for effective authentic assessment-led reform
and (2) working with industry, which illustrated the requirement to
provide teachers with additional support options when working with
industry. In this paper, we discuss the implications of the findings along
with the presentation of a set of key recommendations for supporting
teachers when renewing STEM education.
into three main areas in order to outline the experiments that occurred. The first section provides a standard literature review around ePortfolio adoption as well as a research-based analysis of available ePortfolio software at Australian universities. The second part depicts the University’s ePortfolio implementation strategy that focused on “test-to-production” and technology dissemination phases. This section is based on the authors’ personal viewpoint of ePortfolio adoption at a university where a “top-down management decision making model” (Slade, Murfin, & Readman, 2013, p. 178) was used. Third, the evaluation strategy is reported, which was based on
similar research conducted at Australian universities (Hallam & Creagh, 2010; Hallam, Harper, Hauville, Creagh, & McAllister, 2009). This part is offered as a modest-scoped, mixed methods evaluation process. The paper extends on ePortfolio implementation strategies (Bell & White, 2013;
Coffey & Ashford-Rowe, 2014; Jarrott & Gambrel, 2011; Lambert & Corrin, 2007; Ring & Ramirez, 2012; Slade et al., 2013) and software analysis (ACODE, 2011; Slade et al., 2013). Recommendations are made for the careful integration of pre- and post-rollout of ePortfolio
programs with face-to-face ePortfolio tutor support, offering online resources and alternative portfolio-making options for students with poor broadband access.
Background
ACEN aims to foster research and scholarship initiatives in Work Integrated Learning (WIL) by endorsing research and scholarship proposals and identifying and advancing WIL research and scholarship in priority areas.
In 2013 ACEN is offering funding for two research grants to conduct an investigation into an area of Work Integrated Learning that address a theme identified through consultation with ACEN membership as part of the 2012 ACEN National Research Symposium. These themes are:
Meeting the expectations of employers/tired workforce and limited placements.
Assessing WIL outcomes/WIL and e portfolio (gathering evidence, documentation etc.)
Measurement/impact/evidence
Widening participation/equity and social inclusion/social transformative effects of WIL
Costs associated with WIL
Employability as a marketable feature of education.
Scheme Objectives
The grants are intended to: Build the capacity for members of ACEN to undertake research into aspects of work integrated learning promote and supporting scholarship in work integrated learning develop effective mechanisms for identifying, developing, disseminating and embedding researched based practice in work integrated learning programs leverage opportunities for collaboration in research into the practices of work integrated learning.
best used as a discussion prompt only. Throughout the white paper, we share ideas about WIL practice and how to best support and improve Australian and Chinese business students’ WIL learning outcomes for job readiness.
The concept of fun in professional settings might be met with scepticism, especially in academic environments where the stakes are high and the work is serious (Wright et al., 2021). However, integrating fun into higher education is not just a trivial pursuit; it’s a critical strategy for fostering creativity (Yang, 2020), enhancing teamwork (Michel et al., 2019), employees’ well-being (Renee Baptiste, 2009), and ultimately achieving success.
To help achieve this, we have undertaken a three-year research project, supported by the Higher Education Research and Development Society of Australasia via a small grant to explore how we can test a Fun Model first penned by Hains-Wesson et al., (2023) and how it impacts teamwork. The research took the form of group-based autoethnography where we carved out dedicated time to pursue fun as a key element in team meetings, observing, reflecting, and critiquing fun. We used our experiences to create a Fun Quick Guide for leaders, managers and people passionate about teams, which we share here and for the wider community to consider introducing fun into their higher education work lives.
Funding
The authors gratefully acknowledge the grant received from the Higher Education Research and Development Society of Australasia (HERDSA) to fund this research.
Using live streaming with blended learning helps engage off- and on-campus students in real time and enhances the off-campus experience by incorporating synchronous activities in addition to the usual asynchronous interactions.
Research into the effective use of blended learning frameworks offers opportunities to create course experiences that are personal, relevant, and engaging.
Challenges include integrating appropriate technology and managing it effectively throughout the course.
Results from practical experiments will likely guide future learning and teaching endeavors using technology for inclusive, interactive, and collaborative learning for on- and off-campus students.
Shaun Tan’s award winning children’s book The Red Tree is visually rich, however textually scarce. Nevertheless, Sheedy has skillfully directed an aesthetically rich and emotionally drenched experience for children and their families.
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Shakespeare wrote most of his known works between 1589 and 1613, however there will always be scholarly debate surrounding the question ‘was Shakespeare the only writer of all his known plays?’ Nevertheless, Shakespeare’s plays are still alluring audiences and A Mid Summer Night’s Dream is no exception."
My Darling Patricia’s Africa presents no obvious solutions to the ongoing predicaments that do not cease once the lights go down. The puppet-children in Africa relate to a contaminated world made by adult culture and subterfuge and must find ways to survive adult enhanced situations that are problematic. The young people who view this production will relate to Africa in diverse ways. This is mainly due to the production intentionally raising questions rather than answering them.
The measure of any theatre movement is usually illustrated by its production narrative and the vision of its earlier pioneers and practitioners.
Trove aims to: support, nurture and provide on-going feedback to beginning, developing and emerging creative arts students in a university context. To provide students with opportunities to present their work for an online publication.
Trove endeavours to provide students with an editing experience that resembles a professional industry environment and helps them to gain future employment.
Kristie Michelle Chiew
Berakah Ho
Lachlan Keeley
Minh Ngo
Jen Perry
Rachael Hains-Wesson
Carol Ryles
Trove aims to: support, nurture and provide on-going feedback to beginning, developing and emerging creative arts students in a university context and provide students with opportunities to present their work for an online publication.
Trove endeavours to provide students with an editing experience that resembles a professional industry environment and helps student to gain graduate attributes."