Dissertations / Theses on the topic 'College students Victoria'

This thesis examines the perceptions of lecturers, graduates and employers of personal and interpersonal skills development in an accounting degree at Victoria University. The development of personal and interpersonal skills in students in higher education has been the focus of discussion amongst accounting educators, accounting practitioners and the accounting profession for many years. There is a general consensus on what skills are necessarily sought to ensure success within the accountancy profession but very few previous studies on how those personal and interpersonal skills are being developed. This research study presents a research framework which emphasises the complex interrelationships between an accounting curriculum, accounting lecturers, accounting graduates and employers of graduate accountants and their perceptions of how personal and interpersonal skills are developed. A case study approach, combining archival, qualitative and quantitative methods, is used to investigate how a Bachelor of Business Accounting degree in one Australian university facilitates personal and interpersonal skills development. The case study results indicate that the curriculum, as the vector for skills development, has both explicit and implicit references to skills outcomes. Graduates� perceptions of many of the personal and interpersonal skills considered in this study are closely related to the curriculum findings. However, there appears to be a lack of convergence between lecturers� perceptions, the curriculum and graduates� perceptions. Employers generally agree that graduates display most of the personal and interpersonal skills, albeit at a low level, in the workplace. There are curriculum implications arising from the results of this research for accounting academics who design and develop accounting programs where the value of graduates� personal and interpersonal skills are acknowledged. As a first step, academics need to improve accounting curricula by explicitly integrating personal and interpersonal skills in their subjects. Communicating to students the explicit nature of personal and interpersonal skills development and making them aware is the next step.

This action research study examines the learning experiences of Year 8 students and their teacher as they negotiate aspects of their English classes. The study takes place in a regional Catholic co-educational secondary college in Victoria, Australia. The question of understanding the lived experience of ourselves and other is fundamental to this study, which is situated within an holistic, enactivist view of the world. From this perspective learning is a shared activity in which students participate in creating their own interpretation as they interact with others to bring forth understanding. The study focuses on classroom practice which aims to include all participants, through negotiation, in the actions that take place in the classroom. I have used a narrative approach to describe the way in which three action research cycles were implemented in the English classroom during one academic year. A variety of data gathering techniques was used and these included: classroom questionnaires, classroom meetings, journals, partnership observation and interviews. The main sources of data were the interviews that I undertook with each of the twenty five students in the class. The three action research cycles allowed both the students and me to reflect upon classroom activities and make appropriate changes as the cycles progressed. In addition, negotiating in this English class has helped me to better understand my students and, through reflection, to improve my teaching practice. Analysis of the data suggests that students experience greater commitment and motivation when they are given opportunities to be actively involved in contributing to their own learning. The data also supports research that recognises the importance of collaboration, positive relationships within the classroom, the importance of metacognitive skills and student voice. In addition, the findings point to the value of action research as a method of improving teaching practice.

This thesis analyses the architecture of the Royal Victoria College (Bruce Price, 1896--1899), a purpose-built women's residential college of McGill University, Montreal, and its first extension (Percy Nobbs, 1930--193 1), as material evidence of the rhetorical construction and negotiation of gender. A contextual analysis of the original RVC reveals the gender significance of the building's relationship to its affiliate institution (McGill), to an urban geography (Phillips Square), and to a commercial typology (the railway hotel), while a spatial analysis examines the significance of its women occupants as 'architects', and of changes to the building over time. The thesis concludes that the building served as an important site in turn-of-the-century gender negotiations---one that helped to contest "separate spheres" rhetoric and that stands as evidence of women's active participation in the shaping of spatial relations and social identities.

This dissertation examines African American students’ perspectives of African American agency during the Civil War. It also seeks to understand where their knowledge of African Americans during the Civil War comes from. The topic fits within the Critical Race Theory framework and utilized a mixed methods approach to understand the study findings. The methodology included an online survey completed by forty-two participants at a Historically Black university and 3 semi-structured interviews using the interview protocol. Descriptive statistical demographic data, open-ended responses and interview transcripts were analyzed using the agency rubric developed by the researcher. The themes that emerged from the study included the limited agency of African Americans during the Civil War, silenced voices of African American women, students’ limited knowledge of ancestors’ emancipation and emancipation narratives, and little specific knowledge of African Americans involvement in the Civil War

Thesis (EdD) -- Australian Catholic University, 2005.
Submitted as a partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Education. Bibliography: p. 191-205. Also available in an electronic format via the internet.

This research regards universities as highly influential entities. Aside from producing and disseminating knowledge, one of the purposes of higher education is to contribute to the intellectual development of a society. In addition to this original purpose universities also have unique characteristics which, when recognised, can help them with designing new and creative approaches to marketing communication strategies. To identify these distinctive qualities, this study implemented an interpretive communication audit that focuses on the specifics and characteristics of international communication activities at Victoria University (VU). Specifically, this study set out three key research objectives: to identify specifics and characteristics of a university that can serve as a valuable source for designing new approaches to university marketing; to explore the creative potential of students to actively contribute to the development of university marketing and to test the viability of an interpretive communication audit within the university framework, while using the subjective insight and experience of a researcher. Emphasising the interpretive approach, this thesis analysed the interpretations of the University’s communication given by the international and domestic students of VU. In particular, focus groups and action groups, in which 29 VU students participated, served as specific methods for collecting these individual opinions and understandings. Following the philosophical and methodological practice of an interpretive communication audit, this thesis used students’ as well as the researcher’s own interpretations for developing creative feedforward that gives concrete recommendations on how to work with the University’s communication activities. The outcome of this mainly reveals how a university can benefit from cooperating with students on developing marketing strategies. Additionally, the last chapter of this thesis sets out specific ideas Victoria University can use for preparing new communication activities.

Although undertaking a PhD provides great opportunities for intellectual challenges and benefits, students also experience high levels of stress and attrition within the degree. It is therefore important to better understand the needs of students and how to support them in order to improve their experience, increase well-being, and support better academic outcomes. This research conducted two studies: the first explores what supports and hinders the well-being and academic functioning of PhD students at one Victorian university; and the second—because stress is a large feature of PhD students’ lives—examines the potential of a brief mindfulness-based intervention (brief MBI) to provide benefits to students. This intervention is a modified and substantially shorter version of the mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR) program which was shortened from 8 weeks (27 hours) to 4 weeks (6 hours). This research used constructivist grounded theory as the strategy of inquiry and in-depth semi-structured interviews to achieve the aim of exploring subjective experiences, with participants interviewed at both one and four months post-intervention. Overall, Study 1 found that the needs of PhD students are best understood through an ecological perspective, that is, that the areas important to their well-being and academic functioning fall within and across individual, interpersonal, institutional, and structural, material, and social levels. Included in these areas are the needs for personal and academic growth, personal and academic competence, rest and rejuvenation, social and intellectual integration, and material and cohort specific supports. Further, achieving a balance across these areas of well-being and academic functioning represents an ideal student experience which promotes higher levels of satisfaction. Study 2 found that the brief MBI provided some benefits to these students including stress reduction, increased positive affect, and improved academic functioning at the one month interview. However, at four months, many of these benefits were not sustained and only a few participants continued to practise techniques from the program. A brief MBI, therefore, has some value in supporting students but requires further modifications to sustain benefits and be of greater help to this population.

The purpose of this study was to enhance the clinical experience of undergraduate nursing students through an investigation into a Flexible Clinical Education Model offered at Victoria University. Clinical education is a vital component of the undergraduate nursing curriculum that provides students with the opportunity to develop the knowledge, attitudes and skills needed to function effectively as a qualified nurse. Despite the commitment of universities to produce competent graduates, there is continued debate regarding models of clinical education that provide best practice in the clinical learning environment.

In my role as a music educator I have observed that students experience significant challenges, and even disengagement and disillusionment, as they attempt to negotiate tertiary music study. This study aims therefore to explore the music backgrounds and learning experiences of music students undertaking tertiary music study at VU in order to evaluate why students might not be enjoying their time at university as much as they perhaps ought to be.

International students make a major contribution to Australia, financially and through adding to human capital for a skilled workforce. Given the significant role that international students play in Australia's education, their employment and an understanding of their related issues requires further examination. In response to the demand for greater employability and graduate attributes, Australian institutions have increasingly embedded Work Integrated Learning (WIL) into their curricula. In order to conduct successful WIL programmes, it is of great importance to gain an insight into the experience and perceptions of key stakeholders, especially international students who are a valuable student cohort in Australian Universities. In designing WIL models, Australian institutions largely assume that students, regardless of their background and context, desire the same certain outcomes which are often common to most, a "one size fits all‟ solution. To date, the effectiveness of a uniform application of WIL models has attracted little attention, especially from the perspectives of international students who, on completion, return to their country where they encounter different working environments, and business protocols. This study employs a qualitative approach to data collection and analysis and uses two instruments for collecting data, namely an online survey and semi-structured interviews. The two groups of stakeholders who participated in the study were Chinese graduates from Victoria University (VU) who undertook some form of WIL or work placement in Australia as part of their coursework, and VU staff who were engaged in the management, supervision, development or delivery of WIL programmes. Chinese students represent the largest international student cohort at VU; therefore, this particular student cohort was identified as a key focus of the study. This study explores and interprets the experiences and perceptions of international students and staff from VU regarding the value of WIL programmes in terms of graduate attributes, graduate employability, challenges and institutional support. It reveals several main themes regarding the experience and perceptions of WIL by VU international students and staff. These themes revolve around the contribution of WIL to the development of international students‟ language, interpersonal skills, technical knowledge, cultural awareness, and personal attributes. For each theme, the study analyses the expectations of international students, the development of relevant skills through WIL, and the extent to which these skills are transferrable to the work settings in their home country. The study also examines the challenges that international students face as a result of their international student status, the lack of prior work experience, the lack of an understanding of the Australian labour market, and their financial constraints. It also explores the extent to which the University provides support for WIL and provides suggestions to improve the development and implementation of WIL programmes. These themes are discussed with specific reference to VU's Chinese student cohort. Graduate employability for international students is the running concept that informs and connects emerging themes for the key findings of the study. It is found that VU's placement models have, to a large extent, been implemented in alignment with the University's core values and missions for graduate employability. However, mostly the same approach has been used to facilitate the delivery of WIL to students while the practical needs and circumstances of international students are not always attended to. The findings of the research reinforce those of previous studies, which acknowledge the positive benefits of WIL to the outcomes of international graduate students. On the other hand, it also raises concerns over the multiple challenges that international students face during their WIL participation. These include language and communication barriers, inadequate knowledge of the workplace, cultural differences, and international student status. The study shows that there are some differences between the employment culture in Australia and China that suggest the WIL models for international students in general, and Chinese students in particular, by VU should be developed and implemented with more attention to the particular needs of students and take into account their possible context of employment following their graduation. The findings indicate that more support needs to be allocated to international students since the challenges they face are specific in nature, differing from those needs of domestic students.

This thesis seeks to make a contribution to the debate about the role of ICT in education, by exploring schooling and pedagogical perspectives, identifying elements demanding systemic attention and defining a vision that is relevant and challenging to Australian education. Examining the notion of what e-confidence means for students, teachers, school leaders and schools enables a consideration of what strategies can be deployed for achieving this in all Australian schools.

The issue of graduate employment has long been a focus in research, particularly in accounting education. Increasingly, higher education institutions promote this aspect to help them attract and retain high-quality students and maintain their competitive advantage in the market place. Given its importance, the present research analyses the association between the three self-efficacy factors of the general self-efficacy scale (GSES): initiative, effort and persistence on accounting near-graduate employment outcomes. Currently, no studies in accounting education have analysed this association in this context, so this research constitutes a contribution to the literature. Furthermore, there is limited research on the association of overall general self-efficacy (GSE) with accounting student employment outcomes. In addition to the three-factor GSES structure, the present study also includes students’ individual characteristics (i.e., gender, age, residency, study mode and language), and WIL participation as potential factors impacting near-graduate accounting students’ employment outcomes. Furthermore, the study also examines the potential association between the three factors of the GSES with students’ participation in WIL programs during their degree course. The three-factor self-efficacy construct, based on a trait-like method, was adopted instead of the overall GSES structure, as the former approach enables a deeper analysis of the GSE concept via the employment of separate independent variables. Consequently, the importance of the individual factors and their impact on employment and WIL participation is clearly and distinctively revealed. The study sample consisted of 337 near-graduate accounting students from Victoria University and Swinburne University of Technology, both based in Melbourne, Australia. The research employed logistic regression, as well as Lasso and R-glmulti statistical techniques, to examine the main research questions. In addition, Mann-Whitney U tests and Pearson chi-square tests were conducted to examine the association between accounting students’ individual characteristics (gender, age, residency, study mode and language) and the three factors of GSES (initiative, effort and persistence). The study results indicate that two out of the three GSES factors (specifically, initiative and persistence) showed a significant relationship with the employment outcomes of near-graduate accounting students. The study results also confirmed prior research findings, which found that individual characteristics (i.e., language, study mode, residency and age) were significantly associated with employment outcomes. Furthermore, the results showed no significant association between the three self-efficacy factors and students’ WIL participation. The results of this study provide some important implications for accounting higher education with regard to improving the employment outcomes of accounting near-graduates. These include: (i) developing closer links with industry to improve student familiarity with workplace requirements; (ii) incorporating WIL programs into the accounting curriculum, such as in a professional degree program; (iii) tailoring parts of the curriculum, where possible, in order to improve student self-efficacy; (iv) promoting WIL and providingwider opportunities to access the program; and (v) examining the need for higher education reform to improve international student access to WIL participation during degree courses.

The steady decline of students’ competency in mathematics has become known as the “Mathematics Problem”. Researchers identified that the level of student engagement is one of the most important factors affecting the academic performance of mathematics students. Strong link between students’ attitudes towards the use of technology for learning mathematics and their achievements also has been identified by recent studies. The mathematical problems have a multidimensional source and are initiated from the students’ personal characteristics and attitudes. Thus attitude is important educational concept about learning mathematics with technology. The association between student engagement and the use of ICT suggests that a positive attitude toward the use of ICT in learning mathematics is an important outcome in itself, especially when ICT is used. Student engagement can be influenced by a plethora of factors. These factors include student personal characteristics, learning experiences, perceptions, three aspects of engagement (cognitive, affective and behavioural) and attitudes towards the use of technology in learning of mathematics. This study is aimed at further investigating the factors that might be affected by the use of ICT with two major purposes: (1) to investigate the complex interrelationships between students’ demographic factors, mathematics confidence, access to technology outside university, confidence with technology, perception towards the use of technology for learning and attitude towards learning mathematics with technology, cognitive, affective and behavioural engagement; and student achievement and (2) to determine if the use of ICT impacts on the level of student engagement and achievements in mathematics.

This study identifies and articulates the interrelationships between six key components essential for authentic learning to maximise the student-centred learning opportunities in kitchen and garden-based learning projects. Interpretative case study methodology using multiple qualitative methods for data analysis were used to direct three layers of inquiry around kitchen and garden-based learning: the context, content and characteristics of kitchen and the garden-based learning, the student learning, and the teachers’ work. Review of the literature indicated significant gaps in understanding how teachers can foster children’s interest in nature, and plan for effective authentic learning experiences in the garden. Through analysis of the literature, together with the perspectives of the Grades 4, 5 and 6 children, and their teachers, key components for authentic, contextualised learning were identified. These included: a real-world context, the opportunity for working as professionals, within a collaborative learning community, work requiring higher-order thinking, ownership of learning and authentic integrated assessment. Teachers’ pedagogy and practices are often hidden but were nevertheless significant factors affecting student outcomes. Teachers made the learning experiences more meaningful by ensuring student reflection was embedded in learning tasks. Planning and providing arenas or “safe platforms” for discursive reflection was an essential step in transforming tacit understandings to explicit knowledge enabling children to connect their personal experiences with the experiences of others. From this discourse deeper understanding of ecoliteracy emerged with one cohort, and understandings about the intricacies of collaborative teamwork with another. The focus group discussions about common experiential learning experiences had wider implications for teaching; they were a key step in making the children’s tacit understandings explicit. Examination of the staff and students’ immersive experiences within a kitchen garden learning environment, led to the development of a model of learning that provides educators with a comprehensive approach to scaffold authentic learning opportunities.

This thesis, Muted voices: Developing musical agency in a Victorian primary school, explores the implementation and development of music learning by the researcher (a music teacher), in collaboration with generalist teachers in a small government primary school in the state of Victoria, Australia. Music is mandated as one of the arts in the Victoria curriculum. However, in many primary school contexts the potential of music learning to contribute to children's growth and development is insufficiently understood and supported. As a consequence, the voices of many children and teachers are muted.

The incidence of musculoskeletal problems amongst instrumental music students in Australia is unknown. This study examined students who play musical instruments and are potentially at risk of developing problems, including pain and injury, related to their play activities. Full-time instrument major students (aged 18 and above, 57 male, 31 female) at the Victoria College of the Arts (VCA) completed the self-administered quantitative "Standardised Nordic Questionnaire for Analysis of Musculoskeletal Symptoms" to ascertain the incidence of musculoskeletal 'trouble' (ache, pain, or discomfort) across nine body regions. These reults were analysed in relation to gender and type of instrument played. 91% of participants (90% female and 91% of males) reported problems at one or more times in at least one region during the previous 12 months. The regions with the highest reports of trouble were the neck (56%), one or both wrists/hands (56%), low back (51%), and the shoulder (47%). The regions of the body with the highest reported levels of problems for males were low back (54%), neck (51%) and wrists/hands (49%). Females reprted problems in the wrists/hands (68%), neck (65%) and shoulders (61%). Certain problems were associated with particular instruments. 100% of double bassists reported low back trouble, while 90% of drummers and 80% of pianists reported wrist/hand problems. Musculoskeletal problems in instrumental music students are common, occurring at similar rates in both males and females. Low back problems in double bassists, and wrist/hand problems in drummers and pianists particularly, were very common. To better understand and manage instrumental music students, further study is necessary in understanding the factors that lead to these problems and factors (including exercise) that may prevent them. This minor thesis was written by a post-graduate student as part of the requirements of the Master of Health Science (Osteopathy) program.