Patty Kamvounias

Student Involvement in Assessment: A Project Designed to Assess Class Participation Fairly and Reliably.

This article describes a project designed to ensure that class participation in a large introductory commercial law course is assessed fairly and reliably. The subjectivity often associated with this type of assessment is minimized by involving students in the specification of clear criteria and the assessment process as they were asked to assess themselves and their peers. Formative feedback is given mid‐way through the semester so that students have the opportunity to take remedial measures where necessary and teachers can reinforce positive behaviour. The data are analyzed to determine the relationships between the assessments given by the students, their peers and tutors. There is evidence of some gender bias in Week 13 that is not consistent with the final marks. Finally, the combining of the individual assessment of the criteria is shown to be a good estimate of the final class participation mark given by the tutors and the students.

Bridging the Implementation Gap: A Teacher-as-Learner Approach to Teaching and Learning Policy.

A major dilemma facing higher educational institutions around the world is how to achieve quality outcomes for students in an increasingly internationalised and competitive environment. To effect change in teaching and learning, we advocate a teacher‐as‐learner approach to the implementation of teaching and learning policy. Our approach has been influenced by approaches to change management as well as contemporary educational theories, such as constructive alignment and deep and surface approaches to learning. In this paper we use these approaches to evaluate the success of a policy initiative designed to encourage subject coordinators to use a faculty‐endorsed template to embed graduate attributes into their subject outlines. The difficulties experienced by teachers at the disciplinary level in using the subject outline template illustrate how a seemingly positive and well‐intentioned initiative can have a potentially minimal effect on teaching and learning practice and, as a consequence, student learning. We suggest that the Course Experience Questionnaire provides a useful model for evaluating not only teaching but also the management of teaching. As teachers responsible for the implementation of teaching and learning policies, we hope our views will provide a more integrated approach to teaching and learning changes in the higher educational context.

Getting What They Paid For: Consumer Rights of Students in Higher Education

Consumer rights of students in higher education: hot or not? Higher education institutions are increasingly viewed as service providers, and students are increasingly referred to as customers. This trend gives rise to questions as to the application of consumer protection laws in a university context. Recent judicial authority in Australia has arguably limited the public law rights of students in respect of universities. The way forward for aggrieved students now may be to take private law actions in contract and pursuant to consumer laws. There is evidence that suggests a use of consumer protection legislation beyond what was contemplated when this legislation was introduced. This paper will review recent developments in the case law in Australia and New Zealand and consider the effectiveness and appropriateness of consumer law as a means of redress for disgruntled university students.

In-house or in court? Legal challenges to university decisions

Every day, decisions are made in universities that affect students. When a decision adversely affects a particular student, what means of redress does that student have? The circumstances in which a student has a legal claim against their university are generally unclear. Courts have traditionally tended to draw a distinction between ‘purely academic’ decisions and disciplinary decisions. There has been reluctance on the part of courts to intervene in non-disciplinary decisions which involve academic judgment, for example, the grade to be given to a students work. On the other hand, where the decisions are purely disciplinary, for example, in relation to a students behaviour towards others or towards university property, the courts have made it clear that there is essentially no difference between this and disciplinary matters within any other public institution or organization. However, disciplinary decisions that are connected with allegations of academic misconduct, for example, cheating and/or plagi...

Private label brands: a relationship perspective

The Australian supermarket industry has long been dominated by two players – Coles and Woolworths. Most recently this dominance has increased significantly and the “Big 2” have used their power more effectively and have introduced an ever-increasing number of “private label” products on supermarket shelves. This study aims to investigate the effect these products have had on the relationship between the supermarkets (buyers) and their suppliers.,This qualitative study used in-depth, high engagement interviews with a range of suppliers. An extensive data analysis process was carried out to ensure the coding of the key insights into themes, which helped to answer the aims and objectives of the research.,A key contribution of this study has been to highlight the ability of supermarket chains to increase existing dominance by using their ever-increasing private label brand portfolio. The findings indicate an uncertain future for food suppliers, with the situation likely to continue to worsen further as the supermarkets continue to exercise and abuse their power.,This paper’s main contribution lies in providing a greater understanding of the significance of the effect of private labels on relationships and the implications of these effects. The impact of the supermarket dominance on innovation is especially interesting, given that this has not been previously discussed in the literature. Additionally, the deterioration in trust is significant in this context and to an extent that is rarely seen.