Category / REF Subjects

American Psychology Teaching Conference opens with beautiful sunrise

Dr. Jacqui Taylor, Associate Professor in the Psychology Department at Bournemouth University recently presented and ran a workshop at the ‘National Institute on the Teaching of Psychology’, an annual conference for teachers of psychology to explore new ideas to enhance and broaden their teaching skills.  Below, Dr. Taylor summarises her experience:

 

“I welcomed the New Year by presenting a poster and workshop at the 37th Annual ‘National Institute on the Teaching Of Psychology’ in Florida. The first day dawned with a beautiful sunrise and an early 7:30 am breakfast session!
sunrise
My poster ‘The Evaluation and Assessment of Online Skills Through Online Group Discussion’ stimulated lots of interaction from delegates who were mainly interested in my use of reflection as an assessment tool. Increasingly, much of a psychology student’s learning occurs within electronic environments, however rarely are the new skills they develop in these contexts identified, improved or assessed. Over the past 5 years, I have addressed this important need, and examples from assessed online student discussions were presented in my poster to demonstrate an innovative way to develop and assess online skills. I made some good contacts with other lecturers who were using quite different quantitative rubrics to assess technical skills and I look forward to developing links with them.
Poster J Taylor
My second presentation was under a category called ‘Participant Idea Exchange (referred to as PIEs!)’ and consisted of a one-hour facilitated workshop session. My ‘PIE’ was on ‘Psychological Literacy: A Practical Approach’ and I presented with Dr Carolyn Mair (a past PGR and lecturer at BU). Psychological literacy is a new and important concept in psychology education which encapsulates the knowledge, skills and attributes acquired through the study of psychology and the ability to transfer learning from the academic setting into the real world. Despite an increasing number of academic and professional publications highlighting theoretical concepts and benefits of psychological literacy, there are few practical resources for psychology educators. This PIE addressed this need by discussing our two recent publications commissioned by the UK Higher Education Academy: ‘An Introductory Guide to Psychological Literacy’ (Mair, Taylor & Hulme, 2013) and ‘A Psychological Literacy Compendium’ (Taylor & Hulme, in prep).
Psychological Literacy PIE J Taylor
As the sun set on this year’s conference there were promises from many delegates to collaborate and share their teaching practice throughout 2015 and meet once again at the 38th ‘NITOP’ in 2016.”
Sunset to NITOP

Evaluation mixed-methods research grant awarded to FHSS team

Dr. Janet Scammell in the Faculty of Health and Social Sciences (FHSS) is leading on a new research project evaluating the impact of a new integrated respiratory service in Dorset.  The £20,000 mixed-methods research project is funded by the Wessex Academic Health Science Network on behalf of the Dorset Clinical Commissioning Group.  Janet Scammell is leading a research team in BU’s new Faculty of Health and Social Sciences comprising Desi Tait, Ashley Spriggs, Martin Hind, Caroline Belchamber and Edwin van Teijlingen.

The Dorset Adult Integrated Respiratory Service (DAIRS) is a new service that has been set up early 2014 to provide support and care for people with respiratory conditions such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), bronchiectasis and pulmonary fibrosis.  The service aims to reduce the number of people who need admission to hospital and help individuals to feel more in control of their condition.  BU has been asked to evaluate early uptake and impact of the DAIRS running in Poole, Bournemouth and Dorchester.

 

Further information about this exciting project is available from:   Dr. Janet Scammell, Associate Professor and Professional Lead for Adult and Children & Young People’s Nursing

Telephone: 01202 962751

Email: jscammell@bournemouth.ac.uk

In metrics we trust?

Back in May HEFCE launched a Call for Evidence on the role of metrics in research assessment. The Independent review chaired by by Professor James Wilsdon,  University of Sussex and supported by an independent steering group, is tasked with building on the previous 2008/9 pilot exercise to explore the current use of metrics for research assessment, consider the robustness of metrics across different disciplines, and assess their potential contribution to the development of research excellence and impact.

HEFCE received 153 responses (44% from HEIs, 27% individuals, 18% learned societies, 7% providers, 2% mission groups, 2% other). With the majority – 57% – of those who responded expressed overall scepticism about the further introduction of metrics into research assessment.

As part of the review three stakeholder workshops have been held/scheduled on key areas of interest and debate:

To date, all have been well attended and very lively. I was able to attend the I workshop in Sussex with some 150 odd other delegates including members of the metrics review panel, metrics developers and providers, researchers, university managers, and a range of stakeholders from across the research and HE community.

The day contained many thoughtful contributions from a range of speakers including: Dr Philip Campbell, Editor-in-Chief, Nature; Professor Stephen Curry, Department of Life Sciences, Imperial College; and Dr Steven Hill, Head of Research Policy, HEFCE. There was lively discussion about the value, potential role, and unintended consequences of metrics in research evaluation. If you are interested in the future role of metrics in research assessment, I would particularly recommend reviewing the presentations from David Colquhoun, Emeritus Professor of Pharmacology at UCL and Dorothy Bishop, Professor of Developmental Neuropsychology, the University of Oxford.

For further insight you could also check out the Twitter discussion, which has over 1000 tweets tagged with #HEFCEmetrics, Impact story have also helpfully encapsulated much of the story/discussion via Storify.

The results of the review will be announced at the end of March and published in the summer. The report will make recommendation againsts three time horizons:

(1) What can HEIs do to improve research management now;

(2) Suggestions for the next REF;

(3) The longer term, including identification of programmes for further work.

Huffington Post Blog BU by PhD student Sheetal Sharma

FHSS PhD student Sheetal Sharma and ICS Integrare’s Petra ten Hoope-Bender  discuss issues around the evidence to support the policy direction after the Millennium Development Goals come to end in 2015.  The global research and policy community has been gathering the evidence and the lessons learnt on what has worked for whom and how.  They remind us that the UN General Assembly’s Open Working Group has identified 17 new goals that cover far-reaching sustainable development issues, such as ending poverty and hunger, improving health and education, making cities more sustainable, combating climate change, and protecting oceans and forests.   Read all at:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/petra-ten-hoopebender/women-newborns-and-health_b_6459614.html

 

Prof. Edwin van Teijlingen

CMMPH

Centre for Entrepreneurship student event with Business Mania

The Centre for Entrepreneurship continued its program of activities for BU students just before Christmas with a joint event with Business Mania, the BU student enterprise society.  We were delighted that CfE tenant and student entrepreneur Robin Humphries, from award winning Static Games, was able to give a presentation to a group of 70 students about his experience of setting up a business.  Robin gave the group an insight into the challenges he has faced and provided hints and tips for budding entrepreneurs.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Static Games has been a tenant in the Centre for Entrepreneurship since early 2014 and the CfE have been delighted to support the growing company, even assisting them to successfully pitch for £10,000 equity-free Creative England funding.  This business event is one of many forthcoming student activities the Centre for Entrepreneurship will be involved in. If you have any student entrepreneurs on your courses who would like to find out more please do contact us: nharvey@bournemouth.ac.uk

For the full write up and video please visit the BUCFE website

 

Book launch in Kathmandu

 

This week sees the publication of a new book co-edited by BU Professor Edwin van Teijlingen.  The book The Dynamics of Health in Nepal is published for Social Science Baha by Himal Books in Nepal.  The lead editor Dr. Sharada Prasad Wasti was awarded his MSc from the University of Aberdeen and his PhD from the University of Sheffield.  The second editor, Padam Simkhada is Professor of International health at Liverpool John Moores University as well as Visiting Faculty in BU’s Faculty of Health & Social Sciences.

This edited volume has 13 chapters written on various health-related topics that are topical in Nepal.  Many of the authors are from Nepal who completed their postgraduate studies at a UK university.   The chapters cover amongst other topics such as Maternity Care, Health of the Elderly, Road Traffic Accidents, HIV/AIDS and Non-Communicable Diseases.  The book will be formally launched in a hotel in Kathmandu on the morning of Sunday 11th January.

The book also includes a chapter by BU PhD student Sheetal Sharma.  She co-authored the chapter ‘Customs and believes surrounding newborn babies in rural areas’.  One of her collaborator was a PhD student registered at the University of Aberdeen and another at London Metropolitan University, whilst third collaborator is the founder of Green Tara Trust, a UK-based Buddhist charity.

Copies of the book are for sale from Himal Books in Kathmandu and all profits from the book will be donated to Green Tara Nepal.

 

Prof. Edwin van Teijlingen

Centre for Midwifery, Maternal & Perinatal Health
Faculty of Health & Social Sciences,  Bournemouth University

Maternity research in Afghanistan

Just after I blogged about the first publication for 2015, I was informed by BU PhD student Rachel Arnold that our article: “Understanding Afghan health care providers: A qualitative study of the culture of care in a Kabul maternity hospital” is included in the first issue of 2015 of the journal BJOG.

 

BU has provided Open Access funding to make this paper freely available, which is especially important for readers in low-income countries such as Afghanistan or Nepal.  The paper can be found at: http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/1471-0528.13179/pdf

 

Prof. Edwin van Teijlingen

Centre for Midwifery, Maternal & Perinatal Health , Bournemouth University

Reference

Arnold R, van Teijlingen E, Ryan K, Holloway I. Understanding Afghan healthcare providers: a qualitative study of the culture of care in a Kabul maternity hospital. BJOG 2015; 122: 260-267.

 

First BU publication of 2015

Those working in the reproductive health field or in local media will be familiar with the phenomenon of the reporting of the first baby born in the New Year.   For example, you may have read a short item of the first baby of 2015 born just after midnight with a lovely picture of the baby with proud parents and/or midwife.

 

This BU Research Blog is the equivalent of the first publication for 2015.  I contributed a chapter called ‘Sociology of Midwifery’ to the edited book Sociology for Midwives published by Polity Press (Jan. 2015) and edited by Ruth Deery, Elaine Denny & Gayle Letherby.

The Polity Press website lists three reviews of the book by eminent academics in the field of midwifery:

“What is the point of sociology for midwives and midwifery? A sociological perspective can give us a different understanding of reproduction and maternity care. It can help us challenge our ‘common sense’ assumptions about how people and the world tick. This new book provides midwives and midwifery students with a readable comprehensive and up to date review of the field of sociology applied to reproduction and maternity care. The editors bring together a very impressive amount of material and present it in an accessible and clear way. Their facility for handling complex theoretical and detailed empirical material is admirable.”

Jane Sandall, King’s College London

 

“The editors and authors of this fine volume have produced a wonderful introduction to the value of a sociological imagination in the practice of midwifery.”

Barbara Katz Rothman, City University of New York

“The authors set out to ‘stimulate the sociological imagination’ of their readers. The combination of theoretical analysis and application of sociological theory to specific practice situations provides extensive opportunities for this to take place. Readers who are new to the sociology of maternity care will find ample material to excite and engage them. Those who already have dipped into this vast and fascinating field will find new applications, angles and perspectives that can cast a fresh light on why we do what we do in maternity care, and that provide possible routes for positive change in the future.”

Soo Downe, University of Central Lancashire

For more details of Sociology for Midwives, see:  http://www.politybooks.com/book.asp?ref=0745662803

 

Prof. Edwin van Teijlingen

Centre for Midwifery, Maternal & Perinatal Health

Bournemouth University