Staff Comments

I am writing to inform you about my use of an instructional video entitled “IT and University Study”, which is part of the USQ Communication Processes Series. I used a substantial part of this video to illustrate my lecture/ workshop on Note Taking in Lectures and Tutorials. This was part of the Getting Started Sessions for commencing students at USQ, and the sessions were held in Semester 1, 2006.
The video featured a lecture given by Dr Barbara Harmes and was very useful for my purposes, because it was clearly structured and articulated, and it used exactly the right mixture of academic jargon and spoken language. It was perfectly suited to instruct commencing students, and I would therefore strongly recommend its use in the future.

Further to our discussion about Uniprep students who undertake the course CMS1000 : Communication and Scholarship through the Faculty of Arts, I advise that these students usually have an edge over the international students who haven't taken Uniprep classes. They seem to be more confident in the following areas:

I've noticed that with oral presentations, in particular, that Uniprep students are much more independent and less anxious about the task, which can be particularly daunting when presenting a speech in front of what is basically an Australian audience. Students seem to be more confident in their delivery. They also have a much better idea of structure than other students.

In terms of their written work, they have a better understanding of the processes involved and while some may struggle with new content, their experience has equipped them with important skills in academic writing.

Some of my tutors have noticed that Uniprep students have a far great facility in research and structuring assignments. It is obvious that they are more comfortable with the conventions of western academic processes; for instance, important features of academic writing such as paragraph structure and referencing are familiar to them. They are also more at ease with the conventions of report writing, a process which entails adhering to a precise and detailed format. ..

Overall, the Uniprep students come into this course with a degree of familiarity with the academic demands of a university.

My role as Program Coordinator of the Bachelor of Nursing (Post Registration) requires ongoing liaison and interaction with cohorts of international registered nurses during their on campus studies. An integral part of this role is working with the nominees while the international students are undertaking the UNIPREP program prior to commencing their nursing studies. UNIPREP, a specific preparatory program for international students, is an integral part of the students’ transition to university life at USQ. The program equips the students with the tools and ability to successfully engage in tertiary studies. Over the past decade I have noted that the international registered nurses who have completed UNIPREP are motivated to learn and take advantage of every learning opportunity presented. Their high Grade Point Averages attest to this. The students themselves are full of praise for the work of the nominees and the UNIPREP program.

The four integrated courses of the UNIPREP program reflects the effort put into developing a curriculum designed to prepare international students to enter tertiary studies. The nominees have ensured that students graduate with the skills to engage in self directed learning rather than rote learning of content. As a Program Coordinator I admire and respect their approach to education and as an educator involved with their graduates on a daily basis I appreciate the professional expertise and scholarship they have applied to developing the UNPREP curriculum. This is due to the dedication and involvement of the nominees who have developed a program unique in its nature and outcomes.

One of the important features of student assessment is getting the balance right in order to determine that students are meeting course objectives, developing reflective learning skills, and achieving autonomy as lifelong learners. The nominees have achieved this in the UNIPREP program. Their structured assessment provides ongoing independent feedback to students giving them opportunities to discuss concerns and explain their understanding of concepts. The students involved in the Bachelor of Nursing (Post Registration) have nothing but praise for this form of assessment. Their comments note that it gives them encouragement and motivation to succeed.

The UNIPREP program offers international students a supportive environment in which to build their academic learning skills and gain an understanding of the differing cultural and social mores they will encounter in the multicultural campus of USQ. Graduates from UNIPREP who enter the Bachelor of Nursing, both Pre and Post Registration, adapt to life and studies in Australia more readily than those who do not undertake UNIPREP. This is reflected in their confident interaction with fellow students and teaching staff.

As noted previously UNIPREP has been designed to facilitate the development of each student’s individual learning style through interactive teaching sessions and individual student consultations. This enables the students to discuss any learning difficulties they may be experiencing and work with the support of the UNIPREP nominees to develop their own individual approach to learning.

I have no hesitation in supporting the nominees’ application for a USQ award.

The English language teaching expertise of the UNIPREP staff has frequently been called upon to assist Australian students, in particular those from non-English speaking backgrounds, with their studies in the Tertiary Preparation Program. The TPP, an "open access" external study program, enrols many Australian CALD students whose first language is not English and who consequently struggle with the academic demands of tertiary studies as a result of these language barriers. Sometimes these students have been able to attend UNIPREP on-campus classes while at other times they have been assisted with their English language through one to one tutoring in the Learning Centre. The teaching skills of the UNIPREP tutors has enhanced the oral and written English language abilities of these students to the point where they can subsequently manage their tertiary studies and succeed in an undergraduate learning environment which is dominated by the use of the English language.