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A voluminous empirical literature has examined scale economies in public organisations, particularly in local government. By contrast, little effort has been directed at the empirical investigation of economies of scale in higher education administration, including in Australian universities. To address this gap in the empirical literature, this paper examines administrative scale economies and task density in Australian public universities for the period 2009/10–2018/19 using a pooled data framework. We find that there are administrative scale economies in Australian universities and that task density is a key determinant of administrative intensity. In addition, regional universities exhibit a higher level of administrative intensity than their metropolitan counterparts. We conclude by canvassing some of the main public policy implications of our findings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recent years have seen a steady stream of journal editorials condemning self-plagiarism and other questionable publishing practices. Whilst in the biomedical sciences, redundant publication is condemned for its potential to exaggerate the efficacy of clinical trials, the potential negative consequences of textual recycling are less obvious in the humanities and social sciences. The perceived evils of self-plagiarism vary widely across the academic disciplines, undermining the claim that self-plagiarism constitutes an academic integrity issue in all cases. The article argues that questions surrounding self-plagiarism should be replaced with pronouncements around the notions of ‘fortunate’ and ‘unfortunate’ academic publication. Some examples of such judgements are given. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Australia has had a mixed history in the way in which policy research has related to higher education policy. Recognising a history of policy-related research and to some extent research-informed policy-making, Australia has followed the trend of other New Public Management-driven systems of de-emphasising policy-oriented independent research. In the face of massive change that has been confronting the higher education sector and will continue to do so, it is argued that evaluative and forward-looking research into the key areas of system coordination and institutional management is needed. A research agenda focusing on institutional change is proposed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research examines the impact of non-monetary work environment factors on employee discretionary effort within the higher education sector in Australia. There is limited qualitative research that examines the factors that drive and inhibit employee discretionary effort especially in the higher education sector. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 20 higher education institution academics and support staff using a purposive sampling method. The findings of this research suggest that professional commitment has important implications for discretionary effort within the higher education sector and needs to be explored. The findings also support job design, job characteristics and organisational factors (e.g. excessive workload) as having a direct influence on discretionary behaviour. However, two previously identified factors, organisational culture and leadership and management factors, did not have the expected influence on discretionary effort by the participants due to their negative perception of the current culture within all institutions in the Higher Education Sector. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigates inclusion in higher education, examining learning environments for students with physical disabilities (SWPD) and the challenges faced in promoting inclusive education, using an Australian university as a case study. Drawing from the social model of disability and interviews with 40 stakeholders, our findings suggest that despite marked progress towards inclusive education through reasonable adjustments for all, learning environments remain largely driven by adjustments for individual students, creating organisational and personal challenges. Four key challenges emerged: (1) staff perception about too many resources creating student dependencies; (2) staff training needs; (3) low representation of students with visible disabilities; and (4) moving inclusion beyond education into employment. Our findings emphasise the need to embed employability and skills development in all aspects of teaching and learning while moving towards inclusive education, to enable all students to develop professionally, and reinforcing calls for an inclusive workplace that values and accepts SWPD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

International students have a substantial presence in western business schools. Yet, research on international students' experiences remains sparse. Following recent calls to understand the international student–educational institution relationship, we examine the content, formation, and fulfilment of their psychological contract. We conduct a qualitative study of international students in two Australian business schools with large international student cohorts. The findings indicate that international students use social and institutional sources to create the contract, which, when fulfilled, leads to positive educational and psychological outcomes. Our research contributes to the business and international education literature by identifying the key content of the contract. We also highlight the interconnected roles of three tiers of the institution – academic staff, business school and university – in fulfilling the contract. Knowledge of international students' psychological contract will help business schools better manage the student–institution relationship and create a sustainable international student expansion strategy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article reviews 37 empirical studies, selected from 363 articles and 20 journals, on assessment feedback published between 2000 and 2011. The reviewed articles, many of which came out of studies in the UK and Australia, reflect the most current issues and developments in the area of assessing disciplinary writing. The article aims to outline current studies on assessment feedback. These studies have explored undergraduate students' wide-ranging perspectives on the effectiveness and utility of assessment feedback, the divergent styles of assessment feedback of lecturers and tutors in various disciplines, teachers' divergent interpretations of assessment criteria and confusion about the dual roles of assessment feedback, and the divergences between teachers' beliefs and practices. The review includes analysis and comparison of the research methods and findings of the studies. It identifies a research space for assessment feedback and outlines implications for further studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Research linking university students' perceptions of their classroom environment and course experiences was conducted in one Australian university. A sample of 495 students responded to the College and University Classroom Environment Inventory (CUCEI) and the Course Experience Questionnaire (CEQ). Multilevel regression analyses revealed that several CUCEI scales were significant predictors of CEQ scales. Overall, task orientation was the most potent predictor of all five CEQ scales: clear goals and standards, generic skills, good teaching, appropriate workload and appropriate assessment. Improvements in the classroom environment were linked to more positive course experiences which are being taken as indicators of institutional performance. It is recommended that more attention be paid to classroom environment in colleges and universities. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]