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Building and examining research capability in Australian health students: a mixed methods study1.32 MB
Published (Version of record)CC BY-NC-ND V4.0, Open Access
Published (Version of record)CC BY-NC-ND V4.0, Open
Journal article
Building and examining research capability in Australian health students: a mixed methods study
Assessment and evaluation in higher education, Vol.50(1), pp.98-110
02/01/2025
Appears in Recent Faculty of Health Publications
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Source: InCites
Abstract
Research honours programs are traditionally used in Australian universities to build and evaluate research capacity in undergraduate health students. The effectiveness of such programs in achieving this in the current higher education landscape has not recently been explored. This mixed methods study examined 66 health research honours programs. Webpage, survey and interview data were gathered to examine the learning outcomes, pedagogical approaches, assessment practices, and the purpose of the programs. Learning outcomes included conducting research, working with independence, critical thinking and collaborating. Pedagogical approaches focussed on the completion of a research project under supervision and a research thesis featured as the main assessment piece. Rigorous moderation practices were employed within assessment procedures. However, there was considerable variation in standards of high performance. The stated purpose of honours programs included development of research skills, providing a stepping stone into a research career, preparation of the health workforce, and production of research. Models for building and examining research capability should draw from the strengths of this approach which include authentic learning and assessment. Sector-wide benchmarking of performance standards and the inclusion of learning outcomes that consider research within clinical careers would strengthen the role of honours programs into the future.
Details
- Title
- Building and examining research capability in Australian health students: a mixed methods study
- Creators
- Alex Barwick - Southern Cross UniversityLouise Horstmanshof - Southern Cross University
- Publication Details
- Assessment and evaluation in higher education, Vol.50(1), pp.98-110
- Publisher
- Taylor & Francis
- Number of pages
- 13
- Identifiers
- 991013193111802368
- Copyright
- (c) 2024 The Author(s). Published by Informa UK Limited. trading as Taylor & Francis Group. This is an open access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives License.
- Academic Unit
- Allied Health and Midwifery; Faculty of Health
- Language
- English
- Resource Type
- Journal article