1. A View on Everything This opinion piece covers almost every issue in current tertiary education in short bites. Since it is probably just written to provoke, I think I will refrain from comment.
2. WITT Rockets WITT’s enrolments are up by 50% on last year, down to PEI’s demise, WITT’s own marketing and the general environment. Congrats to them. WITT has also treated PEI staff as internal for the purpose of new WITT jobs, boosting their employment chances – nice touch.
3. WEA Trouble A WEA is in trouble in Lower Hutt.
4. TEC CFO I saw the TEC is advertising its CFO position shortly after winning an ERA case – many of you were interested in that case, so here’s the judgment (you can download the full PDF there).
5. Rod to Stay As I suggested yesterday, Rod Carr is staying at Canterbury and not applying for the Reserve Bank job.
6. Extras: NBR covers Jacqueline Rowarth’s move to Waikato; Otago Uni’s neurosurgery campaign.

Research & Innovation

1. Innovation Database KiwiNet has launched an innovation database (Unlimited, Idealog) to showcase technologies on offer for commercialisation etc.
2. Tracking Albatross Otago Uni research tracking albatross made TV3 news.
3. Volcanic Lakes Waikato composers David Griffiths and Michael Williams will be at a Volcanic Lakes Festival in Italy this month directing their compositions.
4. Siouxsie Wiles’ …research on bioluminescence at Auckland is the focus of this piece in The Listener.
5. Exercise and Brains Otago Uni researchers are looking into how exercise affects brain function.
6. Extras: Auckland’s Keith Petrie et all has been looking at patients’ thoughts about illness; molecular mechano is the focus of an academic visiting Otago Uni; Massey franchising research; Victoria’s Aidan Tabor looking at emigrant couples’ experiences.

Public Issues

1. ICT in Schools Waikato’s Noeline Wright was on TV to discuss the use of digital equipment in schools.
2. Extras: WITT’s John Hudson cooks with sprouts and peas; Auckland’s Elsie Ho on Asian immigration to Auckland; Waikato’s Prof Natalie Jackson on a rural lack of young women; AUT’s Rawiri Taonui on the SOE Treaty issue.

Students

1. Celebrating Grads Competenz is celebrating its grads by creating an honour roll publication listing grads and their employers, plus producing an alumni magazine – is this a first amongst ITOs?
2. Legal Win Open Poly students won 5/7 Legal Exec exam prizes.
3. Nurse Star Profile of Unitec ad star and nursing student.
4. Bad Start A new SIT student had her parents helping her get to town and their caravan flipped.
5. Extras: Auckland student may be off to Amazon; Victoria rugby player; Miss India NZ from Victoria; profile of new Unitec dance student; a Victoria student at Occupy Wellington.

Stakeholders

1. Charming Worms Lincoln is running an ecology nature picnic for the whole family.
2. Extras: UCOL grad in top restaurant; Unison-EIT partnership; Waikato supporting Fieldays innovation competition; fire eater at CPIT; training needs in caring for the elderly.

Teaching & Learning

1. Teach First Teach First continues to stir controversy with the NZ Herald running an op-ed by an opponent and Auckland Now running a story.
2. Extras: 30 years of nursing at WITT.

Policy, Management & People

1. Self-Indulgent Education? A Stuff blogger is going back to study (after having 2 degrees already) and invites her readers to comment on whether she’s being self-indulgent. She gets a few of the costs wrong, suggesting that because she’s paid back her previous loans, it doesn’t matter, but fees (even under the original loan interest rates) only covered 20-30% of costs. Anyway, have a look if you’re keen.
2. New Tauranga Campus The new BOPP-Waikato-Awanuiarangi campus in Tauranga will have free use of 0.4 hectares from the Tauranga City Council. The group is also seeking $15m from the regional council and $15m from a local energy trust. That’s a lot of money, but it’s the sort of amount that other institutions pay for themselves. Good luck to the group in finding alternative funding.
3. Rowarth Move Waikato celebrates its appointment of Prof Jacqueline Rowarth (Waikato Times). She actually gets less coverage than she deserves in ED Blog because her NBR columns are usually behind a paywall..
4. Starpath Auckland’s Starpath project, which helps to improve school performance in Auckland is expanding to a wider group of schools.
5. TEC Employment Case Former TEC CFO Rochelle Leahy lost an ERA case over unjustifiable dismissal.
6. Extras: two new Waiariki managers – Rosemary Johnson and Greg Brimmer; Auckland’s Russell Snell supports Otago Uni’s new neurological chair; steel pou being installed at Massey Albany.

Research & Innovation

1. Rat Urine Victoria’s Wayne Linklater is leading a team analysing rat urine to develop better baits for trapping them.
2. Extras: AUT’s Philippa Pidgeon has a new dance routine; Otago Uni student tagging albatrosses.

Public Issues

1. PNG Auckland’s Steven Ratuva comments on the PNG situation.
2. Extras: more dead whales to be checked out by Massey; Otago Uni’s Chris Gallavin on extradition and Bryce Edwards on teapot tapes; Auckland’s Fiona Pienaar was on Breakfast to discuss toi moko; caring for penguins at Massey.

Students

1. Aoraki’s Got Talent A new Aoraki student has done well at a talent competition. You can see the video and it’s a good song.
2. Extras: UCOL Wairarapa open day; Lincoln had a Decision Day; Aoraki baking students.

Stakeholders

1. Subway Citing Subway cited some Auckland research .
2. Extras: 2degrees and its Maori partner are putting up some big money for Auckland ICT scholarships for Maori students; Massey pop-up garden.

Teaching & Learning

1. Teach First Stuart Middleton has a thoughtful piece on Teach First – essentially he says it won’t solve the larger problems around curriculum structure facing secondary schools. There’s more from another blogger here. I think both tend to overstate Teach First’s claims, which are relatively modest, if you read them closely.
2. Science Comms Blogger Grant Jacobs opines on what should be in science communication courses.
3. CAM Teaching Blogger and Waikato academic Alison Campbell writes on whether universities should teach complementary and alternative medicines.
4. Extras: Massey’s Elizabeth Gray gets teaching award.

1. What’s the biggest challenge on your desk right now?

Developing, at the Minister’s request, a new business model for Ako Aotearoa, as we become more ambitious about how we best support New Zealand’s diverse tertiary education sector to provide the best possible outcomes for all learners. In return there is an expectation that we will gain more support from the sector.

2. Ako Aotearoa has helped broaden the uptake of the Australasian Survey of Student Engagement? What impact has that had?

The AUSSE is a hugely powerful source of data on how students are learning. One of the things we’ve been supporting tertiary education institutions to do is to work through ways of using the complex data sets that result from using this tool. The AUSSE data identifies priorities for improvement within organisations from a learner perspective and it is really encouraging to see that many universities and ITPs are beginning to incorporate findings from their surveys into their strategic planning. It is also great to see the AUSSE results being used as a focus for collaboration for quality enhancement across different parts of the sector, in particular our recent joint publication with ACER (Student Engagement in New Zealand’s Universities) that was launched towards the end of last year.

3. What has Ako Aotearoa done lately to share ideas from Teaching Excellence Award winners?

Members of the Ako Aotearoa Academy of Tertiary Teaching Excellence (our association of past awards winners) continue to contribute to a wide range of professional development workshops on teaching and learning. Probably the most notable event last year with a significant contribution from the Academy was the First Year Biology Educator’s Conference held in Wellington in November.

4. What did you learn from your recent stint at TEC?

That, personally, I could make more of an impact on the quality of teaching and learning in tertiary education through Ako Aotearoa.

Lots of things. The new business model is coming together well, we are in the process of finalising dissemination plans from some great work resulting from our National projects and I am very excited about the prospect of developing a stronger three way partnership, between ourselves, the Industry Training Federation and The National Council for Vocational Education Research in Australia.

1. PEI Post-Mortem The Taranaki Daily News did an editorial and story on Practical Education Institute yesterday. They have finally found TEC course completion stats on TEC’s website and it’s interesting that it’s only now, exactly a month after they first broke the story, that they found those figures. It reinforces for me how poorly TEC highlights that data – it’s supposed to help students, while professional journalists can’t easily find it. Anyway, the Daily News is finally bringing some more useful context to the closure – PEI’s poor results. NewstalkZB quotes local mayor Harry Duynhoven on the closure and the impact on staff.
2. 4^th Generation Melanie Bunce is the fourth generation of females in her family to teach at Otago Uni.
3. UC Enrolments Canterbury’s Rod Carr is navigating a fine line between saying enrolments are OK, encouraging new enrolments and not suggesting they’re in trouble. I think he’s doing it well. No-one’s picked up the media release, but the messaging could just as easily be aimed at competitors and agents.
4. Extras: Michael Morrissey is new Waikato writer in residence; honours for Auckland staff; Otago Poly blokarter; extra places for EIT trades academy; EIT merger process rolls on; new EIT associate professors.

Research & Innovation

1. Corruption Victoria’s Ron Fischer and Seini O’Connor have found that corruption declines with rising incomes – anyone surprised? I would have thought a simple correlation of GDP/capita and Transparency International rankings would have told you that.
2. Extras: NMIT tutors put on an art exhibition; Victoria drug research.

Public Issues

1. Yous Victoria’s Laurie Bauer has a nice take on the difference between you and yous.
2. Smoking Otago Uni smoking research has been picked up with most focusing on high rates amongst kohanga reo teachers (ODT, NZH).
3. Generational Advantage Otago Uni’s David Fergusson has found that kids from richer families do better (ODT).
4. Extras: Otago Uni’s Bruce Robertson on sea lions and Prof Mark Henaghen on the Turangi case; dead kakapo to be checked out at Massey; Waikato’s Pawel Olsewski commenting on a really drunk person and Auckland’s Niki Harre on a similar case; Massey’s Mike Joy on fish ropes; Otago Poly’s Daniel Pfyl making beef olives; Auckland’s Julia Tolmie has chaired a group looking at family violence deaths; world’s first (?) magazine on display at Otago Uni; Massey’s David Trip on Oz banks’ staff cuts and Kiwibank’s purchase of GMI; oiled birds released from Massey; NMIT’s Alan Barnes on the building outlook; Canterbury’s Stefano Pampanin on the Grand Chancellor building (The Press).

Students

1. Debating Jargon I have a friend who is keen on debating and he’s always tweeting about teams “breaking” or “making the octo-finals” and I never really have any idea about what he’s on about. This media release from Auckland debaters uses the same jargon that detracts from their good performance in Manila. Victoria debaters did well too.
2. NZer of the Year Auckland’s Lizzie Chan is up for Young NZer of the year.
3. Extras: UCOL grad’s exhibition; Victoria Summer Shakespeare; CPIT lecturer and Canterbury student has successful blog; Waikato student did homeless shelter feasibility study.

Stakeholders

1. Extras: Massey ECE teacher does performing arts teaching; Otago Uni’s Judy Bellingham at a summer singing school; rental demand in student towns; EIT student gets Mission scholarship.

Teaching & Learning

1. Tour Course I quite like Excel School of Performing Arts’ tour course, where students spend the year touring the country (and Poland/Germany for part of it). What a great idea.
2. Extras: UCOL trades academy; NorthTec prison training;

Policy, Management & People

1. PEI to Close Practical Education Institute in New Plymouth is going to close, with the loss of 110 jobs (initial story). PEI lost most of its TEC funding this year, after continuing low course completion rates (49% in 2009, 52% in 2010, compared to a TEC threshold of 55%). Those with a long memory will remember PEI, then named PETC, made headlines for even worse completion rates in 2000 or so (under 10% from memory), which sparked the use of completion rates as a measurement in tertiary education (and restrictions on giving away computers to entice students to enrol…). I can imagine a few people involved back then may not be that sad at this demise. For me, I’m just happy to see TEC following through on its performance messages. I only wish TEC had put out a release setting out how the money had been reallocated to more useful courses at better performing PTEs, which would provide a more balanced picture.
2. New Prof Otago Poly has made Khyla Russell a professor (ODT).
3. Zero Fees There’s a good story on SIT’s Zero fees scheme today – well worth a read.
4. Extras: interview with Labour’s Grant Robertson; AUT’s marae featured in Tamati Coffey’s wedding (I know it’s not really about tertiary education); The Manawatu Standard gets grumpy about VSM; BOPP jazz teacher; Victoria trans-Tasman rower plans to get back to work; Unitec ads; profile of TWOA’s early learning manager; CPIT lecturer standing for Council; man accused of impersonating Massey staffer to go to court today;

Research & Innovation

1. Search Engines Victoria’s Daniel Crabtree has new ideas for search engines.
2. Extras: Massey property research; Waikato and Massey scientists using fungi to reduce dioxins.

Public Issues

1. Wilding Pines Otago Uni’s Mick Strack has an interesting piece on wilding pines in Central Otago.
2. Extras: Otago Uni scientists warn about Dunedin quake risk; blogger has a go at Auckland’s Chris de Freitas over climate change denial; Auckland’s Warren Brookbanks misses the point (or was partially quoted) about a petition; Canterbury’s Ian Lochhead on heritage buildings; EIT’s Derek Lardelli is part of a group repatriating toi moko.

Students

1. Fines Down Otago Uni’s fining of students went down by $2K to about $11K. Does any other provider fine students?
2. Top Covers The cover designer of OUSA paper Critic has won international recognition. Here are some of the covers, which are pretty good.
3. Extras: student tracking albatrosses; top school student off to Auckland; Canterbury PhD grad’s award; school science students at Otago Uni; no sign of Otago Uni student missing off Porirua; Auckland Summer Shakespeare.; Massey Black Stick.

Teaching & Learning

1. Adjunct Faculty Waiariki is putting together an adjunct faculty group to give students in its Maori school better links to industry/community expertise.

Policy & Management

1. PEI Job Losses Job losses are on the cards at New Plymouth’s Practical Education Institute, after the TEC has threatened it with lower funding due to poor completions (and has probably pretty much finalised its decisions). It is sad to see job losses but I’m happy to see TEC taking a hard line over performance across the country. More jobs will be created at other organisations with money reallocated for poor performing organisations.
2. No Raukawa Pay Cut Well, it seems that the Te Wananga O Raukawa CE has not had a pay cut – RNZ has corrected an earlier report. Meanwhile, Tariana Turia wished them well.
3. Flight Training Problems A flight safety consultancy has given advice to the Civil Aviation Authority about safety for trainee pilots. It turns out that there are quite a few deaths and near misses – many more than in the 90s even after correcting for extra training being done.
4. WelTec Precinct WelTec will have some planning certainty under a proposed education precinct by their Petone campus – the proposal will be out for consultation next year.
5. Extras: NMIT Chair Ross Butler is chairing a new AMI-related Crown company (release); Dame Malvina Major joins Waikato staff.

Research & Innovation

1. PM’s Science Prizes The PM’s Science Prizes were announced on Friday (Stuff, idealog, RNZ), with the $500K top award going to a NIWA-Otago Uni team working on climate change (ODT, NZN, Hot Topic, Otago release). Victoria’s Rob McKay won $200K for his work as an emerging scientist on glacial deposits (release, NBR). The $100K science media communication prize went to Canterbury’s Mark Quigley, for his quake work (release). Nina Huang won the secondary student’s $50K prize and will go on to study at Auckland, where she found supervision for a science project this year.
2. Signage Research I love this story about UCOL photographers going on a road trip to check out signage in 43 towns around NZ. I’d love to read the full analysis, if there is one.
3. Robots Auckland Uni’s big robotics study is going to get underway with 31 robots being part of six separate projects at a retirement village. They are doing some seriously interesting stuff.
4. Performance Stunt Auckland’s Chris Harvey is planning a performance work involving people laid off by government or otherwise feeling vulnerable. This will make news next year when it runs.
5. Bar Smoke Otago Uni’s Nick Wilson and Richard Edwards have found that second-hand smoke still gets you at bars even if you stay inside.
6. TV=Dole? AUT’s Erik Landhuis has found that TV watching as a child is correlated with later unemployment.
7. Extras: Victoria’s Devon Polaschek busting psychopath myths (RNZ, NZ Herald); Lincoln-CBRE survey on Christchurch office space; Massey’s Phil Broadhurst has a new jazz album; Otago Uni research cited on male grooming and on alcohol; Massey’s involvement in WW1 history project; Otago Uni’s Peter Saxton has done an HIV survey; Otago Uni’s Bruce Robertson on sealions; Otago Uni’s Prof Brian Cox wants Fonterra research money.

Public Issues

1. Politics Otago Uni’s Bryce Edwards does some interesting analysis of Dunedin South’s voting pattern at the election; AUT’s Prof Rawiri Taonui on Maori party leadership;
2. Extras: Otago Poly’s Jean Ross on community nursing; Auckland’s Charles Clifton on buildings’ earthquake resilience; Otago Uni’s Miles Lamar on Wellington jellyfish; Otago Uni emeritus Prof Air Alan Mark on opencast mining; AUT’s Grant Schofield on living a healthy life; Auckland’s Prof Bill Hodge on a league player’s name suppression; AUT’s Prof Max Abbott on stingy men; Lincoln’s Caroline Saunders mentioned for her role in a climate change roadshow.

Students

1. Otago Fees Homepaddock complains about the Otago Uni-OUSA fees deal (RNZ), which sparked off many comments, while Steven Joyce offered a toothless warning, as he knew this would happen when he set his regulations. Meanwhile, Orientation will have big events at the new covered stadium (release), but will also feature some more academic elements as the Uni exercises its new financial power over the students’ assn.
2. Floods NMIT managed to put together a small graduation for its international students, after floods caused the cancellation of the main event. Meanwhile two Otago Uni students got married regardless of flood complications – here’s a pic of the happy couple.
3. Piper A Japanese student piped herself to her own graduation.
4. Extras: editorial about EIT art graduate exhibition; Auckland hockey player; profile of Victoria scriptwriter; Waikato busker, with kilt; Miss Hawkes Bay off to Massey; Media Design School has four films in a Bondi competition; Auckland student with cochlear implants.

Stakeholders

1. Sculpture Win Auckland’s Michael Parekowhai has won a Queensland sculpture competition. Here’s the Queensland release and the proposal image is below.
2. DHB Support Taranaki DHB offers 24 scholarships worth $85K to health students;
3. Extras: grads of AUT course run by The Heart Foundation; Lincoln award to Margaret Evans; Auckland and AUT jointly hosted the launch of a Pacific book; AUT involvement in Pacific media research website.

Teaching & Learning

1. Extras: UCOL sport students working with primary schools.

1. Christchurch Rebuild The wave of new students/trainees in construction don’t yet have a job to go to, with rebuilding in Christchurch not yet starting – comments by BCITO’s Ruma Karaitiana and CPIT’s Phil Agnew.
2. Wings Trimmed Southern Wings Aviation College, which is shifting away from being an SIT subcontractor, has had an EFTS cut as TEC introduces a new aviation training cap.
3. Marae Gateway Victoria has a new marae gateway and it looks pretty good. Much better than the simple alleyway that they used to have.
4. Loans Students are borrowing more (interest.co.nz).
5. Canterbury Changes The TEU’s Sandra Grey (ED Blog’s Best Lobbyist Singer of the Year) muses on whether Canterbury will cut whole departments. Meanwhile, Canterbury is to spend $1.6m on an emergency communication system.
6. Extras: release on Tai Poutini’s EER; Otago Poly’s Matt Carter and his management success; HSI and Waiariki board member gets new job; new Chancellor at Canterbury (RNZ); Deborah Hill Cone’s underdeveloped views on university marketing, participation and organisation; TWOA’s Tai Wananga has good demand; car parking changes in Dunedin; Auckland hostel to be extended.

Research & Innovation

1. Women in Newspapers Massey’s Catherine Strong has released some strong findings on newspaper careers for women. I’ll be interested to see how it is covered.
2. Too Much Salt Otago Uni’s Rachael McLean has found that Kiwis eat too much salt (RNZ, The Press, NZN).
3. Old Shoppers Waikato’s Margaret Richardson is trying to make life easier for older shoppers.
4. Baby Deaths Auckland’s Shirley Tonkin and colleagues have found that tongue growth and jaw looseness can contribute to sudden infant deaths. Unlike much of the research in this area, it actually seems science-based and clear – read it now before its gets washed through the Ministry of Health!
5. Solar Car TV3 did a piece on the Waikato solar car, the German uni’s team’s car and a local car. I feel sorry for them given they have no windows and no A/C!
6. Extras: Victoria’s Melanie Johnston-Hollitt working on astronomy software; Massey’s Sitaleki Finau on Pasifika spirituality; Massey’s Kerry Taylor on a museum’s history; research by Otago Uni’s Bernard Venn cited (on potatoes); art making by MIT’s Bill Riley; Otago Uni’s Tony Reeder on sun safety; Victoria’s Elisabeth McDonald on changes to sex-attack justice; nice profile of Massey’s Evelyn Sattlegger; art conference at Vic this week.

Public Issues

1. Breastfeeding on P? Auckland’s Trecia Wouldes notes that there’s not much evidence on the effect of breastfeeding while taking P.
2. Home for Xmas Massey bird saviours hope to be home for Xmas after releasing the last of the oiled birds – also Canterbury’s Prof David Schiel on the cleanup an d Waikato’s Prof Chris Battershill on the environmental recovery.
3. Immigration Alleged comments by AUT’s Prof Charles Crothers are being used by a local Grey Power group to support an inquiry into Auckland’s ethnic makeup (I think they don’t want non-white people).
4. Gift-Giving Waikato’s Carolyn Costley on the psychology of gift-giving – which makes me wonder whether academics can find as many angles on Xmas as they did for the RWC. I spoke too soon – BOPP’s Esta Chappell is commenting on the greenness of real vs fake Xmas trees.
5. Bank Downgrades…attracted comments from Massey’s David Tripe (and again and again).
6. Extras: Victoria’s Maria Bargh on Labour and Maori and Robert Ayson on Iran-Britain relations; Otago Uni seminar on food production; Canterbury’s John Cookson on post-quake Christchurch; Otago Uni’s Dr Blackman on chemistry hero Ernest Solvay; Massey’s Clare Robinson on David Shearer; Otago Uni’s Bryce Edwards on voter turnout and Labour’s list; Massey’s David Deakins on business real estate; AUT’s Elaine Rush on drinking water; Otago Uni’s Andrea Insch on a marketing campaign and Prof Stephen Wing responds to some odd marine theories; more from OIA request of Auckland’s Alex McMillan; Auckland’s Barry Gustafson on coalition deals.

Students

1. NZer of the Year Canterbury’s Sam Johnson (Student Volunteer Army) has been nominated by the NZ Herald as a NZer of the Year finalist.
2. Art Over Panel Beating Here’s a story of a student who chose art at Massey over a panel beating apprenticeship.
3. Listening to Kiwis Bay of Plenty Poly students have put in kiwi listening stations on the Kepler Track near Te Anau (release).
4. Cunliffe Support Auckland’s Young Nats have come out for David Cunliffe, claiming he joined up via a BBQ draw (Homepaddock).
5. Morals An AUT student has a NZ Herald op-ed on media morals.
6. Extras: BOPP grad top regional motor apprentice; Massey eventing rider; Auckland architecture student’s win; Stephen Franks on a Canterbury alumni event; Wintec hospital history; Otago Uni students’ moot win and fair trade coffee research; odd media release about OUSA prez and SJS; Unitec students’ house-building; kea blood tests by an Otago Uni student; Otago Uni runner wins race; Canterbury’s girls software challenge; Otago Poly chef grad profile.

Stakeholders

1. Dental Clinic Otago Uni is opening a new kids’ dental clinic – good idea and good story.
2. Extras: SIT drops racing car sponsorship; Otago Poly staff supporting a Foodbank; cycling race at Canterbury.

Teaching & Learning

1. Facebook German Canterbury’s Vera Leier has got her students working on a class Facebook page, but they must change their settings to German – the language which she is teaching them. It’s a good idea to make language learning seem more everyday.
2. Teacher Awards Students have recognised their top teachers at Massey – congrats to Mike Joy, Sean Phelan, Prof Barrie Macdonald and Gina Salapata.
3. Extras: sustainable skills summer school.

1. Senior School The Timaru Herald has a great interview with the Roncalli College principal about university/non-university pathways that is well worth a read.
2. Canterbury Cuts Staff cuts at Canterbury made The Press but there was no new info.
3. AUT Learning Precinct…is a year away from completion and AUT provides an update.
4. Aoraki Changes The Timaru Herald reviews the course closures at Aoraki – there’s no doubt which side the writer is on. Oamaru Mail also provides the local angle .
5. WITT Accommodation …is up for sale. The property was sold some time ago but the owners have gone under.
6. Quake Rebuild The NZ Herald had a story on the Canterbury rebuild, with comment by Infratrain’s Philip Aldridge.
7. Prison Help CPIT is involved in the trades training of Christchurch prisoners (crime.co.nz).
8. Extras: hail damage at Waiariki; debate on Otago Uni’s special character; Otago Uni campus master plan; UCOL trades academy releases for regions 1, 2 and 3; CPIT Artbox initiative; TEC rejects call for wananga-specific EPIs.

Research & Innovation

1. Royal Society Awards The Royal Society of NZ gave out its top awards last night. Otago Uni’s Prof Christine Winterbourn won the Rutherford Medal (RNZ, ODT, Otago Uni), the first woman to do so. Otago Uni’s Prof Jim Flynn won the first Humanities Aronui Medal. Two other Otago Uni academics won – Chris Pemberton got the Liley Medal and Prof Robert Poulin won the Hutton Medal. Auckland’s Prof David Ryan won the Pickering Medal and Sir Peter Gluckman won the Callaghan Medal. Others won too, but their PR departments were too slow to write the releases…
2. Extras: sensing technology conference at Massey; Eleanor Catton new Auckland writer in residence; Auckland’s Helen Eyles on fast food chain nutrition info (NZ Herald).

Public Issues

1. Bad Spelling Victoria’s Laurie Bauer comments on bad spelling and whether it really matters.
2. Suppression? Well it seems that people are doing a beat-up about Auckland undermining a speech by a Chinese dissident with no real evidence, but not pursuing the clearer evidence of Chinese media not running ads.
3. Election Otago Uni’s Bryce Edwards has an excellent election roundup; Victoria’s Prof Nigel Roberts on the youth vote (and MMP); election forum at NMIT and another at Victoria; Massey’s Prof Mike O’Brien on welfare policies (and he signed a letter supporting Occupy); AUT’s Rawiri Taonui on the Maori vote; Laidlaw College’s Mark Keown with a religious viewpoint on voting.
4. Extras: Auckland’s Stephen Hoadley on the sale of old air force jets (NewstalkZB); Massey staff helping penguins; Otago Uni’s Andrew Geddis on Occupy; Victoria’s John Pratt on short prison sentences; Wintec-hosted teen suicide expert.

Students

1. Exhibitions WITT students putting on their own exhibition; Unitec student designing supermarket app; AUT fashion show; Massey grad’s cool exhibition; Media Design School AdSchool show;
2. Sharks Otago Uni students do a film on Dunedin shark nets and the attacks that prompted them.
3. Extras: Victoria student speaking on crime; profile of top UCOL photographer; AUT student is Miss Auckland.

Stakeholders

1. Equidays Waikato is a big partner for Equidays – like Fieldays but with horses. Waikato’s Stuart Locke and Equine ITO’s Dudley Brown take the time to comment on the industry.
2. Letter Writing Top scholars at Waikato wrote letters to Year 5-6 students – read the story.
3. Te Reo o Taranaki A WITT tutor wants to keep te reo o Taranaki alive and creative.
4. Extras: mobile film-making symposium at Massey; Victoria honour for kaumatua.

Teaching & Learning

1. Uni Prep Closed Victoria Uni students are upset over their Uni’s decision to close off university preparation courses after TEC pressure.

1. Loan Scheme Loses Money TV3 did a story at the weekend disclosing how the interest-free student loan scheme would fail if it was a business, although it must be said that giving away money at no cost has never been seen as a winning business strategy. I’m happy it’s being highlighted but the treatment is a bit odd. Keith Ng at Public Address got grumpy about the story.
2. ACE Numbers The Press ran a story on the decline in ACE student numbers, seemingly just citing numbers from a representative of ACE-providing schools. The numbers are probably about right but I’d love to see what has really happened in that market and what people have done instead.
3. Otago Poly to Akld Otago Poly is setting up an Auckland campus to serve international students. They’re working with PTE Future Skills and plan to offer the first year of their business degree there.
4. TEC to Go? The TEC would be abolished if Tamaki independent candidate Stephen Berry has his way – he won’t, of course.
5. Transport Training Bay of Plenty Poly has a new transport training centre.
6. NZ Studies The 2009 closure of the UK-based Centre for NZ Studies made the news at the weekend as there was some controversy in the air. I’m not sure I care either way but it seems the accusations could either spell out corruption or a negotiated settlement, depending on how you look at it.
7. People Should Google AUT’s Alan Robie has been promoted to professor and the media release claimed that he might be the first journalism professor in NZ or the Pacific (there are heaps in Australia though).
8. King’s Education Push for an inquiry into the death of a King’s Education student in the Feb quake.
9. Extras: Otago Uni disability conference could lead to centre at Uni; WITT’s Richard Handley on youth unemployment (he’s misnamed in the report); decisions on Massey’s teacher education courses in new year; NZUSA likes the Maori Party tertiary education policy; discussion on IRL reforms (and again); Otago Uni’s advanced school science programme; Shane Telfer’s Fulbright; new Otago Uni neurosurgery lecturer.

Research & Innovation

1. Vanuatu Waikato’s Julie Barbour has a Marsden Grant to “complete the world’s first large-scale comparative study of “mood systems” in the Vanuatu languages” …
2. Climate Change Otago Uni and Victoria academics have reviewed the government’s work on climate change and found it came up short – blogger No Right Turn complains that the report is not available online.
3. Extras: Auckland’s Crown Lynn exhibition.

Public Issues

1. Election A confused Unitec student is interviewed. Victoria’s Jon Johansson on the Epsom situation. Massey’s Jane Parker on employment policies and Claire Matthews on raising the retirement age.
2. MMP Academics comment on MMP referendum: Massey’s Grant Duncan, Victoria’s Prof Nigel Roberts. Unitec’s Keith Rankin on the MMP referendum (and Massey’s Claire Robinson too)
3. Steve Williams Unbelievably, two academics were found to comment on Steve William’s behaviour.
4. Name that Sea Creature Auckland’s Mark Costello and Victoria’s Lisa Bryant try to name a sea creature washed ashore.
5. Blogging Victoria’s Danyl McLauchlan is one of NZ’s top bloggers (The Dim Post) and was profiled at the weekend. He has about 10 times my readership and is generally funnier. LawFuel also mentioned Victoria’s Dean Knight and Otago Uni’s Andrew Geddis as top law bloggers.
6. Extras: Canterbury’s Annie Potts on chickens’ history and emotions; Massey’s Claire Matthews on money personality tests and Prof Subhas Mukhopadhyay on a dodgy power saving tool; Auckland’s Rhys Jones, a public health specialist, on climate change; Victoria’s Prof John Pratt on penal systems; Auckland’s Jeff Harrison on concerns about a prescription drug; Canterbury’s Greg Newbold says prison crowding leads to assaults; AUT’s Robin Hankin on picking Lotto numbers; Prof Bruce Glavovic on the emotional toll of the Christchurch quakes; Susan Krumdieck’s UK lecture online; Canterbury’s Jeremy Finn on an IP dispute; Otago Uni’s Barrie Peake reckons that we should be testing for oil in BOP seafood; Massey’s Chris Wilkins on P’s declining popularity (Fairfax); Auckland’s Clare Wall on detox diets and Prof Tim Hazeldine on asset sales; Oamaru lecture by Victoria’s Conal McCarthy; Doug Sellman on alcohol.

Students

1. Cauliflower Winners HSI has announced its cauliflower cooking winners.
2. Intern Scheme NMIT is celebrating 14 years of an intern scheme run with a group of German universities – sounds like interesting stuff.
3. Top Otago apprentice… was Rachae Lynch of the Retail Institute.
4. Food Bank OUSA has had a big year for its food bank (ODT, RNZ).
5. Extras: Massey student who focuses more on swimming; Waikato student and netball umpire; Ohope building apprentice; Otago Poly trying to get women into the trades; Lincoln students have Red Zone ideas; BCITO expo; Otago Uni design students showing work at Arthur’s Pass; Massey Wellington design grads exhibition.

Stakeholders

1. Universe Tweets Otago Uni’s ScienceTeller Festival has an “explain the origins of the universe” tweeting competition.
2. Rena No new oiled wildlife found by Massey team (Stuff), but the Palmie Wildlife Centre will stay closed until January due to diversion of resources to Tauranga;
3. Top Farmer Lincoln’s South Island farmer of the year named.
4. Extras: top user of Otago Poly’s biodiesel consortium; Telford hosted a Clutha District Council meeting; sports academy link for TWOA; Unitec community garden; Bay of Plenty Poly students setting up Xmas decorations; student-built house fails to sell at BOPP; wine competition at Auckland.

Teaching & Learning

1. Adult Learner Awards…in Bay of Plenty.