What's On at UWA

The course will cover material ranging from a review of simple one-way ANOVA, to more complex designs and analyses including crossed and nested factors with fixed and random effects.The emphasis throughout will be placed on applications rather than theory. The statistical package R and R Commander will be used and some familiarity with this will be assumed.

In Australia over the last five years, the Federal Government has thrust a policy couplet of ‘quality’ and ‘equity’ to the forefront of education agendas in both schooling and higher education sectors. This couplet reflects and refracts dominant education discourses around the globe. The Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) has played a significant role in forging these educational priorities for a global knowledge era, and at the same time contributed to heightened competition between countries as they strive for ‘world class’ education systems and institutions. The Australian Federal Government has taken the approach of increasing central control of education in order to enhance both quality and equity, and hence Australia’s competitive positioning in the global arena. But educational quality and equity are amorphous ‘chameleon’ concepts; what are they, how do we measure them and are they comfortable bedfellows? Together, they might be described in terms of a Gordian knot; that is, they have become inextricably interlinked and they potentially create intractable problems. This presentation begins to untie the Gordian knot of quality and equity in education and asks if increasing central government control is the best solution to the policy problem. In so doing, it draws on concepts of ‘policy pandemics’, international ‘policy learning’ and ‘glocalisation’ to emphasise the importance of critical analysis of education trends from global to local levels in an emerging global knowledge society.

While humans use their voice mainly for communicating information about the world, paralinguistic cues in the voice signal convey rich dynamic information about a speaker´s arousal and emotional state, and extralinguistic cues reflect more stable speaker characteristics including identity, biological sex and social gender, socioeconomic or regional background, and age. Here I discuss how recent methodological progress in voice morphing and voice synthesis has promoted research on current theoretical issues, such as how voices are mentally represented in the human brain. Special attention is dedicated to the distinction between the recognition of familiar and unfamiliar speakers, in everyday situations or in the forensic context, and on the processes and representational changes that accompany the learning of new voices. I describe how specific impairments and individual differences in voice perception could relate to specific brain correlates. Finally, I consider that voices are produced by speakers who are often visible during communication, and present evidence that shows how speaker perception involves dynamic face-voice integration. Overall, the representation of para- and extralinguistic vocal information plays a major role in person perception and social communication, could be neuronally encoded in a prototype-referenced manner, and is subject to flexible adaptive recalibration as a result of specific perceptual experience.

Biography: Stefan Schweinberger is a full professor at the University of Jena in Germany. He is chair for General Psychology and head of the DFG-funded Person Perception Research Unit. Stefan received his Ph.D. and Habilitation from the University of Konstanz and was professor at the University of Glasgow before moving to Jena. His research interests include the cognitive and neural mechanisms underlying person perception, particularly the electrophysiological correlates of face and voice perception.

While humans use their voice mainly for communicating information about the world, paralinguistic cues in the voice signal convey rich dynamic information about a speaker´s arousal and emotional state, and extralinguistic cues reflect more stable speaker characteristics including identity, biological sex and social gender, socioeconomic or regional background, and age. Here I discuss how recent methodological progress in voice morphing and voice synthesis has promoted research on current theoretical issues, such as how voices are mentally represented in the human brain. Special attention is dedicated to the distinction between the recognition of familiar and unfamiliar speakers, in everyday situations or in the forensic context, and on the processes and representational changes that accompany the learning of new voices. I describe how specific impairments and individual differences in voice perception could relate to specific brain correlates. Finally, I consider that voices are produced by speakers who are often visible during communication, and present evidence that shows how speaker perception involves dynamic face-voice integration. Overall, the representation of para- and extralinguistic vocal information plays a major role in person perception and social communication, could be neuronally encoded in a prototype-referenced manner, and is subject to flexible adaptive recalibration as a result of specific perceptual experience.

Biography: Stefan Schweinberger is a full professor at the University of Jena in Germany. He is chair for General Psychology and head of the DFG-funded Person Perception Research Unit. Stefan received his Ph.D. and Habilitation from the University of Konstanz and was professor at the University of Glasgow before moving to Jena. His research interests include the cognitive and neural mechanisms underlying person perception, particularly the electrophysiological correlates of face and voice perception.

This is the sixth year of offering these end of year retreats for staff at UWA. The feedback from previous participants has been unanimously positive. The Retreat provides space to interact with other academic and general staff from across UWA; reconnect with professional ‘passion’; allow inspiration and creativity to surface; restore purposefulness.

The format includes some reflection on poetry (to slow us down into a more reflective space), time alone in silence (walking, resting, reading) and we introduce a process for group listening for anyone who wants support in discerning a question/issue of personal importance (called a ‘Clearness Committee’).

The design of the retreat is based on principles developed by the American Educationalist Parker J Palmer (Let your life speak; The courage to teach; The Heart of Higher Education) and the Centre for Courage and Renewal www.couragerenewal.org

The retreat has an implicit contemplative spirituality focussed on listening, is not religiously specific and does not assume any faith position.

The focus is on creating some good quality space for refreshment, renewal and gaining clarity in personal and professional direction. The retreats and quiet days have support from Teaching and Learning (CATL) and the Research Office. The cost is $260 (no GST) for two full days inclusive of accommodation in single rooms, breakfasts and lunches. Participants share in the provision of evening meals. Staff may wish to apply to their manager or Head of School for funding support as a recognised professional development program.

Previous participants have said….. “This time at the staff retreat has been encouraging for the possibilities of university teaching, lifting us above the limiting busyness of everyday life. Not a ‘how to’ time but a time of deepening inner resources”; “This retreat provided a rare opportunity to quietly reflect on what’s going on for me internally as a teacher, helped by excellent facilitators and a wonderful peaceful location”; “The retreat is expertly and compassionately structured. It provides a rare chance to be brought back to the rawness and passion that inspire great teaching” “I have learned that I am not alone and have community at UWA and the journey of teaching is as special and sacred as I believed it to be”

To obtain a registration form please email [email protected] and if you would like to know more, please contact Michael on Ext 4762.

Enjoy a Twilight Sail on a 36 foot yacht out of Royal Perth Yacht Club. No sailing experience necessary, you can try your hand at crewing under the direction of our qualified skipper or just sit back and enjoy the sail. Alumni and Staff $45. Partners and friends $60. Numbers strictly limited - registration required. BBQ option available after the sail at participants own cost.

The Faculty of Education officially closes for the festive season at 12 noon on Tuesday 24 December 2013 and will re-open at 8:30am on Monday 6 January 2014.

Three correlational studies investigated implications associated with explicit-implicit sexual orientation ambivalence for information processing and psychological well-being in samples of straight and gay individuals.

Across the studies, 243 straight participants completed explicit and implicit measures of sexual orientation; in one of these studies, 48 gay participants completed the same measures. Within individual studies, participants also completed measures of self-esteem.

When considering the effects of ambivalence between self-reported and indirectly measured sexual orientation (SO), among straight participants explicit-implicit SO ambivalence was positively associated with time spent deliberating questions on sexual preferences; an effect moderated by the direction of ambivalence. In an attempt to explain this effect, in our third study, straight participants read ambivalence-relevant arguments that were either strong or weak in quality. In line with the effect found previously, the amount of explicit-implicit SO ambivalence positively related to post-message cognitive responses after reading strong but not weak arguments. This effect was also found to be moderated by the direction of ambivalence.

For gay participants, individual differences in explicit-implicit SO ambivalence tended to influence time deliberating sexuality. In addition, explicit-implicit ambivalence in sexual orientation attitudes among gay individuals, but not straight individuals, was related to self-esteem in addition to defensive self-esteem.

Our findings demonstrate the information processing consequences of explicit-implicit ambivalence in both straight and gay individuals when considering an attitude object that has considerable personal relevance. Furthermore, our results highlight that explicit-implicit ambivalence in sexual orientation attitudes may be an important antecedence of psychological well-being in gay-individuals.

The aim of this course is to introduce you to basic statistics. It will cover descriptive statistics (means and standard deviations); data exploration; basic categorical data analysis; simple linear regression and basic analysis of variance (ANOVA). The statistical package SPSS will be used to illustrate the ideas demonstrated. The course will be held in a computer laboratory allowing participants to immediately apply the material covered through a series of practical examples.

Dr. Tunde Ogunfowora (pronounced Toon-day) is an Assistant Professor of Human Resources and Organizational Dynamics at the Haskayne School of Business, University of Calgary (Canada). His research interests include ethical leadership, abusive supervision, ethical decision making and moral behaviours in the workplace. Dr. Ogunfowora also has an interest in individual differences in morally-oriented traits, values, and cognitions, and their roles in understanding leadership and ethics at work. Co-authors: Dr. Sean Tucker, Faculty of Business Administration, University of Regina, Canada, Dayle Diekrager, Saskatchewan Workers Compensation Board

Each year, thousands of workers are killed on the job. In a growing number of these incidents (Frontline, 2008), the organizational leader is singled out by the media. This paper examines how organizational leaders effectively exercise the duty of care owed to their workers by acting ethically and fostering a culture of safety for reducing work-related injuries and fatalities. Drawing on social learning theory (Bandura, 1973, 1977) and Brown and colleagues’ (2005) ethical leadership construct, we developed and tested a multi-level, trickle-down model linking CEO ethical leadership to frontline employee safety behavior. Specifically, we explored different paths of influence through CEO safety commitment, top management team safety commitment, and frontline supervisory safety commitment. Data were collected from 2,513 frontline employees, 1,452 supervisors, and 206 members of top management teams in 52 organizations. The results showed support for our hypothesized path of influence. Specifically, we found that CEO ethical leadership was positively related to CEO commitment to safety (rated by members of the top management team). Furthermore, CEO commitment to safety was positively related to perceptions of top management team commitment to safety (rated by supervisors). Top management’s commitment to safety was related to frontline employee perceptions of supervisor commitment to safety and, in turn, employee self-reported safety compliance and participation behaviors. The results also showed support for other alternate paths of influence. These findings suggest that ethical organizational leaders can create and foster a strong commitment to safety that permeates through different layers of the organization.

UWA Health & Rehab Clinic - Running Club 13 week program working towards a 5 or 12km fun run (i.e. HBF Run for Reason - May 25th)

All levels welcome. Perfect for those returning from injury or running for the first time and needing a little extra feedback and coaching.

WHEN: Monday 3rd March - Friday 30th May

Running Sessions = Mon & Fri 6am. Plus "Fit-R" Strength & Mobility Sessions = Wed 6am & Thurs 6pm

WHERE: UWA Health & Rehabilitation Clinic - Parkway Entrance #4, Crawley Campus. Runs will take place around campus, along the river and into Kings Park.

COST: $12 per week (up to 4 sessions/week) for 13 weeks = $156

^Private health rebates may apply for Fit-R sessions

Adult & Over 50's Exercise Sessions combining 40min gym based strength and functional training, plus 40min swimming training (incl fitness and stroke technique).

12 WEEK SEMESTER 1 PROGRAM: Mon 3rd March - Saturday 31st May (Break 18th - 25th April)

SESSION BLOCKS: Adults [Tuesday 6pm-7.30pm &/OR Thursday 7am-8.30am] Over 50's [Monday 8am-9.30am &/OR Saturday 8.30am-10am]

COST: $18 per class = $216 for 12 week program (1 day/week) *20% discount off total price if attend 2 days ^ Private health rebate may apply for gym session

Open to all, the Carbon Neutral Quiz Night 2014! presented by the Australian Youth Climate Coalition UWA, will be a night of fun, games, and a theme of sustainability to start the new semester. 7.30pm, Wednesday the 5th of March (Week 2) at Hackett Hall, UWA. All the proceeds will go to the trees planted to carbon offset the evening and to further the work the work of the campus club to spread awareness about climate change. This is a public, alcohol-free event.

International Women's Day 2014 will be celebrated on Tuesday 11 March.

The Vice-Chancellor, Winthrop Professor Paul Johnson will be the Guest Speaker. Professor Johnson will be speaking about the case for gender equity in higher education.

The event will take place at the University Club Banquet Hall from 2-3pm, and will be hosted by Ms Gaye McMath, Chief Operating Officer.

Afternoon tea will be provided.

Please RSVP to [email protected] by Monday 4 March to indicate your attendance and dietary requirements.

Harmony Day is an annual event in the UWA calendar that provides an opportunity to affirm and celebrate cultural, linguistic and religious diversity in the campus community.

The Vice-Chancellor, Winthrop Professor Paul Johnson, invites you to join him in the Tropical Grove to hear guest speaker Suresh Rajan's talk entitled "I'm not a Racist but...". Suresh will speak on the topic of Casual Racism.

The 2014 Isabelle Lake Memorial Lecture is entitled "Making History: All the places we've been and are still yet to go in the fight for Transgender and Intersex Rights".

The lecture will be deliverd by Aram Hosie, a queer identified transgender man from Perth, Western Australia, who has been involved in advocating for the rights of LGBTI people nationally and internationally for over a decade.

The lecture will begin at 6pm, which light refreshments served from 5.30 pm.

For more information and to RSVP, please email [email protected]

Come along to Profectus UWA's Inaugral 2014 AGM on Tuesday April 8. If you are passionate about business and entrepreneurship be sure to drop by at 1pm to learn more about our agenda. We will answer any questions you have about Profectus and events being held this semester!!!

Helen Stain is currently Senior Clinical Lecturer at Durham University where the focus of her post is on the research of psychological interventions for youth mental health and includes a clinical role with the NHS Foundation Trust. Prior to this appointment in 2012, Helen was in private practice in Perth, Western Australia, and accepted an academic research appointment with the University of Newcastle based in Orange in rural New South Wales in 2004. As Associate Professor in Psychiatry, Helen was responsible for the rural mental health research program for the Centre for Rural and Remote Mental Health, a joint initiative of the University of Newcastle and the NSW Ministry of Health.

Abstract

We currently know that childhood trauma and subclinical psychotic symptoms are pluripotent risk factors for developing major and severe mental illness. For example, the odds ratios following trauma are 4.4 for PTSD, 2.8 for drug abuse, 2.7 for depression, 2.4 for panic disorder, 1.9 for alcohol abuse, 1.9 for simple or social phobia, and 1.8 for generalised anxiety disorder (Teicher & Samson, 2013) with researchers reporting the average odds ratio for a psychotic disorder of 2.9 in a population cohort (Bebbington et al, 2004) and 2.8 in a meta-analysis of approximately 80,000 subjects (Varese et al, 2012). The development of psychopathology for those who have experienced childhood trauma occurs at a younger age, with more severe symptoms, more comorbid disorders, greater suicide risk and a reduced treatment response (Teicher & Samson, 2013).

Trauma or maltreatment occurring in childhood coincides with the period for a child’s development of relational understanding such as attachment to others, and the reflective awareness of self and others (Holmes, 2002). In addition, childhood trauma itself often involves attachment disruption and interpersonal violence in the context of primary relationships. It can therefore disrupt the acquisition of interpersonal relatedness skills, including the desire for affiliation, and lead to difficulty with social functioning in adulthood. This paper will discuss the impact of childhood trauma on mental health and social wellbeing.

Supporting students through professional placements and meeting the needs of workplace partners and external regulations poses a range of challenge for university coordinators, especially when issues of disability and mental health are added to the situation. In response to such dilemmas, a research project by the Faculty of Education examined the inherent requirements of professional practice. ‘Inherent Requirements’ are provided for under the Disability Discrimination Act and the Disability Standards for Education and can be described as the ‘fundamental components of a course or unit, demanding demonstration of particular capabilities, knowledge and skills to achieve the core learning outcomes of a course or unit, while preserving the academic integrity of the university’s learning, assessment and accreditation processes’. Thus, they are not just compulsory or traditional requirements, but are those requirements that are fundamental or essential to the learning and assessment requirements of the particular course.

This study explored the development and use of the concept of inherent requirements (IR) to make explicit the essential elements of performance for the Initial Teacher Education (ITE) practicum for the benefit of all students. Through consultative group processes with stakeholders involved in ITE, seven inherent requirement domains were identified. From interviews with academics, first-person narratives were developed to illustrate pre-service teachers’ performance in complex Professional Practice scenarios. Narratives associated with the three IR domains: self-awareness, social awareness and sustained professional conduct were rated by university staff and pre-service teachers to create a continuum of performance based on Rasch-model statistical analysis. The findings suggest that the IR domains and the illustrative narratives could be valuable resources to improve all stakeholders’ awareness of Professional Practice requirements and enhance course outcomes for all ITE students. The Faculty of Education is developing a policy to incorporate inherent requirements with a “Gateway to Practice”. This workshop will present information about the process of developing the statements of inherent requirements and promote discussion about how the concept of inherent requirements could be applied across the university in Faculties offering professional work placements.

Please RSVP to Martin Swann

Dr Khalid Zaheer is the Scholar at Understanding Islam UK (UIUK) since May 2012. UIUK is a non-political organization established in UK as a registered charity since 2001 for spreading a non-sectarian, peace-promoting, and moderate message of Islam based on the two authentic sources of Qur'an and Sunnah. Prior to joining UIUK, he was the Dean of the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences of University of Central Punjab from July, 2009 to May 2012. Prior to joining UCP, he was the Director Education, Al-Mawrid, which is an NGO established to promote research and education on Islam. Prior to joining Al-Mawrid in September 2006, he was an Associate Professor of Islamic Studies and Ethics at Lahore University of Management Sciences (LUMS). He has a teaching experience of more than 20 years. Before joining LUMS, he taught at IBA, University of the Punjab for 12 years as a permanent faculty member. He has also taught at various other educational institutions in Lahore. Dr Zaheer's PhD dissertation was a critique on Interest-Free Banking. His areas of interest are Islamic Banking, in particular its departures from true Islamic principles, and application of Islamic teachings in the contemporary business and social environment. He regularly contributes articles to the monthly Renaissance, a leading religious English journal of the country. Dr. Zaheer has appeared in many television programs and has also given sermons at mosques, both in Pakistan as well as in the UK. His understanding of Islamic teachings and his experiences have convinced him that our present-day world is confronted with scourges of two extremisms: religious extremism and liberal extremism. He has joined UIUK to realize his dream to promote the cause of the true Islamic message, which is neither extremist nor liberal.