Glennys O'Brien | University of Wollongong (original) (raw)

Conference Proceedings by Glennys O'Brien

Proceedings of The …, Jan 1, 2010

The need to clearly demonstrate the components and outcomes of a curriculum is a major factor in ... more The need to clearly demonstrate the components and outcomes of a curriculum is a major factor in the drive for quality assurance manifest across the tertiary education sector. This project is a detailed gathering of commentary and data about the subjects offered in the Faculty of Science, University of Wollongong (UOW). The project aims to provide a means of tracking concept and skill development through curricula, to identify sharable resources and teaching practice, to clarify support needs and to provide a means for storing and maintaining an ongoing record of commentary and data about each subject. The investigative approach is a type of curriculum mapping based on interviews with key players in the design, delivery and reception of the curriculum. In the process all available materials and data about each subject were gathered.

Papers by Glennys O'Brien

One of the key transition points in the journey of a science / applied science student is from sc... more One of the key transition points in the journey of a science / applied science student is from school to first Year University. This transition can be especially difficult for those without senior school chemistry entering a degree programme requiring first year chemistry. Indeed, even those that do have the required background can have a hard time crossing this threshold due to embedded misconceptions or lack of understanding of the key underpinning concepts that first year study relies on (Bedford & O'Brien, 2012a; Bedford & O'Brien, 2011). This can cause students to disengage from study and lose the necessary motivation to complete the journey they embarked upon initially with such enthusiasm. The Flat Earth project was conceived to provide a platform to research student engagement and motivation while at the same time it invited the learner to question and test their grasp of key concepts, challenge and rebuild these when misconceptions were "self-discovered." A chemistry concepts diagnostic tool being developed within a related OLT funded project (Office for Learning and Teaching, 2012) and based on well-established concept inventories, was utilised to probe the level of understanding of our first year Chemistry students over five concept areas.

Transforming Institutions

Background Higher Education in Australia is in a phase of rapid change due to a number of regulat... more Background Higher Education in Australia is in a phase of rapid change due to a number of regulatory changes. Over the past five years the Australian Chemistry community has agreed on a list of Chemistry Threshold Learning Outcomes (CTLOs) that every student graduating from an Australian University will have attained. In addition, the Royal Australian Chemical Institute (RACI) has changed its accreditation process for Chemistry degrees and now uses these CTLOs as the basis for accreditation. Therefore, it is now paramount to ensure that our assessment items allow students to demonstrate attainment of the CTLOs during a degree (Elmgren, Ho, Akesson, Schmid & Towns 2015). The “Assessing the Assessments” project, funded by the Australian Government’s Office for Learning and Teaching (OLT ID14-3562) is developing a framework designed to help academics at tertiary institutions to determine the alignment of their assessment items with the CTLOs. The project is also collating a database of...

The “Assessing the Assessments” project, funded by the Australian Government’s Office for Learnin... more The “Assessing the Assessments” project, funded by the Australian Government’s Office for Learning and Teaching (OLT ID14-3562) has used an iterative process to develop an evaluation framework to assist academic staff at tertiary institutions to determine the alignment of their assessment items with the Chemistry Threshold Learning Outcomes (CTLOs) (Schmid et al., 2016). In conjunction with professional development workshops in which attendees explored the alignment of assessment items with the CTLOs, a user-friendly tool has been developed which can be used to evaluate assessment items. The tool yields ratings for both Task Design and Assessment Criteria for each CTLO within the assessment task evaluated, highlighting areas of potential improvement in current assessment practices. Comparison of self-evaluations of tasks submitted to the project with evaluations conducted by the project team shows that in the majority of cases, academics (including project team members) over-estimat...

We design first year Chemistry subjects so that chemistry fits seamlessly into non-Chemistry scie... more We design first year Chemistry subjects so that chemistry fits seamlessly into non-Chemistry science degree programs, preparing the students for subjects with chemistry as prerequisite as well as adding to and supporting the course learning outcomes of those degrees. Furthermore we tell students that Chemistry is generally applicable, and as an enabling science, will support whatever context they end up working in. Students know they are likely to change occupations / careers / disciplines and thus concepts and skills fundamental to all applied sciences are very valuable

In our project, and many others, high quality simulations are being used in a range of ways to pr... more In our project, and many others, high quality simulations are being used in a range of ways to provide students with tools to deepen their understanding. They are particularly successful in bridging the link between our world and the molecular world. There is still another dimension in which we need to apply simulations – to help students use simulation autonomously in open inquiry. This is an important goal because it is the real life situation of self-regulated learning.

The Chemistry Discipline Network was funded in mid-2011, with the aim of improving communication ... more The Chemistry Discipline Network was funded in mid-2011, with the aim of improving communication between chemistry academics in Australia. In our first year of operation, we have grown to over 100 members, established a web presence, and produced substantial mapping reports on chemistry teaching in Australia. We are now working on the definition of standards for a chemistry degree based on the Threshold Learning Outcomes published by the Learning and Teaching Academic Standards Project.

Higher Education in Australia is in a phase of rapid change due to a number of regulatory changes... more Higher Education in Australia is in a phase of rapid change due to a number of regulatory changes. Over the past five years the Australian Chemistry community has agreed on a list of Chemistry Threshold Learning Outcomes (CTLOs) that every student graduating from an Australian University will have attained. In addition, the Royal Australian Chemical Institute (RACI) has changed its accreditation process for Chemistry degrees and now uses these CTLOs as the basis for accreditation. Therefore, it is now paramount to ensure that our assessment items allow students to demonstrate attainment of the CTLOs during a degree [1]. The “Assessing the Assessments” project, funded by the Australian Government’s Office for Learning and Teaching (OLT ID14-3562) is developing a framework designed to help academics at tertiary institutions to determine the alignment of their assessment items with the CTLOs. The project is also collating a database of standards-based assessment items. The project team...

Background Higher Education in Australia is in a phase of rapid change due to regulatory changes ... more Background Higher Education in Australia is in a phase of rapid change due to regulatory changes (TEQSA) and a shift towards a standards based framework. Over the past five years, the Chemistry community in Australia has developed the Chemistry Threshold Learning Outcomes (CTLOs) which articulate the outcomes that every student graduating from an Australian university with a major in Chemistry will have attained. In keeping with this development, the Royal Australian Chemical Institute (RACI) now bases its accreditation for Chemistry degrees on the CTLOs. Therefore, it is now vital to the Chemistry community to ensure that the assessment items we use allow students to demonstrate attainment of all CTLOs during their chemistry degree. Our OLT funded project (Assessing the assessments: Evidencing and benchmarking student learning outcomes in Chemistry (OLT ID14-3562)) has developed a diagnostic framework that will help you to determine whether your assessment items actually deliver re...

Science & Engineering Faculty, 2016

When students start their tertiary studies they move into a new world which differs in many ways ... more When students start their tertiary studies they move into a new world which differs in many ways from their prior experiences, including the way they were taught, access to faculty, learning environments, class sizes, expectations of independence and time management (Torenbeek, 2011). The first year experience (FYE) has become a pivotal focus for institutional programs that recognize that many students struggle in this transition. Such programs aim to improve student retention in tertiary studies through provision of orientation and mentaring activities. These initiatives have become widespread and are typically informed by key research in the field in terms of transition pedagogies (Kift, 2009; Kift, 2010; Lawrence, 2005) and student engagement and retention

The Australian higher education system faces numerous challenges as it moves towards a standards ... more The Australian higher education system faces numerous challenges as it moves towards a standards based paradigm. A critical issue that must be given consideration in this shift are assessment strategies and practices - these must be fit for purpose and provide evidence that students have met disciplinary threshold learning outcomes. Key issues addressed in this project are (1) the development of a valid and reliable framework to determine whether an assessment item provides evidence of achievement of one or more Chemistry Threshold Learning Outcomes, (2) the development of an extensive catalogue of exemplary assessment items covering all Chemistry Threshold Learning Outcomes that will benefit all chemistry teaching staff and (3) recognition that international standards receive due consideration given the demands that will be placed on our graduates and institutions to compete in a global marketplace. These issues will be addressed by building on collaborative work within a broad coalition of chemistry academics and through international linkages

Following ingestion of a food substance, the pH within the human stomach changes. Initially it in... more Following ingestion of a food substance, the pH within the human stomach changes. Initially it increases to accommodate the activities of the salivary amylase and gastric lipase. After digestion takes place, the pH of the stomach falls back to its original value due to continuous secretion of the acidic gastric juices. The time variation of the pH is known as the pH profile of the stomach and this can be a very strong indicator of human health and nutrition. Small changes in the pH profile can affect the disintegration of coating materials and capsules, the interaction of drugs with gastric secretions, drug absorption and dosage performance. We model the change in pH under ideal reactor conditions, in which a non-homogeneous food source, composed of a mixture of unreacted acid and base molecules, is mixed with gastric secretions of the stomach. Through a graphical comparison, we show that the pH model closely resembles trends observed from experimental data.

It is desirable to enhance student learning trajectories between their secondary and tertiary stu... more It is desirable to enhance student learning trajectories between their secondary and tertiary studies while simultaneously encouraging them to take responsibility for their learning early in their tertiary studies. Their preparedness for tertiary studies in their discipline can be measured using diagnostic tests and this enables standards-based benchmarking as students progress through their tertiary program. Concept inventories have been used extensively for this purpose. A more desirable goal, however, is to use the outcomes of diagnostic testing to provide students with opportunities to improve their learning through formative feedback and self-regulated learning activities. We aim to design and implement modular, formative learning objects, informed by the outcomes of concept inventories, to target key missing and mis-conceptions possessed by incoming students. Students will be able to challenge and adjust their existing conceptions by engaging in these discrete active learning ...

Research and Practice in Chemistry Education, 2019

The development and assessment of transferable skills acquired by students, such as communication... more The development and assessment of transferable skills acquired by students, such as communication and teamwork, within undergraduate degrees is being increasingly emphasised. Many instructors have designed and implemented assessment tasks with the aim to provide students with opportunities to acquire and demonstrate these skills. We have now applied our previously published tool to evaluate whether assessment tasks allow students to demonstrate achievement of these transferable skills. The tool allows detailed evaluation of the alignment of any assessment item against the claimed set of learning outcomes. We present here two examples in which use of the tool provides evidence for the level of achievement of transferable skills and a further example of use of the tool to inform curriculum design and pedagogy, with the goal of increasing achievement of communication and teamwork bench marks. Implications for practice in assessment design for learning are presented.

ACS Symposium Series, 2016

Implementing Communities of Practice in Higher Education, 2016

Chemistry is one of the oldest and most traditional of the science disciplines, and there is a lo... more Chemistry is one of the oldest and most traditional of the science disciplines, and there is a long tradition of chemistry research in Australia and worldwide. Within chemistry, groupings are traditionally made around sub-discipline specialties such as inorganic, organic, physical and environmental chemistry, which each have their own journals, conferences, and customs. As a research-intensive discipline, chemistry is competitive rather than cooperative, with appointments and promotions based on publication metrics.

Australian Journal of Chemistry, 2022

Although there is no set chemistry curriculum for higher education institutions, the Chemistry Th... more Although there is no set chemistry curriculum for higher education institutions, the Chemistry Threshold Learning Outcomes (CTLOs) represent a shared understanding that was developed through extensive consultation with the tertiary chemistry community. The CTLOs have been implemented through the RACI accreditation process and in general function as intended. The term threshold is intended to represent a lower limit; institutions can and do go beyond the threshold.

International Journal of Science Education, 2017

Evaluation of diagnostic tools that tertiary teachers can apply to profile their students' concep... more Evaluation of diagnostic tools that tertiary teachers can apply to profile their students' conceptions.

Proceedings of the Australian Conference on Science and Mathematics Education, Aug 12, 2011

Growing numbers of first year students needing a firm foundation in Chemistry to successfully pro... more Growing numbers of first year students needing a firm foundation in Chemistry to successfully progress but, arriving at university with a wide range of subject and skills backgrounds.

Proceedings of The …, Jan 1, 2010

Transforming Institutions

Science & Engineering Faculty, 2016

Research and Practice in Chemistry Education, 2019

ACS Symposium Series, 2016

Implementing Communities of Practice in Higher Education, 2016

Australian Journal of Chemistry, 2022

International Journal of Science Education, 2017

Proceedings of the Australian Conference on Science and Mathematics Education, Aug 12, 2011

Proceedings of the Australian Conference on Science and Mathematics Education, Sep 4, 2014

Students are encountering increasingly complex learning environments that incorporate multimodal ... more Students are encountering increasingly complex learning environments that incorporate multimodal resources provided by instructors across the lecture, tutorial, workshop and laboratory environments, with additional resources frequently supplied through online learning management systems. Instructors who provide these resources aim to encourage student selfawareness of their own understanding and develop their independence in self-regulated study strategies. The transition to tertiary studies presents many challenges for our students as they orient themselves into the new context, and for many, the vast array of resources can be difficult to filter so they don't access these in an effective way.

Higher education in Australia is in a phase of rapid change due to significant regulatory changes... more Higher education in Australia is in a phase of rapid change
due to significant regulatory changes, with new standards
currently being implemented for registration of institutions
and accreditation of degrees. Over the past five years the
Australian chemistry community has come to a consensus on
common Chemistry Threshold Learning Outcomes (CTLOs)
that every Bachelor level chemistry graduate from an Australian
university will have attained. The CTLOs will inform the
standards used to accredit institutions and degrees. Building
upon this, the Royal Australian Chemical Institute (RACI), the
professional body for chemists in Australia, has changed its accreditation process for chemistry degree programs and now uses these CTLOs as the basis for accreditation. Therefore, it is
paramount to ensure that assessment items used allow students
to demonstrate attainment of the CTLOs for a chemistry major.
The “Assessing the Assessments” project has used an iterative
process to develop an evaluation framework to assist academic
staff at tertiary institutions to determine the alignment of
their assessment items with the CTLOs. In conjunction with
professional development workshops in which colleagues
explore the alignment of assessment items with the CTLOs,
a sophisticated tool has been developed which can be used to
evaluate assessment items. The tool yields ratings for both
engagement with and assessment of each CTLO within the
assessment task evaluated, highlighting areas of potential
improvement in current assessment practices. Comparison of
self-evaluations of tasks submitted to the project by academic
staff with evaluations conducted by the project team shows
that in the majority of cases, faculty over-estimate the ability
of their assessment items to confirm achievement of CTLOs.
Recommendations to increase the coverage of CTLOs through
changes to assessment procedures are presented. Through the
development of the framework, difficulties with interpretation
and application of some of the CTLOs have been elucidated.