This study reports on the findings of a PhD study investigating the implications of the division between language and content in Modern Language degrees on students' development of intercultural competence and criticality across four universities, two in the US and two in the UK. It draws upon the theoretical frameworks of Intercultural…

Underrepresented students are often constructed through deficit discourses and blamed for 'lowering the bar' in higher education (Burke, P. J. 2012. "The Right to Higher Education: Beyond Widening Participation." Abingdon: Routledge). If a student struggles, then that may be seen as proof of personal deficiencies--proof of her…

Developing University graduates' employability is of increasing strategic institutional focus in the UK. Existing research evidences the role of Peer Assisted Study Sessions (PASS) in supporting students to develop personal, professional and employability skills. This research explores the impact of the PASS Leader role on graduates' job…

This study describes a teacher-researcher's experience of scaffolding his business English learners in identifying, formulating, and exploring language learning puzzles using the principles of exploratory practice. Adopting both qualitative and quantitative methods, the teacher-researcher reflected upon the learner-initiated and learner-centred…

This paper discusses the issue of tolerance of silence within university tutorials from a cross-cultural, comparative perspective. A mixed methods, quasi-experimental approach was employed to measure the length of silence which individual students from samples in Japan and the UK tolerated during a one-to-one staged encounter with their…

This article explores students' extracurricular activities and, uniquely, their short- and long-term effects on employability. Drawing on the literature, six research questions are identified. A questionnaire and interviews with alumni provide the quantitative and qualitative information needed. The effects of different extracurricular activities…

In the UK, the provision of accelerated undergraduate programmes is responding to the needs of an increasingly diverse and career-focused student body and a flexible, ever-changing labour market. These fast track degrees are particularly new in education where recent developments in school autonomy and teacher training have had consequences on the…

Currently, there is a dearth of studies exploring the kind of tools that undergraduates use when studying mathematics with previous approaches focusing mostly on digital or institutionally provided resources. In this article, we present and discuss the results from our investigations into the different types of tools that a cohort of second year…

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to examine the effectiveness of smartphone apps in fostering effectual thinking. The paper considers both the effectual development of entrepreneurial ideas and the associated change in entrepreneurial confidence and perceived entrepreneurial skills of students at a UK Higher Education Institution.…

This article investigates the learning and academic attainment of undergraduate education students on enterprise placement projects in a longitudinal mixed-methods study. By observing the placement learning and analysing previous and subsequent attainment of a second- and third-year group it adds to the ontology of purpose for enterprise in…

Digital technologies are being increasingly used in wider society including in educational settings. There are many examples that illustrate how universities embed technology enhanced learning within their educational provision. However there has been less research and evaluation of how these and other readily available technology based resources…

Due to the empirical nature of the discipline, psychology students, during the course of their degree, are required to become proficient with a range of quantitative methods. Unfortunately many of these students experience high levels of maths anxiety, which can have a damaging effect on this aspect of their educational development. The first…

In the context of distance language learning, speaking is frequently perceived as the most challenging skill; this paper reports on a 12 week summer language exchange programme providing students with new ways of practising their oral abilities. Students who completed an undergraduate beginners' language module took part in regular online,…

With graduate employability being high on many universities' agendas, it becomes vital that a curriculum delivers not only subject knowledge but also the opportunity for students to develop and enhance industry-specific skills. This paper is concerned with how a work-based project can support skill development and considers the views of students…

Existing research into students' preferences for assessment methods has been developed from a restricted sample: in particular, the voice of students in the 'hard-pure sciences' has rarely been heard. We conducted a mixed method study to explore mathematics students' preferences of assessment methods. In contrast to the message from the general…