Architecture, Building and Planning - Research Publications
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ItemDesigning for the Future in Australia: A Retrospective on the ALIA Library Design Awards(Australian Library and Information Association (ALIA), 2023)Library designs shape people's expectations and experiences of what libraries can be. Their physical spaces house collections, provide safe spaces for people to meet and engage, and enable access to services and activities designed to meet community needs. Libraries' digital spaces extend these services and supports beyond the physical walls, enabling after-hours access to the world's knowledge. When library buildings are designed well, they serve as beacons in their communities. Their interiors inspire people to learn, to create, to think, and to engage with digital and physical platforms to satisfy information needs.
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ItemNo Preview AvailableWater sensitive outcomes for infill development: final report(Cooperative Research Centre for Water Sensitive Cities, 2021)Australian cities have experienced significant growth recently, a trend that is expected to continue. One response from governments has been to promote ‘infill development’, which increases urban density, but also has significant adverse effects on urban water cycles, resource use efficiency, and the amenity and liveability of urban areas.
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ItemCity Rankings: Benchmarking Beyond the HeadlinesAlthough there is significant and increasing interest in comparative city benchmarks (such as rankings and indexes) from media outlets and cities themselves, there has been very limited research on the nature of these studies and their potential utility for urban policymaking. To begin to address this knowledge gap, The Melbourne Centre for Cities at the University of Melbourne designed a scoping study consisting of:1. A review of scientific literature2. Analysis of a database of 500 current urban benchmarks conducted by The Business of Cities3. A small pilot study to understand the way benchmarks shape the ‘comparative thinking’ of professionals in global cities.This report presents findings from these activities.
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ItemIntroducing peer review assessment to improve student engagement in learning and assessment activities - Part 2: Final Report(The University of Melbourne, 2023-12-11)
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ItemReimagining capabilities of children in India: Child well-being report 2022(World Vision India, 2023-11-15)In 2020, the global child population was estimated by UNICEF India to be around 444 million, approximately one-sixth of the world’s population. For any country, the well-being of its child population directly impacts its future. Herbert Hoover, the 31st President of the United States, said in one of his addresses that “Children are our most valuable resource.” Childhood is the most crucial stage of a person’s life and it’s imperative that they are brought up in a safe and secure environment to be able to contribute towards the country’s economy in the future. For a country like India with vast differences in culture and a growing economic disparity, children’s well-being plays an indispensable role in its developmental discourse. Despite the many strides taken by multiple stakeholders to address child-related issues, India is yet to improve the quality of life for children, especially those under 18 years of age. World Vision India, being a child-focussed organisation, has been working towards improving the lives of children, especially the most vulnerable, their families and communities, together with partners. Decades of experience have shaped the organisation’s understanding of child well-being as an integral multidimensional concept. Since its launch in 2019, the India Child Well-being Report is an annual publication by World Vision India that brings forth the Status of Children in the country, both in terms of well-being and access to services. This is the fourth edition of the report which seeks to provide a comprehensive look at child well-being under four essential domains – Health & Nutrition, Education, Protection and Livelihood. The uniqueness of this study is that uses primary data collected from Area Development Programmes (ADPs) of World Vision India to get a more profound analysis of the issues at hand. The findings of this study are not generalised to all children as the data pertains to most vulnerable children from underprivileged societies,viewing the situation through the lens of equity and justice. The report also cover the impact of Covid-19 on the overall growth and development of children. The results depict the accurate picture of the most vulnerable children and seek to initiate meaningful discourses that will aid in strengthening the social policy of marginalised communities. Child well-being is an essential conversation in the development sector, and it is critical that we understand it in a holistic way. We hope that this report will serve as a guide for policymakers, practitioners and civil societies to understand and prioritise areas of improvement based on facts and evidence.
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ItemNo Preview AvailableSuccess, Retention and Completion of Care Leaver Students in Australian Higher Education(Centre for Student Equity in Higher Education, Curtin University, 2022)International evidence confirms that care leavers (those who have left foster, kinship or residential care) often record poorer completion rates and graduate outcomes than other university students (Courtney, 2016). Recent research from both the United States (US) and the United Kingdom (UK) confirms that lower completion rates and outcomes are the result of multiple factors, including intersectional inequality. Care leavers, for example, are more likely to declare a disability, hail from low socio-economic status (SES) backgrounds, and record low grades in secondary school, all of which are correlated with lower university completion (Sebba, Berridge, Luke, Fletcher, Bell, Strand, Thomas, Sinclair & O’Higgins, 2015). Despite quantitative analysis of course selections, completions and outcomes in the US, UK, and elsewhere, equivalent work has not yet been conducted in Australia. In the absence of government collection of data, the primary source of quantitative, longitudinal data on care leavers in Australian higher education has resided with La Trobe University and Federation University Australia. Since 2016, as part of their collaborative Higher Education for Care Leavers Strategy (“the Strategy”), both universities have been systematically identifying care leaver students enrolled across the two institutions. The Strategy draws on the evidence compiled in Out of Care, into University (Harvey, McNamara, Andrewartha & Luckman, 2015), the subsequent report, Recruiting and supporting care leavers in Australian higher education (Harvey, Campbell, Andrewartha, Wilson & Goodwin-Burns, 2017) and related research by the investigators at both universities (e.g., Wilson, Harvey & Mendes, 2019). Focussed on all aspects of the student lifecycle, from pre-access though to access, attainment, and outcomes, the Strategy has also resulted in the first longitudinal data set on care leavers in Australian higher education. Drawing on these data, this report examines the access, geo-demographic profile, course selection, success, retention, and completion rates of care leavers across the two universities. In doing so, we provide the first clear picture of the journey of these previously ‘invisible’ students. Data analysis is complemented by interviews with care leaver students and graduates to explore challenges around completion, employment, and broader graduate outcomes.
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ItemThe Adaptation of Tertiary Admissions Practices to Growth and Diversity(La Trobe University, 2016)The expansion of higher education places adaptive pressure on institutional and policy frameworks that were originally designed at times of lower levels of participation. This adaptive pressure is evident in changes to admission and selection practices, and has become more acute with the introduction of demand driven funding for undergraduate Commonwealth supported places. Universities seeking to optimise their market share in line with their values and strategic objectives are increasingly utilising direct admissions rather than historically dominant state centralised admissions processes. Direct entry pathways are also being utilised by some institutions as a means of increasing their share of disadvantaged students in particular. Both centralised and direct admissions pathways are also drawing on contextual data – such as the geo-demographic background of the applicant, school attended, perceived academic potential, or volunteer and community service – in the assessment process (Harvey 2014). The growth and complexity of university admissions practices raises two key questions. First, what impact is rising complexity in admissions practices having on student decision-making, with particular emphasis on students from disadvantaged backgrounds? And, second, how are universities and state-based tertiary admissions centres (TACs) responding to the challenges associated with rising student participation, diversity and mobility, as well as complexity in admissions practice?
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ItemNo Preview AvailableEquity at and beyond the boundary of Australian universities(La Trobe University, 2019)This report investigates the social demography, learning outcomes and educational experiences of students enrolled in two distinct modes of higher education delivery in Australia — university programs delivered through third party arrangements, and higher education courses delivered by non-university higher education institutions (NUHEIs). In short, the research examines equity at and beyond the boundary of Australian universities. University courses delivered through third party arrangements—particularly those that involve subcontracting and franchising of program delivery—are not provided directly by public universities, and can therefore be considered as residing at the boundary of the public university. Programs delivered by NUHEIs are positioned definitively beyond the boundary of the Australian public university. Our research examines the equity group participation, retention and success rates—as well as the educational experiences—of students within these two domains of delivery. While maintaining a particular focus on students from low socioeconomic status (SES) backgrounds, we analyse and present data on five of the six nationally recognised equity groups within higher education, including Indigenous students, students with a disability, and students from low SES, regional and non-English speaking backgrounds (NESB).
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ItemExcellence or Exit: Ensuring Anangu Futures through Education(School of Social and Policy Research, Charles Darwin University, 2009)The discussion and recommendations in this document aim to present Anangu leaders, schools and the enabling policy community that supports schools, with key points for debate and consideration, as the platform to develop an ambitious charter for education reform. The review advocates the need to change the approach to schooling at primary, middle and senior school levels as the key means to transform training, learning and employment ‘pathways’ into journeys that lead to exciting destinations and not disappointing dead ends.
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ItemGTALK Report Series: Safer Cities in Asia: Pathum Thani, Thailand(Women in Transport Leadership Knowledge Network (WITL), The University of Melbourne, 2022)