Staff Plain Language Information Statement (PLIS)

Project title Shaping the 21st century student experience at regional universities
Project researcher Associate Professor Nina Fotinatos, Director, Centre for Learning, Innovation and Professional Practice (CLIPP), Federation University
Other/student researchers Dr Briony Supple, Lecturer, Learning and Teaching, Centre for Learning, Innovation and Professional Practice (CLIPP), Federation University

Purpose

This project is part of a wider national study involving 8 regional universities across Australia which is investigating the current student experience of undergraduate student populations of regional universities in Australia. We would like to identify what may need to change to ensure regional students have positive study experiences.

We anticipate that new information and key practices will be discovered.Resources will be made available to the sector for immediate use. As a result,regional universities will be enabled to provide the environment for a successful time at university.

We are particularly interested if you as a member of staff have been involved in/know of students who have been involved in* the following support programs: Mentor Program, PASS program, Ask Service, Your tutor, FedReady program, Study skills website.

What does it involve?

  • Participation in an individual interview surrounding your involvement in/experiences of the support programs mentioned above
  • Your voice will be recorded and the information collected will then be transcribed into text format.
  • All information gathered will remain confidential

Where will the interviews take place? Who will be conducting the interviews?

  • face-to-face on Mt Helen Campus, in meeting room U212, or library meeting room or
  • over the phone
  • All interviews will take place at a mutually convenient time between 9am & 3pm, Monday-Friday.
  • The interviews will be conducted by Dr Briony Supple, Institutional Project Officer and Lecturer in Learning and Teaching at the Centre for Learning, Innovation and Professional Practice (CLIPP).

Participation and consent

  • Participation in the interview is voluntary and you may discontinue at any time without penalty.
  • Prior to taking part in the interview, and when you have sufficient information about the project and your involvement, we will ask you to sign a consent to participate form.
  • Consent will be for the use of your contribution to this project as well as future related research projects.

Confidentiality

  • The interview will be audio recorded.
  • When the audio information is converted to text (transcribed) it will be de-identified. This means all attempts will be made to remove information which may identify the participants, or names of teaching staff etc. who are mentioned in the interview.

Results

  • The de-identified data and aggregated results may be disseminated at meetings, or in publications.
  • You will be given access the transcript after the interview has taken place.
  • You will be able to make changes if you wish to withdraw information which you don't want made public.

Risks and benefits

While you may not receive any direct benefits for participating, your information will help improve the student experience in regional institutions.

As a result of any adverse effect during the interview, the interview will cease and you will be encouraged to contact the following services:

Counselling, Ballarat and Wimmera

Counselling, Gippsland

For more information regarding these services visit federation.edu.au/counselling

Contacts

Please direct any questions regarding this project to:

  • Dr Briony Supple, Institutional Project Officer & Lecturer, Learning and Teaching,
    Centre for Innovation and Professional Practice (CLIPP)
  • Email: b.supple@federation.edu.au
  • Phone: 5327 9200

If you have any questions, or you would like further information regarding the project titled A15-136 Shaping the 21st century student experience at regional universities, please contact the Principal Researcher, Associate Professor Nina Fotinatos, Director, CLIPP, Email: n.fotinatos@federation.edu.au, Phone: 5327 9145.

Should you (i.e. the participant) have any concerns about the ethical conduct of this research project, please contact the Federation University Ethics Officers, Research Services, Federation University Australia, P O Box 663 Mt Helen Vic 3353 or Northways Rd,Churchill Vic 3842. Telephone:(03) 5327 9765, (03) 5122 6446, Email: research.ethics@federation.edu.au

CRICOS Provider Number 00103D