“We learnt lots in a short time”: Cultural exchange across three universities through songs from different lands

Establishing strong connections between universities within initial teacher education (ITE) programs not only takes time, but it also presents opportunities and challenges. Tertiary music educators are called to prepare ITE students/pre-service teachers to be culturally responsive. This article forms part of our wider study “See, Listen and Share: Exploring Intercultural Music Education in a Transnational Experience Across Three Universities (Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology University, Australia; Deakin University, Australia; and Universitat Jaume I of Castelló, Spain). For this article, we draw on student web survey data, anecdotal feedback, and our reflections. We employ Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis as a tool to thematically group our surveys into three broad overarching themes to inform our findings and discussions. We argue that music education is an effective vehicle for exploring culture and diversity through song. Our findings show that our ITE students built positive attitudes about using songs in their generalist primary and early childhood classrooms. They also recognized the importance of collaborative sharing using face-to-face and Skype. This project proved a worthy experience for all concerned, it formed a rich part of our professional learning. We encourage others to consider the approach as one way to promote multicultural music and cultural diversity within ITE programs and across other educational settings.

Sustainability, Ethics and Education

Accounting education has faced limitations as a highly technical and discipline-specific body of knowledge. The case presented in this chapter demonstrates and reflects on an attempt at incorporating the study of sustainability-related accounting knowledge through multiple forms of delivery and assessment. Sustainability-related material that draws from business, accounting and ethics' perspectives was included in an accounting ethics course for accounting majors at Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology (RMIT) University in Melbourne, Australia. This pedagogy has encouraged the development of students' soft skills including their emotional intelligence. Sustainability education has been found as engaging and thought provoking, albeit involving a steep learning curve for students as far as knowledge and awareness are concerned. It has allowed for the promotion of multiple and broader perspectives and education on key sustainability-related concerns, from a range of angles including ethics and accounting frameworks for sustainability as well as multidisciplinary approaches to sustainability and business.

La competencia comunicativa intercultural en cursos de inmersión en ELE. Una experiencia con estudiantes australianos en Colombia

El objetivo de este artículo es presentar la organización y realización de un curso de inmersión de español como lengua extranjera (ELE) por parte del Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology (RMIT), de Australia, y la Pontificia Universidad Javeriana (PUJ), de Bogotá, Colombia. El curso fue realizado durante dos semanas, en noviembre de 2012, y en él participaron diez estudiantes australianos. Se presenta la manera como se realizó la experiencia y sus resultados, entre los cuales se destacan el mejoramiento en la competencia comunicativa y en la competencia cultural e intercultural de los estudiantes, a propósito de haber trabajado la lengua y la cultura como aspectos intrínsecamente relacionados. Se concluye que esta modalidad de cursos permite un mayor desarrollo lingüístico y también un aprendizaje cultural e intercultural invaluable para el estudiante, en el proceso de adquisición de la denominada competencia comunicativa intercultural.

Public relations education in Australia, 1950-1975

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to explore the foundation and development of public relations education (PRE) in Australia between 1950 and 1975. Design/methodology/approach – This paper utilises Australian-held primary and official industry association material to present a detailed and revisionist history of PR education in Australia in its foundation decades. Findings – This paper, which locates Australia's first PRE initiatives in Sydney, Melbourne and Adelaide in the 1960s, contests the only published account of PR education history by Potts (1976). The orthodox account, which has been repeated uncritically by later writers, overlooks earlier initiatives, such as the Melbourne-based Public Relations Institute of Australia, whose persistence resulted in Australia's first PR course at Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology in 1964. So too, educational initiatives in Adelaide and Sydney pre-date the traditional historiography. Originality/value – A detailed literature review suggests this paper represents the only journal-length piece on the history of PRE in Australia. It is also the first examination of relationships between industry, professional institutes, and educational authorities.

Sustainability, Ethics and Education

Accounting education has faced limitations as a highly technical and discipline-specific body of knowledge. The case presented in this chapter demonstrates and reflects on an attempt at incorporating the study of sustainability-related accounting knowledge through multiple forms of delivery and assessment. Sustainability-related material that draws from business, accounting and ethics' perspectives was included in an accounting ethics course for accounting majors at Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology (RMIT) University in Melbourne, Australia. This pedagogy has encouraged the development of students' soft skills including their emotional intelligence. Sustainability education has been found as engaging and thought provoking, albeit involving a steep learning curve for students as far as knowledge and awareness are concerned. It has allowed for the promotion of multiple and broader perspectives and education on key sustainability-related concerns, from a range of angles including ethics and accounting frameworks for sustainability as well as multidisciplinary approaches to sustainability and business.