Success in Higher Education

This book looks at the experience of creating a successful learning environment for students at twelve universities around the globe, with Macquarie University, a large Australian university, studied in depth. Firstly, it addresses what success means, taking a variety of perspectives, including student and employer views. It describes a series of strategies that have been shown to be successful in assisting students in developing their academic potential. The authors of the contributed chapters use a variety of methodologies, including control groups, action research and observational studies. It presents approaches from around the world that work with different groups, because different contexts may require different solutions. These international perspectives demonstrate a triumph of practice that has led to the empowerment of individuals and groups. Small interventions matter, from a mentor for a nervous female student who then achieves greatness, to the use of a curriculum design that hooks a whole group of students into learning and achievement. This book covers both the small, individual victories and the larger scale strategies that support success. It includes contributed chapters from Australia, Bangladesh, India, China, New Zealand, United Kingdom, Canada, USA, Uruguay and South Africa.