Teacher education students at Charles Sturt University (CSU) in Dubbo have spent Children’s Week interacting with school children this week as part of their after-school fieldwork program, which allows undergraduates to gain hands-on experience relevant to their future careers. CSU education lecturer Maria Bennet says the courses prepare students for the modern classroom. “Students are working with the Smith Family, Apollo House and engaging with on-campus playgroup sessions to develop an understanding of children and their needs,” she says. “The program allows our students to network and develop relationships with, and an understanding of, children and their community. These attributes help make a positive difference to children and families.” Children’s Week is a national annual event celebrating the right of children to enjoy childhood.

Construction of the new 200-bed residential development for Charles Sturt University (CSU) students is nearly complete on the University’s Thurgoona site, and CSU students and staff will be able to inspect some of the new facilities on Thursday 20 November. On completion, ten modular concrete and corrugated iron buildings will each house 20 students in self-catering accommodation. The development will include ‘open plan’ kitchens and living areas in each block, with two buildings enclosing an open courtyard. The corrugated iron, which is light, strong, adaptable and durable, shields the internal concrete walls from the summer heat, enabling the buildings to maintain a more constant temperature without the use of expensive air conditioning. Rainwater collected from roofs will be used to flush toilets, while wastewater, or ‘grey water’, from kitchens and bathrooms will be pumped into the existing grey water treatment ponds on the Thurgoona site. Three buildings totalling 120 beds will be completed by the start of the academic year in February 2009, with a further 80 beds to be ready by April.

A final year advertising student at the Charles Sturt University (CSU) School of Communication will complete her studies and start her career with a 10-week internship in New York working for BBDO Worldwide, one the largest advertising agencies in the world. The scholarship recipient, Ms Mary-Jane Barca, praised the calibre and support of her CSU lecturers in the Bachelor of Arts (Communication-Advertising) and the many opportunities presented by the course. “They have always encouraged me to reach beyond the stars, including applying for this scholarship. I’m so glad I did,” she said. Ms Barca was the team leader of the School’s in-house Kajulu Communication advertising agency whose ‘Lynx’ campaign for the 2007/2008 Inter-Ad competition came second in the world and first in the Asia-Pacific region. She has also won a 2009 Media Federation of Australia (MFA) Trainee Program position. “When I get back from New York I will go straight to work with OMD (part of BBDO Worldwide), the biggest media agency in Sydney, so getting a position there is a massive thing,” she said.

For Dubbo school leavers pondering their future, twenty one year-old Charles Sturt University (CSU) early childhood education student Ms Mary Crean has a suggestion; study at CSU at Dubbo. “The Campus is special in that it has small class sizes. That means we have more one-on-one time with our lecturers and we have more access to one-on-one help. I love my smaller classes because we’re all close friends, help each other out and learn from each others’ experiences. This creates a great atmosphere to learn in.” To find out more about the University at Dubbo and the many courses available on-campus or by distance education, CSU staff and students will be at Dubbo Centro shopping mall in Macquarie Street, Dubbo, to answer questions and guide prospective students through   the next steps on their career pathways.

An information session will be held in Griffith on Thursday 20 November by TAFE NSW Riverina Institute, Charles Sturt University (CSU) and Griffith City Council for those interested in studying the integrated Diploma to Degree program. The three year program is currently offered through Riverina Institute’s Griffith Campus. Combining university and TAFE studies, the program enables students to gain a Bachelor of Business Studies through CSU as well as three further nationally recognised qualifications including a Diploma and Advanced Diploma of Management and a Certificate IV in Frontline Management through Riverina Institute. “Students benefit from expert tuition from both TAFE and university lecturers and have access to the resources and facilities of both institutions,” explained Riverina Institute’s Head of Griffith Campus, Mr Tony McBride. “The integrated program is proving an excellent model for delivering high quality education and student support,” said CSU Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Academic), Professor Ross Chambers.

Increasing awareness of the social development needs of the Asia-Pacific region is one of the aims of an international conference being co-organised by Associate Professor Manohar Pawar from Charles Sturt University (CSU). The conference, which will be held in Nepal from Tuesday 25 to Friday 28 November, is held biennially by the International Consortium for Social Development (ICSD). Professor Pawar, from the CSU Institute for Land, Water and Society, is president of the ICSD Asia-Pacific branch. “This conference, with its themes of social development, transition and local partnerships, is being held at a time of international financial uncertainty,” said Professor Pawar. “Some world leaders have responded by pleading for global partnership and cooperation to deal with the financial crisis, though the whole world may not be responsible for such a crisis. Similar to the financial crisis, the world is experiencing severe and intensive crises such as poverty and hunger, climate change, disasters and drought, war and violence, and mass displacement of people. It is also timely to call for global partnership and cooperation to attack these crises.”

An initial survey of NSW households by a Charles Sturt University researcher has found most householders are looking at ways to become more energy efficient by using less electricity. However, while environmental concern is one reason people aim to reduce their usage, according to CSU postgraduate student Ms Jodie Kleinschafer it is the “larger than expected electricity bill” that is the more immediate motivator. “When ‘average’ householders get larger than expected electricity bills, they start to look for ways to reduce the electricity they use,” said Mrs Kleinschafer, who is undertaking a three year, $100 000 research project funded by Country Energy. So far, Mrs Kleinschafer has surveyed 80 households, and in conjunction with Country Energy will survey a further 4 000 regional NSW households in the next two months. She said the findings of her research would enable electricity retailers to manage increasing electricity demand in a way that still satisfies the needs of residential electricity consumers.

Known as the happiest country in the world, Vanuatu residents have a few less teeth to smile with after visiting medical staff extracted over 400 teeth on Tongoa Island in the western Pacific. Charles Sturt University (CSU) final year nursing student Ms Tabitha Pandey recently travelled with 11 other Australian and New Zealand health care workers to take part in a medical camp on the island. “We were amused when we went to look at the centre to find a chicken laying an egg on a bed in the labour ward,” Tabitha reports. “There was no running water or electricity and very little equipment. Despite all this, the camp was a huge success as the locals and travelling medical team pulled together and improvised with what we had.” More than 700 locals were treated by doctors, dentists, eye specialists and counsellors. “Some patients travelled several hours by boat to attend the clinic from a nearby island, which goes to show what little health care is available.”      

The tapping sound of typing is replacing the rustle of paper and scratching of pens across lecture theatres in regional Australia as students purchase laptop computers though Charles Sturt University’s (CSU) rebate scheme. CSU is offering a $300 rebate to on campus undergraduate students who purchase a laptop for their studies. Lecturers welcome the rebate scheme. Head of CSU at Dubbo, Mr Gary Shipp, said “The scheme is designed to encourage and assist students make the most of accessing university online systems when visiting and studying on campus. Distance students can take advantage of the scheme when required to attend compulsory residential schools on campus. I hope it will make note taking and assessment writing easier for our students."