An initiative of Swinburne Institute for Social Research, Swinburne University

Research & Evidence Base

Swinburne Institute for Social Research

Guides

A guide to open educational resources

JISC
27 March 2013 | This guide explains open educational resources (OER) and the benefits that creating, sharing and using OER can provide.Open educational resources (OER) are learning and teaching materials, freely available online for anyone to use. Examples include full courses, course modules, lectures, games, teaching materials and assignments. They can take the form of text, images, audio, video and may even be interactive.

Navigating public health chemicals policy in Australia: a policy maker’s and practitioner’s guide

Adam Capon, Wayne Smith, James Gillespie | New South Wales Public Health Bulletin
15 March 2013 | Chemicals are ubiquitous in everyday life. Environmental health practitioners rely on a complex web of regulators and policy bodies to ensure the protection of public health, yet few understand the full extent of this web.

VicHealth local government action guides - preventing violence against women

VicHealth | VicHealth
13 November 2012 | This guide is one of ten outlining a range of evidence-informed actions that councils may consider when preparing their Municipal Public Health and Wellbeing Plans and other strategies.

ACCAN Guide: Making the right call

Australian Communications Consumer Action Network (ACCAN)
05 September 2012 | This guide is for consumers and explains their rights in relation to mobile phone, landline, internet and pay TV services.

Using policy to promote mental health and wellbeing: A guide for policy makers

Department of Health, State Government of Victoria
03 September 2012 | This guide encourages Victorian policy makers to consider the social and environmental determinants of mental health when developing or reviewing policy.

Public sector audit committees - Independent assurance and advice for Chief Executives and Boards

Australian National Audit Office
13 August 2012 | Audit Committees have an important role in the governance framework of entities by providing an independent source of assurance and advice to Chief Executives/Boards. This guide provides guidance on the operation of the Audit Committees of public sector entities.

ACCAN NBN: a guide for consumers

Australian Communications Consumer Action Network (ACCAN) & Internet Society Australia
21 March 2012 | Developed by the Australian Communications Consumer Action Network (ACCAN) and the Internet Society of Australia (ISOC-AU) and now updated for 2012, this guide is designed to offer all Australians information about the National Broadband Network.

Wicked problems: do they exist and does it matter?

Public Policy Institute - Australian Catholic University
12 December 2011 | Recently, all kinds of problems and issues are being called wicked, not in the sense of evil, but complex, difficult to understand and resistant to solving.

Choice and values in schooling

Public Policy Institute - Australian Catholic University
12 December 2011 | School choice has been a divisive issue in education policy for a long time, often the subject of heated debate based more on ideology than evidence.

Homelessness

Public Policy Institute - Australian Catholic University
12 December 2011 | Despite numerous reports, reviews and initiatives over many years, homelessness remains a policy issue in search of a solution.

Equity and education

Public Policy Institute - Australian Catholic University
12 December 2011 | In the international testing stakes, Australian school students are mostly high achievers. However, there is a significant equity problem in education.

Parental contributions

Public Policy Institute - Australian Catholic University
12 December 2011 | Providing incentives for parents to pay for schooling is good public policy.

Social innovation

Nicola Brackertz | Australian Policy Online
05 December 2011 | Social innovation has recently been gaining attention as a way to address social and economic problems that are overlooked or not effectively addressed by existing systems.

Women and work in Australia

Mary Leahy | Australian Policy Online
28 November 2011 | Work is defined broadly as productive activity that requires time, energy and skill. It includes paid employment as well as unpaid care and domestic work.

Good practice in transnational education: A guide for New Zealand providers

Christopher Ziguras | Education New Zealand Trust
25 August 2007 | Providing an introduction to good practice in ‘offshore' education, this 2007 guide draws on the international codes of practice, case studies of large-scale successful overseas programs and reports of quality assurance bodies.

Climate change science 'top ten' sources to build your personal knowledge

Stefanie Pillora | Australian Centre of Excellence for Local Government
07 November 2011 | Acknowledging the importance of drawing from credible sources, this guide provides advice on ten reliable and easily accessible sources of research written for non-specialist readers.

Long-term unemployment in Australia

Lisa Fowkes
26 October 2011 | Long-term unemployment is defined as a person being unemployed for over 52 weeks.

Mechanisms for advancing women's human rights:

Australian Human Rights Commission
22 August 2011 | Aiming to assist women who have experienced human rights violations, and been failed by processes in Australia, this guide can be used to seek redress from international complaint mechanisms.

The why and how of using Facebook for educators – no need to be friends at all!

Ronnie Burt | The Edublogger
20 May 2011 | If you are one of those out there that believe that Facebook has no place in the classroom, then, well maybe this post isn't for you. But please first take a look at just a few reasons why you should reconsider:

A guide to understanding and working with General Practice in NSW

Carla Saunders, Laura Tierney | General Practice NSW
20 May 2011 | Providing an outline of general practice, this resource considers its uniformity and diversity; its funding arrangements, service delivery, workforce, training, capacity and supporting structures.

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