Using image-reflections to support undergraduate students’ relational employability: A practitioner reflection

Ruth Wallace; Sally-Anne Doherty; Elizabeth J. Cook

doi:10.21153/jtlge2024vol15no2art2030

Authors

Ruth Wallace Edith Cowan University https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5392-5195
Sally-Anne Doherty Edith Cowan University https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1735-3406
Elizabeth J. Cook Edith Cowan University https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8406-4049

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.21153/jtlge2024vol15no2art2030

Keywords:

Relational employability; health science educators; teaching and learning; visual media; reflective practice; undergraduate student reflections; career development and employability; curriculum design

Abstract

This practitioner reflection explores our integration of the Relational Employability Framework within the Health Research Project capstone unit of a Bachelor of Health Science degree. To address the historically low quality of student reflections, we incorporated image-based reflective activities to improve engagement and depth. These activities encouraged students to use visual media to examine their developing relational employability. We developed and implemented a series of tutorial activities designed to scaffold this process, aiming to foster deeper reflective practice and highlight its importance for career development and employability. Our reflections indicate that, while grades did not significantly increase, students showed enhanced critical thinking and engagement with reflective practice, suggesting the framework’s effectiveness in broadening awareness and enriching employability overall. We discuss the need for peer support among educators to sustain and enhance reflective practices in teaching-learning and conclude with thoughts on our ongoing efforts to embed and expand reflective practices in teaching approaches

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Author Biographies

Ruth Wallace, Edith Cowan University

Dr Ruth Wallace has more than 12 years’ experience as a researcher in public health nutrition and health promotion. She has published >20 research articles in peer-reviewed journals and regularly reviews articles for several quartile one health journals. Ruth has taught research methodology and research project units for 12 years, has supervised several postgraduate students to completion and is currently supervising 8 HDR students. Ruth’s PhD focused on healthy eating in the early years, using a qualitative, ethnographic approach to examine an online community of practice. Ruth also teaches child and youth health promotion at both undergraduate and postgraduate levels and is an active member of several early years professional organisations.
Sally-Anne Doherty, Edith Cowan University

Sally-Anne Doherty (BBus (HRMgt&OHS), MOccHlth&Saf, PhD Candidate - Sally-Anne Doherty, has roughly 25 years’ experience predominantly in the resource sector, being Oil/Gas, Mining and the Fertiliser and Chemical industries. She has been with Edith Cowan University as an academic since 2014 teaching a broad range of Occupational Health and Safety units to undergraduate and postgraduate students with particular focus on workplace safety and psychosocial health. Sally-Anne is the Occupational Health and Safety Unit Set Co-ordinator for the Bachelor of Health Sciences degree and particularly enjoys teaching undergraduate students, thus developing their knowledge and understanding in occupational health and safety issues. Sally-Anne has postgraduate qualifications in Occupational Health and Safety built upon a Bachelor of Business majoring in Human Resource Management and OHS. She is currently completing a qualitative PhD in the School of Medical and Health Sciences, with a research focus on the wellbeing of Australian Defence Force personnel, their families and other occupational psychosocial hazard topics, and prevention.
Elizabeth J. Cook, Edith Cowan University

Dr Elizabeth J. Cook is a Research Associate in the Nutrition & Health Innovation Research Institute at Edith Cowan University and a Journal Manager for the Journal of Teaching and Learning for Graduate Employability. Elizabeth holds a PhD in Higher Education Research, Evaluation and Enhancement with Lancaster University, and a Master of Teaching (Secondary) and Bachelor of Science, both from the University of Melbourne. Her PhD developed and tested a new relational employability approach for universities. She publishes on topics including WIL, employability and career development, evaluation, community engagement in research and, most recently, public health, nutrition and food environments. Elizabeth is on the Advisory Board of the Australian Centre for Student Equity in Higher Education and the National Board of the Australian Collaborative Education Network (ACEN), which is the national professional association for work-integrated learning (WIL) and collaborative education.

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