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Research conducted at the University of Dundee has led to the development of a number of teaching interventions that have enhanced the employability skills of graduates in Dundee and beyond. Embedding innovative learning and teaching resources into the curriculum has given accounting and finance students across the UK early exposure to real world data as well as critical problem solving and decision making experience. This has created graduates who are able to deal with a rapidly changing working environment. Involving a wide range of stakeholders including not only academics and students but also finance experts and accounting practitioners in the research and design of the interventions has benefited the students who have been able to learn from the shared wisdom of professional experts while at university; and in return the profession has profited from more rounded and effective graduates.
This case study focuses on the impact of research studies and their influence on International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) carried out by Manchester Business School (MBS). International accounting harmonisation is currently the most topical issue debated in the accountancy world. These studies have attracted the attention of practitioners, e.g. Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA), and policy makers, e.g. the UK Accounting Standards Board (ASB). The research has informed the policy debate of whether IFRS should be mandated further, and been taken up in the negotiating position of several key bodies. It has been used to justify the continued application of IFRS among UK quoted companies.
The rapid growth of the internet from the 1990s provided both opportunities and challenges for corporate reporting. The research findings of Birmingham Business School have been highly influential in assisting regulatory bodies, public policy makers and individual businesses address these. In the UK, Birmingham's research and expertise has directly contributed to the introduction of mandatory online filing of annual returns by companies to HMRC and Companies House. The successful introduction of this measure by HMRC increased the proportion of Corporation Tax returns filed online from 42% in 2010/2011 to 96% in 2011/12, bringing significant efficiencies. Birmingham researchers also have contributed to international standards setting for company reporting through their participation in the XBRL Advisory Council, where they have successfully promoted greater transparency in reporting to the benefit of retail investors.
Across the Higher Education sector, in the UK and in much of Europe, university lecturers in professional fields are usually appointed on the basis of their practitioner experience and expertise, and they may have little prior experience of teaching at Higher Education level or of research activity. The impact of the research in this case study has been on individuals, Heads of Department, academic developers and universities across the UK in influencing changes in academic induction practices leading to enhanced professional development of university lecturers in professional fields, especially in teacher education, nursing and the allied health professions. The dissemination of the research included the publication by the Higher Education Academy (HEA) of guidelines for academic induction of teacher educators.
Impact: Improved awareness and development of professional practice related to the financial accounting of carbon, including: its addition to the Climate Disclosure Standards Board (CDSB) work programme and its designation by the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) as a priority research project (both during 2012).
Significance and reach: The CDSB is a consortium of eight business/environmental organisations (including the World Economic Forum and the World Resources Institute). The IASB is the independent standard-setting body of the International Financial Reporting Standards Foundation.
Underpinned by: Research into corporate carbon accounting practices, undertaken at the University of Edinburgh (2008 onwards).
Statutory regulators from Great Britain and Ireland commissioned Professors Keith Wilson and Christopher Langley to undertake research at Aston University to establish an evidence-base for pharmacy educational reform. These systematic evaluations, conducted between 2003 and 2010, have redefined pharmacy education in Great Britain and Ireland, notably resulting in a re-focus on patient need. Arising from the influence of Aston research, the following impacts on policy, practitioners and services resulted in;
Researchers from Oxford Brookes University have significantly contributed towards driving improvements to teaching and learning through an evidence-based approach. They have influenced practice and policies, whilst challenging public perceptions about the impact of education. Through their partnership with the University of Westminster, the Westminster Centre for Excellence in Teacher Training has improved teaching and learning in the Learning and Skills Sector, engaged with the design and delivery of enterprise education programmes for Further Education leaders and championed the status of vocational education. They have actively contributed to public debates and their research continues to be disseminated and used in training throughout the UK.
Research on the assessment and governance of research, carried out at Oxford since 2004, has contributed to changes in conceptions of quality and impact underpinning research assessment systems in the UK, Australia, New Zealand and Hong Kong, and substantially influenced strategic action in funding bodies, professional societies, and higher education institutions, nationally and internationally. Oancea and Furlong's work on quality in applied and practice-based research contributed to a more inclusive definition of applied research in the 2008 Research Assessment Exercise and to the Economic and Social Research Council's interpretation of the "excellence with impact" agenda for the social sciences. It has also been used as the basis for assessment criteria for postgraduate programmes, professional development, and practitioner courses in many institutions. Oancea's recent research was used in strategic documents and resources by, for example, the Social Care Institute for Excellence (SCIE), the Strategic Forum for Research in Education (SFRE), and the Universities Council for the Education of Teachers (UCET).
Research conducted by Stranmillis University College (SUC) has significantly contributed to the effective teaching of literacy skills to children aged 4-6 in the first two years of primary school in Northern Ireland (NI) [1]. Informed by the evaluation, the Linguistic Phonics Approach (LPA) is currently employed by 461 schools in NI affecting some 25,000 children per year. The research provided a cost-benefit analysis, created innovative assessment instruments to assess children's written skills and evidence of the positive impact of LPA on children's literacy development [2]. SUC is the only institution in Ireland to deliver certified LPA training to 90 BEd and 15 PGCE students per annum.
The research undertaken by Professor Sue Bloxham and colleagues has had a significant impact on the approach to assessment in Higher Education. It has influenced practitioners, universities and advisory/regulatory bodies, providing advice for University tutors on communicating assessment expectations and contributing to national body and university guidance to encourage student learning and consistent marking. The research has helped tutors understand their individual `standards framework' involving tacit, norm-referenced knowledge, holistic judgement and local negotiation of shared standards as well as the importance of dialogic, formative assessment opportunities for communicating their standards to students. This has led to improvements in assessment policies, practice and national guidelines in the UK.