Audiology practice in the global context
This subject provides final year Masters' of Clinical Audiology students with international experiential learning opportunities through which they work collaboratively and engage with international and local organisations.
Context
- Faculty/School: Faculty of Medicine, Dentistry and Health Sciences; School of Health Sciences; Department of Audiology and Speech Pathology
- Number of students: 65
- Year level: Final year Master's
- Curricular/or co-curricular: Curricular
Description
Clinical Audiology B is a year long final year subject for Masters' of Clinical Audiology students that explores audiology practice in the global context. This program provides students with distinctive international experiential learning opportunities that promote global perspectives and engagement in global ear and hearing health challenges. Students engage with international and local organisations, which provides them with opportunities to lead and actively participate in new international research initiatives, fostering their contribution to global challenges within our field.
This initiative incorporates each of the strategic areas of the Faculty’s strategy for Advancing Health 2030:
1) Championing new models of collaboration, knowledge sharing and impact;
2) Enhancing our culture and values by fostering ambitions of staff and students, and actively and thoughtfully engaging with our community (locally and globally);
3) Equipping students with leadership opportunities in several key areas, cultivating attributes that make a positive societal impact;
4) Developing and training students to become multiskilled, collaborative researchers and innovative leaders;
5) Articulate and promote the leading role we play locally, in Asia Pacific and globally, engage in collaborative global networks to extend the impact and reach of our research activities, and to grow the international mobility and presence of our people and their contribution to global hearing health care challenges.
How does this program support IoC aims?
This program provides several opportunities:
1) In collaboration with our international partners, students are offered short term distinctive and outstanding educational experiences in India or Cambodia where they gain valuable hands on experience in applying their audiological skills/knowledge in a culturally diverse and demanding environment, emphasising they live and work in a global community, ensuring they are equipped with attributes needed for working cross-culturally on campus and beyond. Within the subject, students present their experiences and lessons learnt to their peers, ensuring the curriculum is informed by a range of global perspectives.
2) A new assignment has been created whereby students engage and interview patients to understand their unmet needs, healthcare seeking journey and management, which helps to contextualise their audiological knowledge in the Cambodian and/or Indian context. This assignment is intended to promote students working collaboratively (promoting outside the box thinking) and contextualising their learning into a culturally diverse environment.
3) A special interest group, HEARglobe, has been formed to engage students in three distinct areas: training and education, engagement and advocacy, and research. Students are empowered to engage with local and international partners supporting their research aspirations. Two research projects provide the collection of data for analysis for their independent studies research project and outputs will include published, peer reviewed research papers.
What have students said about this program?
Students have been encouraged by the international and local initiatives, which have provided amazing opportunities as part of their learning and professional development.