EditorialVolume Four, Issue 1, 2007It is quite an achievement to be in our fourth year of production of the Journal of University Teaching and Learning Practice (JUTLP). This would not be possible without the incredible dedication of our Reviewers and our Editorial Board, to whom I extend my warmest thanks. This first issue of volume four contains five papers on a range of topics, all offering some practical application or guidance to our teaching and learning practice which I hope you find both interesting to read and useful as a resource. Our first paper from Jones looks at findings relevant to the development of learner-centred curriculum in the area of enterprise education. He describes a process of critical self-reflection which can be used to continually improve student learning outcomes and keep curriculum updated. Jones proposes that the processes of constructive alignment and criterion-based assessment can provide ways for students to influence the educational process. The paper outlines a set of core educational philosophies which, it is argued, could be transferred to any academic setting. Kriflik and Mullan's paper investigates strategies to improve student group work. They investigate how to facilitate student ability to resolve group work issues and they also look at ways to improve perceptions of the benefits of group work. The study has identified a number of support tools. These are included in the appendices. The paper from Stoddard and colleagues describes the development of a Professional Behaviour Assessment (PBA) tool for use in teacher preparation programs. The PBA tool is used for rating levels of competence within six professional behaviour domains: punctuality, reaction to supervision, collaboration with colleagues, effort, enthusiasm, and ethical professionalism. It is argued that this tool can be used to improve the pre-service teacher's professional behaviour in field settings. Li's paper describes the use of focused freewriting as a pedagogical tool for developing and improving academic skills, particularly in the area of academic writing. Focused freewriting is defined by Li as 'writing without stopping and editing about a specific topic'. The paper suggests utilising focused freewriting as a learning tool beyond the writing class in a wide spectrum of educational contexts. Finally Larcombe, McCosker and O'Loughlin's paper reviews the use of thesis writers' circles as an approach to developing confident and competent postgraduate writers. It suggests that the development of a thesis-writing identity which complements and supports the supervisor/student relationship is valuable. As always, your comments and submissions are encouraged. We trust that you will find articles of interest to you in this issue.
Helen Carter
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