Precious and the Monkeys by Alexander McCall Smith

It seems prequels are in vogue in the film industry but this is the first time I am seeing a prequel to a series of novels – The No 1 Ladies Detective Agency. The author states that there were questions from readers about the early years of Precious Ramotswe and how did the idea of becoming a detective come about.

This is the story of the first ever case solved by Precious when she was a little girl. She had thought at the age of 7 that she would like to be a detective when she grew up.  As usual, there is a gentle flow of the story with everything including the thoughts being explained in weaving of the story. A theft occurs in the school and Precious is not happy that a friend of hers was accused of stealing. It is up to her to find out what really happened? Who was the thief? She needed to find out and let everyone know the truth so that her friend did not suffer.

A nice short story and so in keeping with the style of this author.

The Third Girl by Agatha Christie

I am not sure if I have seen this novel converted to a film. It is a good mystery which begins with a young lady barging in to see Poirot just as he was finishing his breakfast. She says, she thinks, she may have murdered someone. When pressed to explain what she means, she suddenly turns reticent and says Poirot is too old to be of any help and rushes out. 

Saddened to think of himself as a too old, he accepts the invitation by his friend, the mystery writer Mrs Oliver, to tea, to cheer him up. When Poirot tells her about the young lady who had visited him and what had happened, Mrs Oliver states that she might have met this person at a party she went to recently. So she describes the party and the people and their background. The young lady she feels certain is the daughter of this rich business man who has returned from South Africa with a younger second wife. He had inherited the business from his brother. The daughter has moved out to live in London with 2 other young women. The father is living with his uncle until they can find a place of their own in the city. Meanwhile, it is suspected that the step mother is being poisoned. 

So Mrs Oliver decides to go find out what the young lady is up to by visiting the flat in London. Poirot wangles an introduction and visits the father’s home so see what he can find out about the family. What is the mystery? The young lady has gone missing and the father hires Poirot to find his daughter. He is seemingly writing big checks to buy off his daughter’s unsuitable boyfriend. Mrs Oliver finds the young lady meeting her boyfriend, purely by chance, and tries her hand at detecting by following the boyfriend, after she has called Poirot. All she gets for her trouble is a conk on the head and concussion. 

Poirot is sure there is something much more sinister going on and is determined to find out what is happening. There is something not right with the ‘third girl’ in the flat. Was it a coincidence that the first girl is the secretary of the business man? The second girl is an arty type who works in a fashion and occasionally models and hangs out with new painters. Is there any connection to the death of an old lady in the same block of flats? Also why is the third girl so very confused? Why can she not remember if she did or did not murder someone?

This intrigue is well set and yes once again it is not an easy puzzle to solve. It is indeed a mystery as to what really is the mystery right until the last chapter when Poirot reveals the whole truth. I really good read.

The Mediterranean Caper by Clive Cussler

This is the second of Dirk Pitt series by this author. This is set in the Med as the name suggests and starts with an attack on the Brady Airfield on the island of Thasos. The attack is carried out by an old bi-wing plane with familiar black Maltese Cross markings of World War I Germany. The pilot shoots at all the ground aircrafts and at the control tower. The young sergeant sends out a mayday.

Dirk and Al were flying in at this time to join the National Underwater Marine Agency’s research boat, First Attempt, lying off the Thasos island. They came racing across to see what assistance they can provide. They are amazed to see the old albatross shooting at the Air field. Dirk had been called in to investigate the strange accidents taking place on the First Attempt, while they are looking for a rare species of fish. They force the attacking plane away but are hit themselves and have to land at the air base. This curious incident leads them to try and find out what is happening and how if at all is this connected to the woes of the First Attempt. 

Dirk meets a young lady on the beach and get invited to dinner at her uncle’s home, a rich, reclusive and influential man on the island. The place is like a well-guarded manor with strange and old furnishing. The uncle, Bruno von Till, is mysterious and not at all happy when he realises Dirk is a US Major. When the niece Teri comes, she also behaves oddly and looks scared. Dirk catches the undercurrents and palms a knife from the table. Von Till sends Teri away and succeeds in getting Dirk into a dark passage way and shuts the door. Where will this dark passage lead to? What is that strange noise he can hear in the passageway? Will he be able to save himself from this unknown peril? 

Dirk and Al get stuck in finding out what secret Von Till is hiding? It does not appear to be something ordinary as he has been trying to get the NUMA ship to move away from the particular area. He more or less admitted that as the purpose of attack on the Brady Airfield and later on the First Attempt. There is something hidden in the waters around there which he does not want discovered. How involved is his niece Teri in this? Why is Interpol keeping an eye on the comings and goings at the Manor? 

It is a fairly fast paced novel and describes in detail the surroundings, the planes and ship and of course marine biology. There are lot of tense situations faced by Dirk and Al and keeps one on the edge and reading to know the outcome. A real good thriller and a good plot line that keep you glued right to the end.

Personal Tutor Role in Professional Education - Support from Personal Tutor

Discussion of the final aspect of findings from the unpublished research –

Williams M, 1999, ‘Exploring the Role of the Personal Tutor in Nurse Education, Department of Education, University of Surrey, unpublished.

The research was carried out using a sample of students and staff from 7 campus sites. On examining the responses regarding the qualities of a personal tutor, three main themes emerged – knowledge, communication skills and interpersonal skills.

 The earlier related blogs are:

Personal Tutor Role in Professional Education - Allocation of Personal Tutor

Personal Tutor Role in Professional Education - Qualities of a Personal Tutor

Personal Tutor Role in Professional Education - Student Tutor Relationship

Personal Tutor Role in Professional Education - System of Tutorials

Personal Tutor Role in Professional Education - Quality of Student - Tutor Communication

Academic support

There is a majority response, from both students and tutors, indicating that support of essay writing and presentation / seminar needs to cover areas like general advice and guidance, understanding of guidelines, presentation skills, and use of aids, to academic skills related to writing, level of work, referencing and relevant reading to be carried out. There is no difference noted in the needs regarding essay writing, between students from different academic years. The numbers of students who did not require help with content of essay and those who did not make a comment also remained consistent in all three academic years. Some tutors from site A have elaborated on the need for challenging assumptions / attitudes and opinions of students. The tutors are willing to give as much support as the student needs, time permitting, which also includes giving examples of model answers and additional handouts, a suggestion also made by Brennan (1995). Few tutors from sites A, C, D and F commented that they would direct the personal student to the module operator for the knowledge base of the essay or presentation. Nevertheless, Brennan (1995) clearly places the responsibility on the tutor to clarify, to the students the conventions of academic discourse, in particular the language, style, content and arguments in their essays.

Building of confidence, to carry out presentation / seminar is also seen to be a support a personal tutor can provide, according to some students from all sites except C and E. This is agreed by many tutors from all sites except E. The responses of the first year and second year students regarding support are similar. They need general advice and guidance for content, aids, presentation skills and support for building confidence. The number of students who would not require this support or use the module operator and those who did not comment remains similar in the first and second years. In the third year the number of students who require support has decreased a little, and very few feel there is a need to build confidence. There are more students, who do not wish for this support or would use the module operator, because by this time the students have gained some experience. The support would therefore be focused on the content being at degree level, so the module operator would be a more appropriate choice. The number who did not comment remains the same as the other two years.

Study skills

General advice / support and guidance regarding study skills and reading of relevant literature are the most popular comments from most students at all sites. The tutors also agree and various comments explain the study skills the students would require guidance for, note taking, depth and breadth of reading, appropriateness of literature and critical analysis.  When examined on the basis of academic progress, the need for general advice and support for study skills diminishes as students reach the third year, but help regarding reading of relevant literature increases. Again, the number of students who do not require this support or have chosen not to comment remains the same overall. This is a fairly high number. Some tutors from sites B, C, D and F makes comments that could provide an explanation for this. The reasons for not availing this support are the provision of a reading list within the module guide, support from module operator and the librarian.

Planning Study

Some students from all sites identified the need for advice to plan study time and balance study and leisure time. This need seems to decrease, from first year to third year. Some students stated that this support should be provided if necessary. This was emphasised more by students of first and third year. Probably due to the fact that students in their first year are adjusting to studying and course work while in the third year academic pressure increases so the need may arise again. Overall, majority of the students did not see the need for this kind of support or did not comment on it. This could be due to first year students either genuinely do not need support or are unaware of this need. While in the second and third year, it is more likely that students may have worked out their own time management rather than being unaware of the need.

Review and Feedback

Majority of the tutors from all sites except E stated that they could give assistance with study skills, setting up of realistic program of learning and prioritising workload. Other comment included review of progress to check if students are meeting deadlines. Some tutors from site C stated that they had not been asked to provide this kind of support and so they felt unable to comment on it. A small number of tutors from site F went on to say that it could be viewed as interfering and condescending. This coincides with a larger number of students from sites C and F not wanting or commenting about this kind of support. But surely if the tutor identifies this need in a personal student, support must be offered, and it is up to the student if they do not wish to accept it. The offer of this service could be clarified to the students at the onset of the relationship, making them aware of the available support. Then the student would be free to avail necessary support without the personal tutor being viewed as interfering or condescending.

Building confidence

Some students from all sites except E feel the personal tutor through reassurance, praise, encouragement and positive feedback can build their confidence. The first and second year students are more in need for this than third year students are. There is a small rise in the number of students stating this, from the first year. This could be due to the move of students from Common Foundation Program to Branch Program and increasing hours of clinical practice in the second year. Few students from site A, B and C state that it may be necessary to build confidence but they can get this support for others, a feeling which definitely increases among students as they progress from first to third year. Many first year students make no comment or have not wanted any support, maybe because they are still new to the program with more time spent in the classroom so there is a limited awareness regarding what support is needed and is available. The numbers stating this support is not required and those making no comments remain the same in second and third year.

While the tutors have been much more expansive on how confidence can be built. The most popular responses are by being supportive, giving time to the students, listening to the students and encouraging independence of thought and ideas, act as an advocate while allowing the student to develop autonomy through discussion, showing regard for their ideas as well as providing constructive criticism. Many tutors from sites B, D and F feel this is central to supervision and to the personal tutor role. However, some tutors from sites B and C acknowledge that building of confidence can be difficult as it is dependent on the individual student and generally it should come with increasing knowledge, understanding and maturity. 

Information Giving

Other comments made by the students relate to information giving and advice on the process of the course and university, advice on health matters, career advice, help to fill job application forms at the end of the course. Students in third year also wished for support to complete their learning log, particularly as in the third year the log has to be written at degree level and is also a part of the assessment.

Summary

During the discussion the views of the students and tutors have been examined and comparison made with the available literature. The reasons for the views held by the students and tutors have been explained. There is a general agreement on the need for having a choice of personal tutor. The qualities of the student – tutor relationship and those expected of the personal tutor are in congruence with the available literature. The one specific disagreement is that counselling should not be the role of a personal tutor. The emphasis on the personal tutor being a role model for learners and use of learning contracts to facilitate learning have not been raised by any respondent.

Personal Tutor Role in Professional Education - Quality of Student - Tutor Communication

Discussion of the fifth aspect of findings from the unpublished research –

Williams M, 1999, ‘Exploring the Role of the Personal Tutor in Nurse Education, Department of Education, University of Surrey, unpublished.

The research was carried out using a sample of students and staff from 7 campus sites. On examining the responses regarding the qualities of a personal tutor, three main themes emerged – knowledge, communication skills and interpersonal skills.

 The earlier related blogs are:

Personal Tutor Role in Professional Education - Allocation of Personal Tutor

Personal Tutor Role in Professional Education - Qualities of a Personal Tutor

Personal Tutor Role in Professional Education - Student Tutor Relationship

Personal Tutor Role in Professional Education - System of Tutorials

Maintain Confidentiality

Both the students and tutors appear to agree that confidentiality is important during interaction and for a good relationship. Students from all sites go on to state that it is easier to communicate and less stressful if confidentiality is assured, which is also a finding of Peelo (1994). But some tutors from sites A, B, C and F point out that the student needs to indicate this prior to a discussion. This does not appear to be a point that students feel, needs to be made, they appear to assume that maintaining confidentiality is a part of the relationship. Therefore, it is something that tutors must keep in mind, that students do not necessarily state the need for confidentiality but take it for granted that it will be provided. Some tutors clarify their point by stating that caution needs to be exercised, as they have to consider the legal implications as well as public safety. Students appear to be aware of this, as they have also pointed out, like the tutors, that should there be a need for disclosure, the permission of the student must be obtained. Students are also aware that the personal tutor may need help from others, but they would still need to inform the student.

This is further clarified when reviewing comments on confiding in the personal tutor. Most students and tutors from all sites clearly state that it should be allowed when necessary. A few students from all sites stated that this should not happen. The reasons for this no are better explained by the tutors who opposed the idea of allowing students to confide in them. They indicate that if the student is just venting their feelings or using this confidence to reflect on practice then it may be safe to allow the student to confide. But, it may not always be appropriate, as the tutors have to function within legal parameters and professional code of conduct. Also as suggested time and time again by both students and tutors, that personal tutor is not a counsellor and should deal with academic issues only. There are many students but only few tutors from site A, who chose not to make any comment. This may reflect their lack of surety regarding this issue. But comments made in other areas reflect an overall agreement with this.

Honesty in Interaction

Honesty, a quality spoken of earlier, is seen to be necessary for communication according to majority of the students and tutors. Both feel it is beneficial and essential to the relationship. Students are of the opinion that there is no point in being told untruths if they are to learn from their mistakes and feedback provided by the personal tutor, on their progress. Similarly, tutors explain that honesty is necessary to allow students to have realistic expectations and understanding of what is required of them. Though, they do point out, that honesty needs to be tempered by tact and constructive criticism, as occasionally honesty can hurt. Tutors also point out that sometimes it is difficult to maintain absolute honesty as in the case of knowing the student result, which has not yet been published, and so it is not always appropriate to be honest. However, ordinarily students do not ask such a question, and if they do surely it is possible to be honest and state that they are unable to give that information. After all, majority of the students and tutors find trust to be important and without honesty it is difficult to maintain trust.

                                     

Engender Trust

Trust is also seen to be the basis for a good relationship. A few students and many tutors from all sites except D feel that it is a two way process. But like Earwaker (1992) some tutors from sites B and D point out that this is essentially a relationship of ‘unequals’ and also that students do not know their personal tutor well enough, so asking for trust in a relationship can be difficult. Each, therefore, needs to prove to the other that they are trustworthy. Brown’s (1993) suggestion of self-disclosure by both the tutor and the student, over a period of time helps to develop trust. Initially, non-threatening social information to deeper private information is of enormous value in developing a meaningful relationship.

Be Friendly

Friendliness in interaction and therefore in the relationship is something majority of the students and tutors have identified, as after all this is one of the desired qualities of a personal tutor, as identified by both. The students want friendliness as it makes the tutor more approachable and therefore communication is easier. The tutors too, indicate an awareness of this reason and its impact on the relationship. Responses show, a word of caution from some tutors as they advocate avoiding overfamiliarity, in order to keep the relationship on a professional footing. Moreover, different students have different needs at different times. A good example for this is when a student is being disciplined friendliness is not entirely appropriate.

Supportive

Majority of the students and tutors from all sites see the provision of personal support, in times of need and difficulty, as a part of the role of the personal tutor. Students desire the support to be both academic and personal, though the tutor would have to know the student for this. While tutors from all sites except A are more in favour of providing academic support and deal with the pressures of academia rather than to baby sit students or get personally involved. Further, the provision of support must be limited to the personal tutor’s abilities and students should be referred on to appropriate agencies, rather than getting involved in personal problems, so that the time spent with the student is utilised judiciously. A small number of tutors, from sites B and F, are of the opinion that this is the role of student services and qualified counsellors. The provision of personal support is seen to be the pastoral role of the personal tutor by people like Bramley (1977). The same personal tutor also provides the academic support. But as discussed in an earlier blog, the changes within the nurse education have spilt this role up. The students do not essentially wish to see two different tutors to gain support for their course work. As content of the course is important they take up tutorial from the module operator who to some extent gives the academic writing skills support.

Therefore, the burden on a small number to tutors, who work within each module, having to support the whole cohort, can be as large as two hundred and fifty students. While the students do not meet their personal tutor, for after all not many students wish for pastoral care, because as MacGuire (1966) found that, students develop peer support. Also there are more mature students coming into nurse education who already have well developed support network outside of the system, as suggested by Earwaker (1992). So unless the academic support role for both the skills and knowledge is returned back into the domain of the personal tutor students will not get a holistic support. 

Comfortable

Other comments made by tutors relate to the interpersonal skills discussed earlier and the quality of interactions. The only issue that was not raised earlier related to a question posed by tutor for site C, whether a tutor and a student of opposite gender show be alone during tutorials? This could have stemmed from past experience of this individual. Offering privacy may often mean the closing of the office or classroom door. The tutor needs to be sensitive to the student’s reactions, and make appropriate responses, like using communication skills to break down barriers and ease any awkwardness or even leave the door of the room open unless specifically asked to close it.

This detailed understanding of the issues that impact on the quality of communication between student and personal tutor can be easily generalised to cover all student tutor communications. The level of each aspect may vary depending on the situation for which the communication is taking place.