Campus Review Vol 30. Issue 08 - Aug 2020 | Seite 27

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ON CAMPUS
but going beyond that can result in positive
outcomes. For example, I set open-ended
theory questions that encourage students
to reflect outside textbook contents. During
feedback, I develop and provide solutions
researching the same way as my students
would have done. This practice, additional
to typical feedback practices, guides them
on how they could have answered, keeps
them abreast of the latest developments in
the field, and establishes example-based
learning even through feedback.
Overall, I have tried some customisations
considering my student diversity and
subject-specific context, and which have
regularly received positive feedback.
Perhaps you will find these or other
strategies useful for your teaching area.
The point of note is customisation,
and breaking tradition can go a long
way in forming interests, enjoyments,
and satisfactions for your students,
especially when they study online.
COMMUNICATE AND ADAPT
Last but not least, leadership is mostly
about communication, and this applies
also for online teaching. However,
such communication is not about just
responding to emails and queries.
Research notes that students respond
best when they feel connected to their
teacher. I believe this connection can
be both direct and indirect. Emails and
posts are direct connection mediums.
But the influence of indirect connections
cannot be ignored.
Recorded video lectures are typical
resources in online teaching. These can also
be a means of communication. Reusing
third-party lectures is also not uncommon.
However, from experience, instructorprepared
videos can form a much closer
attachment with online students.
Students trust and believe who they see
and with whom they can interact with an
open attitude. Keeping recorded videos
interactive and engaging can go a long way
to reduce not only subject-specific learning
load (aka cognitive load) but also create an
environment of inclusiveness.
Therefore, for success in online teaching,
treat recorded video lectures as more than
replacements of on-campus lectures.
Instead, consider the lectures as a medium
of indirect connections with online
students, and adjust presentation and
content accordingly.
Indirect communication does not stop
with videos. The aesthetic nature of the
subject website can itself communicate to
students the attitude and expectation of
their instructor as a virtual leader. A subject
website with good content but inadequate
organisation may lead to dissatisfaction;
whereas, as is my experience, a site
with structures customised to the need
of student cohorts rather than blindly
following a standard can result in
positive outcomes.
Direct connections can also be proactive
rather than reactive. In my experience,
regularly seeking student feedback on
resources and delivery style, rather than
waiting for their term-ending evaluation,
often reduces their cognitive load and
enhances their feeling of inclusiveness.
Overall, teaching online is leading
online with flexibility, communicativeness,
adaptiveness and awareness. ■
Dr Tasadduq Imam is from the School
of Business & Law at CQUniversity
(Melbourne Campus).
Going up
Student accommodation
company buys up big,
despite market conditions.
Dubai-based company Global
Student Accommodation (GSA)
is moving ahead with plans for
a student accommodation complex
in Adelaide’s central North Terrace
precinct, bucking trends that have seen
a COVID-induced crash in student
accommodation demand.
The $110 million development will
include 725 rooms and be located opposite
both the University of Adelaide and the
University of South Australia’s City East
Campus. GSA said its move into Adelaide
would allow it to “take advantage of the
existing climate” as a “first mover”, The
Urban Developer reported.
“Australia continues to remain one of
the strongest regions for prime student
accommodation across mature and
emerging markets, and the Australian
portfolio is therefore well positioned to
deliver strong investor returns as a result
of its first-mover advantage,” GSA Group
chairman Nicholas Porter said.
A recent report by commercial real
estate company Savills highlighted that the
Australian student accommodation sector
has been hit with a “sharp contraction in
annual income growth over the recent
quarter, recording its smallest threemonthly
growth rate since 2013”.
The early shutdown of Australia’s borders
has had a marked effect on student
accommodation providers, with the
majority reporting falling occupancy levels
of between 20 and 50 per cent. This is in
stark contrast to before the pandemic when
Purpose Built Student Accommodation
(PBSA) operators were expecting recordbreaking
occupancies for the 2020
academic year.
GSA is relying on its investors’ confidence
to move towards its goal of providing
accommodation for 250,000 students
worldwide by 2025, despite the bleak
market outlook.
The company owns and runs student
accommodation buildings in eight
countries, with four buildings in Melbourne
and Perth with 2,127 beds.
The move into Adelaide represents
its fifth asset in Australia and the group
has contracted Adelaide-based Synergy
Construct to complete the building by
2022. The Commonwealth Bank will
provide debt funding for the venture.
In Melbourne, GSA’s development in
Carlton contains 242 apartments, while
Infinity, located in the CBD, offers 335 beds.
The most recent student accommodation
completion for the company in Australia
is The Boulevard in Perth. It opened in
February 2019 and features 573 beds
for students. ■
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