Analysis of organisation and logistics behind the PCAS

It is hard for students to appreciate the effort that goes on behind the scenes to organise a university programme that includes a trip to Antarctica. The aim of this study is to analyse the current management and organisation of the 2012/2013 Postgraduate Certificate in Antarctic Studies (PCAS) pro...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: McKenzie, Jacinta
Format: Other/Unknown Material
Language:English
Published: 2013
Subjects:
Online Access:http://hdl.handle.net/10092/14147
Description
Summary:It is hard for students to appreciate the effort that goes on behind the scenes to organise a university programme that includes a trip to Antarctica. The aim of this study is to analyse the current management and organisation of the 2012/2013 Postgraduate Certificate in Antarctic Studies (PCAS) programme and the logistics behind it. The logistical issues will be reviewed, based on four framework topics: (1) the meaning of logistics; (2) teaching and learning methods; (3) group behaviour in remote environments and (4) the effectiveness of these three themes relating to the PCAS aims. These issues are grounded on the positive relationship between Gateway Antarctica (GA), Antarctica NZ (ANZ) and the 2012/2013 PCAS students, where concerns around the need for precise archiving of documents, clarity of what Antarctic Field Training (AFT) incorporates, changes to the date PCAS goes to Antarctica and assessment and classroom concerns from students, are examined. Time constraints are prevalent when addressing these issues, but implementing these recommendations, such as GA hiring an extra assistant to archive documents, or ANZ compiling a checklist for AFT training, can aid towards more efficient logistics for PCAS. Continuing communication among all three parties is vital to the programme‟s success and should not be underestimated.