Background: Undergraduate paramedic students undertake clinical placements in a variety of locations. These placements are considered an essential element for paramedic pre-employment education. However, anecdotal evidence suggests some students have not had positive experiences on their emergency ambulance placements. The objective of this study was to identify the type of experiences had by students during ambulance clinical placements and to provide feedback to the ambulance services.

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Spatial features of mathematical equations may influence how people solve and interpret those equations. This study examined whether manipulations of spatial features affected how participants solved and interpreted equations involving the minus sign. Undergraduate participants (N = 91) solved multioperation arithmetic equations involving addition, subtraction, and multiplication (e.g., 25 - 3 + 2 × 5 = __). We varied the spacing of the final three operands and the position of the first operator relative to the adjacent operands. Participants also generated a story problem to correspond with a given equation. We evaluated the procedures that participants used in solving the equations by analysing both their solutions and their written work. Both close spacing of the final three operands and position of the first operation sign influenced the procedures that participants used. Both of the spatial manipulations also influenced participants' interpretations of the conceptual structure of the equations, as revealed in the story problems that they generated. These results have implications for understanding how people process mathematical symbols and for mathematics education.

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Graduates of an Abu Dhabi transnational nursing degree struggled with the mandatory national licensing examination. Poor pass rates undermine graduate career futures and impact on the workforce capacity building contributions of the partnering transnational educational providers. This paper describes how the design and delivery of an intensive examination preparation program dramatically reversed this trend. The objectives of this educational initiative involved the design, delivery and evaluation of a program that would align with cultural learning preferences and which improve the success rates of graduates attempting the national nurse licensing examination. To achieve these objectives, the program combined a range of teaching and assessment strategies developed to reflect the specific needs of Arabic learners, build on their existing knowledge and help them engage more effectively in the learning processes required for successful performance in a high stakes examination. Analysis of data collected during program evaluation provides useful insights into the preference and experiences of nursing graduates in the UAE Emirate of Abu Dhabi. The lessons learned are applicable to Arabic learners both regionally and globally.