Purpose -This paper aims to report the detailed findings of a Centre for Education in the Built Environment (CEBE) funded study into good practice in the use of blended learning in property education. "Blended learning" is a combination of face-to-face learning experiences and online learning experiences which aim to complement each other in order to support and enhance student learning. The aim of this paper is to examine the benefits that blended learning provides to students' learning experience and engagement in property education. It also seeks to discuss lessons learnt from academics who deliver Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) and Chartered Institute of Building (CIOB) accredited property-related courses, in developing blended learning and students' interaction with the blended learning environment. Design/methodology/approach -This paper presents the research findings from interviews and questionnaire surveys of RICS and CIOB accredited property-related course providers and the students who currently study these courses. Eight course directors of property-related courses were interviewed and through discussion with the academic interviewees a questionnaire was developed and sent to all RICS and CIOB undergraduate and postgraduate course directors in the UK. The eight interviewed course directors were requested to send out a questionnaire to their students, and 442 completed students' questionnaires were returned. Further telephone interviews with seven students were conducted. The interviews were recorded, transcribed and coded to identify similar themes. The frequency of the answer in the questionnaire and comments from interviewees is presented. Findings -Both academics and students find that blended learning gives greater flexibility for student learning in terms of learning style and study pace.With the adoption of a wide range of delivery methods, blended learning can successfully improve students' experience and enhance their engagement. It is also important to ensure that blended learning is really "blended" and includes a good mix of delivery methods. "Face-to-face interaction" with students is important as students require reassurance and on-going support from lecturers. Providing training for students to use specialist software in order to equip them to fully utilise blended learning is also essential. Finally, allocation of sufficient time and resources for the development and maintenance of blended learning programmes is also key to its success. Originality/value -This paper is the first to investigate the lessons learnt from academics in developing blended learning and also students' interaction with the blended learning environment in property-related courses in the UK. Property-related course providers can use the results of this study to inform the design of blended learning in their programme in order to enhance students' learning experience and engagement.

Purpose-This paper seeks to report the detailed findings of a Centre for Education in the Built Environment (CEBE) funded study into real estate programmes of study in UK universities. The aim is to critically evaluate the gaps in the professional practice firm employers' expectations of real estate graduates, real estate graduates' perceptions of what they attained during their studies and universities' views of the content of Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) accredited real estate courses. Design/methodology/approach-The paper presents the research findings from questionnaire surveys of professional practice firm employers and graduates and of interviews with RICS accredited courses providers and with the human resource managers of major surveying firms. Findings-The findings of the questionnaire survey should provide some comfort to real estate education providers since the top employer rated knowledge and skills are by and large found in most programmes of study. Universities would argue that they cannot actually do much about the personal attributes that graduates possess. There are significant differences in the views of employers and graduates and the only area of knowledge in which graduates currently exceed the requirements of employers is "research methods". The comments made by both groups suggest that practical experience is considered to be missing from courses but most universities would not see this as one of their principal areas of responsibility. The RICS accredited course directors mentioned that they provide alternative simulated work experience for students. Apart from practical experience, the human resource managers also raised concerns about graduates' levels of commercial awareness. Practical implications-The findings of this research will enable those designing real estate programmes of study in real estate in the UK and around the world to ensure that their curricula are current and relevant to the needs of employers, from a UK perspective. Originality/value-The paper presents the findings of questionnaire surveys of employers and graduates and of interviews with RICS accredited courses providers and human resource managers, which suggest that employers and graduates would like to see more practical skills and knowledge incorporated within university curricula.

2012),"Use of blended learning to enhance the student learning experience and engagement in property education", Property Management, Vol. 30 Iss 2 pp. 129-156 http://dx.If you would like to write for this, or any other Emerald publication, then please use our Emerald for Authors service information about how to choose which publication to write for and submission guidelines are available for all. Please visit www.emeraldinsight.com/authors for more information. About Emerald www.emeraldinsight.comEmerald is a global publisher linking research and practice to the benefit of society. The company manages a portfolio of more than 290 journals and over 2,350 books and book series volumes, as well as providing an extensive range of online products and additional customer resources and services.Emerald is both COUNTER 4 and TRANSFER compliant. The organization is a partner of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) and also works with Portico and the LOCKSS initiative for digital archive preservation. AbstractPurpose -The purpose of this paper is to compare the use of blended learning in property education courses in different countries. The rationale for this study is to fill the research gap in this area. The focus of previous research on blended learning has been on individual countries only, and there is yet to appear any research on a cross-country comparison. The purpose of this study is to identity the differences as well as the good practices using blended learning as a delivery approach in different countries As a result, individual countries can learn experience from another country. It is expected academics interested in using blended learning as a delivery approach will benefit from the research findings of this paper, through gaining an understanding of the advantages and challenges of using blended learning in different countries. Design/methodology/approach -This paper presents the research findings of questionnaire surveys and interviews with academics teaching property courses in Australia and the UK. The questionnaire aimed to gather academics' views on blended learning, their reasons for using blended learning as a teaching method, their design of blended learning courses and the support they provide to students on dealing with web technology. The aim of the interviews was to gain deeper insight into the successful factors and challenges in the use of blended learning. In total, 16 interviews were conducted. The interviews were recorded, transcribed and coded to identify similar themes. Content analysis was used as a method to analyse the interview data. The frequency of the answer in the questionnaire and comments from interviewees is presented. Findings -The Australian and UK property academics have similar views on many aspects of blended learning. Their definitions of blended learning are similar as their reasons to use it as a teaching method. The commonly used teaching and learning activities in their blended learning courses in both countries are, again, similar, such as the use of lectures...

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to investigate whether Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) accredited real estate courses in the UK have equipped real estate graduates with sufficient relevant employability skills to embark on a career in the profession. This paper considers the perspectives of four stakeholders – employers, human resource managers, graduates and course directors of RICS-accredited real estate courses – in the UK. Design/methodology/approach – The results of a mixed-methods study, involving two online surveys with real estate employers and recent graduates of RICS-accredited real estate courses, and two sets of interviews with human resource managers of real estate surveying firms and course directors of RICS-accredited real estate courses, are presented. Findings – The employers and graduates of the RICS-accredited real estate courses do not think the courses sufficiently equip graduates’ with employability skills. On the other hand, the human resource managers are very impressed with graduates’ technical skills but have concerns about their soft skills and attributes. Human resource managers and course directors of RICS real estate courses commented that commercial awareness is an important employability skill but graduates are not well developed in this area. Course directors also noted that practical experience is vital to employability, commenting that students can only obtain real-life practical experience if employers offer them opportunities. Originality/value – This paper makes an original contribution to the existing literature on employability skills for real estate graduates. It describes pioneering research considering the perspectives of four types of stakeholders and evaluates whether real estate courses sufficiently develop graduates’ employability skills.

Purpose -The purpose of this paper is to present an analytical summary of UK housing policies. It aims to evaluate UK government's housing policies, before and after the publication of the Barker Review, to tackle affordability issues in the owner-occupied sector. It examines the extent to which housing policy contributes to or alleviates the problem of the affordability of owner-occupied housing. Design/methodology/approach -This paper evaluates the impact of UK government housing policies since 2000 on housing affordability by analysing their impact on the dynamics of housing demand and supply. Findings -The Barker Review, which applied simple economic ideas and techniques in analysing the owneroccupied UK housing market, argued that increases in new housing supply would help to improve housing affordability. The second Barker Review suggested that changes to the planning system were needed in order not only to increase new housing supply, but to make housing supply more sensitive to changing demands. The Barker Reviews brought about a major re-think in government policy towards housing, particularly relating to new build and the planning system. However, the heavy reliance on the private sector to provide additional housing has reduced the effectiveness of policy changes. In addition, the adoption by the government of "demand-side" housing policies has done little to negate the volatility of UK house prices or to raise the overall affordability of owner-occupied housing. Originality/value -This paper reflects on government failures in UK housing policy in addressing the affordability of owner-occupied housing. The findings will be of interest to policy makers and housing researchers.

Purpose The aim of this research is to evaluate the extent which university’s strategic plans affect the level of incorporation of sustainability within the curriculum design and property portfolio. Design/methodology/approach This research adopted a case study approach. The case study institution was Deakin University in Australia. This paper used a qualitative research method. Desk-top study included the review of the University’s Strategic Plan, policy agenda on sustainability and the documents on sustainability courses and units. Semi-structured interviews were held with academics who have course development and management responsibility within the university, colleagues who have a sustainability-focused role on estate management and colleagues whose roles are to manage sustainability initiatives at institution level. All interviews were recorded and transcribed. Content analysis was used to analyse the interview data. Findings Despite the University having a clear strategic aims and initiatives on the incorporation of sustainability within curriculum design and property portfolio, there is disconnection between policy development and policy implementation. As a result, the incorporation of sustainability varies largely between curricula within the institution. The incorporation of sustainability within the property portfolio is clear and effective. However, within the curriculum it is polarised. The level of incorporation depends on the nature of the course or unit and is largely driven by the initiatives of the individual academic. Good practice identified in the incorporation of sustainability within the curriculum is to use a problem-based approach supported by real life projects to enhance the students’ authentic learning experience. The good practice for successfully incorporating sustainability into the property portfolio is to have clear vision of what it has planned to achieve and to ensure there is a balance between sustainability and value for money. Originality/value This is pioneering research to investigate the incorporation of sustainability into higher education in a more comprehensive way. This paper considered the impact of strategic planning on the incorporation of sustainability within a higher education, on both curriculum design and property portfolio management

Purpose-The aim of this paper is to identify the competency expectations for property professionals in Australia. It further discusses differences in competency expectations between property professionals who have different professional backgrounds, such as valuers or non-valuers, and property professionals who work in different sectors or different-sized companies and who have differing amounts of experience. The competencies identified in this paper include knowledge areas, skills and attributes. Design/methodology/approach-This paper presents the research findings of a questionnaire survey sent to Australian Property Institute members, which aimed to gather Australian property professionals' views on the knowledge, skills and attributes required to perform their roles effectively. The percentage of the respondents who provided different choices of given answers for each of the 31 knowledge areas, 20 skills and 21 attributes was identified and discussed. The professional backgrounds of the respondents were also identified to see whether these impact on competency expectations for property professionals. Content analysis was used to analyse written comments collected in the questionnaire. Findings-The most important categories of knowledge, skill and attribute for Australian property professionals are valuation, effective written communication and practical experience, respectively. The least important are international real estate, second language and creativity. Knowledge of rural valuation is very important in Australia, although this has not been mentioned in previous studies. Professional backgrounds have a large influence on Australian property professionals' views on knowledge requirements, but less so on skills and attributes. Practical implications-The findings of this paper can be used as guidance for property professionals in their professional development plan. In addition, property course providers can use the research findings of this paper to inform their curriculum development and redesign. Originality/value-This project is the first to identify the comprehensive competency expectations of property professionals as a whole in Australia. At the same time, it identifies differences in the competency expectations of property professionals who have different professional backgrounds. Similar types of study have been conducted in the UK, the USA, Hong Kong and New Zealand but not yet in Australia. An understanding of the knowledge, skills and attributes required for property professionals is important for continuing professional development, curriculum development and the redesign of relevant property courses in order to maintain performance and competitiveness in the property sector.

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to identify the relative importance of the factors that influence the overall satisfaction of real estate students and also examine the extent to which demographic backgrounds affect this. Furthermore, this paper benchmarks the satisfaction of real estate students against that of built environment students. Design/methodology/approach – The data used in this paper have been collected from the Course Experience Questionnaire (CEQ) within the Australian Graduate Survey (AGS). Dimensionality reduction was used to prepare the data about the courses identified in the AGS for analysis. This was done in order to simplify classification of real estate and built environment courses examined in this paper. Descriptive and statistical analysis methods were used to analyse student satisfaction variables and identify the extent to which demographic factors influenced overall student satisfaction. Findings – Real estate students in Australia have a relatively higher level of student satisfaction compared to built environment students overall, but built environment students have a higher level of satisfaction with regard to compulsory variables such as “Good Teaching Scale” and “Generic Skills Scale”. However, real estate students show a higher level of agreement in the Likert scale regarding the optional variables “Appropriate Assessment” and “Learning Community”, respectively. The most important factor for overall student satisfaction was the question: “the staff made it clear right from the start what they expected from the students”. The answers to this question had a Pearson correlation value of 1.000 for both real estate and built environment students. Age and mode of study also have some impact on the overall satisfaction level of both sets of students, while gender, degree class and the year the university were established are additional factors affecting the overall satisfaction of built environment students. Practical implications – This research identifies the factors that affect the satisfaction of property course students in ascending order of importance. Course directors of real estate courses can use the findings of this research to make recommendations on the redesign and redevelopment of their courses in order to make them more attractive and appealing to students to enhance student recruitment and retention. Originality/value – This is pioneering research that provides a comprehensive overview of the factors affecting student satisfaction with regard to real estate and built environment students in Australia.