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THE centripetal forces at work in the world seem to draw all human associations into larger groups. Work Study has been no exception to this, as the formation of a European Federation six months ago indicates. Another manifestation of the same tendency is the letter we print from a correspondent suggesting that there is only room for one professional organisation for Work Study in this country.

INSUFFICIENT use is made of work study in industry. A more widespread application of work study depends on full recognition by management and on the efforts of properly trained work study engineers. Better facilities for training and a commonly accepted system of training leading to a recognised standard of competence are, therefore, essential.

IN the National Press recently there has been some rough handling of incentive schemes. A number of objections have been raised to them. Among the more serious are: machine sabotage; loss of earnings due to machine breakdown; group output restrictions; revenge on a member of the group; increased output of defective work; harmful to morale and sometimes health; a provider of financial temptation; calculations of earnings a mystery.

MODERN work study technique demands that the methods engineer and the time study engineer work hand in hand for the benefit of productivity as a whole. And to state the obvious it is becoming clearer that time and motion are indivisible.

THE improvement in the British standard of living is generally desired. Politicians have not only subscribed to that ideal but some of them have indicated the rate at which we should advance. There are, however, certain trends in the country's economic life which must be reversed if we are to make any progress in that direction.

MAKE no mistake about it, when a government enacts legislation it does so firmly believing that the new law is in the best interests at least to the majority of the population it is supposed to serve. (This may not be wholly true in some dictatorial regimes, but it holds for democracies.) So it is a pity when, as happens far too frequently, the effect differs from or sometimes is completely opposed to the aims in the minds of the legislators.

Students have a finite amount of time that they can allocate between commitments of study–work–life. Striking a balance between these competing activities is an individual conundrum and this study aims to explore the impact of extramural activities and paid employment on the academic performance of accounting students.

Guided by Carroll’s model of school learning, the authors adopt a quantitative approach where they survey (N = 264) and gather responses (n = 195) from students with respect to their choices regarding spare time outside study. These perceptions are then compared to their academic performance. Quantitative responses were subsequently triangulated with interview findings to provide in-depth analysis.

Findings provide greater understanding for educators of the student lived experience, which reveals that the work, study and life balance is individually nuanced and is largely driven by the individual’s perceived level of interference from work, which is a significant predictor of academic performance.

Analysis of the determinants of student learning includes prior academic achievement, confidence with numbers, critical thinking, gender and prior accounting knowledge. Yet, little is known about the implication of activities outside the formal curriculum. This study addresses this void in the literature and provides a much-needed link back to accounting faculty’s pedagogical approaches as they adapt to a cohort’s learning behaviour. This study also adds to the debate on the need for more discussion with faculty to allow alternate arrangements based on extramural activities and employment commitments. Greater understanding of study–work–life balance for students provides an opportunity for new dialog between faculty and students.

Owing to the increasing debt students are accumulating to finance their tertiary study, many are having to work during term time. The aim of this study is to explore the impact of this paid employment on their study time and other aspects of their lives.

Eighty three undergraduates completed a questionnaire about their academic workload, their paid employment commitments during term time, their earnings and expenditure, and their recreational and cultural activities.

Results indicated that 81 per cent of the students held at least one job during term time for an average of 14 hours per week. The money earned was typically spent on essential living expenses. Working left less time than desired for social activities, study and recreation.

The findings are limited by the relatively small sample size of self‐selected students: mainly young, female and enrolled in Arts courses.

The results suggest that working is not always detrimental to students' academic efforts, particularly if the hours worked are manageable given their course load. Lecturers should be more aware of the busy lives students lead and try to structure assignments and course requirements to recognise this, including the scheduling of class times and the offering of study support services.

The study adds to the growing body of international data that reports on the effects of a user‐pays approach in tertiary education. There is no similar data in New Zealand.

WE have recently published one or two articles in which a contributor with a considerable knowledge of the Chinese economy has described some of that country's industrial activities. The articles have been scrupulously factual and impartial in revealing the ingenuity which has enabled a people desperately short of the technological resources of the industrialised nations to secure for themselves some of life's essentials.

‘WORK STUDY specialists of Europe—from both the Six and the Seven— are getting together in London this year regardless of what happens to other meetings,’ said Mr. R. M. Currie, C.B.E., President of the European Work Study Federation, in a statement on the forthcoming Congress of the Federation which is to take place at Church House, Westminster, from May 20 to 23.