The Ikon Journal
Volume 5
Dear Ikon Students,
Welcome to your Ikon Journal, Volume 5 (June 2022)
The Journal will be published once every trimester into your student portal.
Please remember, this journal is for you and we would love you to share your ideas, inspiring stories, events, pictures, tips and more.
Get in contact now with Prisca at experience@ikon.edu.au
Company News and Key Dates
Click here to access the PACFA Student Information Pack
Trimester 2, 2022
Head to our Key Dates page for important dates.
NAIDOC WEEK CELEBRATIONS
2022 Theme: GET UP! STAND UP! SHOW UP!
National NAIDOC Week celebrations are held across Australia in the first week of July each year (Sunday to Sunday), to celebrate and recognise the history, culture and achievements of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. NAIDOC Week is an opportunity for all Australians to learn about First Nations cultures and histories and participate in celebrations of the oldest, continuous living cultures on earth.
If you’d like to participate in NAIDOC week we are running an art competition! We encourage you to reflect on what this year’s theme means to you and interpret this through an artwork, you can be as creative as you like! Send your artwork through to events@ikon.edu.au by Thursday 7th July. The winner will be announced on Friday!
HELP AND RESOURCES FOR ACADEMIC RESEARCH
15 Educational Search Engines Students Should Know About
Ref: Anna Heinrich, Rasmussen University, 2017
1. Google Scholar
Google Scholar was created as a tool to congregate scholarly literature on the web. From one place, students have the ability to hunt for peer-reviewed papers, theses, books, abstracts and articles from academic publishers, professional societies, preprint repositories, universities and other scholarly organizations.
2. Google Books
Google Books allows web users to browse an index of thousands of books, from popular titles to old, to find pages that include your search terms. Once you find the book you are looking for, you can look through pages, find online reviews and learn where you can get a hard copy.
3. Microsoft Academic
Operated by the company that brings you Word, PowerPoint and Excel, Microsoft Academic is a reliable, comprehensive research tool. The search engine pulls content from over 120 million publications, including scientific papers, conferences and journals. You can search directly by topic, or you can search by an extensive list of fields of study. For example, if you’re interested in computer science, you can filter through topics such as artificial intelligence, computer security, data science, programming languages and more.
4. WorldWideScience
WorldWideScience, which refers to itself as “The Global Science Gateway,” is operated by the Office of Scientific and Technical Information—a branch of the Office of Science within the U.S. Department of Energy. The site utilizes databases from over 70 countries. When users type a query, it hits databases from all over the world and will display both English and translated results from related journals and academic resources.
5. Science.gov
Science.gov is operated and maintained by the Office of Science and Technical Information, the same department that collaborates on WorldWideScience.org. This search engine pulls from over 60 databases, over 2,200 websites and 200 million pages of journals, documents and scientific data. Search results can be filtered by author, date, topic and format (text or multimedia).
6. Wolfram Alpha
A self-described “computational knowledge engine,” Wolfram Alpha does not so much provide search results as it does search answers. Simply type in a topic or question you may be interested in, such as, “What is the function of the pancreas?” and the answer will show up without making you scroll through pages of results. This is especially handy for those in need of math help.
7. Refseek
With its minimalist design, Refseek doesn’t look like much. However, the engine pulls from over one billion web pages, encyclopedias, journals and books. It is similar to Google in its functionality, except that it focuses more on scientific and academic results—meaning more results will come from .edu or .org sites, as well as online encyclopedias. It also has an option to search documents directly—providing easy access to PDFs of academic papers.
8. Educational Resources Information Center
Populated by the U.S. Department of Education, the Educational Resources Information Center (ERIC) is a great tool for academic research with more than 1.3 million bibliographic records of articles and online materials. ERIC provides access to an extensive body of education-related literature including journal articles, books, research syntheses, conference papers, technical reports, policy papers and more. With more than eight million searches each month, it’s no wonder why this search engine is a great web source for education.
9. Virtual Learning Resources Center
The Virtual Learning Resources Center (VLRC) is an online index hosting thousands of scholarly websites, all of which are selected by teachers and librarians from around the globe. The site provides students and teachers with current, valid information for school and university academic projects using an index gathered from research portals, universities and library internet subject guides recommended by teachers and librarians.
10. iSeek
iSeek is a great search engine for students, teachers and administrators alike. Simply ask a question or enter search topics or tools, and iSeek will pull from scholastic sources to find exactly what you are looking for. The search engine is safe, intelligent and timesaving—and it draws from trusted resources from universities, government and established non-commercial sites.
11. ResearchGate
ResearchGate is a unique social networking site for scientists and researchers. Over 11 million researchers submit their work, which totals more than 100 million publications, on the site for anyone to access. You can search by publication, data and author, or you can even ask the researchers questions. Though it’s not a search engine that pulls from external sources, ResearchGate’s own collection of publications provides a hearty selection for any inquisitive scholar.
12. Base
The Bielefeld Academic Search Engine (BASE) prides itself as being “one of the world’s most voluminous search engines especially for academic web resources.” Utilizing 4,000 sources, the site contains results from over 100 million documents. The advanced search option allows users to narrow their research—so whether you’re looking for a book, review, lecture, video or thesis, BASE can provide the specific format you need.
13. Infotopia
Infotopia describes itself as a “Google-alternative safe search engine.” The academic search engine pulls from results that have been curated by librarians, teachers and other educational workers. A unique search feature allows users to select a category, which ranges from art to health to science and technology, and then see a list of internal and external resources pertaining to the topic. So if you don’t find what you’re looking for within the pages of Infotopia, you will probably find it in one of its many suggested sites.
14. PubMed Central
This site is perfect for those studying anything related to healthcare or science. PubMed Central is operated by the National Center for Biotechnology Information, a division of the U.S. National Library of Medicine. The database contains more than 3 million full-text journal articles. It’s similar to PubMed Health, which is specifically for health-related research and studies, and includes citations and abstracts to more than 26 million articles.
15. Lexis Web
Researching legal topics? Lexis Web is your go-to for any law-related inquiries you may have. The results are drawn from legal sites, which can be filtered by criteria such as news, blog, government and commercial. Users can also filter results by jurisdiction, practice area, source and file format.
Start searching
Pulling up an Internet search might be second nature to you by now. But a little forethought into where you begin your hunt can make your life much easier. Save yourself the time wading through basic Google search results and utilize some of these tools to ensure your results will be up to par with academic standards.
EDITOR’S NOTE: This article was originally published in December 2009. It has since been updated to include information relevant to 2017.
Science Hub
https://scihub.org/
STUDENT DISCOUNTS
Make the best out of your student life!
VOLUNTEERING IN THE COMMUNITY
Friendline
A Friends for Good Service
Friends for Good is a not-for-profit that works to combat loneliness in Australia. Their Friendline service involves volunteers having a friendly chat over the phone from callers who are feeling lonely. The organisation is looking for more volunteers and it’s a great way to give back to the community so consider donating some of your time to help this cause!’
COMMUNITY EVENTS
Click below to see what’s happening around your state or in our online community!
ALL CAMPUSES
Trimester 2 Events
Please visit our Events Page on Canvas for dates
World Wellbeing Week – Monday 27/06/2022 until 01/07/2022
Naidoc Week – Sunday 03/07/2022 until Friday 08/07/2022
Club Meetings (please enquire with your state)
Red Nose Day
Year 3 Farewell morning tea
End of Trimester Great Hike
DISTANCE LEARNING
Trimester 2 Online Events
Please visit our Events Page on Canvas for dates
World Wellbeing Week Monday – 27/06/2022 until 01/07/2022
Naidoc Week – Sunday 03/07/2022 until Friday 08/07/2022
Red Nose Day
IKON CLUBS
Are you interested in becoming a member of one of our awesome Ikon clubs? Complete the form below!
IKON STUDENT CLINIC
Integrative Psychology and Ikon have joined forces in Melbourne to facilitate therapy sessions for the general public offering low-cost face to face or zoom sessions with our amazing 3rd year Arts Therapy and Counselling and Psychotherapy students. To book a session send an email to: info@iptc.com.au or contact 1300 855 228.
Industry News and Trends
Ikon is participating in the 2022 Student Experience Survey (SES). The SES is a national survey being conducted for the Australian Government Department of Education, Skills and Employment. The results of this survey will help the higher education sector and the government improve students’ course experience and enhance teaching and learning in Australian higher education institutions to improve outcomes for students.
Your feedback is very important and will contribute directly to the experience of current and future students. The SES is administered by the Social Research Centre, not all students will receive an invitation to participate, only eligible students will receive a link. We encourage you to participate in this important survey, although your involvement is voluntary. All responses are confidential and aggregated for reporting purposes.
By completing the survey, you will be entered into a weekly prize draw for the chance to win a $1,000 prepaid VISA e-gift card. Watch your email inbox during early September for an invitation to complete the SES. Only current first year students who commenced in 22T1 and continuing students from previous years will receive a link. More information about the SES can be found here.
AROUND IKON
IN THE KNOW
Interview with Natalia Lomonosova is a well-known Ukrainiian psychologist.
When Loss, Trauma and Anxiety Lead to Transformative Growth
- Studies show that acute trauma can improve psychological health and create post-traumatic growth.
- An example is the case of a well-known psychologist who describes her own trauma experience and the precious 7 life lessons she learned.
- “In my case, I found that life can give you a parachute, but that parachute will only appear if you jump.”
Here’s an example of how a deep trauma brought post-traumatic growth to a well-known psychologist Natalia Lomonosova. We can all learn from Natalia’s life lessons.
Three months ago, when Ukrainian psychologist Natalia Lomonosova fled from Kyiv to Germany, leaving behind everything, she was interviewed in PT by Kaja Perina. Now, after 3 months of being in Germany, Tyler Wood and her husband met Natalia to ask her more questions.
What did you learn about yourself in the last 3 months?
Learning # 1: You can’t lose yourself.
I learned that, even if you lose everything else, you need to do everything you can not to lose yourself. I have lost everything, but I can’t and won’t lose myself.
Learning # 2: Everything I thought I owned was an illusion.
Everything that I thought I had (material things, money) was an illusion, and was unimportant. I realize now that the only thing that matters in the world for me is people and their kindness. People I met gave me material support, strength, and wisdom.
Learning # 3: There is no important reality other than inner reality.
The only important thing is how I feel about what is happening. It’s not what happens that hurts people, but how they interpret it.
Learning # 4: Never lose hope.
Now I see my life before as a constant rise to my peak, from which, because of the war, I had to jump, leaving everything, clutching my daughter’s hands, and closing my eyes in horror. It was a leap of faith.
In my case, I found out that life can give you a parachute, but that parachute will only appear if you jump. I jumped and was rescued by perfect strangers.
Hope is one of the few resources responsible for our peace in the present. Never lose your hope.
Learning # 5: I realize that there is no permanent “ME”.
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“ME” is a process, a self-creating and self-sustaining process. Self-confidence and happiness are not a given, but a habit. If you make self-confidence and happiness a habit, then, even if you lose everything like I did, you will know how to return to that habit.
Learning # 6: Hatred leads to a vicious circle of destruction, whereas goodness leads to a virtuous circle of love.
Good and evil are very important concepts, and we need to teach them to our children. Hatred leads to more hatred and anger breeds more anger, which leads to devastation and destruction. Goodness, on the other hand, breeds more goodness, which creates a virtuous circle of positive energy. We have to stay away from hatred and love ourselves, love people, and love life.
Learning # 7: Acceptance is a strength.
Acceptance is not a weakness, but a strength. We cannot change the past and we need to accept what happens to us even if there are unpleasant difficulties. If we look for easier ways, we’ll be surprised. Everywhere will be difficulties.
What happened in the last 3 months since your first interview with Kaja Perina?
One hundred days have passed since the morning of February 24th, when, at 5 a.m., I woke up in my bed to the sounds of bombing. It shook the whole of Ukraine, my Kyiv, my house, and all my insides. I couldn’t believe this was happening.
My 15-year-old daughter and I had absolutely no money. We were stunned by what had happened, shocked, exhausted, and, at times, in complete despair. We were vulnerable and defenseless and completely dependent on other people.
On the way out of Kyiv, we met people, both those who sincerely wanted to help us and those who used our misfortune to assert themselves or make a profit. Thus began our run through Europe in search of a place where we could rest and recover.
We were denied shelter and were given shelter. We were taken in and driven out into the street at night, thrown out on the road and picked up on the road. Everything was taken away from us, and then people we didn’t know, perfect strangers, gave us everything: housing, clothes, food, money. I now live in my own rental apartment in Homburg, Germany with my daughter and our dog.
How do you see your life now?
My life is really divided into before and after the trauma of losing everything.
Before, I doubted myself all the time. I was worried about what people thought of me. I tried to “be good,” and, I must admit, in the depths of my soul, I was afraid of people.
Then there is my life after, where I’m actually experiencing post-traumatic growth.
Can you describe your post-traumatic growth?
I have become calm and self-confident. I am more interested in the present. I appreciate my strengths and my shortcomings no longer bother me.
I overestimated some of my relationships. Without regret or guilt, I broke off those relationships that had weighed me down for years. Without fear, I opened myself up to new relationships. It turns out that I now have real friends—and these are completely different people from the friends I had before.
The main thing is that I discovered that a lot of people are good people who can really be trusted. I am now convinced that life is beautiful and wonderful in its essence, and this discovery shocks me even more than the war.
I experienced a “second birth” which was terribly scary and painful, but I like the new me more, and my new life—albeit from scratch—attracts me with opportunities rather than scares me with uncertainty.
I’m not sad about the losses. The Chinese character for “sad person” helps me. It is a picture of a man walking backwards. I have decided not to be that sad person. I am turning my face towards the future, towards life, and I feel clarity, lightness, and energy. I smile in the morning, and I love my daughter even more. I treasure my new friends. The old skin is shed, and I feel younger and stronger than I used to be.
Any big plans for the future?
Maybe I will write a book about how I was able to go through all this, like a thin needle and thread through the multi-colored beads of events, collecting the necklace of my life, which I will wear with gratitude.
References
https://psycnet.apa.org/record/2019-08188-001
https://academic.oup.com/hsw/article-abstract/32/2/129/581595
Recommended Viewing and Reading
🎥 The Wisdom of Trauma, featuring DR. Gabor Mate
Check it out
Mental Health and Wellbeing
Australia wide emergency contact information
Police and Emergency Services
Triple Zero (000)
24/7
You should call 000 if you need urgent help from police, fire or ambulance services.
Lifeline Australia
13 11 14
Online chat & phone support 24/7
Suicide Call Back Service
1300 659 467
Free professional Counselling 24/7
Beyond Blue
1300 22 4636
Online help & resources for all age groups 24/7
GriefLine
1300 845 745
6am – Midnight (7 Days)
Men’s Line
1300 78 99 78
24/7 phone counselling to support men experiencing life difficulties
The Butterfly Foundation
1300 33 4673
8am – Midnight (7 Days)
Phone counselling for those struggling with eating disorders
Twenty10
1800 184 527
3pm – Midnight (7 Days)
Phone counselling and support for those who identify as LGBTIQA+
IKON COMMUNITY PET PICTURE
We invite everyone to send us their pet pictures and write a little biography about them. We will then publish them each Trimester in our Ikon Journal and events page. At the end of the year, we will vote for who is the cutest, who is the funniest and who is the smartest.
We are so excited to see your friends!
Birdy, the 4 year old rescue wonder-pup!
