16 research outputs found
Assessment
No full textThis chapter focuses on developing a conceptual understanding of assessment for middle years students. The author provides a summary of assessment types, their purposes, and a set of assessment tools appropriate for middle school students. An intentional approach to assessment design is advocated. This approach follows three key principles: validity (measures intended knowledge/skills), reliability (consistent results across similar groups) and fitness for purpose (provides relevant information for intended purpose and stakeholders). When designing and planning assessment tasks for middle years students, the author recommends that teachers ensure the tasks are meaningful and fair to students and well aligned to learning objectives. An example of a well-designed assessment task for middle years students is explored. The three components of intentional feedback (feeding up, feeding back, and feeding forward) are explained and feedback strategies are provided. An eight-step process for developing effective assessment for middle years students is provided. Steps for designing an effective rubric are also included. Opportunities for using ICTs and AI in designing middle years assessment tasks are considered and guidelines offered.No Full Tex
Study and Tourism: Challenges for International Students in 2020
No full textInternational students make a vibrant contribution to Australian universities and the tourism industry. During the COVID-19 pandemic international students were placed under additional stress (as was the world) to manage study and life. For those students who came to Australia with an intention to travel, they had those tourist aspirations halted as the country closed its borders and shared in global efforts to stop the spread of COVID-19. This chapter presents research, undertaken prior to and during the COVID-19 pandemic, about international student wellbeing. Findings highlight the significant impact the pandemic had on international students’ living and study experiences, and particularly limitations to their travel aspirations which are an important factor in deciding to study in another country.No Full Tex
Foundation Paper: Age Appropriate Pedagogies for the Early Years of Schooling
No full textThis report provides a review key literature and research on age-appropriate pedagogies in the early years of schooling. It examines the features of age-appropriate pedagogies that engage young children and achieve effective learning outcomes, and considers the alignment of these learning and teaching approaches with current school accountability expectations.
The paper is guided by a belief that debates which position pedagogical approaches as binary opposites are unhelpful. For example, it rejects the notion that play and explicit instruction are mutually exclusive, offering instead the view that they can co-exist and that both are beneficial,
dependent upon the participants, context, purpose, and duration of learning experiences. As such, this report adopts the view that pedagogies need to be varied and also recognises the co-constructed nature of pedagogy. This perspective recognises that pedagogies need to take account
of age, background, and abilities of individual learners as well as the interests of both children and teachers. These beliefs frame this discussion and are provided here in order to ensure that the possibilities inherent within a range of pedagogical approaches, including play-based approaches,
are presented. There are six sections in the paper.Full Tex
Developing reflection and critical thinking in a leadership education course: leading learning and change
No full textIn higher education learning environments, critical thinking is often an assumed skill; however, many students require explicit support to effectively achieve in this area. This research focuses on the application of scaffolded learning experiences to promote reflection and critical thinking in a post-graduate educational leadership course. It particularly recognises the unique challenges for international students, managing their transition into a culturally different learning environment while meeting the academic and critical thinking demands of higher education. This research draws on two main data sources: student survey responses regarding reflections on the concept of leadership and researcher reflections on student engagement and critical thinking. Descriptive analysis provided profiles of the student cohort and their views on leadership. Three themes emerged from the analysis of open-ended responses regarding views on leadership: diverse understandings of leadership; the importance of leadership actions for change; and evaluating leadership–self and others. Reflections from one researcher on the conduct of the course and student work provided a link between the initial design and student outcomes. Two levels of positive outcomes were found. Firstly, a greater level of early engagement in course learning activities was observed which continued across the course. Secondly, students’ learning and achievement were greater than a previous cohort implying the benefits of early modelling of reflective practices to scaffold students’ critical thinking. Importantly, stronger tutorial engagement supporting critical reflections is likely to translate to other post-graduate studies. Recommendations for further research on students’ engagement and critical thinking are proposed.Full Tex
The role of Secondary School Extracurricular music activities as a learning context
No full textMusic education in secondary schools often incorporates an extracurricular dimension with choirs, instrumental ensembles, and school productions given a considerable commitment of time and resources outside of formal school hours. In general, participation in school extracurricular activities has been linked to improved academic performance, greater connectedness with school and the development of certain personal and interpersonal skills. The meanings participants make of their learning in the extracurricular context, however, is not yet fully understood. As participants will act towards their extracurricular learning on the basis of the meaning that the learning holds for them, understanding these meanings is important in itself. Given the difficulty in attributing particular learning to participants' involvement in school extracurricular music activities, their meanings also offer a useful lens through which to view the nature of this learning. This paper will outline current research into participants' meanings of learning in the secondary school extracurriculum including initial data from a Music Head of Department involved in the direction and coordination of extracurricular music activities.Arts, Education & Law Group, School of Education and Professional StudiesFull Tex
Parent Perspectives on the Presentation, Triggers, Impact, and Support of Anxiety in Young Children on the Autism Spectrum
No full textObjectives: A high proportion of children with autism experience elevated anxiety, which is evident from an early age. Although parents provide a significant role in recognising the early signs and triggers of their child’s anxiety and in prompting help-seeking, there are few studies using qualitative methods to document parent perspectives around their child’s anxiety. The aim of this study is to explore parent perspectives of their child’s anxiety across home and school. Methods: Semi-structured interviews were conducted with parents of 10 young children (5–8 years) with autism to explore their understanding of their child’s presentation and triggers of anxiety across different settings (home and school) as well as the strategies and supports used to manage the anxiety in the home and school setting. Thematic analysis of the data Results: Parents reported signs of anxiety were evident in their child from a young age but recognising these signs and distinguishing anxiety from other behaviours was difficult. Triggers identified related to sensory experiences, academic expectations, social demands, and uncertainty, all of which were discussed in relation to the school context. Parents shared how supporting their child with autism is multifaceted and is related to understanding the individual child’s anxiety. Conclusions: These findings highlight the heterogeneity of anxiety presentation in children with autism and the challenge in differentiating anxiety from other behaviours both in home and school settings.Full Tex
Students' Voices on the Extracurriculum: A Curriculum Necessity
No full textSchools have been given responsibilities to engage young people in order that they may be
educated. Aside from providing core curriculum components, schools across the world undertake other activities with students, some of which are labelled extracurricular. Research has identified benefits for students who participate in these activities, often linked with school engagement and increased academic success as well as non-academic and social benefits, all of which imply that processes exist within these activities, embedded in their school contexts, that aid student development. Other research of school and community activities has addressed positive youth development, however, the processes and mechanisms by which students develop in the secondary school extracurriculum are not yet made clear. Guided by Blumer’s (1969) symbolic interactionism, this study aimed at exploring the meanings held by students about their learning in the extracurriculum. In order to gain insight into how students perceived their learning by participating in secondary school extracurricular activities, a multiple case study in three schools was undertaken. The schools were chosen because all had well-functioning extracurricular programs and because they represented a range of characteristics in terms of school size, school governance, and student gender. Data were gathered using nominal group techniques (Delbecq, Van de Ven, & Gustafson, 1975) in focus group discussions. Because activity in this extracurricular context is not formally assessed, student voice was paramount in eliciting a deep understanding of the participants’ development. Data were analysed using grounded theory methods (Strauss & Corbin, 1990) both within and across cases. From the resulting categories of learning taken from experience of the extracurriculum, a students’ view was distilled as a tentative model to explain this curriculum phenomenon. The model includes the diverse and comprehensive range of learnings students identify under four broad categories: social, physical, intellectual, and personal learnings. Findings from the study contribute to knowledge about student development in extracurricular activities, an understanding of the extracurriculum as an essential contributor to that development, and acknowledgment that student voice has a vital role to play in informing curriculum development, implementation, and evaluation in secondary schools. Given its rich potential for student development and its likely impact upon their future lives, the extracurriculum should be repositioned as an integral part of secondary school curriculum—a curriculum necessity.Thesis (PhD Doctorate)Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)School of Education and Professional StudiesArts, Education and LawFull Tex
The out-of-field phenomenon: Perceptive consequences and support needs through the lens of graduating second career preservice teachers.
No full textSecond career preservice teachers' perceptions about the out-of-field teaching phenomenon might influence career decisions, such as retention and attrition. A target group of 133 second career graduating Master of Teaching students voluntarily participated in this mixed method study which offered findings through analysed open and Likert-scale questions and semi-structured interview data. The pilot offers new information about second career preservice teachers' perceptions about their possible involvement in out-of-field teaching practices and the phenomenon's implications for capabilities, skills knowledge, self-efficacy, support needs and professional identity. A critical reflection on quality teaching and teacher training programs, and preparation for the teaching profession form the foundation for further research in this field. The analyses further stimulate a deeper understanding of the future second career teaching workforce and perceptions of support resources
Distributed Leadership: Theory and Practice Dimensions in Systems, Schools, and Communities
No full textLeadership, no matter the setting in which it is exercised, always involves three central concepts: purpose, context, and human agency. Consistent with this understanding, in this chapter we discuss the significance of contextual influences on leadership and the need to acquire a contextual literacy capacity as leaders engage with others in the pursuit of desired ends.
The importance of the capacity to understand the context in which leadership and learning take place has been raised and discussed in scholarly writing for over 50 years in education but with little empirical backing until recently. We therefore offer first, a brief discussion of the writing of some of the key scholars who have highlighted the need for greater attention to be given to learning contexts because of the ever-present influence they bring to leadership activity that makes a difference in people’s lives. This discussion serves as a warrant for the focus of the book on a diverse range of studies and projects from different school and social settings aimed at making a difference through leadership by, with, and through others. This view of leadership leads us to interrogate current understandings and practices of distributed leadership, responding to two salient questions: Why the turn to distributed leadership in schools and communities? And, how can the complexity of distributed leadership be understood as it occurs, not only in educational systems but more broadly in schools and communities, by principals, teachers, students, parents, carers, and community groups?Arts, Education & Law Group, School of Education and Professional StudiesNo Full Tex
Leading age-appropriate pedagogies in the early years of school
No full textThere is increasing pressure on leaders and teachers to improve the academic achievement of children in the early years of school. Alongside this is recognition that social and emotional development are the important drivers of children’s school and lifetime success. This paper reports on the design and leadership of the pilot phase of the Age Appropriate Pedagogies program commissioned by the Queensland Department of Education and Training to refocus pedagogical practices in the early years of school. This refocus was deemed to be necessary in order to achieve strong academic outcomes while ensuring that children’s holistic development remained a key component of all learning and teaching. The program was developed by a Griffith University research team using an innovative research-informed and research-led design framed around the core premises that underpin Fullan’s (2007) theory of action for educational change. The program consisted of both professional learning and research, with these two components being inextricably linked via school-based action research projects. Findings from the pilot, conducted in 45 state schools across three regions, illustrate the positive effects that can be generated when systems, schools and universities work together in a research and professional learning partnership
