Digital Commons Network^™

Searching For Equity In Positivity: A Two-Year Case Study Of The Effectiveness Of The Implementation Of Positive Education In A West Australian Public Secondary School Following A Year 7 Cohort To Year 8, Veronica J. Sutton

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

This research evaluated the effectiveness of explicitly teaching Positive Education to early adolescent learners transitioning into a metropolitan, secondary public school in Western Australia and to understand the source of their stress and where they felt supported. Based on teacher feedback, a model for embedding the development of social and emotional competencies (Equity in Positivity) in the Western Australian secondary metropolitan public-school context, in a sustainable and cost-effective way, was developed over a six year period and linked to the Australian Wellbeing Hub (2020).

The researcher adopted a mixed method, instrumental bounded case study methodology, longitudinally applied through the lens …

Primary Specialisations In Australia: Graduates’ Perceptions Of Outcome And Impact, Susan Main, Matt Byrne, Joseph Scott, Kevin Sullivan, Annamaria Paolino, Eileen Slater, Jason Boron

Research outputs 2014 to 2021

In 2014, the Australian Government established the Teacher Education Ministerial Advisory Group (TEMAG) to advise on how teacher education programmes could ensure new teachers were adequately prepared for the classroom. Following this, the Australian Government endorsed a key recommendation of the TEMAG Action Now: Classroom Ready Teachers report, the inclusion of specialisations in primary Initial Teacher Education (ITE). This research was conducted at an Australian public university that, in 2016, had embedded specialisations in a revised primary teacher programme structure and was one of the first ITE institutions in Australia to graduate primary teachers with a specialisation. Using a mixed-methods …

Targeted Teacher Education To Improve Primary Preservice Teachers’ Knowledge And Understanding Of Uv And Effective Sun Protection Measures For Children, Joseph J. Scott, Robyn S. Johnston, Natasha Bear, Sonia Gregory, Sally Blane, Mark Strickland, Jill Darby, Elin S. Gray

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

Teachers are responsible for children at school during peak ultraviolet (UV) times of the day. It is paramount that teachers have knowledge and understanding of UV to effectively protect themselves and their students. The aim of this pilot study was to investigate the effect of a short intervention on preservice teachers’ sun protective behaviours, knowledge and perceived skill to teach sun safety. Participants (n =161; median age=20 years) attended a 45-minute preservice teacher sun safety intervention and completed pre- and post-test surveys. Post-intervention, most participants indicated they felt: i) more informed about the dangers of UV and risks of developing …

Online Education Practices And Teaching Team Compositions In Australian Preservice Primary Science Education, James Deehan

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

Australian Initial Teacher Education (ITE) has long been marred by instability, scrutiny and high academic workloads. University wide workforce changes and the proliferation of online education require ongoing consideration as these factors have the potential to both enrich ITE and exacerbate existing issues. As subsect of ITE, preservice primary science education faces unique hurdles as establish student-centred, authentic practices have historically been delivered by tenured staff in traditional face-to-face settings. This paper aims to explore online teaching practices and teaching team composition in Australian preservice primary science education via interview and survey data collected from 17 academics in a Type …

Investigating Primary Preservice Teachers’ Ultraviolet Radiation Awareness And Perceived Ability To Teach Sun Safety, Joseph Scott, Robyn Johnston, Mark Strickland, Jill Darby, Elin Gray

Research outputs 2014 to 2021

Issue addressed

Sun protection practices in Australian primary schools remain inconsistent. Therefore, this study investigates primary PSTs sun protective sun behaviours, ultraviolet (UV) radiation awareness and perceived ability to teach sun safety.

Methods

A convenience sample of undergraduate PSTs (N = 275; mean age = 23.13 years) enrolled at one Western Australian university completed an online survey. Descriptive analyses provided features of the data. Factors associated with sun protection behaviours and perceived knowledge and skill to teach sun safety were explored using multivariable logistic regression models.

Results

Lesser than 10% of participants reported using sun protective measures daily (midday shade …

Primary School Teachers’ Experience Of Mathematics Education: A Phenomenological Study, Sarah Jane Tamburri

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

Researchers and policymakers agree that all children can learn mathematics, and research has shown that teaching practices have a significant impact on student learning and achievement. Therefore, it is important that teachers are supported in their development as professionals and mathematics educators. This research gives a voice to a small number of primary school mathematics teachers, providing insight into their experience of mathematics education, from their perspective. In-depth interviews form the basis of data collection and these have been analysed through a transcendental phenomenological approach. The insights gained into teachers’ experiences and perspectives provide a deeper understanding of their role …

A Study On The Impact Of A Music Looping Technology Intervention Upon Pre-Service Generalist Teachers’ Self-Efficacy To Teach Music In Primary Schools, John Nathan Heyworth

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

In Australia, in the current climate of economic rationalism in which there has been an increasing emphasis on literacy and numeracy, funding for specialised subjects like music has been reducing. As a result, generalist classroom teachers are being given more responsibility for delivering effective music education in primary schools. However, the time dedicated to training pre-service teachers in music education in tertiary institutions has diminished. Further, time constraints involved in building pre-service knowledge and skills in teaching music may impact many pre-service teachers’ beliefs about their ability to teach music.

Within these constraints, digital technology may provide a key to …

Developing Primary Pre-Service Teachers' Mathematical Content Knowledge During Practicum Teaching, Sharyn L. Livy, Colleen Vale, Sandra Herbert

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

While it is recognised that a teachers’ mathematical content knowledge (MCK) is crucial for teaching, less is known about when different categories of MCK develop during teacher education. This paper reports on two primary pre-service teachers, whose MCK was investigated during their practicum experiences in first, second and fourth years of a four-year Bachelor of Education program. The results identify when and under what conditions pre-service teachers’ developed different categories of their MCK during practicum. Factors that assisted pre-service teachers to develop their MCK included program structure providing breadth and depth of experiences; sustained engagement for learning MCK; and …

Effective Teaching Practices For Aboriginal And Torres Strait Islander Students: A Review Of The Literature, Natalie J. Lloyd, Brian Ellis Lewthwaite, Barry Osborne, Helen J. Boon

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

This paper presents a review of the literature pertaining to the teacher actions that influence Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander student learning outcomes. This review investigates two foci: the identification of teacher actions influencing learning outcomes for Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander students and the methodological approach to how the influence of teacher behaviours on student learning has been determined. The literature review identifies that published literature in the effective teaching area is predominantly in the ‘good ideas’ category; that is assertions are made by authors with no research-based evidence for supporting such claims, especially through quantitative research which seeks …

Research In Action: Leading Literacy Learning In Primary Schools: Final Report 2013 - 2014, Deslea Konza

Research outputs 2014 to 2021

PALL Plus was funded by a Public Education Endowment Trust (PEET) grant and was conducted with the leaders of 12 primary schools serving low socio-economic communities in metropolitan Perth throughout 2013 and 2014. It was a development of the Principals as Literacy Leaders (PALL) pilot project funded by the Commonwealth Government in 2009-10, which was designed to assist primary school principals across Australia to develop their capacity to lead the teaching of reading in their schools...

Responding To The Evidence: Synthetic Phonics In Action: Final Report: Keys To Unlocking The Future 2012-2013, Deslea Konza

Research outputs 2014 to 2021

This project aimed to develop the capacity of primary teachers and School Support Officers (SSOs) to deliver a synthetic phonics program to beginning and struggling readers in 12 primary schools in the Yorke and Mid North region of South Australia. It was designed to ‘value-add’ to the Principals as Literacy Leaders (PALL) project which had been implemented in the region over the previous three years, and to build a critical mass of skilled teachers in a region that usually scored below average in reading on NAPLAN assessments.

A synthetic phonics program refers to one that teaches the alphabetic code or …

Second-Year Pre-Service Teachers’ Responses To Proportional Reasoning Test Items, Sharyn Livy, Sandra Herbert

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

A recent international study of pre-service teachers identified that proportional reasoning was problematic for pre-service teachers. Proportional reasoning is an important topic in the middle years of schooling and therefore it is critical that teachers understand this topic and can rely on their Mathematical Content Knowledge (MCK) when teaching. The focus of this paper is second-year Australian primary pre-service teachers’ MCK of real number items related to ratio, rate, proportion and proportional reasoning. This paper reports on strengths and weakness of pre-service teachers’ MCK when responding to test items; including a method suitable for analysing responses to five items and …

Transition Between Primary And Secondary School: Why It Is Important And How It Can Be Supported, Ria Hanewald Dr

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

This paper identifies and critiques literature on the experience of transition between primary and secondary school; how and why it is seen as critical and in what ways it can be supported. The aim of this literature review is to remind readers of this important period on the lives of young people and the diverse range of issues which they face. There is general consensus in the literature that well-designed and implemented transition approaches can assist in the process of supporting students, their families and school staff. Teachers are crucial in supporting children and young people moving in, between and …

“There’S No Big Book On How To Care”: Primary Pre-Service Teachers’ Experiences Of Caring, Hellen Kemp, Andrea Reupert

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

This study investigated primary, pre-service teachers' experiences regarding their caring role, and the barriers they face when caring for students. Thirteen Australian primary pre-service teachers were individually interviewed. Within a qualitative framework, transcripts were thematically analysed, alongside member checks. While results indicated highly individualised notions of care, common themes included difficulties in navigating the caring teacher role, the caring student-teacher relationship and gaps in training around notions of care. A continuum of care was identified, mediated by student and teacher factors as well as school location. This continuum provides a framework within which pre-service teachers might explore boundary issues.

The Pipeline Project: Trajectories Of Classroom Behaviour And Academic Progress : A Study Of Student Engagement With Learning, Max Angus, Tim Mcdonald, Chris Ormond, Rudy Rybarcyk, Anthea Taylor, Anne Winterton

Research outputs pre 2011

The Pipeline Project addresses three questions concerning the relationship between the classroom behaviour of students and their academic performance. First, to what extent does classroom behaviour explain why students fall behind and fail to meet acceptable standards in literacy and numeracy; second, if student classroom behaviour does influence academic performance, what forms of classroom behaviour are of most significance; and third, are the students whose behaviour has contributed to their underperformance in literacy and numeracy likely to ever catch up?

Teacher-Student Relationships In Primary Schools In Perth, Natalie C. Leitao

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

This study investigated teacher-student relationships at Perth metropolitan schools in Western Australia. From the literature, three key social and emotional aspects that affect teacher-student relationships, namely, Connectedness, Availability and Communication, were identified as important to good, positive teacher-student relationships. Data were collected in four parts: (1) through a teacher questionnaire; (2) through a student questionnaire; (3) through teacher interviews; and (4) through student interviews. The three relationship aspects formed the structure of a teacher questionnaire in which ten stem-items were conceptualised from easy to hard - four stem-items for Connectedness, three for Availability, and three for Communication - and answered …

Aboriginal Students And The Western Australian Literacy And Numeracy Assessment, Sean Gorman

Research outputs pre 2011

Since the introduction of standardised testing in Western Australia with the Western Australian Literacy and Numeracy Assessment (WALNA) it has become quite evident that Indigenous students' performance is well below that of non-Indigenous students.

As WALNA is now very much a part of the pedagogical landscape steps must be taken to ensure that those students who are not reaching the benchmark scores or the MSE requirements do progress...

A Randomised Control Trial To Reduce Bullying And Other Aggressive Behaviours In Secondary Schools, Donna Cross, Hall Marg, Stacey Waters, Greg Hamilton

Research outputs pre 2011

In Australia bullying tends to peak twice in a school student's life - firstly at age 1 0 to 12 and then during the two years following their transition to secondary school (Rigby, 1994; Slee, 1995b) This transition to secondary school is considered a critical period to intervene on bullying (Farrington, 1993; Rigby, 1997, 1999; Sharp, 1995; Stevens, Bourdeaudhuij, & Van Oost, 2000; Whitney & Smith, 1993). It is suggested that compared with primary schools, the change in friendship structures that accompanies the move to secondary school, large student numbers and the less consistent contact and fewer close relationships between …

An Exploratory Case Study Using An Expert Learning Process Designed To Promote Number Sense In A Year 6 Classroom, Paula Mildenhall

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

not available

Character Cars : How Computer Technology Enhances Learning In Terms Of Arts Ideas And Arts Skills And Proceses In A Year 7 Male Visual Arts Education Program, Gemma E. Scarparolo

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

'The possibilities that the technology can offer are seemingly endless and remain to be fully explored in [visual] art education." (Callow. 2001. p,43) The aim of this research is to investigate whether the integration of Visual Arts Technology Tools (TECH-TOOLS) into Traditional Visual Arts Programs (TRAD-['ROG) enhance the students' learning in terms of Arts Ideas (AI) and Arts Skills and Processes (ASP) and whether it is a cost effective option for Western Australian primary schools. To determine whether it is worth the inclusion of TECH-TOOLS in terms of enhancing learning. this research will statistically state whether the combination of TECH-TOOLS …

Early Education : Experiences And Perceptions Of Minority Group Parents And Young Children, Judith Candy

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

In Australia there has been little research into the experiences and perceptions of education of parents from different minority groups whose young children attend school in this country. This study investigated the experiences that overseas born parents from non-English speaking backgrounds have of their own and their children's education in countries outside Australia, experiences of their children's early education in Australia, as well as those of their young children between 6 and 9 years of age attending school in this country. Despite marked differences in educational policies and practices operating in the participants' countries of origin, almost all parents in …

Reading Comprehension, And Attitude And Behaviour, Of Students Taught Esl By Cooperative Learning In Prathom (Grade)6 Classrooms In Thailand, Sutaporn Chayarathee

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

A system-wide educational change has been implemented in primary, secondary and tertiary education in Thailand. One major aspect of the change was the requirement for all students from grade I onwards to study English as a second language (ESL). The change requires new methods of teaching and learning, such as cooperative learning, to be introduced in Thai ESL classrooms. This study aims to determine if cooperative learning improves English reading comprehension, and attitude and behaviour to learning ESL, compared to a Thai communicative methodology. The study was conducted in three phases. Phase 1 involved creating a linear scale of English …

The Computation Choices Made By Students In Years 5 To 7, Paul Swan

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

This study was designed to explore the computation choices made by 78 students in Years 5 to 7. The ability to choose and use a repertoire of computation methods is an important goal of mathematics education. While one might expect to find a great deal of research outlining the computation choices students make and why they make them, this was not the case; and as such it was decided to explore what computation choices students make and why they make them.

Year One Children's Literacy Behaviours And Perceptions Of Literacy Learning In The Classroom And Reading Recovery Contexts, Fiona Callaghan

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

This study investigates the ways in which four Year One children engage in the literacy events of their regular and Reading Recovery classrooms. It explores how these children perceived their beginning reading instruction and possible relationships between the children's perceptions and the ways in which they ‘did' literacy in each setting. The study draws on research in beginning reading instruction from both a psychological and socio-cultural perspective, as well as research into withdrawal programs for children experiencing difficulty in learning to read and the Reading Recovery program itself. A case study approach was used in this study and data collection …

Communicative Interaction In The English Language Classroom : A Field Study Of A Western Teacher As Change Agent In Two Chinese Primary Schools In Zhong Shan, People's Republic Of China, Monika Trittibach-Andres

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

The purpose of this study was to investigate the influence of a 'Change Agent' in teaching English as a Foreign Language (EFL) in Chinese primary schools, and to determine whether changes were perceivable in the number and type of communicative interactions that occurred in EFL classrooms. The Department of Education of Zhong Shan, People's Republic of China, welcomed this research as the communicative approach to teaching English is sanctioned by the authorities. However, the formality of the actual classroom in primary schools often precludes much use of this method. An Investigation of the influence of a Westerner in the role …

Teacher-Class, Teacher-Group And Student Interactions : Opportunities For Learning In Primary Science Classrooms, Christine A. Coulstock

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

Many studies have investigated learning in science classes, examining various influences on the understandings that students develop. The purpose of this study was to investigate the interactions that took place in upper primary science lessons, and the teacher and student behaviours affected these interactions and the opportunities for learning. The three classes that were selected for the study were similar and the teachers were all experienced primary teachers. The teachers were supplied with a set of science lessons on the topic of electric circuits. The resources included background information for the teachers and suggested activities, demonstrations, analogies and focus questions …

Creating Non-Representational Art By Students Who Are Severely Intellectually Disabled Through A Pictorial And Musical Program, Jane Riddoch

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

The main purpose of this research study was to investigate the worth of a recently developed Pictorial and Musical art program for severely intellectually disabled students, and to compare the non-representational art work produced by lower primary students in a special education school to similar art work being produced by lower primary students in a regular school, when taught in the same program. A subsidiary purpose of the study was to investigate teacher reactions in the art classroom of each participating school, and to observe the extent of the Pictorial and Musical program interventions on the students' attitudes and production …

Aid Administration Of Bilateral, Multilateral And Non-Government Organisations In The Primary Education Sector: A Comparative Case Study Analysis Of Zambia, Patrick Nkhoma

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

This is a study of the administration of aid by bilateral, multilateral and non-government organisations in Zambia during the period 1990 to 2000. The particular purpose of this study is to compare the aid programs administered by the above organisations to the primary education sector using a case study approach. The study critically analyses how the performance of these organisation is or is not influenced by setting clear objectives, by elaborating planning processes and implementation arrangements. The study uses a matrix table developed through a NUD*IST retrieval reports generated from the data collected from each organisation’s documentation and in-depth interviews …

Regular Teachers' Attitudes To The Need For Additional Classroom Support For Integrated Students With Intellectual Disabilities, Rory Mcnally

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

The purpose of this study was to examine regular classroom teachers' attitudes to additional classroom support, both physical and personnel, for students with mild and severe intellectual disabilities who may be integrated into regular classrooms. The concerns of the regular classroom teachers with regard to the successful inclusion of students with intellectual disabilities are certainly merit addressing. As the regular classroom teachers are largely responsible for the education of these integrated students, it is worthwhile to examine their perceived support levels in relation to integrated students with intellectual disabilities. It is anticipated that the results of this study will prove …

Insights Into Drama In The Early Childhood Setting: A Rationale For The Use Of Drama, Lynette Kaye Moss

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

This research is an investigation into the implementation of drama in early childhood education conducted in one Perth metropolitan primary school, over a three-week period. The six drama lessons were taught by the researcher/practitioner in a Pre-primary and a Year One class. These students were chosen for their limited exposure to the Drama in Education experience. The expectation was of a less conditioned response both in their conduct and expression within the drama environment. The lessons were captured on video and transcribed, then analysed utilising an ethnomethodological methodology. The responses of these children were recorded in an attempt to disclose …