Education Commons^™

Teacher Educators’ And Pre-Service Teachers’ Preparedness To Use Ict: A Western Australian Perspective, Huifen Jin

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

With the ongoing development of the Information and Communication Technology (ICT), a wide variety of devices, software and apps are available that could be used in education. As a result, universities and schools are adopting different policies and strategies for integrating these new technologies. As teachers are a key element in the implementation of educational innovation, teacher educators and pre-service teachers need to be confident in using ICT effectively in teaching and learning.

This study proposed to investigate how teacher educators’ and pre-service teachers’ integration of ICT in their teaching and learning. A mixed methods design, that included both quantitative …

Comparative Pairs Judgements For High-Stakes Practical Assessments, Hendrati Nastiti

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

Assessment of practical tasks, as opposed to that of theoretical tasks, has been considered to be problematic, mainly because it is usually resource intensive and the scoring is subjective. Most practical tasks need to be assessed on site or involve products that need to be collected, stored, or transported. Moreover, because practical tasks are generally open-ended, and therefore subjective, there is concern over the reliability of the scores. In high-stakes assessment, these problems are even more challenging. There is a need for an assessment method that could overcome these problems. In this study, such a method that will be referred …

Does Facial Physiognomy In The Context Of Anoccupational Safety And Health Message Predict Outcomes?, Ian Parker

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

Physiognomy, the practice of looking to another person’s outward facial appearance to unmask the inner character of that person, has had a diverse historical impact within art, medicine, theology, anthropology, law, criminology, political history, psychology, psychiatry, and popular culture, since it was conceptualised in Greece during the 5th and 4th centuries B.C (Physiognomy, 1999-2009, 2009a). Aristotle, the prominent Greek philosopher, penned many chapters on physiognomic properties and touched upon strength/weakness, genius/stupidity, and other trait characteristics and their opposites in so far as such characteristics were associated with facial form (Physiognomy, 2006, 2009b).

In more modern times, facial recognition and evaluation …

Early Childhood Hass Matters: An Investigation Of Early Childhood Staff And Their Transition To The New Western Australian Humanities And Social Sciences Curriculum In 2017, Jane Loxton

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

Changes to education policies and the creation of new curricula in Western Australia (WA), such as the new WA Humanities and Social Sciences (HASS) Curriculum in 2017, may place external pressure on teachers as they transition from existing to new curricula. The aim of this interpretivist study was to investigate the transition to the new WA HASS Curriculum in 2017. The experiences and perspectives of the school leaders and teachers in Pre-primary, Year One and Year Two (PP to Y2) in two Perth metropolitan independent schools was explored. The preparation undertaken by the early childhood teachers and leaders, and the …

The Online Student Experience: An Exploration Of First-Year University Students’ Expectations, Experiences And Outcomes Of Online Education, Melanie Henry

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

Online higher education presents a critical opportunity to extend and diversify the student body. The Online Student Experience (OSE), and online student outcomes, however, remain shrouded in ambiguity. The literature presents conflicting reports of online education (OE) quality, confounded by a lack of appreciation for potential differences between online and on-campus education, and a diversity of interpretations for what constitutes OE. The present research conceptualises OE as representing university courses that require students to interact with instructors and course materials via the internet, with no expectation of attending a university campus. A broad student-centred perspective is notably lacking from the …

Teacher Identity Construction In A Tesol Graduate Certificate Of Education In Western Australia, Arman Abednia

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

This research project explored the potential of a second language teacher education course for fostering teacher identity negotiation. It was found that classroom conversations provided a rich space for teacher identity negotiation; however, no substantial changes were observed in most aspects of their identities during the course, except for a growth in a few teachers’ selfconfidence. The implications are that conducting teacher education in an interactive manner is highly beneficial, but deeper engagement with practice of teaching is recommended. These insights should facilitate positive outcomes for teacher education programs.

Enhancing Learning And Assessment Of Pre-Service Teachers On Practicum Placements Using Mobile Technologies With Video Capture, Christopher E. Dann

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

Across all educational jurisdictions, each year, large numbers of pre-service teachers are assessed for their suitability for teaching during their teacher education courses, in schools and institutions through practicum placements or workplace learning. Despite their widespread use, practicums can be notoriously variable and unreliable in terms of assessment (Rorrison, 2008) and in promoting professional learning (Grudnoff, 2011). The study reported through the publications explicit or referred to in this exegesis focused on the development of a mobile application (‘app’) to address the problems of assessment and professional growth. It was a specific response to the emerging use of mobile devices …

Maximising The Contributions Of Phd Graduates To National Development: The Case Of The Seychelles, Marina Fatima Confait

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) degree is the pinnacle of educational attainment and the most respected of the doctoral programs. The degree certifies the holder as an independent researcher, an expert with extensive knowledge about the chosen field of study, and a professional with a wide range of transferable skills . As such, PhD graduates have the capability to make important contributions to knowledge and drive change in society. Furthermore, PhD graduates represent accumulated human capital, a valuable human resource with potential for making significant contributions to a country’s development. This can materialise through enhancing the knowledge of others, performing …

Examining The Perceived Benefit Of Education For Aboriginal Secondary Students In Western Australia, Mary-Anne Macdonald

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

Indigenous and remote Australians have lower education and employment levels than non- Indigenous and urban Australians and face continued socio-economic disadvantage. Many contemporary voices have called for quantitative evidence for Indigenous education policy. The current thesis responds to this gap in the literature by developing a factor model of Indigenous education engagement, and supports this with regression equations and qualitative interviews exploring the impact of various experiences on Indigenous engagement with secondary school. The current study found that, despite gap in attendance rates, Year 12 completion rates, and tertiary education enrolment and completion, Indigenous and non-Indigenous participants alike ascribed a …

An Unfamiliar Face, An Unfamiliar Environment: Investigating Educators’ Understanding Of Their Attachment Relationships With Infants And Toddlers In Early Childhood Education And Care Settings, Nadia Wilson-Ali

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

Attachment theory has influenced research, policy and practice over the last six decades, offering a framework for understanding risk and protective factors in early childhood. However, this work has primarily been influenced from a medical health or psychological perspective. Despite the literature highlighting the importance of attachment relationships, there is limited research relating to educators’ knowledge and understanding of attachment theory. The first years of life are considered a sensitive period for attachment development, and with families increasingly utilising formal care for their infants and toddlers, educators are in a prime position to use attachment theory to inform their practices …

Automated Optical Mark Recognition Scoring System For Multiple-Choice Questions, Murtadha Alomran

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

Multiple-choice questions are one of the questions commonly used in assessments. It is widely used because this type of examination can be an effective and reliable way to examine the level of student’s knowledge. So far, this type of examination can either be marked by hand or with specialised answer sheets and scanning equipment. There are specialised answer sheets and scanning equipment to mark multiple-choice questions automatically. However, these are expensive, specialised and restrictive answer sheets and optical mark recognition scanners.

This research aims to design and implement a multiple-choice answer sheet and a reliable image processing-based scoring system that …

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 …

What Is English Now? The Construction Of Subject English In Contemporary Textbooks For Australian Secondary Schools, Shannon L. Wells

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

Australian educators are currently engaged in widening debates about the performance of the nation’s schools, teachers and students. Perceived literacy deficits among secondary students have fuelled the debate, and this has precipitated reforms to English curricula at both National and State levels. The newly revised curricula attempt to improve student achievement through more systematic teaching about the English language and language skills. In response to the changes, major education publishers in Australia have released revised textbooks for English that purport to engage with the new curriculum.

This research study considered whether such new resources offer genuinely fresh and effective approaches …

Investigating The Use Of A Digital Diary For Home-School Communication Between Parents And Teachers Of Children With Additional Needs, Dawn Lisa Hallett

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

The use of paper diaries to facilitate home-school communication for children with additional needs has shown to have numerous limitations. While the use of mobile digital devices has increased in schools, little research exists into the use of these devices for home-school communication purposes. This study explored the effects of using a digital diary to facilitate home-school communication for primary aged children with additional needs. A constructivist multiple case study approach was used. The digital diary utilised the software application Evernote. This free application was hosted on study participants’ mobile devices or accessed over the Internet. Pre-innovation interviews and surveys …

Investigating The Relationships Between Education And Culture For Female Students In Tertiary Settings In The Uae, Beverley Mcclusky

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

This research is about the higher education of Indigenous Emirati women and how they balance the intricate demands of higher education with the social customs of a traditional society and the expectations placed on women. The study sought to identify and comprehend the issues which have affected the educational changes that are taking place, including culture, gender, religion, the influence of Western education processes, and the desire of an Indigenous population to raise their educational practices to an internationally recognised benchmark.

The research was aimed at providing insights into the distinctiveness of this group of women from their social and …

Coaching Parents Of Children With Adhd: A Western Australian Study, Susan Mary Hughes

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

Parents of children with Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) often experience emotional and behavioural difficulties that contribute to stress and conflict in their family relationships. ADHD Parent Coaching is a promising intervention for these families; however, little is known about its effectiveness. This study explored the effects parent coaching had on parents of children with ADHD using descriptive case study methodology. A secondary purpose was to measure any reduction in stress and homework problems. A workshop offering solutions to homework-related issues was conducted over two consecutive weeks. Parents who attended (N=10) were offered parent coaching, and five parents were subsequently coached …

Chinese Nursing Students At Australian Universities: A Narrative Inquiry Into Their Motivation, Learning Experience, And Future Career Planning, Carol Chungfeng Wang

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

This study presents a narrative inquiry of Chinese nursing students at Australian universities in order to examine these students’ motivations, learning experiences and future career planning. Australia seeks to attract international nursing students from China to maintain its economic advantage and alleviate its projected nursing shortage. In contrast, China desperately needs its best and brightest citizens who have trained abroad as nurses to return to China in order to cope with its current challenges in the healthcare system and nursing education. Little is known about the underlying factors that motivate Chinese nursing students to study in Australia, these students’ learning …

Lost In Translation? – The “Integration Of Theory And Practice” As A Central Focus For Senior Schooling Physical Education Studies, Andrew Jones

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

In February 2007 a new senior secondary Physical Education Studies (PES) was introduced in Western Australia (WA). The course was one of some 50 new courses that were developed in conjunction with the introduction of a new Western Australian Certificate of Education (WACE). Notably, the rationale for PES claimed that the “integration of theory and practice is central to studies in this course” (Curriculum Council of WA [CCWA], 2009, p. 2). Focusing on the initial years of implementation this study explored curriculum change and reform within the Health and Physical Education (HPE) Learning Area and specifically, in the context of …

Primary Students’ Engagement With The Visual Arts And Their Transition Into Year 7, Zoe Wittber

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

Visual Arts education is fundamental to an effective school curriculum for primary and secondary students. It provides students with opportunities for expression and personal growth, essential to a holistic education. Recently, in Perth, Western Australia (WA) several secondary Visual Arts educators expressed what they saw as a significant deficit in the outcomes of Making and Responding in Visual Arts, evidenced in their Year 7 students who had recently graduated from primary school. Consequently, this research investigated the extent of Year 7 students’ prior Visual Arts experiences upon entry into secondary school.

The research engaged a qualitative research approach to gather …

The Prevalence Of Twice Exceptional Students In The Gat Academic Programs: The Near Miss Phenomena, Lynne Ivicevic

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

Twice exceptional (TE) students often experience barriers to their participation in gifted academic programs that contribute to their marginalised status amongst the school gifted population. The estimated prevalence of TE students in gifted programs worldwide varies according to the location, identification means and definition, with little agreement reached between researchers in the field. This research was made up of three interrelated studies. Firstly, six years of longitudinal quantitative cohort data from the Western Australian Department of Education (DoE) database on selected students for the GAT programs including GAT Academic programs and TE students to determine TE prevalence. Secondly, disability prevalence …

Creative River Journeys: Using Reflective Practice To Investigate Creative Practice-Led Research, Kylie J. Stevenson

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

This ‘Creative River Journey’ doctoral study explored the processes of art practice and knowledge-making by six artist–researchers engaged in creative higher degrees by research (HDR) at Edith Cowan University (ECU) in three arts disciplines—performing arts, visual arts, and creative writing. The study applied the Creative River Journey (CRJ) reflective practice strategy, originally applied as the River Journey tool in music education (Burnard, 2000; Kerchner, 2006), but further developed by the researcher into a three-phase reflective practice strategy for its application in complex practice-led research projects over the extended period of the participants’ HDR studies. Six rich cases studies of HDR …

Exploring The Impact Of Postgraduate Preservice Primary Science Education On Students’ Self-Efficacy, Christina Maria Norris

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

The effectiveness of science teaching in primary school is dependent upon teachers’ self-efficacy to teach science. Low self-efficacy has been linked to avoidance of teaching primary science; therefore, preservice teacher self-efficacy requires fostering to have graduates keen to teach primary science. Through an embedded mixed method intrinsic-case study, this research explored the impact of postgraduate preservice primary science education on students’ self-efficacy. This research examined the postgraduate students’ self-efficacy as the lens to determine the effectiveness of the design and pedagogical instruction of the unit and its tutors. Data sources included the use of pre/post surveys encompassing the Science Teaching …

International Postgraduate Students And Their Reasons For Choosing To Study At Public Universities In Perth, Western Australia, Steven Cohen

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

The global higher education sector has become increasingly competitive. A large segment of that market now consists of attracting international students. Understanding why these students are motivated to study overseas is crucial for universities seeking to attract the transnational students as well as for the host country. Trading education is now Australia’s third largest export. As the international market for students becomes more crowded, it is imperative that thorough and concise research occurs to assist local universities within Australia to maintain their competitive advantage.

Perth, Western Australia (WA) comprises a small segment of the international Australian tertiary education market. An …

Combining Content-Based And Eap Approaches To Academic Writing: Towards An Eclectic Program, Rosemary Joy Allen

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

Over the past decade, Australian universities have experienced an exponential increase in the enrolment of fee-paying overseas students whose preparation for tertiary studies may differ significantly from that of local students. Despite English language proficiency requirements, there is some concern that international entry tests do not adequately measure the complex features of university writing; an important concern given that student success is heavily dependent on their mastery of academic writing. As a result, many international students require additional support structures. Until the present, debate about the most effective way to meet the diverse needs of English as an Additional Language …

A Design Thinking Approach To Professional Development In Reasonable Adjustment: A New Methodology For Trainers In The Vocational Education And Training Sector Of Western Australia, Russell Thom

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

This research has demonstrated that design thinking (DT) could be used as a professional development (PD) methodology for Vocational Education and Training (VET) trainers in understanding and applying reasonable adjustment (RA). The use of design thinking has the further benefit of raising the trainer’s empathy and understanding of the impact of injury and disability upon a person’s life and the significance of RA outside of the training context.

A workshop (PD session) was designed and conducted to explorer the relevance and success of the PD framework and the use of design thinking in developing an understanding and applying RA. The …

Digital Storytelling As A Means Of Supporting Digital Literacy Learning In An Upper-Primary-School English Language Classroom, Natalia Churchill

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

Digital literacy learning has become a requirement created by the wide development and application of new technologies for communication and representation. In the context of this study, ‘digital literacy’ is defined as a set of skills that enable an individual to use technologies to work with information. It builds on the traditional literacies of reading, writing, listening and speaking and includes elements of information literacy, media literacy and technology skills.

The purpose of this study was to investigate digital literacy learning in terms of the set of competencies - aspects of digital literacy - that a student in an …

Journeys Towards Expertise In Technology-Supported Teaching, Lorraine H. Kershaw

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

Expertise in technology-supported teaching needs to be understood from multi-dimensional perspectives and influences, if raising teacher quality is a desired goal of education services. This study aimed to uncover the interactive influences of teachers' pedagogical practices, learning experiences and personal characteristics and how their decisions impacted upon their growth in expert technology-supported teaching. A mixed methods approach incorporated case study techniques, use of quantitative and qualitative data and was informed by grounded theory. Five female primary teachers participated in this research which was conducted during one year over two data collection stages in a technology-supportive independent Australian girls' school.

Variations …

The Role Of Simulation-Based Learning Environments In Preparing Undergraduate Health Students For Clinical Practice, Brennen Mills

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

Experiential learning (EL), whereby students are able to integrate theory with practice, is an essential component of learning for health professionals. Traditionally, EL in the health education context has been achieved through clinical placements (CPs) that see students ‘apprentice’ in real clinical settings. The literature suggests there are a number of factors that diminish a student’s ability to learn in such environments, including limited opportunities to practice, being confined primarily to observation roles as opposed to participate in tasks, being exposed to skills/procedures outside their level of learning/understanding, and institutional learning objectives being secondary to workplace goals. Simulation-based learning environments …

An Investigation Into Student And Teacher Perceptions Of, And Attitudes Towards, The Use Of Information Communications Technologies To Support Digital Forms Of Summative Performance Assessment In The Applied Information Technology And Engineering Studies Courses In Western Australia, Steven Puay Chong Chia

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

This study investigated the connections between teachers’ and students’ perceptions of, and attitudes towards, the use of Information and Communications Technologies (ICT) to support assessment in senior secondary courses in Western Australia, and the feasibility of such support in various forms. This investigation focused on the main characteristics of these perceptions, and attitudes and their relationships with curriculum, pedagogy, assessment and ICT. The findings provide guidelines for educators in using ICT to support summative performance assessment. My study was part of the main research study undertaken by Edith Cowan University (ECU) and the Curriculum Council of Western Australia (CCWA) and …

An Investigation Into Mentor Teacher-Preservice Teacher Relationship And Its Contribution To Development Of Preservice Teachers’ Professional Identity, Mahsa Izadinia

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

Research suggests that preservice teachers’ professional identity is dynamic and many factors contribute to the formation of teacher identity including prior experiences, learning communities and context. One of the parties preservice teachers have closest interactions with are mentor teachers and they might leave an impact on preservice teachers’ professional identity. However, less research seems to be done in this area. The proposed research study tried to address this gap by investigating the relationship between these two parties and its impact on the development of preservice teachers’ professional identity. The data collection occurred during a one-year Graduate Diploma of Education-Secondary (GDE-S) …