Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Building Conceptual Knowledge Of Fraction Operations Among Pre-Service Teachers: Effect Of A Representation-Based Teaching Approach Within A Teacher Education Program, Elise J. Thurtell, Patricia A. Forrester, Mohan Chinnappan

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

A deep understanding of fraction concepts and operations is necessary if pre-service teachers (PSTs) are to present the concepts in multiple forms to learners. Such an understanding needs to be grounded in rich conceptual knowledge. In the present study, we explore the development of this understanding by supporting a cohort of 103 PSTs, who had previously demonstrated poor conceptual understanding of fraction concepts and operations, with a Representational Reasoning in Teaching and Learning (RRTL) approach aimed at strengthening their conceptual knowledge. A comparison of pre- and post-test results indicated that participants showed a significant improvement in shifting the balance of …

The Aboriginal Riverkeeper Team Project - Building Indigenous Knowledge And Skills To Improve Urban Waterways In Sydney's Georges River Catchment, Vanessa I. Cavanagh

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Indigenous Ranger programs, which are predominantly located in regional and remote areas, are commendable for their jobs creation, for strengthening of livelihoods of individuals and communities, and for the cultural and environmental outcomes they engender. However, can similar outcomes be attained in a highly urban setting? This paper is a case study of a current project, the Aboriginal Riverkeeper Team in the Georges River in Sydney's south-west. Through the narrative of the Aboriginal trainees who have been members of the Aboriginal Riverkeeper Team ('the Team'), this paper will illustrate how an environmental project has been successful in delivering significant cultural …

Principals As Literacy Leaders With Indigenous Communities (Pallic) Building Relationships: One School's Quest To Raise Indigenous Learners' Literacy, Tasha Riley, Amanda A. Webster

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

In 2011 to 2012, 48 schools in the Northern Territory, South Australia and Queensland participated in the Principals as Literacy Leaders with Indigenous Communities (PALLIC) project. Central to this project was the establishment of positive working relationships between school principals and Indigenous community leaders in order to improve Indigenous literacy rates. Professional development in leadership skills and effective literacy instruction was provided through five professional learning modules. Participants worked together to create an action plan to support the literacy achievement of Indigenous students in their schools and communities. This article presents a case study of one participating school in Northern …

Unintended Outcomes Of University-Community Partnerships: Building Organizational Capacity With Pace International Partners, Kate Lloyd, Lindie Clark, Laura Ann Hammersley, Michaela Baker, Felicity Rawlings-Sanaei, Emily D'Ath

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Professional and Community Engagement (PACE) at Macquarie University provides experiential opportunities for students and staff to contribute to more just, inclusive and sustainable societies by engaging in activities with partner organizations. PACE International offers a range of opportunities with partners overseas. Underpinning PACE is a commitment to mutually beneficial learning and engagement. To align with this commitment, PACE-related research engages partner perspectives and those of students and academics. The dearth of scholarly research on partner perspectives of community engagement (Bringle, Clayton & Price, 2009) underscores this imperative. Drawing on interviews and focus groups with partner representatives this article examines some …

Building Blocks For Dementia Friendly Communities: Mapping Dementia Friendly Places And Spaces In Kiama, Christopher R. Brennan-Horley, Lyn Phillipson

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Abstract presented at the 30th International Conference of Alzheimer's Disease International, 15 - 18 April 2015, Perth, Australia

Building Capacity Through Ethical Understanding And Practice, Michaela Baker, Erin Corderoy, Laura Ann Hammersley, Kate Lloyd, Kathryn Mclachlan, Anne-Louise Semple, Karolyn L. White

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Fostering ethical understanding and practice in Work Integrated Learning (WIL) and other forms of experiential learning is integral to preparing students for engagement with society beyond university (Campbell, 2011; Campbell & Zegwaard, 2011a; Campbell & Zegwaard, 2011b). Ethical practice is a fundamental aspect of Macquarie University's Professional and Community Engagement (PACE) initiative, and our research and practice to date have examined how ethical understanding can be translated into ethical practice by students (Baker et al., 2013). This paper details further developments in our endeavour to prepare students for ethical complexities and build their capacity to respond to them. It also …

Unintended Outcomes? Building Organisational Capacity With Pace International Partners, Kate Lloyd, Lindie Clark, Laura Ann Hammersley, Michaela Baker, Anna Powell, Felicity Rawlings-Sanaei

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

PACE International is a component of Professional and Community Engagement (PACE), a Macquarie University-wide initiative that provides opportunities for students and staff to contribute to more just, inclusive and sustainable societies by engaging in activities with partner organisations in Australia and internationally. Underpinning PACE is a commitment to mutually beneficial learning and engagement. To align with this commitment, PACE-related research engages partner perspectives and those of students and academics. The dearth of scholarly research on partner perspectives of community engagement (Bringle, Clayton & Price, 2009) underscores this imperative. Drawing on interviews and focus groups with community partner representatives from Cambodia, …

Building The Capacity Of Schools To Achieve Outcomes For Students With Autism Spectrum Disorders: A Pilot Project, Amanda A. Webster, Jacqueline R. Roberts

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

The number of students with ASD attending mainstream schools has increased dramatically over the past decade. Teachers are reporting they often feel ill-equipped and anxious about meeting the needs of students with ASD in their classroom (Emam & Farrell, 2009). In addition, parents are increasingly expressing frustration with the quantity and quality of support their children with ASD are receiving in school settings and are increasingly resorting to home schooling and other alternative options to meet the needs of their children (Parsons, Lewis, & Ellins, 2009). Finally, school principals have also reported they lack training and information on how to …

Building A Strong Academic Workforce: Challenges For The Profession, Anne Cusick, Elspeth Froude, Rosalind Bye, Lee Zakrzewski

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Over the last 20 years Australia has seen a huge growth in new occupational therapy programs. Each new program is an historic event that changes occupational therapy’s national profile. Each new course raises expectations. Governments fund universities expecting a civic and economic return on public investment through teaching, community engagement and research. Universities expect occupational therapy academic staff to fulfil this institutional obligation and bring a return on staffing and infrastructure costs. Students expect their employability, life and career opportunities will be enhanced. The profession expects the program will be high quality and will add to occupational therapy’s esteem. Clients …

Building The Case For Independent Monitoring Of Food Advertising On Australian Television, Lesley King, Lana Hebden, Anne Grunseit, Bridget Kelly, Kathy Chapman

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Objective To provide an independent monitoring report examining the ongoing impact of Australian self-regulatory pledges on food and drink advertising to children on commercial television.

Design Analysis of food advertisements across comparable sample time periods in April/May 2006, 2007, 2009, 2010 and 2011. The main outcome measure comprised change in the mean rate of non-core food advertisements from 2006 to 2011.

Setting Sydney free-to-air television channels.

Subjects Televised food advertisements.

Results In 2011 the rate of non-core food advertisements was not significantly different from that in 2006 or 2010 (3·2/h v. 4·1/h and 3·1/h), although there were variations across …

Building Solutions To Protect Children From Unhealthy Food And Drink Sport Sponsorship, Bridget Kelly, Kathy Chapman, Louise A. Baur, Adrian E. Bauman, Lesley King, Ben J. Smith

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

In Australia, and indeed across the world, the proportion of children who are overweight or obese is increasing. Almost one-quarter of school-aged children are now overweight or obese. While the causes of obesity are complex and many, children's exposure to high levels of unhealthy food marketing is one factor that affects the food and drinks that children like, ask for, buy and consume. Extensive research evidence has found that, in general, children are exposed to high levels of food marketing, most of which is for unhealthy or high fat, sugar and/or salt food and drinks. The most commonly advertised foods …

Community Capacity Building: Learning From The 2003 Canberra Bushfires, Gail Winkworth, Christine Healy, Merrilyn Woodward, Peter J. Camilleri

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Research into what happens to communities after disasters is one way of understanding the elements of community capacity building and the actions that help and hinder these processes. In recent years a number of large scale disasters both onshore and offshore have become the focus of Australian State and Commonwealth disaster recovery efforts. These have provided opportunities to reflect on successful elements of 'community recovery' including what 'communities' do themselves to assist 'recovery' and what governments can do to enable and actively facilitate the 'recovery' process. Through an examination of a recent study on the recovery of people affected by …

Building The Capacity To Govern The Australian Metropolis: Challenges And Opportunities, Pauline M. Mcguirk

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

This paper traces key policy challenges facing Australia's metropolitan cities as a result of multiscaled shifts in their governance contexts. These shifts, related both to the neoliberal erosion of a national commitment to universal social provision and the adoption of a 'competitive city' governance paradigm at the urban scale, have produced a set of governance challenges, particularly concerning urban social inclusion and cohesion. Moreover, a range of institutional obstacles continues to hinder the generation of urban governance capacity to address these challenges. The paper works through the nature of these obstacles and takes a pragmatic approach to identifying opportunities to …

Replacing Traditional Lectures, Tutorials And Exams With A Knowledge Building Community (Kbc): A Constructivist, Problem-Based Approach To Pre-Service Primary Teacher Education, Brian L. Cambourne, Julie Kiggins, Brian Ferry

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

This paper reports on a journey that begun in 1997 when a small group in the Faculty of Education at the University of Wollongong agreed to trial an alternative model of teacher education known as the Knowledge Building Community (KBC) Project. This alternative model of teacher education was based upon three learning principles, community learning, school-based learning and problem-based learning. Since the first students began in 1999 the original model has undergone several revisions and is now best described as a ?negotiated-evaluation-of-a-non-negotiable-curriculum-based-on-a-constructivist-model-of-learning-and-knowledge-building?. The aim of the KBC Program has been to deal with the perennial problem of contextualising students' professional …