Education Commons^™

Using Data To Improve Learning, Marion Meiers

Marion Meiers

This Digest is focused on studies that have investigated how data can be used in schools to examine teaching practices in order to improve student learning. A selection of relevant websites is listed, and a full reference list is provided. Links to those references for which full-text online access is freely available are also included. School systems, principals and teachers have access to an extensive range of data that can be used for a variety of purposes. Accountability processes and data have come to play a significant place in policy development and reform efforts. There is a large body of …

Best Start 2008 : Kindergarten Literacy Assessment, Department Of Education And Training, Nsw : Data Analysis Report, June 2008, Marion O. Meiers, Siek Toon Khoo

Marion Meiers

A Chronological Review Of Literacy Policies And Programs Of The Department Of Education & Training, Victoria, 1980-2005, Marion Meiers

Marion Meiers

Throughout the period 1980-2008 the influence of national and international theory and research in literacy is evident, in a variety of ways, in the policy and program responses of the Department of Education and Early Childhood Development. A review of Australian and international literature on the issue of literacy from 1980 to 2008 highlights the connections between policies and programs in the Victorian context and developments in theory and research in national and international contexts. This review covers the 25 years from 1980 to 2008, a period that has been characterised as a time when theory and research in the …

Managing Student Behaviour In The Classroom, Marion Meiers, Jenny Wilkinson

Marion Meiers

This edition of the Research Digest summarises some key research studies that suggest answers to questions such as: How important is behaviour management in effective teaching and learning? Does good behaviour management lead to improved learning outcomes for students? Throughout the digest there are descriptions of approaches that have practical application in classroom practice. This research digest is based on searches of a number of databases and bibliographic resources, including the Australian Education Index, ERIC, Education Research Complete, British Education Index and Scopus. The first section presents some insights from research about the importance of behaviour management in effective teaching …

Assessment Conversations, Marion Meiers

Marion Meiers

Assessment is a central aspect of the professional lives of teachers. The author reminds us that classroom observations, conversations, and informal and formal assessment activities provide teachers with ways of understanding and guiding learning journeys.

Teacher Professional Learning, Teaching Practice And Student Learning Outcomes : Important Issues, Marion Meiers

Marion Meiers

What is the impact of teacher professional development on student learning outcomes? This is a critical question asked increasingly often by policy-makers, school leadership teams, teacher professional associations and many others with a stake in providing high quality teaching for all students. Recent work in the Teaching and Learning Research Group at the Australian Council for Educational Research has explored this critical question in a number of evaluation studies of teacher professional development. This chapter outlines some key research findings, and concludes that more is now understood about what constitutes effective professional development and about the links between such professional …

Engaging With The Profession : Communities Of Learners, Marion Meiers

Marion Meiers

In 2005 the Australian Literacy Educators' Association (ALEA) established a professional learning project focused on the STELLA professional standards developed earlier in the decade by the Australian Association for the Teaching of English (AATE) and ALEA. The key question for the project was: How does STELLA provide a framework for teachers' professional learning? The project supported a small group of primary teachers in each of three states and territories: Western Australia, South Australia and the ACT. These groups worked with a mentor to explore the STELLA professional standards, to develop their own professional learning, and ultimately, to share their stories …

Reflections On The Use Of Research To Inform Teaching, Marion Meiers

Marion Meiers

This article is a response to the AATE statement of belief 'We use research and evidence to inform teaching practice and improve the learning of students'. This statement and the elaborating notes focus on the was in which teachers, throughout their careers, use research for the key purposes of informing their teaching practices and improving students' learning. The author maps the territory of research, including some backwards mapping, to explore impact. There are major challenges for researchers seeking to identify the impact of teachers' professional learning on students' learning. The most significant challenge lies in the need for research that …

Literacy In The First Three Years Of School : A Longitudinal Investigation, Marion Meiers, Siek Toon Khoo

Marion Meiers

The ACER Longitudinal Literacy and Numeracy Study (LLANS) was designed to follow the growth in literacy and numeracy of a single cohort of students across the years of primary school. A sample of 1000 students in 100 schools formed the cohort for the study, which commenced in 1999. A linked set of literacy assessment tasks focused on key aspects of literacy was developed for the LLANS. Assessment data collected across the years of primary school provided information needed to construct a long LLANS literacy scale covering the full range of proficiency. The scale was used to measure change and track …

Introduction, Marion Meiers

Marion Meiers

The standards for teachers of English language and literacy in Australia were developed by the Australian literacy educators association and the Australian association for there teaching of English. The STELLA materials include standards statements, narratives and keywords and questions linked to specific standards. The ALEA STELLA professional learning project was set up to explore ways of using STELLA as a framework for teachers professional learning. In 2005 the project gave teachers in three Australian states an opportunity to work with a mentor to explore the STELLA professional standards, to develop their own professional learning, and to share their stories with …

Feedback Improves Learning, Marion Meiers

Marion Meiers

How does formative assessment support students' learning? A recent international study conducted by the OECD Centre for Educational Research and Innovation (CERI) makes it clear that the ongoing interactive assessments within classrooms play a key role in identifying students' needs and in planning future teaching. The author looks at the place of feedback in formative assessment.

Australian Assessment In Literacy And Numeracy, Marion Meiers

Marion Meiers

Reports that the Longitudinal Literacy and Numeracy Study has traced the growth in literacy and numeracy of a single cohort of students in primary school. Number of children from a random Australia-wide sample of 100 schools formed the cohort; Understanding of the nature of growth in literacy and numeracy amongst Australian students.

Essential Learning Prep To Year 10 : English Curriculum Area., Wayne Sawyer, Marion Meiers

Marion Meiers

This discussion paper was prepared for the Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority as theoretical background for development of the Victorian Essential Learning Standards.

Then And Now : Texts In English Classrooms, Marion Meiers

Marion Meiers

What is anything has been consistently considered essential learning for students in English classes in secondary schools over the past fifty years, asks the author? This article considers the similarities and differences in the teaching of English since the 1950s focusing on the many facets of English texts in contemporary Australian classrooms.

Assessment, Reporting, And Accountability In English And Literacy Education : Finding The Signposts To The Future, Marion Meiers

Marion Meiers

The theme of this work is assessment, reporting and accountability. These three aspects of literacy assessment do not always sit comfortably together. The author's work is an extensive coverage of the interrelationship between such issues as the following: the public face of literacy assessment as portrayed in the media - a face that does not always reflect the reality of a complex process; and the needs of the diverse range of stakeholders involved in student assessment (students, parents, tax payers and politicians). The conclusion highlights the need for balance and diversity in a literacy assessment program.

Assessment And Reporting Of Student Achievement For Students With Specific Educational Needs Against Literacy And Numeracy Benchmarks, S Zammit, Marion Meiers, T Frigo

Marion Meiers

This report provides key information on assessment and reporting of literacy and numeracy achievement. The study indicates the critical issues for stakeholders in relation to the assessment and reporting of performance outcomes of students with specific educational needs against literacy and numeracy benchmarks. It underlines the importance of accurately assessing and reporting the performance of students with special needs so that their specific needs are not overlooked.

English Teaching In Australia, Marion Meiers

Marion Meiers

In Australia, the Commonwealth and State governments play different roles in education, each of the Education Departments and Ministries of the various States and Territories having its own government school system. This chapter discusses state and national initiatives.

Presenting A Point Of View : Approaches To A Written Argument, Marion Meiers

Marion Meiers

No abstract provided.

Australia As A Literate Nation: From Australia's Language To The National Literacy And Numeracy Plan, Perspectives On National Literacy Initiatives In The 1990s, Marion Meiers

Marion Meiers

The author provides a sensitive and detailed analysis of policy initiatives stretching from Australia's Language to the National Literacy and Numeracy Plan. Given the richness of research and curriculum development over the past decade, the author argues that we are entitled to feel reasonably optimistic about Australia's future as a literate nation.

Exploring The English Curriculum Statement And Profile For Australian Schools: Final Report, Marion Meiers

Marion Meiers

Published by the Australian Literacy Federation (ALF)

Telling The Whole Story : Assessing Achievement In English, Marion Meiers, R Mcgregor

Marion Meiers

The development of literacy is a responsibility shared by all teachers, in all curriculum areas. This book focuses on the development and achievement of competency in English, across all years of schooling. Part 1 offers a rationale for a responsive approach to assessment in English. A range of contexts representing the kinds of classroom experiences which promote the development of language competency and where students show significant signs of becoming effective makers and users of language is described. The third chapter describes the planning and management of an active learning context in one English classroom. Part 2 looks specifically at …