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Full-Text Articles in Education

Development And Validation Of A Scale To Explore Pre-Service Teachers’ Sense Of Preparedness, Engagement And Self-Efficacy In Classroom Teaching, Jessy Abraham, Tania Ferfolja, Aaron Sickel, Anne Power, Christina Curry, Denise Fraser, Karin Mackay Jan 2021

Development And Validation Of A Scale To Explore Pre-Service Teachers’ Sense Of Preparedness, Engagement And Self-Efficacy In Classroom Teaching, Jessy Abraham, Tania Ferfolja, Aaron Sickel, Anne Power, Christina Curry, Denise Fraser, Karin Mackay

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

Raising the quality of initial teacher education can make an important contribution to raising the overall quality of the school system. In Australia, the National Framework for Professional Standards for Teaching is used as a common framework to set standards for the accreditation of teacher education programs. However, institution-wise assessments need to be carried out regularly to explore the quality of preparation pre-service teachers receive and to what extent they feel well prepared to enter teaching. This will enable teacher education programs to implement strategies to strengthen the link between university coursework and professional practice of pre service teachers. This …


How Do Pre-Service Male Primary Teachers Cope With Gender Related Challenges?, Vaughan Cruickshank, Martin Kerby, Margaret Baguley Jan 2021

How Do Pre-Service Male Primary Teachers Cope With Gender Related Challenges?, Vaughan Cruickshank, Martin Kerby, Margaret Baguley

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

Male teachers are a minority in both primary teacher training courses and in primary schools around the world. Education research has identified numerous gender-related challenges faced by male primary teachers during their initial teacher training and later when teaching in schools. Despite noting that many males leave teacher training because of these challenges, researchers have spent much less time investigating strategies to assist men cope with them and persist in the profession. This paper aims to help address this gap through an investigation of the challenges pre-service male primary teachers face during their teacher training and identifying practical coping strategies. …


Efl Literacy Teaching In Relation To Teachers’ Self-Efficacy, Experience And Native Language, Stephanie Fuchs, Tami Katzir, Janina Kahn-Horwitz Jan 2021

Efl Literacy Teaching In Relation To Teachers’ Self-Efficacy, Experience And Native Language, Stephanie Fuchs, Tami Katzir, Janina Kahn-Horwitz

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

English as a foreign language (EFL) literacy is necessary for the career success of non-English speaking students. Many students lack adequate EFL literacy skills which may indicate a gap between EFL literacy instruction theory and practice. Teachers’ self-efficacy regarding their ability to teach reading and writing, years of teaching experience, and/or native language may influence their selection of components for EFL literacy instruction. This study examines these components as they are perceived by teachers. One hundred and sixty-seven Israeli EFL elementary school teachers completed online questionnaires. Findings showed a weak correlation between teachers’ self-efficacy and their instructional approach. Teaching experience …


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 Jan 2021

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 …


Fostering Values Through Authentic Storytelling, Maya Gunawardena, Bernard Brown Jan 2021

Fostering Values Through Authentic Storytelling, Maya Gunawardena, Bernard Brown

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

Stories are used for diverse pedagogical purposes. Storytelling is a culturally inclusive and widely used pedagogical technique. However, the success of storytelling interventions in education can be dependent upon how teachers engage students to analyse experiences, and events to gain deeper insights to influence change in their thinking and behaviour. This paper firstly provides a literature review which synthesises Australian Curriculum content and outcome-based approaches used in values education in primary schools including storytelling. Secondly, it offers a novel taxonomy supported by a pedagogical model for storytelling. The proposed pedagogical model contains a constructivist process that can enable teachers to …


Learning To Teach In Place: Transforming Pre-Service Teacher Perceptions Of Science Teaching Through Place Pedagogies, Hongming Ma, Monica M. Green Jan 2021

Learning To Teach In Place: Transforming Pre-Service Teacher Perceptions Of Science Teaching Through Place Pedagogies, Hongming Ma, Monica M. Green

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

Although teaching science outdoors is well established in global circles, its pedagogical value in Australia is less understood. This paper addresses this gap through its investigation of outdoor science teaching in a science method course in a teacher education program at an Australian regional university. As part of their coursework, pre-service teachers designed and delivered science lessons to primary school-aged children in small teaching groups in a wetland setting and wrote reflective essays about the experience. Data collection methods included document analysis of the essays as well as follow-up semi-structured interviews with pre-service teachers. Findings suggest that the outdoor science …


Teachers’ Experiences Of Educating Eal Students In Mainstream Primary And Secondary Classrooms, Jessica Premier Jan 2021

Teachers’ Experiences Of Educating Eal Students In Mainstream Primary And Secondary Classrooms, Jessica Premier

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

Many schools in Victoria, Australia, are multicultural, with students coming from a variety of cultures and backgrounds. Content area teachers often educate EAL students in their classrooms, even though they may not have specialised EAL teaching qualifications. This paper presents the experiences of primary and secondary teachers working in multicultural schools in Victoria. It explores the way in which teachers meet the needs of EAL students in their classrooms, and the support that is available to assist them to do so. This paper reports that teaching practice, school leadership, professional learning, and identity, influence the way in which teachers educate …


Overcoming Challenges In Assessing Mathematical Reasoning, Sandra Herbert Jan 2021

Overcoming Challenges In Assessing Mathematical Reasoning, Sandra Herbert

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

Despite mathematical reasoning being necessary for in-depth understanding of mathematical concepts, many teacher experience difficulty in assessing it. Data were collected from 34 primary teachers at 4 Victorian government schools at two post- lesson reflective sessions following lessons with a focus on reasoning. These sessions facilitated teachers’ collaborative efforts to assess their students’ reasoning from students’ work samples. The data included transcripts of all the reflective sessions; written work samples; and associated completed rubrics. Analysis of these data enabled identification of seven challenges teachers experienced in assessing reasoning: Limited guidance provided by curriculum documents; Teachers’ knowledge of reasoning; Teacher noticing …


Implementation Of A National Teacher Education Strategy In Finland Through Pilot Projects, Jari Lavonen, Seija Mahlamäki-Kultanen, Sanna Vahtivuori-Hänninen, Armi Mikkola Jan 2021

Implementation Of A National Teacher Education Strategy In Finland Through Pilot Projects, Jari Lavonen, Seija Mahlamäki-Kultanen, Sanna Vahtivuori-Hänninen, Armi Mikkola

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

The implementation of a teacher education strategy in a decentralised Finnish education system is analysed. Altogether, 31 pilot projects, involving teacher educators from all universities, were funded to support the implementation of the strategy and professional learning of autonomous teacher educators in the context of the strategy. In this mixed-methods research, the directors and active partners of the pilot projects were asked how they perceived the characteristics of the pilot projects that have been recognised as supportive for the implementation of the strategy. The directors were also asked to evaluate the impact of the projects. The projects …


Three Casual Relief Teachers In Australian Primary Schools: Their Experiences And Perspectives Over One School Year, Minami Uchida, Michael S. Cavanagh, Rod Lane Jan 2021

Three Casual Relief Teachers In Australian Primary Schools: Their Experiences And Perspectives Over One School Year, Minami Uchida, Michael S. Cavanagh, Rod Lane

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

This study investigates the lived experiences of three casual relief teachers (CRTs) and their work within Australian primary schools for a period of one school year. Practice architecture theory was used as a theoretical framework to examine whether participants saw any advantages to working on a casual basis, how they think casual teaching could be improved in terms of access to accreditation support, and whether any growth to their professional practice took place during the course of the year. Monthly diary entries and two semi-structured interviews from each participant revealed some advantages to casual teaching, such as being able to …


The Role Of The Teacher As Assessor: Developing Student Teacher’S Assessment Identity., Audrey Doyle, Marie Conroy Johnson, Enda Donlon, Elaine Mcdonald, Pj Sexton Jan 2021

The Role Of The Teacher As Assessor: Developing Student Teacher’S Assessment Identity., Audrey Doyle, Marie Conroy Johnson, Enda Donlon, Elaine Mcdonald, Pj Sexton

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

The closure of schools across the globe due to the Covid-19 pandemic had the potential to have a catastrophic impact on a fundamental pillar of initial teacher education: school placement. This paper maps a new “site” of professional practice for “school placement” called “Teacher Online Programme” (TOP) using Xu and Brown’s (2016) conceptual framework of teacher assessment literacy in practice. Its main focus lies in the integration of the assessment baseline knowledge into the programme under the seven elements proposed by the framework. A case study methodology informed the approach taken. Data was collected and analysed in three phases: the …


Online Education Practices And Teaching Team Compositions In Australian Preservice Primary Science Education, James Deehan Jan 2021

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 …


Preservice Teachers’ Reflections On Their Teaching Self-Efficacy Changes For The First Professional Experience Placement, Kang Ma, Michael S. Cavanagh, Anne Mcmaugh Jan 2021

Preservice Teachers’ Reflections On Their Teaching Self-Efficacy Changes For The First Professional Experience Placement, Kang Ma, Michael S. Cavanagh, Anne Mcmaugh

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

Professional experience plays a vital role in the formation of teaching self-efficacy (TSE), a construct which has attracted much attention from teacher education researchers. This study investigates how 18 preservice teachers (PTs) reported changes in their TSE for their first professional placement. Data were collected via face-to-face interviews with each PT and analysed in NVivo. Results show the majority of interviewees reported an increase in their TSE after completing the placement. Also, three patterns of individual TSE change were identified: beginning with a low level of TSE before quickly rising to a higher level at the end of the …