Education Commons^™

How To Develop The Habits Of Outstanding Teaching, Peter W. Kilgour

Peter Kilgour

No abstract provided.

Getting On Board With The Stem Revolution: Two Christian Schools’ Experiences, Peter W. Kilgour, Phil Fitzsimmons, Vanessa Baywood, Jennifer Merriman

Peter Kilgour

No abstract provided.

Engaging In Deep Cultural Learning Through The Intersection Of Multiple Contexts, Maria T. Northcote, Peter W. Kilgour, Daniel Reynaud, Phil Fitzsimmons

Peter Kilgour

The type of learning that takes place in teacher education courses typically results in pre-service teachers developing a mixture of knowledge, skills and values that enable them to become effective teachers in schools in the future. During their journey to become qualified teachers, pre-service teachers typically engage in coursework and experiential-based learning.

By engaging in coursework experiences, an overseas practicum and an overseas study tour, students experienced a range of reflection-promoting activities and contexts during which they broadened and deepened their understanding of cultures other than their own.

Using a cross-case analysis approach, the data gathered in these three cases …

Student Perceptions Of Classroom Environments In Streamed Middle Secondary Mathematics Classes In Australian Christian Schools, Peter W. Kilgour, Tony Rickards

Peter Kilgour

This paper reports on a study into the perceptions students have of the learning environment in Year 9 and 10 mathematics classrooms when the classes are streamed. The sample consisted of 581 students in Years 9 and 10 in 7 different Christian independent schools across Australia. The What is Happening in the Classroom (WIHIC) inventory was used along with a qualitative analysis of interviews with a subset of participants. Results included: students in lower stream mathematics classes report significantly less positive perceptions of their classroom learning environments than students in upper stream mathematics classes, the areas rated most negatively by …

Threshold Concepts About Online Teaching: Progress Report On A Five Year Project, Kevin P. Gosselin, Maria T. Northcote, Daniel Reynaud, Peter W. Kilgour, Malcolm Anderson, Chris Boddey

Peter Kilgour

The burgeoning expansion of online education has presented the challenges of articulating an appropriate pedagogy for online education (Stevens, 2003; Runnels et al., 2006; Gosselin, 2009) while also contending with perceived and real deficits in lecturer competence (Shephard, 2007). Conceptually, the identified areas of concern are viewed as troublesome knowledge (Perkins, 1999), or knowledge that is counter intuitive to traditional teaching face to face teaching. To meet the emerging difficulties of new modes of distance teaching, researchers have focused on transformative learning using threshold concepts, or new portals, that allow understanding of concepts through new modes of thinking (Meyer & …

Mathematical Manipulatives: Creating An Environment For Understanding, Efficiency, Engagement, And Enjoyment, Ashlee Cockett, Peter W. Kilgour

Peter Kilgour

This study examines the impact of using manipulatives in Mathematics on student understanding, efficiency, engagement and enjoyment in a lower primary classroom. Manipulatives are concrete physical objects that students can use in a hands-on approach to learning. During this research, 32 students were involved in various mathematical activities involving different kinds of manipulatives and also in activities where manipulatives were not used at all. The types of manipulatives used were clocks, coins, MAB blocks and the interactive whiteboard. Quantitative data was collected using a survey while qualitative data in the form of observations was also collected. The results showed that …

Role-Playing: A Smorgasbord Of Learning Types, Peter W. Kilgour, Jason Hinze, Kevin Petrie, Warrick R. Long, Kevin C. De Berg

Peter Kilgour

One tertiary institution sought to research the perceptions that tertiary students have of role-plays as a means of learning. Role-plays were used across a range of disciplines at that institution including: teacher training, business and chemistry. Each of these disciplines used a role-play in their classes and then collected opinions from the students on the usefulness of the activity. It was discovered that students value role-plays as a means to challenge preconceived ideas, encourage creative thinking, assist students in applying theory to practice, make lessons fun and provide active learning experiences that increase student learning and engagement.

Pre-Service Teachers' Reflections On Critical Incidents In Their Professional Teaching Experiences, Peter W. Kilgour, Maria T. Northcote, Wendi Herman

Peter Kilgour

Pre-service teachers typically engage in a series of professional development experiences throughout their teacher education courses. These periods of learning enable them to develop as reflective practitioners under the mentorship of experienced school teachers. After these periods of intense learning, sometimes characterised by pedagogic epiphanies, they frequently report extreme experiences of success or failure which influence perceptions of their future teaching career. This study aimed to capture final year pre-service teachers' reflections of critical incidents in their past professional experience by especially focusing on their worst lesson experience. The qualitative research approach incorporated elements of critical incident research design from …

Problems Arising From Streaming Mathematics Students In Australian Christian Secondary Schools: To Stream Or Not To Stream?, Peter W. Kilgour

Peter Kilgour

This article focuses on selected sections of a wider research study that investigated the perceptions of students in upper, lower, and mixed-ability stream mathematics classes, regarding their classroom learning environment. The study collected data from a representative sample of Year 9 and Year 10 students, employing recognised, reliable survey instruments. The most significant finding of the study, resulting from the analysis of quantitative data, was that lower stream students not only had more negative perceptions of their classroom learning environment, but wanted less change. This negative perception is seen to be worse in Year 10 than in Year 9, particularly …

Why Did My Mentor Teacher Only Give Me A Credit?: The Lonely Task Of Grading Your Pre-Service Teacher, Beverly Christian, Peter Kilgour, Andrew Kilgour

Peter Kilgour

The placement of pre-service teachers in

schools to integrate theoretical learning with

practical experience is an integral component

of many tertiary education courses. Issues with

both the reliability and validity of assessment

grades in a workplace environment suggest

a call to strengthen the level of academic

rigour of these placements. In this study,

professional development lecturers in one

education program [Avondale College of Higher

Education, NSW] constructed a standardsbased

grading rubric designed to assist mentor

teachers assess the performance of pre-service

teachers. After implementation of the rubric

for two Professional Experience sessions,

mentor teachers were surveyed to assess the

effectiveness …

Research: What Potential Does It Hold For Teacher Practitioners?, Anthony Williams, Peter Kilgour

Peter Kilgour

The teaching profession finds itself at the crossroads

at this time. because the crowded curriculum

and the emphasis on core competencies including

literacy and numeracy can have the tendency to push

research training into the background. The question

should be asked though, is research capability a skill

practicing teachers should be engaging with? Is

reconstructing the curricula of universities to make

research preparation a priority worth pursuing?

The following paper considers the issue of research

and what it can add to teacher practitioners’ “arsenal”

of capabilities. The authors believe that there is value

in reconsidering the curriculum of teachers, as …

Role-Playing As A Tool To Facilitate Learning, Self Reflection And Social Awareness In Teacher Education, Peter W. Kilgour, Daniel Reynaud, Maria T. Northcote, Marion Shields

Peter Kilgour

Meaningful learning in the tertiary sector benefits from the inclusion of a variety of teaching and learning techniques including active learning. Role-plays are one type of active and participatory learning activity that creates interaction between students and a simulated scenario. This reality can serve to open the minds of participants to issues they need to be able to deal with in their chosen careers. This paper reports role-plays in four different learning applications: the first was in a multicultural education class and simulated a microcosm of society where students took on the roles of minority groups. The second reports on …

The Application Of Multiple Intelligences In Two Year 7 Textile Technology Classes, Brianna Cameron, Gail Ormsby, Peter Kilgour

Peter Kilgour

In a teaching and learning environment that

embraces innovation, inclusion and effectiveness,

it is essential to acknowledge students’ individual

learning styles to promote optimum learning.

While multiple intelligences (MI) theory considers

students’ interest, it has been more often applied

in teaching mathematics, science and music

subjects. This study applied the theory of MI within

two year seven textile technology classes. Data

were collected from student group assessments,

surveys and daily engagement levels. The results

of the study show that groups whose members

shared similar MI reported having a more positive

experience than groups that were not specifically

MI assigned. Further, …

Faith Formation: Perceptions Of Primary And High School Students In Australian Adventist Schools, Beverly Christian, Peter Kilgour

Peter Kilgour

Faith formation is a topic of considerable interest

for those involved in Christian education. In

this quantitative investigation, 580 students

from Years Four, Six, Eight and Ten from eleven

Adventist schools in Australian were surveyed

to determine their perspectives of their own

faith formation in four areas of their lives: Vision,

Gospel, Lordship and Presence. Additional items

measured student satisfaction with their Biblical

Studies classes. The results indicated that

students, on the whole, were positive about their

faith formation. Trends revealed that younger

students overall were more positive towards

their faith and Biblical Studies classes than high …

Reactions, Reflections And Responsibility: A 'Responsive Evaluation' Of An Emerging Blended Elearning Subject, Peter W. Kilgour, Phil Fitzsimmons

Peter Kilgour

This paper discusses the findings of a qualitative investigation that sought to illuminate the perceived benefits of undertaking a blended learning subject at one tertiary institution. While there are several studies detailing the benefits of online learning, this study focussed on the student’s perceptions. What emerged from the analysis process were a series of themes related to the notion of authentic learning. Key processes of this perceived optimal learning site and space were the elements of group and individual reflection, and risk taking. Thus a heightened sense of ownership was developed. While the students believed that this form of tertiary …

Development Of An Evidence-Based Professional Learning Program Informed By Online Teachers' Self-Efficacy And Threshold Concepts, Kevin P. Gosselin, Maria T. Northcote, Daniel Reynaud, Peter W. Kilgour, Malcolm Anderson, Chris Boddey

Peter Kilgour

As online education continues to expand across varied educational sectors, so does the demand for professional development programs to guide academic teaching staff through the processes of developing their capacities to design and teach online courses. To meet these challenges at one higher education institution, a mixed methods research study was implemented to identify the professional learning needs of academic teaching staff for the purposes of developing a tailor-made professional development program. The principles of self-efficacy and threshold concepts were used to inform the design of the study. Data were systematically gathered from the participants to determine self-efficacy, concerns, and …

Navigating Learning Journeys Of Online Teachers: Threshold Concepts And Self-Efficacy, Maria T. Northcote, Kevin P. Gosselin, Daniel Reynaud, Peter W. Kilgour, Malcolm Anderson

Peter Kilgour

Higher education institutions are developing more and more online courses to supplement and augment the courses they offer in on-campus modes. In fact, some universities now offer the majority of their courses through online contexts. However, for academic staff who design and teach these courses, the transition from teaching on-campus courses to teaching in online learning environments is not always speedy or smooth. Academic teaching staff require support, mentoring and professional learning programs to develop their existing capacities and apply them to an online context.

This paper reports on Phase 2 of a research project, which takes into consideration the …

Assessment Of Work-Integrated Learning: Comparison Of The Usage Of A Grading Rubric By Supervising Radiographers And Teachers, Andrew Kilgour, Peter W. Kilgour, Tania Gerzina, Beverly J. Christian

Peter Kilgour

Introduction

Professional work-integrated learning (WIL) that integrates the academic experience with off-campus professional experience placements is an integral part of many tertiary courses. Issues with the reliability and validity of assessment grades in these placements suggest that there is a need to strengthen the level of academic rigour of placements in these programmes. This study aims to compare the attitudes to the usage of assessment rubrics of radiographers supervising medical imaging students and teachers supervising pre-service teachers.

Methods

WIL placement assessment practices in two programmes, pre-service teacher training (Avondale College of Higher Education, NSW) and medical diagnostic radiography (Faculty of …

Child Protection In Independent Schools, Peter W. Kilgour

Peter Kilgour

Given the relationship between a person’s emotional development, their faith development and the experiences during the early years of their lives, it is vital for the Christian school to do all it can to ensure that students are kept safe from all forms of abuse. This paper analyses research on the psychological effects of child abuse and gives practical ideas for teachers and schools on how to protect their students, themselves, and their colleagues from allegations of reportable conduct. It considers the value of a person to God and the responsibility that sits with school staff to protect children.

Acquisition Of Cultural Awareness In Pre-Service Teachers, Peter W. Kilgour

Peter Kilgour

It is the desire of teacher educators in Australia that their mandated unit of study on multiculturalism and indigenous studies produces a cultural awareness in future teachers of the issues faced by multicultural and indigenous students. This paper reports a study where one cohort of 119 pre-service teachers was surveyed in the first and last lectures of the unit on what they believed would be the factors affecting their teaching in multicultural and indigenous classrooms. A significant perception change (p=0.05) of the students was measured between the first lecture and the last lecture. Students moved from a perception that physical, …

Does The Type Of Assessment Feedback I Give Make A Difference?: The Impact Of Qualitative And Quantitative Assessment Feedback, Maria T. Northcote, Anthony Williams, Phil Fitzsimmons, Peter W. Kilgour

Peter Kilgour

Feedback provided to postgraduate students about their assessment tasks influences the way in which they reflect on their learning and themselves personally. In particular, the nature of the feedback and the way in which its dissemination is sequenced and timed can further impact how students incorporate, or don't incorporate, assessment advice into their future learning, a process referred to by Duncan (2007) as "feed-forward". Despite the value placed on assessment feedback by academic teaching staff, it often has minimal impact on students' learning (Sadler, 2010).

Past research into the impact of qualitative and quantitative feedback on student learning established that …

International Students In Independent Schools: The Divide Between Attitude To Mathematics Class And Perception Of Classroom Environment, Peter W. Kilgour, Tony Rickards

Peter Kilgour

The experience of students with a non-English speaking background (NESB) studying in Australian independent school classrooms is an ongoing concern for administrators of these schools. This paper reports on research by Kilgour and Rickards (2009) into the perceptions these students have of the learning environments of their Mathematics classrooms along with the same students’ attitudes to Mathematics as a subject. Data collected by survey and interview revealed that NESB students have a more positive attitude to Mathematics as a subject than their Australian classmates, but their perception of their learning environment is more negative than their Australian classmates.

Mentoring For Impact, Brad Watson, Peter W. Kilgour

Peter Kilgour

School based mentoring (SBM) is an increasingly popular component of pastoral care programs in Australian secondary schools. Concurrent with growing consensus over the benefits of SBM, there is increasing recognition that the benefits of SBM can be maximised through careful programming, appropriate benchmarking and effective evaluation. Although children spend approximately 40% of their waking hours in school, and SBM is increasingly common, there is surprisingly little data available on the effectiveness of SBM. This paper reports on research into a mentoring program that links undergraduate theology students to teenage students in a secondary school. While the mentoring program was of …

Let Me Do It And I Will Learn: Investigating Three Models Of Student-Centred Learning, Neroli Dobson, Peter W. Kilgour

Peter Kilgour

Three techniques that foster student-centred learning were trialed in Year 10 English and History classes at a small Queensland school. These included the Socratic Seminar, the Graffiti Model and the Pirozzo Matrix. It was found that each of these methods created discussion, involvement, cooperation and learning at many levels. Ideas were shared by students, all students became involved and differentiation of learning was made possible. Overall there was a greater level of cooperation within the class.