Education Commons^™

Brain-Based Learning: Beliefs And Practice In One Australian Primary School Implementing A Neuroscience Pedagogical Framework, Christina Deans, Ellen Larsen

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

: Pedagogy grounded in neuroscience is an influential approach in Australian schools, despite concerns regarding teachers’ beliefs in several neuromyths that go on to pervade their practice. This paper reports on a small study that explored teachers’ beliefs and implementation of brain-based learning in one Australian primary school whose pedagogy is specifically underpinned by neuroscience. Survey data collected from 14 teachers were analysed using simple descriptive statistics and content analysis. Findings indicated that these teachers, despite having some accurate brain-based knowledge, were still prone to endorsing common neuromyths regardless of the school’s teaching and learning framework, years at the school, …

Preparing Australian Special Educators: Courses And Content, Jennifer Stephenson, Rahul Ganguly, Coral Kemp, Catherine Salisbury

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

: The characteristics and content of post-graduate courses in special and/or inclusive teacher education in Australian universities were examined using publicly available material on university websites. Content analysis was guided by a set of content area elements covering desirable skills and knowledge for special educators that were identified in the Australian literature. The presence or absence of these content elements in each course and in core or elective units was coded for 28 courses from 21 universities. All or most courses covered generic content such as teaching strategies and evaluating and using research. However, more specialist content, such as explicit …

Using Formative Assessment To Build Coherence Between Educational Policy And Classroom Practice: A Case Study Using Inquiry In Science, Connie Cirkony, John Daniel Kenny

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

In this paper we argue that the complexity of education systems can lead to a lack of coherence in the implementation of policy. More effective educational change requires policy-makers and researchers to pay more attention to supporting teachers in classrooms. As an example, we consider decades of research attempts in STEM education to implement learning through inquiry and note there has been little change in teaching practices in classrooms. Using formative assessment in science education as a case study, we developed a rubric for teachers that embeds key aspects of the desired pedagogy. We argue this builds teachers’ confidence to …

Teacher Educators’ Perceptions Of Schoolteacher Feedback Literacy: Implications For Feedback Training In Teacher Education Programmes, Ying Zhan

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

Few studies have empirically explored the specific elements of schoolteachers’ feedback literacy in spite of its crucial role in supporting student learning in classrooms. To address this research gap, individual interviews were conducted with 20 teacher educators in Hong Kong. The interviewees were asked to explicate the mind maps of schoolteacher feedback literacy that they had previously drawn. Data analysis revealed that the participants perceived schoolteacher feedback literacy as a three-dimensional concept, comprising knowledge, competence and disposition with specifications. In addition, the participants believed that schoolteacher feedback literacy was gradually evolving from a qualified level to a fully professional level …

Changes In Students’ Perceptions Of Self-Assessment In Courses With Different Approaches To Assessment, Ester Aflalo

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

The importance of student self-assessment and its contribution to learning in teacher education is well documented in the research literature. However, we still need to better understand when and why self-assessment actually works. This study examines preservice teachers’ perception of self-assessment prior to and following experiencing self-assessment. The study included 135 students studying at two education colleges in Israel. The students attended courses with differing evaluation approaches. The findings show that the experience with self-assessment in the courses with formative evaluation or integrative evaluation encourages the students’ positive perception of self-assessment, in contrast to summative evaluation courses. The study expands …

Exploring Thai Teachers’ Perspectives On Evidence-Informed Practices In Inclusive Early Childhood Education, Joseph S. Agbenyega, Danielle Lane, Sunanta Klibthong

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

Evidence-informed practices play vital roles in teaching and learning in inclusive schools; however, limited research has been conducted to explore inclusive early childhood teachers’ perspectives on research-informed teaching. This study, which was informed by the Cognitive Apprenticeship Theory (CAT), used structured and online focus groups to explore the views of 26 inclusive early childhood teachers in Thailand regarding their understanding and value for evidence-informed practice, how they source, analyse and use evidence to inform their professional practice and the factors supporting or inhibiting evidence-informed practices in their schools. A combination of framework and descriptive data analysis identified findings …

Pre-Service Teachers’ Beliefs About Motivating Students To Learn Science, Davis Jean-Baptiste, Damian Maher

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

Motivation in science learning is important, given increasing necessity for scientific and critical literacy. The purpose of this article is to examine secondary science pre-service teachers’ (PSTs) beliefs about motivating students to learn science. A mixed method study was conducted with 73 secondary science PSTs across Australia. A web-based survey and interviews were used to gather data. Turner et al.’s motivation theory (2011) is used as a framework to analyse the data. The findings indicate that the PSTs believed that competence, belongingness, and meaningful learning were factors involved in motivating students. These findings are critical as they are relevant to …

Increasing In-Service Teachers’ Willingness To Be Videoed To Support Professional Learning, Marie-Christina Edwards

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

Increasing and compelling research demonstrates the affordances of personal video footage as an informative and transformational tool in teacher professional learning (PL), yet many in-service teachers avoid engaging in this practice. This Australian Research Council funded study tracked teacher willingness to use video to capture the application of PL over 12 months in a rural Australian primary school. Data from questionnaires, video-based learning conversations, and collaborative sharing sessions demonstrated a strong increasing trend in the number of teachers volunteering to be videoed across three iterations of research. Thematic analysis highlighted five key factors as catalysts for increased teacher participation in …

Investigation Of Non-Academic Characteristics Used For Selection Entry Of Pre-Service Teachers Into Higher Education Courses, Janine E. Wyatt, Michael O'Neill

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

: Education reform is prioritised in most countries. In 2014, the Australian federal government established the Teacher Education Ministerial Advisory Group with a mandate to improve initial teacher education (ITE) to better prepare new teachers for the classroom. One recommendation involved higher education providers selecting ITE candidates who possessed the required academic skills and non-academic characteristics to become successful teachers. This study investigates the prevalence and impact of non-academic characteristics among first-year graduates, using insights from principals in Western Australian public schools. According to the available literature, the link between non-academic characteristics in the ITE selection process and student outcomes …

Preservice Teachers’ Wellbeing In Mathematics Education, Philemon Chigeza

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

The study investigated first-year preservice teachers’ affective, conative, cognitive, social, and physical wellbeing in a mathematics education subject at a regional university in Far North Queensland. Data collected included pre and post surveys with forty-nine preservice teachers, and interviews with preservice teachers and teacher educators. The pre and post surveys evaluated preservice teachers’ belief statements about their wellbeing before and after a six-week module. Before the module, their belief statements suggested significant challenges. The post survey suggested an increased confidence with mathematics. Four themes that emerged from interview data analysis included the need to: address the emerging unbalanced wellbeing; address …

Action Research As Evidence-Based Practice: Enhancing Explicit Teaching And Learning Through Critical Reflection And Collegial Peer Observation, Renee Crawford

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

: In an era where teachers are increasingly being asked to demonstrate evidence of their impact, action research is identified as a practical and critically reflective research approach for enhancing explicit teaching and learning. Using a historical perspective, foundations for reflective practice and action research in educational contexts are explored. A discussion of the processes and techniques that may be employed, including how collegial peer observation is embedded to strengthen application is provided. An action research model, encapsulating the approach discussed, demonstrates its practicality for teachers to engage in critically reflective practice and provide an evidence-base for their work. As …

Education In A Warming World: Trends, Opportunities And Pitfalls For Institutes Of Higher Education, Orla Kelly, Sam Illingworth, Fabrizio Butera, Vaille Dawson, Peta White, Mindy Blaise, Pim Martens, Geertje Schuitema, Maud Huynen, Susan Bailey, Sian Cowman

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

Higher education institutes (HEI) face considerable challenges in navigating how to respond to the escalating and intertwined socio-ecological sustainability crises. Many dedicated individuals working in the sector are already driving meaningful action through rigorous research, teaching, knowledge sharing, and public engagement, while there is a growing consensus that sector-wide change is needed to ensure that aspirational declarations and positive individual actions translate into sustainable and transformative change. This article seeks to contribute to such efforts by illustrating a number of trends, examples, and reflections on how third-level educational institutes can act sustainably. We highlight the potential of five strategies HEI …

Reasons For Home Educating In Australia: Who And Why?, Eileen Slater, Kate Burton, Dianne Mckillop

Research outputs 2014 to 2021

Home education is a legal educational option in Australia that continues to rise in popularity. This paper summarises the demographics and influences upon the decision to home educate of 385 home education families from Australia, representing 676 children who were home educated at the time of questionnaire completion. The research suggests female caregivers with higher levels of educational achievement than the general population predominantly coordinate home education. Some families eschewed mainstream education for philosophical reasons whilst others home educated due to perceived necessity. However, characteristic of both groups was the belief that the current education system was unable to provide …

What Sort Of ‘Inclusion’ Is Continuing Professional Development Promoting? An Investigation Of A National Cpd Programme For Inclusive Physical Education, Kyriaki Makopoulou, Dawn Penney, Ross Neville, Gary Thomas

Research outputs 2014 to 2021

Inclusion is positioned at the forefront of global educational reform. The study reported focused on a national Continuing Professional Development (CPD) programme for Inclusive Physical Education (IPE) in England. The research was designed to critically explore how CPD providers (i.e. tutors) variously conceptualised and practiced inclusion in the context of running a day-long CPD course for physical education teachers. Using qualitative methodology, data were collected via course observations (n = 27), informal interviews with tutors (n = 10), and a tutor questionnaire (n = 18). Findings suggest that although tutors’ theoretical interpretations of inclusion were largely consistent …

Understanding, Promoting And Supporting Lgbtqi+ Diversity In Legal Education, Aidan Ricciardo, Shane L. Rogers, Stephen D. Puttick, Natalie Skead, Stella Tarrant, Melville Thomas

Research outputs 2014 to 2021

Australian law schools are becoming increasingly diverse. Yet, there is very little quantitative or qualitative data on diversity in law schools and even less research examining how students’ diverse backgrounds and social identities–including their sexual orientation and gender identity–affect their law student experience. This article begins to fill this gap in the literature by reporting the findings from a study examining the law school experiences of LGBTQI+ students at all law schools within a single Australian state. The study reveals that much of the law school experience is similar for both LGBTQI+ and non-LGBTQI+ students, and that LGBTQI+ law students …

Mindfulness, Recovery-Stress Balance, And Well-Being Among University Dance Students, Peta Blevins, Gene Moyle, Shona Erskine, Luke Hopper

Research outputs 2014 to 2021

Dance students face many physical and psychological stressors in their training and daily lives, therefore methods for coping with stress are essential for performance enhancement and general wellbeing. This study aimed to investigate the relationships between mindfulness, stress, recovery, and wellbeing among university level vocational dance students. Seventy-two dance students at two Australian universities completed online self-report measures of mindfulness, recovery-stress states, and affect. Correlation coefficients indicated a significant positive relationship between mindfulness and positive affect, and significant negative relationships between mindfulness and stress, and mindfulness and negative affect. MANOVA revealed differences between high mindfulness and low mindfulness groups on …

Performing Kayepa Dordok Living Waters In Noongar Boodjar, South-Western Australia, Clint Bracknell, Pierre Horwitz, Trevor Ryan, Jonathan W. Marshall

Research outputs 2014 to 2021

Performance through language, song and dance provides alternative knowledges and ways of understanding, in this case, developing deeper relationships with living water. Drawing on Indigenous Noongar culture from south-western Australia, this paper addresses the question: How can relationships between living underground, estuarine and riverine water bodies (kayepa dordok) be performed? Two new interlinked Noongar works in response to local riverscapes were developed for, and performed as part of, the 2021 Perth Festival. The first was to embody the return journey of the bullshark, from the salt water to the riverine fresh water; the second was to enact the …

Universal Child Health And Early Education Service Use From Birth Through Kindergarten And Developmental Vulnerability In The Preparatory Year (Age 5 Years) In Tasmania, Australia, Catherine L. Taylor, Daniel Christensen, Kim Jose, Stephen R. Zubrick

Research outputs 2014 to 2021

This study investigated patterns of universal health and education service use from birth through Kindergarten (age 4 years) and estimated associations between cumulative risk and service use patterns, and between service use patterns and children's developmental vulnerability in the Preparatory Year (age 5 years). The study used population-wide linkage of health and education administrative data records for 5168 children who had a 2018 AEDC instrument collected in Tasmania and were born in Tasmania (2011–2013). Latent class analysis (LCA) identified three service use patterns: Regular (72.2 per cent of children; reference group), Low (15.6 per cent of children) and High service …

Implementing The National Quality Standard In Schools: Leadership That Motivates Improvement Initiatives Through Psychological Ownership, Gillian Kirk, Lennie Barblett

Research outputs 2014 to 2021

From 2016, all Western Australian schools were mandated to implement the National Quality Standard (NQS) in Kindergarten through to Year 2. Over the first year of implementation, this mandate had varying degrees of success in adoption. This study examined four schools which were identified as having implemented the NQS. A qualitative methodology was employed to examine those factors that supported implementation. A key finding was the integral role played by distributed leadership in adopting new initiatives. Using Activity Theory to conceptualise the data, it was found that psychological ownership was a key factor in enabling distributed leadership. Ownership was enabled …

Mixed-Ability Grouping In Physical Education: Investigating Ability And Inclusivity In Pedagogic Practice, Shaun D. Wilkinson, Dawn Penney

Research outputs 2014 to 2021

In the United Kingdom (UK) particularly, grouping strategies in secondary education have attracted considerable political attention. While setting students by ability is frequently adopted in mathematics, English and science, mixed-ability grouping is common in other subjects, including physical education (PE). Educational research exploring grouping has highlighted the need for research to extend understanding of the pedagogical assumptions, challenges and/or opportunities associated with the use of mixed-ability grouping in various subject and school settings. This case study research sought to examine mixed-ability grouping with a particular focus on how this grouping strategy was enacted in Key Stage 3 (Years 7, 8 …

Rethinking Arts-Based Research Methods In Education: Enhanced Participant Engagement Processes To Increase Research Credibility And Knowledge Translation, Julia E. Morris, Lisa Francesca Paris

Research outputs 2014 to 2021

Arts-based research is a participatory research practice that is well established in the qualitative field. However, while arts-based research has been defined as the creation of art to generate, interpret or communicate research knowledge, there is exiguous literature on the creation of art to establish trustworthiness in qualitative inquiry. This pilot case study specifically addresses this gap in the exploration of arts-based research practices to determine credibility and dependability. The context of the research was the impact of a Digital Sabbath practice on early career teachers, as teachers within their first five years of teaching are among the most vulnerable …

Schools, Separating Parents And Family Violence: A Case Study Of The Coercion Of Organisational Networks, Sue Saltmarsh, Kay Ayre, Eseta Tualaulelei

Research outputs 2014 to 2021

This paper considers how complex family circumstances such as parental separation, custody disputes and family violence intersect with the organisational cultures and everyday practices of schools. In particular, we are concerned with the ways that coercive control–a strategy used predominantly by men to dominate, control and oppress women in the context of intimate partner relationships–can be deployed to manipulate and coerce the organisational networks of schools into furthering abusive agendas. Informed by cultural theory and research from sociology of education, legal studies, criminology and family violence, we show how what we term the ‘coercion of organisational networks’ (CON) both relies …

Voicing Derbarl Yerrigan As A Feminist Anti-Colonial Methodology, Vanessa Wintoneak, Mindy Blaise

Research outputs 2014 to 2021

The paper voices Derbarl Yerrigan, a significant river in Western Australia, through three imperfect, non-innocent, and necessary river-child stories. These stories highlight the emergence of a feminist anti-colonial methodology that is attentive to settler response-abilities to Derbarl Yerrigan through situated, relational, active, and generative research methods. Voicing Derbarl Yerrigan influences the methodological practices used as part of an ongoing river-child walking inquiry that is concerned with generating climate change pedagogies in response to the global climate crises and calls for new ways of thinking and producing knowledge. In particular, the authors found that voicing as a methodology includes listening and …

Hyper-Performativity And Early Career Teachers: Interrogating Teacher Subjectivities In Neoliberal Educational Assemblages, Kirsten Lambert, Christina Gray

Research outputs 2014 to 2021

This paper explores the hyper-performative expectations of early career teachers (ECTs) in the context of neoliberal education assemblages. The need to support and retain beginning teachers is a salient issue in the context of troubling rates of teacher attrition. The study explores how ECTs perceive teacher identities in response to national standards. Our research revealed that ECTs held concerning conceptions of ‘quality teaching’ that are largely constructed through discourses of competition and job insecurity. ECT subjectivities were heavily influenced excessive extra-curricular hours, high-stress environments, and performative school cultures. This paper concludes that hyper-performative expectations of ECTs and insecure patterns of …

Designing And Using Innovative Learning Spaces: What Teachers Have To Say, Julia E. Morris, Wesley Imms

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

There is no universal definition of what constitutes an innovative learning environment, because each school is unique. Plans to Pedagogy, developed by the University of Melbourne’s Learning Environments Applied Research Network (LEaRN) team, is exploring issues schools identify as they transition to and use innovative learning environments. Embedded in a range of schools across Australia and New Zealand, each school is assigned an academic who works with them to co-design a project targeting the school’s identified spatial challenge. This paper overviews the eight current Plans to Pedagogy projects to give a sense of the issues faced by teachers in terms …

Kindytxt: A Free Text Messaging Program For Kindergarten Children And Families, Lennie Barblett, Nicola Johnson, Caroline Barratt-Pugh, Susan Hill

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

• This project focused on developing, delivering and evaluating a literacy text-messaging program for parents / carers with a child at kindergarten in WA.
• Texts were delivered weekly over 30 weeks, in collaboration with Better Beginnings. Families were invited to participate through a flyer in the book gifting bag delivered by local librarians to families attending kindergarten across Western Australia.
• Kindergarten teachers and librarians from 16 LGAs attended workshops to establish kindergarten-family library partnerships, along with the production and evaluation of a partnership framework and implementation materials.
• Evaluation involved all participants, with in-depth data collected from participants in six communities.

Curriculum Reform In Wales: Physical Education Teacher Educators' Negotiation Of Policy Positions, David Aldous, Victoria Evans, Dawn Penney

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

This paper reports on research that explored the experiences of secondary Physical Education Teacher Education (PETE) professionals' simultaneous negotiation and implementation of the new Curriculum for Wales (CfW) Health and Well-Being (HWB) Area of Learning and Experience (AoLE) and policies focused on the transformation of Initial Teacher Education (ITE) in Wales. The study was an exploratory case study of PETE professionals working within one university's ITE programme. Data were generated through documentary analysis of PETE and ITE programme materials and semi-structured interviews with staff involved in programme management and delivery. Data analysis employed Ball and colleagues' conceptualisation of policy actors …

Mediation Roles Of Pedagogical Approaches And Personality Traits In Entrepreneurial Curriculum Design And Entrepreneurial Intention Nexus, Victor Fannam Nunfam, Ebenezer Afrifa-Yamoah, Akanganngang Joseph Asitik

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

Planned behaviour theory was used in a path analysis modelling to investigate the serial mediation role of teaching methods and personality traits (locus of control, need for achievement and entrepreneurial attitude) in the relationship between entrepreneurship curriculum and entrepreneurial intention among university students in Ghana. A proposed 40-item instrument was used to measure outcomes for six constructs (3 personality trait constructs, entrepreneurship curriculum, teaching methods and entrepreneurial intention) for 324 participants. Acceptable convergent, divergent and construct validity scores were observed for the instrument. Teaching methods fully mediated the first-order relationships between entrepreneurial curriculum and each personality traits. The three constructs …

Celebrating The Work Of Pre-Service Teachers, Keyan Robertson

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

'Books can be both mirrors and windows', by investigating this statement, acknowledgment can be given to the vital importance of engaging students in a diverse range of children's literature within the classroom. The purpose is to develop children into accepting, empathetic, compassionate and prosocial members of the community, who strive to achieve self-actualisation (Maslow, 1943; McMillan and Chavis, 1986). Literature is constructed on the foundations of historical, social and cultural contexts, traditionally, biased and persuaded by the political and social views of its time (McDonald, 2018).

Beyond Reflective Practice: Blogging-With Place As A Diffractive Practice For (Re)Imagining Place-Based Education, Karen Nociti

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

This article proposes the diffractive practice of blogging-with Place as an alternative to a reflective journal. Reflective practice is a priority for teachers, with reflective journaling often employed as a method for documenting a teacher's experiences and knowledge about sites that are intended for place-based teaching and learning. However, when implemented for the purpose of improving place-based approaches, reflective journaling is limited by its grounding in an epistemology that values knowledge as leading to mastery and control over the environment. In response to calls for a radical reimagining of place-based approaches, the diffractive practice of blogging-with Place offers an opening …