Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®

Educational Assessment, Evaluation, and Research Commons™

Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®

Australian Council for Educational Research (ACER)

Discipline
Keyword
Publication Year
Publication
Publication Type
File Type

Articles 481 - 510 of 686

Full-Text Articles in Educational Assessment, Evaluation, and Research

No Wonder The Kids Are Confused: The Relevance Of Science Education To Science, Deborah Corrigan Jan 2006

No Wonder The Kids Are Confused: The Relevance Of Science Education To Science, Deborah Corrigan

2006 - Boosting Science Learning - What will it take?

My experiences in science have left me wondering if we know what we want to achieve when educating students in science. An important question for science educators is: how authentic is the science presented in science classrooms? To answer this, science educators need a clear idea of what is they believe to be the purpose of science and then how they can portray that in their classrooms. This paper represents my journey in thinking about and researching of these ideas. It is my belief that, if we are to engage students in science, then science education has to be far …

Go to article

Towards A Science Education For All: The Role Of Ideas, Evidence And Argument, Jonathan Osborne Jan 2006

Towards A Science Education For All: The Role Of Ideas, Evidence And Argument, Jonathan Osborne

2006 - Boosting Science Learning - What will it take?

This presentation offers a critical analysis of contemporary science education and the values on which it rests. Science education wrestles with two competing priorities: the need to educate the future citizen about science; and the need to provide the basic knowledge necessary for future scientists. It is argued that the evidence would suggest that it is the latter goal that predominates – a goal which exists at least, in part, in conflict with the needs of the majority who will not continue with science post compulsory education. The argument is advanced that there are four essential elements to any science …

Go to article

Inquiry In Science Classrooms - Rhetoric Or Reality?, Dennis Goodrum Jan 2006

Inquiry In Science Classrooms - Rhetoric Or Reality?, Dennis Goodrum

2006 - Boosting Science Learning - What will it take?

If one scans the science curriculum statements of the Australian States and Territories, one will find a consistent theme of inquiry and inquiry pedagogy pervading these documents. With the rhetoric of these policy documents and our sense of science education history, one would expect to see inquiry as an integral part of our secondary science classrooms. Unfortunately, this is not the case. Many secondary students are taught science that is perceived by them to be neither relevant nor engaging. Furthermore, traditional didactic teaching methods that offer little challenge, excitement or opportunities for engagement are common. There is a considerable gap …

Go to article

Rethinking Science Education Through Rethinking Schooling, Jim Davies Jan 2006

Rethinking Science Education Through Rethinking Schooling, Jim Davies

2006 - Boosting Science Learning - What will it take?

The Australian Science and Mathematics School was designed explicitly to support a renaissance in the teaching of science and to improve the engagement of students in the disciplines of science through highly engaging authentic learning opportunities. The school has adopted an action research approach as a means of re-thinking the elements of schooling and of its science programs. Its working premise is that quality science education is embedded in quality schooling. Science is learned through an innovative interdisciplinary curriculum with a pedagogy aligned to the inquiry methodologies associated with deep engagement in scientific endeavour. The architecturally designed school has transformed …

Go to article

Achievement Of Australia's Early Secondary Indigenous Students: Findings From Timss 2003, Sue Thomson, Pippa Mckelvie, Hanna Murnane Jan 2006

Achievement Of Australia's Early Secondary Indigenous Students: Findings From Timss 2003, Sue Thomson, Pippa Mckelvie, Hanna Murnane

TIMSS Australia Monograph Series

The primary aim of this report is to examine the performance of Australia’s Indigenous students who participated as part of the early secondary school (Year 8) cohort of the IEA Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS 2003). The performance of Indigenous students in this report has been compared to that of Australia’s non-Indigenous students across a number of variables that are known to affect student achievement in TIMSS generally (Martin, Mullis, Gonzalez & Chrostowski, 2004; Mullis, Martin, Gonzalez & Chrostowski, 2004). In total, 562 Year 8 Indigenous students from 207 schools across Australia participated in the study. Indigenous …

Go to article

Acer 2005-2006 Annual Report, Australian Council For Educational Research (Acer) Jan 2006

Acer 2005-2006 Annual Report, Australian Council For Educational Research (Acer)

ACER Annual Reports

No abstract provided.

Go to article

Teaching Reading: Literature Review: A Review Of The Evidence-Based Research Literature On Approaches To The Teaching Of Literacy, Particularly Those That Are Effective In Assisting Students With Reading Difficulties, Ken Rowe, National Inquiry Into The Teaching Of Literacy (Australia) Dec 2005

Teaching Reading: Literature Review: A Review Of The Evidence-Based Research Literature On Approaches To The Teaching Of Literacy, Particularly Those That Are Effective In Assisting Students With Reading Difficulties, Ken Rowe, National Inquiry Into The Teaching Of Literacy (Australia)

School and system improvement

Underlying a key purpose of the present review is the conviction that claims about what constitute effective literacy teaching, and of reading in particular, should be grounded in findings from rigorous evidence-based research. To this end, the present review of the research literature on teaching practices for students, with and without reading difficulties, relies largely, though not exclusively, on well-designed meta analytic syntheses that: (a) partial out methodological artefacts from the effect sizes; and (b) base their analyses on the actual procedures and components of instruction used in the studies reviewed. Following a brief outline of the background and purposes …

Go to article

Teaching Reading: Report And Recommendations, Ken Rowe, National Inquiry Into The Teaching Of Literacy (Australia) Dec 2005

Teaching Reading: Report And Recommendations, Ken Rowe, National Inquiry Into The Teaching Of Literacy (Australia)

School and system improvement

The objectives of the Inquiry were to review and analyse recent national and international research about literacy teaching approaches; identify the extent to which prospective teachers are provided with reading teaching approaches and skills that are effective in the classroom and have the opportunities to develop and practise the skills required to implement effective classroom reading programs; identify the ways in which research evidence on literacy teaching and policies in Australian schools can best inform classroom teaching practice and support teacher professional learning; examine the effectiveness of assessment methods being used to monitor the progress of students' early reading learning; …

Go to article

Participation In And Progress Through New Apprenticeships, John Ainley, Matthew Corrigan Nov 2005

Participation In And Progress Through New Apprenticeships, John Ainley, Matthew Corrigan

LSAY Research Reports

New Apprenticeships provide a pathway from school to adult working life for a significant proportion of each cohort of young people and thus make a potentially important contribution to the formation of skills for individuals and for the community as a whole. New Apprenticeships are based on a formal combination of study and work that links learning in the workplace with learning in an educational institution. They incorporate both traditional apprenticeships and traineeships. This report focuses on two broad research questions : What are the characteristics of young people who commence a New Apprenticeship overall, as well as of those …

Go to article

Year 12 Subjects And Further Study., Australian Council For Educational Research (Acer) Sep 2005

Year 12 Subjects And Further Study., Australian Council For Educational Research (Acer)

LSAY Briefing Reports

The subjects studied in the senior secondary years have a significant influence on the educational and career options available to young people when they leave school, over and above other factors. They also represent an outcome of previous school and other experiences, which shapes interests, proficiencies and decisions about careers. One perspective on subject uptake in the senior secondary years focuses on changes over time in participation in particular areas of study. A second perspective looks at differences between students enrolled in various subjects. Survey data such as those derived from LSAY are needed to monitor the associations between subject …

Go to article

Pathways From School To Further Education Or Work : Examining The Consequences Of Year 12 Course Choices, Sue Thomson Sep 2005

Pathways From School To Further Education Or Work : Examining The Consequences Of Year 12 Course Choices, Sue Thomson

LSAY Research Reports

Particular subjects or subject combinations are traditionally more likely to act as gateways to higher education or to vocational education and training, while other combinations are more likely to lead to the workforce or perhaps to unemployment. In general, tertiary or vocational qualifications facilitate the transition to work, and graduates earn significantly more than those who enter the workforce directly from school. However, some groups of students are less likely to participate in further education and training, including low achievers and those from lower socioeconomic backgrounds. The literature has pointed to differences in curriculum participation according to background variables such …

Go to article

Investigating The Links Between Teacher Professional Development And Student Learning Outcomes, Marion Meiers, Lawrence Ingvarson Sep 2005

Investigating The Links Between Teacher Professional Development And Student Learning Outcomes, Marion Meiers, Lawrence Ingvarson

Professional learning for teachers and school leaders

This report, in two volumes, describes an investigation of the links between teacher professional development and student learning outcomes. The study, funded by the Australian Government, provides a review of the research literature and of national and international initiatives linking professional development with student outcomes. It provides detailed case studies of the school-based trials of ten professional development programs in a number of different sites. It examines the repeated measures of student achievement from students in the classes of teachers in the school-based trials. Analysis and discussion of a common questionnaire completed by teachers in the school-based trials is provided. …

Go to article

Course Change And Attrition From Higher Education, Julie Mcmillan Jun 2005

Course Change And Attrition From Higher Education, Julie Mcmillan

LSAY Research Reports

This report examines the pathways of recent school leavers who enter the higher education sector in Australia. The focus is on the first three years after completing senior secondary school. The report has four broad aims: to provide estimates of the proportions of entrants who change courses or leave the higher education sector before completing a course; to identify factors associated with course change within the higher education sector; to identify factors associated with attrition from the higher education sector; and to examine the initial education, training and labour market destinations of those who leave the higher education sector before …

Go to article

An Evaluation Of The Bachelor Of Learning Management At Central Queensland University, Lawrence Ingvarson, Adrian Beavis, Charlotte Danielson, Louise Ellis, Alison Elliott Jun 2005

An Evaluation Of The Bachelor Of Learning Management At Central Queensland University, Lawrence Ingvarson, Adrian Beavis, Charlotte Danielson, Louise Ellis, Alison Elliott

Initial Teacher education

The term 'learning management' was created to capture the increased importance of individual learning in the knowledge society. The over-arching purpose of the degree is to graduate 'Learning Managers' who have a significantly different perspective and skill/knowledge base than in the past. Bachelor of Learning Management graduates will have a 'quality guaranteed' capacity to manage the learning of students and will be able to work collaboratively with other teaching professionals, a range of other supporting professionals and the community. The Bachelor of Learning Management is a distinctive approach to pre-service teacher preparation that has widespread education industry support. A feature …

Go to article

Numeracy In The Early Years: Project Good Start, Sue Thomson, Ken Rowe, Catherine Underwood, Ray Peck Mar 2005

Numeracy In The Early Years: Project Good Start, Sue Thomson, Ken Rowe, Catherine Underwood, Ray Peck

School and system improvement

Project Good Start investigated the effectiveness of numeracy programmes for Australian children in the year before school and the first year of schooling. Qualitative and quantitative data was collected from pre-schools, early childhood centres and primary schools, tovinvestigate the practice and learning experiences that best support children’s early numeracy development.

Go to article

Factors Affecting The Impact Of Professional Development Programs On Teachers' Knowledge, Practice, Student Outcomes & Efficacy, Lawrence Ingvarson, Marion Meiers, Adrian Beavis Jan 2005

Factors Affecting The Impact Of Professional Development Programs On Teachers' Knowledge, Practice, Student Outcomes & Efficacy, Lawrence Ingvarson, Marion Meiers, Adrian Beavis

Professional learning for teachers and school leaders

This report examines effects of structural and process features of professional development programs on teachers’ knowledge, practice and efficacy. It is based on four recent (2002-2003) studies undertaken through the Australian Government Quality Teacher Programme, designed to enhance teacher quality. The total data set for the survey study includes 3,250 teachers who had participated in eighty individual professional developmental activities within these studies. Teachers were surveyed at least three months after participating in an activity, which provided them with the opportunity to gauge the impact of programs on their practice. To investigate factors affecting impact, a theoretical model was developed …

Go to article

Primary Teacher Work Study Report, Jenny Wilkinson, Lawrence Ingvarson, Elizabeth Kleinhenz, Adrian Beavis Jan 2005

Primary Teacher Work Study Report, Jenny Wilkinson, Lawrence Ingvarson, Elizabeth Kleinhenz, Adrian Beavis

Teacher workforce and careers

This research was conducted by the Australian Council for Educational Research (ACER) in 2005. The study was a result of the New Zealand Primary Teachers Collective Agreement 2004-2007 which specified that a workload study be complete to consider how the work of a teacher could be better structured, resourced and organised to support more effective classroom teaching. The purpose of the study was to gain an understanding of the nature and patterns of primary teachers' work. The research was commissioned by the New Zealand Ministry of Education.

Go to article

From Accounting To Accountability: Harnessing Data For School Improvement, Lorna Earl Jan 2005

From Accounting To Accountability: Harnessing Data For School Improvement, Lorna Earl

2005 - Using data to support learning

There was a time in education when decisions were based on the best judgements of the people in authority. It was assumed that school leaders, as professionals in the field, had both the responsibility and the right to make decisions about students, schools and even about education more broadly. They did so using a combination of intimate and privileged knowledge of the context, political savvy, professional training and logical analysis. Data played almost no part in decisions. In fact, there was not much data available about schools. Instead, leaders relied on their tacit knowledge to formulate and execute plans. In …

Go to article

Assessment For Learning: Using Statewide Literacy And Numeracy Tests As Diagnostic Tools, Philip Holmes-Smith Jan 2005

Assessment For Learning: Using Statewide Literacy And Numeracy Tests As Diagnostic Tools, Philip Holmes-Smith

2005 - Using data to support learning

Assessment of learning dominates assessment efforts around the world, and systems, whether intentionally or unintentionally, typically portray such programs as the best means of raising the standards of learning. At the classroom level, such programs are rarely appreciated and most teachers have little faith in either the reliability or validity of such State-mandated tests. While it is clear that school administrators take the results of such programs very seriously, few classroom teachers give any more than cursory attention to the results for their own class.This is a shame for a number of reasons. First and foremost amongst these reasons is …

Go to article

Data For Schools In Nsw: What Is Provided And Can It Help?, Max Smith Jan 2005

Data For Schools In Nsw: What Is Provided And Can It Help?, Max Smith

2005 - Using data to support learning

Lifting the performance of New South Wales (NSW) students in literacy, numeracy and other key outcome areas to world-class standards is a central priority of this Government.The crucial responsibilities, shared between schools and the system, for effective educational provision are articulated in the most recent Framework for School Development and Accountability for NSW government schools.The role of 108 very senior officers, School Education Directors, recently appointed to regions across the state, is to ensure the effective implementation of this framework.The aim is to consolidate and focus existing accountability, improvement and reporting policies to improve and enrich student outcomes. Essential to …

Go to article

Data-Driven School Improvement Through The Vce Data Service, Glenn Rowley, Peter Congdon Jan 2005

Data-Driven School Improvement Through The Vce Data Service, Glenn Rowley, Peter Congdon

2005 - Using data to support learning

As the holder of student achievement data spanning three sectors and four levels, the Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority (VCAA) has a responsibility to provide these data to schools in ways that enable school staff to use them effectively and easily. With the discontinuation of the publication of school achievement indices, the VCAA was forced to confront a range of issues surrounding the question of which data belonged to the student, which was the property of the school, and which belonged to the general public. In 2002, a new balance was struck. A key component in this balance was the …

Go to article

Researchers And Practitioners Working Together To Ensure Data-Informed Practice In Secondary School : Evidence From Vic, Sa And Nsw Schools, Carmel Richardson Jan 2005

Researchers And Practitioners Working Together To Ensure Data-Informed Practice In Secondary School : Evidence From Vic, Sa And Nsw Schools, Carmel Richardson

2005 - Using data to support learning

The advantage of ‘ability-adjusted’ analyses of educational data is their capacity to provide fairer assessments of school and student achievement than reliance on raw scores alone. School performance evaluations based on students’ unadjusted (raw) marks favour schools with higher intakes of bright and advantaged students.The learning gains of middle and lower ability students are overlooked, and the achievements of students and schools in disadvantaged areas are not valued, while focus is concentrated on those achieving the highest marks. With ‘ability-adjusted’ analyses of school data, any student who achieves higher marks than similar ability peers is acknowledged as having performed well.This …

Go to article

An Evidence-Based Approach To Teaching And Learning, Michele Bruniges Jan 2005

An Evidence-Based Approach To Teaching And Learning, Michele Bruniges

2005 - Using data to support learning

A Greek philosopher might suggest that evidence is what is observed, rational and logical; a Fundamentalist – what you know is true; a Post Modernist – what you experience; a Lawyer – material which tends to prove or disprove the existence of a fact and that is admissible in court; a Clinical Scientist – information obtained from observations and/or experiments; and a teacher – what they see and hear. The past decade has seen a high level of engagement and commitment by Australian schools to the collection, analysis and interpretation of information about students to inform teaching and learning. Rapid …

Go to article

Using Data To Support Learning (Conference Proceedings), Australian Council For Educational Research (Acer) Jan 2005

Using Data To Support Learning (Conference Proceedings), Australian Council For Educational Research (Acer)

2005 - Using data to support learning

Research Conference 2005 is the tenth national Research Conference.Through our research conferences,ACER provides significant opportunities at the national level for reviewing current research-based knowledge in key areas of educational policy and practice.A primary goal of these conferences is to inform educational policy and practice.

Go to article

Using Data For School Improvement: A Practitioner's Approach, Wayne Craig Jan 2005

Using Data For School Improvement: A Practitioner's Approach, Wayne Craig

2005 - Using data to support learning

Over the past decade,Victorian government schools have become accustomed to the use of data as a means of evaluating school performance and identifying potential areas for improvement. In many instances however, the data has been relatively unsophisticated and the data has not been readily available to or useable by teachers, and students rarely had access to this information. The Victorian Education Department’s Accountability and Improvement framework, underpinned by a three year school charter, required schools to monitor, evaluate and report on performance data across a range of areas.

Go to article

Moving On From Count Me In Too: Evidence-Based Teaching And Learning In Numeracy In The Early And Middle Years Of Schooling, Lynn Tozer, Marilyn Holmes Jan 2005

Moving On From Count Me In Too: Evidence-Based Teaching And Learning In Numeracy In The Early And Middle Years Of Schooling, Lynn Tozer, Marilyn Holmes

2005 - Using data to support learning

New Zealand developed the Early Numeracy Project for Years 1–3 in 2000–2001, based on the New South Wales’ Count Me In Too, and much has happened in mathematics education since. Change is inevitable and numeracy has moved on.Today the New Zealand Number Framework, the Diagnostic Interview and Teaching Model now underpin numeracy teaching practice in over 14,000 classrooms from Year 1–9. Important developments to date have included a flexible national database and web site, well-developed supporting materials and data-rich annual evaluation reports which inform future direction and expectation of achievement. Because the Numeracy Project is evolving, further development and consolidation …

Go to article

Using Hsc Data To Give Principals Leverage, John Decourcy Jan 2005

Using Hsc Data To Give Principals Leverage, John Decourcy

2005 - Using data to support learning

What makes the difference in student achievement? What elements among ‘what makes the difference’ can a school principal influence? How does the principal influence these for the better? How do teachers best take account of the pedagogical information available in data? How can we use the data available to address these questions?

Go to article

Learning About Teaching And Teaching About Learning: Using Video Data For Research And Professional Development, Hilary Hollingsworth Jan 2005

Learning About Teaching And Teaching About Learning: Using Video Data For Research And Professional Development, Hilary Hollingsworth

2005 - Using data to support learning

Although video technology has been available for several decades, the collection and use of classroom video data for supporting and improving teaching and learning can still be considered to be in its infancy.A variety of research and professional development projects have made use of video data, revealing promising initial outcomes and identifying many possibilities for its use. However, relatively little systematic research has been conducted on the feasibility and effectiveness of various types and uses of video in education (Brophy, 2004). This paper outlines the nature and virtues of video data, and describes several Australian examples of research and professional …

Go to article

Learning About Learning And Teaching: Using The Evidence Of Student Achievement For Improvements At Individual, Class And School Level, Reg Allen Jan 2005

Learning About Learning And Teaching: Using The Evidence Of Student Achievement For Improvements At Individual, Class And School Level, Reg Allen

2005 - Using data to support learning

This paper describes the nature, use and importance of some powerful techniques through which teachers can use data to improve student learning. For a teacher, the central purpose of analysing data is to improve the learning of one or more particular students.That is, the individual teacher and the school take the students who come to them and seek to improve the learning of those students.This purpose is different from that of the sociologist seeking to understand patterns of participation, or that of the policy analyst seeking to understand the impact, if any, of policy settings.The possibly powerful generalisations about a …

Go to article

Using Online Assessment To Inform Teaching And Learning In Primary And Secondary Classrooms, Jim Tognolini Jan 2005

Using Online Assessment To Inform Teaching And Learning In Primary And Secondary Classrooms, Jim Tognolini

2005 - Using data to support learning

In the 1980’s there was a conscious effort around Australia and in many other countries around the world to shift the focus in assessment from notions of passing and failing to those of monitoring growth; from comparing students against each other to building up an image of what it is that students know and can do at particular stages in their development; and, from collecting marks to summarise performance to providing students and teachers with information from assessment activities that can be used to help diagnose potential weaknesses and strengths and lead to improved learning. The Australian Council for Educational …

Go to article

First Prev Next Last