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Australian Council for Educational Research (ACER)

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Articles 1051 - 1080 of 1792

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

The Digest Edition 2010/3 : Civics And Citizenship Education, Suzanne Mellor, Marion Meiers, Pat Knight Jan 2010

The Digest Edition 2010/3 : Civics And Citizenship Education, Suzanne Mellor, Marion Meiers, Pat Knight

Research Digest

The Melbourne Declaration on Educational Goals for Young Australians set out two broad goals, the second of which stated that by the end of secondary schooling: All young Australians become successful learners, confident and creative individuals, and active and informed citizens. (MCEETYA, 2008) Some important attributes of ‘active and informed citizens’ are listed in the elaboration of this goal. These indicate a broad view of the student learning outcomes that are expected to be gained from civics and citizenship education, including: appreciate Australia’s social, cultural, linguistic and religious diversity, and have an understanding of Australia’s system of government, history and …


Iccs 2009 European Report : Civic Knowledge, Attitudes, And Engagement Among Lower Secondary Students In 24 European Countries, David Kerr, Linda Sturman, Wolfram Schulz, Bethan Burge Jan 2010

Iccs 2009 European Report : Civic Knowledge, Attitudes, And Engagement Among Lower Secondary Students In 24 European Countries, David Kerr, Linda Sturman, Wolfram Schulz, Bethan Burge

Civics and Citizenship Assessment

The International Civic and Citizenship Education Study (ICCS) studied the ways in which countries prepare their young people to undertake their roles as citizens. ICCS was based on the premise that preparing students for citizenship involves helping them develop relevant knowledge and understanding and form positive attitudes toward being a citizen and participating in activities related to civics and citizenship. These notions were elaborated in the ICCS assessment framework (Schulz, Fraillon, Ainley, Losito, & Kerr, 2008). Regional contexts are important aspects of civic and citizenship education because they help us understand how people are differentially influenced to undertake their roles …


Iccs 2009 International Report: Civic Knowledge, Attitudes And Engagement Among Lower Secondary School Students In Thirty-Eight Countries., Wolfram Schulz, John Ainley, Julian Fraillon, David Kerr, Bruno Losito Jan 2010

Iccs 2009 International Report: Civic Knowledge, Attitudes And Engagement Among Lower Secondary School Students In Thirty-Eight Countries., Wolfram Schulz, John Ainley, Julian Fraillon, David Kerr, Bruno Losito

Civics and Citizenship Assessment

The International Civic and Citizenship Education Study (ICCS) studied the ways in which countries prepare their young people to undertake their roles as citizens. ICCS was based on the premise that preparing students for citizenship roles involves helping them develop relevant knowledge and understanding and form positive attitudes toward being a citizen and participating in activities related to civic and citizenship education. These notions were elaborated in the ICCS framework, which was the first publication to emerge from ICCS (Schulz, Fraillon, Ainley, Losito, & Kerr, 2008).


International Students’ Engagement With Effective Educational Practices: A Cross-National Comparison, Daniel Edwards Jan 2010

International Students’ Engagement With Effective Educational Practices: A Cross-National Comparison, Daniel Edwards

Australasian Survey of Student Engagement (AUSSE)

Findings from the Australasian Survey of Student Engagement (AUSSE) provide a new and unique means of tracking international students’ participation in higher education. The AUSSE is the largest cross-institutional collection of data from currently enrolled students in Australasia, and has formative links with the 1,200-institution USA National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE). The AUSSE has been validated rigorously for use in Australasia, and taps into fundamental aspects of educational quality – students’ engagement with effective educational practices, including important beyond class experiences. Evidence-based feedback such as this plays a critical role in growing and improving Australasia’s international higher education industry. …


The Digest Edition 2010/1 : Successful Professional Learning, Marion Meiers, Sarah Buckley, Pat Knight Jan 2010

The Digest Edition 2010/1 : Successful Professional Learning, Marion Meiers, Sarah Buckley, Pat Knight

Research Digest

This edition of The Digest is focused on research into teacher learning and professional development. Teacher learning includes not only activities such as conferences and workshops, but also includes participation in many formal and informal learning activities. Recent research has focussed, amongst other things, on characteristics of successful professional learning, and on the connections between teachers’ professional learning and improvements in student learning. This research has the potential to assist teachers and schools in selecting and planning for professional learning, so that it will maximise the benefits for participants. The first section of this digest presents some research findings on …


Doing More For Learning : Enhancing Engagement And Outcomes : Australasian Survey Of Student Engagement : Australasian Student Engagement Report., Ali Radloff, Hamish Coates Jan 2010

Doing More For Learning : Enhancing Engagement And Outcomes : Australasian Survey Of Student Engagement : Australasian Student Engagement Report., Ali Radloff, Hamish Coates

Australasian Survey of Student Engagement (AUSSE)

The 2009 Australasian Survey of Student Engagement (AUSSE) involved over 30,000 students from 35 higher education institutions. AUSSE reports on the time and effort students devote to educationally purposeful activities and on students' perceptions of other aspects of their university experience including interactions with university staff. The research shows that the contact students have with staff are among the strongest influences on positive learning outcomes. When students have the opportunity to speak with their teachers about their performance, their grades, or ideas from their classes, particularly outside of the classroom, and engage with their teachers on an individual level, students …


Annual Transitions Between Labour Market States For Young Australians, Hielke Buddelmeyer, Gary N. Marks Jan 2010

Annual Transitions Between Labour Market States For Young Australians, Hielke Buddelmeyer, Gary N. Marks

Vocational, adult and professional education research

This study uses an annual timeframe to evaluate the influence of labour market status in one period on status in the subsequent period. Understanding the role of past labour market experiences is important when it is the objective of policy-makers to increase the proportion of time spent by young Australians in desirable labour market states, such as full-time work, and reduce the time they spend in marginalised activities, such as unemployment. These concerns are heightened during lean economic times, but they never really go away. A natural question that may arise, especially in a weak labour market for youth, is …


Acer 2009-2010 Annual Report, Australian Council For Educational Research (Acer) Jan 2010

Acer 2009-2010 Annual Report, Australian Council For Educational Research (Acer)

ACER Annual Reports

No abstract provided.


Kidsmatter Primary Evaluation: Technical Report And User Guide, Katherine Dix, John P. Keeves, Phillip T. Slee, Michael J. Lawson, Alan Russell, Helen Askell-Williams, Grace Skrzypiec, Laurence Owens, Barbara Spears Jan 2010

Kidsmatter Primary Evaluation: Technical Report And User Guide, Katherine Dix, John P. Keeves, Phillip T. Slee, Michael J. Lawson, Alan Russell, Helen Askell-Williams, Grace Skrzypiec, Laurence Owens, Barbara Spears

Student learning processes

This Technical Report and User Guide is the culmination of an evaluation investigating the effectiveness of KidsMatter Primary, involving over 5000 participants in 100 Australian primary schools over a two year period. It brings together an extensive data gathering exercise and presents technical aspects of the statistical and thematic analyses used in the KidsMatter Evaluation Final. The series of data files and the analysis in which the files have been used, are from the KidsMatter Evaluation Whole Cohort Longitudinal Study (predominantly quantitative data) and the Stakeholder and Student Voice Studies (qualitative data), in addition to data obtained from Project Officers …


The On Track Survey 2009 : The Destinations Of School Leavers In Victoria. Statewide Report, Sheldon Rothman, Justin Brown, Kylie Hillman, Gary Marks, Phillip Mckenzie Jan 2010

The On Track Survey 2009 : The Destinations Of School Leavers In Victoria. Statewide Report, Sheldon Rothman, Justin Brown, Kylie Hillman, Gary Marks, Phillip Mckenzie

Vocational, adult and professional education research

Findings presented in this report are based on the On Track telephone survey of 36,022 Year 12 or equivalent completers and 4,676 early leavers from the 2008 school year in Victoria. Year 12 or equivalent completers are defined as those who completed a Victorian Certificate of Education (VCE), International Baccalaureate (IB) or Victorian Certificate of Applied Learning (VCAL, Senior or Intermediate). The sample includes those who completed such qualifications in schools (98.7%), or in TAFE colleges or adult and community education providers (1.3%). Early leavers are defined as those students in Years 10, 11 and 12 who had registered their …


Production Of A Prototype Online Leadership Learning Tool And System For Australian Universities, Geoff Scott, Hamish Coates, Michelle Anderson Jan 2010

Production Of A Prototype Online Leadership Learning Tool And System For Australian Universities, Geoff Scott, Hamish Coates, Michelle Anderson

Higher education research

This ALTC project has involved more than 600 experienced leaders in higher education within and beyond Australia in the production of a comprehensive Online Leadership Learning System (OLLS) for our universities. The report outlines the project's outcomes, approach and methodology; indicates its contribution to the field; identifies key factors assisting and constraining success; summarises its achievements in terms of dissemination and linkages; and evaluates its quality and impact.


International Students’ Engagement With Effective Educational Practices : A Cross-National Comparison, Daniel Edwards, Hamish Bennett Coates, Ali Radloff Jan 2010

International Students’ Engagement With Effective Educational Practices : A Cross-National Comparison, Daniel Edwards, Hamish Bennett Coates, Ali Radloff

Higher education research

International students in USA universities have higher levels of engagement with their institution when compared to international students enrolled in Australasian universities. ❚ The largest difference between USA and Australian international students was related to student and staff interactions. ❚ The growth in engagement with their institution between first and later year students among the international cohort is more prominent among those enrolled in USA than those in Australia or New Zealand. ❚ Among Australasian higher education students the international student group on average have higher levels of engagement than domestic students. ❚ When compared cross-nationally, the engagement score difference …


Teaching And Learning School Improvement Framework, Geoff N. Masters Jan 2010

Teaching And Learning School Improvement Framework, Geoff N. Masters

Monitoring Learning

The Teaching and Learning School Improvement Framework brings together findings from research into the practices of highly effective school leaders. The focus of the Framework is not on everything that effective leaders do, but on those leadership practices that appear to be most directly related to school-wide improvements in teaching and learning. The Framework was developed initially in collaboration with the Queensland Department of Education and Training and was used as the basis for a teaching and learning ‘audit’ of every government school in that state during the 2010 school year. The Framework consists of eight interrelated ‘domains’. Each domain …


Preschool Education In Australia, Andrew Dowling, Kate O’Malley Dec 2009

Preschool Education In Australia, Andrew Dowling, Kate O’Malley

Policy Briefs

Early childhood education (ECE) in Australia will soon experience a ‘radical makeover.’ In 2008, all Australian governments made a commitment through the Council of Australian Governments (COAG) that by 2013, all children in the year before formal schooling will have access to high quality early childhood education programs delivered by degreequalified early childhood teachers, for 15 hours per week, 40 weeks of the year, in public, private and community-based preschools and child care. The purpose of this policy brief is to summarise the current structure of preschool in Australia in contemplation of this major policy shift. This paper describes the …


Successful Sustainable Literacy Practice For Indigenous Students, Nola Purdie Nov 2009

Successful Sustainable Literacy Practice For Indigenous Students, Nola Purdie

Indigenous Education Research

The author discusses current approaches to the literacy education of Indigenous students within the context of best practice literacy education for all students. Issues addressed include: Literacy and disadvantaged groups; Literacy programs for Indigenous Australian Students; Teachers and literacy learning; Assessment and measurement of literacy learning; and good literacy curriculum.


The Attractiveness Of The Australian Academic Profession : A Comparative Analysis, Hamish Coates, Ian Dobson, Daniel Edwards, Tim Friedman, Leo Goedegebuure, Lynn Meek Oct 2009

The Attractiveness Of The Australian Academic Profession : A Comparative Analysis, Hamish Coates, Ian Dobson, Daniel Edwards, Tim Friedman, Leo Goedegebuure, Lynn Meek

Higher education research

This briefing provides an analysis of challenges facing the sustainability and development of the academic workforce in Australia. It draws together insights from national statistics collections and a number of recent studies, sheds light on current characteristics of the academic profession, and identifies key problem areas. From a review of the evidence, we argue that now is the time for both policy action at the national and institutional level to address these problems, and for further research that can inform workforce planning and development in the years to come.


Informing Mathematics Pedagogy: Timss 2007 Australia And The World, Sue Thomson, Sarah Buckley Oct 2009

Informing Mathematics Pedagogy: Timss 2007 Australia And The World, Sue Thomson, Sarah Buckley

TIMSS 2007

The main goal of TIMSS is to assist countries to monitor and evaluate their mathematics and science teaching across time and across year levels. TIMSS has a curriculum focus. This report aims to provide teachers with more detailed information on Australian students’ capabilities in mathematics in terms of the TIMSS assessment. A detailed assessment of Australian students’ performance can be found in the full report that was written to inform the educational community about Australian students’ performance on national and international scales.


Informing Science Pedagogy: Timss 2007 Australia And The World, Sue Thomson, Sarah Buckley Oct 2009

Informing Science Pedagogy: Timss 2007 Australia And The World, Sue Thomson, Sarah Buckley

TIMSS 2007

The main goal of TIMSS is to assist countries to monitor and evaluate their mathematics and science teaching across time and across year levels. TIMSS has a curriculum focus. This report aims to provide teachers with more detailed information on Australian students’ capabilities in science in terms of the TIMSS assessment. A detailed assessment of Australian students’ performance can be found in the full report that was written to inform the educational community about Australian students’ performance on national and international scales.


The Analysis Of Measurement Equivalence In International Studies Using The Rasch Model, Wolfram Schulz, Julian Fraillon Sep 2009

The Analysis Of Measurement Equivalence In International Studies Using The Rasch Model, Wolfram Schulz, Julian Fraillon

Civics and Citizenship Assessment

No abstract provided.


Using Assessment Data For Improving Teaching Practice, Helen Timperley Aug 2009

Using Assessment Data For Improving Teaching Practice, Helen Timperley

2009 - 2019 ACER Research Conferences

No abstract provided.


Literacy And Numeracy Diagnostic Tools : An Evaluation, Margaret Forster Aug 2009

Literacy And Numeracy Diagnostic Tools : An Evaluation, Margaret Forster

Monitoring Learning

Within the context of a national drive to improve literacy and numeracy learning, the Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations (DEEWR) is looking at the possibility of developing a set of literacy and numeracy diagnostic tools for use in Australian schools. This scoping study—a relatively small scale piece of work designed as a first step from which DEEWR might move forward—is not a direct study of ‘what works to improve literacy and numeracy’. Its focus is on the identification and evaluation of the print and on-line literacy and numeracy diagnostic tools used currently in Australian schools. Particular attention is …


Scoping Study To Investigate Online Learning Environments To Facilitate Evidence Sharing By Literacy And Numeracy Practitioners (Lnet Project), Michele Lonsdale, Alana Deery, Gerry K. White, Carol Skyring Jul 2009

Scoping Study To Investigate Online Learning Environments To Facilitate Evidence Sharing By Literacy And Numeracy Practitioners (Lnet Project), Michele Lonsdale, Alana Deery, Gerry K. White, Carol Skyring

Digital learning research

The purpose of the scoping study was to identify effective online interfaces or learning environments that provide education stakeholders with opportunities to share examples of good practice, ideas and quality resources. A review of the literature was undertaken and consultations carried out with a wide range of education stakeholders via focus groups, telephone interviews, videoconference and online survey. Those consulted included ICT experts, representatives of professional education associations, teachers, and personnel from state and territory Independent, Catholic and government jurisdictions. The main obstacles to usage continue to be lack of time and lack of confidence among teachers. School leadership that …


The Achievement Of Australia's Indigenous Students In Pisa 2000-2006, Lisa De Bortoli, Sue Thomson Jul 2009

The Achievement Of Australia's Indigenous Students In Pisa 2000-2006, Lisa De Bortoli, Sue Thomson

OECD Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) Australia

The three-yearly PISA assessments provide an opportunity to monitor the performance of Australian students in reading, mathematical and scientific literacy. In particular, the assessments allow us to examine the performance of particular equity groups; to look at how well particular groups of 15-year-old students, approaching the end of their compulsory schooling are prepared for meeting the challenges they will face in their lives beyond school. A special focus for Australia has been to ensure that there is a sufficiently large sample of Australia’s Indigenous students so that valid and reliable analysis can be conducted. This has been achieved in each …


Mapping Qualifications Frameworks Across Apec Economies, Gerald Burke, Phillip Mckenzie, Chandra Shah, Jack Keating, Alison Vickers, Rob Fearnside, Andrea Bateman Jun 2009

Mapping Qualifications Frameworks Across Apec Economies, Gerald Burke, Phillip Mckenzie, Chandra Shah, Jack Keating, Alison Vickers, Rob Fearnside, Andrea Bateman

Centre for the Economics of Education & Training (CEET)

This report on qualification frameworks was undertaken for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Human Resources Development Working Group (HRDWG) Education Network Subgroup (EDNET). The project aimed to facilitate increased transparency and reliability of information about qualification frameworks across the APEC region, share knowledge and skills and identify future areas of collaboration. A qualifications framework is an instrument for classifying qualifications according to a set of criteria for levels of learning outcomes. Considerable benefits are expected of national qualification frameworks (NQFs). If backed by a good system of quality assurance, they can support the development of workers’ skills, facilitate educational and …


Engaging College Communities: The Impact Of Residential Colleges In Australian Higher Education, Hamish Coates, Daniel Edwards Jun 2009

Engaging College Communities: The Impact Of Residential Colleges In Australian Higher Education, Hamish Coates, Daniel Edwards

Australasian Survey of Student Engagement (AUSSE)

Residential colleges play a vital role in many of the best universities in the world. Intuitively, it seems clear that living in a university-affiliated residence would enhance students’ educational involvement and outcomes. Reports from those closely involved in residential colleges provide a considerable amount of support for this proposition. Anecdotal reports help build a rich picture of residential life in Australian higher education, but overly relying on such data limits the extent to which colleges can be situated, compared and understood within broader contexts. Hence it is helpful to complement perceptual reports with data that offer more objective insights into …


The 2008 Graduate Pathways Survey : Graduates Education And Employment Outcomes Five Years After Completion Of A Bachelor Degree At An Australian University, Hamish Coates, Daniel Edwards Apr 2009

The 2008 Graduate Pathways Survey : Graduates Education And Employment Outcomes Five Years After Completion Of A Bachelor Degree At An Australian University, Hamish Coates, Daniel Edwards

Higher education research

This report presents findings from the first national study in Australia of bachelor degree graduates five years after degree completion. It details the design, development, implementation and outcomes of the Graduate Pathways Survey (GPS). Findings from the 2008 GPS are wide ranging. They must be read within the context of the project's methodology which is detailed in Appendix B, but it is clear that the findings have the capacity to shape university education and the development of Australia's economy and professional workforce. Findings from the 2008 Graduate Pathways Survey are of interest to a wide range of audiences. Potential university …


Estimating Attrition Bias In The Year 9 Cohorts Of The Longitudinal Surveys Of Australian Youth: Technical Report No. 48, Sheldon Rothman Apr 2009

Estimating Attrition Bias In The Year 9 Cohorts Of The Longitudinal Surveys Of Australian Youth: Technical Report No. 48, Sheldon Rothman

LSAY Technical Reports

This technical paper examines the issue of attrition bias in two cohorts of the Longitudinal Surveys of Australian Youth (LSAY), based on an analysis using data from 1995 to 2002. Data up to 2002 provided eight years of information on members of the Y95 cohort and five years of information on members of the Y98 cohort. This amount of time was considered adequate to evaluate the extent of attrition bias and the performance of weights in correcting for bias. At the time each cohort was drawn, the sample represented the population of 15 year-old Australian students attending Australian schools, but …


National Curriculum And National Professional Standards: Potentially A Powerful Partnership, Lawrence C. Ingvarson Apr 2009

National Curriculum And National Professional Standards: Potentially A Powerful Partnership, Lawrence C. Ingvarson

Teaching standards and teacher evaluation

The author discusses the potential impact on Australian education of the creation of the interim National Curriculum Board (NCB) and subsequently the Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority (ACARA) and of the National Partnership on Quality Teaching (NPQT). The author argues that their roles should be seen as distinct, but complementary and mutually reinforcing – which has important implications for the new national curriculum, the success of which will depend fundamentally on the willingness and capacity of teachers to meet related standards.


The On Track Survey 2008: The Destinations Of School Leavers In Victoria, Sheldon Rothman, Kylie Hillman, Phillip Mckenzie, Gary Marks Apr 2009

The On Track Survey 2008: The Destinations Of School Leavers In Victoria, Sheldon Rothman, Kylie Hillman, Phillip Mckenzie, Gary Marks

Vocational, adult and professional education research

Data presented in this report is based on the On Track telephone survey of 33,250 Year 12 or equivalent completers and 4740 early leavers from the 2007 school year in Victoria. Year 12 or equivalent completers are defined as those who completed a Victorian Certificate of Education (VCE), International Baccalaureate (IB) or Victorian Certificate of Applied Learning (VCAL, Senior or Intermediate). The sample includes those who completed these qualifications in schools (the large majority), Technical and Further Education (TAFE) institutes, or adult and community learning organisations. Early leavers are defined as those students in Years 10, 11 and 12 who …


Teaching And Learning In Middle Schooling: A Review Of The Literature, Stephen Dinham, Ken Rowe Mar 2009

Teaching And Learning In Middle Schooling: A Review Of The Literature, Stephen Dinham, Ken Rowe

School and system improvement

The literature review on teaching and learning for students in the middle schooling years summarised in this paper was undertaken in 2007. It was commissioned by the New Zealand Ministry of Education following identification of the following issues: limited quality data on middle schooling outcomes in New Zealand; the need to develop an evidence base to inform decisions and policy development in relation to middle schooling; the need to ensure that decisions are informed by the best evidence about effective curriculum and pedagogical approaches in the middle years of schooling; and the need for a coherent, coordinated approach to establishing …