Educational Assessment, Evaluation, and Research Commons^™

The Ilese Project: Building An Evidentiary Database About Students' Use Of Learning Environments, W. Imms, J. E. Morris, K. Day, C. Bradbeer, L. Lockhart-Barker, C. Campbell

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

This paper presents the progress of a unique study of significant scope. The industry-funded innovative Learning Environments and Student Experience (ILESE) study asked two questions: In what ways has more than two decades of learning spaces research culminated in readily used evidence that meets the needs of those involved in providing innovative education infrastructure? Second, based on perceived strengths and gaps, how do we design research to address identified gaps? This paper reports on the findings to these questions. It draws on the results of a large-scale Scoping Study that sought perspectives from experts equally distributed across (1) industries providing …

From Hermeneutic Theory To Pedagogical Practice: Dialogue, Fusion Of Horizons, And Tradition In The Philosophy For Children Classroom, Leon Benade

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

This article brings Hans-Georg Gadamer’s philosophical hermeneutics into critical conversation with the pedagogical practice of philosophy in schools, focusing particularly on Philosophy for Children (P4C). While P4C offers a rich pedagogical model for developing reasonableness through the Community of Inquiry (CoI), its account of the conditions under which understanding occurs remains somewhat underdeveloped. Although some scholars have situated P4C in relation to hermeneutics, this engagement is limited. Addressing this gap, the key Gadamerian ideas of tradition, prejudice, and the fusion of horizons and dialogue are explored here to deepen and extend the theoretical considerations of inquiry in P4C. The discussion …

Multimodal Narratives Of Adolescents’ Music-Wellbeing Literacy Capabilities In A Music-Focused Secondary School, Jason Goopy

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

Meaningful and practical wellbeing strategies are needed to support young people living healthy lives. Wellbeing literacy is a positive psychology capability model for how people communicate about and for their wellbeing experiences, providing a framework for individuals to intentionally comprehend and create wellbeing languages to sustain and improve their own and others’ wellbeing. Contemporary views of literacy consider music a multimodal symbolic language and music is gaining recognition for its wellbeing benefits. This applied interdisciplinary study brings together theory and practices from positive psychology, education, and music to advance our understanding of the multimodality of wellbeing languages. A case study …

Mood Monitoring In Schools: A Promising Alternative To Single-Time-Point Screening, Shane L. Rogers, Brown, Kathryn Campbell, Matthew Goulding

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

School-based mental health screening typically relies on single-time-point assessments, which assume that students’ emotional well-being is sufficiently stable for classification based on a single measurement. The present study examined this assumption by evaluating the stability of emotional well-being classifications under repeated mood monitoring. Students from two secondary schools (United Kingdom, n = 413; Australia, n = 354) completed the Brief Emotional Experience Scale weekly across six to seven weeks. Emotional well-being classifications were examined relative to a predefined low well-being threshold to assess stability across time, and a post-monitoring survey examined students’ self-reported perceptions of the monitoring experience. Most students …

Leading Against The Odds: School Leadership In Under-Resourced Community Schools In Nepal, Shankar Dhakal, Chet Nath Panta

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

Community schools in Nepal, particularly in remote areas, face persistent challenges in managing human, financial, and physical resources, which hinder educational quality and equity. Through a multiple case study design guided by Ecological Systems Theory, this research conducted semi-structured interviews with six headteachers from diverse geographical contexts, revealing critical issues including teacher shortages, financial instability, and inadequate infrastructure. Despite these barriers, headteachers demonstrate remarkable resilience through community engagement, strategic resource mobilization, and adaptive leadership strategies that paradoxically become more sophisticated under severe constraints. Positioning Nepal as a critical case for understanding educational leadership in resource-constrained environments globally, the study advances …

Schools, Space And Atmospheres: The Value Of Student Videos In Negotiating Contested Spaces In New Urban Vertical Schools, Prue Miles, Kylie Boltin, Stuart Poyntz, Jill Willis

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

Voices of young people are essential in civic discourse about thriving futures. Yet dialogue can be complicated when the experiences of adults and young people are vastly different, for example in school spaces designed by adults in cities designed for adults. Vertical, highrise inner city schools represent this intersection. A new genre of school in Australia, vertical schools symbolise aspirations for young people and livable cities as designed by adults. This paper draws from data collected in the Thriving in Vertical Schools project to explore the importance of affective learning atmospheres for students, and the value of digital stories to …

Send Us Your Children: Toronto’S Growing Market Of Private Schools For International Secondary Students And Why It Is Concerning, Olivia Johnston, Roopa Trilokekar, Sue Winton, Laura Perry

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

The number of private secondary schools that cater to international students is increasing rapidly, especially in the Canadian city of Toronto. Previous studies about international students in public schools have uncovered several concerns, but little is known about these largely unregulated, for-profit private schools. We had created a dataset of all private secondary schools in Toronto (n = 370), and in the process noticed a high volume of schools explicitly targeting international students (n = 174). Thus, a qualitative document analysis of the websites of schools was conducted to explore this market further. Our final analysis uncovered 138 ‘schools of …

Beyond Assumptions: What Students Really Think About School Wellbeing Programs, Amanda Madden

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

The study examined students’ perceptions of effective components in school-based wellbeing programs, addressing a critical gap where adolescent voices are absent. Data was gathered through a questionnaire, individual interviews, and focus groups conducted with 36 Year 12 students across three independent co-educational schools in Western Australia. Thematic analysis identified seven key components essential for effective wellbeing programming: targeted content providing respite from academic pressures, engaging and relatable presenters, strategic timing, developmental appropriateness, meaningful measurement, genuine teacher engagement, and authentic incorporation of student voice. Students valued practical, non-academic content and expressed scepticisms about teacher-delivered programs. Timing emerged as a previously underexplored …

Curriculum Approaches To Strengthening Student Employability And Improving Graduate Outcomes In The Stm Disciplines, Denise Jackson, Michael D. O’Connor

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

In Australia and elsewhere, curriculum improvements are needed to improve the development of Science, Technology and Mathematics (STM) graduates for future work and careers. Several studies document significant STM student attrition, poor graduate preparedness for work, relatively weak employment rates post-graduation, and mismatched expectations of graduate capabilities by employers. The inclusion of work-integrated learning (WIL) activities within curricula can better prepare students for relevant employment by bridging discipline-specific teaching with work practices. Traditionally, access to WIL has been limited for STM Bachelor students and a better understanding of WIL’s benefits and impact is needed to refine and extend STM WIL …

Benefits And Challenges With The Modular Model Of Teacher Certification In Australia: Listening To Teachers’ Voices, Bernard Brown, Rohan Nethsinghe

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

This paper examines teachers’ views about the Highly Accomplished and Lead Teacher (HALT) Certification 2.0 Modular Model (CMM 2.0). The research reveals teachers’ voices and agency in relation to HALT certification. Participants in this study included HALT certified teachers, current HALT participants, and prospective participants. The semi-structured interviews conducted provide insights into the benefits and challenges associated with the CMM 2.0. Thematic coding and systematic analysis were applied to the data to arrive at the key findings. The research revealed that teachers believed that the modular approach was advantageous as it was flexible and provided professional recognition and development. Issues …

Chinese Secondary School Teachers' Perceptions Of Teacher Candidates' Teaching Ability And Performance, Liyuan Chen, Chia Ching Tu

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

: This study investigated secondary school teachers' beliefs about teacher educators’ teaching competencies and performance. Additionally, it compared the differences between the perceived importance of teaching competencies and the teaching performance level among teachers from different backgrounds. The Delphi method was first used to identify teaching competency items followed by a questionnaire survey to collect data from secondary school teachers in Hebei Province, China. Out of 700 questionnaires that were sent out, 539 valid questionnaires were returned. Secondary school teachers were highly aware of the importance of teaching competencies but did not possess these competencies. An importance-performance analysis (IPA) showed …

Teachers’ Perceptions Of Students’ Ict Skills For Online Assessments (Naplan): Influences And Impact, Cindy Carboni, Susan Main

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

This convergent mixed-methods study investigated Australian teachers’ perspectives on the computing competencies required for online National Assessment Program – Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN). A total of 107 teachers completed surveys examining how socio-educational backgrounds and classroom practices shape students’ readiness for high-stakes online assessments. Quantitative analysis revealed significant associations between socio-educational advantage and students’ proficiency in seven essential NAPLAN ICT online skills, including typing, navigation, and on-screen manipulation. Qualitative findings highlighted teachers’ concerns about limited exposure to computing tools and insufficient practice time, which many believed hindered student performance in online assessments. Teachers also noted that inequities in skill development …

Transforming Transitions Ii: A Summary Report, Lennie Barblett, Fiona Boylan, Amelia Ruscoe

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

An abridged version of the report.

Building on the success of the Transforming Transitions project conducted with ten Western Australian Independent Schools (Barblett et al., 2023), this study extended the inquiry into school engagement and the transition process. The project was reimagined to deepen collaboration with schools, focusing on two key areas: first, fostering meaningful engagement with young learners and their families during the transition to school by drawing on their funds of knowledge; and second, centering the perspectives of children as active participants in their transition, acknowledging their experiences and the role of family-school engagement in shaping their sense …

Assessment Of Initial Teacher Education From The Evaluated’ Perspective: A Literature Review, Carla E. Förster, Andrea Ruffinelli, Tatiana Cisternas, Francisca Donoso

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

Many quality assurance policies for teacher education are linked to the assessment of their training and although this is widely studied, the subjects’ perspectives have not been taken into consideration. This study sought to answer: how do the subjects perceive these education assessments and how do those assessments influence their training? A Systematic Literature Review (SLR) search was conducted, rendering the selection of 12 articles. The results indicate that the studies incorporating the subjects' opinions were limited to two instruments: the edTPA from the United States and LANTITE from Australia. Both the performance-based format (edTPA) and the measurement of literacy …

A Hopeful Or Hopeless Future? Perspectives On The Challenges And Opportunities In Catholic Education, Christine Robinson, Linda Cranley

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

The research presented in this paper offers a significant contribution to existing discourse that explores the challenges and opportunities within Catholic education. In an increasingly secularised world, Catholic education continues its mission to form and inform young people in the faith. The Church acknowledges that the Catholic school enacts the mission of the Church in society and does so despite a detraditionalised cultural context. The Global Researchers Advancing Catholic Education, known as G.R.A.C.E, was formed to act as a global network of Catholic educators to respond to the ‘signs of the times’ in an innovative and integrated way. This paper …

Evaluating Impact Of Educational Research On Teachers’ Practice: A Teacher Expectations Intervention, Olivia Johnston

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

Educational research that generates new knowledge can have a positive impact on teaching practice, yet few methods have been developed to show if, and how, knowledge-based research translation has any impact on teachers’ professional practices. The research reported in this paper evaluated the impact of a Teacher Expectations Intervention on teachers’ practice. The intervention disseminated new knowledge about teaching practices that communicate high expectations to students. Graham et al.’s (2006) Knowledge-to-Action Framework provided a conceptual framework to develop, implement and evaluate the intervention with the participant teachers. The findings show that 61 secondary-school teachers experienced overall positive impact on their …

Health Education In Swedish Schools–What’S On Offer?, V. Varea, A. Caldeborg, D. Barker, M. Quennerstedt

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

The aim of this paper is to identify the dominant discourses of health and wellbeing that are offered in health education in Swedish schools. Issues of health and wellbeing are covered mainly in four school subjects in Sweden: physical education and health, home and consumer studies, biology, and social studies, and therefore, we interviewed teachers from those subjects to generate data. Six interrelated health discourses were identified from the data. All discourses were, however, also embedded within a health discourse with a comprehensive description of health as physical, psychological and social wellbeing. Results suggest that schools offer a Western and …

Mothers, Social Capital And Children’S Physical Literacy Journeys In Rural Australia, Kate Mccreery, Dawn Penney, Ruth Jeanes

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

In rural communities in Australia, the provision of sport and physical activities for children almost exclusively relies upon parents and their ability to access and contribute to facilities, funding, volunteers, and administration. This paper brings Putnam’s social capital framework to Whitehead’s conceptualisation of physical literacy as a journey to offer original insight into children’s sport participation and the opportunities arising for physical literacy development in rural communities in Australia. Changes in sport participation in Australia and directions in sport policy set an important context for the project, which is located in a small rural community in Western Australia. It was …

Transforming Transitions Ii: Building Children's Engagement In Learning At School, Lennie Barblett, Fiona Boylan, Amelia Ruscoe

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

Building on the success of the Transforming Transitions project conducted with ten Western Australian Independent Schools (Barblett et al., 2023), this study extended the inquiry into school engagement and the transition process. The project was reimagined to deepen collaboration with schools, focusing on two key areas: first, fostering meaningful engagement with young learners and their families during the transition to school by drawing on their funds of knowledge; and second, centering the perspectives of children as active participants in their transition, acknowledging their experiences and the role of family-school engagement in shaping their sense of belonging.

Work Smarter Not Harder: Mapping Interprofessional Education Collaboration Core Competencies Across Curricula, Hanlie Pitout, Paula Barnard-Ashton, Fasloen Adams, Sanetta H.J. Du Toit

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

Integrating Interprofessional Education and Collaborative Practice (IPECP) into health professions curricula is recognized as a challenging task due to factors such as timing, curriculum overload, and resource availability. This study aimed to identify opportunities within courses across all health professions that would help students achieve the Interprofessional Education Collaborative (IPEC) Core Competencies. These competencies include (1) Values and Ethics, (2) Roles and Responsibilities, (3) Interprofessional Communication, and (4) Teams and Teamwork. A quantitative, cross-sectional document review was conducted, analyzing curriculum maps and documents from 11 healthcare professions at a South African university. This process involved 22 participants, comprising two representatives …

Ability Grouping In Primary Physical Education In England: Moving Beyond Binary Discourses And Practices, Shaun D. Wilkinson, Dawn Penney

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

This study recognised that there is currently limited understanding of the extent and nature of ability grouping practices in subject areas other than mathematics and English in primary schools. Using survey methods, this research sought to generate data of sufficient scale to extend understanding of the use of ability grouping practices in primary physical education (PE) in England. Administration of a web-based survey to all (n = 917) state-funded mainstream and special schools catering for students in Key Stage 1 (aged 5–7) and/or Key Stage 2 (aged 7–11) in the North East of England produced a response rate of 27.7% …

Self-Regulated Strategy Development (Srsd) In Timed And Untimed Writing Tasks For Primary Learners, Candice Miller

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

This PhD dissertation describes an action research study focused on implementing the Self Regulated Strategy Development (SRSD) model to teach writing to address the challenges faced by Year 5 students in persuasive writing, particularly under timed conditions, and decreasing motivation aligned with national trends and school performance data. The aim of the current study was to enhance students' persuasive writing skills, writing attitudes, and self-efficacy and to examine the social validity of SRSD in an Australian classroom. The study specifically focused on timed and untimed writing conditions to examine the efficacy of the implemented SRSD model. The research employed a …

Challenging Behaviour In The Early Years: Investigating Teacher Perceptions, Gillian Anne Smith

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

An upward national trend in challenging behaviour amongst young children in Australian schools has prompted widespread concern and garnered frequent media scrutiny. Scholars have established that child-teacher relationships are central to understanding and mitigating challenging behaviour; however, exploration of teacher perceptions of children’s challenging behaviour in the early years has been limited. This study aimed to address this gap by investigating how early childhood teachers perceive and respond to young children’s challenging behaviour in Western Australia’s Kindergarten to Year 2 settings. The research was grounded in Attachment Theory and Ecological Systems Theory, highlighting the relational and environmental factors influencing teacher …

Measuring Career Aspirations In Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics And Education, Michael Fitzgerald, Saeed Salimpour, David Mckinnon, Rachel Freed, Dan Reichart

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

There has been a sustained interest in student perceptions about STEM fields and their choice of careers over the past few decades. Research has shown that there is a decline in students pursuing STEM careers, and this has raised global concern. Despite these issues, no unistructural, broad, parsimonious and unambiguous quantitative instrument exists to probe student career aspirations. This paper highlights the background, extension and validation of an instrument, derived from a previous science-focussed high-quality instrument that allows student career aspirations to be quantitatively characterised. Participants were 1221 undergraduate students, 1003 of whom were judged to have provided good data, …

A Testing Load: A Review Of Cognitive Load In Computer And Paper-Based Learning And Assessment, James Pengelley, Peter R. Whipp, Anabela Malpique

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

The rising use of technology in classrooms has also brought with it a concomitant wave of computer-based assessments. The argument for computer-based testing is often framed in terms of efficiency and data management: computer-based tests facilitate more efficient processing of test data and the rate at which feedback can be leveraged for student learning rather than being framed in terms of the direct effects that students experience from engaging with novel learning tools. Whilst potentially beneficial, for some students the outcomes of computer-based tests may be counter-productive. This review considers the cognitive, and often implicit, consequences of testing mode upon …

Outdoor Adventure Education For Adolescent Social And Emotional Wellbeing: A Systematic Review And Meta-Analysis, Michael J.A. Down, D. Picknoll, T. Edwards, F. Farringdon, G. Hoyne, B. Piggott, M. C. Murphy

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

This study examines the effects of OAE on adolescent social and emotional wellbeing and their contributors. Intervention studies (single or multi-arm) assessing the effects of OAE on wellbeing were included. Meta-analysis was conducted on outcomes of interest, and the Cochrane Risk of Bias (RoB) Tool assessed RoB in multi-arm studies. Four studies assessed within-group change (n = 368), and six assessed between-group change (n = 1,143). Findings indicate significant between-group improvements in resilience, self-esteem and social belonging when OAE was compared to no intervention, but no self-efficacy and overall wellbeing changes were observed. Studies were at high risk of bias, …

Responding To Children’S Voices: The New Frontier In Education Policy Reform, Amelia Ruscoe

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

More than thirty years on from the United Nations Convention of the Child honouring a child’s right to be heard (Article 12) has unlocked a new frontier in ethical research. In education, children have demonstrated competence to contribute with insight to recent policy development in Australia. This paper provides further evidence of the critical role children stand to play in education reform. A post-structural perspective is adopted and underpinned with Foucauldian theory of discursive power in the context of school-based affordances. Visual and dialogic qualitative methods are used to compare the impact of powerful discourses upon children’s affordances in the …

Why Do Schools Continue To Use Between-Class Ability Grouping?, Olivia Johnston, Nerida Spina, Suzanne Macqueen, Rebecca Spooner-Lane

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

Allocating students into separate classes within a school depending on their “ability” is common in many countries. This paper presents a theoretical discussion of the practice, considering why it persists despite a long history of research emphasizing consequential problems. Our discussion identifies and critiques four possible reasons that between-class ability grouping is being used in schools again today, despite research advising against the practice. These reasons are: 1) educators’ perspectives that it facilitates differentiation and assists in managing the intensification of teaching; 2) advantages for students in “high ability” and “low ability” classes; 3) cultural acceptability; and 4) historical entrenchment, …

Rigidity Of Class Ability Grouping Practices In Australia, Olivia Johnston, Christa Norris, Wei Zhang

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

Inequity in education is pronounced when data is used to form rigid class ability groups. Rigid grouping means that students with backgrounds that disadvantage them in education can be locked into low ‘ability’ class groups. In contrast, informed and flexible use of data can support adaptable and heterogeneous ability grouping, which better accommodates the diverse needs and potentials of students. This approach ensures that students are not permanently categorised but can move between groups as their abilities and needs evolve. Research drawing on international data sources like the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) oversimplifies the range of ability grouping …

What Is Informal Sport? Negotiating Contemporary Sporting Forms, Justen O’Connor, Ruth Jeanes, Jonathan Magee, Ramón Spaaij, Dawn Penney, Satoshi Miyashita

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

As traditional sport participation stagnates or declines, flexible informal sporting forms are increasingly a focus for those with a vested interest in maximising participation in sport and physical activity. This study critiques existing definitions of informal sport as overly binary, largely unhelpful, and conceptually diffuse. We propose a more nuanced understanding of informal sport that explores participant proximity to the negotiation of practices that come to shape the sporting experience and therefore levels of (in)formality. Drawing on qualitative data from three Australian case studies, we examine how participants negotiate key features of their sporting experience, such as affiliation, environment, scheduling, …