Educational Assessment, Evaluation, and Research Commons^™

The Practice Of Homework : A Critical Ethnography : The Story Of Four Families, Jacqueline Hubbard

Theses : Honours

This thesis explores the homework experiences of four students and their families through the lens of critical inquiry. The stories of the participants are told through conversational interviews with students and their parents/caregivers, as well as their classroom teacher, in a bounded study. Drawing on these stories, the issue of homework is 'problematised', and analysed in light of issues such as institutional power and hegemony. A critical review of the literature reveals a significant gap in the existing research on homework in relation to the inclusion of student and parent voices. The study addresses this silence by listening to the …

A Study Of The Use Of Graphic Organiser Software To Support The Development Of Organisational And Problem Solving Skills In A Middle School Curriculum, Suzanne Bursey

Theses : Honours

Early adolescence, classified from 10-14 years, is an important stage of development where thinking, planning and reasoning skills are evolving. Many young adolescents in this age group encounter problems with these skills in the transition from primary school to high school. Middle school is an educational context which focusses on the provision of support for young adolescents in this transitional period. Graphic organizer software is a program designed to help users visualize problems and organize information into logical structures. This study considered the conditions under which the problem solving and organizational skills of middle school students can be enhanced using …

Does The Computer Helpdesk Vocational Training Course Change Attitude About Customer Service?, Anthony Wethereld

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

The purpose of this research was to determine whether The Computer Helpdesk vocational computing course, in conjunction with The Virtual Workplace simulation computer program, changed attitude about customer service. Thirty-seven adult female students at Fujairah Women's College of the Higher Colleges of Technology in the United Arab Emirates took part in the study. To assess possible attitude change, a combination of observation, interview and survey techniques were used. The Likert scale customer service attitude survey, which measured beliefs and perceptions about customer service, fanned the primary data gathering instrument. Qualitative and quantitative data were triangulated, and quantitative results were analysed …

The Development Of A Valid And Reliable Instrument To Assess Constructivist Practices In Primary Classrooms, Bianca Herlihy

Theses : Honours

This study investigates the development of an instrument to measure teachers' constructivist practices in their classrooms. The Department of Education Curriculum Framework for Western Australia is based on a constructivist learning environment, and this study has sought to develop an instrument for exploring individual Western Australian teachers utilisation of a constructivist learning environment in their classrooms. While there are a number of studies relating to constructivist classroom practices, the literature review indicates that there is little research about actual practice in a Western Australian primary school context. The instrument was developed from an extensive review of the literature. Key theorists …

Alienation From School Among Aboriginal Students, Jan Gray, Quentin Beresford

Research outputs pre 2011

It is difficult to overstate the depth of the educational disadvantage which continues to be experienced by Aboriginal young people in the Swan District. While encouraging signs can be found in the genuinely positive attitudes towards school among many of the Aboriginal students who are regular attenders, it is still the case that considerable differences in educational outcomes between Aborigines and non-Aborigines remain.

For example:

• Only one of the students interviewed was found to be undertaking a full Tertiary Entrance Examination course in the district during the Year 2000.

• Few students (especially boys) remain at school to study …

Curriculum And Assessment : A Question Of Politics?, Christine R. Brew, Gilah C. Leder

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

The Victorian Certificate of Education (VCE) has been subject to ongoing modifications since its full introduction in 1992. These changes were largely driven by vocal opponents of this educational reform. In this paper we give voice to teachers charged with implementing the curriculum and assessment directives of the VCE. Specifically, we draw on the experiences of close to 500 senior mathematics teachers – through interview and survey data - to consider the impact on them of the evolution of the VCE.

Lower Secondary Student Attitudes Towards Social Studies In A Catholic School, Ekaterina Thiveos

Theses : Honours

This case study examined lower secondary student attitudes towards social studies and identified the factors that influenced attitudes in one Catholic secondary school located in the Perth metropolitan area. A total of 4 75 students were enrolled in Years 8 to 10 at the school in 1999. A modified version of Student Attitudes Towards Social Studies (Moroz 1996) questionnaire with 94 items, was utilised to gauge secondary student attitudes towards the learning area. A total of 421 lower secondary students participated in the survey. The data was analysed using the statistical software package SPSS 9. 0 for Windows, where descriptive …

Aboriginal Students Perceptions Of The Effect Of Vocational Education And Training On Post School Experiences, Steven J. Florisson

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

Over the past decade there have been dramatic and unprecedented changes in post compulsory education, with an increase of over 40% for year 12 retention rates to 76.6% in 1992 and huge expansion of year 11 and 12 vocational education and training programs. However, for Aboriginal past compulsory age students, the picture is very different. In 1993 the year 12 Aboriginal retention rate was only 24.48% or 982 students (Australia wide), and by 1996 only 10% of the indigenous 15 and older population had any post school qualification, compared to 35% of the total population. Only 34% of West Australian …

Year 9 Student Attitudes Toward Social Studies In A Western Australian Government High School : A Case Study, Leah Elizabeth Anne Hansberry

Theses : Honours

This study identifies the status of social studies in one metropolitan Government secondary school in Western Australia. This was achieved by investigating the attitudes of Year 9 students, at the case study school, toward the subject and by identifying the factors responsible for influencing these attitudes. A focus of the study was to explore the impact of student gender on attitudes toward the learning area. The underlying theoretical basis for the study contends that attitude toward social studies is a function of the interrelationship of student, teacher and learning environment variables. The empirical database for the study was quasi-experimental in …

The Effects Of Incorporating A Word Processor Into A Writing Program: Seven Individual Case Studies, Natalie Beck

Theses : Honours

Writing is a "complex interplay of social, physical, and cognitive factors" (Daiute, 1985a, p.1) and an essential part of every young child's school life. However, "every school has at least a few children who can be classified as non-writers" (Aumack, 1985, p.46). Some children are often inhibited and "frustrated when they attempt to express themselves with pencil and paper'' (Aumack, 1985, p.46) and are put off by the thought of writing, erasing and rewriting, thus producing "children who do not want to write" (Aumack, 1985. p.46). In response to these statements, this qualitative study examined the effects of incorporating a …

How Do Family Members Perceive, Understand And Explain The Experience Of Homework? : A Case Study Of Four Families, Cathryn Voak

Theses : Honours

The purpose of this exploratory study is to examine family member perceptions and experiences of homework. More broadly, it seeks to illuminate the nature and social function of homework practices in families and in so doing, highlights the complex relationship between schools and family life. The study involved four families and their experiences of homework. The families were selected on the basis that the parents came from a range of socio-economic backgrounds which may impact upon their children's attitudes and experiences of homework and schooling. The approach adopted to investigate this phenomenon is that of case study. Specifically, this case …

Student And Teacher Perceptions Of A Season Of Sport Education In A Regional Primary School, J. G. Strikwerda-Brown

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

An interpretive case study approach was employed to examine student and teacher perceptions of the implementation of a sport education in physical education program (SEPEP) in a Western Australian regional primary school. Choi’s (1992) curriculum dimensions were used as a framework. Three year seven teachers implemented SEPEP using a team teaching approach. The focus teacher, Ms Jenson, a highly regarded classroom teacher, described herself as non-sporty and lacking confidence and expertise in PE teaching. Students in her SEPEP volleyball class were considered less popular and less athletic when compared with those in the other two SEPEP classes. A focus volleyball …

The Measurement Of Classroom Music Learning Using An Outcomes Framework In Western Australian Schools, Beverley J. Pascoe

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

This study addresses the problem of a lack of reliable and systematic methodology for evaluating progress in classroom music, using an outcomes framework, in primary and secondary schools in Western Australia. An innovative range of assessment tasks was developed for use at system, school or classroom level in order to develop a Music Achievement Scale, so that in the future, meaningful reporting of student outcomes in music, in relation to The Arts Student Outcome Statements (Education Department of Western Australia, 1996), can occur. Music tasks were tested with a representative sample of 2191 government primary school students from Years 3 …

Notions Of Justice Through Drama, Elvira Sammut

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

This paper explores and describes the lived-experience of a group of 16-year-old girls in a drama class designed to heighten awareness of values of social justice. The students involved are experienced drama students, with a good knowledge of the theory of role-play and play-making, as well as, sound dramatic skills and techniques. The lived-experience provided the source for the research study that used film as a medium to inculcate notions of justice and equity in the classroom through self-devised drama. Phenomenological research was conducted with a group of seventeen Year II drama students. The students took part in a series …

Stories Of School : Perspectives Of The Low Literate Adult, Anne Shipway

Theses : Honours

This thesis explores the school experiences of low literate adults through their perspective recognising that the 'voice' of the low literate adult is absent from the arena of adult literacy research. Stories are co-constructed by the participant and the researcher with particular emphasis on mai1uaining the voice of the research participant. Through this thesis I argue that the inclusion of the low literate adults perspective is an essential element in gaining a deeper understanding of themes and issues which impact on literacy attainment.

An Evaluation Of Digital Chisel 3.0 As A Multimedia Authoring Tool In A Year Seven Classroom, Robert Richardson

Theses : Honours

Most commercial interactive multimedia authoring packages are designed to be used by teachers and trainers to build commercial training or classroom teaching applications (Handler, Dana, Peters & Moor, 1995; Magel, 1997). The evolution of interactive multimedia technologies however, has made it possible for students to become actively involved in creating their own interactive multimedia projects, and in so doing, gain considerable learning benefit (Lehrer 1993). Facilitating this in the classroom and particularly at the Year Seven level, requires the use of a cost-effective, purpose-built authoring tool. Digital Chisel 3.0 (DC3), was developed by Pierian Spring Software (1997), as just such …

A Caregiver's Perceptions And Practices In Relation To Her Speech To An Under 2-Year-Old Age Group In A Childcare Centre, Irene Wong

Theses : Honours

The objective of this study was to investigate what a caregiver sees as her role in relation to young children's oral language development. This study examines her perceptions and beliefs, as well as the various activities that she thinks facilitates language development with under 2-year-old children. The main focus of the study is her language interactions with the children while they took part in three activities. The investigation involved qualitative case study research to collect the oral language interactions between the caregiver and the young children and the activities she provides. The features of the caregiver's speech to young children …

Research In Mathematics Education: A Contemporary Perspective, Alistair Mcintosh (Ed.)

Research outputs pre 2011

The twelve chapters in this book-all but two written by researchers in Australian universities-provide ample evidence of the impressive contributions currently being made by Australia to research in mathematics education. The authors' fields of inquiry are diverse: they include discussion of the roles of language and imagery, problem posing and problem solving, students' beliefs and students' thinking, gambling and mental computation. T!1eir methodologies are no less diverse, incorporating descriptions of both quantitative and qualitative research projects, including action research in classrooms, theoretical perspectives and the development of theoretical models, reviews of research, surveys, clinical interviews and descriptions of new research …

Young Children's Understanding Of Design In The Technology Process, Jean E. O'Sullivan

Theses : Honours

This study explored the development of children's thinking when social constructivist principles of learning were implemented through technological experiences. The study monitored the development of children's understanding of “design" through project work, using classroom based action research. In addition to investigating children's understandings, the study explored the use of technology in early childhood curriculum to develop the skills said to be required in the next millennium. The study found that five year old children are capable of "designing" and that technology is an effective vehicle for developing socially, contextually and culturally appropriate learning experiences.

The Effectiveness Of Using Drama In Presenting Spiritual Material To School Students, Geoff Pollard

Theses : Honours

This thesis is concerned with determining the effectiveness of using drama in presenting spiritual material to school students. As a performer in schools I often wondered if the "magic" of the stage was what the students identified with or whether in addition they were also understanding and learning spiritual truths. As an undergraduate religious student I was exposed to the research of Goldman who concluded that Scripture teaching in Primary Schools should be minimised because he believed the students were incapable of understanding parables and miracles. I looked back on my school performance years and the warm reception given to …

An Investigation Into How Year Two Children Use Drawing And Writing Together To Produce A Narrative, Kelly J. Joice

Theses : Honours

This study was designed to investigate how Year Two children use drawing and writing together to produce a narrative. The participants in this study were one class from a metropolitan, co-educational, independent school. A qualitative descriptive case study approach was selected for this investigation. The researcher collected data by conducting four sessions in which the participants were given the opportunity to write and draw together to produce a narrative. The narrative written and drawn documents were then organised into categories. Each of these categories indicated the common relationships between drawing and writing evident in the children's work. The results of …

Number Sense In School Mathematics: Student Performance In Four Countries, Alistair Mcintosh, Barbara Reys, Robert Reys, Jack Bana, Brian Farrell

Research outputs pre 2011

Since 1988 teams of researchers in the United States, Japan and Australia have been involved in a collaborative research project to assess the mental computation ability of their students. The results of this research have been reported elsewhere (Mcintosh, Bana & Farrell 1995; Mcintosh, Nohda, Reys & Reys 1995). The researchers involved were Professors Robert and Barbara Reys of the University of Missouri - Columbia, Professor Nobuhiko Nohda of the University of Tsukuba and Alistair Mcintosh, Jack Bana and Brian Farrell of Edith Cowan University, Perth, Western Australia.

The United States and Australian researchers went on to assess the number …

A Comparison Of The Effectiveness Of Gross Motor Rhythm Imitation Training And Verbalised Rhythm Imitation Training In Developing Rhythm Imitation Skills In Pre-Primary Children, Liane Molewyk

Theses : Honours

The purpose of this study was to compare the effectiveness of Gross-motor Rhythm Imitation Training and Verbalised Rhythm Imitation Training in developing rhythm imitation skills in pre-primary children. Students of two pre-primary classes, with the same teacher, from a middle class metropolitan, co-educational government school were the participants in the research. One class was involved in the Gross-motor Rhythm Imitation Training Programme and the other in the Verbalised Rhythm Imitation Training Programme. The training programme was conducted four days a week for eight consecutive weeks. The researcher devised a ‘Rhythm Imitation Test' which was conducted before and after the training …

The Implementation Of First Steps In Four Primary Classrooms, Janet Hunter

Theses : Honours

The First Steps Project was developed by the Education Department of Western Australia to facilitate literacy learning of students who were perceived to be "at risk". The project has resulted in state-wide professional development for teachers, and the subsequent marketing of the program interstate and overseas. The purpose of this study is to present an insight into the various ways that teachers use First Steps in their classrooms and to discover where different teachers stand within the theoretical framework of language learning, and what orientation and experiences lead them to make the planning, teaching and evaluation choices they make. The …

Accountability Perceptions Of Passive Students In Cooperative Learning, Narelle Day

Theses : Honours

Cooperative learning is being widely adopted as an effective strategy to increase student academic learning in a social setting. A significant concern is that some students have been observed to remain passive during cooperative learning. Active participation in the group process is required for effective learning. Student Accountability, for their own and other group members learning, is one factor influencing student participation. To modify passive behaviour, the students' self-perceptions of accountability influencing the behaviour must be identified. Passive students' perceptions in cooperative learning have been explored by few researchers. There is a dearth of published of research about student perceptions …

Accounting For And Quantifying Dependencies In Dichotomous Test Data, Barry Sheridan

Research outputs pre 2011

This paper reports on a strategy employing the Extended Logistic Model of Rasch to quantify dependencies in dichotomous test data by providing standard errors of measurement which are commensurate with the loss in information arising from dependencies among subsets of items. Data collected for the Australian Scholastic Aptitude Test were analysed and shown to exhibit strong dependencies among the items involved. A technique is presented for estimating the number of equivalent independent items (found to be 74 in this study) to the original test number (100).

Teacher's Perceptions Of The Introduction Of A Middle School Within A Western Australian Independent Girls' School, S. M. Lienert

Theses : Honours

In 1995 an independent girls' school in Perth, Western Australia, decided to introduce a Middle School. 'This meant changing the traditional structure of grouping children aged between 5 and 12 years into primary school and children aged between 13 and 17 years into secondary school. The aim of the Middle School was to provide increased educational opportunities for 12 to 14 year old students. When the introduction of a Middle School was announced teaching staff expressed a number of concerns with respect to their new roles and the new school operations. These concerns raised questions about whether years of teaching …

The Variables Related To Attrition And Persistence Of Distance Education Students Enrolled In The Fourth Year Of The Bachelor Of Education Course, Eileen Thompson

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

The extent to which a range of demographic, academic and administrative variables are related to attrition and persistence of external students enrolled in the Fourth Year of the Bachelor of Education course during second semester, 1995 are investigated in this study. The applicability of the sub-scales and scales developed by Kember, Lai, Murphy, Siaw and Yuen (1995) for distance education students is also reported on for the study group. Data were obtained from the student records system and two self-administered mail out questionnaires. The study population was predominantly female, in their early thirties, living in Western Australia, had completed their …

The Effect Of Assessment Procedures On Student Learning Outcomes In Religious Education In One Catholic Secondary School In Western Australia, Philip F. Cox

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

This study investigates the effect of utilising formal assessment procedures on student learning in the religious education classroom. There is a debate in the religious education literature concerning the place of assessment in religious education. This debate is reflected in the divisions that occur amongst teachers of religious education in Catholic schools. The debate has been polarised with an uncertain group being left between the two extremes. Teachers of religious education in Catholic schools are uncertain as to the best teaching methodology to utilise. This thesis outlines the philosophical arguments concerning the place of assessment in religious education in Catholic …

Occupational Stress, A Cross-Sectional And Logitudinal Analysis, Nigel V. Jones

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

This study investigated the presence of occupational stress among teachers. It did not set out to identify and explain variables associated with stress among teachers, rather the study focussed on the multitude of variables identified in the literature and sought to include these in a more extensive causal model. The study was conducted in two main stages. Firstly, a cross-sectional survey investigated the presence of stress among 230 teachers, as measured by Psychological Stress, Physical Health, Job Satisfaction and & desire to Leave their Job. The survey obtained information on stress outcome variables (Psychological Stress, Physical Health, Job Satisfaction and …