Educational Assessment, Evaluation, and Research Commons^™

Mental Computation In School Mathematics: Preference, Attitude And Performance Of Students In Years 3, 5, 7 And 9, Alistair Mcintosh, Jack Bana, Brian Farrell

Research outputs pre 2011

Commencing in 1989 a team consisting of Alistair Mcintosh, Paul Swan and Ellita de Nardi at Edith Cowan University, Perth, Western Australia, probed the strategies used by children of primary school age when calculating mentally, with a view to developing and promoting more appropriate and effective mental computation...This present monograph, which looks at the mental computation of Western Australian students in Years 3, 5, 7 and 9, is one of the outcomes of this collaborative research project.

Perceptions Of Lower Secondary Design And Technology Teachers About The Utilisation Of The Design Process, Desire Mallet

Theses : Honours

This study investigated the perceptions of lower secondary school teachers about the utilisation of a design process. Seven Design and Technology teachers from government and private secondary schools, situated in Perth metropolitan area, were selected. The participants have been using a design process in lower secondary school for at least eighteen months prior to the study. Each participant was interviewed individually and the interviews were audio-recorded. The Education Department of Western Australia considers a design process as a central element in the Technology and Enterprise learning area of the Student Outcome Statements. However, not much is known about how this …

School Non-Attendance: A Literature Review, Irene Ioannakis

Research outputs pre 2011

No abstract provided.

Victorian Modern Cursive Handwriting In West Australian Schools, Deborah Ann Taylor

Theses : Honours

The Victorian Modern Cursive script was introduced to Western Australia as the newly recommended handwriting style in 1990. The choice of this handwriting style, which is a foundation style similar to the Simple Modern Hand (Gourdie, 1981), was based upon the prediction that its use would facilitate the transition from beginners' script to full cursive writing. This assumption has not been tested in West Australian schools and hitherto no evaluation of the new handwriting model has been conducted. This study set out to evaluate and compare the legibility and fluency of cursive writing of a group of Year 3 children …

Let's Decode: Inservice Manual, P. J. Formentin

Research outputs pre 2011

This manual contains inservice material that was prepared for a research project that came to be known as Let's Decode. My motive for publishing the material in this form is to make it available to other teachers who may wish to apply the same principles and procedures in their own classrooms. Typically, they will be teachers who are concerned about children experiencing difficulty learning to read, and teachers responsible for students with special education needs. I am confident that regular classroom teachers will also find the material valuable for all children in the early stages of learning to read. My …

Makitab System Of Small Group Learning Interaction Analysis : A Manual For Researchers And Coders, Leonard King, Kevin Barry, Carmel Maloney, Collette Tayler

Research outputs pre 2011

The MAKITAB system of small-group learning interaction analysis has been developed over a 4 year period. When data were gathered late in 1989 on the verbal interaction of Grade 5 students participating in small-group cooperative learning, we were faced with the problem of having to develop an appropriate analysis system. An initial system was created using inductive approaches. Following further data gathering across other grade levels and subject areas, the system has undergone successive refinements. The final instrument, as presented in this manual, has reached a state of consistency that enables coding of most verbal eventualities as they occur in …

The Effects Of Different Methods Of Cloze Test Construction And Their Relationship With A Standardised Reading Comprehension Test, Trevor Michael Edward Forde

Theses : Honours

The purpose of this study is to provide guidelines to classroom teachers for the construction of valid and reliable cloze comprehension tests. Review of the related literature suggested there are many diverse and contradictary opinions as to the most appropriate method of constructing cloze tests. The subjects were 49 Year 5 primary school children from two metropolitan schools. Three different comprehension tests were administered. The Gap Reading Comprehension Test and two Cloze Comprehension Tests consisting of 50 and 100 word deletions, in which the deletions began at either the fifth or sixth word of the second sentence. The Cloze Tests …

The Use Of Generic Teaching Materials Versus Brand Specific Teaching Materials With Home Economics Food And Nutrition Students, Lyn Blackwell

Theses : Honours

Studies have found that between 80 and 90 percent of home economics teachers use commercially sponsored teaching materials in their classrooms. The literature suggests that in some cases teachers do not have the skills for evaluating these materials and may be unsuspectingly endorsing the products used in their classrooms. The purpose of this study was to investigate whether or not the use of brand specific teaching materials had the potential to influence the development of brand awareness in Year 8 Food for Fitness students exposed to these materials. Test instruments which reflect Fishbein's theory of reasoned action were developed to …

An Analysis Of Errors Made Both On Computer Administered Tests And Paper And Pencil Tests And A Comparison Between Them, Gary Fullarton

Theses : Honours

Sound assessment is essential in mathematics education. Computer Administered Testing is one measuring device being researched for the assessment of mathematics. A concern with the advent of Computer Administered Testing is the possibility that the mode of testing influences how students perform on tests (Bugbee & Bernt 1990; Ring 1993). This study applied Newman Error Analysis Interviews to investigate if first year Bachelor of Arts Primary Education students exhibit different error patterns for mathematics test items in a Computer Administered System compared with those in an equivalent Paper and Pencil Test. The implementation of the Computer Administered Test did not …

Word Reading Strategies: A Replication And Follow Up Intervention, Andrew Davoll

Theses : Honours

The first stage of this study involved a replication of the cluster analysts procedures used by Freebody and Byrne (1988) to classify Year 2 readers according to their word reading strategies based on lists of irregular and pseudowords. A four-cluster-solution produced three groups similar to those reported by Freebody and Byrne (1988), and a fourth group which could not be classified using their criteria. A three-cluster-solution produced a more parsimonious interpretation, with these groups meeting the criteria for "LB" (low on both Irregular and pseudowords), "HB" (high on both), and "Phoenician" readers (average or above on pseudoword, low on irregular …

Spelling In The Secondary School: A Review Of The Current Situation, Joan Rodrigues

Theses : Honours

The purpose of this study was to discover the strategies being employed by secondary school teachers to assist students with spelling difficulties. Teachers in the English and social studies departments of three Perth high schools were interviewed and asked to indicate the criteria they used to identify students with spelling problems and the teaching methods they employed to help those students overcome their problems. They were also asked to identify the causes of spelling difficulty. Staff at the local district offices and the Ministry of Education were interviewed to establish what support services were available for teachers who wished to …

A Case Study Of Two Year Six Classes Involved In A Health-Related Fitness Intervention, Andrew T. Medland

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

Children are not as active as they may appear and they do not voluntarily engage in moderate to high intensity activity as commonly perceived by the general public. With coronary heart disease risk factors now found to have origins in childhood there is a real need for children to adopt lifestyles that will produce healthier adults. In Perth the Western Australian Schools Physical Activity and Nutrition project (WASPAN) has been implemented, as a Year 6 intervention, addressing the problems of poor nutritional habits and low activity levels. The focus of this case-study was to describe the physical activity component of …

Introduction, Bruce Haynes

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

The Minister for Employment, Education and Training, the Hon. Kim Beazley (1993, p. 11) announced the provision of $20 million over the following three years to support the development of key competencies and the "development of a prototype training and development package for teachers/trainers." This announcement highlights the significance currently accorded to competency based standards for teaching and teacher education. The identification of teacher competencies and the specification of competency based standards for entry (and promotion?) in the profession has the potential to restructure the workplace in schools by specifying what is done and who controls it. Together with the …

The National Schools Project At Belmont Senior High School: A Formative Review Of The First Nine Months, Rod Chadbourne

Research outputs pre 2011

No abstract provided.

The Effects Of Combining Direct Instruction, Metacognitive Instruction And Co-Operative Learning Strategies To Teaching Summarizing To Year 6 Students, D. A. Bergin

Theses : Honours

Summarizing is one of several study skills students are asked to do as evidence of their ability to learn from texts and it is one which students find difficult. Research suggests that part of the difficulty students experience with summarizing is due to the lack of instruction students received in summary writing and the quality of that instruction. Therefore the purpose of this study was to design an instructional procedure for teaching summary writing to primary school students and to investigate the; effects this form of instruction had on students' summaries. This study involved pre-testing, instruction in summarizing, followed by …

The Relationship Between Time Devoted To Independent Recreational Reading And Reading Achievement Scores, R. Fragomeni

Theses : Honours

The purpose of this study was to conduct a preliminary assessment, in the Western Australian context, of the relationship between reading achievement scores and time devoted to independent recreational reading, and the extent to which gender and socio-economic status, affect this relationship. The data pertaining to time spent in independent recreational reading were collected by means of a questionnaire. The subjects and their teachers were trained by the researcher in the procedure to be followed in the questionnaire completion. The data relating to reading achievement scores were generated through the administration of the comprehension sub-test of the Progressive Achievement Test …

A Case Study To Investigate The Use Of Computers Across A School Population, Janine Bersan

Theses : Honours

The National Advisory Committee on Computers in Schools (Commonwealth Schools Commission, 1983) recommended to support computing in both government and non-government schools in Australia over 1984 - 1986. This led to the injection of computer resources to schools. The Western Australian Government then provided significant funds for the provision of computer equipment to primary and secondary schools (1987 -1989). Primacy schools in Western Australia now have on average three computers per primary school. The Ministry of Education has produced a policy document on computer use in primary education which clearly outlines goals to be achieved by all primary school teachers …

The Improvement Of The Teaching Of Informational Writing: A Study Of Six Teachers, Lisbeth Berridge

Theses : Honours

The purpose of this study was to focus on the progressive stages through which six teachers moved in their efforts to improve children's writing of informational texts. An action research approach was used to control and monitor the work of the researcher and the six teachers as they sought to improve their classroom practice in the teaching of writing. The essential features of the approach were for the teachers to collaborate with the researcher in: a) discussing their problems and in devising suitable solutions; b) formulating a working hypothesis; c) working out an appropriate plan comprised of the steps of …

Monitoring Standards Of Science Investigation Skill Attainment By Tongan Secondary Science Students, Fisi'ihoi Mone

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

The main purpose of this study was to evaluate the science investigation skill attainment of Tongan Form 5 (16 years of age) General Science students. Benchmark statements were developed to describe the range of science investigation skills and standard of performance that should be expected of Tongan Form 5 General Science students. A written test of science process skills and a practical test of science apparatus skills, were developed to assess the level of attainment of science investigation skills by students who have completed Form 4 and Form 5 General Science in Tonga. The instruments were piloted twice in Western …

Student Perceptions In A Social Studies Classroom, Maria Darby

Theses : Honours

This study describes differential student perceptions towards Social Studies in a high school classroom. A case study approach, incorporating both quantitative and qualitative data gathering techniques, was used to collect data by seeking individual students' perceptions of the classroom environment, the teacher, classroom instruction and the Social Studies subject content. Social Studies education in Western Australia has been guided by the Social Studies K-10 Syllabus which has been implemented for almost 10 years. In 1990 a comprehensive review of the curriculum was commissioned by the Ministry of Education and undertaken by Print (1990a). This study found that a need existed …

Swazi Students' Attitudes Towards Geography And Their Relationship To Home Background, Teacher, Previous Academic Achievement, Peer Group And Gender, David Manyatsi

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

This study examined attitudes of Swazi Secondary School Students towards geography and the association of those attitudes with home background, teacher, previous academic achievement, peer group and gender. Attitudes of 435 Swazi students toward geography were assessed in July 1990. The instrument for the measurement of attitudes toward geography was subdivided into eight factors: Interest in the subjects, perceived value of the subject; attitude to the subject teacher; class management; perception of own ability; attitude to other students; perceived teacher attitude to students; and attitude to homework. Home background was measured in terms of the parents and employment and educational …

What We Don't Know About C.A.I., Patricia Probert, Ross Telfer

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

Studies of Computer Assisted Instruction (CAl) to date, appear to have concentrated on comparisons of CAl with other modes of instruction; differences in time required for completion of lessons; student personality; student attitudes to CAl; and the number of students who can successfully work together on the one CAl task. It is fair to claim that the most important information is yet to come, for there are many other variables of CAl that need to be researched, as the following questions suggest.

Use Of Student Perceptions In Facilitating Improvement In Classroom Environment, Barry J. Fraser, Teresa Seddon, Jeffrey Eagleson

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

Probably the best known and most widely used technique for studying teaching in order to improve it is classroom interaction analysis (Dunkin & Biddle, 1974; Peterson & Walberg, 1979). The coding ot classroom communication (usually verbal) according to category schemes has been used extensively and successfully in preservice and inservice education as a way of making teachers aware of and subsequently improving their own teaching. Used for this purpose, interaction analysis has provided teachers with a method of obtaining specific feedback on their classroom practice and a firm basis for reflection, discussion, and improvement related to their teaching.

As an …

The Delphi Technique : An Application Of The Delphi Technique As A Method Of Obtaining Staff Opinions On Issues Relating To Teaching Practice At Nedlands College Of Advanced Education, M. Kaplan

Research outputs pre 2011

As one approach to gathering information required in compiling a report on Teaching Practice, Supervision Advice and Assessment (Published as Research Committee Report Number 12), use was made of the Delphi Technique. (Kaplan, 1980).

Space precluded providing details of this technique in Report Number 12 but since the technique is not often used, it was decided to provide information on its application in the study in this separate report.