Faculty of Education - Theses
Permanent URI for this collection
Search Results
1 - 9 of 9
-
ItemParent attitudes to an independent school( 1986)This thesis examines the attitude of a large, random sample of parents of a single independent school in Melbourne. The School, Carey Baptist Grammar, became co-educational in 1978, partly in response to changes in enrolment patterns. A review of the literature considers trends in parent attitudes and enrolments in government and non-government schools. The present trend in favour of non-government schools in Victoria has important implications for a school such as Carey. The survey reported in this thesis examines the background of Carey Parents, their reasons for choosing Carey, their attitudes to the School's objectives, assessment of the School's performance and whether they believe they are receiving "value for money". A range of specific conclusions and recommendations are reached. The limitations of using the data from this survey for comparison with other schools is discussed.
-
ItemSchool in the middle years : four Melbourne independent boys middle schools( 1978)This study revolves around the proposition that there is sound reason for the formation of an identifiable new stage for the schooling of children in the middle-years. Firstly, on the grounds that the transfer from primary to secondary school creates unnecessarily dramatic changes. Such changes not only involve adjustments to different teaching styles, different objectives and different organization patterns, but also to new people and strange surroundings. They also involve a choice of secondary school which, in spite of comprehensive trends, still narrows vocational opportunities. The provision of middle schools would enable the delaying of such choices with two less significant transfers. Secondly, on the ground that the grouping of children in the 10-13 age range would promote a closer examination of their special development needs, it would, encourage, if not force teachers to think outside traditional structures about the combination of the best in primary and secondary approaches, about the characteristic needs and important teaching principles, and about subject priorities and organizational patterns most appropriate to this stage. The following questions therefore provide the basis for the compilation of the material that follows. 1. (a) How are primary and secondary schools different? (b) What primary and secondary ideals and methods may be combined to best cater for the middle-years group? 2. (a) What are the special characteristics of the middle-years group? (b) What may the principle objectives for middle-years schooling be? 3. (a) How may the middle school be conceptualized? (b) What curriculum structures and organizational patterns may be most appropriate? These three general themes have been developed in sequence in each of the four sections of the thesis so that some of the problems are introduced in the first section, and in conjunction with this an attempt is made to introduce the boys themselves. The literature review on the other hand, establishes a basis for clarifying main propositions and the three research reports reviewed in this section come from Victoria, Scotland and New Zealand. The Victorian study was part of a dissertation completed in 1976 by the author. The choice of this work with the Scottish and New Zealand studies was not made with a comparative analysis in mind. Rather, these studies are included because they represent, as far as we can ascertain, the only major studies in this field. Although it is not possible at this stage to formulate specific hypotheses, in the third section there is an attempt to bring to light priorities for the schooling of children in the middle-years. Then the comparison of the four independent boys' middle schools follows and as far as possible, the three themes are developed here also. The thesis is titled "School in the Middle Years: Four Melbourne Independent Boys Middle Schools". It is a new field and these preliminary wanderings, although too general at times, seek to bring some of the problems into focus. The comparison of the four middle schools (Camberwell Grammar, Caulfield Grammar - Malvern House, Xavier College - Kostka Hall and Melbourne Grammar - Grimwade House) becomes in one sense a preliminary survey on which decisions about the development of this as an experimental study may be considered. In the final chapter this is taken up briefly, and one would hope to have the opportunity to take the study further at a later stage. This dissertation originally grew out of an examination of the primary to secondary school transition and some quite general but important conclusions emerged. These are here summarized. Strong links need to be established between teachers and students involved with the primary and secondary school transition. These links need to be formed between teachers at the Grade 6 and Form 1 levels, particularly in Education Department schools. During the year prior to transition, students require careful counselling and guidance with regard to selection of schools and in matters relating to the day-to-day organization and geographic layout of the secondary school to which they will go. Matters specifically relating to secondary school: time table, specialist rooms, methods of teaching, general expectations and the secondary school life style, all need emphasis. The possibility of special new-student orientation days and the careful use of counsellors and guidance officers is here highlighted. The teaching atmosphere in the first year of the secondary school needs to be carefully considered. It is desirable that the one teacher/one class relationships common to primary schools be continued as far as possible in order to provide security for students in an otherwise strange secondary school atmosphere. The clear differences between the primary and secondary schools, their different approaches to teaching and general philosophy need to be understood by teachers involved with students at the pre- and post-transitional stages. An understanding of these similarities and differences is fundamental to an understanding of the problems students face. Children will develop best when education is a continuing and an uninterrupted experience. This ideal has the best chance of being achieved in the one-campus school where divisions within the school can be established to match the growth stages of students and provide new challenges at all levels. The departmentalized approach in the secondary school is vastly different to the self-contained classroom approach in the primary school. Wherever possible these differences need to be understood and minimized by making adjustments to teaching methods and organization at the senior-primary and the junior-secondary levels. There is evidence to suggest that some students regard transition as an exciting new adventure with inbuilt growth opportunities. Teachers and parents need to present the opportunities in the secondary school in these terms. There is a liking amongst many students for the challenge of the new and an eagerness to experience those things that are different. There need not be a shrinking from added pressures. It is important that parents should be kept in close touch with teachers and Headmasters as decisions are made about the most appropriate secondary school, and as information is disseminated about the beginning-of-year procedures for enrolling students. Personal discussions and school visits are strongly recommended. There is not one age considered to be most appropriate for the primary-to-secondary-school transition. There is, however, some evidence to indicate that students of poorer ability from working-class type homes are likely to be more successful at the age of 12 or 13. It is asserted that given one to two more years of development these praticular students will make a more successful transfer to their new school. More advanced students from homes that provide educationally stimulating support are most likely to make satisfactory progress as they transfer to their new secondary school. These are the students who are likely to approach the challenge and the responsibility of their new school with plenty of confidence and a certain amount of adventure. The concept of a middle school, providing for children between the ages of 9 and 13 is promoted as an educationally and psychologically sound solution to the problems of transition as they are known in the present two-school system. Two less disturbing changes, from primary to middle and middle to secondary school, should provide for more effective sequencing of learning experiences over the twelve or thirteen years of schooling. The following conclusions which more particularly relate to the nature of schooling for the middle-years group, provided a basis for examining and comparing the four selected middle schools. It is not suggested that the comparison of these schools necessarily validates the conclusions, but it should help to clarify them. It is felt that the middle school should be a place that provides for the integration of experience through the continuance of a home-room system and for the specialization of experience through the use of subject teachers. If the primary school's preoccupation with the present and the secondary school's increasing concern for the future can be borne in mind, then the middle-school may be able to achieve a useful blend: security with enrichment, a grounding in basics with diversity and adventure, a ready response to the immediate and present with a sensible view of life to be faced in the future, a main concern for the process with certain realism about the importance of the end product. It is considered that the middle-school should aim firstly at fostering the intellectural growth of its students, including the development of critical faculties, inventiveness and creativity. Then secondly, at psychological health, promoting self esteem in interested, optimistic, active and expressive individuals. And finally the middle-school should aim to produce in its students a social sense, concern for the good of others and a desire to serve for the betterment of community. It is also concluded that the middle school curriculum will best cater for youngsters at this intensely personal, vulnerable but expansive stage if the creative arts can be structured near to the centre of things. What is being considered here is a school where the main medium for fulfilling student needs and for their exercising within the basic skills, is the creative and expressive aspects of curriculum. Thus we provide the means whereby activities in English, maths or social studies may be explored and where these experiences may be enriched. Chapter VIII begins with a general description of the four schools; Camberwell Grammar Junior School, Melbourne Grammar - Grimwade House, Xavier College - Kostka Hall and Caulfield Grammar - Malvern House. This is followed with an account of survey procedures including the design of questionnaires and methods for compiling and presenting data. Material here is again presented within the three themes of the thesis and then there is a description of the "fifth school", an interpretation of the sum of staffs' opinions about the life and style of the four schools. This is not an ideal school and the three main propositions stated above cannot be validated in this way. However, the survey enables a reflective commentary providing support and raising questions where necessary. The final Chapter of the thesis deals with the question of how this study may be taken up experimentally. There is a sense in which it is only possible at this early stage to declare the issues and provoke the search for clearer definitions. The multiple regression model is presented as one possible means for analysing the success of middle-schools in terms of their unique objectives; it is presented as one method suitable for comparing the four middle-schools with each other or with alternative schools.
-
ItemA comparison of levels of job satisfaction among Victorian high school teachers in declared disadvantaged and undeclared schools( 1981)This study involved an investigation of job satisfaction among Victorian high school teachers in three declared disadvantaged and three undeclared schools in the Northern Metropolitan Region. The feasibility of the topic was determined by a pilot study undertaken at Upfield high school in 1978. The Region was selected because it had the most declared schools in the state. Pairs of declared and undeclared schools were selected primarily on the basis of their geographical proximity to one another. They were not statistically matched in any way. Questionnaires were distributed to all teaching staff in these six schools. A total of 164 usable questionnaires were returned. Questions were designed firstly, to describe the sample population and secondly, to gauge levels of teacher job satisfaction. The perceived relationship between job satisfaction and Supplementary Grants funding provided under the Disadvantaged Schools Program was investigated by non-parametric testing using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS). No statistically significant difference was identified in levels of job satisfaction between teachers in declared and undeclared schools. It is likely that individual teachers will have varying levels of job satisfaction and this was confirmed by the research. The argument that teachers can be categorised into groups who are satisfied and dissatisfied tended to be refuted.
-
ItemGreek girls and the culure of femininity : a study of three Melbourne schools( 1988)This study examines how second generation Greek girls develop a sense of self within the context of two cultures--the home and the school. The particular solutions chosen by Greek girls to negotiate these two worlds are formed by the interaction of gender, class and ethnicity in Australian society. In the move to Australia, migrants have transported a culture in which traditional ideologies of the culture of femininity impose a definition of 'good womanhood'--emdodied in the concept of honour--which places strict demands on the behaviour of girls in all aspects of their lives. 'Being Greek' affects girls' educational experiences and constructs their social reality. The study contends that for Greek girls 'goodness' of character is understood as a matter of moving delicately between the precepts of traditionally expected behaviour of females and a school code of behaviour that can be at odds with those expectations. In some schools this cultural dichotomy is heightened by expectations of 'ethnically correct' behaviour based on racist assumptions in addition to a series of values, rules and standards inherent in the culture-of the school which are at variance with the interests and culture of Greek girls. This project studies three schools in Melbourne. It found that while Greek girls perceive education to be the legitimate vehicle to achieve better jobs than those of their parents, some girls participate in counter-school behaviour--in opposition to both the racist and sexist practices in the school and the ccurriculum which does not address their specific needs and interests. Other Greek girls in the same schools, however, conform to the demands placed on them. In one school--a girls' private school--the culture of the school itself does not challenge the Greek code of female honour but rather facilitates a total commitment and celebration of its dictates as a question of family and personal status. However, negotiating the two worlds is for all girls fraught with serious contradictions and ambiguities.
-
ItemPlanning in the School of Mechanical Technology, TAFE sector, Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology( 1985)The purpose of this study was to examine the mutual relationship between the realities of corporate planning in the School of Mechanical Technology, TAFE Sector, Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology, and Austen's (1981) model for normative planning, and to then determine, within the context of normative planning, the actions which the School would need to take so as to enable it to anticipate and adapt to future conditions. Austen's (1981) model for normative planning and its application to corporate planning at the RMIT was reviewed. In recognizing that collaborative decision-making between the managerial and technical levels is the key to effective implementation of normative planning, the writer elaborated on the principles of collaborative management and, in turn, identified the kind of strategy and structure which would facilitate normative planning. According to Austen (1981), normative planning fosters the development of an organizational environment in which the desires of all members of the organization and its task environment are identified, individual ideals are transformed into organizational norms, and the technological function of the organization is subordinated to the learning function. Within this context, collaboration between the managerial and technical levels in the decision-making processes of the organization ensures that the creativity and ingenuity of individuals and their ability to input to planning are acknowledged, and that, as a consequence, the psycho-social benefits of planning are shared by all members. The deployment of a participative self-regenerative strategy was viewed as being an appropriate means by which normative planning could be implemented and the organization's capability for engaging in continuous problem-solving and self-regeneration could be enhanced. The structural form relevant to this strategy was identified as being one in which adaptive change can be nurtured by the establishment of a dual organizational process - namely, a planning system which is concerned with desired ends and means (i.e. strategic planning) and a resource-conversion system which is concerned with on-going ends and means (i.e. operational planning). A description of the dynamics of the School's evolving corporate-planning process was achieved by conducting a series of interviews with key people, who were involved with that process, and by accessing information from relevant documents in the School. A range of axioms for effective planning were identified. These provided the writer with a basis upon which to conduct a critical analysis of the School's corporate-planning process, to delineate the essential characteristics of that process, and to establish the relationship between those characteristics and the features of normative planning. In inter-relating the characteristics of Austen's (1981) model for normative planning with those of the School's evolving corporate-planning process, the writer concluded that the establishment of an operational-planning process in the School was distinguished with the significant features of Austen's (1981) model and that, as a consequence, the School was well positioned to proceed with the implemention of that other dimension of corporate planning - namely, strategic planning. More specifically, the writer found that the head-of-school had provided ample opportunity for senior staff to further their understanding of the theoretical and practical aspects of learning how to plan and how to manage the complexities of planning; participative decision-making was accepted as being the organizational norm upon which could be developed an organic approach to planning; the planning process was understood generally as being a collaborative venture in which the head-of-school, senior staff, and the teaching and non-teaching staff would continue to share their expertise and to work together in formulating, implementing and monitoring their plans; and it was accepted that as the School moved into strategic planning then greater attention would need to be given to expanding the School's environmental surveillance activities.
-
ItemPlanning and budgeting in education: V.C.A.H., Burnley( 1987)In the proposed research attention is focussed upon the administrative functions of planning, budgeting and resource allocation in education with particular reference to the Victorian College of Agriculture and Horticulture - Burnley Campus. The researcher maintains that these functions are important elements of educational administration which, if done effectively, enhance the overall effectiveness of organisations. Furthermore, it is believed that the individual approach adopted by educational organisations should be developed through a carefully considered policy process. The objective of the proposed research is to discuss planning and budgeting processes applicable to education, including the contemporary version of program budgeting, and to outline the elements to be considered in developing a budgeting model for the Burnley campus. The background to the above analysis will be established through a review of the literature in the field of planning, budgeting and resource allocation in education. An important feature of this review will be the influence of relevant government policy. The methodology used in the study will be a descriptive survey centred around the examination of V.C.A.H. documentation, administrative systems and the interviewing of relevant V.C.A.H. officers. The information provided by this survey will form the basis for an analysis of the existing policies and procedures at Burnley and form the basis for model development.
-
ItemThe predictive power of measured interests in tertiary course choice: the case of science( 1987)The importance of career considerations in the processes which determine participation in science and mathematics in secondary school is rarely disputed. Similarly, vocational goals appear to be influential in the process of choosing a course of tertiary study. There are, however, few examples in the literature of the behavioural sciences where measures of occupational interests have been employed in empirical studies of students' school subject or tertiary course choices. In this study, Holland's (1973, 1985) theory of personalities and occupational environments is advanced as an integrative conceptual framework for the exploration of educational issues such as participation and tertiary course choice. It is proposed that a longitudinal study entailing examination of the structural relations between measured occupational interests, school subjects studied, and choice of tertiary field of study, will provide evidence of a substantive and profound relationship. The participants in the study were three cohorts of male Year 10 students (N = 262) attending a single - sex independent school in Melbourne. The Career Assessment Inventory and tests of scholastic aptitude were completed by all Year 10 students in 1981, 1982, and 1983. Other sources of data included details of school subjects studied by the cohorts in Years 11 and 12, final examination results (Year 12), and details of their VUAC applications for college or university courses. Measured interests and school subjects studied were classified in terms of Holland's RIASEC typology, and the applicants' tertiary course preferences were considered in terms of an hierarchical structure of Victorian tertiary courses. A basic causal model of tertiary course choice facilitated a structural analysis of the relations between the variables of interest. The results of the application of multivariate and simple bivariate analyses to the data indicated a clear pattern of strong relationships between occupational interests measured in Year 10, school subjects studied in Years 11 and 12, and preference for science and technology college or university courses. Two elaborations of the basic causal model provided data for an analysis of the effects of a more comprehensive set of interests contrasts on the criterion, and data for estimates of proportion of variance accounted for by the combination of variables included in the basic model. A substantial proportion of the variance in science and mathematics subjects actually studied in Years 11 and 12, and in first preference for a science and technology field of tertiary study, was explained by interests measured in Year 10. The results of the investigation provide compelling evidence of the predictive power of measured interests in tertiary course choice, particularly in the case of science. The results are considered within the conceptual framework provided by Holland's (1985) account of the developmental antecedents of career decision making. Implications for educational and vocational counselling are discussed; the application of Holland's theory to the educational domain is held to support the notion of its generality.
-
ItemMovements towards the senior campus concept: two case studies providing description of early movements in the reorganization of secondary schooling in Victoria aimed at providing an educational environment suited for young adults( 1987)This thesis investigates early movements directed towards the emergence of a new form of secondary school organization in Victoria, namely the senior campus. Two elements are identified as having been instrumental in heralding this development, firstly the phenomenon of zero population growth (and a concomitant decline in school enrolments) and secondly, a number of key recommendations of the Ministerial Review of Postcompulsory Schooling, more commonly known as the Blackburn Report. A major causal factor in defining the characteristics of the senior campus, and in ensuring its evolution, has been the influence of powerful teachers' unions upon government policy formulation in this state. The review of literature examines the development, and characteristics, of parallel forms of schooling in other parts of Australia and overseas, endeavours to establish a framework against which the evolution of the senior campus can be compared, and seeks to provide the means of identifying reasons why forms of schooling which have been popular, and successful, in other places, have been deemed as unacceptable for implementation in Victoria. The methodology adopted has been to undertake two case studies, one in Essendon, and the other in Mitcham. Each concerned a group of schools involved in the process of rationalization and reorganization, and each provided for the establishment of a senior campus for students in Years Eleven and Twelve. A common structure was adopted in both cases - Part A provides an analysis of background documents, and Part B provides description of the change process from the vantage point of a participant observer. The Essendon study presents a conceptual model for the reorganization of schooling in the Essendon area, and the Mitcham study describes the evolution of Mullauna College, a multi-campus, P-12 college which will be established early in 1980.
-
ItemA history of aims in printing education in Melbourne 1870-1970( 1977)Aims in printing education have reflected a tradition of craft distinction. This has helped fashion the peculiar contributions of industrial or educational groups and individuals. In the 1880s the printing union, a relatively articulate group, led the way in promoting health and education provisions for regulating apprenticeship under a factories act. Latent education ideas were evoked in the 1890s by the economic depression and radical technological change with the introduction of the Linotype. These ideas were embodied into a self-help scheme of printing education by enthusiasts, the first classes being held in the Athenaeum in .April 1898. The scheme was adopted as the basis of a course in the Working Men's College when impracticalities became obvious. Classes commenced in June 1899. Printing employee groups maintained policies for government controlled apprenticeship and for state provision and supervision of technical education. These attitudes were gradually confirmed by master printers. Printers tended to have an advanced attitude regarding apprenticeship regulation, particularly compulsory day-time training provisions, under consideration by commissions, apprenticeship conferences and in legislative bills between 1900 and 1927. Technological and economic change in the 1920s and 1930s encouraged individuals in the trade to foster apprenticeship reform, curriculum development and self-help printing education. In the late 1940s a group with printing and educational interests, motivated by a desire to control printing education more effectively, took initiatives which led to the establishment of a mono-purpose printing school under the Education Department. The Melbourne School of Printing and Graphic Arts received its first printing apprentices in May 1950. The principal, staff and school council were pre-occupied with problems of accommodation, plant and equipment in the 1950s and 1960s. Even so, at least equal attention was given to entry and achievement standards and curriculum development in apprenticeship courses in practice, theory, design, science and “liberal” studies. Also the principal, in particular, and industrial representatives espoused technician and technologist level printing education. Thus aims and developments have represented an amalgam of traditional craft assumptions of worth and value as well as responses to the prevailing technological and economic environment.