Faculty of Education - Theses
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ItemEffects of teaching and learning atomic structure concepts through the use of constructivist influenced multimedia( 1997)The purpose of this study was to investigate the attitudes of female students toward multimedia learning and the way in which they accessed information from an interactive CD-ROM. The CD was an award winning educational software aimed at improving students' understanding of the periodic table and atomic structure. Twenty year-10 (14-15 year old) female students from a girls school in Melbourne, Victoria, participated in the project. An ethnographic approach was adopted which included a pre and post questionnaire and some videotaped laboratory observations. Results indicated that female students were generally aware of the value of multimedia learning programs and showed strong interest toward multimedia learning though they did not register a special preference toward multimedia learning in comparison with traditional ways of teaching (teacher talking and using textbooks). After working with the CD-ROM, no significant change was noticed in students' interest toward multimedia learning, their confidence in ability to learn and use multimedia software packages, and personal preference of instruction mode. Direct observation of students' interaction with the CD-ROM revealed that there was a strong tendency by the students not to access unfamiliar topics/areas. They tended to choose aspects of the CD-ROM that offered little learning difficulty or presented quick responses to short term goals. They spent most (60%) of their available time on the quiz section and ignored the tutoring aspects of the CD-ROM. According to the result of an opinion poll, students stated that the quiz game aspect of the CD was the most interesting area. Overall, students were unable or unwilling to explore the contents of the CD-ROM in a judicious way when teacher instruction or guidance was absent.
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ItemOpening the door of the 6th form chemistry laboratory: a study of professional collaboration between a science teacher and an English as a second language (ESL) teacher in senior chemistry( 1997)True professional teacher collaboration has been limited by the institutional roles which are constructed for us and through which we view ourselves. This thesis is a narrative case study of teacher collaboration for the purpose of addressing the language learning needs of English as a Second Language students in Year 12 Chemistry classes. It explores the issues involved in the professional working relationship through the voices of a Science teacher and an ESL teacher over a two year period. This was done through transcripts of classroom teaching, analysis of teaching and learning materials produced, interviews and reflective journal writing. The study looked at the groundwork which took place to establish a school climate conducive to the collaboration in terms of the Habermasian interests; technical, practical and emancipatory. The emancipatory nature of the collaboration is explained in terms of the repositioning of the teachers with regard to each other, the students, the scientific and linguistic subject matter. By exercising power in their respective fields the collaborating teachers achieved a professional parity which allowed them to reflect on their practice and move beyond the static and ritualised institutional roles of a Chemistry and an ESL teacher. Through the interaction they established language as legitimate content in the science classroom and together explored new practices afforded by the adoption of a social constructivist epistemology. This research points to the emergence of a new more empowering professional development role for ESL teachers in the future. At the heart of this collaboration is a commitment to conversations about issues of fundamental importance in classroom practice which reconcile boundaries of differing departmental cultures and discourses.