Faculty of Education - Theses
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ItemCompassionate leadership in schools( 1997)This thesis explores two concepts - compassion and leadership - and their relationship to success in suburban schools of an Australian city. Compassion is a concept - an over-arching value - that is, for most people, not immediately associated with leadership. Compassion involves more than sentimental pity for another. It also involves passionate action directed towards the relief of suffering by another. Increasingly, leadership of many organisations is being seen in far more complex terms than personality or a particular situation. The important role that the values an individual brings to their organisation, and the connection of those values to success, is emerging. Compassion is a key value that is thought to be underpinning much successful leadership. The literature underpinning both compassion and leadership are reviewed. The purpose of this study is to find out what it is that principals do in exercising compassion in schools, how that compassion affects success in the school and what life influences may have caused a principal to develop compassion. Compassionate leadership by principals is studied through the development of a model which connects eleven elements of compassion - celebrative, passionately active, justice-making, benevolently loving, creative, non-elitist, networking, transpersonal, pain relieving, transcendent and fun-filled - with the four leadership frames of Bolman and Deal (1991) - the structural, human resource, political and symbolic. A questionnaire developed from this framework provides a quantitative method to find out about compassionate leadership, in particular, how those compassion elements are influenced by the four leadership frames. This quantitative approach augments a qualitative approach which involved eighteen in-depth, semi-structured interviews concerning compassion on the part of the principal during a critical incident in the life of the school. The qualitative approach of Miles and Huberman (1994) is used to better understand the interview transcripts. The quantitative and qualitative data are then synthesised. The compassionate leadership model suggested has strong statistical support that shows the relative contribution of each leadership frame to each compassion element. For example, it is shown that the celebrative element of compassion is contributed to most by the symbolic and political leadership frames and that two of the principals in the study showed clear evidence of acting in both political and symbolic ways when celebrating the lives of dead students. This may be helpful in guiding leaders to improve their compassionate stance. The relative contribution of each element in the model to compassion is suggested, with the four most important compassion elements identified as: transpersonal, pain relieving, passionately active and benevolently loving. Success in each of the schools studied is shown to have been influenced by compassionate action on the part of the principal and a number of compassion-developing influences in the lives of the principals studied are identified, such as key adults, early personal struggle and service to others at an early age. It is recommended that the compassionate leadership model be used by leaders, in conjunction with context-rich qualitative data for specific individuals, to reflect upon, and self-appraise, their own behaviour. The model can also be used as part of course work preparation of potential leaders. Recommendations for future studies include seeking student views on compassionate leadership, investigating gender differences more closely, and finding out about compassionate leadership in other cultural contexts.
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ItemImproved student learning and leadership in self-managed schools( 1998)This thesis examines improved student learning and leadership in schools under conditions of decentralisation, in a study designated the Learning Outcomes Project. In 1993, in the State of Victoria, Australia, a set of initiatives called Schools of the Future was introduced into government schools. The operation of the school system was changed from a relatively centralised system to one where much of the decision making about operations was decentralised to the school site. The impact on teachers, principals and schools has been considerable. Changes have occurred to teachers' working conditions and the accountability functions of schools through School Charters, Annual Reports and the introduction of Curriculum and Standards Frameworks (CSF) in eight Key Learning Areas (KLA). The Cooperative Research Project, a joint venture of the Victorian Secondary Principals' Association, the Victorian Primary Principals' Association, the Victorian Department of Education and The University of Melbourne, conducted a series of investigations into the processes and outcomes of Schools of the Future, including this study. The Learning Outcomes Project sought to investigate links from the reforms associated with decentralisation in school systems to improved student learning. This is a critical and vital area for research where little concrete evidence is available to support the benefits of decentralisation in relation to improved student learning. Previous studies have found the benefits of decentralisation to be mainly operational and managerial. A qualitative methodology was adopted to seek evidence of improved student learning in schools and explore leadership function under the conditions of decentralisation. Four schools that claimed improved student learning agreed to be part of the study. A conceptual framework was developed that allowed actions at school level be traced through the reforms to improved student learning. The leadership dimensions and strategies suited to schools under conditions of decentralisation were studied with the aid of a conceptual model, using a new model of educational leadership. Causal links from the reforms of decentralisation to improved student learning were mapped. This study reinforces the difficulties of making causal links. The findings indicate that improved student learning under conditions of decentralisation is evident in certain circumstances where clearly defined pathways are established from the reforms to improved student learning. It was shown that direct pathways to student learning were consistently and directly evident from Curriculum- CSF Implementation and Professional Development in all schools and were developing from Monitoring, Assessment and Reporting. The causal maps defined pathways which could be used by schools to monitor improved student learning in Schools of the Future. Leadership suited to decentralised systems was shown to require strong and balanced leadership across the six dimensional model used in this study. It was further shown that leadership dimensions that were not strong in the principal needed to be evident in other leaders for effective curriculum implementation to occur. Useful trends which may be relevant to other schools were found in this study. However, due to the favourable conditions in which this study was conducted across a small number of schools, further research is necessary to validate these findings and caution may be needed if using the findings in other settings.
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ItemA working knowledge program within a project-funded professional development environment( 1998)This study was designed to achieve two research aims: The first was to engage the researcher in a journey of discovery that provided her with the knowledge and ability to question the merits and limitations of project-funded professional development. The second was to extend the researcher's understanding of project-funded learning and professional development by developing and implementing a working knowledge program within an actual project-funded environment. The research question was consistent with these aims as it asked "What facilitated or inhibited learning in the participants of a project-funded professional development program developed from the concept of working knowledge?". Project-funded professional development programs have become a popular method of targeting specific disciplines and subjects within the primary and community health care sectors. This source of professional development brings with it unique learning environments that have strengths and limitations. This study addresses what is arguably a challenge for facilitators employed in this industry, having knowledge of models of professional development that enhance practitioner learning and address the limitations associated with project-funded programs. It is hoped that this study contributes to our knowledge of the concept of working knowledge, and clarifies its potential role in project-funded programs. A qualitative research approach was used to analyse the research data and this produced a rich description of the type of knowledge valued and accessed by the study's participants. The knowledge that was sought and acquired by the GPs participants during the working knowledge program was more consistent with the perception they had of their role as independent practitioners, even though the program was designed using a cross-discipline approach and based within a holistic framework. A somewhat surprising factor was the depth and breadth of influence that the practitioner's own 'culture' had on every stage of this study.
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ItemTeaching negative number operations: a comparative study of the neutralisation model using integer tiles( 1998)The thesis describes an attempt to improve the teaching and learning of negative number concepts and operations. A teaching method based on the neutralisation model and using counters in the form of 'integer tiles' as the manipulative materials was developed and evaluated. The thesis begins with a review of the history and development of negative number. The influence that authors have exerted in embedding the use of the number line in signed number teaching practice was shown by examination of popular textbooks. Testing of classes across Years 8 to 11 revealed negative number skill deficiencies resulting from normal teaching methods. The major component of the research compared the integer tile method with normal teaching methods, in terms of learning outcomes, using a series of four tests of signed number operational skills and applications. Qualitative descriptions of student and teacher reactions and behaviour based on observation, interviews, conversations and examination of students' work by the researcher are also given. The experimental and control groups were shown to be well-matched on the pre-test. The experimental group performed significantly better on the post-test. The difference between the groups widened during the year following initial teaching. However no significant difference between the groups was found two years after the initial teaching. The evidence suggests that the integer tile method was more effective and for a wider range of student ability levels at the time of teaching than the normal method. Subsequently middle ability students in the control group were capable of catching up following application and practice in the use of negative numbers in later topics. However weaker students in both groups who did not fully master operational skills at the time of teaching continued to display skill deficiencies. The conclusion reached is that the integer tile teaching method could be a more effective initial negative number teaching method than normal methods based on the number line for most students. Further research is required to investigate the effectiveness of the integer tile method with weaker students.
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ItemCompetency-based training: a study of the meaning of change in vocational education practice( 1998)This is a Doctorate (D. Ed.) thesis on the meaning given to a particular change (the introduction of an 'official' NTB/ANTA version of competency-based training in Australia) in vocational education by some of its practitioners. Its original contribution to the field of vocational education lies in reporting the practitioner view of change. The formal definition of the NTB/ANTA 'official' version CBT and those of its subsidiary components was used as a research tool to measure practitioner response to change. Responses to the change proposal were classified using the typologies of fidelity, mutual adaptation co-option and non-implementation. The work starts by discussing the origins of CBT including the historic and political events, which have shaped this teaching innovation. It then describes how a naturalistic paradigm was used to hear the voices of the practitioner and examine the attitudes and knowledge of the 'official' version of CBT held by those of various status involved in the introduction of this innovation in a number TAFE and industry sites. The study examined three research questions: 1. What meaning is given to the 'official' version of CBT by different stakeholders in different organisations? 2. How do different people at different levels in an educational hierarchy react to the implementation of the 'official' version of CBT, what was important in implementation, and what were the processes? 3. Is there a resulting grounded theory of implementation of current change, and what impact and possible consequences does it have for the implementation of future changes in vocational education? The research reports that the change has not been implemented in the way its promoters would have wished and that the meaning given to the concept of CBT by teachers and trainers has, understandably, led to widely different responses and practices within the fidelity to non-implementation range of typologies. It has been found that what was implemented was of general benefit to students and there were some unintended outcomes, which it is argued, were also valuable. The work concludes with some cautionary advice to initiators and implementers of other innovations in the same field.
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ItemLaptop computers: changes in teachers' practice( 1998)This thesis tracks the chain of events which led to the introduction of a laptop computer program at an independent boys' school. Initially it examined the implementation of the program and its effects on teachers and students. To explain these patterns, the study then examined the way the school prepared itself to implement the use of laptops. In seeking to understand the reasons underlying the preparation for implementation strategies, the study then examined the key adoption decisions taken by the school. Thus, the thesis traces a set of interrelated phases of implementation, adoption and use. The study should be regarded as an evaluation because the findings presented here have been reported to the school. One aim was to 'lay out' what had happened up to a particular point in time, June 1997. Laying out the findings, or providing an illuminative analysis was a means chosen by which the school could come to grips with what had happened to this time. In addition, the study provides a more formative element through the synthesis of literature designed as a basis for improving the existing curriculum. The literature is linked to the findings of the empirical part of the study throughout the thesis. Having access to the findings of what has occurred so far, and the relevant literature, was seen as a way by which the evaluation can influence the future laptop program of the school.
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ItemAcademic staff development and organisational learning: policy for staff development and appraisal in Australian higher education( 1997)Professional development programs for the academic community are an important yet enigmatic planning issue in Australian higher education. In the early 1990s, Australian universities considered their policies for academic staff development against the guidelines of industrial agreement and with the requirement to introduce developmental staff appraisal. This recent political context is taken as a focal point for a values-inclusive policy analysis that examines the theoretical and methodological complexities associated with the concept of academic staff development. It is argued here that policy for academic staff development requires a more coherent theoretical basis if programs are to contribute substantially to the advancement of higher education during rapid social transformation. In particular, this investigation explores the individual/organisation nexus that is a source of tension for policy formulation, and critiques the appraisal/staff development juxtaposition and the individualistic assumptions on which it is based. The contention of this study is that a more appropriate basis for policy is provided by a broader organisational learning perspective, in particular the framework developed by Argyris and Sch�n. Accepting the general conceptions of individual/organisational learning they propose, the study supplements these with a naturalistic account of human learning and develops a new theoretical framework for academic staff development that unites individual and organisational learning. It is demonstrated that an organisational learning methodology for the practice of staff development has the potential to provide powerful learning and feedback structures well-suited to institutional inquiry and adaptation that will assist Australian universities to meet the turbulence and challenges of an unpredictable future.
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ItemLiving below the poverty line: a phenomenological study of the experiences of students of education at the University of Ballarat( 1998)Until at least the early 1970s people who were favoured with economically advantaged backgrounds were more likely to study at Australian universities than those people with low socio-economic backgrounds. Over the last two decades there has been a movement to open up higher education to disadvantaged people. Equity policies, such as the student benefit of AUSTUDY and equity funding for universities, have encouraged poorer people into universities to complete their degrees. However, literature indicates that low socio-economic students are still under represented on university campuses, and that the completion rate of degrees for these people is lower than that of people from families of advantaged backgrounds. Little is known about the difficulties that poorer people encounter at University or whether equity policies have really succeeded in helping them to maintain and complete a course of study, particularly during a period of high unemployment in Australia. This thesis attempts to fill the gap in our knowledge about poor university students. It documents qualitative investigation into the poverty experiences of 17 undergraduate students of education at the regional University of Ballarat, in Victoria, Australia. These students, who lived below the Australian Poverty Line for single adults, were engaged in in-depth interviews about their poverty experiences. The major areas explored in this study were the participants' definitions of poverty; the impact that poverty had on their life and well-being; and the description of the ways in which they tried to cope with poverty during their university studies. The phenomenological methodology of Colaizzi (1973) was employed in the analysis of data. A major finding was that when participants lived away from home they encountered poverty experiences that had negative effects on their studies and life circumstances. Moreover, lessened opportunities for employment in Ballarat, and insufficient support from AUSTUDY, were seen as significant factors that contributed to their poverty status.
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ItemThe internationalisation of higher education in Australia: management and strategy options for faculties of education( 1998)Internationalisation is becoming an increasingly important issue in the field of higher education in many universities. The aim of the research is to examine the management approaches used by higher education institutions in Australia in relation to the process of integrating the international dimension into the primary functions of an institution of higher education. This research has considered the ways in which institutions are accommodating, through their own planning and development processes, the growing demand for a greater international view, taking in both the range of international activities and the elaboration and/or reformulation of the fundamental missions of teaching, research and service. While the need for and benefits of internationalising are gaining increased recognition, the mechanisms needed to ensure that the elements of internationalisation are integrated, institutionalised, and treated as a core activity of the institutions are still to be explored. It should be recognised that approaches or strategies will differ according to the particular settings and circumstances as well as profiles of individual institutions. This research, however, aims to identify distinct broad models or common approaches being adopted by best practice higher education institutions in Australia, and so construct a strategic framework for internationalisation. Thus 'strategic framework', for the purpose of this study, comprise those strategic commitments which guide the institution's international orientations for the future.
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ItemLeadership and the learning organisation in self managing schools( 1997)This study used the Peter Senge model of the learning organisation as a framework for the analysis of learning organisations in secondary schools. It is the first study of its kind to use the Senge framework for investigating learning organisations in schools in Australia. Three Victorian schools which were perceived to have the characteristics of learning organisations were selected as case studies for a qualitative analysis. These schools were analysed and compared in terms of the model in order to determine whether the model could be applied in this context. Each of the disciplines of the model, systems thinking, personal mastery, team learning, shared vision and mental models were examined. The study found that the Senge model, while providing a useful basis for the development of a learning organisation in schools, needed to be modified to suit the education context. An alternative model was formed which provides a practical approach to the initiation of a learning organisation process which was seen as more appropriate to Australian secondary schools. Four key elements of the alternative model were identified and are instrumental in the development of a learning organisation in schools. These are inclusive collaborative structures, effective communication channels, integrated and inclusive professional development programmes, and learning focused leadership. Application of the alternative model has implications for government policy in relation to the future development of educational and professional development programmes. In terms of the methodology employed, the NUDIST software was used in the analysis of the quantitative data generated by the study. This approach is one which is rapidly gaining popularity in qualitative research but at the time this study was commenced it was relatively innovative. The software was found to assist the analysis in a variety of ways.