Faculty of Education - Theses
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ItemReporting on school performance in Victoria, an international perspective and implications for school leadership( 1996)Social, economic, cultural and political trends can change in nature and importance over time and influence government schools systems. The degree of precision and the style with which the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of a government school system monitors school performance varies over time and can be inconsistent with that which has been used by his predecessor. The government school systems of England and Victoria are examples of school systems that appear to have experienced similar stages of development and have shared similar social, economic, cultural and political trends. These changes have produced inconsistencies for schools in those systems over time. Employees within government school systems are required to respond quickly to changes in their roles and responsibilities. Field officers who work with schools on behalf of the CEO can become a liability to the school system as ambivalence towards their role develops in schools and as technology for reporting on financial matters as well as student achievement and other aspects of school performance improves. The feelings of those employed within a school system can be a major barrier to their coping with inconsistencies brought about by change. One view is that adaptation to this inconsistency can be assisted by having access to incentives to adjust to change or by having an understanding of one's own inconsistencies. Government school system organisation as well as leaders can influence the behaviour of teachers and students and therefore, arguably, influence school performance and how it is reported. Possible changes in the cognitive activity of principals and teachers that might be influenced by feelings and associated with ambivalence, can also be connected with the concepts of transactional and transformational leadership and school system organisation. It appears that, ultimately, the continued existence of government school systems might well depend upon the extent that schools within those systems accept the authority of the CEO.
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ItemCulturally different and successful?: case studies of gifted Vietnamese secondary students( 1993-01)There is concern in the literature that gifted children from ‘culturally different’ populations, such as Hispanics and Blacks, are underrepresented in special programs due, in part, to the often insensitive traditional methods of identification used that do not detect particular abilities that are valued and promoted within that particular culture. Contrary to these findings, studies indicate that gifted Asians are in profusion. They present themselves as excellent, motivated students and it is almost expected that they will achieve highly in the areas of mathematics and science. The focus of this paper is a study of seven highly capable secondary school boys of Vietnamese background. In several of these cases the children have had huge hurdles to overcome including the death of a mother, escape by boat, life in a refugee camp, parents whose skills are not being utilised as well as being ‘different’. Despite this they have been successful. A case study approach was adopted to look at the nature of these students, the role of the parents and the attitudes towards giftedness. The aim is to present a holistic view of the child rather than obscure their unique characteristics in a muddle of statistics of a large scale study. This paper takes the position that it is dangerous to make such generalisations and that although gifted from the same cultural group will have certain similar traits, the assumption that common values will automatically apply to them should be curtailed as the particular circumstances of the individual child leads to different manifestations in each.
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ItemSpiritual health: its nature and place in the school curriculum( 1998-04)As spirituality first appeared in Australian curriculum documents in 1994, it was important to establish how educators thought it related to student well- being. In this research a description and four accounts of spirituality - spiritual rationalism, monism, dualism, and multidimensional unity - were developed from available literature. The literature also revealed four sets of relationships important to spiritual well-being. These were the relationships of a person with themself, others, environment, and Transcendent Other. The model of spiritual health proposed here claims that these four sets of relationships can be developed in corresponding Personal, Communal, Environmental and Global domains of human existence, each of which has two aspects - knowledge and inspiration. Progressive synergism describes the inter-relationship between the four domains. The quality of relationships in the four domains constitutes , spiritual well-being in each domain. Spiritual health is indicated by the combined effect of spiritual well-being in each of the domains embraced by a person. The principles of grounded theory qualitative research methodology were used to investigate the views of 98 teachers from a variety of schools near Melbourne. Feedback from 23 Australian experts, on the researcher’s definitions, is discussed. To encompass all the teachers’ views of spiritual health, to the initial categories of Personalist, Communalist, Environmentalist and Globalist, a fifth category was added for the small group Rationalists, who embraced the knowledge, but not the inspiration/transcendent aspects, of the first three domains of spiritual well-being. All the teachers believed spiritual health should be included in the school curriculum, most rating it of high importance, two-thirds believing it should be integral to the curriculum. The teachers’ major curriculum concerns focussed on Self, Others, the Transcendent, or Wholeness. Investigation of those teacher characteristics seen as important for promoting spiritual health, with associated hindrances and ideals, showed variation by gender, personal view of spiritual health, major curriculum concern, teacher and school type. Greatest variation was noticed when comparing school type. State school teachers emphasised care for the individual student from a humanistic perspective. Catholic school teachers were concerned for the individual, with religious activities being implemented by dedicated teachers. Other Christian school teachers focussed on corporate, not individualistic, activities, and emphasised relationship with God. Other non-government school teachers emphasised tradition, with attendant moral values. Implications of these variations on school choice are discussed. Principals’ behaviour, speech and attitude were considered by the teachers to be vital in providing opportunities for spiritual development in schools. A 30-item Spiritual Health Measure (of Humanistic and Religious Aspects of Spiritual Health) was developed using the researcher’s model of spiritual health and data from 300 UK teachers. The SHM should be useful as a diagnostic for individuals or groups to provide base data from which to plan enhancement of their spiritual health. This thesis contains an analysis of how well the Victorian Curriculum & Standards Framework provides guidelines for promoting spiritual health. A position of responsibility, called Spiritual Facilitator, is proposed to help ensure that the rhetoric about spiritual well-being is put into practice in schools.
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ItemYou can learn things: television in the lives of Vietnamese teenage girls in Melbourne( 1994)This study addresses the ways in which women and ethnic minorities are represented in the Australian mainstream media, in particular television, and what teenage Vietnamese migrant girls do with the representations they encounter. The literature reviewed includes research and theories about psychological acculturation or cross-cultural adaptation; content analyses of television, exposing the ethnocentric and patriarchal nature of the programs and advertisements screened in Australia; feminist and post-structuralist approaches to the study of television; and ethnographic television audience studies. An ethnographic case study approach was employed to explore the television viewing habits of twelve sixteen to eighteen year old Vietnamese girls living in Melbourne. It was found that the girls were watching television regularly, both for pleasure and with a keen desire to learn. The implications of what they are learning from a media which promotes dominant ethnocentric and patriarchal views is discussed, and whether this has a negative impact on the girls' sense of self and development of identity is questioned. While it is difficult to draw direct conclusions on such issues, it can be said that the girls do not feel part of mainstream Australia and possibly will not until they are recognised by the media. Some of the implications for education and schools are also discussed.
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ItemFrom theatre to communication: the application of theatre techniques to an orientation program for overseas students( 1994)This thesis is a reflective account of my teaching in a program for non-native speakers of English from the Asia and Pacific region, preparing to enter a tertiary system that was vastly different from their previous educational experience. My contribution was to design a compulsory Drama course to train the students in acting techniques to improve their overall communication in a Western English-speaking context and to assist them with integrating the new ideas. A distinctive feature of my course is an extensive study of non-verbal communication through mime and movement activities. In 1993 the period of reflection led me to an important discovery. With the assistance of the Action Research model of plan, action, observation and reflection, devised by Kemmis and McTaggart, I was able to articulate and understand my methodology for the first time. What I had supposed was instinctive, was in fact a thoughtful and systematic process emanating from my background knowledge of drama and experience in professional theatre. This approach, influenced by the philosophies of Grotowski and Stanislavski, enabled me to respond to the students in such a way that I could adapt the curriculum to suit both their academic and personal needs. The students showed the interpersonal skills required to begin development as professionals in Australia, as well as managing the challenge and choices required of them to live in contemporary Australian culture whilst they were students. Without these skills, many aspects of their personal identity were threatened. Further, I recognised that my process as a teacher, solving the pedagogical problems in the development of a responsive curriculum, paralleled the preparation of actors for performance. This thesis documents the exciting journey of my reflection and analysis.
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ItemThe effects of education leadership and management on special school students quality learning( 1995)This study examines the context in which special school principals carry out their leadership and management roles. Recently, significant changes in educational policies, organisation leadership and management styles. Implementation meant changes for school Principals. A review of the relevant literature revealed that the challenges bought about has forced schools Principals and teachers to examine the organisations and structures, and to confront their own fundamental values and attitudes. The emphasis on the devolution of authority, and the pursuit of excellence and quality provisions. Principals are forced to perform a dual role. No longer being viewed as administrators, but as leaders in their own right. Special Student's opportunities are enhanced, and extended school years and the level of success is now largely determined by the quality of leadership. Educational Leadership plays a major role in how successful educational programs are when aiming for the full development of student potential. Industry links within education can assist in achieving educational goals which provide students with an understanding of the real world while also assisting principals to become effective and efficient of their organisations. Special School Principals in particular, have two roles to fulfil. They must possess the necessary managerial skills whilst demonstrating the leadership qualities to ensure the growth and development of staff and students. The opportunities to develop success orientation should be encouraged as it will reflect on the standing of school and encourage community support. This study has drawn its information from a small number of Special Schools in Melbourne. Teachers and principals completed a questionnaire by indicating the statement that best described their view of the principal. The outcome indicated that although principals viewed themselves as humanistic leaders, the teachers reveal mixed responses in their indications. The study found that some principals work collaboratively with their staff, some prefer to dominate while others presented confusion and uncertainty in the management, and leadership and vision for the school. The study indicates a need for more relevant initial training. in service and professional development principals so that they understand the roles requested of them.
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ItemAn evaluation of the reading comprehension of students in Victoria who are profoundly, prelingually deaf and of an intervention programme to improve their inferential reading comprehension skills( 1995)This thesis is concerned with the reading comprehension of students in Victoria who are profoundly prelingually deaf. The study firstly addresses reading abilities of these students and the factors that affect these abilities. Secondly, this study implements a programme for a sub-group of underachieving readers. The research was conducted in two stages. Stage one evaluated the reading comprehension outcomes for 195 prelingually, profoundly deaf students in government and non-government schools. The subjects were tested on the Stanford Diagnostic Reading Comprehension Test. It was found that there was a wide range of reading comprehension ability amongst the subjects. However, 58.0% of these students were reading in the below the average range compared with 23.0% of their hearing peers. The average rate of advancement for the Australian subjects was found to be 0.5 of a grade per year. The deaf students over 15 years of age achieved an average reading level of grade 6.0 which was commensurate with recent findings from America and higher than that found in Britain. Some significant differences between sub-groups were found. Female deaf readers were reading better than males. There was also a significant difference between the reading competency of the subjects according- to their aetiology. The Rubella subjects tended to be the poorest readers and the Meningitic subjects the most competent readers. Overall the subjects' literal reading scores were significantly higher than their inferential scores. An analysis of the scores for the textual, functional and recreational reading genres showed a significant difference between the scores from the three educational settings with mainstreamed students reading better than integrated who read better than segregated students in all areas. The subjects were also tested for their ability to infer meaning from pictures. Further, a multiple regression showed that being female, having above average academic potential and being in an mainstreamed oral setting and having the ability to use inferential strategies with pictures were all significant predictive factors for reading comprehension competence. Stage two of the research involved 60 subjects who were identified as underachieving from stage one. An intervention programme which aimed at using pictorial material to encourage the use of inferential strategies in reading was developed. The research design involved four groups of 15 subjects (two experimental, two control). The experimental groups received 30 lessons of an intervention programme to teach inferential reading strategies using pictorial and written text. One of the control groups underwent a reference skill programme and the other did not receive any specific intervention. Using the Stanford Diagnostic Test of Reading Comprehension, post-intervention reading comprehension competence was measured. A significant improvement in the reading comprehension competence of the experimental subjects was found. The amount of improvement was more than two reading grade levels over a twelve month span. It was further shown that the subjects over 15 years of age also improved. The programme was particularly effective with the weakest and the youngest deaf readers. The findings of this research have implications for educational programmes designed to improve the literacy of profoundly, prelingually deaf readers. By placing an emphasis on the processes involved in inferential comprehension, the deaf readers learned to interact with the text.
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ItemFact and fiction in Joan Lindsay's "Picnic at Hanging Rock"( 1990)Joan Lindsay's novel Picnic at Hanging Rock, has been examined on a variety of levels. Scholars have viewed the novel as a study of the conflict of humanity versus nature, in symbolic terms as the embodiment of an archetypal religious myth, as a philosophical treatise on the passing of time and merely as an ambiguous and sinister disappearance. The purpose of this thesis has been to discriminate between fact and fiction in Picnic at Hanging Rock, with particular reference to the education of women. The novel has been explored in historical terms in an attempt to ascertain how much it is a reflection of Joan Lindsay's educational experiences at the Clyde Girls' Grammar School and her social experiences as a daughter of a prominent Melbourne family. Lindsay's experiences as a student at Clyde Girls' Grammar from 1911-1914 and the lifestyle of her family provide a historical picture of an upper middle-class family and their pattern of behavior at the turn of the century. This thesis examines Joan Lindsay's family, married life and literary works, paying particular attention to her childhood. The upper middle-class lifestyle, social mores and customs of the Weigall family provide much of the raw material for Lindsay the novelist's portrayal of turn-of-the century life at Appleyard College and the village of Macedon. This thesis also studies the staff, educational objectives and teaching methods employed at the fictional Appleyard College and compares these with a historical study of the staff and teaching practices of the Clyde Girls' Grammar of Joan Lindsay's experience. It concludes that although Lindsay has portrayed Appleyard College as institution with a shallow, haphazard approach to education, embodying all of the negative facets associated with education of females in the Victorian period, the education offered at Clyde appeared to be of sound intellectual standard and of the best quality available to the females of her generation. Through the characters in her novel Lindsay highlights different approaches towards education in the late Victorian era. Through Appleyard's imposing headmistress, Mrs Appleyard, Lindsay satirizes the attitude that social status in the most important value no matter what the cost. Mrs Appleyard is obsessed with her students' social background and displays little concern for their intellectual development. The character of Dianne de Poitiers plays out the role of the accomplished woman, a teacher who is hired for her ladylike appearance and demeanor and fluent French rather than any outstanding intellectual qualities. And in contrast to de Poitiers, Lindsay casts Greta McCraw as a mathematic mistress whose little appreciated mathematical brilliance and outlandish physical appearance designate her as a bluestocking. The different approaches of these two teachers personify the acceptable and unacceptable gender characteristics for women in the late Victorian era. Lindsay would have been well aware that the superficial education offered at Appleyard College defended class boundaries and the lifestyle of the upper middle classes which she so humorously describes later in the novel. Her examination of the manners, prejudices and social practices of this privileged sector of society is humorous in its intention and often scathing in its perceptions. And although her depiction of Appleyard College is not a reflection of her years at Clyde, Lindsay's position as a daughter of a privileged Melbourne family has provided her with an intuitive understanding of the upper-middle-class lifestyle of the late Victorian era.
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ItemAdolescent gambling: a justification for gambling education programs targeting Victorian minors( 1996)Gambling is a well established, integral aspect of Victorian communities and this is unlikely to change in the near future. The gambling industry has grown in recent times to become a billion dollar industry. Studies conducted by the Victorian Casino and Gaming Authority (DBM Consultants 1995) found that 90% of Victorian adults have placed a bet at some time in their lives with 77% having done so in the period 1994-1995. In total, Victorians spent $88.6 million per week on gambling. There is insufficient data available to fully comprehend the social impact of the gambling industry on Victorian communities. Clearly, today's adolescents are living in an environment that supports and promotes gambling. However, no research has been conducted that investigates the gambling behaviours and attitudes of Victorian minors prior to this study. Recent studies in the USA, the UK and Canada reveal that a high proportion of adolescents are regular gamblers with many experiencing problems related to their gambling behaviours. This thesis provides data on the gambling behaviours and attitudes of Victorian adolescents. The majority of the 200 adolescents involved in the study are gambling, with many doing so at a level that constitutes 'at risk' behaviour. This study provides justification for the introduction of gambling education in Victorian schools. It postulates that the appropriate curriculum framework for the inclusion of gambling education is primarily in the Health and Physical Education Key Learning Area alongside other risk taking behaviours. Given that informed and responsible gambling in moderation does little harm to the gambler or the community, the author recommends that the harm minimisation approach is the most suitable Health Education model for implementing gambling education programs in Victorian schools.
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ItemChristian values and the vision of the Uniting Church for its schools in Victoria( 1994)The Catholic Church in Australia has a vision for its schools of a faith that pervades all aspects of school life and results in a climate or atmosphere where Christian values are expressed in every dimension of the education provided (Leavey, 1972, Flynn, 1985). What vision does the Uniting Church in Victoria have for its schools? Is it similar to that of the Catholic Church? This thesis examines the vision that the Uniting Church has for its schools in Victoria, particularly in relation to the place of Christian values in this vision. Three Value Models are used. They are the Gospel Values as defined by Doyle and Woods (1984), Scheler's Hierarchy of Values (1973), and Hodgkinson's Value Model (1983). Three sources of data are examined in this thesis. They are transcripts of interviews with four chairpersons of the Synod Education Committee, relevant sections of the Minutes of the Synod of the Uniting Church in Victoria, and the Aims and Objectives and Mission Statements of the Uniting Church schools in Victoria. The three models are used as a framework for analysing the data. The vision of the Uniting Church for its schools in Victoria was found to involve the presence of a Christian Ethos in the schools which was made up of three dimensions. These dimensions are Values, in particular the Gospel Value of Love, the presence of Christian Staff, and Areas of School Life in which the values are expressed, in particular the area of Pastoral Care.