Faculty of Education - Theses

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End date: 1999 × Start date: 1991 × Type: Masters Research thesis × Subject: Melbourne × Subject: Teachers × Subject: Victoria ×

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    Reflective practice in the early childhood practicum
    Jones, Rosemary ( 1999)
    There is much evidence in the current literature to indicate a movement towards a restructuring of teacher education, which emphasises reflection (Campbell-Evans & Maloney, 1996). University courses in teacher education are moving away from the technical model of teacher evaluation towards a reflective approach to teaching and learning which focuses on assisting pre-service teachers to develop reflective practices (Fairbanks & Meritt, 1998). The early childhood practicum is increasingly seen as an opportunity for students to engage in critical reflection with journal writing, frequently used as a tool for reflection. This project studied the practicum journals of nine final year Melbourne University Bachelor of Early Childhood Studies students. Analysis and interpretation of the reflective journals focused on two aspects. The first aspect related to the issues, which the students reflected about. The second aspect related to the cognitive processes the students engaged in when reflecting. The investigation found that students reflected in complex ways on complex issues throughout the practicum. The process of reflection, however, did not empower students to reflect in their own way about their own concerns. The study found that for this group of early childhood students, it was the location of power in student - supervisor relations that functioned to empower students to reflect in their own way about their own concerns or to disempower students by silencing them.
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    "I had tried everything, but there was nothing left in teaching for me": a small scale study of teacher resignation in Victoria: 1992-1995
    Clencie, Meredith F. ( 1995)
    The investigation set out to determine reasons for teacher resignation from the Directorate of School Education in the State of Victoria, Australia between 1992 and 1994. Specifically the study examined why 20 teachers resigned from a single secondary college in the outer western region of Melbourne. The teachers selected were highly competent as judged using criteria recently developed by the Standards Council of the Teaching Profession. Participants were interviewed and the data presented as individual causal maps. These were then analysed across the cases to discover generalisations. Of greatest concern to Victorian policy makers and administrators is the quality of the exit staff and the implications for Victorian education of the loss of such a talented and able group. Lack of mobility emerged as the most prominent factor influencing the resignation decision of the exit teachers. The second most important factor was found to be unmet expectations in teaching. Lack of career structure/opportunities was the third most important factor and lack of professional development the fourth most important factor. Peripheral factors which emerged from the research included changes following the change of government, lack of collegiality, school culture and individual achievement and unsupported post graduate study. It was found that the new career structure for Victorian teachers, the Professional Recognition Program provides some solutions for the factors affecting resignation among the group of exit teachers.