Faculty of Education - Theses
Permanent URI for this collection
Search Results
1 - 10 of 66
-
ItemWorking through tension : a response to the concerns of lesbian, gay and bisexual secondary school students(University of Melbourne, 2001)
-
ItemNo Preview AvailableThe art of intersubjectivity(University of Melbourne, 2004)
-
ItemThe transfer of nurse eduction from hospital schools of nursing to higher eduction : the Victorian perspective(University of Melbourne, 2000)
-
ItemUneasy lies the head : the repositioning of heads of English in independent schools in Victoria in the age of new learning technologies( 2004)This study explores the discursive practice of six Heads of English in Independent Schools in Victoria during a period of major cultural change. This change has been associated with huge public investment in New Learning Technologies and shifting perceptions and expectations of cultural agency in communities of practice such as English Departments in Schools. In this social milieu tensions exist between the societal rhetoric of school management and marketing of the efficacy of NLTs as educational realities and discursive practices at a departmental level, embodying and embedding academic values and attainments. In their conversations with the author, the Heads of English reveal much about themselves and the nature and distribution of their duties and responsibilities within the local moral order of their schools and with their individual communities of practice. A model is developed of the dual praxis of the Heads of the Heads of English, mediated by autobiography and historically available cultural resources in a community of practice. As agents concerned to both maintain and transform their local culture of English teaching, and consequently the whole school culture, the Heads of English account for themselves as responding to their own `sense of place' in their own community of practice, but also the `structure of feeling' of the period by which their achievements and standing are known. This study of the persons of the English co-ordinators draws upon both Positioning Theory and critical realism to reveal the dynamic nature of both their identity and the social organization of English teaching in schools.
-
ItemA qualitative study of developing problem solving competence in students of a food technology diploma course( 2000)This thesis is a qualitative study of developing students' problem solving competence or ability in a Technical and Further Education (TAFE) Diploma course. The problem solving ability has been identified as highly desirable by the Australian food processing industry. Its development in students has been specified in the Course Aims Statement as a requisite learning outcome of the Food Technology Diploma course. The thesis research aimed to explore the situation if the development of problem solving ability happened as envisaged by the major stakeholders of the course and how it was accomplished in the classroom. To facilitate the thesis research, ethnographic methods, including observation, interviews and document analysis were used. Activities of teaching and learning in classrooms and laboratories were observed and recorded on videotapes. Semi-structured interviews with stakeholders including Industry Representatives, Course Designers, Course Administrators, and Module Teachers were conducted. Document analysis included review of approved Accreditation Submissions for the course (accredited by the Food Industry Training Accreditation Board in the Victorian Department of Education), review of students' written work of practical reports and answers to test questions. From the interviews, two divergent views emerged that might be regarded as 'aspirant' and 'practitioner' stances. The 'aspirant' stance represented the views of industry representatives, course designers, and course administrators, whereas the practitioner stance those of the module teachers. The 'aspirant' view concurs with the industry's desire and expectation of developing Diploma students' problem solving ability in the classroom. It did not however stipulate to what standard or level this development should attain. The practitioner side on the other hand maintained that the development of problem solving ability is not their job but it belongs to other educators including teachers of degree courses in higher education. Also the practitioner side maintained that as bona fide TAFE teachers, they know what and how the course should be taught. The TAFE teachers in this particular case believed what they do is appropriate because there has not been any complaint from the industry regarding the quality of the Diploma graduates that they produced. In terms of improving students' problem solving ability, the official stance in the approved Accreditation Submission is that the Diploma course should be delivered in a manner consistent with the constructivists' problem based and situated learning approaches and presented in a holistic, integrated manner based on predetermined learning objectives. In their classroom practice, the Diploma course teachers in this particular case simply delivered what they considered necessary in a ' teaching as telling ' mode, without attending to the recommendations described in the approved Accreditation Submission or an objective-based plan, which incorporates strategies for developing students' problem solving ability. There was no apparent modeling or benchmarking by the teachers of attitudes and dispositions, attributes acknowledged to be required for superior problem solving ability, including reflection, metacognition, self-directedness in learning and construction of individual meaning from knowledge learned, as well as thinking critically or creatively. On the contrary, their delivery and assessment of learning was tuned down, encouraging students to learn in a 'surface approach'. The teachers' practice thus affected adversely the quality of students' reports of experiments. The review of students' reports of the three applied science modules, Food Chemistry, Food Technology, and Microbiology, established that students (1) did not understand the theoretical bases of the experiments, (2) did not show critical reflection or objectivity on the conduct of the experiments or the validity of the results obtained, (3) tended to exert minimal effort in the reporting, and (4) were generally unable to articulate and communicate their thoughts and knowledge. Another parcel of data supporting the conclusion of students' poor state of professional knowledge and inability to apply it came from their answers of test questions. Review of their answers showed that they did not understand the knowledge. Although the test questions of the three applied science modules did not really test them for the application of knowledge in resolving some industry-related issues that is solving industry related problems, the students' answers demonstrated that it was highly unlikely they could do so because of their lack of understanding of the fundamental concepts and theories underlying many of the current or contemporary industry problems/issues. The triangulation of the data from three sources, that is observation, interviews, and document analysis, converged to illuminate this particular situation showing (a) the teachers did not teach in a manner conducive to the development of students' problem solving ability and (b) students did not learn effectively to improve their problem solving ability. In explaining the occurrence of this situation, it has been rationalised in terms of teachers' low expectation of their students, the teachers' inadequacy to teach problem solving skills, and the failure of those in authority to properly communicate this specific course aim to all those who need to know, the students and teachers in particular. Based on this explanation, this thesis made the suggestion whereby improvement in the development of students' problem solving ability can be effected for the Diploma course in the short term by attending immediately to the teachers' practice in the classroom.
-
ItemMicroWorlds programming, mathematical problem solving and teaching for transfer : a year long classroom study( 2000)This thesis is based on research conducted to investigate the effects of computer programming on cognitive and affective outcomes in two upper primary classes. The subjects of the research comprised two classes of eleven to twelve year old students at the same school in Melbourne, Victoria. The aims of the research were to establish whether a particular type of methodological intervention, which reinforced strategies developed in a programming context, could improve the likelihood that problem-solving strategies acquired through programming would be transferred to mathematical problem-solving. In addition, the research set out to investigate whether programming affected individuals with differing personality traits in different ways. Students worked over a twelve-month period with the programming software MicroWorlds. In the first term they learned basic semantics and syntax of the programming language and thereafter completed five tasks that were research assignments from a range of key learning areas. These tasks were called Lap-T tasks and as part of the overall curriculum were completed and presented for evaluation. Pre and post-tests in maths problem solving which sought evidence of ability to obtain correct answers, identify appropriate strategies and articulate strategies used, were administered at the beginning and end of the year. In addition, students completed a questionnaire at the beginning, middle and end of the year to establish attitude change to aspects of learning with computers and learning through programming. Other data was obtained through the Rosenberg Self Esteem Test and the Eysenck Personality Inventory. Students kept journals in which they reflected on their programming experience. A series of class lessons for highlighting strategies developed in programming, called strategy training was directed towards one group only, the Strategy Training Group or STG for a total of 18 hours. The other group, the Independent Learning Group, was not assisted to make connections beyond those automatically acquired while programming. The findings of the research were an affirmation for the value of the strategy training for improving the likelihood that strategies acquired during programming would transfer to other problem-solving contexts. In addition, there was confirmation that programming is a valuable addition to an upper primary curriculum, contributing to students' perceptions of control of their own learning and providing challenge and satisfaction while developing transferable problem-solving skills. The research indicates that strategic use of programming in the primary school curriculum can be utilised in the development of improved use of mathematical problem-solving strategies.
-
ItemDialogical and collaborative learning in Vietnamese culture: an approach to teaching introductory physics courses( 2001)One of the priorities of the current wide ranging reform in higher education in Vietnam is to enhance the quality of teaching and learning in all subjects. This study describes and investigates the experience afforded by a social interactionist learning model in the author's teaching of a theoretical introductory physics course at a university in Vietnam. This model emphasises the cultural significance of dialogue and collaboration amongst students through group work. The model seeks to reconcile individual and social learning for developing students' physics cognitive and social skills. Students of four introductory physics classes of The University of Fisheries, Vietnam participated in this study. Both quantitative and qualitative techniques were used to collect and analyse the data on the cognitive and situated learning of the students. Aspects of Western and Vietnamese culture were attended to in the interpretation of the students' written responses and the researcher's observations. Findings from the study generally supported the greater attention given to the dialogical and collaborative learning environment in class, through the use of peer-based seminars and demonstrations in physics teaching in Vietnam. Physics seminars and demonstrations were employed in the student-based and highly interactive forms and they were positively accepted by students of the introductory physics classes. Student support and interest in the teaching approaches was attributed to the cultural and social resonance of "collaborative learning" and the relational identity of Vietnamese students. The dialogical and collaborative teaching approach developed in this study and the findings contribute to the teaching of introductory physics courses in Vietnamese universities and a better understanding of Vietnamese learners.
-
ItemHow prospective students choose universities: a buyer behaviour perspective( 2001)This thesis examines the decision making and information search process of students choosing university courses in Victoria Australia. The position adopted for this study is that of a buyer or consumer behaviour perspective. This is the first study of its kind undertaken in Australia. Much related research been done in the United States and elsewhere. However, the Australian higher education system has unique characteristics. Consequently, while existing student-choice models drawn from elsewhere provide a useful foundation, they are not sufficient to answer the key question: How do students choose universities in Australia? Implicit in this overarching question are several issues examined by this study: how a student makes a choice is related to what choices there are to be made, and why the student makes a choice about a particular institution. (For complete abstract open document)
-
ItemNumeracy assessment: from functional to critical practice( 2004)This study examines the validity of the measures obtained from a performance assessment of students' developing context in a numeracy context. The study was based on three premises: that teachers could make valid and reliable judgments about their students in regular classroom situations; that numeracy competence was developmental and involved higher order thinking; and that using different performance tasks could provide information about changes in students' performances over time. Numeracy was ill-defined and no developmental progression in numeracy was available on which to base assessment tasks. Common elements in descriptions of numerate behaviour and related ideas, suggested that numeracy could be conceptualised as a competence, and addressed through a generalised developmental progression. A competency perspective implied that teachers would be actively involved, and that assessment and teaching would be the same process. Performance assessment met some of these conditions, but the participation of teachers in performance assessment implemented in unstandardised conditions in regular classrooms raised validity issues. In this study, teachers used clearly specified scoring rubrics that emphasised the quality of students' performances to assist their observations of their students' behaviour when undertaking assessment tasks in numeracy contexts. The teachers' assessment took a developmental perspective that included higher order thinking, such as generalisation, justification and conjecture. Performance assessment tasks were designed using a set of design rules developed after initial trialling of pilot tasks. The different performance assessment tasks were underpinned by a generalised continuum of competence and set in diverse numeracy contexts. One cohort of 1243 Year 10 students undertook a single performance assessment task, and tests of mathematics skills, mathematical problem solving, and English ability, to provide convergent and discriminant evidence of construct validity. These students were in classes taught by 32 teachers in 14 different schools. Groups of students in Years 8 to 10 also undertook five different performance assessment tasks to provide additional validity evidence and longitudinal data. The total number of students' responses involved was 3412. All assessments were scaled using Rasch measurement techniques. Consideration of fit to the Rasch model indicated that all activities on the performance tasks, based on teachers' judgments of their students' performances, worked together in a predictable fashion to address a unidimensional underlying construct. Interpretation of this variable indicated that the demands of the activities closely matched the levels or the generalised continuum of competence. Convergent and discriminant evidence from a Multitrait Multimethod matrix, confirmed by Structural Equation Modelling approaches, indicated that there was no undue method effect from the use of teacher-judged tasks. Further findings showed that the teacher-judged performance task produced consistent information across all classes, within all schools involved. This was interpretable from a single perspective provided by the underlying generalised continuum of competence. This continuum addressed a wide range of ability levels, and included higher order thinking at the upper levels. Changes in students' performances over time could be monitored by reference to levels of development within the continuum of competence. The assessment approach, based on tasks planned specifically to link the task activities to an underlying continuum of competence through the use of carefully designed rubrics, allowed higher order thinking in numeracy contexts to be demonstrated by the students, and provided evidence of changes in students' performances over time. The findings suggested that assessment practice based on a competence approach to developmental assessment in numeracy contexts could provide valid outcome measures when implemented by teachers within regular classrooms. In addition, the process has the potential to provide teachers with information about the point at which teaching intervention could be maximally effective.
-
ItemDeepening Australian democracy: what can schools do?( 2000-11)The term, ‘civic deficit’, has been used to describe a situation in which a significant proportion of Australian citizens display low levels of knowledge and understanding of, and low levels of engagement with, Australian political and constitutional arrangements. This civic deficit has attracted increased attention by governments, policy makers, and the broad educational community within Australia in recent years. The Report of the Civics Expert Group (1994) identified school education as a major site in which to address this deficit, and the past decade has seen increased emphasis on civics and citizenship education in Australian schools. The thesis critically examines the role of civics and citizenship within Australia secondary schools. It does this, not purely from an educational perspective, but from within the broader context of the contemporary Australian political system. This thesis regards citizenship as inherently a political concept, and develops the notion of democratic citizenship as the most significant element of this. It is argued that democratic citizens are more than merely knowledgeable about their nation’s democratic traditions, government institutions and constitutional arrangements. While these elements of civics and citizenship education have a role, democratic citizens are genuine members of their political community. It is argues that they are inquisitive participants in that community.