Faculty of Education - Theses
Permanent URI for this collection
Search Results
1 - 10 of 10
-
ItemThe morning after : a novella based on a study of a drama performance exploring young people's views of teenage pregnancy( 2004)This thesis is in two parts. Firstly I describe my research, which centred on a Drama performance devised for the 2002 Monash Schools Drama Festival. The performance project was coordinated by myself, as the school Drama teacher, and involved twelve students from Years 9 and 10. The performance focused on the theme of teenage pregnancy and explored some of the difficulties a young girl encounters when faced with an unplanned pregnancy. The story created for the performance project then became the basis for the second part of this thesis, a novella - 'The Morning After'. As a practitioner teacher-researcher, I collected data through interviews with my students and observations of their work in drama as they created the storyline and constructed the performance for the Monash Drama Festival. Through the process of discussion and improvisation, students revealed their perceptions, life experiences, questions and concerns around the issue of teenage pregnancy. These insights were reflected in the play and then this data was analyzed, organized into themes, interpreted and transformed into the novella - The Morning After'. This study reveals a need for more effective forums for discussing sex education and teenage relationships and pregnancy with young people in schools. The Morning After' aims to preserve the story at the heart of the students' play by offering it in fictional form to other young people.
-
ItemThe admission process and initial performance of mature-age students who enter higher education via non-academic routes( 2004)This study examined a subgroup of mature-age students who had entered university via non-academic routes. The study sought to identify the group; examine the admissions processes used and the efficacy of the Special Tertiary Admissions Test (STAT) within those processes; and explore how the students performed in their first year of study. For the purposes of the study, 'non-academic background' was defined as non-completion of secondary school and/or limited study since leaving school. Data was gathered from a subgroup of applicants through VTAC, and from three case study Schools, via student questionnaires, staff and student interviews and general results data. Only small numbers of mature-age students from non-academic backgrounds enter university, consistently about 3 - 5 per cent of the first year population across Australia. This is a smaller rate than in the past. While the focus of admissions requirements is based on evidence of academic ability, there are still routes available for applicants to provide other forms of evidence. STAT remains a well-regarded instrument for providing evidence of academic potential. On the basis of the study's findings, the admission of students from non-academic backgrounds appears to be a worthwhile exercise, both for the university, which gains committed, high performing students, and for the students themselves, who are able to achieve personal success while preparing for a career change that they hope will be satisfying.
-
ItemThe School as a core social centre( 2004)This case study of the "Schools as Core Social Centres Project" explores the experience of three inner-city Catholic primary schools in implementing a whole-school approach to student wellbeing. Their journey is charted through their participation in a Catholic Education Office, Melbourne and Victorian Health Promotion Foundation funded project that focuses on the role of the schools in building social capital through the promotion of school community partnerships. The principle underpinning the project, and this research study, is that the participation of parents and the community in the life of the school will contribute to improved student wellbeing through the promotion of school community connectedness. The research study charts the schools' current practice in relation to student wellbeing and school community partnerships at the beginning of the project and the journey that the three schools undertook over the first twelve months of their participation in the project. The hopes and aspirations of the schools and the key funding stakeholders are explored, as is the role of the project officer. Developing a shared understanding of, and commitment to, the concept of a whole-school approach to student wellbeing was essential to the process of change. The case study provides a snapshot of the schools at the twelve month point of the project.
-
ItemSelf-assessment and informal learning within the professional framework of the operational Mobile Intensive Care paramedic( 2004)A paramedic's work environment is characterised by chaos, unpredictability and significant responsibility. However this challenging environment inhibits traditional methods of workplace appraisal common to more institutional work settings. Current formal strategies in place to ensure competency standards and provide ongoing vocational training occur infrequently. This has encouraged paramedics to seek alternative means of professional development. Using their own judgement, augmented by feedback from informal resources such as peers, the destination hospital and patient outcomes, paramedics have developed mechanisms to determine their strengths and weaknesses. Motivated by a sense of responsibility, accountability and peer respect, paramedics bridge the gaps left by their employer and complex work environment through self-assessment. Furthermore, paramedics actively pursue improvement by learning from their experiences and correcting perceived performance issues. This collection of proactive qualities is largely self initiated and independent of formal encouragement. The research aims were designed to explore the relationships formed between the paramedics, their work environment and formal/informal assessment within the context of day-to-day operations. The research explored the consequences of self-assessment, and what strategies the paramedics employ to develop their professional competencies. To achieve this, the research surveyed and interviewed operational Mobile Intensive Care paramedics. A similar survey was sent to the Metropolitan Ambulance Service to gauge their perceptions of workplace appraisal. The findings of this study indicate a need to develop appraisal and learning strategies to acknowledge and complement those informal strategies that have emerged from the paramedics' unique workplace. The study should assist the Clinical Department within the Metropolitan Ambulance Service to improve service delivery through incorporating informal appraisal and learning strategies into a professional development framework.
-
ItemThe impact of the group dynamic in the drama classroom( 2004)This study investigated the impact of the group dynamic in the collaborative context of the drama classroom. Involved in the study were seventeen year nine and ten students (ages 14 to 15) enrolled in an elective subject "Community Drama" at a coeducational Secondary College in Melbourne, Australia. I spent a semester as a 'student' in the class integrally involved in all classroom activities. Literature in the field of Drama in Education mentions participants working in group formation but it appears that drama educators do not overtly incorporate group development theory in their teaching practice. The study explores the benefits of incorporating group development theory in the context of Drama in Education, and invites drama educators to consider explicitly using group development theory in their work with students and participants in their classrooms and workshops. The study focuses on the patterns of group development for this class. Using ethnographic methods, I set out to describe and interpret the patterns of meaning that informed the student's actions and made up the culture of the group. Participant observation techniques, interviews, audience and completion surveys were used as part of the data collection process to expose the theme of belonging that governed the behaviour of the class.
-
ItemExperiences of home economics teachers when using an online curriculum resource, Great food! great health!( 2004)The aim of this study was to investigate the experiences of Home Economics teachers when using the online curriculum resource, Great Food! Great Health! A survey was conducted amongst those Home Economics teachers who attended the demonstration of the online curriculum resource Great Food! Great Health! as part of the Victorian Home Economics and Textiles Teachers' Association (VHETTA) professional development day entitled `Making IT Work in the Classroom'. Some of these teachers were interviewed about their experiences with using Great Food! Great Health! in their classrooms. Significant factors that influenced the use of information and communication technology in the classroom included provision of professional development, access to computers, timetabling and length of sessions and effective preparation and practice with using the online curriculum resource. In particular, professional development was considered to be influential when it allowed for pedagogical thinking and curriculum planning. Teachers used Great Food! Great Health! over a period of one to five sessions, and all indicated that their use of this online curriculum resource was very successful with the majority of participants indicating that they would use it again in their classrooms.
-
ItemKeep a bit of the country in the city: an evaluation of the Collingwood Children's Farm and its role in generating social capital( 2004)The Collingwood Children's Farm is an inner urban community-owned farm, approximately five kilometres from the City of Melbourne's Commercial Business District (CBD). The Farm offers a number of programs, to the local community and more broadly. The purpose of this study was to evaluate programs offered by the Farm and to determine whether the inclusion of an assessment of the key elements of social capital (norms of trust, norms of reciprocity and networks) would increase the relevance and usefulness of findings from the evaluation of social, community-based programs. Using a qualitative methods approach, four programs at the Farm - The Volunteer Program, the Young Farmers' Program, the Work Experience Program and the Community Gardeners' Program - were evaluated based on the perceptions of participants. Aspects of Appreciative Inquiry and Most Significant Change monitoring and evaluation approaches were also included in the study. Stratified purposeful and emergent sampling strategies were employed to select participants. Data were collected using semi-structured and individual interviews and analysed for common themes. Particular attention was paid to social capital which was targeted via specific interview questions. The evaluation revealed that the Farm is a successful, viable, community organisation with relevant, well-managed programs. It also has a positive impact on the lives of program participants, increasing their sense of confidence and self-worth. Most importantly the study affirmed the role of the Farm in building neighbourhood connections and community resilience. The study indicated that including specific questions on social capital in the interview guide did generate valuable information about networks, trust and reciprocity that otherwise would not have been made explicit; and that these questions are therefore worth including in any future evaluations of social development programs.
-
ItemResearching teacher agency in primary school science: a discursive psychological approach( 2004)This ontological study is concerned with analyses of the problem of the scientific reform of the primary school curriculum. It was conducted at a time when a solution was sought through State mandated curriculum and standards specification and primary teacher accountability. The case study developed as an interactive ethnography (Woods 1996) written from the point of view of the facilitator of a whole school science curriculum project. The focus of the enquiry emerged as an exploration of social episodes in the life of two experienced Early Years teachers engaged in the yearlong project. Discursive psychology became the theoretical framework for the analysis of the primary teachers' professional identity formation in their professional work=place conversations with the author. Pronominal coding has been used to mark the teachers' psychological location in their storylines of the implementation of enquiry-based science education in their classes. In the teachers' accounts they simultaneously position themselves in their acts and actions and in the local moral order of duties and responsibilities. A significant disparity is shown to exist between the ontologies of the primary teachers' and research accounts, which present mental state analyses of teachers' lack of confidence or reluctance to teach science related to limited scientific understanding. The. study offers a schematic model of social action that theorizes human agency as, developing and functioning within the interactional nexus of local community settings. The community operates in the lives of these teachers not as a latent, abstract concept; instead it gives ideological differences and teachers' understandings of themselves significance in everyday educational practices.
-
ItemThe influence of students' personal characteristics on use of asynchronous online discussion boards( 2004)Universities and other higher education institutions have increased their use of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) in the delivery of higher education. Higher education institutions are moving toward ICT-supported learning, provided by tools such as such as Asynchronous Online Discussion Boards (AODB), to meet the needs of students. This study investigates the influence of various personal characteristics on adult learners' use of AODB, within an on-campus course. Participants were twenty-two experienced teachers enrolled in a postgraduate on-campus course. They ranged in age from twenty-eight to sixty-one years and comprised classroom teachers, literacy coordinators, reading recovery tutors and principals from a mix of Melbourne metropolitan primary schools. Use of AODB was identified through transcripts of the content of online discussion contributions. These were analysed to identify the number, length, content and complexity of student online contributions. The content of each contribution was measured by calculating the number of key concepts in each contribution. The cognitive complexity of each key concept was described in term of Bloom's Taxonomy of Educational Objectives. Personal characteristics of students were collected using questionnaires and assessment tasks. Pre- and post-course assessment tasks were designed to identify the initial and final course content knowledge of the students. The results of the study support the claim that use of AODB is facilitated by a number of personal characteristics: student self-efficacy related to use of the Internet; prior experience with ICT for recreational activities; and students' learning style preference. The results have implications for researchers and practitioners. Findings suggest that while universities use ICT to support their on-campus courses, personal characteristics of students are influencing the choices and outcomes of participation in online activities, such as AODB tasks.
-
ItemAsk a parent: investigating the need for a parent 'ask an expert' service in schools( 2004)'Ask an Expert' (AskA) services are question-answer based Internet services where questions can be asked of individuals with specialist knowledge. There appear to be no examples of AskA services localised to a school community and provided by parent volunteers (here termed ‘AskA-Parent’). This research utilised a needs assessment methodology to explore the potential for constructing such a service at an independent Australian school. Data sources included school documents, government statistics and individual interviews with purposeful sampling of teachers, parents and student prefects; four in each group. Based upon the interview responses, a survey was completed by teachers (n=62), students (n=44) and the students' parent/guardians (n=74). Four main themes emerged from the data in the context of the literature. They were related to the usage of information and communications technologies (ICT); pedagogy; learning communities; and general ICT issues. The findings indicated that a particular strength of the AskA-Parent program was an ability to further develop schools as learning organisations and to facilitate links between members of the school community. A cautionary finding was related to the importance of clear guidelines in order to lessen obstacles to the success of the program. The findings of this study suggest that there would be benefit in trialling an AskA-Parent program.