Faculty of Education - Theses
Permanent URI for this collection
Search Results
1 - 2 of 2
-
ItemTaking social capital into account when implementing educational policy : implications of the Kirby report for social capital in Ironbark( 2002)There is a growing body of research around the concept of social capital that suggests that there are connections evident in relation to successful educational achievement and employment, and high rates of social capital. Social connectedness - one of the outcomes of having social capital - is held to be very important for young people of post-compulsory school age, particularly in the current economic climate. This exploratory study will examine the problem: What can social capital mean in post-compulsory education policy, and in the manifestation of that policy?' This study examines The Ministerial Review of Post Compulsory Education and Training Pathways in Victoria, commonly referred to as The Kirby Report. Kirby takes the view that the links are strong between community and social values, the economic future of the state, and educational outcomes for young people. Within this report and its recommendations, the concept of social capital and its contribution to building community values is deemed to be one of the broad requirements of the community in relation to young people and their experiences in education and training. The concept of social capital and the effects of the growth or reduction of social capital within rural communities is also examined, and it is the links between social capital, the implementation of the recommendations of a report such as Kirby, and the ramifications of these links for a rural town in North-East Victoria of 2,500 residents, that provide the framework for this study.
-
ItemEquity funding: how is it used?( 2006)Using a case study approach this research investigates some of the different aspects of disadvantage within the school system. It looks at the ways in which equity funding is used in a variety of schools. The purpose of this research was to ascertain the stages, or processes, that schools go through before the equity dollar is spent. It investigates the decision making process, and the kinds of information or projections taken into account. It also looks at the issue of what it is that schools define as issues of equity, and the programs that they put in place to deal with those issues. This thesis focuses on the equity component of the Victorian Education Department's Student Resource Package. Beginning with an explanation of the current funding model used in Victoria, it goes on to explore the implications of this funding model on students in six metropolitan government schools. These schools differ in terms of the amount of equity funding they receive, their student intake and the strategies that they use to try to make education more equitable. Each school is examined through three key areas. The first key area is the decision making process within the school. This is found, across all six schools, to be robust and systematic. The second area is the programs that the school believes address equity issues. There was found to be a great variance in the type of programs run in schools, and the amount of programs run within schools. Essentially the schools that are eligible for the most equity funding are running the highest concentration of equity programs. The third key area for this thesis was that of staffing in schools, with the neediest schools pointing out difficulties in building talented staff teams. The key finding of this thesis is that more equity money needs to be made available to the most disadvantaged schools.