Faculty of Education - Theses
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ItemSelfoverestimation and scholastic success( 1977)Three weeks before the end of year final assessments at school, 133 boys from forms one, three and five at a Victorian secondary school produced a self rating (SR) in six areas, general academic ability, industriousness in maths and in English, friendliness, and predicted final mark in maths and in English. Each student also rated all other members of his class in these six areas. The composite of these scores produced a group rating (GR) of each student in each of the six areas. The SR was then compared with the GR. If the SR>GR the student was defined as overestimating himself. The other two possible outcomes of this comparison were SR=GR (realistic) or SR
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ItemInfluences on the academic progress of males in a TAFE business course : a case-study approach( 1998)This study is concerned with the academic achievement of young Post-VCE male students undertaking the TAFE Associate Diploma of Business (Marketing) at Swinburne University of Technology's Hawthorn Campus. All had failed to secure a university place. The research sheds light on the influences that contribute to an apparent lack of achievement among these young men while in TAFE. Specifically, it identifies, as significant, inflated expectations of their academic ability, threatened identities as successful learners, the socio-cultural construction of masculinity in their predominantly middle-class secondary schools, and their perceptions that TAFE is best suited to tradesmen. These many influences on academic outcomes can be drawn into two interrelated themes concerning socio-cultural constructions of hegemonic masculinity within their secondary schools, and how this generates a particular view of what it is to be a successful male learner. Thus conditions are established under which these young males have a tendency to over-estimate their academic ability, leading to unrealistic course choices at the end of VCE, which then positioned them for failure. Their inability to secure a university place was, for many, a point of rupture, presenting a threat to their identity, both as a successful learner and as a successful young man. In an effort to protect their 'threatened identities' they sought out a TAFE business course at a multi-sectoral institution to disguise their student status. However, once enrolled in this course they came to realise that their preconceptions of TAFE were unfounded, the classes were not peopled with tradesmen, and the standard was more professional and 'harder' than they had anticipated. This together with the realisation that many other students were similar to themselves, allowed them to maintain their identity as successful learners and ultimately provided them with the opportunity to articulate into a degree course or secure a valued 'white collar' position.
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ItemAcademic success for speakers of Koorie English: the need for teacher intervention( 1995)This study examines teacher intervention as a means of promoting academic success for speakers of non-standard English, in particular, Koorie English. It comes as a response to an initiative of the Goulburn Valley Aboriginal Education Consultative Group in Victoria and was prompted by the fact that very few Koorie students reach senior secondary level in Victorian schools. The need for, and effectiveness of, teacher intervention if this situation is to change is illustrated in three case studies involving senior secondary Koorie students, their teachers, a local Koorie Educator and the author, a literacy consultant. The significance of the fact that Koorie English is the first language of the students is explored. Outcomes include a recommendation that students and teachers can benefit from increased metalinguistic awareness of the differences between Koorie English and Standard Australian English, in an environment where both are respected and used according to a particular audience. Unless speakers of non-standard English are given explicit teaching that shows linguistic differences between their language and Standard Australian English, they will fail to achieve academically. The study shows that with such teacher intervention, students can achieve. However, the study also shows that classroom tuition alone cannot bring about this achievement but needs to be coupled with other supporting mores. The VCE Text Response task is used to demonstrate that links can be created between the personal experiences and cultural background of Koorie students and mainstream or Standard Australian English textual content. Without these links being taught Koorie students are severely disadvantaged. Concept mapping is shown to be another useful teaching and learning strategy in bridging these cultural and linguistic gaps. The major findings and recommendations from this study are the need for schools to (i) listen to Koorie students when planning curriculum and policies; (ii) recognise Standard Australian English as a second language for Koorie students; (iii) intervene in language acquisition by explicit teaching of linguistic forms; and, (iv) develop school disciplinary policies that support rather than destroy the literacy efforts of both Koorie students and their teachers.
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ItemVision and reality: what are the experiences and perceptions of overseas students enrolled in a year 13 Foundation Studies course in business offered in a city university?( 2001)Internationalization has become one of the 'buzzwords' in Australian education. For most Australian educational institutions, internationalization meant an unprecedented influx of overseas students enrolling in their courses. This thesis will consider the mismatch of expectations between students from the Asia-Pacific region in a tertiary education institution in Australia. What is the mismatch of expectations? What is its extent? How does it come to exist? How does it manifest itself? These questions have been explored in focus group discussions with students from the Asia-Pacific region currently attending a Year 13 Foundation Studies course in a city university. The research found a mismatch between student and staff expectations due to miscommunication and cultural values.
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ItemA comparative study of the performance of former TAFE students who articulated into the RMIT accountancy degree 1994-1995( 1997)The primary objective of this thesis was to determine whether the 111 former Technical and Further Education (TAFE) students, who articulated into the Accounting Degree at the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology (RMIT) in 1994 and 1995, performed at a different academic level than students who did not articulate. The findings of this research are a useful test of government articulation policy and provide feedback to institutions so that they can adjust their student intake to provide maximum efficiency and equity. Previous research has been remarkably consistent in its results, with all studies finding little difference between the academic performance of TAFE background and non-TAFE background students. The current research, however, revealed a different picture for the course under investigation. On all the measures of academic achievement employed, except persistence, ie subject pass rate, grade point average, subject gradings, passes on the first attempt and results in individual subjects, the former TAFE students performed at a significantly lower level than the non-TAFE population. When the results were analysed for the independent variables, year of intake, gender, study mode, enrolment status and age, the pattern of unfavourable differences in performance for the ex-TAFE population was reinforced. Thus, it was concluded that there was an association between origin of students and academic achievement. The explanation posed for the difference between the findings of this thesis and the prior research related to the high proportion of articulation students present in the RMIT Accountancy course, amounting to some 30 per cent of the government funded intake, and the possibility that less able students were selected in order to meet internally imposed TAFE background quotas. At a more fundamental level the build up of articulation students was related to the operation of an 'unmet demand' model of articulation. Under this model the pressure for articulation comes from students who have been reluctantly diverted into the TAFE system upon completion of Year Twelve, but who still hold a very strong preference for a university education.