Faculty of Education - Theses
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ItemTeaching genres in the primary school : what teachers know and do( 2000)In recent times in Australia much has been written and debated about what literacy is, what schools should teach in regards to literacy and how teachers should teach it. Teachers vary in their approaches to teaching literacy in the primary school, depending on many factors. One important factor is the quality of teacher knowledge of language and the associated capacity to use it to guide student literacy learning. This study focuses on teacher knowledge of genres and its relevance to the teaching of literacy in a Victorian Catholic primary school classroom with students from diverse language backgrounds. The concept of genres is clearly embedded in current curriculum documents, namely. the Curriculum and Standards Framework Il- English (Board of Studies, 2000). The explicitly stated outcomes consistently refer to students being able to use, analyse and control different genres and their related' structures and features. This implies that teachers need to have knowledge of genres as well as a range of strategies for teaching genres. In order to explore what knowledge teachers have about language and genres and how teachers teach this knowledge, this research involves a qualitative case study of an individual teacher in a Catholic primary school. The findings. suggest that the kinds of knowledge the teacher has about language and how to teach literacy is related to the practices adopted in the classroom and to the outcomes of student learning.
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ItemReading and reconstructing the world: investigating children's frames of Asia-Australia relations through transformative discourse( 1994)The challenge for members of contemporary societies is to become increasingly global in their outlook at the same time as the world becomes increasingly difficult to 'read'. Texts construct views of 'reality' and the complexity of contemporary life is reflected in the range and number of texts which influence 'ways of seeing how things are'. For people to make sense of their lives on both a personal and global scale, the ability to critically read a wide range of texts is essential. This critical literacy enables them to construct and reconstruct meaning .It assists in developing a more inclusive world view and living with the multiple realities which mirror the interdependent nature of modern day life. As a means of discovering more about self and others, the development of a critical literacy must begin with the acknowledgement of texts that are carried around inside the person or internalised as 'truths'; thoughts, feelings, beliefs, opinions and so on which are manifested in the ways in which a person participates in both a personal and global domain. In other words, these internalised texts have a powerful influence on the ways in which world views are constructed and played out. An examination of these internalised texts is fundamental to the development of a critical literacy and ultimately the development of a Discourse (Gee 1990, 1992, 1993) which allows for the transformation of new ways of talking about new ways of thinking, feeling into new ways of acting. It is thus central to the development of an active global citizen. A transformative Discourse (borrowing from Freire 1972, 1973, 1985, 1987(a), 1987(b) and Gee 1990, 1992, 1993) validates the voice of the individual and it is essential that a teacher scaffolds learners as they construct and reconstruct meaning. Essentially, the teacher needs to model a Discourse of critique and an attitude towards critique so that over time critical Discourse becomes a fundamental part of learning and indeed life. One means of looking inward to interrogate internalised 'truths' and develop new ways of talking, thinking, feeling and acting is for the teacher to engage learners with significant content and a methodology which values multiple realities. A focus on the study of Asia, and in this case a study of Asia-Australia relations, counter balances a prevailing Eurocentric view of 'how things are' and enables learners to reconstruct images of self and other. Bringing the world into the classroom through systematic inquiry allows it to be tilted on its axis and examined from a range of vantage points.
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ItemAn investigation into one experienced mainstream classroom teacher's implementation of the early years literacy program( 2004)Within the last decade in Australia, there has been an increased commitment to improving literacy standards with subsequent focus towards enhancing literacy education in the early years of schooling. This has led to the development of classroom-based literacy programs designed to meet the needs of all learners, including ESL learners. The Early Years Literacy Program (EYLP), a Victorian literacy initiative, was developed and is currently used by early years educators in all Victorian Government Primary Schools as a resource to plan for a strategic and comprehensive approach to early literacy achievement in the first five years of schooling (DET 2002). The study reported in this thesis investigates how one experienced mainstream classroom teacher, who does not have ESL training or receive ESL support, caters for the needs of a group of ESL learners within the Early Years writing program. An aim of this study is to build on the existing limited body of scholarship and identify areas of future research concerning the ways in which the writing component of the EYLP can be implemented to cater for the learning needs of primary ESL learners. As such, this research investigation is significant as it specifically examines the implementation of the writing component of the EYLP and explores the needs of Year One and Two primary ESL learners who entered school with limited English. This is in contrast to recent research that has focussed attention primarily on the reading component of the EYLP and young ESL learners in the early years of schooling. This investigation adopts a case study approach that allows for an in-depth exploration of one mainstream classroom teacher's implementation of the writing component of the EYLP and the detailed investigation of the needs of a group of ESL learners. As part of this study, the mainstream classroom teacher's teaching practice was observed during ten one-hour writing sessions. Other sources of data included a semi- structured interview, stimulated recall notes and samples of ESL students' written texts produced over a ten week data collection period. The findings of the study suggest that while the teacher was able to identify her ESL students areas of weakness in relation to writing, and whilst she recognised some of her students' needs, she often struggled to cater fully and effectively for her ESL students' learning requirements within the daily one hour writing program of the EYLP.
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ItemDevelopmental trends in orthographic processing: how this is influenced by reader and word structure properties( 1998)This thesis examines developmental trends in the orthographic processing of words. Research indicates that the ability to recognise words quickly and effortlessly is critical to reading achievement in the early years of schooling. Some researchers claim that failure to acquire rapid, context-free word recognition appears to be the most reliable indicator of reading disability. This study investigates two aspects of orthographic processing of one syllable words. Firstly, the frequency of the orthographic processing, and secondly, variables which may influence orthographic processing such as reader and word structure properties. The implications of the findings and the role of the teacher in providing suitable programs are discussed. Suggestions for strategies and activities which support and develop orthographic knowledge are presented.