Faculty of Education - Theses
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ItemCatholic higher education in Victoria : a survey based upon the careers of matriculation students, 1950 to 1955( 1966)The survey was based upon a complete census of the students from Victorian Catholic schools who presented for Matriculation between 1950 and 1958, and followed their careers until the end of 1964. The-first part compared the results of the Catholic and of the other schools in Victoria taken together. At Matriculation level, the students from the Catholic schools performed at least as satisfactorily as the students from the other schools. This was,due, however, to the boys rather than the girls, whose results were less satisfactory, than those of the other girls. At university level, the Catholic results in the first year examinations, as far as the limited data permit one to judge, appeared to be below the level of the other students; but when all years were taken into account; there was no significant difference in overall performance of the Catholic and other students. The second part of the survey studied the factors that determined the success or failure of the Catholic schools, and comparisons were made solely between Catholic schools. There was no significant difference between the results of Catholic boy and girl students in their best three subjects in a single presentation for Matriculation, nor between their pass-rates in the first or first three years in the university. The unmatched teaching institutes showed significant differences within each sex division in the Matriculation, but practically none in the first year and in the first three years in the university. The significant differences even at Matriculation, however, tended to disappear, when the institutes were matched on other circumstances influencing achievement. Finally, individual schools showed significant differences in Matriculation results within each sex division, but these tended to disappear in the first and first three years' university results. Significant differences between the results of those presenting for the first time and those for the second time, in favour of the latter, were frequently observed at Matriculation level but scarcely at all in the university. Among the other circumstances influencing achievement, at Matriculation level, socio-economic status was significant for boys' schools, in favour of the higher levels, but not for girls' schools. Size of Matriculation class was significant for boys' schools, in favour of larger classes (20 or more, compared with 10 to 19), but not for the corresponding larger classes in girls' schools (10 or more, compared with 1 to 9). Locality (metropolitan, urban, rural) was not significant for boys' schools, but it was for the girls', in favour of the metropolitan compared with the urban schools. Practically no significance was found in accommodation (boarding compared with day schools, or in educational classification (A and B class schools). At university level, the only circumstance that proved significant was size of class, in favour of schools with larger Matriculation classes among the boys (20 or more, compared with 10 to 19), and with smaller classes among the girls (1 to 9, compared with 10 to 19). On the whole, over the triennia, the standard of results for both male and female schools appeared to be improving significantly.
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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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ItemImproved student learning and leadership in self-managed schools( 1998)This thesis examines improved student learning and leadership in schools under conditions of decentralisation, in a study designated the Learning Outcomes Project. In 1993, in the State of Victoria, Australia, a set of initiatives called Schools of the Future was introduced into government schools. The operation of the school system was changed from a relatively centralised system to one where much of the decision making about operations was decentralised to the school site. The impact on teachers, principals and schools has been considerable. Changes have occurred to teachers' working conditions and the accountability functions of schools through School Charters, Annual Reports and the introduction of Curriculum and Standards Frameworks (CSF) in eight Key Learning Areas (KLA). The Cooperative Research Project, a joint venture of the Victorian Secondary Principals' Association, the Victorian Primary Principals' Association, the Victorian Department of Education and The University of Melbourne, conducted a series of investigations into the processes and outcomes of Schools of the Future, including this study. The Learning Outcomes Project sought to investigate links from the reforms associated with decentralisation in school systems to improved student learning. This is a critical and vital area for research where little concrete evidence is available to support the benefits of decentralisation in relation to improved student learning. Previous studies have found the benefits of decentralisation to be mainly operational and managerial. A qualitative methodology was adopted to seek evidence of improved student learning in schools and explore leadership function under the conditions of decentralisation. Four schools that claimed improved student learning agreed to be part of the study. A conceptual framework was developed that allowed actions at school level be traced through the reforms to improved student learning. The leadership dimensions and strategies suited to schools under conditions of decentralisation were studied with the aid of a conceptual model, using a new model of educational leadership. Causal links from the reforms of decentralisation to improved student learning were mapped. This study reinforces the difficulties of making causal links. The findings indicate that improved student learning under conditions of decentralisation is evident in certain circumstances where clearly defined pathways are established from the reforms to improved student learning. It was shown that direct pathways to student learning were consistently and directly evident from Curriculum- CSF Implementation and Professional Development in all schools and were developing from Monitoring, Assessment and Reporting. The causal maps defined pathways which could be used by schools to monitor improved student learning in Schools of the Future. Leadership suited to decentralised systems was shown to require strong and balanced leadership across the six dimensional model used in this study. It was further shown that leadership dimensions that were not strong in the principal needed to be evident in other leaders for effective curriculum implementation to occur. Useful trends which may be relevant to other schools were found in this study. However, due to the favourable conditions in which this study was conducted across a small number of schools, further research is necessary to validate these findings and caution may be needed if using the findings in other settings.
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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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ItemThe effects of ability grouping on the achievement and self-esteem of year 7, rural students( 1997)This study investigated the achievement and self-esteem effects of ability grouping of a cohort of Year 7 students in a small country secondary school. Intelligence was used as a control variable to determine whether ability grouping enhanced the academic performance of students. Results indicated that no inequitable spread of achievement benefit between high aptitude and mid-low aptitude groups occurred during the project. After eight months the differences between the groups on academic, general, home and social self-esteem subscales remained the same as at the beginning, although there was some non-significant evidence of a decrease in academic self-esteem in the mid-low aptitude groups. The academic self-esteem decrease was reflected in the general self-esteem of one of the mid-low aptitude groups but not in the other. The results were rather ambiguous with regard to academic self-esteem, with considerable variation occurring across the groups across different times.
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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.
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ItemSucceeding academically at a working-class school: some case studies( 1990)In this pilot study, I chose to interview only academically successful students because I wanted to identify as many as possible of the factors that might be unique to this group. In a larger study it would be necessary to interview the unsuccessful as well to establish whether the characteristics identified were in fact unique to the successful students. (From chapter 1)