Faculty of Education - Theses
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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.
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ItemUse of computers in mathematics teaching and learning : transition from grade 6 to year 7( 2001)Over the past ten years computer resources within Victorian schools have improved. Adequate level of facilities and resources has enabled teachers and students to use computers in the teaching and learning of mathematics. However it appears that computer skills acquired during primary years are not always the basis for further and continuous development of skills in the early years of secondary schooling. Research shows that during transition from grade 6 to year 7 there is need for stability and a sense of continuity in the adolescents' education and this applies to the area of mathematics as well. To gain further insight, this research investigated the use of computers in mathematics in a group of feeder primary schools and their linked secondary school. The study initially investigates whether the computer skills introduced in primary schools were known or built upon in secondary schools. The research then makes recommendations to the network of schools involved concerning continuity in teaching and using computer skills in the teaching and learning of mathematics during the transition years. This study was qualitative and involved parents, students and teachers. Questionnaires, interviews and classroom observations were used to obtain data. Recommendations include the need for continuous communication between grade 6 and year 7 mathematics teachers to form and maintain links regarding the development of computer skills, the need to develop a common goal for all grade 6 teachers in terms of teaching computer skills to prepare students for secondary school and finally, the need to increase computer literacy of primary and secondary mathematics teachers and make hardware and software available and accessible to all.
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ItemNew tools for an old craft : introducing information and communication technologies to Victorian schools( 2001)Many teachers in Victorian schools are using information and communication technologies (ICT's) in their teaching. This study investigates the relationship between the use of ICT's and teachers' work practices. The first part of the thesis (sections one and two) outlines the prevailing stories associated with ICT's and the various perspectives on technology. Different perspectives of technology are explored to show how they influence what we believe can be achieved with the use of ICT's in the classroom. The second part of the thesis (sections three and four) uses actor network theory (ANT) to build a local network of teachers and machines. The aim is to show that the relationship between teachers and ICT's may be better conceived as a 'sociotechnical' network of people and technical objects. The work concludes by examining the political implications of a sociotechnical network on the practices of teaching and explores the available opportunities for teachers to re-fashion their craft.
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ItemWhat is a quality rubric? : curriculum design, state frameworks and local assessment of secondary science( 2009)In explicating Science the science teacher is likely to say, 'I have reached Chapter 9!' Bureaucracy has its own logic and State curriculum writers have pushed for results that looked rational: results that could codify, sort and explain to their masters. The schools and universities have responded. The rubric has recently entered the teacher lexicon as a quasi professional tool for instructional planning and student assessment in the public domain as a response to central accountability requirements in relation to mandated curricula and standards of student and teacher performance. The rubric is characteristically a grid which defines any piece of instruction, a list of anticipated educational attainments, stated as criteria, against levels or standards of attainment, stated as descriptors. The rubric has become a public statement, a quasi contract written by groups of teachers in a school that identifies what can be expected in terms of teaching behaviours and student learning, in the name of a school or the state. But how would the quality of a rubric be discussed or assessed in relation to science education? The study explores the use of rubrics to support situated cognition and social constructivist science teaching. This thesis does not investigate the question of educational 'quality' per se. It does not set out to prescribe or stipulate ideals. Nor does it recommend how teachers ought to use rubrics to measure or assess such ideals. Rather it is an ethnogenic study of the judgements made about the qualities of the rubrics designed and used by science teachers and a particular group of students in an inner urban secondary school. The students in this study are enrolled in the Select Entry Accelerated Learning program at Hill View Secondary College which seeks to engage them in higher levels of educational involvement and attainment.
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ItemHide and seek: examining the relationship between student understanding and the drama devising process through the development of three senior secondary ensemble performances in drama( 2007)This thesis examines how a student's understanding of their world can be informed through the development of an ensemble performance in drama. It is a qualitative study that presents the findings of three groups in three comparative case studies in a single site. The teacher-researcher observed a year eleven drama class preparing a group performance task at the end of Unit Two Drama in the Victorian Certificate of Education. The research explored the development of student understanding through the ensemble performance by addressing connections with personal understanding, expression through drama understanding, the refining of understanding through the drama process and interaction with other group members and the teacher's contribution. It also uncovers the tension for the teacher in evaluating student outcomes in terms of VCE criteria at the expense of learning gained through process. This study suggests that student understanding can be expanded through making personal connections to stories from everyday life, opinions and beliefs and influences from the student world. The research explains that the group can build on these personal understandings using different interactive methods and formulates a 'toolkit' to assist the individual to participate effectively in the cultural context of the drama ensemble. Developing understanding through drama-making is described in terms of the movement between play, the common aesthetic and art; and through the benefits of expressing ideas in practice and embodied understanding. The final performance product is shown to contribute to the development of student understanding in two ways: through student considerations of the audience in their performance-making; and through the ways in which performance elements were employed by the students for expression and communication. The final performance was a culmination of the knowledge and skills that each individual had offered and the decisions of the group as it expressed a group understanding through dramatic form.
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ItemEvaluating the Santa Maria College information literacy program( 2007)This is an impact study, which evaluates an Information Literacy Program that has been running in the Santa Maria College Library since February 2000. It investigates the effectiveness of the Program inputs and processes and seeks to identify impacts on learning in student outputs and College wide outcomes. The study builds on previous research that was conducted from 2000 to 2004 and seeks to develop new understandings through new methods. This study draws on literature that examines methods of collecting evidence of learning impact in school libraries. The literature recommends micro-research in secondary schools that examines students' skills before and after they have been involved in integrated information literacy instruction, as well as empirical studies about the impact of the six step research process model on learning. The literature also suggests investigation of the impact of school libraries on the broad aspects of learning, and the development and application of new methods for collecting qualitative data in the library setting. From Terms One to Term Four in 2005, mixed methods were used to capture evidence of student learning in the Santa Maria College Library. Students were observed as they carried out Program research tasks. The assignments that they produced at the end of the research process were assessed. Surveys and focus group interviews explored the perceptions of a sample of the students and teachers who participated in the Program. In exploring the data, changes in learning behaviour and attitudes to the research process were identified and analysed. The effectiveness of various aspects of the Program such as task design, explicit process instruction, cognitive strategies, note taking scaffolds and assessment practices were examined. Two theoretical frameworks synthesised from the literature were used in the research. The first framework is based on criteria for effective libraries such as staffing, funding, collection size and technological infrastructure. The second framework combines the effective approaches to learning in school libraries that are evident in the literature. Those frameworks were applied to assess the pre-conditions for learning in the Santa Maria Library. A third framework based on criteria that identify outcomes and indicators of student learning in school libraries, was used to identify evidence of student learning across the data sets. The key research questions were used to organise the discussion of the findings. The findings demonstrated that student outcomes have improved in a broad range of learning experiences. The study deepened my understanding of the distinctive features of the Program and its strengths and weaknesses. The strengths included: the use of constructivist pedagogy and inquiry learning; the collaborative planning, implementation and review processes; the infusion of the learning activities in real units of work; the learning scaffolds and instructional interventions at the point of need; and the assessment and feedback strategies. All of those inputs and processes are critical success factors in the Program. The note taking grids and the associated skill development in reading for meaning, identifying and recording key points, and combining information for final products are particularly effective aspects of the Program, which were highly regarded by the students. The weaknesses of the Program included: the gradual erosion of collaborative planning, implementation and evaluation processes; a general feeling of Program fatigue; the fact that the assessment of student outputs to track Progress is not standard practice; and the lack of a process for fading scaffolds in the Year 9 and 10 levels to shift control of the learning process from the teachers and teacher librarians to the students as they move through the Program. The study incorporates a series of recommendations for ongoing monitoring, and future Program delivery and implementation.
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ItemA case study in identifying institutional influences on why female students at a private co-educational school do not elect to study Information Technology at senior secondary level( 2000)This thesis is a study of the patterns of female enrolment in Information Technology in a co-educational private school in the Eastern suburbs of Melbourne. What makes this school so interesting is that few girls elect to take any of the Information Technology subjects in Years 11 and 12. This study set out to explore the reasons for these striking statistics in the light of the research which has already been undertaken as well as indicating areas for future research. The first chapter provides a basic introduction to the study outlining the context in which the research took place. Chapter Two sums up the theoretical writings and research findings conducted by others in the field of females not studying Information Technology. What emerges is that the literature is categorized into the seven factors and each factor is discussed in turn. Chapter Three outlines the method of evaluation of the history of the introduction of Computer Science at Wrixon Grammar. The method of evaluation was by case study. The case study which is Chapter Four reconstructs the history and development of Computer Science at Wrixon Grammar. Chapter Five analyses the case study in Chapter Four and compares it to the current literature in Chapter Two. The seven factors which became apparent in Chapter Two form the basis for the analysis. The findings suggest that rather than identifying only sociological factors in the reasons why females do not elect to study Information Technology, more research needs to be conducted on school based/institutional factors which have an impact on Information Technology enrolments. In the final chapter, the conclusions and recommendations for further research and practice are presented.
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ItemThe use of laptop computers in the year 10 mathematics classroom( 2002)Laptop computers have been used in mathematics classrooms for approximately 10 years and there has not been a comprehensive study into how laptop computers are used, teachers' attitudes towards laptop computer use, and perceived student benefits. This study focuses on: i) How laptop computers are used in the mathematics classroom, concentrating on the types of software used and the type and the activities conducted. ii) Teachers' attitudes towards the use of laptop computers in the mathematics classroom, in particular how their attitudes and experiences may effect the use of laptop computers. iii) Teachers' perceptions of student benefits in terms of understanding and performing mathematical tasks using laptop computers. This study shows that there is a wide variety of software used and a large number of activities completed in mathematics classrooms with laptop computers. Teachers favoured using spreadsheets above any other type of software and tended to use the laptop computers for computational, open-ended activities rather than conceptual tasks. Teachers had varying attitudes about how and when laptop computers should be used in the mathematics classroom. There appeared to be connections between a teacher's own use of the computer and the way the teacher used the laptop computer in the classroom. Some teachers used the laptop computer very frequently whilst others used them sparingly. The most valuable type of in-service about using computers came from the teacher's own faculty, through formal and informal discussions. Finally, not all teachers believed there were benefits for their students from using laptop computers. There was no conclusive evidence about whether teachers believed their students had an increased ability to understand mathematics due to using laptop computers, but, there was evidence of increased student motivation.
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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.
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ItemPerceptions of how year 8 boys in an ethno-centric inner suburban Australian school configure their masculine identities within their school setting( 2008)The purpose for this study is to explore how Year 8 boys in an ethno-centric community school located in suburban Melbourne are `configuring' (Connell, 2000) their ideas about masculinity and to consider the evolving processes and influences informing these gendered identity configurations. A qualitative case study approach was deemed appropriate for addressing the aim of the study and a feminist, poststructuralist perspective was used to frame the research process. Consistent with this perspective was the need to honor the boys' voices. The data collection methods included focus-group discussions over a six-week period with two groups of Year 8 boys. A questionnaire survey was conducted prior to the focus-groups to inform and shape the discussion questions. In the third focus-group, the boys were asked to bring in a personal artifact or totem with which they identified their ideals of being a man. The finding of the study revealed that masculine identity is a highly socialized construct (Davies, 1993) transmitted through male Discourses (Gee, 2004) and resonated with Martins' claim that boys negotiate their masculine configurations (1999) within themselves and between themselves in endless processes of becoming (Walkerdine, 1990). Boys were often fluid in their configurations, with their positionings changing over the focus-group discussions. The configuring of the boys' ideas about their masculinity was mediated by a strong connection to their ethnic heritage that was linked with the past rather than with the present. The boys were strongly opposed towards any signs of effeminacy which they associated with a loss of power and prestige among their peer group - any association with homosexuality being perceived as a threat to their masculinity. The artifacts chosen by the boys as representative of being a male were guarded fiercely and generally it was agreed that these were not to be touched or exposed in a casual manner. Totems such as computer-action programmes, guns and For Him Magazines (FMHs) were forwarded as a means for talking their masculinity into existence - essentialising it. Recommendations that emerged from the study include: the need for more opportunities for boys to talk more openly amongst themselves; to access the thinking and experiences about what it means to be a male in their wider community, and to embed in the curriculum opportunities for boys to challenge stereotypes and to acknowledge that gender identity matters.