Faculty of Education - Theses
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ItemParent professional partnerships in IEP development : a case study of a MAPS process( 2007)The practices, language and behaviours which professionals adopt when they meet with parents prior to Individual Education Program (IEP) planning may have a significant effect on the attitudes and capabilities families bring to the educational setting. During this case study the adult family members of a child with additional needs were observed as they addressed the developmental and programming needs of their child by participating in the McGill Action Planning System (MAPS) and a subsequent Program Support Group (PSG) meeting. Themes indicating attitudes or perceptions that empowered the family towards continued participation in collaborative teams for IEP development emerged in the observational data and were defined through the methods of informant diaries and semi-structured interviews. Less dominant quantitative methods were used to verify that the participant's ongoing attitudes towards parent professional collaboration corroborated with the final themes of flexibility, unification, satisfaction and function.
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ItemUnderstanding the perceptions of primary school and early childhood teachers about the inclusion of children with special needs in regular classrooms( 2003)Today, many regular schools in the State of Victoria provide inclusive education programs. Educating children with and without disabilities is linked with upholding the rights of all children regardless of their class, culture, gender or developmental abilities. This study was aimed at exploring perceptions of early childhood and primary school teachers about the inclusion of children with special needs from six independent schools located in metropolitan Victoria. Data were analysed and compared to identify if there were differences in teachers' attitudes in relation to beliefs and values, feasibility of implementing inclusive programs in regular classrooms and their confidence to carry out inclusive practices. Findings indicated that all participants in the study were very positive about the philosophy of including children with disabilities in regular classrooms. Several factors were identified as major contributors to the positive perceptions of teachers. Data also revealed that teachers had many concerns regarding the implementation of inclusion in their regular classrooms. The findings of this study had implications for best practice to improve the implementation of inclusive programs in regular classrooms.
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ItemAn inquiry into the success of the integration process in Victorian Post Primary schools( 2016-01-20)This study sets out to examine how teachers with integration responsibility within Post Primary schools and the student participants in integration perceive the levels and forms of success of the programs. After reviewing the relevant literature it became clear to the writer that the major barriers to success of integration are organizational and structural in nature and that the perceived level of success of programs appears to be linked to the ways particular schools are structured and administered. A survey of a sample of integration teachers and a sample of their students was conducted to examine whether there was a difference between the success of integration programs in schools that were collaboratively organized compared to those organized in a traditional way. Most Victorian Post Primary schools are basically conservative and traditional, but under pressure from many sources there is a shift towards being more flexible, open and collaborative. Integration teachers in all schools were expected by the Ministry of Education to act as agents of change but in general teachers appear to have assumed the role ascribed the remedial teacher. The findings of this study indicate that curriculum changes are taking place at a much faster rate in collaborative schools which place a value on student-centred learning. The administration of these schools was found to be active in initiating integration policy and programs, whilst in traditional schools it was the parents who were the significant initiators of integration. The collaborative schools also tended to provide more successful individual programs for their integrated students and obtained a higher allocation of physical and professional resources although both types of schools indicated a high failure rate in the area of needed resources. Overall there is evidence of a shift towards flexibility and co-operation in secondary schools but this is happening within a context of inadequate policy formulation, poor organization and sensitive resource provision, so it is not clear cut. The study indicates a need for policy orientated research regarding the provision of resources and investigation into professional development programs for teachers involved in meeting the needs of integrated students.
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ItemIntroducing a computer corner in an early intervention setting for young children with speech-language concerns( 2000)This study investigates a process for introducing a computer corner, as an innovation, in an Early Intervention Centre catering for children with speech-language concerns. Parents attend the Centre with their children and play a major part in the teaching/learning process. This study documented the process of introducing the computer corner as one of the learning areas available to the children, and the parents were invited to participate in the research. As the process evolved through the stages of planning, initiation, implementation and reflection, parents were involved in ongoing recording of their observations of the children. It was facilitated for the parents to express their feelings and positions regarding the innovation through formal and informal discussions. The parents were asked to complete a set of questionnaires early in the initiation phase of the process and these were repeated towards the end of the implementation stage in order to note changes in the parents' perspectives and use of the innovation. Seventeen parent participants completed the questionnaires and the implementation process. The Concerns-Based Adoption Model (CBAM), (Hall, Wallace and Dossett, 1973) was used to assess progress that participants made as they implemented the innovation. The process investigated was found to be successful as a model for introducing an innovation. All participants showed changes in their acceptance of the computer corner, and in the way that they progressed through stages of concern about and their levels of use of the computer. The computer corner was very popular with the children. Over fifty percent of the parents and children together accessed the computer with a medium to high frequency. Computer literacy levels were well enhanced as both parents and children contributed to the process.
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ItemProfessional support for secondary classroom teachers who are engaged in integrating students with disabilities( 1994)Victorian Secondary Colleges are adopting Ministerial policies that are directed towards school-based, collaborative decision making; devolution of authority and accountability; and responsibility to the school system and local school community to provide a worthwhile curriculum with well chosen learning experiences for all students. This study sets out to examine how teachers at a north-western metropolitan secondary college perceive the levels and forms of integration, and investigate if membership of a particular faculty impacts on the development of attitudes and perceptions about integration. After reviewing the relevant literature it became clear that the challenges brought about by the integration of disabled students had forced many schools to examine their organisation and structure and for teachers to confront their own fundamental values and attitudes to educational change. Integration success hinges on the attitudes and perceptions of the participants. As a major player in the process, the role of the teachers is pivotal to the success of integration. The literature also indicates that essential support services are required and need to be provided to assist teachers to adopt effective school curricula that meets the special needs and particular learning styles of all students. It was a deliberate decision not to include teachers with specific integration responsibility in this study, but to survey a sample of regular classroom teachers from two faculty areas - maths/science, and English/humanities - involved in the day to day teaching of students with disabilities. All teachers surveyed were teaching classes that contained integrated students. The survey was conducted to examine whether there was a difference between the two faculties in relation to attitudes, commitment, and practice; and teacher perception of professional needs in relation to integration the survey also sought to elicit if membership of a particular faculty impacted on the development of these attitudes and perceptions. Consultants from the School Support Centre associated to the school were also surveyed to examine if their perceptions of the success of the school differed from those of the school-based participants. The findings of the study indicate that faculty membership did impact on the development of teacher attitudes and perceptions about integration success, and perceptions about professional needs. Overwhelmingly the teachers in the study indicated positive attitudes to integration and the integration program offered at the school, but perceptions about what constituted successful integration, and the nature of the professional support required varied along faculty lines. The study also indicated that teachers are concerned about the demands that integration places on their time, the paucity and inadequacy of support and resourcing for integration, the inadequacy of support offered by both the system and their school, and the inadequacy of initial teacher training and professional development. Teachers indicated that they perceive support from within the school as more relevant, and what they most required in preference to support provided by specialist consultants. The nature of support that the teachers indicated they required from school based personnel indicated a lack of confidence in their own teaching skills to provide for integrated students, and a lack of confidence and knowledge about the support offered by consultants. The study indicated a need for more relevant and useful initial teacher training, inservice and professional development; a more equitable and consistent system of resourcing, the need for secondary colleges to address the problems that internal faculty barriers create, and the need to develop a more generalist view of education.
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ItemRegular primary teachers' perceptions of their involvement in the program support group process( 2000)The placement of students with disabilities into regular schools has occurred with the support of both government and education department administrative initiatives. The Victorian Education Department cemented its commitment to educating students with disabilities in 1995 by producing Program Support Group Guidelines for Students with Disabilities and Impairments to be followed by all teachers, professionals and parents involved in educating students with disabilities. Regular education teachers have been expected to be willing and prepared to work with students with disabilities. The changing school population resulted in their roles and responsibilities being dramatically altered. As members of the Program Support Group (PSG) group, they are required to take part in group decision making, implement recommendations made at the meetings and work closely with other professionals and parents. The dynamic status of this evolving partnership with parents and professionals has created a constant need for teachers to develop skills in group decision making, time management, clarity of roles, goal oriented planning and program development. Education departments must become aware of these needs and respond to them accordingly. The purpose of this study was to examine regular primary teachers' in the Western Metropolitan Region perceptions of their involvement in the PSG process. A mail survey was used to measure teachers' participation in and satisfaction with their role in the PSG process. Training and experience variables were examined to determine the relationship with participation and satisfaction. The factors identified and examined were: clarity of roles, clarity of goals, allotted time and in-service training. The final section of the questionnaire invited comments and recommendations from participants which might assist them with participating further in the process and in becoming more satisfied with the process. The data obtained was analysed using multiple regression analysis. Several findings emerged from the study. The results of the analysis were in keeping with the related literature examined. Firstly, many of the survey respondents had zero hours in-service training pertaining to group/team decision making and planning and implementation of the PSG process. Many of the written comments stressed the need for more in-service training. Secondly, multiple regression analysis established that as more time is allotted for decision making, teachers become more involved and satisfied with the PSG process. The importance of time in implementing the PSG process was also very clearly expressed in the written comments. Thirdly, the analysis revealed that when PSG goals are clearly explained satisfaction with the PSG process increases. Lastly, both the statistical data and the qualitative data indicate that support services are a necessary component in the successful execution of the PSG process.