Melbourne Graduate School of Education - Theses

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    An analysis of how an innovation is disseminated by using the origins of the vertical curriculum concept in Victorian State Secondary Schools
    Newton, Andrew J ( 1985)
    The purpose of this investigation was twofold. One aim was to discover the origins of the vertical curriculum structure that has made a considerable impact on state secondary schools in the last decade. The other aim was to establish how the idea spread throughout the system and why schools made this major change away from the horizontal curriculum. Three research methods were used in this study. Firstly, Education Department Secondary School Handbooks were studied to identify the vertically structured schools in 1975 and 1982. Secondly, a telephone survey was undertaken in order to find more information about each of the forty-four vertical models discovered in the 1983 Handbook. This survey also enabled the original innovative schools to be identified, key individuals to be established and communication links between schools to be drawn up. Finally, the key carriers of the concept were interviewed to gain in depth information on the innovation. The outcome from the data collected should assist in the understanding of how a major curriculum change can disseminate throughout the schools in an education system. These implications should apply to educational systems outside of both Victoria and Australia.
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    An evaluation of an orientation to higher education studies program
    Webb, Janis K ( 1996)
    This study is an evaluation of the effectiveness of an Orientation to Higher Education Studies program presented at the Footscray campus of Victoria University of Technology (VUT) in February 1994, to new and continuing students who perceived themselves to be underprepared for university studies in general, and for meeting the standards required for written assignments in higher education in particular. The investigation was undertaken to gain insight into the strengths and weaknesses of the program's present curriculum, delivery techniques and organisational details, but, more importantly, it sought to better understand the potential short term and medium term effects for students of participation in the program. Deeper understandings of these issues will allow the presenters to make informed decisions regarding the development and delivery of future orientation programs for non-traditional students who enter higher education studies. It is also anticipated that this work will contribute to the current interest in the experiences of students in the first year of undergraduate degrees. A variety of methods was used to collect data for the study, including surveys, a questionnaire and interviews. The informants included the participants in the program, five case study students, lecturing staff and an independent assessor. Whilst data gathered through the questionnaire were useful in providing background information, it was investigation into the five case study students' experiences that gave deeper insight into the short and medium term effects on students' attitudes and actions with respect to the preparation of their first written assignment. The evaluation revealed that students from diverse non-traditional backgrounds can gain much from participating in such a program, particularly if it is complemented by the provision of on-going support . As well as identifying the benefits which occurred for the case study students, some limitations of the program were also revealed.
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    Australian studies and the Geelong College
    Peel, Geoffrey W ( 1988)
    The Geelong College pioneered the teaching of Australian Studies as part of the secondary school curriculum. The notion of teaching about Australia through an inter-disciplinary course was seen as revolutionary in its early days of the mid-1970s. Since that time, however, the teaching of Australian Studies has become increasingly widespread in schools, and also in some tertiary institutions. Over the same period, the Australian Studies course at The Geelong College has undergone review and change according to staff interests, student reaction and the contemporary situation. In the early 1980s, the face of Victorian Education was to change through the effects of the "Blackburn Report", an enquiry into post-compulsory schooling, of which a major recommendation was that all students should undertake a study of Australian society at Levels 11 and 12. The Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Board has used this recommendation as the basis for introducing a compulsory two-unit course titled "Work and Australian Society" as part of the new Victorian Certificate of Education, which will be fully operational by 1991. The Geelong College, like all other secondary schools in the state, is having to prepare for the introduction of Australian Studies in this form. Although this school has had the advantage of experience with an established Australian Studies course, the present course does not fully satisfy the requirements of the VCAB guidelines; therefore some degree of modification and rewriting is necessary. This thesis will attempt to design, implement and evaluate some units of work for Year 11 Australian Studies students at The Geelong College, units which satisfy both the VCAB requirements and the needs of the student clientele of this particular school. In order to undertake such a project, this thesis initially examines the development in the study of Australian society and culture. It then attempts to identify a methodology which could be used as a model for the planning of curriculum modfications for this course. The nature of the particular institution in question will be examined as a preparatory step to the development of a curriculum. The thesis concludes with a review of the process undertaken and discusses its applicability as a general methodology.
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    Literature and English teaching : a study of literature in the teaching of English at Scotch College, Melbourne
    Watkinson, Alan Redmayne ( 1991)
    The first chapter of this thesis provides a personal memoir of my teaching career, and places it in the wider historical context of developments within English teaching in England and Australia. It establishes my own position at the key points of these developments in 1966, 1975, 1980 and 1985 and introduces the main area of interest - the place of literature in the teaching of English. The second chapter concerns the vast amount of writing on the nature and teaching of literature in English. It provides an historical review of the main body of this writing and derives some of its focus from the seminal work of John Dixon in 1966, as well as the Bullock Report of 1975. The vigorous yet sometimes slightly artificial debate on the issue of literature teaching is also examined in the review of the important journal, The Use of English. Chapter Three develops the ideas propounded in some of the writings examined in the previous chapter and provides an analysis of my own experience at Melbourne Grammar School. Chapter Four shows the similarities and differences existing between Scotch College and Melbourne Grammar School and details a more critical view of the state of English teaching from 1980 - 1990 at Scotch College. It reviews some of the specific examples of literature teaching and shows the slow progress which has been experienced over a decade within the College. The final chapter brings together the case of Scotch College and reviews possible future progress in the light of perceived difficulties inherent in the structure of the College. The general outlook for English at the College is seen in positive terms and suggestions are provided for further research into both the reading habits of students and the processes involved in the teaching of literature within the current restraints.
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    Concepts of balance and relevance in educational discourse on curriculum
    Troynar, George Markian ( 1983)
    It is contended that children can best be prepared to meet the challenges posed by rapid social change when the curriculum services a general education and avoids narrow specialization or narrow vocational training. Such an approach to curriculum is said to be characterized by its 'balance' and 'relevance'. However, it would appear that 'balance' and 'relevance' have come to symbolize ideals to which all curricula aspire, even though various value orientations have selected priorities which posit differing, even conflicting, practice. Hence educational discourse to establish what ought to be taught must evaluate the practical importance of that which is said to constitute 'balance' and 'relevance' in the context of the value orientations adopted. General education proposals attempt to frame their selections of priorities such that 'balance' entails meeting the diverse needs of all students. This 'holistic' approach is therefore required to accommodate the various conflicting orientations to 'relevance'. Hence any general curriculum proposal finds it necessary to make a case that these conflicts can be reconciled, that a consensus can be established and that curriculum design and implementation can be achieved in practice. This quest for 'balance' and 'relevance' is analyzed with particular reference to the Australian proposals "Core Curriculum for Australian Schools", made by the Curriculum Development Centre, and "Schooling for 15 and 16 Year-Olds", made by the Schools Commission. Both proposals postulate that the curriculum ought to be based on the common culture whose nature is to emerge as a consensus following analysis of contemporary society. Advances in science and technology are said to be the major contributors to rapid social change. Therefore, what constitutes, in the context of a general education, an adequate understanding of science and technology for life in society is also analyzed. Such an approach to science education is often characterized as the development of a broadly based 'scientific literacy'. The analyses reveal that it would appear to be unrealistic to expect that Australia as a nation, espousing pluralist values and belief systems, some of which have deeply entrenched vested interests in selections of what constitutes educational virtue, will adopt the concept of general education with the CDC's 'core curriculum' as its central expression.
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    Some conceptual problems in curriculum integration
    Parrott, Mary Christine ( 1977)
    In recent years, integrative curricula have been introduced into many Victorian secondary schools. Integration within these curricula may occur in a number of areas, such as integration of different races or different age groups, but the area with which I am concerned is the actual content of the curriculum and integration here involves the combination of two or more traditional subjects on the basis of some supposedly common factor. The arguments advanced by integrationists to justify such integration frequently relate to sociological or psychological consequences of such courses rather than to philosophical analysis of the common factors on the basis of which integration of knowledge is possible at all. Philosophical analysis of the basis for integration involves examination of the nature of knowledge. Curricula which are completely integrative in that no subject divisions are maintained seem to be based upon the assumption that knowledge is unified in some way. The unification may result from the existence of a common object with which knowledge is concerned, e.g., 'the universe,' or from some integrative power in the learner's consciousness or may be due to the existence of some coherent system. Each of these possibilities presents problems. This may account in part for the fact that most integrative curricula are only partially so. That is, some areas of knowledge are maintained as separate subjects. However, the subjects which are separate and the combinations of other subject areas vary from school to school which suggests either that the organizations of knowledge are merely matters of convenience or that there are several different valid bases for integration. Common subject matter, common methods . of enquiry and use of common subject areas seem to be three bases, but determination of their validity requires examination of knowledge at a conceptual level. It is exponents of the Forms of Knowledge thesis, rather than integrationists, who have undertaken such examination. The Forms of Knowledge thesis purports to show that there are certain necessary divisions in knowledge on the basis of differences in concepts and their relations, truth criteria and methods of acquiring knowledge. The arguments of P. H. H irst on this matter present some difficulties, but I feel logical distinctions within knowledge can be drawn, particularly on the basis of two types of categoreal concepts - relational and foundational. If these distinctions are accepted then it can be seen that integration of knowledge can proceed on three different levels - logical, structural and material - and recognition of this fact may assist in determining the exact nature of different integrative curricula and in seeking justification for them.
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    An exploratory study of teachers' planning in secondary social science
    Toomey, Ron ( 1976)
    For approximately the last twenty-five years Tyler's classical model has formed the basis of much curriculum planning. Stated in bare outline the model involves the following logical operations: (a) state objectives (b) select experiences (c) organize experiences (d) evaluate. Over time, this approach has been refined although its fundamental principles are still recommended to teachers by many authorities for the rational planning of courses, units and lessons. In view of a body of literature suggesting that some teachers plan differently from the classical approach, initially a view intuitively supported by this investigator, this study sought to explore the planning models used by some secondary social science teachers. Four teachers for study were identified. Insight into their methods of planning were obtained by interview, by simulated unit development and by classroom observations. The study raises a number of issues deserving closer examination. While it appears that some teachers may consider objectives to be central to the planning process, notwithstanding a disagreement about how specifically they should be stated, others view objectives as being peripheral or of little consequence. This latter group concentrate more on planning around the experiences and content to be presented to the students which, nevertheless, reflect their general intentions. An analysis of these respective approaches, when translated into classroom practice, suggests the usefulness of examining to what extent stating specific instructional objectives results in closed and terminal learning patterns. Additionally, how far teachers are sufficiently clear about their intentions and how much learning is enhanced when specific objectives are avoided in the planning process merit closer study. Comparatively speaking, judgements about any merits or limitations of planning with or without specific objectives require , extensive analysis of learning outcomes. A research pattern for such an analysis is explored in this study.
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    Curriculum differentiation for gifted pre-schoolers : a study of a professional development program
    Morrison, Karin ( 1999)
    Curriculum differentiation has been shown to positively influence the way gifted children develop in educational settings, yet very few pre-school teachers have any training in gifted education and curriculum differentiation. This study examines the needs of young gifted children and whether a differentiated curriculum to meet these needs can be developed in a manner that is accessible to pre-school teachers who have had no formal training in the area of giftedness. The sample included a group of twelve pre-school teachers who participated in a series of workshops examining giftedness in early childhood, the learning needs of young gifted children and ways to respond to these needs. The study utilised a comparison of curriculum units developed by the teachers, both before and after the intervention of the workshops. The units were analysed according to criteria identifying specific characteristics of curriculum differentiation and their presence in the units of work developed by the teachers. This analysis showed that there was a substantial increase in the presence of the identified characteristics in the curriculum units developed at the conclusion of the workshops and that many of these characteristics were also evident in units of work developed eighteen months after the conclusion of the workshops. For example, variety of process, product and interaction were infrequent characteristics prior to the workshops, yet were evident in almost every unit both immediately after the conclusion of the workshops and eighteen months later. While the sample of this study is small, the findings suggest that specifically designed workshops can significantly influence the curriculum that teachers develop to respond to the needs of the gifted children in their care.
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    Critical pedagogy and its application to curriculum policy
    Joshua, John ( 1991)
    Curriculum theory can be seen as social theory because a curriculum interrelates knowledge and social practices that legitimate the dominant culture. The relationship between society and schooling is reflected in the curriculum; a critical pedagogy attempts to reveal the ideological content within the curriculum as it is related to the question of power. An analysis of schooling and the curriculum traditionally has been divided into two main categories. The functionalist mode comprises various human capital economists, such as Becker (1964), who give emphasis to the functional role between schooling and economic and social requirements. In this case, schools' role is to prepare their students for the job market.-Within this functionalist mode, a more critical analysis has also been developed by Bowles and Gintis (1976) and Carnoy and Levin (1976), among others, who argue that schools reproduce the prevailing class structure. The other tradition wants to see schools as autonomous so that schools can be used as initiaters of social and political_ change, as was emphasized by Dewey (1916) and other progressive educational theorists. This paper addresses the question of whether different classes can benefit From the same academically oriented curriculum. Bourdieu and Passeron [1977) argue that the educational system merely reproduces the cultural capital which has been distributed before students enter education; those with the highest amount of cultural capital will benefit most from schooling. The same argument is taken up by Bantock [1965) who maintains that working class children are for cultural reasons likely to be inhibited from gaining the best of education even if they were given equal chances; because, as he continues to argue, 'high culture' for the working classes is meaningless. Thus, these different writers would agree that members of the working class are inhibited because of their working class culture rather than their measured IQ. Jencks (1972) and Boudon (1974) in a slightly different way argue that the class inequalities which have deeply structured roots, and are maintained by social forces, are beyond the reach of equalitarian educational reform. However, it will be argued in this paper that schooling must promote a common culture for all if all participants in schools are to benefit equally. An 'organic' curriculum suited to either class will only cement and fortify class divisions. Instead, this paper argues for the adoption of a strict academic curriculum as a means of redistributing knowledge, and thus political power, so that education may be disengaged from serving the ands of an exploitative, capitalist economy.
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    High schools with technical components: the first decade, 1969-1978
    Johnston, Christopher Terence ( 1978)
    Historically, state post-primary education in Victoria has been shared between the Technical Schools Divsion and the Secondary Schools Division, with each establishing separate schools in proximity to the other. However, by the late 1960's, country centres without technical schools were seen to have potential student populations too small to justify a technical school in addition to the existing high school. Yet in certain of these small centres a vocal demand existed for technical education, this demand originating from a variety of sources. The response was to place technical studies in existing high schools. The schools developed integrated courses over all levels, and significant educational advantages were claimed from this. However, the location of technical components was determined not so much by educational ideas, as by a reaction to community stimulus. This was illustrated in the development of policy concerning technical components, for it was aggregative in nature, adapting to changing pressures and circumstances. The technical component innovation did not occur in isolation. Curriculum developments which occurred in both Divisions, facilitated it, and the associated reduction in external control of schools was but one of a number of other factors which provided encouragement. Both the development and some current features of high schools with technical components are examined, as is their future. It appears that their numbers will not expand significantly, particularly as alternative responses to demands for technical education have been implemented. The future of high schools with existing technical components is also unclear, in part due to the possibility of restructuring in the Education Department.