Faculty of Education - Theses
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ItemThe impact of writing for different kinds of audience on a group of year 11 students' writing proficiency at an inner city secondary college in Victoria( 1993)This study was carried out with the purpose of finding out the influence of audience on the students writing proficiency It was carried out with the help of forty students who were studying at Year 1 1 at an inner city secondary college. The students belonged to three different classes or three intact groups. Each student produced three pieces of writing one of which was for no audience the second one of which was for an imaginary audience and the third one of which was for a real audience. Since the sequence of tasks could be a compounding variable in this study it was decided to give the three groups of students the tasks in three different orders. The students writings were assessed by three raters using a multitrait method of scoring. The components of writing and scales used were derived from those proposed by Hamp Lyons (1986). For any large discrepancy a fourth rater was invited to rate the specific samples of writing again. The data was analysed by ANOVA and F comparison. The results of the study reveal that audience has a significant impact on the students writing proficiency. However when the students wrote for an imaginary audience their writing was rated as less proficient than when they wrote for no audience. The most interesting result was the one relating to students writing for a real audience In this case students proficiency was judged by the raters to be greater than for the other two types of audience. This research has provided some interesting insights for teachers and composition and direct writing assessment researchers.
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ItemHawthorn Leadership Assessment Centre : a case study of assessors' perceptions( 2001)The implementation of the National Association of Secondary School Principals (NASSP) Assessment Centre at Hawthorn Leadership Assessment Centre (HLAC) is a part of The University of Melbourne s post-graduate syllabus. At the completion of an assessment centre assessors were interviewed. Their perceptions indicate that H LAC is an effective professional development activity for participants and assessors alike. This finding emerged through the implementation of a semi structured interview schedule. The study also found that assessors believed a more culturally relevant model reflective of local practice be explored or incorporated into the franchised NASSP model.
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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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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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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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ItemAppraising a narrative-based in-house staff training and professional development model for a Tongan school( 1996)This thesis describes a narrative-based staff development and evaluation program after Wood (1992) that the author expects to implement at St Joseph's Business College, Nuku'alofa, Kingdom of Tonga. An investigation of the model was performed by the author at a TAFE Institute in Melbourne, in which four experienced teachers from the Business and Marketing Departments volunteered to recount and discuss stories of their professional development. A pre-structured case study approach after Miles (1990) was seen an appropriate means of dealing with data reduction and presentation arising from the collaborative composed personal narratives and evaluative comments by the four teachers. The problems and prospects of implementing a culturally recognised professional development model at St Joseph's Business College are discussed in the light of the author's experience in the study.