Melbourne Graduate School of Education - Theses
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ItemTowards a model for colleague support : matching support to needs and contexts( 1999)This thesis explores the issue of colleague support in schools observed in five case site schools over several years. The study sought to ascertain how colleagues perceive, rate, utilise and value colleague support and the effect of colleague support across a school culture. The research study is predominantly qualitative using participant observation and interviews, over several years. The interviews are based on an earlier pilot study (conducted in 1995-96) and a later survey of each of the five case site schools that make up this research study. The thesis outlines how colleagues describe, value, and utilise colleague support and proposes a typology of support based in grounded theory. This typology asserts that schools have definable `colleague-shape; based in characteristics and protocols of support that have an increasing degree of school-wide consciousness. The typology, and emerging protocols, it is hoped, have both a descriptive and diagnostic facility and an adaptive utility. This thesis concludes with a chapter on adaptive facility proposing suggestions, arising from this study, that might increase a school's conscious awareness and use of colleague support.
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ItemConversational or instructional discourse : the opportunity for production of language by high school age students in English conversation classes in Japan( 1999)Some recent views on English language teaching suggest that one of the goals should be to use natural or genuine conversation in the classroom in preference to more traditional classroom communication. This study set out to find if naturalistic conversation used by the teacher was able to promote more active production of language by learners in a classroom of Japanese high school learners of English in Japan than in comparison to instructional classroom discourse. The length of responses to both referential and display questions were measured in terms of the mean length of utterance of the responses of the students to teacher questions in order to gauge the relationship between the type of language used and the potential for production of language. It was assumed that referential questions were characteristic of more naturalistic language and that display were characteristic of more 'traditional' classroom language. Opportunities for the negotiation of meaning were also sought by measuring the frequency of occurrence of echoic questions, associated with negotiation of meaning for both conversational discourse and for instructional discourse. The results for this particular study initially showed that in terms of the length of response and opportunities for the negotiation of meaning, both display questions and referential questions produced longer responses in instructional discourse than in comparison to conversational discourse. This suggests that in the case of the students studied, traditional classroom language or instructional discourse showed more potential for production of language than did naturalistic conversation, regardless of the question type. The results also showed that display questions promoted longer segments of classroom talk and negotiation of meaning than did referential questions suggesting that classroom conversation, as characterised by display questions, holds more potential for the negotiation of meaning than natural conversation. The results also showed, however, that there may be difficulties in producing conversational discourse and instructional discourse in a lesson in this context suggesting that the research questions and design of this particular study may be in need of reconceptualisation.
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ItemThe ontological and epistemological basis of Senge's The fifth discipline( 1999)This thesis will establish, through academic, philosophical analysis. that two of Senge's five disciplines in The Fifth Discipline (1990) rely on a Cartesian construction of the worker and a Correspondence theory of truth. Drawing on Ryle, Dewey and Wittgenstein, the thesis will analyse Senge's core statements defining his disciplines of Mental Models and Personal Mastery to show their Cartesian philosophical basis. As Senge's entire theory of management learning relies on his Cartesian construction of the worker and his Correspondence theory of truth, it will he argued that his theory of management learning, which attempts to lay claim to a new approach, would be better served by a philosophical basis in the new organic science of quantum theory and complexity theory. The alternative philosophy which will be proposed is based on organic science. quantum theory and complexity. theory. it will rest on a basis of a philosophy which is both atomistic and integrationist at the same time, and on a Coherence theory of truth.
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ItemManagers perceptions of workplace learning( 1999)This thesis sets outs the post-industrial organisation as the learning context in which the manager manages. By highlighting the set of skills that is required of the post-industrial manager it then examines how the manager learns these in the course of daily work. This was achieved by conducting interviews with a limited range of managers who are employed by the same retailing company but work across two store locations. What is apparent is that the successful manager needs to be able to respond to the emotionality of the workplace by having well honed 'people' skills of which communicability is uppermost. It was found that the 'people' skills were not only the hardest to learn but also contributed to the definition of the successful manager. The thesis also establishes that managers learn to manage in and through the workplace experiences of managing thereby supporting the contention that learning is fundamentally a socialisation process which occurs within a specific context and, within that, the most meaningful individual learning is, indeed, experiential. Learning to manage is very much about dealing with 'people' issues and, in this respect, the experiences of trial and error, then reflection, are the manager's teacher.
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ItemThe politics of curriculum( 1999)This thesis seeks to document the development, establishment and subsequent demise of Victoria's first independent regulatory body of senior secondary curriculum and assessment, the Victorian Institute of Secondary Education. Analysis of the origins of VISE helps reveal the implicit social conflicts at work within the senior secondary curriculum. The thesis investigates the response of policy makers to the shift in senior secondary education from an 'elite' system to a 'mass' system in light of this conflict. The thesis argues that these responses in general, and VISE's in particular, while significantly expanding school control over the curriculum and pedagogical autonomy, failed to moderate social patterns of success and failure by not challenging the implicit rationale behind the curriculum hierarchy - the needs of the university for selection - and by failing to base curriculum policy on a wider understanding of the origins of such patterns.
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ItemHow does teacher questioning influence the verbal responses of Asian background ESL learners?( 1999)This thesis is a case-study of two English as a Second Language (ESL) teachers working with one class of tertiary level students from Asian backgrounds in a large English language centre. The thesis seeks to explore the types and frequencies of teachers' questions and the extent to which the length of student responses is affected by those questions from both a quantitative and a qualitative perspective. Teachers' and students' attitudes towards questions are examined as well. In relation to the form of questions, the study found that the two teachers asked significantly more X-questions than nexus and alternative questions, which was congruent with their preference for question types. However, in terms of the function of questions, one teacher asked more referential questions while the other teacher asked more display questions (Long and Sato, 1983). The study found that statistically, topics, in general, did not influence teachers' selection of questions and students' responses. On average student answers to either kind of questions were short, though individual differences did exist. However, through a close examination of the transcripts of these individual lessons, the conclusion was the opposite. Topics did affect the formation and function of the teachers' questions and students responses as well. When talking about topics with which students were familiar and which required less vocabulary, teachers' tended to use X- questions and they were usually referential. Those questions triggered longer student utterances. Display questions, on the other hand, were often used to check knowledge, and students' responses to these were short. This suggests that referential-like X-questions are powerful in the certain circumstances where students are familiar with the topics they are talking about. Teachers' appropriate application of such questions might trigger longer students' utterances and gradually facilitate the development of learners' oral competency.
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ItemLearning to live over again : the resettlement stories of refugees from the former Yugoslavia( 1999)This thesis followed the resettlement in Australia, specifically Victoria, of three refugee families from the former Yugoslavia. The three families arrived here in 1995, and have made a new life for themselves. The settlement process was the key issue under examination, as the assumption was that if new arrivals can find a sense of belonging, then this is of benefit to themselves and the Australian community. The examination of this process focussed on the role of education, and coming to the conclusion as to which factors have helped them and which factors have been more difficult to contend with. In-depth, case study interviews were conducted, with an emphasis on a limited number of open-ended questions, so as to maximise the families' conclusions about their situation after discussion. Specifically the key research questions concerned: firstly, key information about the biography of the families; secondly, the circumstances of their move out of the former Yugoslavia; thirdly, what happened when they arrived in Australia - with respect to key services, such as education. The thesis findings illustrate that refugees need to be assisted in their grieving process before a satisfactory sense of belonging can be achieved. This sense of belonging is necessary in order to make adequate progress in a new culture.
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ItemFlexible leader behaviour and change management( 1999)This thesis examines the relationship between flexible leader behaviour and effective and efficient management of change at a middle level within a public sector organisation. The organisation provides programs to assist the English as a Second Language educational and vocational needs of its clients. Three major areas of recent successful change management were identified: tenders, new program provision, and audits as part of a quality assurance system. These three areas provided the context in which leader behaviour, what the middle managers actually did, was examined. The setting was four separate metropolitan centres. Twenty-eight subjects participated, seven from each centre. Theories were developed from the relevant literature about the properties of flexible leader behaviour and factors that promote it. These culminated in the design of a theoretical framework. Its purpose was to illustrate the interrelatedness and interdependence of many of the themes and factors associated with demonstrated flexible behaviour.. Three research questions guided the study. Various data collection modes were used to establish consensus for terms used and to explore leader behaviour. Analysis of the data demonstrated that the use of a Conceptual Framework Grid was appropriate and provided a second dimension in analysis, aligning behaviour with performance outcomes. The findings produced evidence of collaborative leadership in an organisation the culture of which values access and equity for all. However, no causal link was established between behaviour and performance outcomes that would hold for every occasion. Rather, it was found that clusters of factors specific to that organisation enhanced performance outcomes. Intrinsic to these factors was a predisposition for tolerant, empathetic, responsive leader behaviour that was focused on needs. The study illuminated good practice at a level that is becoming increasingly important for management in Australia.
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ItemAn evaluation of a short, intensive mathematics program( 1999)This thesis evaluates a short intensive mathematics program for primary and secondary students that was conducted at the University of Melbourne in April 1997. The methodology of the evaluation can be described as action-research: a collaborative investigation where researchers, teachers and students cooperate in order to gain insights into a specific learning environment. This process is conducive to various improvement and modifications that the participants can apply to their respective practices. The primary aim of the thesis was to explore factors affecting the success of such programs and the learning which results. The findings suggest that while mathematical self-esteem is closely associated with mathematical achievement actual changes in mathematical self-esteem might not be easily detectable in programs of such short duration. The strength of the Program seemed to be the 'learning atmosphere' fostered by the instructors as well as in the choice of non-routine tasks. A possible weakness was the lack of clear focus regarding the pedagogical aims of the Program.
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ItemThe international ambulance benchmarking and best practice project( 1999)This thesis addresses issues related to benchmarking, a topic of major current interest to those working in evaluation, management and cognate fields. These issues were explored through a case study in which the principles of benchmarking were applied to the monitoring of ambulance services. The case study involved the collection of data from ambulance services in several countries within an Australian project known as The International Benchmarking Project [IBP]. Consulting each of the international partner organisations via a telephone interview led to the identification of dimensions of best practice that were important in ambulance service delivery. Performance indicators were developed by translating the identified dimensions of best practice into a useful data set for monitoring the performance of ambulance services. An instrument was developed based on the best practice dimensions identified and their associated performance indicators. The structure and content of the questionnaire were developed to improve the quality of the information provided to the managers of each partner service involved. There are no examples of benchmarking in national or international ambulance studies. This thesis describes a case study of benchmarking in ambulance services, and provides a practical example of how the theories of benchmarking might be used practice. Postmodern thought provided a valuable contribution to the Project as it supported a critical review, and provided direction for addressing the issues raised. This study should contribute to understanding how benchmarking can be used to support decision making and the improvement of service provision in real life settings.