Faculty of Education - Theses
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ItemTeaching together as tapestries: teachers’ experiences of partnering with external providers to facilitate school-based drug education( 2017)This dissertation examines the nature of the partnership between Life Education Victoria (LEV) and three primary schools in facilitating drug education programs. Employing the woven construction of tapestries as a metaphor, this study examines the interweaving of two occupations: external specialist teachers of drug education and generalist classroom teachers, both of whom have a role in facilitating school-based drug education. Generalist classroom teachers are commonly considered the best providers of health and drug education in the primary school context (Meyer, 2004). However, their capacity to deliver effective programs has been questioned (Faucette & Patterson, 1989; Morgan, 2008; Morgan & Bourke, 2008). Consequently, schools have sought to establish partnerships with external organizations, such as LEV, to facilitate school-based health and drug education programs. To date, there is no available research that examines the nature of the partnerships between generalist teachers and specialist LEV educators. Therefore, the purpose of this research was to contribute to that understanding through (1) an examination of the nature of the partnerships between schools and LEV (i.e., the context of the partnerships between generalist teachers and specialist educators) and (2) an examination of the generalist teachers’ experiences working together with specialist educators, particularly in the unique setting whereby specialist educators are invited into the school setting, yet not into the actual classrooms. The primary research question was: How do primary school teachers and external specialists partner together to facilitate school-based drug education programs? Through a qualitative approach, this study investigated the experiences of teachers from three primary schools that engage with LEV. Each school amounted to a particular case; hence, a case study methodology was applied. The data were collected through interviews, nonparticipant observations, and questionnaires in order to elucidate principals’, drug education coordinators’, and teachers’ perceptions of their experiences with LEV. Based on the framework espoused by Weiland and Akerson (2013), the nature of the partnerships between LEV and the three schools under study was classified as cooperation, which is the least level of commitment, risk, negotiation, and involvement. Three divergent types of this partnership were recognized. These included LEV-faced, school-faced, and school/LEV-faced partnerships. Each partnership was distinguished by the school’s provision of drug education, the role LEV played in the program, and the support afforded generalist teachers. Within the context of these three types of partnership between LEV and the participating schools, five divergent yet repeated forms of teachers’ experiences were identified as they worked with specialist educators. Teachers’ ways-of-being were categorized in order of ascending levels of engagement: (1) being-a-disengaged-teacher, (2) being-an-observing-teacher, (3) being-a-takeover-teacher, (4) being-a-learning-teacher, and finally (5) being-a-collaborative-teacher. Teachers’ ways-of-being in the Mobile Learning Center (MLC) were shaped by a combination of their school environment, their relationships with other colleagues (ways-of-doing outside of the MLC), as well as their perceived competence (ways-of-knowing) to facilitate a school-based drug education program. Findings in this study expand our understanding of the “passive” verses “active” role of generalist teachers working together with specialist educators. The more elaborate spectrum of engagement presented in this study ranged from “disengagement” to “over engagement” to “partial engagement” and finally “full engagement” with external providers. This expanded classification can address the recommendations of previous research that has called for a mutual understanding between classroom teachers and informal educators concerning their respective roles (Weiland & Akerson, 2013). These findings contribute to the drug education literature by providing a clearer description of the nature of the partnerships between schools and LEV, as well as the roles encompassed by the two occupations: generalist teachers and specialist educators. This may inform future decisions and practices of external providers (including LEV) as well as school administrators, leadership teams, and classroom teachers.
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ItemImplementing cooperative learning in a non-academic educational institution( 2005)This research investigates, describes and analyzes the process of implementing cooperative learning instructional strategies in a non-academic educational institution. The investigation took place through six case studies involving unqualified teachers from two Sunday School institutions run on a weekly basis by the Christian Coptic Orthodox Church in Melbourne, Australia. The research uses these case studies and cross-case analysis to examine the process of change that non-academic teachers undergo in the progress of implementing cooperative learning. The study broadly found that non-academic teachers who predominantly conducted teacher-centered learning in a whole class setting were competently able to implement active and cooperative learning in their classrooms after training, support and practice within a four month period. They went through three main change cycles: confusion, practice and competence. Further the study found that non-academic teachers planned to maintain cooperative learning in their classrooms and expand its use in their schools. The significance of this study therefore resides primarily in its approach to this unique work of implementing cooperative learning in non-academic educational institutions by non-academic teachers. To the best of the researcher's knowledge no previous academic studies have been attempted on this subject.