Faculty of Education - Theses
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ItemA cross-age comparative investigation of students' attitudes towards computers as a tool to support learning in years 7-12 science classes( 2000)This thesis documents a cross-age comparative investigation of students' attitudes towards computers as a tool to support learning in Years 7 - 12 science classes. The study was set at the secondary school campus of an independent girls' school in Victoria. The secondary school is broken into three relatively autonomous groups, the Junior Secondary School (JSS), the Middle School (MS) and the Senior School (SS). Data was collected by a survey administered to 1215 students in Years 7 -12 science classes. Results of the survey were analysed using Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) and post hoc Bonferonni analyses. This study aimed to investigate the ways computers are used in science classes. Word processing and the internet were the most common computer uses across the school. A comparison of students in JSS, MS and SS's preferred frequency of use of computers in science classes was undertaken. JSS students preferred to use their computers more frequently in science classes when compared to MS and SS students. An investigation of the uses of computers in science classes that students found beneficial to their learning of science concepts was undertaken and compared across the three school groups. Students' attitudes towards computers as tools to support learning in the science classroom was investigated. The majority of students in all school groups felt the computer was a beneficial support for learning when completing assignment work and was a beneficial tool for presentation. However, it depended on the number of years of computer experience in science classes as to whether students felt the computer was of benefit to their learning of theory or practical work. Aspects of computer use at school in general, that students liked or disliked was determined. The stage of the curriculum that students were currently in, was the major determinant for the students' attitudes towards the use of computers as a support for learning.
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ItemSlave, master, tool, stalking horse or silver bullet? : the transformational potential of computers in English teaching( 2000)The study that follows is a 'down the track' case study of the impact on one teacher of the English/LOTE Unit of the professional development program Computers Across the Secondary Curriculum (CASC). Its aim was to examine the effect of learning technology on the teacher's pedagogic beliefs and practices. This was achieved by examination of the teacher's selection, planning, staging and scaffolding of learning and her metaphors for teaching and for technology. The effect of the introduction of the computer in the classroom on teacher student relationships was explored from the teacher's perspective. As the study developed it came also to examine the psychological relationship between teacher and computer, the potential of learning technologies to re-imagine the English curriculum and the role of human agency in transforming the structures and icons of the discipline. Data was collected through in-depth conversations and augmented by classroom observation, analysis of teacher curriculum materials, and teacher reflection. The study is highly situated. It does not seek to offer epistemic claims beyond its own setting. In this context it transfers focus from descriptive to normative research. It aims to add to the dialogue about what constitutes good English teaching through computers, and to advocate the importance of dialogic practitioner research within this quest. Finally it seeks to open a conversation to which others may choose to connect.