Conference Abstracts - 2001

Please Note:

The symbol ® indicates that the full paper was refereed.

The abstracts listed here are those that were provided for electronic publications.

A

ADA01191    Paper
Research lead curriculum: Early lessons from the field

Barbara Adamson and Mary Mahony, University of Sydney

Research conducted in the Faculty of Health Sciences, the University of Sydney (Adamson, Lincoln and Cant, 2000) identified eight managerial skill areas that Australian health care managers perceived to be necessary in order to function effectively and efficiently in the current and future health care environment. Further analysis demonstrated that generic areas of competency expected of all managers irrespective of industry and cultural context underpinned these skill areas. The pedagogical dilemma was how to foster these generic competencies in a curriculum initially designed for Australian students, which also immediately included international students in Australia, offshore international students and distance students both in Australia and offshore. This paper presents an analysis of the educational design and its outcomes for a specific postgraduate unit of study delivered in this complex teaching and learning environment. The use of case studies formed the basis for learning activities and assessment. The intention of this approach was to provide choice for students and in the recognition that different solutions to the same case study problem would occur, depending on the student’s national and cultural context. This paper discusses the development of these instructional strategies, and presents lessons from the field in catering to this diverse student population. The discussion is situated in appropriate literature drawn from the fields of distance education and management studies.

AIN01656    Paper
Understanding the development of inclusive schools: Some lessons from international experience

Mel Ainscow, University of Manchester

Currently many countries are seeking to encourage the development of more inclusive schools. This trend reflects the U.N. agenda of ’Education for All’. This paper will be based on research being carried out in Portugal, Romania and England that attempts to throw light on ways of addressing barriers to participation and learning. It will explain how evidence of various types can be used to analyse school practices, policies and cultures in order to formulate development strategies. Particular emphasis will be placed on the importance of analysing classroom interactions and listening to the voices of students. Examples will be used to illustrate how engaging with different perspectives can stimulate critical reflection in ways that help focus attention on new possibilities for moving schools forward. Attention will also be given to the social processes involved in such development activities. Implications will be drawn for the work of researchers involved in supporting the development of inclusive practices.

This paper will be presented as part of Symposium 6 CAR01227 Does the Index for Inclusion provide a framework for school improvement and professional development for inclusive education?

ALB01291   Paper
Skills recognition in the post-compulsory sector - An international comparison

Jillian Albrecht, Hunter Institute of TAFE

This paper will compare the practice of Skills Recognition in the post compulsory sectors of New South Wales, Australia; Western Ontario, Canada; and Costa Rica. The presenter is an experienced practitioner in Skills Recognition in the TAFE sector of NSW, having coordinated the assessment of applications based on work and life experience for students of TAFE NSW courses for over 6 years. Annually, TAFE NSW processes up to 122,000 subject exemptions, totalling over 3.3 million student contact hours. This is in addition to the 10 million-student contact hours processed as credit from previous TAFE study. TAFE NSW has also actively pursued credit transfer arrangements with universities, and this aspect of its operation will be compared with the experience of credit transfer in Western Ontario. The paper will also compare methods by which student administration data in each geographical area is collected, stored and maintained, and the interface of the student administration data with the processes of Skills Recognition. The Skills Recognition processes of these two New World countries will be compared with the Developing World experience of Costa Rica, and suggestions for the enhancement of all three systems will be proposed.

ALD01027    Paper
Integrating ICT into the learning environment at Sevenoaks senior college: How teachers and students use educational technology in teaching and learning

Sue Trinidad, Jean McNish, Jill Aldridge & Barry Fraser, Curtin University of Technology and David Wood, Sevenoaks Senior College

This paper reports a study that focuses on the innovative new Sevenoaks Senior College, which is committed to creating a truly outcomes-focused curriculum by integrating unique ICT infrastructure into the delivery of educational programs, on-line curricula, and management systems for both teachers and students. Major research aims include an evaluation of the effectiveness of educational programs at Sevenoaks in promoting outcomes-focused and ICT-rich classroom learning environments and the student outcomes of (a) attitudes to learning and usage of ICT and (b) gender and social equity.

The study combined quantitative and qualitative research methods to examine (a) the ways in which teachers’ and students’ use ICT and (b) the types of learning environment that teachers create to support students’ effective use of ICT. The study examined the types of support, training and environment that are likely to make possible the effective integration of ICT in teaching and learning.

ALL01522    Paper Critically interrogating classroom constructions of ’community’ and ’difference’: a case study.

Andrea Allard, Deakin University and Maxine Cooper, University of Melbourne

Within educational literature, the concept of ’community’ has been problematised over the last decade, particularly as regards how constructs of ’community’ that aim to provide ’a sense of belonging’ of collective concern for each individual’ (Nodding 1996: 258) can also operate to exclude, devalue or homogenise diverse groups of students. The tensions that exist between desirable features of a learning community that provides a sense of belonging and at the same time recognises and celebrates difference and diversity are suggested by Fines, et al (1997: 252) who argue that ’the process of sustaining a community must include a critical interrogation of difference as the rich substance of community life’. How do such tensions surface in the classroom? This paper reports on an aspect of an empirical research project that examined relations of power between teachers and students as these operate through explicit processes used to create classroom communities. Through a case study of one composite grade primary classroom with children of diverse cultural heritage, we critically analyse constructs of ‘community’ in light of current literature on difference and diversity. Specifically we address the question: what pedagogical processes create a learning community where acceptance of difference is reworked to better address unequal relations of power?

ALL01558    Paper
Research as dialogue and cross cultural consultations: Confronting relations of power

Von Sanderson, and Andrea Allard, University of South Australia

The ‘rescuing’ of Indigenous children (from their communities) through education, and the notions of assimilation associated with that, is an aspect of colonialism that has persisted into the so-called 'post-colonial' era. Recent national policy statements (eg. MCEETYA, 2000; NBEET, 1995) argue the importance of education/research that keeps the locus of control within the Aboriginal community as a means to further the goal of self-determination and improve educational outcomes. In this paper, we report on the initial stage of a small empirical research project, Engaging Aboriginal Students In Education Through Community Empowerment. ‘Research as dialogue' was a guiding principal and a primary aim was to listen actively to all key stake holders in the remote community setting, particularly to Indigenous parents, teachers and service providers, in order to identify current strengths and concerns regarding the provision of culturally inclusive schooling; and then, to develop, on the basis of these consultations and in collaboration, community-based education projects that engage non-attending Aboriginal students. In this paper, we critically analyse the difficulties as well as potential strengths of trying to form collaborative partnerships as researchers, across cultural differences and with diverse community groups. For example, what does ‘acknowledging' very different cultural perspectives actually mean to/in this kind of research process? The ways in which relations of power amongst all parties are played out in/through such an approach is also opened up for scrutiny and further discussion.

AND01114    Paper Better than beige: Designing assessment tasks to enhance learning and measure growth in the early years of school.

Prue Anderson and Marion Meiers, Australian Council for Educational Research

‘I think of our school as beige. We tend to be the average of ‘like' schools. Can we do better than that?' In order to promote growth in student learning and demonstrate achievement schools require rich assessment tasks that enhance the teaching and learning cycle and provide a valid and reliable measure of growth. This paper examines the five linked sets of assessment tasks that have been developed to progressively measure growth in literacy and numeracy in the first three years of school. The tasks were designed for the ACER Longitudinal Literacy and Numeracy Survey (LLANS). The tasks are based around familiar classroom activities, administered on a one-to-one basis by teachers and include many hands-on components. They address a wide range of aspects of literacy and numeracy development in the early years of school. Measuring growth in skill development is possible because the data from the five sets of tasks have been linked to create a common scale for literacy and a common scale for numeracy. LLANS data used to construct the scales has been collected from 1000 primary students across Australia since 1999. The scales describe the typical nature of student development in the skills addressed by the assessment tasks so providing a frame of reference for monitoring individual development and measuring achievement over time. This presentation will outline the nature and scope of the LLANS assessment tasks and the use of scales to describe growth as a model for assessment tasks that are both diagnostic and a reliable measure of growth in literacy and numeracy skills in the first three years of school.

ANG01554    Paper
Pathway planning and "becoming somebody": Exploring the tensions between wellbeing and credentialism with students at (educational) risk

Jennifer Angwin, Lyn Harrison, Geoff Shacklock and Jill Blackmore, Deakin University

This paper maps the policy shifts around the education and training of youth that frame how schools respond to issues of youth' at risk'. These shifts have occurred with the move from the self managing schools marked by market discourses of competition, autonomy and image management that supplanted earlier discourses of welfare and community, through to recent policies in Victoria arising from the Kirby Review of Post compulsory Education and Public Education, the Next Generation undertaken by the Labor government. These reports, and the policies emerging out of them, are producing new discourses about youth and schooling focusing on wellbeing, learning networks and more systemic support for schools at the same time as there is increased accountability and expectations of schools. Drawing on the school exclusion literature from the U.K, and using Bourdieu's notion of habitus, we examine the findings from a recent study undertaken on the Geelong Pathways Planning project, funded through a Victorian government strategy, to discuss how schools respond to such initiatives. The project explored the ways in which students in the Geelong region understood and worked with the job planning pathways program, and how service providers (schools, community education facilities, job networks etc) coordinated to meet the needs of individual youth. There was a disjuncture in the participating schools between the discourses of care and welfare for students at risk, and the actual practices and policies that ignored or excluded such students. This paper concludes with a discussion of what might be required systemically, in schools and in their relations to other education providers, to build the capacity to respond more effectively to all students.

APP01127    ®    Paper
Outcomes-based science units that enhance primary and secondary science teachers' PCK

Ken Appleton and Allan Harrison, Central Queensland University

Science pedagogical content knowledge (PCK) is a key focus in science teacher professional development; especially for primary school teachers and middle school teachers who teach outside of their area of expertise. Secondary science specialists, whose strength is content knowledge, find outcomes-based middle school syllabuses challenging because of the emphasis on working scientifically and open-ended activities. Earlier work claims that primary science teachers use 'activities that work' to supplement, or substitute for science PCK, while secondary teachers rely on their content knowledge. In parallel primary and secondary studies over two years in six schools, we explored the extent to which 'units that work' played an important role in helping elementary and junior high school teachers plan their teaching and assessing, and in enhancing their PCK. In the case studies, we found that 'units that work' benefited most teachers. The elementary school teachers searched a range of resources but relied on activities from one main source, whereas the high school teachers tended to rely on activities from their textbook and expert colleagues and generated innovative activities and assessments. The research has yielded a preliminary professional development model that will be described and discussed.

ASM01362    Paper
'Figuring things out from my friends': Encouraging collaboration among first year students at undergraduate and postgraduate level

Christine Asmar, and Tai Peseta, The University of Sydney

The first year on campus at a large university is a daunting one for many students. Recognising this, many universities in Australia are now focusing on strategies suggested by the research into the first year experience. Such strategies include the encouraging of student interactions inside and out of class, to promote a sense of belonging and to engage students in the active learning known to enhance academic outcomes. This approach is grounded in the student-focused framework of teaching and learning which is overtaking traditionally didactic methods, methods which in the past have located the teacher at the centre and the students on the margins of their own learning situations. Much of the research, together with much institutional re-thinking, has focused on school leavers. However, postgraduate students may also be entering a particular institution for the first time and may equally well feel a sense of isolation. This paper suggests that lessons drawn from the first year undergraduate experience, particularly those relating to the need for peer interactions, may be equally applicable to the first year of postgraduate study. It also argues that these interactions help postgraduate students connect to a culture of research. The paper draws upon data from a large research university as well as a number of other sources and cases.

ASP01012   Paper
Developing community in constructing professional knowledge as a means of informing policy about social justice and equity, in the curriculum (with reference to new Aboriginal Studies curriculum)

Tania Aspland, Queensland University of Technology

It is timely in the Australian context to introduce the teaching of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies into the secondary school sector. In Queensland, a curriculum authority has just completed the development and evaluation of such a syllabus. This paper critiques the evaluation of the syllabus in times when indigenous issues are open for scrutiny and debate in Australia. Thus, it is argued that the traditional model adopted for the processes of syllabus development, implementation and evaluation must be challenged. This paper explores an alternative approach to curriculum evaluation that pushes the boundaries, and that is responsive to social justice and equity issues. It asks new questions for new times about professional practice research in this significant area of educational activity in Australia.

]'his paper is presented as part of Symposium Crossing borders and exploring frontiers in professional practice research.

ATP01017    Paper
Creating a constructivist-learning environment using ICT to teach concepts and skills in classroom management: An exploration at NIE, Singapore

Lourdusamy Atputhasamy, Philip Wong Siew Koon and Myint Swe Khine, National Institute of Education

Development of ICT has provided new opportunities for delivering instruction in institutes of Higher Education. At NIE we have attempted to develop a learning environment that delivers course materials to students in a variety of formats. An indigenous CD-ROM was developed as a comprehensive resource to facilitate learning the concepts and skills associated with classroom management. The CD-ROM was set up in a web-based format so that it could interface with video-clips and websites that are relevant to classroom management issues. Communication with the students was maintained through Blackboard communication tools. The students also had opportunities to interact on a face-to-face basis with their peers and the tutors during tutorials.

This paper reports on this endeavor in using the new technologies in delivering a teacher education module on classroom management and the psychological perception of students who participated in the experiment.

ATP01299    Paper
Perceived benefits of eduPAD in enhancing learning

Atputhasamy Lourdusamy, Chun Hu and Philip Wong, Nanyang Technological University

The paper presents the findings on an evaluation of a proto-type hand-held electronic device that allows learners to access the Internet, communicate with each other and read textbooks stored on storage cards. The pilot project was carried out in a secondary school in Singapore. At the end of the trial period through survey and focus group interviews the benefits of this innovative device as perceived by the teachers and students were determined. Both the teachers and students expressed a positive attitude towards the use of an electronic device to enhance teaching and learning. However, they also pointed out that the barrier to the use of eduPAD device in the classrooms resulted mainly from technical problems, such as slow speed of loading and accessing time to the Internet. The students also said that the instructional approaches used in eduPAD classrooms were largely the same as those found in traditional classroom. The findings suggest that introduction of electronic devices per se into the classroom would not bring improvement in teaching and learning automatically. Teachers and students need to modify their teaching/learning strategies and make full use of the opportunities provided by such a device to do things otherwise not possible.

ATP01460    Paper
Teacher Education in Singapore: Why do students choose this career?

Kim Chuan Goh and Lourdusamy Atputhasamy, Nanyang Technological University

The Singapore government is acutely aware that the future of Singapore very much depends on her human resource. However much Singapore has achieved in the area of education thus far, particularly through its school system, the need for teachers in sufficient quantity and quality remains a perennial problem. A small population base, wide employment opportunities in the private sector in a booming economy, the lack of man-power in many areas all contribute to making teaching as one of the job options for school leavers not necessarily a preferred one. Of late, the Ministry of Education has been aggressively taking steps to elevate the status of teaching through many measures. It is worth finding out what now attracts entrants into the teaching profession. This paper discusses the motives of new entrants to the National Institute of Education's initial teacher training programmes. A survey was carried out to find out the motives of students as to why they choose to become teachers. The results of this study will be compared with those from similar studies carried out locally and in other countries. The implications of the findings to attract young people to the teaching profession will be discussed.

ATP01465    Paper Self-evaluation of interpersonal behaviour and classroom interaction by teacher trainees

Lourdusamy Atputhasamy, Myint Swe Khine, Nanyang Technological University

Self-evaluation is one of the desirable characteristics particularly relevant to the teaching profession. Though often times teachers engage in a systematic reflection on a lesson delivered, self-evaluation of interpersonal behaviour and/or their interaction with students as part of the classroom management strategy is rarely done. As part of the classroom management module, trainee teachers at the National Institute of Education, Singapore used the Questionnaire on Teacher-Student Interaction (QTI) to evaluate themselves while they were on practice teaching. The questionnaire is designed to assess the interpersonal behaviour of the teachers and the interaction with the students in the classroom. This paper will report the findings from the study that is the perceived strengths and shortcomings of the trainee teachers and discusses how the information may be utilised to assist in self-improvement of trainee teachers in classroom management as well as their implications for teacher education.

AVE01300  ®    Paper
Smarter than we're given credit for: Youth perspectives on politics, social issues and personal freedoms

Nado Aveling, Murdoch University

This paper draws on interviews with a diverse group of young people. Interview questions explored how they perceived themselves as active citizens, what they perceived the issues which confront Australian society to be, what they felt could be done to improve society and what they wanted for themselves in the future. The data suggests that, far from being 'too young' to hold politicised views or to express informed opinions, these young people were very aware of social reality and in the majority of cases, deeply committed to creating a fairer society. While they may very well be cynical about party politics and many may be ignorant about the names of our past Prime Ministers, these young people nevertheless had strong opinions about what might constitute an equitable society. The emerging interest in citizenship education, however, takes as given that young people are generally uninformed and politically naive. Given young people's general disinterest in politics and disdain for politicians, but their commitment to a more egalitarian society, approaches to citizenship education must address these concerns in a practical way and distinguish between interest in the political system and interest in political issues if it is to live up to its promise.

B

BAK01685   Paper
Managing the impact of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder on reading achievement

Kathy Baker, Central Queensland University.

Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) may affect up to 1 in 30 children with individuals affected, to differing degrees, for their entire life span. In cases where ADHD is diagnosed, family life, social conformity, mental health and success in school and the workforce may be compromised due to the impact of the disorder. Also, significant numbers of ADHD students have associated learning difficulties, the most common of which are reading difficulties. While acknowledging that the current understanding of ADHD is still incomplete and many aspects remain controversial, the latest understanding of the disorder has been used to design a reading intervention to remediate reading difficulties in ADHD students. The intervention will be useful for teachers who are faced with the problems associated with trying to teach ADHD students with associated reading difficulties how to read, since as yet there is a paucity of literature on the topic. The present study proposes to use a case study methodology to evaluate the effectiveness of this specially designed reading intervention when used with primary school students diagnosed with ADHD.

BAR01063    Paper
Leadership behaviours of school principals: What do principals and teachers say?

Kerry Barnett, John McCormick and Robert Conners, University New South Wales

The purpose of the study was to further explore and confirm the findings of a previous study (Barnett, McCormick and Conners, 2000) which suggested that transformational leadership behaviours of school principals in New South Wales state secondary schools were associated with school learning culture. Four principals and eleven classroom teachers from four schools, the principals of which had been identified, through the previous study as displaying transformational leadership participated in the study. A qualitative approach using semi-structured interviews was used to collect data. Analysis identified patterns and themes that described leadership behaviours of principals.

BAR01275   ® Paper
Managing teacher performance in the non-compulsory years of school

Lennie Barblett, Edith Cowan University

In Western Australia, the state education system has systematically placed the non-compulsory years of school (K&P) on to primary school sites. In this context it is the principals' task to undertake the performance management of their early childhood teachers. Early childhood teachers are unsure of this performance appraisal framework as they perceive themselves working from a different pedagogical base than many of their primary colleagues. This paper draws on data collected as part of a larger study on teacher accountability. The research found that early childhood teachers questioned the principals' suitability to assess their work, The paper suggests therefore that principals and their pre-primary teachers need to work together to cross the pedagogical boundary that often divides the non-compulsory years of school and the primary school.

BAR01578   Paper
Introducing ESOP: An overview of the project

Geoff Barnes and Paul Brock, New South Wales Department of Education and Training and John Pegg, University of New England

Using the wealth of quantitative and qualitative data available in one of the world's largest school systems, this project aims to identify and analyse those junior secondary 'schooling' processes that generate outstanding educational outcomes in metropolitan, rural, and isolated NSW public schools. The focus is on those processes operating within schools, in general, but particularly within subject-departments and/or other within-school groupings or teams of teachers, that appear influential in achieving 'outstanding educational outcomes' in approximately 50 identified Years 7-10 NSW public school sites.

The research is divided in three phases, representing each year of the project. The first year will be spent on accumulating and analysing the quantitative and qualitative data on the 458 public secondary and central schools in NSW. The second year involves intensive case-study research within the 50 sites selected, focusing as appropriate on subject-departments, programs and initiatives within the schools in question. The third year will focus on the development and trialling of professional development programs designed to assist all schools to improve the quality of Years 7-10 schooling provision by enriching the teaching and learning environment for both students and teachers. This paper introduces the project and presents an account of its overall design.

This paper will be presented as part of Symposium 24 GRE01577 What makes some schools hum? Investigating the achievement of outstanding outcomes in Junior Secondary schooling in New South Wales: A preliminary project report.

BAR01579   Paper
Methodological challenges: Selecting schools and other issues in the AESOP study

Geoff Barnes, New South Wales Department of Education and Training and Wayne Sawyer, University of Western Sydney

A project such as this clearly requires a sophisticated and innovative mix of methodologies. Phase I has been focused on identifying which school-sites are likely candidates for further investigation, given the overall aims of the study. The site-selection process has involved the consideration of a wide range of quantitative and qualitative data available within the NSW Department of Education and Training.

A key feature was the use of both value-added performance data, as a primary source of evidence in choosing the English, Mathematics and Science faculty sites, and also students' BST performances in Year 5, linked to their School Certificate outcomes. These were used to identify those schools consistently achieving 'outstanding' outcomes, taking into account socioeconomic and geographic contextual factors. Additional sites in other KLAs were identified by extrapolating back from SC/1-ISC value-added data. As well, quantitative data relating to student attendance, truancy, counsellor referrals, and like, was drawn on, along with DET's growing body of student affective outcomes data. Qualitative data was obtained from DET's School Improvement Officers and Curriculum Consultants, as well as a variety of other stakeholders and interested parties. These sets of quantitative and qualitative data sources were then 'triangulated' against each other, in order to identify approximately 50 'sites of excellence' across traditional 'subj ect-departments' and whole-school programs.

This paper presents some of the technical issues and challenges in this phase of the project.

This paper will be presented as part of Symposium 24 GRE01577 What makes some schools hum? Investigating the achievement of outstanding outcomes in Junior Secondary schooling in New South Wales: A preliminary project report.

BAR01601   Paper
Phenomenology and survey analysis

Robyn Barnacle, Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology

One of the questions confronting research into the research student experience is how the quality of that experience can be effectively assessed. A conventional approach has been to conduct a survey, and occasionally as RMIT has done recently this has involved combining questions relating to research student satisfaction with others related to the nature of the research experience more generally. When it comes to analysing the results of such a survey, however, certain methodological problems arise. In a survey with both a quantitative, multiple-choice, section and a qualitative, open-ended, section it is not always obvious how the two parts of the survey can be reconciled. In particular, how can different types of findings: one statistical the other evaluative, be credibly integrated with, or related to, the other? What is required in this situation is an interpretative framework for crossing the boundaries of alternative survey methodologies. In this paper I will reflect on how phenomenology can be used in this context. This will be based on my experience analysing the findings of a research student survey at RMIT. There, a phenomenological approach was used, not to overcome the tensions involved in reconciling the qualitative and quantitative dimensions of the survey, but rather to engage with those tensions and thereby enrich the findings.

BAT01517   Paper
The course in applied vocational study skills: Professional development issues in the integration of literacy within VET delivery

Susan Bates & Cheryl Wiltshire Western Australian Department of Training and Employment

The need for literacy and numeracy support for VET students is well recognised, but attempts to provide that support are often not accepted by students. VET students resist strategies that are not directly related to their industry training activities, that are reminiscent of schoolwork, or that require extra attendance or extra assessments. The Course in Applied Vocational Study Skills (CAVSS) was developed in Western Australia as a delivery framework that prescribes a student-centred approach, and provides a funding and accountability mechanism, for the delivery of integrated literacy support to mainstream VET students. Under CAVSS, literacy specialist teachers team-teach with VET lecturers for up to 4 hours a week in a VET classroom, workshop, or on-site. The course was piloted in 2000 at 12 TAFEs across the state, and research findings suggest that the course is well accepted by students and lecturers, and that the CAVSS model is effective in improving student' outcomes. The research has also highlighted a number of implementation issues, including those associated with widespread misconceptions about the development and application of literacy skills in industry training environments. This paper outlines the research findings and examines some of the implications that the research has for professional development in the adult literacy and basic education field.

BEC01406   Paper
Teachers and IT - integrating the two into the curriculum

Margie Beck, Australian Catholic University

Snyder (2000) writes, "There needs to be more research into how [faculty] departments and individual teachers integrate computers into curricula and how computers interact with the whole school curriculum. How does pedagogy change? Do teachers' expectations alter? What are the implications for teachers' professional development?' (AER Journal Vol27, 2 August.) The professional development offered for using IT in the classroom will be examined through the eyes of four teachers in a secondary school. Each of the teachers came from different teaching areas and had varying skills in IT as well as different experiences in using IT in the classroom. The change in the way the teachers taught and expected their students to work were examined as part of the case study approach taken in attempting to answer some the questions posed by Snyder. Long term changes appeared to be possible only when the teachers' new IT skills overcame their fear of changing established methods of delivery. The organisational process involved in gaining access to the IT Centre also played a part in whether the teachers were willing to organise lessons using IT.

BEL01360   Paper
Researching motivation in context: Rethinking methodologies.

Susan Beltman, Murdoch University

Recent theory and research on motivation has shifted in its focus from a study of more general characteristics of individuals such as personal motivational goals, to an examination of the motivation of individuals within specific domains or contexts. This change in focus has led to a broadening of the methodologies used to examine motivation. Many studies now use mixed methods. Rather than relying almost exclusively on quantitative measures such as questionnaires, researchers are incorporating qualitative measures to capture the dynamic and rich nature of learning and motivation in context. This presentation will illustrate the above trend. The presenter's work in progress will be used to discuss how insights into motivation in context might be obtained using qualitative research methodologies. Participants from the domains of sport and music have been interviewed using a range of specially designed stimulus materials and tasks to gain an understanding of their experiences within these contexts. This approach elicited participants' stories of their development and the people involved, as well as their perceptions of the different settings in which they play sport or music. Participants were asked to consider both positive and negative influences on motivation.

BEN01026   
Developing effective coping and learning strategies for interactions with people with disabilities

Robyn Bentley-Williams, Charles Sturt University

This investigation builds on earlier findings of the student teachers' reflections on learning to relate to people with disabilities through voluntary involvement in community projects. Findings from this study showed that participants learnt both personal and professional strategies that they could apply in their teaching role with children with disabilities. In contrast, this study involved a new research perspective on how experienced educators and carers developed effective coping and learning strategies for their role with people with disabilities.

The research questions addressed:

The significance of this study is to facilitate biographical eflective investigation into effective coping and learning strategies, grounded in substantial examinations of past and present experiences involving people with disabilities within homes, classrooms, schools and communities. The outcomes may have benefits for practising educators/carers and assist in moulding the process for a range of interdisciplinary professionals.

BET01229   Paper
Assessing bullying behaviour of school students through the use of art.

Elisabeth Betlem, University of New South Wales

Bullying behaviour is a pervasive and insidious activity affecting 5% to 18% (Besag, 1989; Rigby and Slee, 1993) of school students reaching their full educational potential. Traditionally studies investigating bullying behaviour have focused on the use of pen and paper tests to identify the 'when', 'where', 'how' and 'how often' bullying behaviour occurs (Bjorkjvist, 1995; Branwaite, 1994, Rigby and Slee 1993). The author proposes an alternative strategy; an art based activity to identify bullying and victim behaviours amongst adolescents in the school years. A Social Constructionist model is deployed to interrogate the conventional use of language in typical pen and paper questionnaires. It will be argued that an analysis of the discourse underlying the questionnaires reveals the limitations of students' self-reporting of direct and indirect bullying. This paper goes onto to argue that art as a non-language dependent means of communication opens up an alternative to the traditional assessment instruments which aim to identify overt bullying behaviour after the event. This project does not aim to develop a new psychology test, but rather to test the usefulness of an art based mechanism to identify students at risk of bullying and victim behaviours.

BEV01117   Paper
How are Maori learners with special needs faring?

Jill Bevan-Brown, Massey University

Similar to many other ethnic minority groups throughout the world, Maori learners with special needs are overrepresented in Special Education. One of the briefs of the SE2000 Research was to investigate whether these Maori learners with special needs were being adequately catered for by the new policy initiatives. This question was posed to Maori parents, teachers in mainstream early childhood centres and schools and to teachers and whanau (extended family) members in kohanga reo and kura kaupapa Maori (total immersion early childhood centres and schools). Based on the data from this research the presenter will discuss the specific needs of Maori learners with special needs both in mainstream and total immersion contexts and the degree to which these needs are being met. The research showed that policy initiatives vary in their effectiveness for Maori, the least effective being the Severe Behaviour Initiative which is the area of greatest Maori representation. A variety of challenges teachers face in providing for Maori learners with special needs will be presented and some suggestions for meeting these challenges will be posed.

This paper is presented as part of Symposium 2, BOU01115 The impact of special education policy change on practice.

BHA01333  ®   Paper
Electronic portfolios, student reflective practices, and the evaluation of effective learning

Madhumita Bhattacharya, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore

Electronic portfolios provide a useful means of promoting as well as assessing the development of student learning over time. The most effective electronic portfolios link student reflective practice with products and performances, which indicate a hands-on and applied acquisition of practical skills and knowledge involving learning technologies. The process of action-reflection is important in that it helps people develop more appropriate and effective ways of working. Moreover, it develops more independent learning, and fosters a problem-solving, solution-orientated approach to the learning process. To what extent, then, might student reflections serve as a reliable indicator of effective learning in general and of the applied use of learning technologies in particular? This paper thus considers the connection between student reflective practice and effective, applied learning within the authentic contexts of learning represented by electronic portfolios. It will further discuss the question of how best to evaluate and assess student reflections as part of a developmental process linked to specific portfolio products or performances.

BIL01035  ®   Paper
Teacher research: A new way of hearing adolescent student talk in class

Dianne Bills, University of South Australia

This paper describes a study which examined the social and institutional relations assembled in and around the talk of young adolescent students in the classroom. It describes how a teacher-researcher attempted to negotiate the insider/outsider divide often used to characterise teacher research, in order to hear students' talk with peers in everyday classroom conversations. The talk was recorded over a period of four months, transcribed, and analysed from an ethnomethodological point of view, using techniques of Conversation Analysis.

Teachers face particular pedagogical, ethical and methodological issues when they conduct research in their own classroom and this study shows what can be accomplished when a teacher adopts an outsider perspective in order to hear students in 'nonintuitive' ways. The study also reveals the insights gained when a teacher adds to that way of hearing by drawing on her 'inside' knowledge of individual speakers. It is possible to appreciate the continuous and creative work students conduct to assemble different ways of being students alongside their many other social and sub-cultural ways of being.

BOA01136   Paper
The Principal's Role in Kindergarten to Grade 2 Education

Margot Boardman, University of Tasmania

The role and impact that a principal has on the educational provision within the school cannot be underestimated (Hallinger & Heck 1996), as he/she needs to be a positive role model in leading others (Anderson 1998) in the day- to-day operation of the school. However, limited research has been completed in respect to the specific role a school principal undertakes in the Kindergarten to Grade 2 (K-2) sector of a primary school. This important role, undertaken by principals in the K-2 area of education within Tasmanian schools, was considered in a research study by Boardman (1999). The perceptions of K-2 teachers (n=245) and their principals (n=30) were sought concerning the role, and primary leadership tasks, of the school principal in K-2 education. Results indicated a lack of congruence between teachers' and principals' responses regarding the role of the principal in K-2. Furthermore, teachers displayed a lack of understanding of the nature, as well as the diversity and complexity, of the tasks completed by the principal. Enhanced communication and interest between K-2 teachers and principals is strongly purported as an integral starting point in developing a more collaborative understanding of the leader's role.

BOL01137  ®   Paper
Evaluation of school restructuring intended to create a middle schooling culture

Terry Boland, Yule Brook College, and Robert Cavanagh, and Graham Dellar, Curtin University of Technology

As a consequence of rationalisation of educational provision in Western Australia, Maddington Senior High School was closed in 1999. A new principal was appointed with the brief to create a middle school. Following extensive refurbishment of physical facilities, appointment of new staff and major curriculum revision, the school was re-opened in 2000 as Yule Brook College. Re-structuring of the school was based upon application of research into effective teaching, learning and school improvement intended to create a learning community. Particular attention was given to identifying the characteristics of school and classroom learning environments conducive to improved student educational outcomes. This influenced school leadership practices, staff selection, curriculum provision, class groupings and classroom design. Prior to re-structuring, The School Cultural Elements Questionnaire, the Classroom Cultural Elements Questionnaire and the Parental Involvement in School Questionnaire were administered respectively to staff, students and parents to profile the prevailing culture of the school. All three surveys were re-administered after one year of school improvement implementation Survey data were subject to one-way analysis of variance to identify stability and change in multiple dimensions of the learning community culture.

Results indicate significant changes occurred within the school over the one-year period of re-structuring.

BOL01201   Paper
The interactional effects of personality type, student learning styles and initial degree choice on first year university students' anxiety and career decision certainty: A model of influence.

Rosalind Bolitho, University of New South Wales

This paper reports the findings of a project exploring the interactional effects of: personality type (measured by the MBTI), student learning styles (measured by the Biggs SPQ) and initial degree choice on student anxiety (STAXI) and career commitment amongst first year students at the College of Fine Arts, UNSW. Students will ostensibly choose a particular degree according to their perceived interests. However, there could be demands made on them by the nature of the particular academic discipline that may well be both unexpected and at odds with the academic predispositions of 'personality type' and the individual's preferred learning style. The study proposed that such a 'mismatch' of learning style and career choice would lead to increased student anxiety, reduced career commitment and an increased preparedness to 'drop out' from a particular course. Correlations between these factors and analysis of variance measures have been undertaken to develop a possible model of influence that predicts students who will be more 'at risk' of university failure particularly in those degrees demanding more than one learning approach. By highlighting the point of mismatch the model aims to explore the potential for possible interventions designed to reduce student anxiety and thus increase retention rates.

BOO01079   Paper
Challenges of incorporating cooperative learning in primary science classrooms

Hong-Kwen Boo, Nanyang Technological University

The challenge of teaching science is to teach in a way that enables pupils to learn science concepts while acquiring process skills and positive scientific attitudes. One of the effective ways of accomplishing these objectives is believed to be through involving pupils in hands-on activities in the context of cooperative learning. The use of cooperative learning presents immense practical challenges to teachers. This paper is based on data collected in the second phase of a three-part study of classroom practices in Singapore.

The first phase is a questionnaire survey of how primary school teachers' in Singapore organise their classrooms in various subject areas. For the second phase, the research team observed 50 lessons in four content curriculum areas - English, Math, Social Studies and Science. This paper reports on the science lessons which were observed and examines the challenges involved in incorporating cooperative learning in the context of teaching primary science in Singapore. Our classroom observations reveal that while groupwork is being carried out in Science lessons, few of the teachers have structured group learning according to the principles of cooperative learning. A further challenge facing teachers is the design of group tasks that require higher-order thinking and promote real collaboration among group members.

BOS01276   Paper
Influencing the future: Goals of student nurses and their perceptions of nursing

Anna Maria Bosco and Catherine Ward, Curtin University of Technology, and Irene Styles, Murdoch University

The motivation to select a tertiary study program is influenced by the long and short term career goals toward which the program is perceived to provide a pathway. Using Ford's (1986) taxonomy of human goals as a theoretical framework, the study presented in this paper explored students’ perceptions of the influences that encouraged them to undertake a nursing career. One major aim was to identify what motivated the students to embark on a nursing career, a second was to determine the students' images of being a nurse. A questionnaire addressing reasons for enrolling in a nursing program, and the role of nurses was devised and administered to 124 nursing students in the first semester of their degree and 84 students completing their final semester.

Findings indicate two types of goals - altruism, and the opportunities nursing can provide to fulfil a range of students' aspirations. In regard to perspective of themselves as nurses, students tended to focus the therapeutic relationship on themselves rather than on the patient. Furthermore, it is evident that the image of nurses and nursing continues to be influence by the media. Results have implications for nurse education as the motivation identified by participants to undertake nursing appear to be complex, but their perceptions of their role as nurses is relatively limited. This is expecially significant given the current shortage of nurses.

BOU01116    Paper
The framework for the Special Education 2000 evaluation and the impact of providing a special education grant to all schools

Roseanna Bourke, Massey University

The Special Education 2000 policy has affected ALL schools in New Zealand. Alongside the changes to the resourcing for students with high needs, the policy introduced two initiatives to assist learners with moderate needs. These included the Resource Teachers: Learning and Behaviour and the Special Education Grant (SEG). The SEG was allocated to all schools irrespective of whether there were students with special educational needs enrolled in the school.

The policy has now been evaluated over a three-year period by a Massey University based research team using a multi-method approach including, where possible, participatory research methods. The evaluation has included extensive national surveys to primary and secondary schools, early childhood centres, service providers, residential special schools and Maori immersion schools - kura kaupapa. This paper outlines the framework for the multimethod participatory research evaluation involving a team of 16 researchers and 70 teacher fieldworkers, presents the findings over the three years, and examines the educational and political implications of the results. Specifically, this paper will discuss the results from the SEG component of the policy.

This paper is presented as part of Symposium 2, BOU01 115, The impact of special education policy change on practice.

BOU01588   Paper
PhD examination and examiner characteristics

Sid Bourke, Jill Scevak and Robert Cantwell, University of Newcastle

The choice of examiners for PhD theses across disciplines tend to be based on a stable group of features, i.e. reputation in the field, publication record, subject and/or methodological expertise, and experience of research supervision and examination. In Australia each thesis is normally examined by three examiners, and there is the expectation that most or all examiners will be drawn from outside the examining institution, with possibly some from overseas. What are the results of this process? It is a question that is rarely posed, and yet may have a significant impact on the process of assessment. For any one thesis how 'balanced' are examiner characteristics and is there a difference by discipline? Do individual or collective examiner characteristics predict the ratings given to a thesis, or particular qualities of examiner reports? This paper draws on data from a study of the examination of one hundred PhD theses from one institution (i.e more than 300 examiners reports including some cases of resubmission). The findings have implications for the process of thesis examination, the interpretation of thesis reports, and advice given to supervisors and candidates.

This paper will be presented as part of Symposium 25 HOL01586 Frontiers in research training: Evaluating PhD examination and supervision.

BRA01557  ®   Paper
From "Too little too late" to "This is the best part": Students’ perceptions of changes to the practicum placement in teaching

Robyn Brandenberg, and Janette Ryan, University of Ballarat

Many educators have commented upon the lack of research into the successful operation of work-based learning programs within courses of tertiary study. There has been a long tradition of including school-based practical placements ('the practicum') into preservice teacher education courses. The length of these practicum placements is generally prescribed by teacher education accreditation bodies, but the organisation and timing of these experiences is determined by individual universities. This paper reports on a pilot study into the practicum that arose from a review of a preservice teacher education course at a regional university that, among other issues, investigated students’ views on the organisation of the practicum. Students reported strong views about this aspect of the program and these views were responded to in the re-design of the course, through the introduction of a practicum placement early in the course. The new intake of students was invited to evaluate the course, to measure whether and how well the university had met the needs that the previous students had identified. The students’ responses outlined a range of benefits that relate to relationships between the various stakeholders involved in the practicum, as well as issues such as commitment to the course and potential impacts on retention patterns. The students’ views have encouraged us to shift our thinking away from a focus on issues such as the structure, organisation and timing of the practicum, to a more fundamental questioning of the tenets underpinning current practicum programmes. They have also prompted us to re-frame our own views of what constitutes effective learning for student teachers during the practicum experience.

BRO01013    Paper
School subject borders and the maintenance of a hegemonic curriculum discourse in multidisciplinary curriculum making

Ross Brooker

The symbolic enshrinement of subjects in the secondary school curricula has been a very successful principle in the history of curriculum making (Goodson, 1992). Goodson argues that the subject "is a perfect device for conservation and stability and stands to effectively frustrate any more holistic initiatives... New initiatives in curriculum-making have to be scrutinised at this level of symbolic action." Drawing on the analysis of interview and observational data collected from a twelve-month case study of the implementation of a "more holistic" multidisciplinary curriculum at a school site, this paper analyses the ways in which subject borders influenced the curriculum making discourse. Insights about the borders and implications for crossing them become the focus for reporting professional practice research in this paper.

BRO01031   Paper
Leading or being led by the young to later arts participation

Neil Brown, The University of New South Wales

Reporting on research conducted by the author for the Australia Council for the Arts, this paper portrays later involvement in the arts from the perspective of a mutually influential relationship between artworks and their youthful participants. It documents how the social profile of young participants in the arts influences the status of the arts they go on to support, how sub-cultural attitudes of the young shape the economic viability of the arts, and how young people use the arts to satisfy different needs in their lives.

It also shows how artworks and performances, in return, appeal to a range of technical, cognitive, and cultural sympathies of the young in ways that are often overlooked by educators.

For example, how the arts can regiment, proselytise, satirise, propagandise, excite sexual interest, and challenge the status quo of their youthful participants.

This paper documents how the social profile of young participants influences the status of the arts they support and how the arts, in return, capture the loyalty of young participants.

BRO01011    Paper
Extending the borders of an evaluation project beyond the purposes of formative feedback and accountability: considerations of teacher confidence and competence in a curriculum change effort

Ross Brooker and Ian Macpherson

Trialing new curricula in the Queensland secondary school context is a very formal process in which the curriculum making activity of teachers in the trial is monitored through a sponsored evaluation. The purpose of the evaluation is to provide feedback to the curriculum developers on the implementation of the new curriculum in the school context. The principal focus for the evaluation is the efficacy of the curriculum document in terms of its substance and the ability of teachers to translate it into teaching and learning programs for students. The effects of the trial process on teachers’ personal resources for curriculum making are rarely studied. In a recent two-year study of the implementation of a trial senior secondary (years 11 & 12) school curriculum in Home Economics (Brooker & Macpherson, 2001), the borders of the formal evaluation process was extended to investigate the perceptions of teachers about their competence and confidence in curriculum-making. Drawing on the analysis of data collected from 35 teachers in 24 schools over a two year period, this paper reports on how teachers perceived their levels of competence and confidence during the trial and on the factors which influenced those levels. Implications are drawn for the curriculum-making process in schools. The study reported in this paper is, therefore, an example of professional practice research which sought to go beyond the primary purpose of syllabus evaluation.

BRO01365   Paper
eVenturing with information enabled innovators and entrepreneurs: Designing customised learning space for the new skill set requirements of eBusiness

John Brown-Parker, M. Gaca, G. Chow and U.Teuscher, Swinburne University of Technology

Existing graduate programs at the Centre for eBusiness and Communication, Swinburne, are successfully meeting the challenge of developing information enabled managers with the knowledge, skills and abilities to operate in complex eBusiness environments and networked global marketspaces. Having made the transition to the virtual world of eBusiness, the next challenge was to design a flexible learning space that encouraged information enabled learners to eVenture in cyberspace. A fresh design approach was required to develop the new concepts, principles and techniques needed to help learners look beyond the horizon, identify emerging and unfamiliar indicators of change and then use sound business acumen to generate strategic opportunities and sustainable eBusiness models. This paper describes the development of a customised learning and assessment space, built upon a tested digital delivery system, that allows learners to move comfortably through time, space and place; transcend the limitations of national boundaries and the constraints of bricks and mortar; and apply the new "virtual" skill set of entrepreneurship, innovation and creativity.

BRO01653  ®   Paper
Quality issues and effective design principles in distributed learning materials

Christopher Brook and Paul Bowen, Edith Cowan University

Distributed learning has become a focal point as a result of an increased interest in decentralising education, the increased availability of technology and the promotion of life long learning. At the same time funding structures within the university are encouraging the maintenance of student numbers and a decrease in attrition rates. Though laudable the combination of these pressures for change and increased service may have an effect on the academic quality of units as departments attempt to maintain student numbers in an increasingly competitive and expensive education environment. The potential for a conflict in interests raises many questions of the distributed learning environment including the use of current knowledge of learning and design principles and the effectiveness in meeting student and university needs and attaining high levels of student outcomes. This paper seeks to identify processes that act to reduce unit content quality. The intention is to identify a process by which current knowledge of learning and instruction can be applied in the distributed learning environment to meet student and university needs and optimise learning outcomes while maintaining cost effectiveness. A design process will be described. The paper is based on practical experience of the writers working in a team environment to develop a distributed learning unit for an educationally diverse group of students.

C

CAM01221   Paper
Identifying the developmental phases encountered by beginning teachers during an internship.

Robert Cameron, University of Western Sydney

Throughout the 1990's there have been reports world-wide that have requested teacher education programs to closely consider their courses for beginning teachers in better preparing them for the world of teaching and in providing the teaching profession with competent practitioners. Internships were seen as a possible means of achieving this and providing teaching with the practitioners to fulfil the pre-requisites of a beginning teacher. The question remained though, how do we know that the graduates of a teacher education program are " ready to teach" and to play their part as a team member in the education of children? This paper investigates the developmental phases encountered by beginning teachers through their involvement in an internship program. This internship is a component of an initial teacher education course at the University of Western Sydney, Australia. The paper describes the nature of the research and reports the results of a five-year study of the internship program. This research identifies four developmental phases through which interns progress over their 10 -week internship experience. Each phase is identified and explained utilising the range of data available. These data were collected utilising qualitative methodologies including focus groups, intern reflective journals, and semi-structured interviews with participants and field notes of intern classroom practices and behaviours collected during the internship. A process of triangulation was utilised to confirm, describe and interrogate the patterns and relationships identified in the data and to understand the phases of intern development. This paper will contribute to the literature about beginning teaching and the role that an internship approach can play in providing the teaching profession with competent beginning teachers.

CAN01525   Paper
Adjusting to university study: The experiences of students from a manufacturing background undertaking university level study

Jill Scevak and Robert Cantwell, University of Newcastle

A recent trend in university study has been the recognition of non-traditional criteria for entry into undergraduate study, particularly for mature aged students. One increasingly common mode of entry has been through recognition of prior learning (RPL) whereby comparable industrial/commercial experience has been seen as equivalent to more formal modes of matriculation. In this study, the academic experiences of 26 male students from an industrial background were investigated as they completed a two-year education degree. The purpose of the study was to investigate the quality of student adjustment to an academic environment following extensive industrial experience. It was hypothesised that some difficulty in both academic and social adjustment to university study may be experienced by this group, potentially manifesting in less successful outcomes. Students completed a series of questionnaires relating to learning (approaches to learning, self-regulation and epistemological beliefs) as well as a series of open-ended questions relating to academic and social adjustment. Data were collected in the final semester of study. Data indicated that students had developed a positive learning profile, indicated by a bias towards deep learning, adaptive self-regulation and a relatively sophisticated epistemology (marred only by a retained belief in simple knowledge). Open-ended responses indicated a trend towards increasing adaptation to the demands of university study, albeit with a continuing tension between the social and financial effects of study and ongoing academic demands. Ultimately, the students polarised into those maintaining a sense of personal growth and change, and those who increasingly saw their time at university in instrumental terms.

CAR01071   Paper
Artists who teach: an ethnographic study into the relation between artistic practice and teaching practice of artists who teach in tertiary settings.

Judith Carroll, Australian Catholic University

This paper reports on current empirical research that investigates the relation between artistic practice and teaching practice. Based on a previous study by the author into the unconfirmed prediction embedded in Disciplined Based Art Education (DBAE), that the sophisticated practice of artists conforms to an integrated and disciplined pattern, this study hypothesises that artists who teach find few pedagogical resources within their own practice. Despite the capital invested in the orthodox belief that it is artistic practice that informs their pedagogy, and despite the apparent tendency for artists to unselfconsciously rehearse their own artistic style with their students, this longitudinal investigation seeks to disconfirm the view that artist teachers are driven by art educational conventions rather than by representations of their own artistic practices.

CAR01309   Paper
An Evidence-based Practice Approach to Practicum Supervision Using New Information Management Technology

David Carter, The University of Exeter

The roles of supervisors; their responsibilities and the nature and forms of communication between university supervisor, school co-operating teacher and student teacher, appear to be central to feelings of isolation and disconnectedness encountered by student teachers engaged on field experience in schools. In this study, new information management and communication technologies were used to support collaborative approaches to practicum supervision in a 'borderless' manner. In the learning environments created by extensive information and communications technology use, the generation and utilisation of information by student teachers and their supervisors was monitored and evaluated. It was found that by exploiting the technological convergence of a new Instructional Management Information System (IMIS), configured to support practicum experiences in an integrative fashion, the experiences of participants in the supervisory triad was enriched and the channels for professional discourse enlarged. For the technology tools to be optimally effective, however, each member of the triad required more specialised training than was anticipated at the outset, in the use of new information management tools, applied specifically to serve the ends of practicum supervision. Difficulties in developing an appropriate electronic infrastructure for full implementation of the ICT employed in the schools settings will also be reported.

CAR01399  ®   Paper
Crossing the borders between university and workplace learning: Problematising the integration of theory and practice in teacher education.

Patricia Cartwright, Ann Gervasoni and Mary Nuttall, Australian Catholic University

This paper reports on a Project that aimed to assist student teachers in their professional development and learning through their study of the integration of the theory and practice of the disciplines of Literacy Education, Maths Education, and Teaching and Classroom Management. The target group consisted of Education students in their second year of their BA/BT course when the focus of their studies is on curriculum theories and classroom practice. The Project aimed to address the complexities of the professions into which students will enter by crossing the borders between universities and schools, developing and implementing curriculum programs, and collaborating with classroom teachers, in order to enhance the learning of student teachers. What became clear, however, was that there was not a seamless integration of theory and practice. This disjuncture between theory and practice provided an opportunity for student teachers to cross over into borders of meaning, ways of knowing, social and power relations, and values, that challenged them to problematise the relationship between theory and practice. A particular focus of this paper is on students’ critical reflection as they crossed the borders between the subject positions offered them in university classrooms and their placement in school classrooms - a situation that enabled them to engage critically with the complexities of learning, teaching and schooling.

CAR01657       ®    Paper
A journey of learning: Inclusive school development

Suzanne Carrington and Robyn Robinson, Queensland University of Technology

A global recognition of students’ rights requires school organisations to recognise, value, and provide for diversity. The move towards more inclusive schooling in Queensland, Australia requires schools to address professional development on two levels: reculturing of the school to reflect inclusive beliefs and values; and enhancement of teacher skills and knowledge to better address the learning needs of all students. The recently developed Index for Inclusion (Booth, Ainscow, Black-Hawkins, Vaughan, & Shaw, 2000) is one resource that can facilitate the proces of professional development and facilitate change in school culture, policy and teaching practice. The Index proce: described in this paper incorporates the use of a critical friend and peer mentoring within an action research model which together provide benefits for all involved in the professional development process. This paper reports on the initial stages of a collaborative partnership between a university and a primary school in a disadvantaged socioeconomic area of Queensland, Australia. The stages of the journey of learning incorporating the Index for Inclusion are reported.

This paper will be presented as part of Symposium 6 CAR01227 Does the Index for Inclusion provide a framework for school improvement and professional development for inclusive education?

CAR01661       ®    Paper
Innovative teaching and student centred learning: A case study of three faculties at QUT

Belinda Carpenter, Daphne Meadmore and Gordon Tait, Queensland University of Technology

This case study of Queensland University of Technology (QUT) found that good teaching has two central features is necessarily student centred, and it is 'innovative', a characteristic that, at QUT at least, is increasingly equated with the use of technology. This paper based upon interviews with twenty-four QUT academics across three faculties (Education, Science, and Law), will suggest four things. First, that the concept of student centred learni based on ideals of progressive education, is neither an historical inevitability nor theoretically unproblematic. Second, that irrespective of discipline, all lecturers espouse an underpinning 'progressive' teaching philosophy, e though, in practice, teaching style appears to be determined primarily by subject-matter. Third, given that, in practice, the progressive model seems to suit some faculties and subject areas better than others (ie. Education, as opposed to Science and Law) this has significant professional implications for the lecturers concerned. Finally, t rather than promoting a 'progressive' pedagogy, the use of technology in teaching actually appears to reinforce traditional teaching techniques. Consequently, it is suggested that monolithic understandings of good teaching, when applied across the academy irrespective of context, are often inappropriate, ineffective and inequities, and that universities need to think through their teaching policies and programmes more thoroughly.

CAR01707   Paper
The voice of the adolescent with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder in individual case conferences: How adolescents with AD/HD manage the symptoms of their disorder and the treatment strategies.

Georgia Carragher, Glenda Campbell-Evans and Chris Forlin. Edith Cowan University.

Adolescents with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (AD/HD) are at risk of under achievement and under productivity in school, home and in the social environment. Literature demonstrates that adolescents with AD/HD exhibit higher levels of risk-taking behaviour than are developmentally appropriate; while adolescents with AD/HD also exhibit low levels of self-esteem and poor peer relationships. This qualitative longitudinal study, divided into four phases of identification, intermediation and evaluation intends to address the paucity of previous research with adolescents with AD/HD related to their perceptions of their disorder while, at the same time, evaluating how adolescents with AD/HD (both male and female) are able to self-manage their disorder. Grounded Theory methodology will form the basis for data analysis, collation and collection. The aim of this study is to use grounded theory methodology to construct theory about the management of the symptoms of the disorder AD/HD and its treatment strategies for adolescents with AD/HD by adolescents with AD/HD where no such theory currently exists. The unequivocal aim of the youth driven individual case conference is to allow adolescents with AD/HD to regain their self-esteem, with the eventual objective being that of ameliorating current negative social and educational outcomes.

CAV01138  ®   Paper
Secondary school culture and improvement: Teacher, student and parent perspectives

Robert Cavanagh and Graham Dellar, Curtin University of Technology

A school improvement program was designed for a large Perth senior high school. This included an empirical study of learning community culture with surveying of staff, students and parents. The School Cultural Elements Questionnaire was administered to staff (N =77). An emphasis on learning and collegiality were identified as attributes of the staff. However, they were uncertain about the presence of professional values, collaboration, shared planning and transformation leadership. The Classroom Cultural Elements Questionnaire was administered to students (N = 988) in a stratified sample of 54 classes.

Factor analysis showed the instrument was profiling 11 constructs. ANOVA were used to examine differences due to class membership, year group, subject area and gender. All eleven elements varied significantly between the 54 classes with differences in specific elements identified between years, subjects and boys and girls. The Parental Involvement in Schooling Questionnaire was administered to parents (N = 293). Previous factor analysis revealed the instrument was profiling 10 constructs. Family and home attributes were identified as being conducive to parental involvement whereas parents perceived teacher commitment to be lacking. Empirical findings were presented to community through workshop conducted to identify strategies to improve aspects of the learning community culture.

CAV01140   Paper
Student perceptions of classroom learning environments in single gender lower secondary English classes

Robert Cavanagh, Kelly Mollon and Graham Dellar, Curtin University of Technology

The learning environments within seven lower secondary single gender English classes in a Perth school were investigated. The researchers hypothesised there would be differences between the female and male class groups. Research methods included administration of the Classroom Cultural Elements Questionnaire (CCEQ) to each class. In previous studies, the CCEQ had solicited significantly different responses from females and males in mixed gender classes. A complementary qualitative case study examination of Year Eight classes with observation, videotaping and interviewing students and the respective teachers was also conducted. The CCEQ profiled student perceptions of eleven classroom attributes. Data were subject to one-way analysis of variance and effect size by gender, class membership and year level. Of the eleven attributes, only two were significantly different due to gender, however, six were different due to class membership and three due to year level. The qualitative case studies of the Year Eight classes revealed differences in the teaching resources used in the male and female classes, but not in the observable behaviour of the teachers or the students. The study found that differences in classroom learning environments between single gender classes were only slightly related to the gender of children in the respective classes.

CHA01062   Paper
Validation of a Measure of Personal Theories about Teaching and Learning

Kwok-wai CHAN, Hong Kong Institute of Education

Researchers in teacher education have suggested that many of teachers classroom decision-making and actions are based on some sort of theoretical framework which are beliefs driven (Armour-Thomas, 1989; Clark & Peterson, 1986; Marland, 1995, 1998). Such beliefs driven theoretical framework constitute teacher’s conceptions about teaching and learning and build up their principles of classroom practice. These beliefs or theoretical frameworks are given various labels in literature including implicit theories or personal theories about teaching and learning. Studies of teacher’s personal theories are often conducted by means of qualitative methods such as interview, narratives and analysis of reflective journal about teaching. Quantitative measure by means of questionnaire or inventory to study personal theories are few but they are useful to provide a global picture or profiles of teachers beliefs/conceptions about teaching and learning. This paper attempts to develop and validate an instrument to measure teacher’s personal theories. By means of which teacher educators and teacher education students can have an understanding of student teachers beliefs and conceptions about teaching and learning, which is considered a functional way of helping them learn how to teach in their course of professional development. Thus the validated measure assists teacher educators to evaluate the effectiveness of the teacher education program with reference to the identified profile of personal theories of their students. Also, the relations of demographic variables of teacher education students and their personal theories were analysed to investigate if there is any influence of age, gender and electives studied on the students beliefs or personal theories about teaching/learning, based on which implications and suggestions are drawn for teaching education development and research.

CHA01098       ®   Paper
The validation and application of a new learning environment instrument to evaluate online learning in higher education

Vanessa Chang and Darrell Fisher, Curtin University of Technology

More and more academics are accepting the challenge of using the web-based or on-line learning in higher education to deliver coursework. Many web sites indicate that opportunities for students to receive coursework via the web is routine at most universities. The Internet/Web has become an important change agent in higher education and universities are reviewing their strategic plans to incorporate on-line learning. As a result of the increase in on-line courses, it is timely for learning environment research to focus on the Web. However, to date, no comprehensive instruments have been developed to assess on-line learning environments for higher education. A new web-based learning environment instrument is described in this paper. The Web-based Learning Environment Instrument (WEBLEI) contains four main scales. Three scales (emancipatory, co-participatory, and qualia) are built upon the work of Tobin (1998). The other scale focuses on information structure and the design of on-line material. The rationale behind and development of the WEBLEI are described in the paper. Statistical analyses, Cronbach alpha reliability coefficient, factor analysis, and discriminant validity indicated that the WEBLEI is a reliable and valid instrument. The paper also reports on findings involving the perceptions of undergraduate and graduate students utilising this new instrument.

CHA01320   Paper
Maternal teaching strategies as predictors of young children’s critical thinking

Julia Chandra, Murdoch University

The relation between maternal teaching strategies and her 4- or 5-year old child’s ability to think critically was examined in this study. A group of mothers was trained to interact reciprocally with their child. The training lasted for five months, during which the mother-child interactions as well as the child’s measures on critical thinking were monitored. The results were then compared with those of mothers who did not receive such training. Maternal teaching strategies and the child’s critical thinking ability were assessed in natural setting but were taken independently, since one aspect of critical thinking is the ability to think spontaneously and independently from authoritative figure. Altogether 14 categories of maternal teaching strategies were used in the mother-child interaction analyses, while critical thinking in children were assessed on cognitive and affective components. Preliminary results showed that children who were able to think critically have mothers who emphasised inquiry rather than command or control. The effectiveness of the training and the role of maternal teaching strategies in promoting young children’s critical thinking are discussed.

CHA01335   Paper
Creativity computer-assisted instruction systems CCAI in Taiwan: System development & an experimental study

Chun-Yang Chang, Ying-Yao Cheng and Yi-Hui Ho, National Sun Yat-Sen University
Department of Information Management

To respond effectively in today’s quickly changing, highly complex business environment, management must depend on organizational members’ mental capacities to generate new and meaningful ideas. Consequently, creativity has evolved into a fundamental organizational resource useful in establishing and maintaining competitive advantage. One relatively new set of tools intended to augment the creative process is Creativity Computer-Assisted Instruction Systems (CCAI). These computer-based tools are generally aimed at enhancing boundary-breaking, insightful thought during problem solving. However, if a CCAI were to directly enhance creative performance, the benefits could be multifaceted. For example, students could use the CCAI for reinforcing techniques learned in formal creativity training. Or, by matching CCAI tools to specific lesson needs, the CCAI might enable teachers to better enhance student’s creative performance. Due to (1) the effects of culture gap on system performance and user satisfaction, (2) the lack of clear empirical evidence concerning the value of a CCAI, there is also little theoretical justification. Each CCAI appears to provide a different methodology for enhancing creativity with little more than anecdotal reasoning to justify the approach; a laboratory experiment was conducted to evaluate the performance of CCAI developed in Taiwan. The results suggest that responses generated with software support are significantly more novel and valuable than responses without software support. It is hoped the findings from this investigation can be used to improve individual creative performance, further research concerning factors relevant to creativity, and guide future CCAI development efforts.

CHA01461   Paper
A holistic approach to teacher education programme evaluation

Shook-Cheong Agnes Chang and Kay Cheng Soh, Nanyang Technological University

The usual approach to an internal evaluation of an initial teacher education programme is to get feedback from the trainees in terms of the programme achieving its stated objectives. But the stakeholders of a programme involve more than just the trainees and the developer of that particular programme. The key stakeholders are the schools, the trainees and all the lecturers involved in teaching the programme. Hence the National Institute of Education in Singapore uses a 3-pronged approach to evaluate its initial teacher programmes. Questionnaires are developed for the trainees, school principals and NIE lecturers involved in the respective programmes. As the Institute has adopted the Attitude-Skills-Knowledge Model as its training model, the items in the questionnaires reflect trainees’ readiness for classroom teaching in terms of their attitudes, skills and knowledge. The items also reflect the " Thinking School. Learning Nation", "Project-Work", "National Education", and "Information Technology" initiatives introduced into education in recent years to prepare trainees for the challenges in the new millennium.

CHA01480   Paper
External inspection and school improvement in challenging circumstances - An English perspective.

Christopher Chapman, University of Nottingham.

It is widely argued that Office for Standards in Education (OfSTED) inspection is a school improvement process that has a positive effect at both school and classroom level. Yet, despite a body of contemporary research into the various aspects of the inspection process, there is a notable absence of independent empirical research investigating the relationship between OfSTED inspection, change processes and school improvement, especially in low attaining and failing schools. This paper reports the preliminary findings of an on-going study into the role of OfSTED as a mechanism for improving secondary schools working in challenging circumstances. A sample of recently inspected secondary schools attaining 25% or less 5 or more A*-C grades at GCSE level was selected. The research design utilised a case study approach to address two separate research questions. Firstly, does OfSTED inspection identify similar priorities for change to those identified internally by schools in challenging circumstances? To answer this question key issues raised by the OfSTED report were compared with the internal longer term school improvement plan, and priorities identified during interviews with teaching staff at all levels. Secondly, does OfSTED result in changes in teaching and non-teaching practice in schools in challenging circumstances? This was explored through the use of questionnaires and interviews. Early findings suggest a complex relationship between OfSTED inspection and the change process in schools in challenging circumstances. Further research to be conducted will investigate the sustainability of any changes generated by OfSTED inspection.

CHE01170   Paper
Curriculum reforms in a changing education system: A case of a physics curriulum package in Singapore

Charles Chew Ming Kheng and HO Boon Tiong, Nanyang Technological University

This paper focuses on the design of a Physics curriculum package that is currently in use in a significant number of Singapore secondary schools. It traces the evolution of the Singapore Education System from the survival-driven phase (1965-1978) to the efficiency-driven phase (1979-1990) to the current ability-driven education phase. The impact of these changes in the evolution of the Singapore Education System on curriculum planning and development from the predominantly social reconstructionism conception of curriculum to the academic rationalist, humanistic and cognitive conceptions will be discussed. The Physics curriculum package being examined is designed to incorporate the three major educational initiatives, namely, Information Technology, National Education and Thinking. Of special mention in the package is the incorporation of the 'edutainment' framework into the 'disciplinary knowledge' approach used in the design of the textbooks. This 'edutainment' framework seeks to present Physics as a body of content knowledge of high educational value in an entertaining way. Besides giving a description, an analysis and an evaluation of the various components of the Physics curriculum package will be made from the learner's perspective. The paper concludes with the need to incorporate some other initiatives from the teacher's perspective to improve the Physics curriculum package.

CHE01210  Paper
Teachers' and students' thinking styles and their - nteraction of Taiwan primary school

Ying-Yao Cheng, Wen-Chung Wang, Ching-Chung Guey and Ya-Wen Chen, National Sun Yat-Sen University

Grigorenko and Sternberg (1997) administered 199 gifted senior high school students with TSQ (Thinking Style Questionnaire) and Triarchical Aptitude Test, and found Legislative and Judicial styles were found effective in predicting the performance of analytic tasks and that the correspondence between teachers' and students' thinking styles facilitates learning. The study intends to explore teachers' and students' thinking styles and their interaction. The main purposes of the study are to Explore teachers 'background factors, teachers' thinking styles, and their relationships with instructional activities. Explore instructional activities, students' thinking styles, learning satisfaction and their relationships with academic achievement. Explore the similarity between teachers and students thinking styles, and its relationships with learning satisfaction and academic achievement. Subjects of the study include 256 teachers of 33 primary schools in Taiwan. 425 grade fifth- and six-grade senior primary school students. Instruments on teachers include Thinking Style Questionnaire for Teachers, TSQT and Instructional Behaviours Self Inventory. Instruments on students include Thinking Style Questionnaire, and Learning Perception Satisfaction CheckList. Statistical methods used in this study include Pearson's Product Moment Correlation, one-way ANOVA, one-way MANOVA, and Canonical Correlation. In summary, the results of the study basically supported Sternberg's Mental Self-Government theory (1988,1990,1997), and further research deserves exploring in a future study.

CHE01271  ®   Paper
Thinking for social justice in the curriculum

Brenda Cherednichenko, Victoria University

This paper reports the role of teachers in curriculum decision making. It reports work from research which examined teachers' attitudes to and perceptions of curriculum, specifically thinking skills programs. Further, it explores the connections between the development of teacher thinking and social action in the pursuit of democratic and socially just schooling. Despite these goals frequenting the rhetoric, progress in the delivery of such education seems somewhat stifled. The argument proposed is that improving resources and opportunities for conscious teacher thinking and action in the organisation of learning and delivery of curriculum can improve learning outcomes for all students and support socially just and democratic practice.

CHE01294    Paper
A study of thinking styles and their relevant variables of junior high school principals in Taiwan

Ying-Yao Cheng, Jui-Feng Chang, and Ya-Wen Chen, National Sun Yat-Sen University

Sternberg's theory of mental self-government (1988,1990,1997) suggests that people's thinking style can be flexible to adapt them selves to the demanded situation. Therefore, it is interesting to explore whether principals', deans', and teachers' thinking styles match or not, and to understand their correlation and their effects. The main purposes of the study are to: Explore the situation of junior high school principals' thinking styles. Analyse the differences of thinking styles of principals' background factors. Study the similarities of thinking styles between principals and deans. Study the consistency and inconsistency in terms of satisfaction between principals and teachers. Study the correlation between thinking styles and leadership styles of principals. Subjects of the study include 199 principals of junior high schools in Taiwan. 45 principals, 142 deans and 261 teachers of Kaohsiung's and Pington's junior high schools in Taiwan. Instruments on principals include Thinking Style Questionnaire, and Leadership Style Questionnaire, deans Thinking Style Questionnaire, teachers Thinking Style Questionnaire and Leadership Perception Satisfaction CheckList. Statistical methods used in this study include Frequency, t-test, chi-square test, Pearson's Product Moment Correlation, and two-way ANOVA, In summary, the results of the study basically supported Sternberg's Mental Self-Government theory (1988,1990,1997), and further research is required in future study.

CHE01376   Paper
Multiple research approaches for research in environmental education and application of findings.

Irene Cheong, Curtin University of Technology and David F. Treagust, Curtin University of Technology.

The paper illustrates how an inquiry was conducted using multiple research approaches involving both qualitative and quantitative methods (case study, semi-qualitative grounded theory and quantitative statistical analyses) with data sources obtained from four groups - teachers, teacher trainees, secondary students and key persons for the environment and environmental education as well as document reviews. This inquiry examined four aspects of environmental education; influences on attitudes towards the environment, perceptions of existing provisions, understanding of the aquatic environment - an environmental issue, and the status of people's environmental attributes, including their knowledge, awareness, attitudes, beliefs, action and sources of information. Results of the multiple components of the study provided baseline data to develop guidelines for policy making and curriculum development as well as improving the teaching of environmental education. Follow-up activities to attempt to apply the research findings and negotiate acceptance of the findings are described. The paper examines how multiple research approaches contribute towards teaching, learning and research in environmental education.

CHE01553   Paper
Issues and practices of school-based testing, and future challenges in innovative technological assessment, in Singapore.

Lee Chin Chew, Nanyang Technological University

School-based testing is an integral part of the teaching and learning process, and it provides teachers with vital information about students' learning progress. What are the current practices in school testing in Singapore, and what are some of the issues arising therefrom? Do conventional testing practices measure up to the needs of recent changes in Singapore education, in the areas of IT, Thinking, Project Work, and the "School Excellence Model"? What are some innovations in educational assessment that may be more compatible with these changes? How can computer technology support and enhance these innovative assessments? This paper will first examine the assessment system in Singapore education, and discuss some issues related to current testing practices. In the light of recent changes in education, the need for a rethink on these practices is proposed. The paper will then explore some innovations in educational assessment that may bring about a more meaningful assessment of student capabilities and potential's in learning. A place for technology in educational assessment will also be discussed.

CHI01532   Paper
Brainstorming to concept maps: Developing ontological categories for energy

Gail Chittleborough, Chris Hawkins and David Treagust, Curtin University of Technology

Energy is an abstract concept that is poorly understood at the middle school level. Traditionally the use of imposed definitions and terminology, which have little relevance for students, has given the topic of energy a reputation for being boring and dry. Students' preconceived understanding of the energy concept, derived from their own experiences was the starting point of this study. Students were required to analyse their own ideas on energy, brainstorm a variety of fields relating to the topic of energy and construct concept maps and Venn diagrams to represent their understanding. The schools' policy of integrating lap top computers in middle school provided additional tools to achieve the objectives of the science unit on energy. Guided development of students' schema from very specific examples to general categories helped to develop new ontological schema in the students' mental organisation of their knowledge and ideas relating to energy. This constructivist approach formed the groundwork to the students learning processes which were dependent on the social interaction of students, students listening to each other, working as a team, the visual record, the linking of concepts and ideas, and the integration of new ideas with their existing ideas.

CHN01046   Paper
Learning Plans for Student Scaffolding

Vivien Lee Looi Chng, Temasek Polytechnic and Steven Coombs, Sonoma State University

We all know that lesson plans are introduced to initial teachers as an initial management tool for scaffolding organizational learning, but little work has been done to connect the ideal scaffolds for individualized student learning. Our research project has investigated and developed the practical classroom implementation of Learning Plans as a personal task-management scaffold for student learning.

The teacher's role in enabling self-organized learning for large groups of students can be achieved through the deployment of Learning Plans, which converts teacher-centered curriculum management into student-centered learning tasks. This paper briefly considers the pedagogical practice behind this innovative curriculum reform initiative in the context of a recently completed research project in Singapore.

CHN01325   Paper
Evaluating critical thinking pedagogy to support primary school project work using an action research approach

Vivien Lee Looi Chng, Temasek Polytechnic, Singapore

The research study describes the findings of an action research project conducted at a local primary school to overcome students' "cut and paste" mentality when using information sourced from the World Wide Web for writing project reports. This paper reviews the introduction of self-organised learning (S-O-L) developed by Thomas and Harri-Augstein (1985) as an enabling framework for knowledge management. Based on the dual notions of social constructivism and reflective conversational learning, S-O-L offers the action researcher tools such as the Personal Learning Contract and the Purpose-Strategy-Outcome-Review grid for project management. For the student, Learning Plans built upon learning events designed as small tasks related to real life contexts allow for critical thinking to be modelled. As a flexible, content-free technology, students scaffold their own learning and manage the information, which they encounter. As Knowledge Elicitation Systems (KES), these are learner-centred and systematic models of learning based on social constructivism that lead to the ease of knowledge management (Coombs, 1995). The use of S-O-L has been found to increase students' interest in learning and critical thinking dispositions, such as a willingness to self-correct and persist. It is recommended that the sound integration of LPs into the curriculum require teachers to play their roles as facilitators more competently. As such a review of current professional development practices is called for if teachers are to be competent in guiding critical thinking amongst students.

CHU01435    Paper
Validation of the Chinese Language Classroom Environment Inventory (CLCEI) for use in Singapore secondary schools

Siew Lian Chua and Angela F. L. Wong, Nanyang Technological University and Der-Thanq Chen, University of Canterbury

The Chinese Language Classroom Environment Inventory (CLCEI) is a classroom environment instrument for assessing students' and teachers' perceptions of their Chinese Language classroom environment in Singapore secondary schools. It is a bilingual instrument with 48 items presented in both English and Chinese. The English version of the CLCEI was customised from the original English version of the 'What is Happening in This Class?" (WIHIC) questionnaire (Fraser, Fisher & McRobbie, 1996) and its Chinese version were modified from the Taiwanese Chinese version of the WIHIC questionnaire (Huang & Fraser, 1997) for use in Singapore Chinese Language classrooms. The CLCEI was validated using 1460 secondary three (express) Chinese Language students in Singapore. Various statistical procedures were undertaken to examine validity, reliability and the factor structure of the six 8-itern scales of the CLCEI. The purpose of this paper is to describe how the CLCEI was validated and to report on the validation results. The validation results obtained were compared with that for the original WIHIC questionnaire. The outcomes of the comparisons were analysed and discussed.

This paper is presented as part of Symposium 17 WON01431 Learning environments of different types of Singapore classrooms.

CHY01478   Paper
Improving the preparation of teachers: Educating preservice teachers for the information millennium

Stefanie Chye, S.L.Kong, and S.H.Seng, Nanyang Technological University

The educational scene is evolving rapidly in response to societal developments over the last decade. Attempts to confront challenges of the 21st century have meant that ambitious goals are being set forth in current educational reform efforts. Singapore's Prime Minister, Mr. Goh Chok Tong, summed up the nation's vision for educational reform in these words - "Thinking Schools and Learning Nation". This vision of schooling however, poses great challenges for teachers and the schools in which they work. In order to meet these challenges, renewed forms of teacher training are an imperative. The purpose of the present paper is thus to discuss future directions for teacher education programs in light of current societal demands. Approaches to developing teachers who are equipped to teach in the schools of tomorrow will also be suggested. Particular emphasis is placed on the ways to train pre-service teachers to teach thinking and lifelong learning skills effectively.

CLA01231   Paper
The development of a process for the evaluation of teacher education

Philip Clarkson and Ron Toomey, Australian Catholic University, Kay Owens, University of Western Sydney, Wilfred Kaleva, University of Goroka and Theresa Hamadi, Balob Teachers College

This paper reports on the methodology used to develop a baseline survey of Papua New Guinea primary and secondary teacher education. Group discussions, surveys, tests, interviews of final-year students, observations and interviews of first-year-out teachers, and lecture observations were used. Data on each area of programs, lecturing, and students were collated. The analysis drew together comments from several sources for each College separately with some general conclusions about the indicators that should show significant change during the life of an AusAID funded project.

CLA01235   Paper
Teachers not using computers to teach mathematics

Philip Clarkson and Ron Toomey, Australian Catholic University

Unexpectedly a number of teachers teaching Mathematics in three secondary schools did not explore extensively the use of computers in their teaching over a five-year period, even though it appeared that conditions would have encouraged this. Their colleagues teaching other subjects did take up the opportunities that came with the state government providing ample money for their schools for computer hardware and software. The unexpectedness was not only because of these resources being available, but also because of the history of Mathematics teachers being at the forefront of computer use. It appears that the emphases in the external curriculum, lack of professional inservice, and the teachers already demonstrated success in teaching mathematics obviated the exploration of advanced computer applications.

CLA01442   ®    Paper
Education and Indigenous health in a globalised world

Kathleen Clapham and Diane Gosden, The University of Sydney

Aboriginal Health Workers are a very recent occupational group within the Australian health care system. This as well as the nature of their health work in primary health care and community development, contributes to the poor knowledge which other health professionals have of the role. This paper analyses the challenges and dilemmas which Aboriginal Health Workers face in their professional practice, and the educational models needed for them to take up the opportunities offered by globalisation. It documents current debates on the development of appropriate models of education for Aboriginal Health Workers. We argue that what is needed in Australia is a radical shift in approaches to Aboriginal health and education, one which will incorporate the benefits of globalisation to improve Aboriginal health. Aboriginal Health Workers increasingly require the skills of critical thinking, the ability to develop new solutions to health problems, and the ability to engage professionally with a changing world. The analysis is informed by research, undertaken by Indigenous and non-Indigenous researchers involved in Aboriginal Health Worker education in New South Wales.

COC01033   Paper
Self-perceptions of academic competence: How they develop and how they relate to the intrinsic motivation for learning in English and Maths in Year 6 students

Rachel Cocks and Helen Watt, University of Sydney

The major aim of my research is to explore how self-perceptions of academic competence develop and relate to the level of intrinsic motivation for learning in English and Mathematics in Year 6 students.

It is thought that if we can improve the self-perceptions of academic competence of students, their intrinsic motivation for learning may also be enhanced. Thus, the application of both quantitative and qualitative methods for this research was called upon, incorporating questionnaire and case study research, combined with narrative inquiry, to draw out and synthesise the major themes and issues involved. I selected two classes of Year six students in two different coeducational government schools in the Metropolitan East region of Sydney.

Students completed a survey based on the revised Patterns of Adaptive Learning Scales (PALS) which specifically asked the students to respond to statements describing feelings of their ability in Maths and English, how they think these feelings came about and their motivation to learn both in English and in Mathematics. Following the questionnaire data collection, interviewees were selected based on those respondents scoring highest on perceived academic competence and intrinsic motivation both in Maths and in English. Narratives were then constructed from the thematic analysis of the interviews, and these revealed how the constructs under consideration related to one another. Ultimately, this study offers a way forward so that students' perceptions of competence and intrinsic motivation for learning can be enhanced prior to high school and tertiary education.

COL01058   Paper
Indigenous nursing education trials and tribulations

Mardhie Coleman, Edith Cowan University

The purpose of this phenomenological study was to describe Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander nursing students' experience with learning and teaching in order to gain an in-depth understanding of the phenomenon. Aboriginal nursing students, academic nursing lecturers, Heads of Schools and Aboriginal Study Centre academics were asked to reflect on and describe their experiences with learning and teaching. A qualitative inquiry using phenomenology guided the research design and analysis. Van Kaam's (1966) method modified by Sandelowski and Pollock (1986) was used for data collection, analysis and assertion of the basic structure of the phenomena. Experiences, which contribute to the learning and teaching of indigenous nursing students, were identified; this is included policies implementation and collaboration involving the Aboriginal study centres. Findings from this study provide the first descriptive insight into the commonalities and differences these students experience whilst undertaking a nursing degree. Furthermore the findings add to nursing knowledge in regards to nurse educators' understanding of the Aboriginal nursing students' learning experience.

COL01092  ®   Paper
ICT education and the dissemination of new ideas: Channels, resources and risks

Francesca Collins and Julianne Lynch, Monash University

This paper examines university educators' perceptions of factors associated with disseminating information about teaching and learning initiatives among universities. The views of educators were elicited as part of the ICT-Ed Project. The project is a DETYA-funded investigation into the delivery of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) education. Participants were educators from within ICT disciplines in Australian universities. ICT education is a diverse field encompassing a range of disciplines; both those traditionally classified as IT (e.g., information systems, computer system engineering and computer science) and newer disciplines which cross over a number of educational domains (e.g., business systems, web development and design, e-commerce). The perceptions of participants were explored in a mini-conference format - a day-long workshop comprising brainstorms, discussion sessions and brief, informal presentations given by participants. Factors perceived as relating to the dissemination of ideas among university educators included: intellectual property competitiveness risks associated with sharing ideas the value placed on teaching vs. research within many universities the availability of channels for the dissemination of ideas resources required to share and access ideas It was found that the importance of these factors was related to the geographical location of participants' institutions. Furthermore, the reporting of these factors appeared to be influenced by the presence of participants from other universities. The implications of the findings for university educators generally are discussed.

COM01438    Paper
Literacy development and normative fantasies: What can be learnt from watching students over time?

Barbara Camber, University of South Australia.

Longitudinal case study research is labour intensive, demanding on relationships and perilous in its extended journey. It's also potentially rich in terms of generating new insights and questions. In this session of the symposium I'll consider how the longitudinal studies elicit fundamental doubts about discourses of normative literacy development, but also and at the same time raise complex dilemmas about questions of unequal outcomes. These studies begin to demonstrate the very great differences in the literacies to which Australian children have access at home and at school and the contrastive ways in which different children take up what is on offer.

This paper is presented as part of Symposium 18, COM01437 Literacy learning long term.. Investigating children's acquisitions of school Alternates.

CON01104   Paper
Challenging white identities inside educational narrative inquiry

Jennifer Connelly, Southern Cross University and Jenny Joske, Bowraville Central School

As a female researching the vexing and complexing issues of education in indigenous contexts, I slowly became aware of my own white identity and the implications it cast on my pedagogy. Thus began the narrative inquiry of my voice joined with other female's teachers inside a feminist postmodern research adaptation. Rich disruptive narratives were constructed that question identity, pedagogy, racism, social justice and the discourses of;

1. contemporary education with/for Australian Indigenous students (Aboriginal Education), and the ensuing rhetoric of government education policy and practice, and
2. white ethnicity/whiteness (proliferating in the US and Britain, but as yet, only percolating in Australia) social constructs that aren't visible but are implicated in issues of racism, social justice and identity politics in a Howardised-Hansonised Australia.

The presentation will offer vignettes of narrative data that exemplify struggles with the research design and the slipping cloaks of 'other' and 'difference' - duets of Foucault and Derrida.

COO01346       ®    Paper
Schooling adolescence: The student subject of post-primary education in early twentieth century South Australia

Phil Cormack, University of South Australia

This paper reports on a curriculum-historical study of the role of schooling in shaping adolescence in early twentieth century South Australia with a particular focus on the role of the English subject.

COR01086   Paper
Schooling adolescence: The student subject of post-primary education in early twentieth century South Australia

Phil Cormack, University of South Australia

This paper reports on a curriculum-historical study of the role of schooling in shaping adolescence in early twentieth century South Australia with a particular focus on the role of the English subject.

Beginning with a problem in the present that of the failing/(ill)iterate youth in school examine aspects of the genealogy of that problem in the time of the establishment of post-primary government schooling in South Australia. In the first three decades of the century a variety of post-primary schools was developed with different, but related, courses of instruction. The English subject plays a central role in the curriculum of these schools and the variations on the subject in each site, provides some useful insights into the ways adolescence was to be shaped by school. I explore the theme that adolescence and schooling are mutually constitutive fields, between which notions of literateness/literacy have acted as powerful relays.

CRU01022  ®   Paper
Equity in the tertiary programming learning environment

Barbara Crump, Curtin University of Technology

Research shows that the classroom and laboratory environment for female students of computing has not always been perceived as helpful to their learning. In addition, it has been reported that the number of females enrolled in tertiary computing courses is low compared with males and retention is poor.

In recent years New Zealand educational institutions have experienced an increased enrolment of "new arrivals" - students of diverse nationalities, culture and educational backgrounds. The New Zealand government is encouraging the expansion of education "exports" and yet little is known as how these students perceive their programming environment. This paper is a work-in-progress report of a study, using a mixed-method design, that investigates first-year programming students' perceptions of their tertiary learning environment in the Wellington region. Analysis of the interviews of 28 students from the subgroups defined as "new arrivals" and gender was done with the help of a qualitative software program, NUD*IST (Non-numerical Unstructured Data * Indexing Searching and Theorising). The results yielded rich and informative insights, which complemented, developed, expanded and triangulated the study.

CUL01024   Paper
Teaching styles and their influence on pupils

Cedric Cullingford, University of Huddersfield

This is part of a review of the experience of schooling from the point of view of pupils who are 16 years old ie. at the end of their compulsory education. It is based mainly on lengthy semi-structured interviews with pupils and some ex-pupils representing a wide spectrum of socio-economic circumstances. The original and ostensible context of the research was the relationship between the experience of schooling and their future employment prospects. Questions about the purpose of school and its impact on their domestic and future employment gave a particular perspective on the formal and informal parts of school, on the curriculum, on skills, on learning experiences and the different influences on pupils' choices and motivations. This paper examines the particular impact on different teachers and the ways in which they taught, according to the demands of the subject, the expectations of their colleagues and the hopes of students. The pupils' clear perspectives have implications for teachers and policy makers.

CUT01129   Paper
Gauging primary school teachers' environmental literacy

Amy Cutter, Central Queensland University

Over the past thirty years, it has often been stated that primary school education should endeavour to improve and protect the environment through producing an 'environmentally informed, committed and active citizenry'. Even so, existing research shows that the implementation of environmental education in primary schools is problematic and has had limited success. However, the reasons for these shortcomings are far from clear, with present research merely speculating about barriers to effective implementation.

This paper presents a detailed discussion and analysis of primary school teachers' knowledge and beliefs about environmental concepts and environmental education. In so doing, the paper identifies a perceived gap within the field of environmental education research and literature. This field has neglected studies of Australian primary school teachers' knowledge and beliefs about environmental education as a factor affecting the capacity of schooling to achieve environmental education goals.

To these ends, I utilise the concept of 'environmental literacy' to assess primary school teachers' knowledge and beliefs about environmental education. Based upon preliminary data analysis, I tentatively claim that current Queensland primary school teachers are variably committed to and demonstrably lack content knowledge of environmental concepts and environmental education. More significantly, these primary school teachers tend to dismiss the importance of content knowledge, preferring to focus upon attitudes towards environmental education and environmental concepts.

Clearly these levels of environmental literacy are inadequate if environmentally literate students and thus an environmentally literate citizenry are to be achieved within schools. I conclude that the introduction of environmental literacy in educational policy would advance the goals of environmental education, namely the production of an informed, committed and active citizenry.

D

DAR01259  ®   Paper
Task based approach of authenticity in ELF Thai classroom

Yoopayao Daroon, University of South Australia

The development of interacting professionally in tertiary EFL courses in Thailand has been relatively neglected. Consequently vocational Thai students are not confident about workplace interaction that requires English. This paper initially is centrally concerned with the concept of the use of authentic texts as it developed in the contexts of Task-Based Learning (TBL) process. This project analyses TBL process in which non-native speaking learners experience authentic oral interaction with non-native (NNS) and native speakers (NS). This paper draws on VDO recorded data from a recently completed classroom case study project, carried out by an English for Food Science class in Rajamangala Institute of Technology (RIT) in northern Thailand. The project also gave the Thai students opportunities to create their own texts and therefore have a personal affective involvement in the subsequent analysis and related learning outcomes. This heightened awareness of learners' discourse in context can convince Thai students that their English communicative competence can be developed. Moreover, it was found out that using discourse outcomes from the classroom as authentic texts can improve interactive oral skills and build confidence in EFL Thai learners.

DAR01546   Paper
Real science and school science: Endless wonder versus the drive to explore

Linda Darby, Helen Hayes and Barry Kentish, University of Ballarat

'Science' may be simply defined as a way of finding out about how the world works. It is often viewed as objective and being built on a step-wise procedural base. The question arises as to whether school science needs to be different to cutting-edge ('real') science, in that the outcomes have a different purpose, one requiring scientific break throughs, the other being imitative and simple. The idea of relevance becomes paramount to how or what we as teachers want science to be perceived. This paper reports on an ethnographic case study of a Year 7 Science class, incorporating weekly observations of science lessons, focus group with students and teacher discussions. The focus of this research is on evolution of student perceptions and expectations of science over the course of the year. Two major themes have arisen from this research: The first relates to student perceptions and expectations of school science within the context of 'real' science. This explores the value of content versus procedural based teaching, the potential impact that actually finding the answer has on motivation and how motivation can be maintained, and essentially what 'doing science' really means. The second theme relates to the values attached to the terms 'fun' and 'interesting', and the implications they have for learning science. These 'are value-laden adjectives often used by students and teachers to 'describe different aspects of school science. The distinction between 'fun' and 'interesting' appears to encapsulate whether a response is a purely reflexive reaction to an experience that is non-threatening and emancipatory ('fun'), or whether curiosity has been aroused which prompts students to ask questions, thereby initiating the learning process ('interesting').

DAV01436  ®   Paper
Collaborative practices: From description to theory

Anne Davies, Brenda Cherednichenko, Tony Kruger and Maureen O'Rourke, Victoria University.

The methodologies which can be used to study schools range from large scale studies designed to establish the validity of school and teacher effectiveness criteria to micro-level auto/biographical accounts which present practitioner views. In this paper we present an outline of the methodology used in a longitudinal study of school change which fits somewhere between these extremes. We then go on to discuss the application of the methodology in two further studies focused on teachers' professional development and technology and educational change in schools. In the original study cycles of case writing by teachers formed the starting point for reflective interpretation by teams of teachers in collaboration with university research colleagues. Successive phases of interpretation led to developing accounts of school change which were validated through collaborative reflection by teams of teachers within and across participating schools and the research team. The subsequent studies also used teachers' writing as a starting point for reflective interpretation and theory building. Each of the three studies represents an attempt to cross the border from describing practice to interpreting and theorising with and about practitioners and our attempts to translate locally contextualised action research into findings which might claim, however tentative, some research validity.

DEL01141  ®   Paper
Parental involvement in Western Australian secondary schools

Robert Cavanagh and Graham Dellar, Curtin University of Technology

A survey type instrument was developed then administered in three Western Australian secondary schools to profile parent perceptions of their involvement in their child's schooling. The instrument solicited information about the school, teachers, their child and themselves. Data from 550 parents were factor analysed and the original instrument was refined. The refined instrument profiled: student values about education and schooling; student learning outcomes; individual parent and family capacity to support the student's learning; parent to student expectations; parental confidence in communicating with teachers, student to parent communication; teacher to parent communication; and the values of the school concerning improving the learning of students. Scale internal reliability (Cronbach Alpha) ranged from 0.87 to 0.95. Inter-scale correlation coefficients (Spearman) ranged from 0.17 to 0.70 signifying interaction between educational outcomes and the attributes of parents, teachers and the child. Analysis of the data revealed parents in all three schools had positive views of seven of the eight dimensions of parental involvement with the exception of teacher to parent communication. The report on the study concludes with a discussion of strategies for improving the involvement of parents in their child's secondary schooling based upon the empirical findings of the study and previous research.

DEL01143  ®   Paper
School improvement: Organisational development or community building?

Robert Cavanagh and Graham Dellar, Curtin University of Technology

The design and implementation of school improvement programs is severely compromised by confusion concerning the role of schooling and the function of schools in the current economic rationalist environment. This is exacerbated by the continued influence of theories of organisational behaviour on school operations and pressure for application of corporate organisational development approaches in educational reform. The traditional role assigned to schools by society, the enculturation, learning and development of children is difficult to reconcile with the economic rationalist press for efficiency and demonstration of effectiveness. Organisational learning, learning organisations, learning communities, school climate, school culture and learning community culture are examined. These concepts are critiqued in terms of their relevance to realisation of traditional societal expectations of the social institution of education. Adoption of a learning community conception of schools with attention to pedagogical and sociological constructs is advocated for school improvement research. Research methods for investigating the culture of learning communities are examined, specifically; holistic and transformative integrated mixed-method evaluations. The utilisation of common paradigmatic frameworks to ensure reliability and validity is recommended. Examples of learning community culture research into school restructuring school improvement, teacher professional development, classroom learning environments and parental involvement in schooling investigations are provided.

DEN01468   Paper
Conceptualising teacher education in the era of new educational initiatives in Singapore

Zongyi Deng and S. Gopinathan, Nanyang Technological University

This article attempts to provide a better conceptual understanding of the reforms needed in teacher education in Singapore the era of new educational initiatives. It first analyses certain dominant paradigms with regard to teaching, what it means to be a teacher, and teacher education programmes. It next examines Singapore's new initiatives through reviewing policy documents on required changes to teaching and on efforts to professionalise teachers, focusing on the underlying assumptions, logic, and implications. We scrutinise these in the light of empirical evidence on teaching in Singapore and scholarly literature on teaching and teacher education, through invoking the ideas of John Dewey, John Wilson, and Israel Scheffler. The article argues for a more solid conceptual basis for attempts to reform teaching and teacher education. It identifies important questions and problems teacher educators, policy makers, and researchers need to confront if genuine change is to be realised.

DES01290   Paper
Studies of society and environment (SOSE): Does the new syllabus alter teaching styles?

Carmel Desmarchelier, University of Southern Queensland

SOSE is a new holistic syllabus drawing on economics, environmental studies, civics, sociology, peace studies, history and geography. It is a radical syllabus that encourages a variety of teaching methods, based firmly on values, challenging teachers to rethink their ways of teaching. This research centres on the perceptions of current teachers on how they teach the new SOSE syllabus and the manner in which they incorporate the four core values into the content. It illustrates the keyways in which teachers have adapted their teaching methods to the new syllabus. Interviewing twenty Toowoomba teachers provided detailed insights as to how the syllabus is being interpreted. Teachers were asked to construct ways by which students formulated their own views on issues raised in class and details of how this was done extends our understanding of how values are taught. Teachers identified useful methods or materials and these were collated. The interview material was used to construct and analyse a questionnaire distributed to 200 Queensland SOSE teachers, who indicated trends in the ways teaching ideologies and methods have altered, and the strengths and weakness in SOSE teaching, as perceived by the practicing teachers. The interview/questionnaire data reveal trends in teaching holistically.

DIV01082   Paper
Mediating higher order thinking: A case study of IT integration in a Singapore secondary school

Shanti Divaharan and Lim Cher Ping, Nanyang Technological University

The focus of this qualitative research is to study how Information Technology (IT) is used by teachers to mediate higher order thinking among students in Singapore secondary schools. The study would focus on the manipulation of IT as a tool, which encourages the process of higher order thinking among Singapore secondary school students. Activity Theory would be adopted as the theoretical framework for this study. Activity theory is a philosophical framework that provides the structure to study various human interaction and practices within the context of development. By using activity theory as a framework, it is hoped that the study would be able to observe, analyse and report on the interaction between the various factors, which influence the use of IT to encourage higher order thinking. It is hoped that once completed, the study would provide insight to educators and researchers on how IT can be successfully used to scaffold students' cognition to optimise their capacity and potential to think and become life long learners. At this stage, however, the report would focus on the preliminary findings of the study.

DIX01377   Paper
The influence of culture, infrastructure, leadership, policy and personal construction of meaning in the adoption of national training packages in a Western Australian case study school.

Kathryn Dixon and Lina Macchuisi, Curtin University of Technology and Lyn Francis, Thornlie Senior High School

Growing pressure is being placed on schools as students, employers and government look at the economic, demographic and vocational environments of the present, expecting them to adequately prepare students for an ever widening post-school vocational future. One of the major factors contributing to the lack of adoption of any innovation is the entrenched attitudes of the teaching staff along with an associated reluctance to change. Vocational Education and Training programs, in one form or another, have been circling the change process in Australian schools since 1920 and yet still locate themselves largely in the adoption and implementation phase rather than becoming institutionalised and embedded in the life of the organisation. It is clear that the way in which teachers construct meaning for innovations is a major factor in whether or not they are institutionalised in schools, however, this paper also investigates the influence of organisational culture, infrastructure, leadership and policy on the adoption of National Training Packages and their components in a Western Australian case study school.

DOB01188  ®  Paper
Lessons in Democracy: The rules under which students live

Eva Dobozy, Murdoch University

Education in democracy or civics and citizenship education, as it is commonly referred to, is definitely in vague at present, here in Australia as elsewhere. However, what a democratic education might be, is not so clear. My research interests are centered not so much around the Discovering Democracy curriculum material as around educational principles and everyday practices. The principal objective of this research is to explore the ways in which cooperative, democratic learning environments provide positive learning experiences through the recognition of students as social agents. The 1989 UN Convention on the Rights of the Child to which Australia is a signatory stipulates that fundamental human rights which are granted to adults in a democratic society should also be made available to children, precisely for the reason that one cannot be a social agent unless one has certain rights and responsibilities. I will offer an appraisal of the Convention's significance to education, and, will draw on preliminary research findings from the empirical part of the study, connecting the aims of this Convention to daily classroom practices.

In particular, the findings will discuss ways schools, which embrace democratic principles can improve their climates and the educational experiences of students through both the content and processes of democratic education.

DOE01317   Paper
Lesson planning: An induction into a community of practice

Brenton Doecke, Kerryn Elrick and Paul Richardson, Monash University, and Lawrence Ingvarson, Australian Council for Educational Research

This paper draws on research that we have been conducting into the ways in which student teachers from contrasting disciplinary areas (Science and English) transform their academic knowledge into 'pedagogical content knowledge' (Schulman, 1986) by lesson planning. We explore the role of lesson planning as a vehicle for student teachers to participate in a professional discourse about teaching and learning, enabling them to learn to think like teachers. We conceive of lesson planning as a mediating text between the culture of the university and the culture of the classroom and the school, whereby neophytes are able to make their emergent pedagogical reasoning public and engage in a professional dialogue with others.

DON01569   Paper
Finding common ground: Cross-cultural research in the Muslim community

Irene Donohoue, The University of Melbourne.

This paper will report on some methodological and cultural issues arising out of a long-term research involvement with the Muslim community in Australia as part of a study on educational needs. As a non-Muslim, this researcher needed to find the common ground, which would provide a bridge between a Muslim worldview and her own. Firstly, the paper discusses the process of becoming a cross-cultural researcher and learning to recognise cultural icons, to communicate in a culturally appropriate way and to recognise the boundaries between the insider and the outsider. Secondly, the paper will examine methodological issues related to communicating with a culturally and linguistically diverse community such as the use of bi-lingual consultations and multi-lingual questionnaires. Finally the paper will examine the implications of cross-cultural research in university cultures which are dominated by a monocultural, eurocentric research paradigm.

DOR01722   Paper
Development and validation of an instrument to assess leadership succession in Australian Catholic schools

Jeffrey Dorman, Tony d'Arbon, Australian Catholic University

Evidence from the field indicates that many potentially good candidates are not applying for principalships in Australian Catholic schools. Research aimed at developing an instrument to assess their reasons for not applying was conducted in New South Wales, Australia. A sample of 977 Assistant Principals, Religious Education Coordinators and other Coordinators were used in a trial of a survey instrument. Scale development procedures resulted in a 44-item questionnaire with 10 underlying scales (viz. Unsupportive External Environment, Systemic Accountability, Lack of Expertise, Personal and Family Impact, Explicit Religious Identity, Gender Bias, Interview Problems, Loss of Close Relationships, Internal Rewards, External Rewards). All items employ a 5-point Likert response format with anchors of 1 (Not at all) and 5 (Very strongly). Validation data indicated that the instrument has sound structural characteristics.

E

EAR01163   Paper
Voices from the classroom: Teachers' and students' perceptions and experiences on education reform in a transitional society

Jaya Earnest and David Treagust, Curtin University of Technology

Rwanda is a society in transition, which has been adversely, affected by major social, political, economic, cultural and ethnic upheaval and is one of the world's poorest countries. Rwanda has adopted national goals of eradication of illiteracy, national capacity building in science and technology and reinforcing the teaching of mathematics and sciences. This study utilised qualitative and quantitative methods to examine how teachers'and students' perceptions and experiences impact on the ongoing education reform process within a transitional society. Interviews with teachers, students and administrators are used to describe and analyse their views and experiences during a period of turmoil. Vignettes of teacher, caselets of teacher and student experiences and critical reflection by the researcher provide a dramatic insight into the lives of a Rwandans. This study forms part of a larger study and has made use of vignettes, stories, interviews, photographs, classroom observations and reflexivity to examine the effect of socio-cultural, economic and political factors on the lives of students and teachers. The findings identified factors, which influence the education rebuilding and reform process in a volatile transitional society.

EDG01125   Paper
New literacies in mathematics: Implications for teacher education

Douglas Edge, Nanyang Technological Institution

School mathematics has changed over the last number of decades from pre-Sputnick curricula, through "modern math", back-to-basics, and various "Standards" adaptations. Recently, as we crossed over into the new millennium, calls for new literacies in mathematics have once again emerged. These calls tend to be multi-faceted suggesting new or altered school content, perhaps for statistical reasoning, or more spatial sense but less proof; deliberate focus on both understanding of computational strategies as well appropriate application; more focus on process components such as modelling and problem posing; and technological applications to include roles for both computers and graphing calculators (Steen, 1998; Charles & Lobato, 1998; National Research Council, 2001; Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, 1998). Additionally many argue that mathematics learning must provide opportunities for group and project work that enable students to make connections among various components of the mathematics and beyond mathematics curriculum. In light of these "new literacy" components, significant concerns result. Do (beginning) teachers need courses in advanced pedagogical content knowledge? (Usiskin, 2001) How can teachers respond to the "mathematics for all students" challenge? (Kilpatrick, 2001) Selected examples are provided and needs for further research is highlighted.

EDW01068  ®  Paper
Early childhood educators' perceptions of developmentally appropriate interactive multimedia software

Suzy Edwards, Monash University

Software has become an increasingly accepted learning material in early childhood education as advances in technology have produced more user-friendly microcomputers. However, this acceptance has been accompanied by the need to examine pedagogical influences on the curriculum, such as developmentally appropriate practice and constructivism, as they currently inform the use of traditional early childhood learning resources in relation to the provision of technology-based learning resources. This paper outlines the findings from a qualitative pilot study aimed at determining those features of interactive multimedia (IMM) software that early childhood educators perceive as being developmentally appropriate from a cognitive-constructivist perspective. Two early childhood educators were interviewed using a standardised open-ended interview schedule. The interview data suggested that IMM software featuring actively engaging electronic environments combined with physical and cognitive user control over the program was considered developmentally appropriate. IMM software containing these features was also more likely to be viewed as consistent with the theoretical and practical implications of developmental appropriateness and cognitive-constructivism. Future research will build on these identified criteria by using them to survey a larger group of educators with the ultimate aim of developing a framework that can assist educators in the analysis and selection of developmentally appropriate software for use in the classroom.

EDW01239   Paper
Teacher's professional judgement of mandated changes

Brian Edwards, La Trobe University

The role teacher's play in the implementation of mandated systemic reform is broadly recognised as crucial. Recent studies have indicated a shift in the role of Governments wishing to reform elements of their educational systems, a role which has been characterised as shifting the responsibility for reform to the school site but little of the authority or choice of accountability procedures. Teachers are increasingly faced with demands from central authorities, which require them to surrender their professional judgement in favour of a technician's role; being told what to do and doing it without question (Soucek, 1997; Reid, 1998; Smyth, 1998; Irwin, 1999; Miller, 2000). This paper will draw on a case from the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal where the professional judgement of four child protection workers led them to object to the Kennett Government's policies in the Victorian Department of Human services (Mottram, 2000). It will also draw upon a case study of some twenty English teachers responding to the mandated Curriculum and Standards Framework in Victoria. It is hoped this paper raises important questions concerning the role of teachers in determining what is important knowledge and what happens to Government policy mandates when they enter the schools.

EIJ01692   Paper
Online learning as curricular justice: What prospects?

Henk Eijkman, University of Canberra

Lack of equitable access to higher education by disadvantaged student's remains problematic, and therefore an ongoing concern to many educators. Despite digitopian hype, the rapid adoption of online learning has done little to alleviate concerns about equitable participation. This is particularly critical with enabling programs. Many if not most students from disadvantaged social groups are not only outsiders to the Discourse of academia and its literacy practices, but in a web-based learning environment are often also on the wrong side of the digital divide. However, the impact of online learning on the development of academic and technological literacies by disadvantaged students is still an unknown quantity, and has received little if any attention from educational researchers. With the prospect of non-mainstream students being increasingly initiated into an academic community of practice in an online learning environment, this paper identifies the pedagogical practices currently used in enabling programs delivered on campus, via print-based distance education and online, and critically explores the shifts that need to occur if we are not to replicate gaps in current pedagogical practices and thereby the gap between advantaged and disadvantaged students in higher education in or outside an online environment.

EVA01481   Paper
The regulation of non-local tertiary courses in Hong Kong

Terry Evans and Karen Tregenza, Deakin University

This paper reports on some research from an ARC project conducted by the authors into the ways in which Australian universities establish colaborations with partners in Hong Kong and Papua New Guinea to offer courses in those countries. One feature of such collaborations in Hong Kong is the way in which, since 1997, the local Special Administrative region government regulates the provision on 'non-local courses' by mean of an ordinance. The paper describes and analyses the impact of the ordinance on both local and overseas stakeholders. This impact represents a particular enactment of matters of globalisation and localisation in education. The paper reports on the issues, which have emerged which, are leading to current moves to modify the ordinance's provisions.

EWI01381
An evaluation of the assessment processes used for selecting level 3 classroom teachers in Western Australian government schools

Megan Ewing, University of Western Australia

Selection of Exemplary Teachers in WA government schools- a review of the current selection processes. The University of Western Australia was commissioned by the Education Department of Western Australia to undertake a review of the assessment processes used to select exemplary teachers in WA government schools. This paper reports on the key findings of this study. The selection process attracted 1095 applicants from two cohorts of teachers (years 1997 & 2000). Overall, 313 teachers were selected whose performance was assessed as highly accomplished against the Level 3 Classroom Teacher competencies. A two-stage process was used consisting of the development of a teaching portfolio and a reflective face-to-face review of practice. This career Level 3 Classroom Teacher structure arose from the Enterprise Bargaining Agreement (1996) between EDWA and the State School Teacher's Union of Western Australia (SSTUWA). It forms part of the Competency Framework for Teachers document currently being circulated to government school for discussion. Five competencies have been identified covering areas of exemplary teaching and assessment, self-reflection and professional development as well as demonstrated leadership to peers and the wider school community. These competencies were developed by researcher Gary Martin as part of an earlier project undertaken by Murdoch University.

EXL01167  ®   Paper
Meeting the needs of offshore learners: A case study of Australian EFL educators and Indonesian EFL learners

Beryl Exley, Queensland University of Technology

This paper is concerned with Australian educators' experiences of teaching English as a Foreign Language (EFL) in Central Java, Indonesia. Data were collected from private English language colleges in Jakarta, Central Java, via an interview study with educators who identified as Australian citizens. Employing an analytical framework derived mainly from the work of Basil Bernstein, the paper examines educators' accounts of the what is validated as curriculum and how the pedagogic relationship is structured within this offshore context. Moreover, this study reveals how much control the educator and the learner have over the curriculum and the pedagogic relationship, thus raising questions about the space created for cultural difference.

EXL01288       ®   Paper
Teacher talk and classroom practice: An analysis of the constitution of pedagogic identities

Beryl Exley, Parlo Singh and Helen Nicolson, Queensland University of Technology

This paper examines the potential use of Basil Bernstein's theory of pedagogic discourse to develop a conceptual language for describing the talk and practices of secondary school teachers working in schools situated in low socioeconomic urban communities Specifically the paper draws on Bernstein's concepts of instructional and regulative discursive and social orders to analyse the professional-academic talk of a cohort of secondary school teachers about education for students in culturally diverse secondary schools situated in low socio-economic urban communities. The talk of the teachers is conceptualised as informational resources upon which they may draw in terms of planning and enacting classroom lessons. The paper also compares and contrasts three secondary school classroom lessons in terms of 'what' is taught, and 'how' it is taught. Specifically, the paper analyses the pedagogic identities made available to students through the arbitrary internal ordering of the pedagogic discourses in these three lessons. Implications for the differential distribution of knowledge and therefore acquisition of different types of pedagogic identities are discussed, particularly in light of ideological struggles over different pedagogies (progressive, critical, feminist, poststructural feminist and postcolonial) for students who have been educationally disadvantaged.

This paper is presented as part of Panel Discussion 10, SIN01 285 Basil Bernstein's research legacy.

F

FAR01097   Paper
It works! combining research and education to achieve change in secondary school student's alcohol related behaviour

Fiona Farringdon, Nyanda McBride and Richard Midford, Curtin University of Technology

This paper is based on the School Health and Alcohol Harm Reduction Project (SHAHRP) and SHAHRP 2000 research studies that aims to reduce the alcohol related harm experienced by secondary school students. It involves a school-based, harm reduction alcohol education program currently being conducted in Western Australia. The SHAHRP and SHAHRP 2000 programs were developed in consultation with students, teachers and health professionals and reflect the evidence-based components from the health and education literature that can potentially influence behaviour. They were extensively piloted and modified according to teacher and student recommendations. To date this longitudinal study has shown that with only 13 hours of classroom lessons over a two year period, changes have occurred in students knowledge, attitudes, level of alcohol consumption, harm that students experience due to their own use of alcohol and harm experienced due to other peoples use of alcohol. This paper will discuss the collaborative process used to develop and deliver the program, highlighting the benefits of basing practice on research. This has implications specifically for the development of alcohol education programs but also more generally by providing a practical example of the benefits of combing research evidence and methods with classroom based education.

FAR01392   Paper
Creating a world in common? The role of workplace educators in the global production and interpretation of workplace texts

Lesley Farrell, Monash University

In this paper I am concerned with the challenge workplace learners and educators face, as they engage with global economies, to create 'a world in common' (Smith 1999). I focus on the role of language in 'border crossing' and especially on the needs for and dangers of, the standardisation of language across local workplace settings. I argue that a critical dimension of the work of many workplace educators is the standardisation of language practice across institutions on a global scale. I use Fairclough's (1996) idea of the 'discourse technologist' to understand the role of the workplace educator in creating workplace texts and in mediating local and global discourses. My focus is on the role that workplace educators play in producing and interpreting the material texts of the contemporary workplace, the CV, the Training Manual, the Quality framework etc. I call on a study of workplace educators operating in a range of settings - enterprise-based, trade union-based, VET-systems based and private provider based - to explore their role in mediating the local and the global at local sites. I ask whether creating a 'world in common' is always desirable or even possible, and consider what the costs and benefits might be.

FEN01216   Paper
Towards transparency: The educational possibilities of communicative action in art museums

Mark Fenech, University of New South Wales

Jnrgen Habermas's work as it relates to the broader field of education is applied in analysing the communicative action of the educational domain in art museums. Art museums are complex and contested sites in contemporary society where educational missions and system imperatives may collide. Rendering museological practice as analogous to speech acts, this researcher tests, in a case study, whether the educational activities of museums promote reflection, authenticity and transparency or hide and distort meaning. The case study investigates an educational program at The Art Institute of Chicago, the Urban Professional Partners (UPPs) program. This project targets African American urban professionals as under-represented "partners" of the museum. My analysis shows that while UPPs communicates as a program aimed at the life-world oriented empowerment of individuals, it is necessarily, yet unwittingly, compromised by the instrumental interests and mechanics of the institution as system. I suggest that communicative analysis provides a critical instrument for educators and museum audiences to interrogate and disclose the contested interpretations of cultural knowledge in art museums.

FER01044  ®   Paper
Use of computer-mediated communication to form a knowledge-building community in initial teacher education

Brian Ferry, Julie Kiggins, Garry Hoban and Lori Lockyer, University of Woolongong

This study investigated how different types of computer-mediated communication (CMC) such as asynchronous forums, synchronous forums and e-mail were used to support an alternative approach to initial teacher education that relied on the formation of a knowledge-building community (KBC).

The KBC involves students working in small and large groups to solve "Cereal world" problems, and in the process develop skills of negotiation, communication, and collaboration. Emphasis is placed on authentic problems that are linked to a school context. The findings showed that the students preferred to use forums available to all participants. Also they used the forums in a variety of ways, in addition to those intended by the authors. Further, many students made use of other modes of CMC such as e-mail and synchronous forums down loaded from the Web. We also found that many of the skills we used in mediating face-to-face discussion could be transferred to the on-line situation.

FER01045  ®   Paper
Professional development in the use of IT in tertiary teaching through synergetic partnerships

Brian Ferry and Shirley Agostinho, University of Wollongong

This paper describes a synergetic relationship between two teachers who are the authors of this paper.

One member of the teaching team had considerable experience in pedagogy and curriculum design, but had little experience with the use of the Web to support learning in tertiary settings. The other member of the team had little experience with pedagogy and curriculum design, but had considerable research and practical experience in using the Web to support learning in tertiary settings. The paper explains how the authors developed new understandings of their roles as teachers and users of information technology to support a multinational class in research methods in information technology. This synergetic process in which the teachers combined their skills led to improvements in the design, implementation and evaluation of a subject delivered by a mixture of face to face and Web-supported instruction. Further, it achieved two additional purposes. First both teachers were able to use the multiple sources of information to gain insights into the effectiveness and appropriateness of our teaching practice and to use this information to improve and modify our teaching, and secondly both teachers were able to further develop their technical skills.

FIN01158  ®   Paper
Telephone teaching: Towards constructivist teaching for rural and remote students

Glenn Finger and Carolyn Rotolo, Griffith University

While many school systems are exploring the potential of new technologies, the reality for many rural and remote students in Australia is that they still rely upon High Frequency (HF) Radio as their main form of communication with teachers. After using HF Radio for several decades, the Charleville School of Distance Education (CSDE) in Queensland has commenced using telephone teaching with the aim of improving the delivery of education for its rural and remote students. This study investigated the central research question - has the replacement of HF Radio with the telephone for teaching contributed to the development of a constructivist teaching and learning environment? The theoretical framework for this study was based on Garrison's (1993) theory of transactional constructivism. Findings strongly indicated that the telephone teaching and learning environment at the CSDE were substantially constructivist in nature. The findings reported have implications for initiatives aimed at improving the education of rural and remote students. Furthermore, the study suggests that future research needs to be directed towards investigating a broad range of new technologies, which build upon the platform of telephone teaching to enhance the delivery of educational programs to rural and remote students.

FIN01159  ®   Paper
Investigating modes of subject delivery in teacher education: A review of modes of delivery at the school of education and professional studies Gold Coast campus Griffith University

Glenn Finger and Andrew Penney, Griffith University

Flexible learning initiatives are a major objective of Griffith University's Strategic Plan. Moreover, academics are encouraged to implement a range of modes of delivery, including various models of intensive delivery. This research, following a conceptualisation of a variety of forms of delivery which included traditional formats, intensive modes of delivery and web-delivery of subjects, identified a diverse range of perspective's, tensions and important considerations perceived by students and academic staff about those modes of delivery. Key issues reported were that design is critical, some subjects were more suitable for intensive modes of delivery than others, the duration of the program could be condensed, concerns about and benefits of intensive delivery were articulated, students questioning the 'value for money' of some subjects, and the perceived benefits for students of on-campus studies. Based upon the findings, the review presented recommendations for informing the strategic planning and delivery of subjects.

FIS01028   Paper
Development, validation and use of a questionnaire to assess students' perceptions of outcomes-focused, technology-rich learning environments

Darrell L. Fisher, Jill M. Aldridge & Barry J. Fraser, Curtin University of Technology

This study involved the development and validation of a widely applicable and distinctive questionnaire for assessing students' perceptions of their actual and preferred classroom learning environments in outcomes-focused, technology-rich learning settings. The development and validation of the questionnaire involved:

The data provide evidence for the validity and reliability of the questionnaire for use at the senior high school level across a number of different subjects.

FIS01049  ®   Paper
A multi-level model of classroom interactions using teacher and student perceptions

Darrell Fisher, Curtin University of Technology, Tony Rickards, University of Western Australia and Michael Newby, California State University

The purpose of the study was to compare students' perceptions of teacher-student interactions with those of their teachers by administering the Questionnaire on Teacher Interaction (QTI) to teachers and students in 80 lower secondary classes in schools in Tasmania and Western Australia. There are three possible versions of the QTI. Students completed the student version, which assesses the students' perceptions of the teacher-student interactions in a specific class. Their teachers completed the teacher actual version of how they perceived their interactions with their students in those same classes. The teachers also indicated how they thought ideal teachers would interact with students by responding to the teacher ideal version. Previous statistical analysis had confirmed the reliability and validity of the QTI for secondary school students. Two multilevel models were proposed: the teacher ideal interaction influences the teacher actual interaction; and the teacher actual affects the student actual and vice versa.

Using structural equation modelling techniques, both models were found to be reasonable fits to the data. The results would seem to confirm the underlying basis of the QTI in that the teacher's actual perceptions of their interactions with students affects the students' perceptions, which in turn affect the teacher's perceptions.

FIT01087   Paper
A question of balance: Conflicting interests of a school-based curriculum change agent

Bob Fitzpatrick and Peter Taylor, Curtin University of Technology

This paper recounts the story of a teacher (first author) adopting the role of a school-based curriculum change agent (Fullan, 1993) and dealing with emotional and intellectual tensions thrown up by day-to-day incidents. Two of Schubert's perspective's of the curriculum, cultural reproduction and social reconstruction, are used as interpretive 'lenses' to understand the nature of competing curriculum-related interests of colleagues in different domains: school administrators, fellow teachers, Education Department trainers. By means of the process of learning reflexively through writing (Richardson, 2000), the teacher (cum researcher) explores the source of the internal turmoil in his professional life, and clarifies confusions that had earlier promoted self-doubt and cynicism about the viability of his change agentry role. Through an autobiographical act of re-viewing critical incidents (Tripp, 1993) and reflecting critically on them, a learning process emerges that provides insights into socio-cultural forces shaping the teacher's interactions with a range of colleagues. The application of the dialectic to his reflections emphasises the need to learn through continued practice for change, a principle lying at the heart of the action learning process. Within the paper, there are lessons about emotional understanding as well as self-study research epistemology.

FIT01519   Paper
11 to 46: The reading life histories of twenty avid readers

Phil Fitzsimmons and Barbra McKenzie, University of Wollongong

Beginning initially with an exploration and a recreation of the work undertaken by Evans (1993), when he interviewed a series of American college students in respect to their literacy memories of schooling,, this project soon became transformed into a more focused set of interviews in regard to 'reading memories'. The respondents in this project ranged in age for eleven years to forty six, and each set of interviews undertaken with them revealed an immediate acute disparity between their home 'reading life' and their school experience. More importantly, what also emerged from the data was the awareness of the reading process that these 20 'avid readers' possessed and the impact that a single carer or teacher had had on these individuals. Not only had the carer or teacher been influential in creating the initial impetus to read, but for each of these individuals a reflective cycle of reading with an 'inner vision' had also been developed. This paper not only describes the respondent's personal reading knowledge but also discusses possible teacher characteristics necessary for optimal learning and implications for the teaching of reading.

FIT01520  ®   Paper
Creating the 'our' in humour: A case study of one teacher's transfer of ideology into a holistic flow of 'language in action'.

Phil Fitzsimmons and Barbra McKenzie, University of Wollongong

Almost four years ago the authors of this paper began exploring Balson's (1992), Rogers' (1990) and Glasser's (1988) claim that language was a key component in the classroom management process. What emerged from the respondent selection process was the discovery of a teacher who had a very different approach to classroom management and teaching in general. As a result of having never received any formal instruction in classroom management this teacher had embarked on a developing his own approach using non-verbal cues and humor as deliberate tool of 'sculpting' the class into a cohesive and cooperative unit. Rather than being an entity in itself and a primary element of concern, for this teacher optimal classroom management is simply a bi-product of engaging children in an ebb and flow of what he terms 'the mental gymnastics of the classroom". This session will detail the broader components of his belief system and the ensuing 'language in action' that emerged after extensive video taping and interviews with both the teacher and his students. In more specific terms, the various forms of humor and repeated patterns of interaction used to create a highly integrated set of interpersonal and collective relationships will also be discussed.

FOR01109   Paper
Computers for secondary mathematics: Who uses them and how?

Helen Forgasz and Nike Prince, Deakin University

In the first stage of a three year ARC-funded study in which the effects of using computers for the teaching and learning of mathematics are being explored, a questionnaire has been developed and is being administered to a large number of students in grades 7-10 in a representative sample of co-educational post-primary schools in Victoria. Using open and closed response formats, the information sought includes: background and biographical details; data on computer ownership and use =96 frequency and mode/s =96 for mathematics learning at home and in mathematics classes; and beliefs about mathematics and the use of computers for learning mathematics. In this paper, the focus will be on some of the preliminary findings related to ownership and use of computers for learning mathematics at home and at school. In previous research, factors such as gender, socio-economic background, and ethnicity have been identified as contributors to inequitable mathematics learning outcomes. The questionnaire data will be analysed to examine if these and other factors are related to any inequities identified in student's access to computers and in how they use computers in their learning of mathematics. The results will be presented and pertinent implications discussed.

FOS01226   Paper
We've formed a national Gender and Citizenship Education Society in Sri Lanka": Pedagogics and the process of change in postgraduate studies with senior teacher educators

Victoria Foster, University of Canberra

In 1999, a newly developed graduate course on "Gender and Citizenship" at an Australian regional university attracted a group of Australian and international students, mostly from what are usually described as marginalised positionings. This presentation reports on longitudinal research with ten of these students, eight male and two female Sri Lankan senior teacher educators. Innovative pedagogies were developed collaboratively and the students were asked to keep detailed j ournals of their experiences in the course, and to submit two evaluations. Their responses suggest new answers and meanings to Spivak's (1987) question, "Can the subaltern speak?" Follow-up research with the students in 2000 after their return to their colleges in Sri Lanka revealed profound change, both personal and professional. A further study is planned for 2001.

As Arnot and Dillabough (2000) note, citizenship education is seriously un (der) theorised, particularly in relation to the vast literature on feminist theory and citizenship.

The research questions in this study are: what is the nature of changes in the students' construction of their own identity in relation to gender and citizenship issues in the longer term, and what is the impact of these changes? This presentation explores the students' responses after nearly three years, and my own reflections on what occurred.

This paper is presented as part of Symposium 5, F0S01222 Identity challenges citizenship: And what of elvics education?

FRA01449   Paper
Assessing and changing classroom environments in urban middle schools in Texas

Barry Fraser, Becky Sinclair and Cynthia Ledbetter, Curtin University of Technology

In the first phase of this study, we developed and validated an instrument for assessing upper elementary and middle school (grades 6-8) students' perceived and preferred classroom environment (the Elementary and Middle School Inventory of Classroom Environments, ICE), Second, typical classroom environments in an urban setting were described based on quantitative and qualitative data, including differences between the perceptions of students of different genders. Finally, the effectiveness of teachers' participation in action research techniques, involving the use of feedback on perceived and preferred classroom environment was evaluated in terms of promoting improvement in classroom environments.

The sample consisted of 10 middle grade teachers and their 43 classes of students in an urban North Texas school setting. Perceived and preferred perceptions of Cooperation, Teacher Equity, Involvement and Task Orientation were assessed. Factor and item analyses supported the internal consistency reliability of a four-factor version of the ICE for both the individual student and the class means as the units of analysis. The perceived and preferred environments of different classes are described based on profiles of classroom environment scores. When teachers were selected from the original sample to participate in an attempt to alter their classroom environments, changes in classroom climate occurred, thus supporting the efficacy of the environmental change strategy.

FRE01667   Paper
Ethos and pastoral care: Catholic schools and school choice.

Margaret Freund, University of Sydney.

Catholic schools have a particular ethos, an element that gives them a specific identity that is said to provide an educational environment that is distinct and unique. This distinctiveness, or ethos is described as the special character or spirit of the school ((O'Donnell 1986), and while this ethos is so seemingly impalpable as 'spirit' or 'school climate' it has real social consequences since it is this climate which creates difference; difference in the everyday reality of school life and also in the macro social world of markets and choice. Catholic schools are being seen as thriving on their social and cultural capital and, as part of this process, public schools have been seen as ' the negative other', as Catholic ethos, interpreted as academic success, pastoral care, and a sense of community becomes part of a marketing discourse and an important part of the process of parental decision making and school choice. It will be argued that the difference created by the ethos of Catholic schools provides opportunities in the acquisition of positional goods (Hirsch 1976), and self goods, the purchase of education in order to fashion identity and a sense of self (Foucault 1991). The paper is based on research at a Catholic Primary school in N.W. Sydney.

FRI01200   Paper
Assessing pre-service teacher learning and professional competency through portfolios and roundtables

Jo-Anne Reid, University of New England and Sandra Frid, Curtin University of Technology

This is a report of the final phase of an ongoing study into the potential of professional portfolio development within a 4-year BEd program for primary teachers. The project began in 1998 and since that time has tracked a small group of pre-service teachers working yearly on development of teaching portfolios that demonstrate their ongoing learning in a wide range of teaching competencies. Drawing on theories of human subjectivity formed in and through social practices, this research has examined how pre-service teachers have been both empowered and limited in their creation of individual, unique 'teaching selves'. In this final phase of the study, implementation of a culminating authentic assessment strategy - roundtables - is examined in relation to the goals of a pre-service teacher education program. In particular, there is a focus on how development of the pre-service teachers' professional knowledge and skills has been facilitated by portfolio development, and also on what 'other people' are able to assess of these teachers' capacities from their portfolios and roundtable sessions. In this way, the views and experiences of various stakeholders in teacher education are examined in relation to implementation of an innovative and flexible form of teacher assessment.

G

GAL01463   Paper
A case study of course and teacher development in college chemistry in the Philippines

Marilou Gallos and David Treagust, Curtin University of Technology and Ed van den Berg, University of San Carlos.

In higher education, a predominant approach to teaching is by lecture where students are passive and most of the time is filled by the teacher or lecturer talking. To address this concern, this paper focuses on the process of course and teacher development in college chemistry classrooms at the University of San Carlos, Philippines. The research aims to increase the amount of work that students do, both in and outside class time. A chemistry course was revised to apply a learning cycle approach in which each class meeting consisted of one or more cycles of three phases: a) a short presentation of new information, b) student work on problems, questions or activities with the instructor moving around the classroom, and c) a plenary summary which includes reactions to learning difficulties encountered by the teacher during phase b. Two teachers, who were involved in the case study, taught the first version of the course. They were coached by the first author who attended almost all lessons within the semester. Analysis of data indicated that the teachers had developed some special teaching skills that were used in this learning cycle approach. Likewise, problems on the implementation of the cycle were identified and used as the basis for the reconceptualisation of a long departmental study.

GER01384       ®   Paper
Learning outcomes in a multicultural classroom - are international students at a disadvantage?

Julie Gerstman and Judy Rex, Swinburne University of Technology

Today in many universities, the classroom comprises local and international students from a wide range of backgrounds. Biggs (1999), Ramsden (1988) and Entwistle (1997) have developed the concepts of 'surface' and deep' learning for the tertiary classroom. Most students use both a 'deep' approach to learning, by focussing on understanding the meaning of reading material and a 'surface' approach by repeating explanations presented (Marton & Saljo,1976: 4-11). Students are to be encouraged to move along the continuum towards deep learning. This research study identified significant differences in academic results of international and local students in all but one of a subject's assessment tasks. The first change strategy was to skew the weighting on assessment items towards those that International students had performed relatively better. The next semester results again showed significant differences on overall assessment. The second change strategy is to develop into operational form examples from Biggs' framework for 'Encouraging Deep Learning' (1999), to reduce the significant differences in the learning outcomes of international and local students. It provides a substantive schedule for ensuring lower performing students adopt more deep learning techniques to improve their learning outcomes. This paper provides a rationale and analysis of both change strategies.

GIA01181  ®   Paper
The activation of high order cognitive skills such as: argumentation, negotiation and restructuring of knowledge by distributed cognitive tools.

Max Giardina and Laila Oubenaissa, University of Montreal/University of Sydney

The emergence of problematic concerning information technologies and learning, are related to the impact of new constraints and access modalities and information communication and organisation, on the learning process. It is even more related to the new cognitive skills required by the learning environments integrating these technologies in order to understand and exploit all their potential. This concern led us to conceptualise a Pedagogical Mediation Structure (PMS) construct. Several pedagogical principles and strategies allowed us to elaborate a new theoretical and operational model. The first prototype gathering nine cognitive tools was developed and validated. In the framework of this research, we were interested in the skills related to the process of negotiation, argumentation and knowledge restructuring. We sought to make the theory of cognitive flexibility operational using cognitive tools that manage and organize the interaction process among student pairs and the accessible information in a mediated distributed learning space. During students' interaction with PMS's cognitive tools, we observed the behaviours, the process and the strategies used and manifested, while negotiating, arguing and restructuring. We also explored the construction of student comprehension, trying to describe it in terms of flexibility, knowing the socio-cognitive and meta-cognitive context in which it was elaborated.

GIL01385   Paper
Schooling and the construction of allegiance.

Judith Gill and Sue Howard, University of South Australia

The idea of 'belonging' in terms of being connected to a particular group and/or larger community such as state and nation remains largely unexplored in studies of Australian youth. Despite the considerable claims in school promotions and the popular press about the importance of school spirit, the strength of the Old Scholar networks, the participation in school reunions, there has not to date been a careful study on the ways in which Australian schooling processes develop in students a sense of affiliation, caring and connectedness. This paper reports on one study, which investigated ways in which young people are involved in a sense of connectedness to school. Using a memory work approach the analysis is based on the recollections of schooling of a group of currently enrolled tertiary students. The study revealed a surprising degree of similarity in the recollections of feeling that one 'belonged' across a range of school locations in terms of

GOD01032   Paper
Year 12 students' perceptions of deputy principals' effect on the religious culture in four catholic secondary schools in Western Australia.

John Godfrey, Edith Cowan University

Research on how Deputy Principals affect the religious culture of Secondary Catholic Schools is extremely limited. Deputy Principals may play a crucial role in shaping the culture of schools in many ways, religious and otherwise. This study examined Year 12 students perception of the effect Deputy Principals have on the religious culture in their schools. Year 12 students have an insight into the role of Deputy Principals, as they have more extensive school experience than the other high school grades. The nature of their interaction with Deputy Principals is more varied; and as they approach the conclusion of their secondary education, they are more likely to be informed and candid in their responses. A sample of 315 students from four Western Australian Catholic schools of varied settings completed a 30 item questionnaire on a four point Likert scale with items targeting students' perceptions of Deputy Principals' effect on the religious culture of their schools. Apart from not giving Religious Education greater priority in timetabling Deputy Principals were perceived as having a positive effect on the religious culture of their schools. Notably they were perceived as good models and were seen as giving the religious nature of their schools prominence.

GOD01617       ®   Paper
To test or not to test?: The selection, adaptation, administration and analysis of instruments to assess literacy skills among Indigenous children

John Godfrey and Gary Partington, Edith Cowan University and Anna Sinclair, Association of Aboriginal Independent Community Schools

This paper explains the process of selecting diagnostic reading instruments to be used with Indigenous children. The selection process included the examination of numerous instruments, consultation with various educators, classroom teachers and community leaders. The instruments finally chosen contained items that appeared to form a basis, after some adaptation, to analyse the literacy skills of Year 1 and 2 Indigenous children. However further analysis after the instruments were trialed with a sample of Indigenous children revealed that revisions were necessary to some of the instruments. Results of the preliminary assessments will be presented to indicate the success or otherwise of the selection, adaptation, administration and analysis processes.

This paper will be presented as part of Symposium 26 PAR01614 Climbing the wall: Collaborative research over the border.

GOH01512   Paper
Recent changes in primary teacher education in Singapore: beyond design and implementation

Khim Chuan Goh and Saravanan Gopinathan, Nanyang Technological University

Since the launch of the 'Thinking Schools and Learning Nation' concept in 1997 many changes have taken place in the teaching-learning environments in Singapore schools. These changes in schools must also of necessity challenge the existing teacher preparation programmes at the National Institute of Education. Also, the lack of degree holders in primary schools, and a decline in 'A' level entrants have made it imperative for teacher training to be opened to students from the polytechnics, a non-traditional source. In the context of these new situations the undergraduate primary teacher education programmes at the Institute were reviewed. This resulted in more professionally based and integrated programmes - Bachelor of Arts/Bachelor of Science (Education) to be launched in July 2001 compared to the existing programmes which are highly content driven. This paper outlines some of the thinking that went into the conceptualisation and design of the new degree programmes and the objectives set for the programmes. Issues such as content mastery need for integration, creative use of IT in teaching and learning, practicum needs, and others will be discussed to the extent that they influenced the design of the new curriculum. Further fine-tuning may be necessary to meet additional new demands, among them minor specialisations that would strengthen primary teaching and help meet the needs of the schools. These too will be examined in this paper.

GOO01379   Paper
Reframing early education: What do parents value for their children?

Joy Goodfellow, University of Western Sydney

Recent research has presented substantive findings concerning the nature of early development, understandings about educational environments for young children and the importance of the early years. Learning, when viewed as change that occurs as a result of experience, begins during the prenatal period and spans a lifetime. However, there are critical periods when foundational learning, that is not easily remediated, occurs. This paper revisits the concept of early education within the context of what is known about early development, recent brain research, changing images of children as 'learners' and parents' reasons for choosing particular child care arrangements. Drawing on a study of parents' use of multicare arrangements, the paper explores the emphasis place by parents on the importance of early learning that occurs within 'family environments' and within 'educational programs'. These understandings have particular implications for early childhood educators and those involved in teaching in the early years of school.

GOR01441  ®   Paper
Improving quality learning in a preservice teacher education program

Christopher Gordon and Tracy Simpson, Charles Sturt University and Ray Debus, University of Sydney

This paper describes a study in which contextual modifications were implemented in a preservice teacher education program to increase students' use of deep approaches to learning. Students' perceptions of their competence in teaching were also expected to improve in response to improvements in quality learning. A longitudinal quasi-experimental design was used with three student cohorts. Cohort 1 acted as a control, while Cohorts 2 and 3 represented treatment groups. An action research paradigm was embedded to enable the development and refinement of the altered teaching approaches. Results indicated that the modifications to teaching methods, task requirements and assessment processes applied to the treatment group encouraged students to firstly reduce their use of surface approaches and later increase their use of deep approaches. While both treatment and contrast groups exhibited equivalent growth in teaching efficacy, differences between cohorts were noted in the sources that informed the development of personal teaching efficacy. These findings suggest that the study succeeded in its major goal of improving the quality of teaching and learning. While the specific contextual modifications used in the current study may not necessarily be transferable to other settings, the issues considered in the generation of those modifications could find wider applicability.

GOR01501   Paper
Productive pedagogy as a framework for teacher education

Jennifer Gore, Tom Griffiths and James Ladwig, University of Newcastle

In this paper we report results from a pilot study involving preservice teacher education students' application of the dimensions of 'Productive Pedagogy' (PP) in their teaching, during their internship. Using data from observations of the preservice students' teaching and from interviews about their experience of applying PP, following their participation in a single semester elective subject, some principles for the incorporation of PP into teacher education are suggested. The paper begins with an overview of the concept of Productive Pedagogy, current research into its use by practising teachers, and arguments for PP as a framework for preservice teacher education. Next, we provide an analysis of the data, and elaborate arguments to refine the potential use of PP as a framework for teacher education. While the elective subject model is seen to have had some positive impact on preservice students' teaching, it is argued that a more fundamental reorganisation of teacher education is required if preservice teachers are to incorporate PP into their personal approaches to teaching. Given a particular concern about the low levels of intellectual quality produced by these student teachers, we argue for a qualitative shift in teacher education away from a focus on teaching methods and strategies, and towards the substance and purposes of teaching.

GOS01234   Paper
Technology: Does it enhance the practicum experience

Bob Boyd and Halima Goss, Queensland University of Technology

Practicum experiences for Human Movement Studies students have increasingly been aimed at providing a contextualised experience set to enable the practice and development of a range of generic and applied discipline specific skills. Clearly, if the workplace is an appropriate environment for authentic and appropriate activities and these activities are clearly defined and realistically aligned to the opportunities available then the expected learning outcomes will be achieved. In order to facilitate this alignment of workplace environments and learning goals with workplace opportunities we have established a set of technological support mechanisms designed to assist students to prepare and then undertake their practicum through the use of ongoing dialogue and communication opportunities. The promotion of discussion over the internet and access to relevant information resources is targeted to enable students to clarify goals, select appropriate prac sites and identify activities that they perceive as value adding for their professional life. This paper will describe the evaluation strategy (adapted from the TLT group's "Flashlight" model), the data that were used to provide insight into the challenges faced by students in work-based learning programmes and the teaching and learning strategies (on and off line) that we identified as key to meeting these challenges.

GOU01500   Paper
Educational research in a global economy of knowledge production: Methodologies and difference at postcolonial intersections

Noel Gough, Deakin University

The first (and most specific) postcolonial intersection to which this paper refers was constituted initially by an Australian-South African institutional links project (funded by the Australian federal government) and subsequent collaborations and partnerships between Australian and South African academics arising (directly or indirectly) from this project. In this paper I will focus on activities that were intended to enhance research capacity in educational leadership and in environmental education, with particular reference to appropriate methodologies and supervision practices. Other postcolonial intersections to which this paper will refer include those that have been formed as a result of international students from various locations in Africa and Asia studying at Deakin (either on-campus or by distance modes). My purposes in the paper are (i) to examine, through cases and examples, some ways in which difference (with particular reference to race, ethnicity, language and location) might be linked to individual and/or community dispositions to take up (or to reject) specific research methodologies and epistemologies, and (ii) to consider the implications of such differences and dispositions for academic practices directed towards developing 'communities of understanding' at postcolonial intersections.

GOU01515   Paper
Researching effective teaching and learning in science - Victoria's science in schools research project

Annette Gough and Russell Tytler, Deakin University

In 2000 a consortium headed by Deakin University was funded by the Victorian Department of Education, Employment and Training to develop a model of effective teaching and learning for science in schools from P-10. Initially working with 27 study schools, the Project has continued in 2001 with 126 participating schools. This paper will discuss the model for school and classroom change that we have been developing, with a particular focus on the change strategies being used by the research team and in the participating schools. Central to the model has been the appointment in each school of a SiS (Science in Schools) coordinator with time release and additional funding for resources. The Coordinator has used strategies including mapping each participating teacher against the eight components of effective teaching and learning (the SiS components); student preferences surveying; auditing of curriculum, resources and school policy; and team planning of priorities, actions, implementation and monitoring strategies. The emphasis has been on school ownership of the change process and the school leadership has been identified as central to its success. As well as focusing on actions in schools the paper will also discuss the research process from the research team's perspective.

GOW01616       ®  Paper
Keeping the bastards at bay: Indigenous community responses to research

Graeme Gower and Les Mack, Edith Cowan University

Researchers are not always readily welcome in Indigenous communities. The failure of researchers to adequately explain the research they are conducting or provide useful feedback to communities, as well as the potential to use the data to condemn the participants to a deficit position in society has resulted in many Indigenous communities being unwilling to host researchers. In this paper, the implications for the conduct of a research project that will operate in a number of urban and remote communities will be discussed.

This paper will be presented as part of Symposium 26 PAR01614 Climbing the wall: Collaborative research over the border.

GRE01343   Paper
The Northern Territory curriculum framework project

Mike Grenfell, Northern Territory University

This paper reports on work carried out towards developing the Northern Territory Curriculum framework using a case study approach employing action research. Particular attention will be paid to how the essential learnings were provided for, the extent and scope of the programs devised, the use of outcomes focused learning, the nature of partnership and collaboration, and the relationship between action research and Professional Development.

GRI01488   Paper
Modelling strategies in problem solving

Patrick Griffin, Kelvin Lai, Andy Mak, Margaret Wu, Mark Dulhunty

Over the past four years problem solving ability tests have been administered to a national sample of primary age students. The data has been examined using factor analysis, and combinations of single and multi-dimensional and multi-component item response modelling. Results suggested that the problem structure should be altered from what was essentially a multi step mathematics problem to one that emphasised thinking strategies. New items emphasised understanding of the problem, integrating information, planning and then executing a strategy and used multi-component modelling (Lai, 1998) instead of a mixture of distractor analysis and latent trait interpretations. The new items were designed according to this four-step strategy. This in turn enabled the multi-component model to be explored and appropriate intervention strategies to be identified for teachers. Trials of the new item types were conducted with just over than 200 students. Analyses provided evidence of both the student strategic approaches to problem solving and a validation of the model being tested. Teachers were advised of the strategies that led to successful resolution and from these discussions, intervention strategies were identified. These were then implemented in the classroom to examine their effectiveness in improving students' problem solving strategies and resolution.

GRO01053   Paper
Transforming assessment, transforming professional learning

Susan Groundwater-Smith, University of Sydney and Michael Hayes MLC School, Burwood

This paper will discuss the processes used by a large Independent Girls School to transform assessment practices. Formerly of a summative and convergent kind, the determination has been to change ways in which teachers and their students engage in authentic, formative assessment such that student learning is enhanced in all faculties within the school. The paper will argue that in order to make such fundamental changes to practice is has been necessary to examine teachers own professional learning and to accommodate to their professional learning histories. Each faculty in the school has formed a commission of inquiry whose purpose has been to investigate: current assessment practices; from whence they came; the impediments they face when change is to be made; and some new directions and possibilities. The process will culminate with each faculty undertaking an action learning project where change will be planned, implemented, monitored and reflected upon. The paper is jointly presented by the researcher in residence, who is acting as a critical friend to the project, and the Director of Curriculum, who is managing the project.

GRO01054  ®   Paper
Choosing schools in a volatile market

Susan Groundwater-Smith, University of Sydney

This paper will discuss a project undertaken in one metropolitan school district within the Department of Education and Training, New South Wales. In the context of the marketisation of schools and the rationalisation of schooling provisions, this study sought to explore the basis upon which caregivers and their children made choices regarding school selection. Three teachers from each of the thirteen state secondary schools in the district were provided with research training regarding the conduct of focus group inquiry. Following a pilot study, which tested the methodology, teachers investigated, using a common procedure, the factors which influenced caregivers and their children in making choices regarding the secondary school the students would attend. A number of factors were rank ordered and clearly indicated that the perception of the school as a safe environment, where student welfare had primacy, was the first consideration; whereas links to primary schools and travel concerns were relatively unimportant. Other factors, such as curriculum choice and the role of the school leader varied. Focus group discussions made clear the ways in which the students themselves were active agents in the making of choices. The paper will present the results of the study and will also discuss the implications for the ways in which schools may present themselves in a competitive educational market. It will also examine ways in which schools can work in concert with one another, across a district, while still maintaining their own distinctiveness.

GRO01456   Paper
Teaching standards and moral dispositions: Can we have one without the other?

Robin Groves and John Wallace, Curtin University and William Louden, Edith Cowan University

It has often been said that what isn't measured isn't valued. When we examine this little truism in the context of the teaching standards movement we are faced with an interesting and troubling paradox. While we understand teaching to be a rich and complex act requiring a range of qualities, we seem compelled to reduce our lists of standards to a subset of 'measurable' attributes of teaching (knowledge and skills) leaving aside the 'unmeasurable' (the moral, ethical and aesthetic domains). The teaching standards movement, it would seem, has foundered on this important point=how to measure that which is valued and, in turn, value that which is measured. In this project, we extend the discussion on standards and moral dispositions through our involvement in a standards project with a group of experienced science teachers. Teachers were asked to examine video episodes for evidence of various standards including moral dispositions. In this paper we use teachers' comments on the episodes to report on how moral dispositions might be incorporated into lists of standards that provide a rich and full account of teaching and form a sound basis for making judgements about good teaching.

GRO01638       ®  Paper
The graphic calculator as a thinking tool: Perspectives from the classroom

Susie Groves, Deakin University and Deodato Obregon, Western Visayas College of Science and Technology, Philippines

For over a decade, the graphic calculator has been promoted not only as a computational tool, but also as a thinking tool - for example, as an aid to enhance conceptual understanding, as a problem-solving tool and as a means of enabling students to engage in meaningful investigations. However, research studies focusing on these aspects have shown mixed results and have mostly focused on graphs and functions.

This paper reports on one aspect of a case study in a year 10 mathematics classroom - the role of the graphic calculator as a thinking tool. Data from observations of nine statistics lessons and interviews with the teacher and five students, are analysed from three perspective's: the teacher's intentions with respect to the use of the graphic calculator as a tool to promote conceptual understanding as opposed to procedural competence; the opportunities afforded during the lessons for student investigation; and students' views of how the graphic calculator enhanced conceptual understanding.

The results provide insights into ways in which students perceive the graphic calculator as promoting conceptual understanding, as well as some of the difficulties encountered in practice in a classroom where the teacher clearly intends to use the graphic calculator as a thinking tool.

H

HAG01142   Paper
Challenges for skill formation in evolving industry: The case of the Australian building and construction industry

Paul Hager, Suzanne Crowley and Bernice Melville, University of Technology, Sydney

Over the last decade, the Australian building and construction industry has undergone unprecedented change under the rubric of 'workplace reform'. This paper will report on a funded research project that investigated aspects of this workplace reform in the industry, particularly its implications for skill formation. The project centred on the role of generic (or 'soft') skills or competencies in the reformed workplace. Occupational health and safety and environmental practices were investigated closely as examples of changing work practices that increasingly required new approaches to work and its organisation. While changing work practices have gained significant acceptance, the reality of the increasing fragmentation of the industry (growth of subcontracting, outsourcing, labour hire, etc.) has put significant cost pressures on many players. This has served to limit the extent of real reform, as well as creating major challenges for the provision of skill formation. The implications of these developments for skill formation policy will be discussed in this paper.

HAM01182  ®   Paper
A theoretical rationale for the application of computer mediated communication (CMC) in English for specific purposes (ESP) setting.

Masputeriah Hamzah, Edith Cowan University

The paper reports on a theoretical framework underpinning the application of CMC in English for Civil Engineering learning environment. The study is based on the premise that no matter how advanced the capabilities of the present computer technology, they should not determine language-teaching practices. The application of technology in language learning should be guided by sound pedagogical principles and methodological approaches informed by second language acquisition theory. For the purpose of this study, the Interactionist Theory of language acquisition is adopted. Proponents of the interactionist perspective of second language acquisition (SLA) assert that in order for interlanguage development to occur, learners need to interact in order to give them the opportunity to negotiate meaning for comprehensible input, test hypotheses related to their developing interlanguage system and have access to feedback related to their output. Various studies have shown that computers are changing the way that learners can use language in interaction, which can be facilitative for language acquisition.

The theoretical framework adopted will thus provide the basis for examining the nature of language, learning and interaction fostered in the CMC environment.

HAN01503  ®   Paper
Male and Female students' attitudes toward social studies - A case study in government secondary school

Leah Hansberry and Wally Moroz, Edith Cowan University

This paper describes research into male and female secondary students' attitudes toward social studies. The research was a case study involving Year 9 students at one Western Australian government secondary school. The aim was to obtain information about students' attitudes toward social studies and the factors that influence these attitudes, and more specifically, to determine whether student gender influences attitudes. The research design included both quantitative and qualitative techniques, incorporating a survey questionnaire and a focus group discussion. The findings from the study suggest that social studies has a low status among Year 9 students at the case-study school. The reasons for this poor image may be attributed to the teacher-centred, didactic pedagogy and uninteresting content. There were significant differences in attitude toward social studies based on student gender. Female students had a more positive attitude towards school and social studies than did males in most aspects and were also more positive about most school subjects including social studies. This case study offers an informative foundation for further studies.

HAR01100   Paper
Nomads, Exiles, Pilgrims, Tourists: Women Teachers in the Canadian North and the Australian Outback

Helen Harper, University of Western Ontario and The University of Queensland

This paper will draw on a study of white and indigenous women teaching in Northern First Nation's communities in Canada. This ongoing study involves a series of interviews, field studies, and extensive historical documentation of women teachers working in isolated Arctic and Sub-arctic communities. In part, this data reveals the difficulties of crossing cultural, racial, linguistic and geographical boundaries that women face in negotiating a personal and professional sense of themselves as teachers. Issues of migration and transience are common in the material lives and discursive histories of the women interviewed. The paper will offer an initial, and at this point, tentative comparison to similar border-crossing required both historically and in the contemporary lives of women teachers working in the Australian Outback. The analysis of the two contexts will employ postmodern and postcolonial notions of "the exile," "the nomad," and "the tourist," as they illuminate the experiences of women teachers (Naficy, 1999; Bhabha, 1994). This theoretical work, along side feminist scholarship, offers a better means of understanding and analysing the struggles of women teachers and the ongoing struggles of indigenous communities with regard to education. The paper concludes with a discussion of the implications of this work for teacher education.

HAR01126  ®   Paper
Thinking and working scientifically: The role of analogical and mental models

Allan Harrison, Central Queensland University

Recent Australian science syllabuses promote thinking and working scientifically as a way to develop scientific literacy. This resembles the inquiry approaches in overseas curriculums and inquiry and working scientifically are based on investigating, understanding and communicating science ideas. Analogical reasoning is claimed to contribute to understanding and communicating but is inconsistently used in school classrooms. Some teachers use analogies and models to explain science concepts while others view them as two-edged swords. A better understanding of analogical reasoning is the aim of the research discussed in this paper. Past research and current understandings are presented and the difficulties involved in accessing students' and teachers' mental models are discussed. The literature is analysed and a series of questions for future research are proposed. In essence, the paper asks: can a rigorous method be found too effectively explore students' and teachers' evolving ideas during analogical interactions? In other words, how do prior knowledge, mental models and classroom experiences merge during analogical thinking; and in what ways is this interaction an amalgam of the social setting, the model itself and students' current and past ideas? The paper presents a range of original teacher and student data that attempts to answer this difficult question.

HAR01302   Paper
Telling or teaching: Towards a new lecturing paradigm

Anna Harley, RMIT University

The digital age is producing a revolution in higher education, yet for many the concept of lecturing has remained unchanged, underpinned by a belief that the teaching and learning process is simply a transfer of knowledge. (Fox 1983). Even those who have challenged this model have often adopted a prescriptive approach; viewing lecturing as a set of skills that can be mastered (Gibbs 1985; Cannon 1992; Murphy 1998). This paper will argue the case for a new lecturing paradigm, one that is more soundly based in learning theory and that has as its central tenet the aim of fostering deeper learning (Marton & Saljo 1976; Biggs 1989; Gow & Kember 1990). It will link theory in this field with a discussion of the insights gained from interviews with ten experienced practitioners, selected by peer and student evaluation. These interviews explore why these educators believe that their lecturing style has implications for the way in which their student learn and examine the structures and strategies they employ to encourage a deeper approach to learning.

HAT01545  ®   Paper
Masculinities and self-representation in adolescent males' lives at school: Exploring pedagogical possibilities

Helen Hatchell, Murdoch University

In this paper I explore how adolescent males represent themselves and picture their role and place in present day society. This research is based on a study conducted in a Year 10 English classroom in an all boys' school. I explored how adolescent boys of different ethnic backgrounds were given opportunities to interrogate dominant forms of masculinities. I found one teacher opening up spaces for students to consider different positions of masculinities through specific texts. In the classroom, I observed how masculinities were played out. I also interviewed students in this English classroom about their responses to and engagement with selected educational texts. The research utilizes feminist theoretical perspectives, which have provided us with alternative ways of viewing and reporting empirical research relating to males and with alternative ways of theorizing masculinities. Despite some success in disrupting hegemonic masculinity discourses, this paper concludes that stereotypes continued to be reinforced despite attempts at dislodging and/or disrupting these beliefs.

HAW01757   Paper
The promises and pitfalls of perfectionistic behaviours in Australian adolescent girls

Colleen Hawkins, Helen Watt and Ken Sinclair, University of Sydney

Phase 1 of this study provides empirical support for the existence of three types of perfectionistic students. From a cluster analysis of scores on the Multidimensional Perfectionism Scale (Frost et al., 1990) the first group is described as positive or healthy types of perfectionists, the second group as negative or unhealthy types and a third group as neutral or non-perfectionistic types of students. Participants are 409 adolescent girls from Years 7-11 in 2 private schools in Sydney of comparable socioeconomic status and predominantly English speaking background. The second phase of the study examines the relationship between scores on measures of perfectionism, goal orientations and levels of depression, anxiety and stress. Manova analyses indicate statistically significant differences between the three types of perfectionistic students on goal orientations, depression anxiety and stress, academic self-efficacy and academic self-handicapping variables. The findings of this study provide initial Australian data relevant to teachers and school counsellors concerned with preventing serious emotional difficulties and subsequent academic failure associated with dysfunctional perfectionism.

HAY01547  ®   Paper
Re-thinking thinking for the new curricula

Felicity Haynes, The University of Western Australia

Recent curriculum reforms were driven, via Mayer competencies, by industry's demand for school leavers who demonstrated creative initiative in the workplace. However, monitoring student progress in. critical thinking, according to McPeck, depends upon domain-specific outcome statements, in which thinking skills are evaluated according to the specific critical features of the discipline. Without these disciplinary structures, he claims, no evaluation of thinking is possible, particularly in newly integrated areas such as Science and the Arts. There has been little research on how outcome statements within learning areas link desired thinking skills to generic outcome statements such as requiring students to think critically and creatively in general, or how they link to embodied disciplinary practices, on an apprenticeship model. This paper presents a rethinking of thinking skills which links physical and social practices, intellectual and rational principles and creative problem-seeking and problem-solving in a tripartite model which demonstrates how thinking skills can be fostered and encouraged in schools. It is a general model, which in this paper will make specific reference to integrated arts programmes.

HEA01582   Paper
Teacher education and the new knowledge environment

Gregory Heath, Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology

There is a crisis in teacher education. This is a worldwide phenomenon which is particularly acute in English speaking countries. There continues to be a shortage of well qualified recruits to teacher education courses and governments show a continuing reluctance to support teacher education programs. On the other side of the equation universities and teacher educators are suffering a crisis of confidence as to the most effective way to prepare teachers for a transformed and uncertain future of knowledge creation and transmission. This paper will consider the dynamics and scope of this crisis exploring the reasons and causes for the retreat of governments from the direction of education policy and the crisis of confidence surrounding the legitimacy of knowledge which has the potential to destroy the teaching profession. It will then consider responses to the agendas of deregulation and privatisation and argue that the current situation offers educators the opportunity to embrace diversity and deregulation in the process of teacher education for a new liberation of learning.

HEA01715  ®   Paper
A mature e-Learning model: Accommodating the needs of mature students

Simone Heaperman and Fay Sudweeks, Murdoch University

The future of education is becoming increasingly linked to technology. Virtual learning environments, in particular, are proving indispensable in distance learning. As education moves into this technology arena there is a growing focus on the needs of the mature age student who may be adversely affected by the additional challenges of new technology. The mature age student faces a barrage of factors, which may adversely affect their learning abilities. This paper explores factors that influence achievement of learning objectives by mature students. A model for attaining efficacy in virtual learning environments is proposed. The model takes into account factors that impact specifically on mature students. The paper proposes changes in learning and pedagogical strategies as well as useability design to accommodate the specific needs of mature students. The proposed strategies also impact on the broader student population in achieving efficacy in virtual learning environments.

HEM01401   Paper
Studying in one culture whilst working in another

Brian Hemmings, Chittrapa Kundalaputra and Doug Hill, Charles Sturt University

In recent years higher education institutions have enrolled a significant number of distance education students from overseas countries. These students need to become immersed in the life of the tertiary institutions and hopefully become enculturated. Culture in this context helps define a set of beliefs about what students do and how they are expected to work. The study which is reported here was an evaluation of joint foreign Thai doctoral programs in which the students remained working in their own higher education institution in Thailand whilst studying part time by distance education with an Australian or British university. These students, however, remained immersed in the culture of their own workplace and felt relatively isolated from other students in the study programs. The students also experienced a number of problems in their studies due to uncertainty, which is common with new programs, where there is no transfer of information from one generation of students to the next generation. That is, students were not sure of particular study requirements and lacked appropriate support from various groups such as family and colleagues. The culture of the students' workplace supported the rejection of new and different programs. As well, the additional time required to work in English was not always appreciated by students or by the staff of the foreign universities. Some of these difficulties were overcome, in part, through study visits to the university and through visits of staff members to work with students for short study blocks in Thailand. The paper concludes with some key implications for stakeholders involved in such joint programs.

HER01246   Paper
Discussion vs. Recitation" and "Mathematical Discussion": What might these look like in middle school mathematics classrooms and what difference could they make?

Beth Herbel-Eisenmann, University of Wyoming

This study offers a close look at the discourse in two 8th grade mathematics classrooms using a reform-oriented mathematics curriculum in the US. The teachers who are the focus of the study have many attributes in common (eg. similar academic backgrounds and professional development activities, same school, same curriculum and a similar enthusiasm for it), yet teach differently. Drawing from a larger database of classroom observations and teacher interviews, I describe and analyse classroom transcripts using both a more general distinction between discussion and recitation (Barnes, 1976; Nystrand, 1995) and the idea of a "mathematical discussion" (Pirie & Schwarzenberger, 1988). I look closely at the classroom interactions during student's introduction to solving quadratic functions and argue that differences appear in the classroom discourse. For example, both teachers controlled aspects of the classroom exploration, but one teacher controlled the turn and topic (Griffin & Mehan, 1981), while the other teacher controlled the "common knowledge" (Edwards & Mercer, 1987) in the classroom. In terms of mathematical statements, the latter teacher also allowed students to make both "reflective" and "operational" statements (Pirie & Schwarzenberger, 1988). In contrast, the first teacher allowed students to mainly make "operational statements" and saved the "reflective statements" for himself. The main difference in the classrooms appeared in the roles the teachers and students took on, which may have affected the epistemology each teacher advocated.

HER01711  ®   Paper
Web-based strategies for professional induction in rural, regional and remote areas

Anthony Herrington and Jan Herrington, Edith Cowan University

Geographic and professional isolation take their toll amongst professionals, particularly within the first five years of practice in regional, rural and remote areas of Australia. The attraction and retention of human service professionals and para-professionals in regional Australia is a significant problem affecting the sustainability and social cohesion of these communities. This paper reviews the literature on induction of professionals in isolated situations, particularly in the health and education areas, and proposes methods of support based on the use of the Internet. Samples of website designs are provided, together with an example of a site that would be appropriate for neophyte teachers. The site, entitled Mathematics Education on the Web, provides communication technologies for discussion, resources and exemplary teaching videos, and provides an example of how the Internet can be used to support isolated teachers in the critical first few years of teaching.

HO01072   Paper
From using transparencies to using Powerpoint slides in the classroom

Belinda Ho, City University of Hong Kong

This study aims to investigate how a teacher-researcher and her students react to the use of transparencies, the use of Powerpoint slides and the gradual change from the use of transparencies to Powerpoint slides as visual aids in an English communication skills course. The teacher's reactions to the use of the two kinds of visual aids were recorded in teacher journals. The students' opinions on the effectiveness of the use of transparencies and Powerpoint slides were collected through a questionnaire and interviews. Through the triangulation of the questionnaire, interview and journal data, the impact of the use of transparencies and Powerpoint slides on the parties involved, the problems that emerged during the process of change, and the possible solutions to the problems were investigated. The educational theories behind the use of transparencies and Powerpoint slides, the pedagogical advantages and disadvantages of using each of them to aid teaching and the pedagogical implications for the choice and use of the two kinds of visual aids will be discussed.

HO01108   Paper
Practising reflective teaching: A personal journey of professional development

Boon Tiong Ho, Nanyang Technological University

This paper recounts my learning experiences over the last fifteen years as a secondary school teacher, a curriculum specialist and until recently, a teacher educator in science education. My personal story is one of professional growth in many aspects of the teacher knowledge domain. Viewed through multiple lenses of teacher development model, curriculum conceptions, and personal perceptions and beliefs, I describe my j oumey with quotes, maxims, and examples of scientific demonstrations that characterise Sch=lF6n's (1983, 1987) notion of reflection. 1 engage my teaching vocation with a simple life mission: "I live to learn with passion and service, and 1 learn to live with purpose and significance".

HO01706   Paper
Sub-types of dyslexia in different orthographies

Fuk-chuen Ern Ho, Hong Kong Institute of Education and Robert Elliott, University of New South Wales

The purpose of this project is to compare the underlying mechanisms involved in students with reading difficulties in alphabetic and logographic writing systems. Based on the dual-route model of reading, readers may use either the lexical (words are recognised as wholes) or sub-lexical (words are recognised through grapheme-phoneme correspondence) procedure to read. Castles & Coltheart (1993) and Gonzalez & Santana (2000) have provided evidence for the existence of these two mechanisms in English reading and Spanish reading respectively. They suggested that deficits in one and/or the other mechanism would lead to different patterns of reading disability. Surface dyslexia results from impairment of the lexical procedure with an intact phonological route to reading. Phonological dyslexia results from a highly selective deficit in the grapheme-phoneme transformation mechanism. It was found that surface and phonological dyslexic reading patterns were also found in the Chinese dyslexic readers. The ratio of surface to phonological dyslexia in Chinese orthography was similar to that of Spanish. A higher percentage of surface dyslexia was observed.

HOB01502   Paper
Secondary students' growing disenchantment with social studies - A case study in an independent secondary school

Dianne Hobbs and Wally Moroz, Edith Cowan University

This paper describes findings from a case study of student attitudes toward social studies in one Independent secondary school in Western Australia. The research used quantitative and qualitative methods to determine the attitudes of lower secondary students toward social studies and to explain the factors influencing these attitudes. A particular focus was on the impact on attitudes of students' year levels. The findings indicate that students at the case-study school do not like social studies and that its status declines from Year 8 to Years 9 and 10. Students find social studies boring because of the teacher-centred activities and they do not see its relevance for future job prospects. The study provides a foundation for further research to be conducted.

HOL01587  Paper
PhD examination - Assessment's least mapped frontier

Allyson Holbrook, University of Newcastle

This paper presents a critical analysis of research studies in the area of research training in universities, particularly the PhD in the past decade. Increasing research attention is now directed at PhD completion, the process and practice of supervision, and student preparation and experience. However, there has been scant attention paid to PhD outcomes, particularly the examination of the thesis, the qualities of the research undertaken by PhD students and the effectiveness, usefulness and application of the research training received across disciplines. Research into the PhD has been restricted by a lack of international comparison and collaboration, an impoverished theoretical base, and a lack of attention to the fundamentals of learning and assessment at this advanced level of study. The final section of the paper focuses on studies of examination and how such studies are essential to an understanding of the expectations underpinning research quality.

This paper will be presented as part of Symposium 25 HOL01586 Frontiers in research training: Evaluating PhD examination and supervision.

HU01329   Paper
How the trend of girls achieving better results than boys emerges in China's schooling

Zhongping Hu, South China Normal University

A series of statistics show that girls are doing better and better than boys in China's schooling. People have different viewpoints in assessing this situation. The author argues that it is both delightful and worrying, but it poses more worries than delights. The emergence of this trend results from: (1) the promotion of female social status leading to more or less equal enrolment rate as that of boys which again results in ratio growth of excellent girl students; (2) the awareness of female students that they have to study harder and they are doing so in order to gain the same achievements as males in a still male dominant society; (3) the teaching objectives in China's schooling are mainly grasp and accept existing knowledge and skills. Assessment system is also based on such objectives. This kind of teaching and assessment favours girls more than boys because of sex personality differences. The third reason for girls achieving better results than boys suggests that China education system is very problematic and needs a series of relevant reforms.

HUM01356   Paper
Teacher influence on education reform

Shirley Humphries, University of Montreal

Teacher organisations are an integral part of the education system. Their evolution is important to the development of education and the teaching profession. The organisation of public school teachers impacts on public elections, education policy, and school organisation. Conversely, a nation's history, institutions, and policy shape the strategies available to organised teachers. Governments internationally initiated change in curriculum, education governance, accountability measures, and teacher unionism that impacts on teacher professionalism. Understanding the influence of government and teacher organisations relations on the process and the nature of change in education can assist the parties to appreciate the importance of their respective roles in education reform. The present comparative study is an explanation of three types of organised teachers and state relations with reference to change in education as exemplified in Quebec and Saskatchewan, Canada, and Victoria, Australia.

I

ING01199   Paper
Collectivity and analysis in memory-work

Christine Ingleton, Adelaide University

At the core of memory-work is the making of meaning from a systematic and collective reading of the memories of individuals' lived experiences. Memory-work enables many voices to be heard as we seek to understand and theorise the cross-woven threads of the fabric of embodied experience. The methodology, however, confronts memory-workers with the complexity of moving between the subjectivity of their collective experiences, emotions and interpretations, to the more academic and distanced processes of theorising the meaning of those experiences. In that process, the particular voices of participants are often felt to be vulnerable or lost in the final analysis. This paper describes some of the dilemmas of collectivity, voice and power experienced by researchers and their participants in the analysis of the narratives and discussions that form the data of memory-work.

IZA01148   Paper
Extension of Item Response Modelling Data for Mathematics Tests

John Izard and Peter Jeffery
RMIT University and Professional Resources Services

Presented at the AARE Conference in Fremantle, December 2001 as part of the symposium on Testing for Teaching Purposes

This paper will describe the process of data collection and analysis undertaken in two NSW schools to extend the Australian Item Response Modelling (IRM) data for a series of mathematics tests covering six year old to 14 year old children. In the project, students in two Sydney schools were tested with Maths 12, or 13 or 14 [Y0] tests according to their chronological age at date of testing. Each student also took the Maths 11 [Y0] test as well, to allow statistical analyses with Quest software [ACER 1996] to created extensions to the profiles already published for Australian teachers by Professional Resources Services [PRS] for Maths 7 - 11 [YO]. The extension data will be publicly released at the time of presentation of this paper. Discussion will focus on, the diagnostic and curriculum planning possibilities facilitated by the testing and IRM analyses to encourage and allow "Testing for Teaching Purposes".

This paper is presented as part of Symposium 3, JEFO 1144 Testing for teaching purposes.

J

JAC01663   Paper
Singapore's Fort Canning: Teaching the past from the ground

W Jacob, National Institute of Education, Singapore

The teaching and learning of history in the 2 1 st century will pose serious challenges if outmoded and unimaginative methods continue to dominate classroom teaching. The frequent memorisation of inert and often irrelevant historical data have raised questions about the validity and efficacy of history as a school subject. To resolve this problem more innovative teaching strategies must be adopted. Pupils must be taught the skills of the historian - to examine and use primary sources, to imaginatively reconstruct the past, to make tentative conclusions, etc.

Fieldwork within the framework of experiential lean-ling can serve as a meaningful vehicle for this skills-based-approach. Based on this assumption 2 separate field trips to Fort Canning site were conducted for 30 pre-service Postgraduate Diploma in Education students and 30 in-service teachers. The site was originally a hill with a history going back to the 14th century when Singapore was Temasek. The reminders of the past - the Iskander Syah Kramat, Christina Cemetery, the remains of Fort Canning and the Bunder Gun Site are all historical evidence reflecting different periods of Singapore's history.

The approach adopted in the field involved essentially an explanation of the "reminders", reference to information based handouts, examining and using historical evidence and work through field based exercises. The sequencing of the different learning activities was to a large extent inspired by the Kolb Experiential Learning Model.

JAR01124   Paper
The social dimensions of teacher collegiality

Lucy Jarzabkowski, Murdoch University

An aspect of teachers' work lives rarely given consideration within the larger scheme of educational research is that of social interaction with colleagues. While research focuses strongly on linking teacher collaboration to student learning outcomes, what is often neglected are the social benefits of teacher collegiality for teachers themselves. This presentation provides empirical data drawn from a completed PhD case study on teachers' social interaction in a primary school and reveals teachers' perceptions of the importance of such interaction. It provides an argument for incorporating a social dimension into existing concepts of teacher collegiality and posits that social interaction among colleagues may have two-fold benefits. First, it is suggested that social interaction may promote better working relationships, which in the longer term may improve the quality of teaching and learning. Second, positive social interaction may improve the emotional health of the staff community, thus reducing emotional stress and burnout. What may appear on the surface to be an immaterial part of a teacher's workplace experience in terms of educational outcomes should now be acknowledged as promoting significant individual and organisational benefits.

JAS01344   Paper
Crossing borders: Learning from, by working in a different professional knowledge context.

Anne Jasman, University of Melbourne

There is much emphasis placed on lifelong learning within the professions of teaching and teacher education. This paper explores the potential for professional learning by crossing the border between one professional knowledge context to another with reference to data arising from a number of research projects examining teachers' and teacher educators' knowledge construction, work practices, partnerships and collaboration. Factors that enable and constrain working and learning in new professional knowledge contexts are discussed with reference to participants' perceptions of core business and expected outcomes, organisational culture and structure, personal professional knowledge, networking and communication structures. The potential benefits of such initiatives for supporting ongoing professional learning are also explored with reference to an increasing cohort of beginning teachers and the changing profile of the profession.

JEF01015   Paper
Cost of past rationales for the future support of education

Anne L. Jefferson, University of Ottawa

The financial objective for the generation of revenue and their redistribution to the education system is in essence the same no matter which countries is our focus. The objective is to remove inequality of educational opportunity. It is very rewarding to learn that this objective is the umbrella of financial schemes put in place by governments.

One would not be faulted greatly if the simile was extended to the schemes themselves. But, the informed would quickly enlighten the simplicity of such an extension. The last century of work within the education finance area has if nothing else made us fully aware of how inequality is situational defined.

The complexity of the situation is much more intense when it is extended beyond the boundaries of provinces. Here, the desire to remain distinct while becoming part of the new global economy becomes factors that are important within the equation.

This paper will explore these dynamics in an attempt to further understand why education is being financially supported in the manner it is and the consequences this support will have for the upcoming generation.

JOH01061  ®   Paper
Postdeconstruction-reconstruction of journals a methodlogical solution for the postmodern researcher

Evelyn Johnson, Deakin University

Many in the postmodern era recognise the subjectivity of the research process and in doing so seek to dismantle the traditional barrier between the researcher and the researched. How may the standpoint of this research subject be incorporated? How may this be implemented in practical terms? And how may this be analysed without theoretical recourse to essentialism? This paper proposes a new application of journalling to solve these methodological dilemmas drawing on a wider research project that investigates how practitioners conceptualise and enact policy reform. Responses to related postmodern methodological dilemmas and solutions will be invited from conference discussants.

JOH01197  ®   Paper
Eresearch on eteaching in (e)ntrapment

Richard Johnson, DeakinUniversity

In this paper I reflect on three research projects emerging from my on online learning and teaching.

The data used in this paper is current and the media is low-tech and accessible. This paper is not about the hardware and software of technology. Rather, it is about a teacher educator's struggle to try to make sense of online pedagogy at a time when academics seem to be constantly exhorted to take their courses online. This paper draws on data from the following projects:

JOH01397   Paper
The Lived Reality of the Transition to High School for Rural Students

Kate Johnstone, Charles Sturt University

This paper describes the processes involved in exploring the 'lived reality' of one group of Year 6 rural students as they made their transition to high school. A range of qualitative data collection techniques were used to track the experiences of the students during their last few weeks of primary school, and their transition to high school. Using the principles of Grounded Theory and specifically the processes of constant-comparative analysis, three categories emerged: Adaptation to Organisational Culture, Adaptation to Social Culture and Personal Reactions and Adaptations. While the transition to high school for the rural students was an eagerly anticipated event, the students also held many anxieties relating to the 'Organisational Culture' of high school. For example, some of the students reported that it was difficult to find their way around the high school. The 'Social Culture' of the high school was also a concern for the rural students particularly due to the possibility of not having friends and being vulnerable to older students. These feelings continued during the students' initial weeks of high school but were later replaced by a focus upon academic requirements and the changing nature of social friendships. The third area of concern, 'Personal Reactions and Adaptations', related to how students responded differentially to their transition. Recommendations based upon these findings focus upon initiatives that may promote a smooth transition and can be accessed and implemented by both primary and secondary schools and students.

JON01196   Paper
In the eye of the beholder

Susanne Jones, The University of New South Wales

Images of all types are used across educational settings from preschool to tertiary levels and beyond; they are a frequently-taken-for-granted aspect of most pedagogies, especially in the visual arts. I am interested in how we come to understand what an image might mean and, in particular, how is it that we understand our role as a beholder of that image? Over time children acquire a complex understanding of the role of the beholder in their vernacular theories of art. Drawing on descriptions of the development of theory formation identified by Karmiloff-Smith this research maps the significant changes which occur between the ages of 7 and 13 in children's understanding of the role of the beholder in art. Questions ask children to explain the 'causal' agency in the relationships among four functions, the artist, the artwork, the content of art and the beholder, when posed within an integrated representational framework or homeostatic model of art. Understanding developmental changes in the representational framework of "the beholder" within children's cognitive reasoning has ramifications across all areas of the curriculum as teachers guide young people to make meaning of their image-saturated world.

JOR01189   Paper
Intervening to improve access to university of students from under represented groups within low decile schools.

L.M.Jorgensen, B.Gordon, and G.Slater, Massey University

A scholarship system was implemented by Massey University in 1999 to encourage students who show potential to undertake university study but who do not have a family history in university participation, to include such study in their expectations. The VC bursary award scheme is an intervention intended to improve their cultural capital in this area over the final years of secondary schooling and into the first year at university. Three pilot schools were chosen following strict criteria. One of these was that the schools had to have a high discrepancy between the intake of third formers and the percentage that went on to achieve high leaving qualifications. Two types of awards are given to students. One is a certificate of merit issued to deserving students at the end of year 11 and 12; the second is a monetary scholarship given to selected year 13 students before they leave. A longitudinal research project to evaluate the effectiveness of the award scheme is being undertaken and is intended to follow the students from the initial award, and into university. It is hoped that the research should lead to a better understanding of the factors that affect enrolment and subsequent successful participation at university.

K

KAM01025   Paper
Ethnolinguistic vitality, motivation, language anxiety and the learning of English for Hong Kong students in Sydney

Michael Chi-keung Kam, The Hong Kong Institute of Education

The present paper tries to identify the social and psychological factors that motivate students to have better performance in English as a second language, and to postulate a theoretical model subsuming these socio-psychological variables to explain and predict the performance in English as a second language for Hong Kong students in Australia. Gardner (1959) hypothesized that students would have higher performance in the second language performance if they exhibit the desire to learn the second language in order to integrate themselves with the target culture than when they exhibit the desire to learn the language for pragmatic reasons. The perceived status of language affects the use of and attitude toward a language. Giles, Bourhis and Taylor (1977) defined Ethnolinguistic vitality as structural characteristics such as socio-economic status, demographic representation and institutional support pertinent to a language. Smolicz, Hudson and Secombe (1998) described multicultural policies of Australia as a solution to the dilemma of reconciling the immigrants' love of their homeland and its culture and their desire to adapt to the overarching Australian framework. 247 students of ethnic Chinese in Sydney metropolitan area who were studying in weekend Chinese schools (age 8 to 16 with mean age of 10.1) and 628 Hong Kong students who were studying in primary and secondary schools (age 8 to 16 with mean age 10.5) were sampled. Path analysis was used to determine the relationship between the performance of Chinese and English with ethnolinguistic vitality, motivation, attitudes and use and class anxiety in the learning of English.

KAM01166   Paper
Talking down "Writing up"

Barbara Kamler, Deakin University and Pat Thomson, University of South Australia

This paper addresses the significant role that writing plays in research. We argue that too often writing is oversimplified, consigned to the final 'stage' of a research 'process' and designated as 'writing up'. Research methodology textbooks rarely discuss writing as integral to research practice. The advice postgraduate students receive not only glosses over the difficulties of constructing an extended argument but also of working within the genres and power relations required by the academy. In this paper we examine a selection of research methodology texts to see how the notion of 'writing up' is constructed and with what effects. We offer an alternative view of writing as research and research as writing.

KAM01597   Paper
Bridging the counselling experience of international students

Alexa Kambouropoulos, Monash University

Whilst the international movement of students is not new in institutions of higher education, this flow has consolidated more recently through globalisation. This influx of students predominantly from South East Asia has brought its own challenges to the institutions and is also re shaping the context in which counsellors and helping practitioners work. Initial research exploration has led me to believe that international student's underutilise counselling services. If indeed there is such an under utilisation can this be credited to barriers such as language, culture bound attitudes, or students' perceptions of counsellors and counselling services? Or could this be attributed to counsellors personal value orientations and biases, the way in which culture is defined and understood with in counselling discourses and the effect of this on services? This paper being a work in progress, discusses the above issues from both the student and counsellor perspective's with the view of providing appropriate counselling services to international students.

KEA01118   Paper
Does professional development of teachers, teacher-aides and Board of Trustees make a difference?

Alison Keamey, Massey University

With the introduction of the policy, Special Education 2000 came the necessity for many principals, teachers and teacher aides to make a shift in attitudes and practices when catering for learners with special needs. To help facilitate these necessary changes, all schools in New Zealand were offered the opportunity to participate in special education professional development programmes.

This presentation outlines the process of how professional development was offered to every school in New Zealand, the nature of the professional development offered and the perceptions of teachers, teacher aides and principals as to the effectiveness of the professional development. The research showed that not all schools availed themselves of the opportunity for professional development. Of those teachers who had received the professional development, the majority responded positively and believed that the professional development had made a positive difference to their role in catering for learners with special needs. School principals believed that the professional development went some way in meeting the needs of their school.

This paper will be presented as part of Symposium 2 BOU01 115 The impact of special education policy change on practice.

KEA01160  ®   Paper
The efficacy of using e-mail when researching inclusive teaching practices used by male academics

Ron Keamy, Deakin University

Institutions such as universities are dominated by bureaucracies that practise exclusionary visions of leadership - practices that promote a privileged version of masculinity that effectively shut out most women and some men. In this paper, the author discusses some of the issues confronting male academics who are in leadership positions and whose leadership practices are considered to be non-mainstream. The paper describes work-in-progress and reflects upon a small research project, A Small Study of Male Academics & Their Inclusive Teaching Strategies, in which the author trialed the use of e-mail communication as a medium for having repeated conversations with a number of male academics about their inclusive teaching practices. This forms a small part of a larger study concentrating on the non-mainstream leadership practices of male academics. The study met with mixed results: on one hand, it provided an opportunity for the respondents to express how they teach inclusively; on the other, the study made it apparent that the singular use of e-mails did not facilitate communication with the respondents. The implication for research involving male academics who practise leadership and masculinity differently, is to ensure that the communication is primarily of a personal, face-to-face nature with the use of e-mails providing a complementary, rather than a primary, means of data gathering.

KEA01482   Paper
Teacher-led professional development: Identifying testable teacher beliefs

Stephen Keast, Deakin University

The purpose of this study was to identify the testable beliefs of three secondary mathematics teachers, though for reasons of space only two are reported here. The teachers were involved in a collaborative teacher-led professional development program. The aims of this program were to enable the teachers to reflect on their practice, investigate issues of concern and by collaboration alter their instructional practice. The teachers' beliefs were identified and several inconsistencies highlighted. This study was able to identify testable beliefs for each teacher and a further study intends to investigate whether these inconsistencies once recognised by the teachers can be tested through teacher-led professional development.

KEE01007   Paper
Equity: translating a bright idea into practice

David Keen, The Dunedin College of Education

Universally, pioneer societies attempt to synthesize elitism and egalitarianism. Dichotomy remains long-embedded in their cultural heritage. Within New Zealand, publicity coupled with controversy, relating to the education of gifted and talented children and students, is linked to such dichotomy.

The paper Equity: translating a bright idea into practice offers interim findings collated at the mid-point of the most comprehensive survey of the education of gifted and talented children and students ever undertaken in New Zealand. The survey covers all areas of pre-tertiary education: pre-school. primary, intermediate and secondary. It includes a diverse range of urban and rural schools and centres.

In an analytical, comparative and evaluative study, the survey reports on the philosophy of gifted education, as currently perceived in the participating schools and centres. It outlines the demographic profile of children and students being identified as gifted, and matches this profile against the gender, ethnic and socio-economic spectrum of the student population as a whole. Analysing the programmes currently used, by participating schools and centres, to service the needs of their gifted children and students, the paper offers a reasoned explanation of the strategies which the participants, in the light of their 2001 experience, propose to adopt in the year 2002.

KHI01004  ®   Paper
Classroom environment and teachers' cultural background in secondary science classes in an Asian context

Myint Swe Khine, Nanyang Technological University and Darrell L. Fisher, Curtin University of Technology

The purpose of this study was to investigate associations between students' perceptions of science classrooms learning environment, their attitudinal outcomes and the cultural backgrounds of their teachers. A sample of 1,188 students from 54 science classes in ten secondary schools in Brunei completed the What Is Happening in This Class? (WIHIC) questionnaire. Responses to two scales of the Test of Science Related Attitudes (TOSRA) were used as attitudinal measures. Statistical analysis supported the reliability of the instruments when used in this context. Associations between students' perceptions of classroom environment as assessed by the WIHIC and cultural background of teachers were also investigated. Significant associations were found between most of the scales and teachers' cultural background. The results showed that students perceived a more favourable learning environment in the classrooms of the Western teachers. Students perceived that the science classrooms of Western teachers were more cohesive, they received more teacher support and they were more involved in the work of the class. Students also perceived that in the science classes of Western teachers, there was more task orientation, cooperation among students and equity. The study also found that students in the classrooms of Western teachers enjoyed their science lessons more than those students in the other classes.

KHO01467   Paper
Parents and children's perception of the dangers of the internet

Lim Cher Ping, Angeline Khoo and Michael Williams, Nanyang Technological University

This study, funded by the Parents Advisory Group for the Internet (PAGi) aims to find out how aware, and how concerned Singapore parents and students are of Internet problems and dangers, and what their perceptions are regarding measures or strategies that can be taken to safeguard them. A total of 552 students and 621 parents participated in the study. Some key findings are that students between the ages of 13 to 15 are least concerned about Internet dangers and also least in favour of any kind of parental intervention. In general, both parents and children favoured educational strategies more than control ones. Implications of the study and recommendations for education on online safety will also be discussed.

KIG01085  ®   Paper
The Evolution of an Alternative Teacher Education Model.

Julie Kiggins, University of Wollongong

In 1999 the Faculty of Education at the University of Wollongong trialed an alternative model of teacher education known as the Knowledge Building Community (KBC) Project. With support from the NSW Training and Development Directorate of the Department of Education, 4 local primary schools and the Teacher Federation, 22 first year students embarked on an unknown journey. Forsaking the traditional model of mainstream education that consisted of lectures and tutorials the students became pioneers in an alternative model of teacher education that was based upon problem-based learning. This paper will show that attempting to implement PBL in its pure sense in the constraints of our context was a mixture of successes and pitfalls. The research showed that the initial concept was however worth developing. Therefore the original model has undergone major revisions and is now at best described as a "negotiated-evaluation-of-a-non-negotiable-curriculum-based-on-a- constructivist-model of-learning-and-knowledge-building". The basic aim of the program is to deal with the perennial problem of contextualising students professional learning, by linking abstract theory as closely as possible to the contexts and settings to which it applies, ie the primary school classroom. In 2001 the KBC program is operating across the Bachelor of Teaching Degree with 75 students.

KIN01220   Paper
Assessing the effect of an instructional intervention on the geometric understanding of learners in a South African primary school.

Lonnie King, Curtin University and University of Port Elizabeth, South

This paper reports ongoing research, which was started in 2000 and is meant for completion by June 2002. The purpose of the research is to determine, through classroom intervention, whether primary school student's geometric thought develops according to a specific pattern. The research pays particular attention to the possible development that occurs in student's geometric understanding during a six-month intervention program. The study involves the implementation of an instructional program in a grade 6 South African class which covers the prescribed syllabus for that particular grade for the academic year. The research focuses predominantly on the student's reaction to the instruction in a normal classroom setting. The research involves an experimental and control group with pre- and post tests being administered to ascertain whether a shift in students understanding has occurred. A grade 7 class is used as an additional control group to compare and, to some extent, verify the levels of development of students at the beginning and end of an academic year. The research method, in addition, includes the collection of quantitative data by means of a student questionnaire to establish their perceptions of the classroom environment during the intervention. A variety of other data collection methods will be introduced, including observations, interviews with selected students and the subject teacher involved as well as journal writing by students during the intervention.

KLE01612   Paper
Teacher evaluation policies and practices in Australian states and their relation to quality teaching and learning

Elizabeth Kleinhenz and Lawrence Ingvarson, ACER, and Rod Chadbourne Edith Cowan University

There is now broad acknowledgment that student learning is directly linked to the knowledge and skills of teachers. It is a short step from this understanding to recognising the importance of teacher evaluation in schools. The education systems in all Australian states now have teacher evaluation policies and systems in place, but it is as yet unclear whether the directions that are currently being taken will result in the desired improvement in teacher performance or even whether accountability goals will be met. ACER and Edith Cowan University are currently engaged in the second year of a three-year research project that maps current teacher evaluation practices across all Australian states and the Northern Territory. This paper reports on the first phase of the project in which interviews were held with senior education department officers, heads of teacher registration boards and senior union officials in all states. The paper presents a summary of the information collected and identifies some issues that have arisen from the research. The greatest concern to emerge so far is the apparently limited capacity of current evaluation practices to deal effectively with the complexity and diversity of teachers' work. A critical discussion of the "top down" performance management systems that are linked to pay increases for teachers in all states is offered together with a discussion of the differing perceptions of these practices that are held by various stakeholders. Finally, new initiatives such as the Victorian Institute of Teaching, recommendations of the NSW Ramsey Report, the Level 3 teacher classification in Western Australia and the establishment or strengthening of teacher registration boards in most states are identified as the pointing the way towards a professional as opposed to political bureaucratic model for teacher evaluation in Australia.

KON01173   Paper
Critical thinking dispositions of pre-service teachers in Singapore: A preliminary investigation

Siew Lang Kong, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore

Developing skills to think critically has become a catchphrase among many educators today. Many programs have been developed and employed in order to teach thinking skills. Strategies proposed range from teaching of these thinking skills directly or indirectly to a somewhat eclectic approach. Recently however, the notion of attitude has arisen and has since caught much attention among scholars in the field. It seems that more than just critical thinking skills, it is the individual's attitudes towards thinking that matter. The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of a thinking module on the critical thinking dispositions of the pre-service teachers. Dispositions towards critical thinking were measured using the California Critical Thinking Dispositions Inventory (CCTDI). A pre- and post-test quasi-experimental design was employed in this study. Results indicated that participants in the experimental group scored significantly higher in their CCTDI post-test. Implications of the result will be discussed in this paper.

KOO01006   Paper
A researcher's agony: Five moments in the collaborative research journey

Marianne Koo, Hong Kong Institute of Education

A teacher educator, because of her doctoral studies, began a collaborative research journey of almost two years with a group of primary school teachers and principals. Action Research as critical, collaborative, communicative and interactive transformed the researcher's story to become "a non-personal affair". The researcher consistently kept two sets of reflective journals as contributing to part of the data collected. She shared these reflective notes in a wider arena so that more people not only understood what the research was about but also wished to echo the voices elicited from the teachers, the principals and the researcher.

The paper critically examines five moments in the researcher 's "living encounter" within a context of curriculum change. These moments portrayed a reflexive account of the researcher's "story that authenticated the meanings of collaborative inquiry to the "real world of teachers". The paper reports the research findings which link to the realm of educational research in teacher education. These findings however did not point to an end to the researcher's story; rather they led to "a way out with hope" the hope which would exist in people who made the best endeavour of striving for developing a sense of empowerment and reconstructing teacher curriculum decision-making as both the means and ends of leading to new conceptions and practices of curriculum leadership.

KRU01380   Paper
Longitudinal study of school restructuring

Tony Kruger, Rod Moore, Brenda Cherednichenko and Neil Hooley, Victoria University

Since 1996 a team from Victoria University, in collaboration with the NSN, has worked with teachers from schools in Victoria, Tasmania and South Australia to research school restructuring. Developing approaches to practitioner research which has engaged teachers in data collection, analysis and the generation of findings has been the methodological advance made by research. The main research finding is an extended and complex elaboration of the nature of authentic teaching and learning practices. These authentic teaching and learning practices are associated with particular conditions of organisational time and space formed when teachers engage in collaborative and reflective inquiry into students and their learning. The paper will conclude with a discussion of the pedagogical and organisational consequences, which have emerged from this study of the school restructuring.

KUK01594   Paper
Merge of Teacher Training Seminar to the University. Estonian case

Hasso Kukemelk, University of Tartu

Many countries have been merged teacher training seminars to the universities to improve their academic level and real teaching in school system. There has been tradition to train primary school teachers in the seminars in Estonia. Starting from the lower secondary school (grades (6) 7-9) teachers are trained in the universities. From 2001 seminars are merged to the universities and all kind of teacher training belongs to the universities.

Strengths of the old system:

• Students (90%) started to work as teachers after graduating;
• Graduates of the seminar are keeping the profession;
• They are well trained for children up-bringing.

Weaknesses:

• System is closed and conservative;
• Weak preparation in subject area;
• Low prestige of the seminar graduates in the society;
• Poor possibilities to make professional career.

The merge is going to keep the strengths and to overcome the weaknesses. The result should be as next opportunities for the future students and teachers:

• Study system is more opened and as university profession more prestigious and gives much more possibilities for the students;
• Academic level of subject training will be improved;
• Teacher's position in the society will be improved;
• Primary school teacher will have direct possibilities to continue on to doctoral level and make professional career;
• Much more modern technology and teaching methods can be introduced.

At the same time the merge is related with certain threats:

• Primary school teacher training will be too academic and teachers later can't "find" the child;
• Better educated teachers are not keeping so well their profession;
• In a large university special teacher training spirit will be lost.

In conclusion the author is stating that inside the university primary school teachers will be better trained for the schoolwork if the mentioned threats are taken into account.

L

LAI01486   Paper
A Multi Component Model for Test item design

Kelvin Lai, University of Melbourne

This paper describes an item response model that takes into account the definition of a complex task with embedded steps formulated as discrete items. The arrangement of the items in the test follows the order of the steps required in a solution strategy. The dependence among the steps means that performance in an earlier step may affect the performance in the later steps or items. Such a dependence clearly violates the principle of local independence, an assumption behind most item response models. A multi-component model based on conditional probabilities expressed in a modified form of the logistic function is derived to account for this type of dependence among the steps. The model enables the calculation of the likelihood of a set of response data arising from such a situation. Modified procedures for obtaining estimates of the item parameters and the person parameters based on existing item response software will be discussed.

LAI01487   Paper
Aspects of test theory

Kelvin Lai and Patrick Griffin, University of Melbourne

Test items are usually group administered to measure a particular construct. Scores are derived as indicators of individual abilities. These are the observation and measurement phases. Two further aspects of testing described as sequels to observation and measurement are also defined in the literature; these are assessment and evaluation. Assessment is the purposeful observation, interpretation and description of evidence of achievement. Tests remain one important means of collecting such evidence. Evaluation is defined as the judgment of value or implication from results of assessment. Hence, there are, in all, four aspects of test theory: observation, measurement, assessment and evaluation. Changes in Psychology and Psychometrics influenced both observation and measurement. Behavioural psychology, however, was inadequate for the complex and varied behaviours in test performance and lost ground to cognitive psychology. "Item response theory" (IRT) was found to have a number of advantages over Classical test theory (CTT). While there were changes in emphases of theory underlying observation and measurement, there were also changes in the expectation of the assessment and evaluation. This paper describes these changes in theory and expectation of observation, measurement, assessment and evaluation.

LAU01060   Paper
Analysis of South African postgraduate degrees in science education: 1930-1999

Rndiger Laugksch, University of the North, South Africa

Having celebrated 1998 as a Year of Science and Technology, the South African government is becoming increasingly aware-consistent with world-wide trends-of the need to promote science and technology in the country. As is clear from the government's 1996 White Paper on Science and Technology, the increasing prominence of science and technology in the public arena is motivated by a number of reasons including, for example, the need for citizens to be able to use scientific and technological information to make more meaningful decisions in their daily lives and the realisation that science and technology (and consequently scientists, engineers and technicians) play an important role in the economic well-being of a country. It is widely accepted that South Africa requires vigorous and sustained economic growth in order to meaningfully address the many socio-economic challenges facing the country. However, in South Africa the number of scientists, engineers and technicians per 100,000 of the general population is very low compared with more developed countries such as, for example, Australia. In addition, contemporary modes of production increasingly require a workforce more knowledgeable in science and technology. However, student enrolments at tertiary educational institutions are decreasing in science and engineering related fields of study, and pass rates in grade 12 school leaving examinations in a critical school subject like Physical Science have generally been low. In fact, comparatively few students take this subject to grade 12. Moreover, South African students faired very poorly in comparison to students from other countries in the recent Third International Mathematics and Science Study.

From the above, it is clear that science education in South Africa faces a number of important challenges. The important role of research in helping to address these challenges must be regarded as incontestable, and it is therefore appropriate to examine the theses and dissertations completed at South African universities in science education to highlight key features of this country's science education research effort at it's most fundamental level. Such an analysis has never been undertaken to date. The period under review in this research commences with the year in which the first science education-related higher degree was awarded in South Africa, and ends with the latest year for which reliable and accurate graduation data are available. The analysis therefore includes the 70 years between 1930 and 1999.

The objective of the research is, firstly, to systematically describe trends in the award of theses (ie. doctoral degrees [ie. PhD, DEd, DPhil, etc.]) and dissertations (ie., Masters degrees [MEd, MSc, MPhil, etc.]) in science education completed at South African universities during this period. A second objective of the research is to analyse the topics addressed by these higher degrees. A higher degree in "science education" is here defined as any postgraduate degree that examines aspects related to at least one of the following themes: teaching and learning of the natural sciences (excluding mathematics); teacher development and training in the natural sciences (excluding mathematics); policy issues related to the provision of a) and b) above; methodological issues related to a) to c) above; and public understanding of science. The research methodology employed essentially involved systematically identifying science education-related postgraduate degrees completed at South African universities, and assigning keywords (content descriptors) that adequately describe the topics addressed by these degrees. In order to identify such works, appropriate databases such as Nexus (a database of current and completed research projects maintained by the South African National Research Foundation), Sabinet (a commercial database of numerous South African publication types), and the Union Catalogue of Theses and Dissertations (a database of South African higher degrees compiled by the Potchefstroom University Library) were interrogated using the following keywords and/or search strategies: Physics, Physical Science, General Science, Chemistry, Biology, science; Science AND (teach* OR prepar* OR learn* OR curricu* or educ*); and (Study and teaching) AND (chemistry OR biology OR physics OR science). Asterisks denote truncated word stems that allow all word combinations with that stem to be searched (eg. teaching, teachers, teachers', etc.). In this manner, over 400 Masters and doctoral degrees awarded in science education between 1930 and 1999 have been identified. As a number of inconsistencies and omissions were detected amongst the databases used, details of the degrees were verified by requesting all 20 university libraries to independently obtain details of their own holdings of science education-related thesis and dissertations completed at their institution, and to forward these details to me. Inconsistencies were then resolved by referring to the title page of the original. The gender of the authors was determined from the authors' full name listed in the database(s) or on the title page of the thesis or dissertation. Unfamiliar first names were referred to appropriate colleagues. The language in which the higher degree was written (ie. English or Afrikaans) was determined from the title. The abstract of the postgraduate degrees was obtained either from the databases or from the original work itself (where available). Both the title and the abstract was then read by myself in order to assign keywords to each of the higher degrees. Although the data collection phase has to all intents and purposes been completed, a number of minor verification details still need to be attended to before data analyses can commence. The first research objective will be achieved by examining the number of higher degrees awarded in particular time intervals (eg. decades) with respect to the variables of type of postgraduate degree (ie. thesis or dissertation), gender, language, and institution. Appropriate cross-tabulations between these variables will be performed (eg. type of degree and gender) and, for example, the chi-square test will be used to confirm the existence or absence of the statistical significance of any trends. The second research objective (ie. the description and analysis of the topics addressed by these degrees) will be achieved by analysing the relative frequency of the keywords or content descriptors over time (ie. frequency per 100 works for each time interval). This analysis is identical to that adopted by White (in press) in his analyses of science education research in the fourth edition of the Handbook of Research on Teaching. The relative frequency of content descriptors will also be correlated to other meaningful variables such as, for example, institutions, degree, year of award, and so forth. This research is an important attempt to identify the strengths, weaknesses, challenges and opportunity facing a central component of South African science education research; namely research conducted by higher degree students. As such, the work forms part of an ongoing, more general, first study of its kind-funded by the South African National Research Foundation-that attempts to analyse and identify the key features of South African research in science education, and thus chart new frontiers for educational research in the natural sciences in this country.

LEE01240   Paper
The state, market and universities in Hong Kong and Singapore

Michael Lee, City University of Hong Kong

Shedding the image of ivory tower, universities have been transformed from cultural institutions to public service institutions over the past two decades. Governments aim to assure reasonable rates of return derived from their public investment on university education. The notion of quality assurance or control has been put in place to cope with challenges of preserving and enhancing the quality of education amidst the process of massification. Reforms are common for universities in most countries around the world. There is no exception for Hong Kong and Singapore where they perceive and claim themselves to be leading financial, information and education hubs in the Asia-Pacific region. The emphasis of reforms has been placed on the areas of admission criteria, curricular changes, quality assurance mechanisms, and governance and funding systems. Apart from enjoying greater operational autonomy in exchange for higher accountability to public funds, universities need to be more responsive to market values and demands. With the inclusion of market-driven competitions, the quality of education and the efficiency and effectiveness of institutional management can be improved and enhanced. Rather than the sole provider, the two city-state governments have recently reoriented themselves to perform the role of purchasers of university education.

LEE01272   Paper
Science Laboratory Classroom Environments in Korea

Sunny, S.U. Lee and Barry Fraser, Curtin University of Technology

The purpose of this study was to investigate Korean high school students' perceptions about their laboratory classrooms, focusing on the aspects measured by the items in the Science Laboratory Environment Inventory (SLEI). The study involved 439 high school students from three different streams, 145 from the humanities stream, 195 from the science-oriented stream and 99 from the science-independent stream. The validity and reliability of the SLEI were confirmed when used with Korean students. Associations between laboratory classroom environments and students attitudes were found. When the perceptions of students from the three streams were compared, it was found that students from the science-independent stream perceived their classroom environments more favourably than did students in the other two streams. Interviews with students confirmed their responses to items in the SLEI and provided additional information about laboratory classroom environments in Korea.

LEE01387  ®   Paper
Cultural adaptability of the CLES: A Korean perspective

Sunny Lee and Peter, Taylor, Curtin University of Technology

Learning environment studies within non-English speaking countries are often conducted with translated questionnaires whose origins are in Western cultures. This paper addresses the issue of translated questionnaires, with an example of usage of the Constructivist Learning Environment Survey (CLES) in a Korean context. In our study, we noticed that Korean high school teachers and students struggled to understand 'translated' items. Interviews revealed a serious mismatch between cultural practices of Korean teachers/students and the Australian CLES designers. The issue has two aspects. Although several studies reported reasonable findings with 'translated' questionnaires in cultural settings different from the place where the original questionnaire was developed, the findings do not guarantee that translation produces semantically equivalent items. And, researchers tend to presuppose that cultural contexts embedded in questionnaires can be readily understood by respondents in other contexts. We argue that translation of learning environment questionnaires for use in non-English speaking contexts should be extended beyond linguistic 'back-translation' procedures. It is desirable to create questionnaires sensitive to the local cultural context in order that respondents can represent meaningfully their own experiences. The outcome provides a way of adapting the CLES to the cultural context of Korean high schools.

LEE01421<    Paper
Trainee teachers' reaction to the use of multiple intelligences in the mathematics classroom

Ngan Hoe Lee and Joon Hwang Wong, Nanyang Technological University

As the educational system in Singapore shifts from an efficiency driven approach to one that is ability driven, there is now a more urgent need to look at individual student's learning style. The concept of multiple intelligences, as proposed by Howard Gardner, fits in well as a framework for such a consideration. Since teachers are found to teach the way they were taught, this study looks at the reaction of trainee teachers' reactions to the use of musical intelligence in learning activities for lower primary mathematics. In this study, the teachers were brought through the steps of such a lesson as part of their pre-service training. A short video clip of the session will be used to illustrate the participatory level of the teachers in such a session.

This paper will be presented as part of Symposium 15 LEE01418 Thinking across the curriculum.

LEI01454   Paper
Preservice teachers negotiating competing versions of 'the good intern'in a virtual professional learning community

Michele Leiminer and Diane Mayer, University of Queensland

Within higher education, information and communications technologies (ICT) are being used in course delivery. Within teacher education programs, ICT is being increasingly used in the practicum components of the programs. Although there is a large amount of literature in the area, most describe innovative ICT practice or simply advocate for its use. There is a need for more detailed and critical research. Postmodernist perspective's on ICT emphasise the potential of these new technologies to afford new and numerous spaces and roles for interactants. In this paper we explore this postmodernist conceptualisation by analysing how participants (secondary preservice teachers and university advisers) negotiate competing versions of 'the good intern' in their bulletin board postings on a WebCT site. This site was designed to enable and encourage professional discussion and learning amongst preservice teachers and university advisers while the preservice teachers were completing a school-based internship. Our analysis suggests that in this virtual professional learning space, preservice teachers negotiated between a teacher educator version of 'good intern' informed by issues of critical reflection and social justice and a teacher version based on the practicalities of teaching. This task of negotiation presented by the virtual professional learning community was an extremely complex and difficult accomplishment for the preservice teachers. The virtual space involved preservice teachers managing competing versions of 'the good intern' that in traditional supervision models had been separated and to a large extent, had remained invisible. These findings highlight the invisible work that preservice teachers engage in during their practicum, and direct attention to efforts that can made towards planning ICT learning communities that meet the needs of teacher educators and preservice teachers.

LEO01130   Paper
Student Quality of School Life Differences Within and Between Primary Schools

Carl Leonard, Sid Bourke and Neville Schofield, University of Newcastle

This paper presents the results of a study that assessed student quality of school life differences between four primary schools and classes within these schools in the Lower Hunter Valley, NSW. The Quality of School Life scales (Ainley & Bourke, 1992) were administered to 448 Year 5 and 6 students in the last weeks of Terms 2 and 3 in 2000. Between school and between class differences on both occasions were analysed in addition to an assessment of change over time for each scale. Significant school and class differences on almost all scales were evident. But overall, students tended to perceive a higher quality of school life in Term 2 than in Term 3. Possible explanations of school and class differences and the decline in quality of school life in Term 3 are discussed while implications including the apparent importance of positive peer relationships and an exciting and enjoyable curriculum in ensuring students have a high quality of school life are described. Finally, the need for the provision of support services to students who indicated a high level of dissatisfaction with their school life is suggested.

LES01243   Paper
Resource dependency and university behaviour

Larry Leslie, University of Arizona.

Larry Leslie reports on a National Science Foundation (NSF) (U.S.A.) project which as in the Australian case studies reported in 'Academic Capitalism', employs Resource Dependency (RD) theory to empirically examine the effects of government funding declines on public research universities. (1) Utilising U.S. samples of 175 public universities, causal models used in the project demonstrate that changes in revenue patterns affect changes in university activities (e.g. teaching, research). Efforts shift in accord with the desires of the new resource providers. The paper postulates threats to the public interest. (2) Utilising two National departmental data sets plus new data from 600 faculty and unit heads in 55 departments in 11 universities, departments are found to be remarkably stable in meeting their fundamental responsibilities, even during periods of financial stress. Departments shift their resources to maintain homeostasis. (3) Utilising econometric models of academic faculty time allocations, controlled for quality of outputs, faculty allocations are found to vary with such activities as grant and contract work.

Overall RD theory was a powerful predictor of internal university behaviours although major changes occurred primarily when units were destabilised.

This paper is presented as part of Symposium 7 MAR01241 Academic capitalism in the enterprise university.

LIG01450  ®   Paper
Practice, the body and research on school-based physical education and sport: The analytic tools of Pierre Bourdieu

Richard Light, The University of Melbourne

Driven by recognition of its pivotal role in the social construction of gender by post-structuralist, feminist research, the body has re-emerged in the social science literature over the past two decades. This has seen a significant growth in studies on the construction of gender through the body's engagement in both sport and school-based physical education. It has also encouraged recognition of school-based physical education as a central site for the social and cultural development of young people. The irony of this increasing attention being paid to the body is, however, a lack of studies that deal with actual bodies and corporeality. Much of the writing on the body in sport and physical education is limited to abstract theorising that tends to be disembodied and distanced from day to day experiences of corporeality. Research on the social construction of the body provides valuable insight into how bodies are shaped by relations of power and how they are implicated in the legitimisation of social inequality but tends to treat the body as an 'absent presence'. This paper argues that there is a need for studies on physical education that recognise the corporeality of the body. It suggests that the conceptual tools of French sociologist, Pierre Bourdieu and his focus on practice offer a powerful means of investigating the social dimensions of sport and physical education. Bourdieu's focus on the body is unusual for mainstream sociologists and his set of key concepts offer and ideal framework for analysing the social dimensions of sport and physical education through a focus on corporeal practice. This paper outlines his key analytic concepts and suggests how they might be applied to the analysis of relationships between the body, culture, class and gender. It also draws on research conducted on rugby and soccer in schools to provide examples of how Bourdieu's work can be applied to research on school-based physical education and sport.

LIM01051   Paper
Student teachers' perceptions of the importance of theory and practice

Lim, Kam-Ming and Tan, Ai-Girl, Nanyang Technological University

Theories are constructed to give an explanation of phenomena (Stam, 2000). According to Denzin (1970), there are three functions of a theory: Permitting organisation of descriptions, leading to explanation, and furnishing the basis for prediction of future events. In a preliminary study, 350 student teachers were requested to fill-out a questionnaire. They rated the importance of acquiring knowledge and skills using a 7-point scale (1: extremely not important, and 7: extremely important). The findings show that the participants regarded knowing "how to do" as more important than knowing "what they are doing" and "why they are doing it". In other words, they regarded learning skills to do something as more important than knowing the theory behind the practice. For instance, "Knowing theories on why students enjoy or not enjoy learning" (theory, M: 5.51, SD: 1.35) was scored significantly lower (t= 13.96, p < 0.0001) than "Making learning an enjoyable process for their students" (practice, M: 6.47, SD: 0.90). Implications of the study for teacher education are discussed in light of three functions of a theory. Teacher education should promote a balanced curriculum that narrows the gap between teachers' perceptions of theory and practice.

LIN01260   Paper
A Cohort Teaching Practice Model

Peter Lind, Anne Kingsley and Barrie Gordon Massey, University College of Education

Student teachers and supervising teachers often view student teaching as the most important component in their pre-service teacher education programme."(p.4, Lortie, 1975) Students have regularly cited the practicum as one of the most worthwhile and productive parts of their teacher education. However, in contrast to Lortie's observation, one New Zealand study shows that across student teaching, student teachers' beliefs which are critical for teaching effectiveness remain relatively unaffected by exposure to the traditional approaches to student teaching (p.2, Gibbs, 1996). Some research on student teaching suggests that interns abandon what they have learned in teacher education courses in as little as two weeks (Richardson, Koelher, 1988). It would seem that in traditional student teaching few connections are made between the knowledge gained at the tertiary institution and the school placement. This study has sought to provide an alternative teaching practice model in an effort to clearly establish the links between the university course and the school placement. It has linked not only the courses but the university and school-based practicum supervisors and, by placing the students in teaching practice teams; it has sought to encourage peer collaboration and support. This is a qualitative, descriptive study of the College of Education's First Year Pre-service Secondary Physical Education Teaching Practicum. It examined the perceptions of the Student Teacher, the Associate Teacher and the Visiting Lecturer in relation to the adequacy of the practicum experience for the preparation of the first year primary school teacher. Although there have been studies examining the College of Education teaching practicum, there has been no previous study which has followed an in-depth case study approach.

LLO01400   Paper
Learning AND Identity: The intersection of micro and macro processes in identity formation for students and the community in a small rural town: The Wesley experience

Doug Lloyd, Tamara Downey and Sharon McDonough, University of Ballarat

This paper is a report on the contribution from Wesley College to learning in Clunes, and the contribution from Clunes to learning in Wesley College. Year nine students from Wesley spend eight weeks in a residential learning village situated in the small rural town of Clunes, where they participate in a curriculum structured around learning in the community, aimed at expanding their knowledge of self and community. The research looks at the intersection of micro and macro processes in identity formation for students, teachers and the community. This paper explores the interactions between these groups, revealing the way in which each learns and the associated outcomes. The research results demonstrate that this school-community partnership has had a positive impact on both the identity of the Wesley students and Clunes as a town. These findings may have important implications for other schools and rural communities facing educational change, building social capital and focusing on relationships between individual students and other community members.

LLO01455   Paper
The self, the spirit and the social being: The formation of adolescent identity within community Wesley College at Clunes

Doug Lloyd and Sharon McDonough, University of Ballarat.

This paper will explore the impact of a Wesley College educational initiative upon the formation of identity in adolescents. Year Nine students from Wesley college, a large, predominantly metropolitan based private college, spend eight weeks in a residential learning village situated in the small rural town of Clunes, where they explore the factors connected with the domains of self, spirit and social being within the context of living as a member of a community. This research is a natural experiment where a metropolitan-based college implements a semi-structured curriculum in a small country town. The results demonstrate that young people living and working in this community develop a stronger sense of their adolescent identity. In particular the curriculum addresses issues of personal learning styles, shared experience and purpose and an understanding of identity within a broader community. The research provides some understandings about an educational approach where a college embeds itself in a small rural community, through which students develop a greater understanding of self, community and their roles in communities.

LLO01457   Paper
Who's owning whom and why does it matter? Looking at learning as community development

Doug Lloyd and Tamara Downey, University of Ballarat.

What processes occur when students from a large private city school live and learn in a small rural community? This paper documents an educational and social experiment where year nine students from Wesley College in Melbourne spend eight weeks living in a residential learning village in the country town of Clunes. The research focuses on the nature of this school-community partnership and the economic, social and environmental impact of the school on the town. Established in 2000, Wesley College in Clunes is a new community development. Can what was once almost a ghost town become a community rich in learning? Learning communities are seen as a way to a more sustainable future for our communities, especially rural ones (Kilpatrick, 2000). Schools can also be investigated as a way of understanding what is happening in all sectors of rural and remote community life (Sidoti, 2000). Wesley College in Clunes offers a new way of looking at school-community partnerships and the research shows the extent to which the college and community interact and own each other. Moreover, the extent to which this interaction influences the sustainability of Clunes via learning is explored in the research findings.

LOV01589   Paper
What qualities are rare in PhD examiner reports?

Terence Lovat, Allyson Holbrook and Gavin Hazel, University of Newcastle

A study of some 300 exan-dner reports from one institution indicate that the reports are far more heterogenous than reported in previous studies, particularly with respect to evaluative comment. This paper begins with an overview of the findings of a content analysis of the reports. It then proceeds to a more thorough examination of those areas that receive the least attention or less attention than reported elsewhere. For example, one of the areas that attracts the least attention is ethics. Another, more complex imbalance is between detailed and descriptive evaluative comment. Although other research has reported that examiners treat the PhD as a work-in-progress and engage in formative assessment, the degree to which this is so varies according to the rating given to the thesis, but in addition a close examination of 'instructive' comment reveals considerable variation in comment characteristics.

This paper will be presented as part of Symposium 25 HOL01586 Frontiers in research training: Evaluating PhD examination and supervision.

LOW01351   Paper
Aboriginal students and career aspirations.

Kevin Lowe, New South Wales Board of Studies

The aim of the Aboriginal Career Aspirations Program (ACAP) in NSW has been to provide tools to assist schools in trying to address the critical issues of Aboriginal student attendance and retention. The project has used the vehicles of career education and Aboriginal perspective's in two contexts to facilitate these objectives. The project aims to engage Aboriginal students in the education process by making school more interesting and relevant to them. It is hoped that by developing in Aboriginal students an awareness of careers, pathways and the role of education and training in relation to employment later in life, that there will be an increase in their attendance and retention through toYear 12. The project encourages in various contexts the inclusion of Aboriginal perspectives. This entails not only integration of Aboriginal historical perspective's and culture but a contemporary picture as well. In line with the NSW Department of Education and Training's Aboriginal Education Policy. Central to the project is the notion of "aspirations". It is hoped that the materials provide programs and learning experiences for indigenous students that relate to their own personal aspirations. This may include the development of existing aspirations or it may mean the development of new aspirations that students had not considered previously. The development of aspirations within students is central to the program and is seen as a positive vehicle in which to build knowledge, self-esteem and identity. Furthermore, an aspect of this research that requires further investigation is the question of parent and community aspirations and the impact that this has on the aspirations of students.

LOW01352  ®   Paper
Owning language: Copyright, ethics and the development of aboriginal language programs

Kevin Lowe, New South Wales Board of Studies

This document should be seen as part of an on going discussion of issues raised the development and implementation of Aboriginal language programs in New South Wales schools. This discussion is rooted in the considerable concerns raised by many Aboriginal communities through peak Aboriginal community bodies such as the New South Wales AECG Inc, FATSIL and ATSIC, over the ownership and copyright of language materials. This matter has also been acknowledged by the Department of Education and Employment (DETE) in South Australia, with the joint working party, who have developed a draft protocols document to assist the consultation processes between schools and Aboriginal communities. The concerns raised by this issue are pervasive and they must be acknowledged and addressed by all key institutions if successful partnerships are to be forged as schools and communities seek to develop language programs. The development of language programs in schools cannot be achieved without the support and assistance of Aboriginal communities. Communities belonging to particular language nations need to be acknowledged by educational authorities as being the custodians of their language and at a minimum must be considered as being partners in the development of programs or published materials that have been drawn from their knowledge. While the focus of this paper is the interaction between schools and communities, and how community concerns are addressed, this debate must also be seen as part of a much larger discussion around the ownership and controls that Aboriginal communities seek to reassert over their language and culture.

LUD01069   Paper
A student project with many side-effects

Alexandra Ludewig, University of Western Australia

Since the release of the Apple product iMovie, students in the Language Departments at The University of Western Australia (UWA) have been working with this software as part of their assessment. In this paper/presentation I would like to introduce the underlying concept behind using short filmmaking in language teaching by using the experiences within the Department of German at UWA as an example. Thereby I will elaborate on the underlying methodology, the rationale, the course objectives, the implementation and evaluation process as a paradigm for a possible wider up-take. While the data and the research findings themselves are a powerful persuasion for a generic implementation of this teaching and learning tool, the iMovie project also has some indirect side-effects which are less tangible and measurable but not less important in the understanding of knowledge transformation. Among these are cultural literacy, technical literacy, and interpersonal communication skills thus ensuring for the students a very holistic learning experience. Overall, the iMovie project's success ultimately lies in its ease of use and versatility, and promises a valuable extension to many disciplines.

LYN01093  ®   Paper
From the horse's mouth: Factors inhibiting and driving innovation in ICT education

Julianne Lynch and Francesca Collins, Monash University

The ICT-Ed Project is one of a number of national DETYA- funded studies currently investigating educational innovations in the major disciplines at the university level. The ICT-Ed Project focuses on educational innovation in information and communication technology (ICT)=96related disciplines, such as computer science, information systems and software engineering. As part of this study university teaching staff from relevant departments across Australia participated in mini-conferences where they discussed the factors inhibiting and driving educational initiatives in their disciplines. This paper reports the issues identified and discusses them with reference to national and international trends in university funding and governance. Broad issues described include policy and funding priorities, technological development, changing student populations and staff motivation. Although participants in the study were drawn from ICT-related departments, many of the issues described are relevant to university educators more generally.

M

MAD01584   Paper
Language learning as a model for the learning of Mathematics, Science and Technology

Matete Madiba, Technikon Northern Gauteng, South Africa

The relationship between language and learning has received attention in the learning of science and technology. The focus has been on the role that language play in learning or the relationship between language and thought with implications on learning. What has not received focussed attention is how far the way language is learned, in particular, first language, can serve as a model for the learning of other logical systems. An underlying assumption is that there is a considerable amount of success when children learn their first language. Paying a closer attention to the processes involved provides an interesting line of thinking in terms of how the learning of Mathematics, Science and Technology (MST) can be enriched. This is provoked by the fact that research reveals that achievement in learning in this field is not where it should be. There is room for improvement. This paper seeks to lay a basis for the investigation of a learning model for MST based on how children learn what comes to be considered as their first language. The paper looks at a study done on "activity-based learning" as an approach in the learning of MST in contrast to how children learn a language.

MAJ01681   Paper
Junior secondary mathematics student's learning environment and satisfaction in Brunei

Abdul Majeed, Barry Fraser and Jill Aldridge, Curtin University of Technology

This paper reports a study of lower secondary mathematics classroom learning environments in Brunei Darussalam and their associations with students' satisfaction with learning mathematics among a sample of 1,565 students from 81 classes in 15 government secondary schools. Students' perceptions of the classroom learning environments were assessed with a version of the My Class Inventory (MCI) and a measure of student satisfaction also was included. Both measures had been modified for the Brunei context. The study revealed satisfactory reliability and validity for a refined three-scale version of the MCI assessing cohesiveness, difficulty and competition. Mean scores were generated from the data to provide a profile of what a typical classroom is like. Sex differences in classroom enviroinnent were explored using a one-way MANOVA with the set of MCI scales as the dependent variables. Overall, the study suggests that students' perceived positive learning environment in mathematics classes. Also the study supported earlier research suggesting that boys and girls hold different perceptions of the same classroom learning environments. Relationships between student satisfaction and classroom environment were investigated using simple and multiple correlation analyses. Associations between satisfaction and the learning environment were statistically significant both at student and class levels for most MCI scales.

MAL01283   Paper
Supporting children's social and emotional adjustment at school after permanent separation of their parents

Gillian Kirk and Carmel Maloney, Edith Cowan University

The number of children who experience the separation of parents is constantly rising. These children often face overwhelming feelings of confusion and stress that in turn may negatively influence their psychosocial development. Young children generally are inexperienced in dealing with stress in that they are not prepared with the knowledge or understanding of their stressors and nor do they have the strategies to help them deal with stress. This study examines four case studies of children who have experienced the separation and divorce of their parents. The study examines three support systems (esteem, social and informational) as described by Dubow and Tisak (1989) which children can draw on to cope with stress. In addition the role of the classroom teacher in establishing support systems and assisting children cope with stress is explored.

MAN01473   Paper
Contextual influences on student motivation in the first year of middle school

Caroline Mansfield, Edith Cowan University

The emerging importance of the role classroom context plays in influencing students' motivational patterns has largely prompted this qualitative research. This research is based in a Middle School (students aged 11 to 15 years) in metropolitan Perth, Western Australia. The research in progress uses a goal orientation theory framework to investigate the social and academic goals students pursue in the first year of middle school (children aged 11 and 12 years) and explores the personal and contextual factors that may contribute to particular patterns of goal pursuit. In particular the interaction between individuals' personal goals and the goals promoted by a classroom context and school environment over the period of one academic year are explored. This research is qualitative in nature and has primarily used classroom observation and student interviews as the main methods of data collection. In addition students completed two questionnaires and their main classroom teacher was interviewed. Qualitative data analysis techniques have been informed through the use of QSR N4. The study focuses on the individual cases of six students who were interviewed regularly throughout the year. Accordingly these data are presented in case study format. The paper will involve reporting of initial findings of the study. The findings of the study thus far emphasise the power classroom contexts have to alter students' motivational patterns in terms of behaviour and achievement. Further implications will be explored in the context of the classroom and goal orientation theory.

MAO01549  ®   Paper
Peer-learning and reflective thinking in an on-line community of learners

Dorit Maor, Murdoch University and Veronica Hendriks, Curtin University of Technology

There is a growth in the use of Computer Mediated Communications (CMC) in teacher education and professional development, together with a strong interest in creating reflective discourse communities among teachers. With the use of CMC, geographically and socially isolated teachers could be brought together on-line to collaborate and co-construct knowledge by engaging in open and critical discourse. This paper looks at a specific on-line unit that was designed to bring together science and mathematics teachers from around the world for the purpose of familiarising them with technologies in which they can utilise for their own, and their students' communicative learning. Underpinning the design of this unit was the creation of a networked community of learners who engage with one another in peer-learning and reflective thinking. This study was conducted to determine the extent to which the intentions underpinning the design of this unit was achieved. In order to investigate this, data was triangulated from students' transcripts, end-of semester evaluations, open-ended questions and students' reflective stories. Analysis suggests that participants demonstrated a strong sense of belonging to the community, thus enabling them to share their experiences and knowledge. With this, peer learning became a significant feature of the community.

MAR01194   Paper
Mapping children's theory of critical meaning in visual arts

Karen Maras, University of New South Wales

This presentation reports research in progress and outlines a mapping system that can be used to classify the nature of children's classroom talk about the meaning of artworks. A combination of aesthetic and psychological linguistic theories is used in the study. This framework provides a logical space within which children's talk about the meaning and value of portrait paintings can be located. The focus of the study is on the nature of children's reasoning and how this can involve shifts from naive accounts to more reflective statements about judgements of value in art education, thus indicating the developmental nature of children's theory of mind. By asking two groups of children, one mid primary school, the other early secondary school age to choose artworks for an exhibition of paintings and provide reasons for their curatorial selections and judgements we are able to understand more about how a theory of critical meaning develops and is manifest in comments about the world children experience. An understanding of the nature of children's theories about the function of artworks has significance for the development of appropriate pedagogical explanations of critical practice in art education.

MAR01202  ®   Paper
Deconstructing discursive borders: Conflicting discourses of femininity and techno-scientific rationality in the context of educational computing

Katrina Markwick, Monash University

The construction of discursive borders between dominant discourses of gender and techno-scientific rationality represents a political strategy that constructs and naturalises women's limited power in a technocratic society. Such borders are underwritten by a more fundamental division, that of the gender dualism which positions females as 'other' to males who represent the norm of the dominant symbolic order. This paper is concerned with how such borders are complicit in positioning female school students unfavourably in relation to politically powerful bodies of knowledge such as educational computing. This paper initiates a post-structuralist deconstruction of the gender-technology relationship that embodies the gender dualism. I use this as a basis for arguing an alternative direction for research that examines the contradictions that girls experience in negotiating conflicting discourses on femininity and technological competence, and how they negotiate, take up, resist the discursive positions available to them within such discourses. In doing so, girls' agency is centralised in the reform process.

MAR01244   Paper
Capitalism Within the enterprise: The case of international education in Australia

Simon Marginson, Monash University

Drawing largely on DETYA statistical data and ARC-funded research, Simon Marginson analyses the systemdynamics of international education in Australia, drawing out tensions between international and domestic education. Like international education in the UK but unlike its American counterpart, international education in Australia has been framed by national policy as fully capitalist in character. In a period of declining public funding per student government funding is now at 40% of the level of the late 1970s - international education has become the main source of discretionary finance and a chief driver of enterprising and entrepreneurial behaviours in universities. The outcome has been immense growth in international student numbers while domestic numbers have stalled; university development has been skewed to those disciplines (Business Studies and Computing) and course levels (vocational Masters) that attract fee-paying students; and corporate functions such as marketing, off-shore activities and quality assurance have expanded while student-staff ratios have risen from 12 to 1 (1990) to 18 to 1 (1999).

This paper is presented as part of Symposium 7, MAR01241, Academic capitalism in the enterprise university.

MAR01504   Paper
Educational management, problem-based learning, and explanatory critique

Don Margetson, Griffith University

Pressure to change from a co-operative, collegial form of management to a top-down corporate managerialist form in universities and schools carries some superficial promise for education, but also a deeper threat to it. This paper outlines briefly the particular effects of such promise and threat on problem-based learning, and why superficial promise should be treated with caution and threat taken seriously. It then considers more fully how problem-based learning could turn such promise and threat to the advantage of educative learning, particularly in regard to overcoming such debilitating and paralysing dichotomies as those of fact/value, theory/practice, and the like in education, with their consequential effects in social and political life. It does so by making use of the development of explanatory critique by Bhaskar and others.

MAR01668   Paper
Investigating the learning environment and students' outcomes in university level computing courses in Indonesia

Eko Sri Margianti, Gunadarma University, Indonesia/Curtin University of Technology and Barry Fraser and Jill Aldridge, Curtin University of Technology

This paper reports the findings of a study of the influence of the classroom learning environment on students' cognitive and affective outcomes among 2,498 third-semester computer students in 50 university-level classes in Indonesia. Students' perceptions of the classroom environment were measured using an Indonesian version of the What Is Happening In This Class? (WIHIC) questionnaire. To assess students' affective outcomes, a scale derived from the Test ofScience Related Attitudes was adapted for use in higher education computing classes and translated into Indonesian. Students' final scores in their mathematics course (either linear algebra or statistics) were used as a measure of cognitive achievement. Secondary aims of the present study were to examine whether differences exist between (a) students' perceptions of the actual and preferred classroom learning environment, (b) males' and females' perceptions of the actual classroom environment and (c) students' perceptions of the learning environment in linear algebra and statistics courses. The results of this study contribute towards explaining why students are achieving at less than desirable levels in their computing courses.

MAS01475   Paper
Reconnecting family histories: Striving to link communities with Timor Lorosae.

John Maskell, University of Sydney and Nancy de Almeida Ezequeil, East Timorese Cultural Centre

This research documents work in the new frontier of East Timor (Timor Lorosae). The participants are crossing the borders of their communities and work environments to create knowledge towards reconciling historical differences. This process of researching is community-driven, cyclical and reflective. Of significance the researchers see their work as hastening cautiously whilst striving to maintain community focus. Through biography and family history research with the East Timorese Cultural Centre (ETCC) the Mary McKillop Institute of East Timorese Studies (MMIETS) has supported educators in reviving history curriculum for Timor Lorosae (East Timor). The story being told relates complexities of language issues in the newly emerging "republic" of Timor Lorosae. The researchers are crossing borders contributing to the work of MMIETS by collaborating with the religious order to benefit their work in Timor. Originally this relationship began with the long-term goal of Sydney community members returning to teach in Timor to strengthen the Tetum language. The new frontiers are developing further via family histories and the researching of biographies. This material will become part of the tools for reconciling and unifying communities by bringing shared understanding of histories. In different ways both those Timorese that stayed and those who became expatriates have suffered for decades.

MAT01077   Paper
Beginning teacher internships, telementoring and ICT - newfangled or new ways?

Pamela Matters, James Cook University

In 2001, James Cook University has commenced its pre-service teacher internship program. So, what's new, you ask? This paper describes current research, which shows that ICT, telementoring and large, uninterrupted periods of teaching in a preferred area of interest heightens motivation and expertise of beginning teacher interns before they hit the ground running! It includes examination of the effects of new pedagogies; diverse ways of thinking, unusual classroom arrangements (including those with no walls!), use of innovative ICT programs and mentor support within the University. Issues of distance, rurality, isolation, low socio economic status of some interns and their students, Indigenous and multi-cultural environments which impinge on new teacher effectiveness will be discussed. Case studies of strategies, which have proved to be effective in decreasing the effects of such barriers, will be included.

MAT01510    Paper
Museums and schools: An analysis of the educational "game"

Donna Mathewson, University of New South Wales

This paper reports on an ongoing investigation into the relationship between museums and school-based education. In a previously completed study the author identified a contradiction between the declared beliefs among classroom educators and museum educators. The stakeholders in each setting declared that the two kinds of institutions shared a positive relationship, common philosophies and educational approaches and further that these were evident in current practices. While both communities assumed ostensibly that they were working cooperatively and effectively toward a shared goal my findings established that this was not the case. This presentation sets out the nature of this problem using Bourdieu's notion of the game. Findings regarding the sites of contest and contradiction within the two settings are examined in terms of power, dominance, and unexamined conventional practices and philosophies. Such an analysis allows for identification of underlying social forces that maintain borders between museums and schools that are yet to be crossed.

MAW01574  ®   Paper
Beyond design: A new paradigm for technology education

Brent Mawson and Dorit Maor, Murdoch University

The concept of a design process is well established as an underlying structure for technology education and a number of models of increasing complexity have been produced to explicate the process. Allied to this has been a strong design-make-appraise approach to many emerging technology education curriculum statements. This concept appears to underpin much of the practice in New Zealand classrooms. However, the evidence strongly suggests that this model reflects neither the way designers work in the adult world, nor how children work in the classroom. This paper begins by discussing the nature of design processes and the influence of these on classroom practice in New Zealand schools. It then argues that if technology education is to flourish we need to reject reference to design process and develop a new paradigm, which reflects more accurately technological practice. Finally it offers some suggestions as to what a new paradigm might be.

MCL01720  ®   Paper
Crossing boundaries: Curriculum and teaching implications of culturally inclusive online learning

Catherine McLoughlin, The University of New England

In tertiary contexts, Web-based instruction may be tailored to the needs of a particular cultural group, and recognise the specific learning needs, preferences and styles of learners. At a time when open learning markets are very competitive, many WWW sites are developed with an international audience in mind. The internationalisation of education has led to the development of two distinct types of WWW sites,

1. those made for one particular context and culture, but visited by a global audience, and
2. those made specifically for cross-cultural participation.

An investigation of these sites reveals many different learning features and instructional design paradigms. Sites aiming for cross cultural participation and seeking a bridge to multiculturalism need to take certain design features into consideration, and utilise culturally appropriate forms of instructional design (ID). A critique of current ID approaches shows that many lack the depth and scope to enable them to provide culturally inclusive learning, and it is that proposed that cultural contextualisation is important in the design of learning. At the same time, WWW sites that aim for cultural portability of courseware need to adopt cross-cultural design features that ensure access by culturally diverse learners. This paper offers a framework for culturally inclusive teaching and curriculum that can be applied to online environments. The term 'inclusive curriculum' as used in this paper refers to curriculum content, as well as the processes of planning for appropriate teaching, learning and assessment practices. Inclusivity in Web-based learning is concerned with facilitating the best educational outcomes for all students, regardless of characteristics such as ethnicity, language and cultural background.

MCC01070   Paper
Educational choice grounded theory study

Angela McCarthy, University of Notre Dame Australia

This ongoing-grounded theory study is about making choices in education. It seeks to understand the basic social process in which people engage when they make decisions about significant life choices and it holds some surprises! Choices in the area of education are of increasing importance to families; those involved in the field of education, industry leaders and governments. This study focuses on those who have chosen non-government education. The deliberate nature of their choice, and the various costs involved have clearly framed the domain of inquiry. In-depth interviews with parents from country and city locations, and from a variety of socio-economic backgrounds and schools, have begun to reveal a process in which parents engage in order to reach their decision. From the data a model of decision making is emerging that may well relate to other significant life choices. This paper will describe the basic social process upon which the grounded theory is being constructed and will be enlivened by revealing glimpses from the transcripts.

MCC01444   Paper
Experiences and reflections of PDHPE beginning teachers: A pilot study

Ann McCormack and Kaye Thomas, The University of Newcastle

The recent report of the NSW Ministerial Review of Teacher Education, Quality Matters (2000) highlighted the importance of supporting the induction of teachers into the workplace and the need for partnerships between initial teacher education programs and employers to ensure a smooth induction into the profession of teaching. The aim of this pilot study was to identify factors which cause concern, assist in retention of graduates or lead to separation of beginning teachers. A sample group of 12 graduates from a double degree Bachelor of Teaching/Bachelor of Health & Physical Education initial teacher education program completed a comprehensive questionnaire and participated in structured interviews to investigate the relevance of their teacher preparation, teacher induction and professional growth during their first years of employment. This paper will make use of qualitative and quantitative data to discuss the beginning teachers' experiences, concerns and future aspirations with the view to strengthening initial teacher education programs and informing teacher induction processes.

MCC01550   Paper
Cracks in the concrete: The demise of the teacher's role in reporting child abuse and neglect.

Faye McCallum, University of South Australia

In traditional terms, teachers have been described as righteous, moral models in society, sometimes described like 'a pillar of society'. This image of a traditional teacher, the church goer, piled high with books and plenty of knowledge was admired by many pockets in society. This presents a picture of a teacher-standing firm, like concrete, wearing many hats that related to the various roles they were required to perform. This concrete image is ever present today as teachers continue to work in various roles, grappling with change and accountability. However, the role of the teacher has changed somewhat from the 1800's encompassing many more duties and responsibilities that require diverse and complex skills like decision-making. One decision, legislated by law in South Australia, is to identify and report suspected child abuse and neglect to child protective services. The literature has, for quite a while, highlighted the under-reporting of child abuse and neglect by certain professionals, including teachers. This paper reports on recent research conducted in all schools in South Australia that investigated the effectiveness of teacher training for mandated notifiers. Inhibiting factors, referred to as 'cracks' in the concrete and enabling factors that influence teacher reporting are discussed.

MCI01409   Paper
Reconfiguring a commitment to social justice in public schooling

Peter Melnemey, Flinders University of South Australia

The pursuit of social justice is inextricably linked to the maintenance of a vibrant, well-funded and accessible public education system. But there are unmistakable signs that public schooling is being undermined, undervalued and degraded as a consequence of the 'dictatorship of the market place' (Meier, 1995) and the reductions in government spending on public schooling following the ascendancy of neoliberal governments. Is it possible to contest these developments? Can schools sustain a commitment to socially just curriculum in spite of its evacuation from official policy? This paper draws on a recently completed critical ethnographic study to present an argument for a reconfigured commitment to social justice in and through public schooling. Such a commitment, it is suggested, needs to incorporate responses to the classed nature of society and inequalities arising from the political economy but must also be attentive to the claims to recognition of groups who have been marginalised or excluded in traditional schooling arrangements as a result of various forms of cultural oppression. Whilst outlining the importance of locally conceived responses to educational disadvantage, the paper warns against the dangers of 'romantic localis & (Troyna and Vincent, 1995) and highlights the need for collective commitment and political action across the public education system, teacher unions, teacher education and community groups.

This paper will be presented as part of Symposium 13 GAL01407 Social justice, the market and education policy.

MCI01414  Paper
Moving into dangerous territory: Devolution in the public education system of South Australia

Peter McInerney, Flinders University of South Australia

Government schools in Australia are undergoing major organisational changes as a consequence of shifts towards a more devolved public education system. This is neither a recent happening nor a purely local phenomena however towards school-based governance and management have gathered speed in the United Kingdom, the United States, Canada, New Zealand and all Australian States over the past decade or so. Although the latest version of local school management in South Australia is contained in Partnerships 21 (Department of Education Training and Employment, 1999 ) it is worth noting that the roots of devolution were planted as far back as the Schools Commission Report (Karmel, 1973 ). Taking a lead from the conference theme, this paper attempts to explore the ongoing contestations over issues of authority taking place on the borders between the educational centre and the local school. With particular reference to the South Australian scene it traces the changing relationships and responsibilities in such areas as curriculum development, school governance, teachers' learning, educational leadership, resource allocation and matters of social justice and equity and argues that current moves represent dangerous incursions into unchartered and potentially unfriendly territory.

This paper will be presented as part of Symposium 14 SMY01412 Landscapes of space, place, power and identity in contemporary schooling.

MCK01530   Paper
Postgraduate research supervision: The students' viewpoint

Barbra McKenzie, University of Wollongong and Sharon Andrew, University of Western Sydney.

As doctoral students progress through their studies they will have developed very specific ideas and opinions about postgraduate supervision. To identify what students thought were necessary for a supervisor to consider when undertaking postgraduate supervision, students enrolled in a Faculty of Education's doctoral programs were surveyed by an open-ended questionnaire. Students' responses were analysed qualitatively and 5 themes emerged. These were: Meetings with the Supervisor, Feedback, The Supervisor's Characteristics, Having Two Supervisors, Special Circumstances and Other. The theme 'Meetings with the Supervisor' included two areas relating to the timing and conduct of the interviews. The theme 'Feedback' related to the frequency and type of feedback given to postgraduate students. The theme 'The Supervisor's Characteristics' included discussion about the supervisor's experience and their mentoring role. Students discussed their concerns when they have two supervisors in the appropriately named theme 'Having Two Supervisors'. International students described having specific difficulties whilst others students mentioned personal problems in the theme 'Special Circumstances' and the last theme 'Other' included students' comments on areas such as study leave, supervisors workloads, sharing research findings, and guidelines for written work.

MCK01544  ®   Paper
Flowcharting: Its use as a tool for professional development

Barbra McKenzie, University of Wollongong

Flowcharts and logic diagrams have a rich history in the fields of logic and mathematics. Researchers such as John Venn, George Boole, George Dodgson and Allan Marquand have all been influential in this field. Barton (2000) has demonstrated the use of flowcharts in education and their power as a logic tool by using them to assist primary school principals to construct comprehensive diagrams that best depicted their perceived understandings of their complex environments. This paper discusses a series of teacher-constructed flowcharts used to assist in data collection and analysis. In constructing their flowcharts teachers seek to convey their personal growth and understandings about a common professional development experience involving language and literacy (Frameworks, 1998). The teachers' flowcharts illustrate the process involved in implementing aspects of their professional development experience into their unique classroom situations. They also indicate a number of enablers and inhibitor's involved in this process as well as show a number of commonalities across situations. The flowcharts also demonstrate how and where teachers have appropriated aspects of their professional development experience into their own teaching and learning environments (Leontyev, 1981).

MCK01621   Paper
"Doing" Art History in the secondary school years: In search of authenticity

Penny McKeon, University of New South Wales

In this paper art historical experiences are argued as neither intrinsically belite nor exclusive in character. Recurrent implementation problems throughout successive Visual Arts syllabus iterations are detailed to ascertain the longstanding dilemma of authentic practice of art historical concepts and performances in educational settings. The author proposes an inclusive and practical approach to teaching and learning about art history in the school years. The alternative approach deploys categories derived from the art world to the generation of authentic and appealing art historical experiences. This strategy provides a framework that is appropriate to the range of interests and needs of secondary students. The author's case is illustrated with reference to a selection of contemporary art historical exemplars. The anticipated pedagogical outcome of art historical learning is the inculcation of the student as a culturally shrewd, active, lifelong audience for art.

MCL01720   Paper
Crossing boundaries: Curriculum and teaching implications of culturally inclusive online learning

Catherine McLoughlin, The University of New England

In tertiary contexts, Web-based instruction may be tailored to the needs of a particular cultural group, and recognise the specific learning needs, preferences and styles of leamers. At a time when open learning markets are very competitive, many WWW sites are developed with an international audience in mind. The internationalisation of education has led to the development of two distinct types of WWW sites, (i) those made for one particular context and culture, but visited by a global audience, and (ii) those made specifically for cross-cultural participation. An investigation of these sites reveals many different learning features and instructional design paradigms. Sites aiming for cross cultural participation and seeking a bridge to multiculturalism need to take certain design features into consideration, and utilise culturally appropriate forms of instructional design (M). A critique of current ID approaches shows that many lack the depth and scope to enable them to provide culturally inclusive learning, and it is that proposed that cultural contextualisation is important in the design of learning. At the same time, WWW sites that aim for cultural portability of courseware need to adopt cross-cultural design features that ensure access by culturally diverse learners. This paper offers a framework for culturally inclusive teaching and curriculum that can be applied to online environments. The term 'inclusive curriculum' as used in this paper refers to curriculum content, as well as the processes of planning for appropriate teaching, learning and assessment practices. Inclusivity in Web-based learning is concerned with facilitating the best educational outcomes for all students, regardless of characteristics such as ethnicity, language and cultural background.

MCW01363   Paper
Identity and miscommunication: Some experiences of international design students

Louise McWhinnie, University of Technology Sydney and University of New South Wales

Bourdieu writes: "The whole system of education as a particular historical structure finds expression in the communication which takes place between teachers and students. Misunderstanding and the fiction that there is no misunderstanding are inseparable phenomena." (1994) This paper will report doctoral research with the working title 'A Naturalistic Inquiry into Culture & the Study of Visual Communication by Asian International students within the context of Australian Universities.' In a series of interviews with three students from each of the two universities in my sample, I explore how their experiences as students of visual communication/graphic design reproduce, produce and re-produce new cultural subjectivities and identities. Utilising an explanatory framework 'after Bourdieu' I report on a sample of the various layers and contradictions of communication, miscommunication, understanding and misunderstandings, myths and fictions emerging from the analysis of the rich details of the interview data. These interviews from the study's second stage of data collection are supplemented by secondary interviews with local students and academic staff. The paper draws upon the results of the first stage of data collection, a questionnaire, and broadly sampling first and second year students from both courses. This area of research draws upon the researcher's experiences as a design lecturer in Australia, Malaysia and the UK.

MEN01511   Paper
Online communities of practice in special education

Mandia Mentis, Ken Ryba and Jean Annan, Massey University

Flexible and online learning has resulted in a rethinking of teaching and learning approaches. This paper looks specifically at the use of the Internet in creating socially interactive and reflective learning environments for students taking special education papers. A special feature of the Educational Psychology Training course at Massey University is the use of WebCT to promote a collective zone of proximal development among students in which scaffolded learning is provided through participation in the online community. The online community allows students the opportunity to interact at any time and from any location through synchronous and asynchronous discussion in order to provide peer support, consult with teachers, brainstorm and problem solve, access online resources, discuss assessment and intervention issues for casework and post assignments. This ready access to peer and teacher consultation and the ability to collectively construct shared knowledge removes the barriers of learning in isolation, and enhances reflection. This presentation will provide data and information on the viability of the online community of practice based on the systematic analysis of patterns of use, perceptions and evidence of collaborative consultation of the students. Recommendations for further development of online approaches for professional development will be provided.

MIL01183   Paper
Women playing rugby - An 'old boy's game': Beyond the social expectations

John Haynes and Judy Miller, University of New England

Women who play sport may be considered to be countering the subtle and passive factors which discourage participation. Valpalotai (1987) suggests that women who play sport have placed themselves outside the social mainstream. As a consequence of playing sport, women may be facing subtle pressures to conform to traditional social expectations. Furthermore, the pressure to conform may vary in accordance with the type of sport played. For example, sports considered to be more 'female' such as netball, gymnastics and swimming may have less social pressure associated with them when compared to sports considered to be more 'male' such as many of the football codes. Within these football codes, soccer, due to its minimal physical contact may be considered to be more acceptable when compared to the other football games such as rugby. These levels of acceptability may identify the degree of social ostracism. Given this background, it is of interest to determine what characteristics or factors would combine to motivate women to play a 'male dominated' sport such as Rugby Union? To answer this research question, both written responses and interviews were administered to women playing rugby at the Tertiary and Secondary education levels. The data were analysed using NUDIST and the results are presented in case study format.

MIL01408   Paper
The 'ideal': What does this mean for schools and their communities?

Carmen Mills and Trevor Gale, Central Queensland University

This paper considers what the 'ideal' arrangements to promote 'success' in schooling for all students - especially so called 'disadvantaged' students - look like from a socially critical perspective. In particular, the paper considers the ideal for schools and their communities proposed by what has been termed ecognitive justice' (Gale & Densmore, 2000): a model of social justice that incorporates a positive regard for social difference and the centrality of socially democratic processes. Three conditions of (i) self-identity and respect, (ii) self-development and self-expression, and (iii) self-determination are explored in the paper as a way of conceiving of the social justice literature at large. Specifically, the paper asks and seeks answers from this literature in relation to the following questions: How can schools foster self-respect in and facilitate positive self-identities for students? What part can and should schools play in promoting the development of their students' abilities and encouraging student expressions of their experiences? What might meaningful involvement in schooling, premised on self-determination, look like?

This paper will be presented as part of Symposium 13 CAL01407 Social justice, the market and Education policy.

MIZ01103  ®   Paper
The impact of comprehensible input on foreign language acquisition

Tokuya Mizuno, Swinburne University of Technology

In this paper, in the first instance, communication strategies of two native speakers of Japanese are compared to delineate the modification features adopted by them in communication with a small group of beginner learners of Japanese. On the basis of distribution of the discoursal, syntactic and lexical features characterising each native speaker's utterances, the efficacy of their individual strategies was tested for comprehensibility by using the amount and type of the learners' participation in the interactions as the yardstick. It was found that the speech which contained many "teacher talk" features elicited a much greater degree of response from the learners than that of the speech which bore a greater resemblance to "native talk". However, despite the fact that the learner group participated more vigorously in conversation with the native speaker who modified along the "teacher talk" lines, some doubts are being expressed about the value of the interaction as a truly learning experience. It is proposed that an interaction where foreign speakers are forced to adopt a number of strategies for negotiation of meaning is by far more challenging and should be considered as more effective in terms of language acquisition.

MOC01237   Paper
Professional learning portfolios as a tool for the reflective practitioner

Nicole Mockler, University of Sydney

This paper will focus on the Professional Learning Portfolio program at "North Western Independent Girls' School", where teachers are using learning portfolios as a tool for organising and documenting reflective practice. It will detail the purposes, processes and impacts of the program in the context of teacher professional development and whole school improvement.

MOK01403   Paper
Globalisation and changing governance: Higher education reforms in Hong Kong, Taiwan and Mainland China.

Joshua Mok and Michael Lee, City University of Hong Kong

Higher education systems are in a constant state of change nearly everywhere. In particular, the changes in the socio-economic context caused by the impact of globalisation have inevitably led to changes to the university sector. Since capitalism has generated new global infrastructures that information technology has played an increasingly important role in the global economy, the popularity and prominence of information technology has unquestionably changed the nature of knowledge, and is currently restructuring higher education, research and learning. It is in such a wider policy context that an increasing number of institutions of higher learning are being established with new missions and innovative configurations of training, serving populations that previously had little access to higher education. Apart from accommodating a larger number of students, higher education institutions are required to improve their administrative efficiency and accountability in response to the demands of different stakeholders like government, business, industry, and labour organisations, students and parents as well. The present paper reflects upon the impacts of globalisation on national policy, with particular reference to examine how the higher education sector in Hong Kong, Taiwan and Mainland China has been transformed under the increasingly popular / global tide of marketisation and decentralisation. There are a lot of changes in common between the higher education sector in Hong Kong, Taiwan and Mainland China and that of elsewhere, which suggests that higher education developments in these societies have been affected by the similar trends of globalisation. But before we jump to this conclusion, maybe we should also bear in mind an alternative hypothesis that local factors are crucial and determining factors for changes. More specifically, this paper sets out in this wider policy context to compare and contrast the similarities and differences in terms of the copying strategies that these Chinese societies have adopted in response to growing impact of globalisation, with particular attention given to the multiple variables derived from both internally, regionally and globally that have shaped higher education policies and recent reform initiatives in these Chinese societies.

MOO01447   Paper
A middle years approach to schooling at year 9: Positive, negative, interesting to see.

Rodney Moore, Victoria University, and Jenny Wajsenberg, Wesley College

A radical approach to school work organisation, curriculum and pedagogy at Year 9 was developed in response to the needs of the Year 9 cohort. Its main features were a residency at Clunes, a City campus experience, and an autonomous program at the Glen Waverley Campus. Two teacher teams were established with the freedom to design curriculum and pedagogy which best matched the needs and interests of young adolescents. This paper describes the issues and dilemmas faced when: a) interposing this radical 'interval' in the context of traditional schooling; and b) requiring teachers to work collaboratively in teams. Both qualitative and quantitative measures were used to evaluate the impact on both teachers and students

MOR01297   Paper
The influence of personal school physical education experiences on non-specialist teachers' attitudes and beliefs about physical education

Phil Morgan, Sid Bourke and Kerry Thompson, University of Newcastle

There is substantial scientific and research evidence highlighting the importance of regular physical education (PE) for all children. Early socialisation experiences in school PE provide prospective teachers with a large amount of information about PE, which assists the formation of beliefs about PE as a school subject. This paper examines causal relationships between personal school experiences in PE and commitment to physical activity with four main outcomes of interest; attitudes towards physical activity (ATPA), attitudes towards PE (ATTPE), beliefs about the benefits of PE (BEBEN) and perceived confidence teaching PE (COTCHPE). Quantitative data were collected from non-specialist teachers in years 2, 3 and 4 of pre service education (n=386) and inservice (n=53) teachers. Hypothesised relationships between the variables were tested using multilevel structural equation modelling techniques. Results indicated that the quality of an individual's school PE experience directly predicted their current attitudes and beliefs about PE and commitment to physical activity. Commitment to physical activity was a strong predictor of all attitudinal measures and mediated the effects of primary and high school PE. Total variance explained for each construct included; ATPA (41.0%), BEBEN (25.4%), ATTPE (41.7%) and COTCHPE (29.8%). The implications concerning the quality of school PE will be addressed.

MOS01268   Paper
Students at educational risk: An analysis of a policy process

Linda Mosen, University of Western Australia

This paper analyses the Education Department of Western Australia's policy: 'Making the Difference: Students at Educational Risk'( SAER) as a process extending between macro and micro levels of the organisation between 1998 and present. The study aims to develop an understanding of how the production and practices of the policy reflect wider - and potentially competing -economic and social justice rationales, and to what extent it advocates and/or marginalises the needs of students 'at risk'. Policy is identified as an interactive process that is shaped and reconstructed by different 'contexts'. It is how individual agents interpret, resist, accommodate or conform within and between these different 'contexts' that helps provide a clearer understanding of how the SAER policy intent is executed in practice.

The primary methods of data collection in this study are document analysis, semi-structured in-depth interview and field notes. The research sample included key administrators from Central and District Offices and four primary schools, from both metropolitan and country locations, because the identification of students, processes and resources to address 'at risk' may be affected by local contextual factors. In the early stages, the study finds that the policy is being interpreted and adapted at different sites, along a similar continuum, but in different ways.

This paper is presented as part of Symposium 8, VID01266 A conceptual framework for analysis of education policy and practices, with case studies in schools.

MOS01659   Paper
The Civic School: Australian-Indonesian professional collaboration to model and audit the development of democratic primary classrooms and teacher language using the Index of Inclusion

Julianne Moss, University of Tasmania

The study is a pilot project in Australian-Indonesian institutional collaboration for the professional development of primary school teachers in West Sumatra in citizenship education. Senior staff in the department of Pancasila and Citizenship Education at the State University of Padang (UNP), West Sumatra initiated the project. UNP staff sought the collaboration of the Faculty of Education at the University of Tasmania for bringing about and sustaining changes in teacher practice needed to implement the new civic goals in the 1999 Suplemen. The Index ofInclusion was used to model and audit the development of democratic primary classrooms and language use in a cluster of Padang schools in West Sumatra. The paper describes the background to the project and how the Index ofInclusion was understood during the initial two-week implementation phase by teachers and school principals.

The significance of the study lies in the potential of the Index ofInclusion internationally to citizenship education, a field of education that was not considered in the initial development of the Index project and the contribution of the multiple fields of inquiry to the evolving theoretical understandings of inclusive education.

This paper will be presented as part of Symposium 6 CAR01227 Does the Indexfor Inclusion provide a framework for school improvement and professional development for inclusive education?

MPA01620   Paper
The visual transcription of data within qualitative research in fine art

Nombeko Mpako, Border Technikon Republic of South Africa and School of Art, and The University of New South Wales

This paper reports on the employment of a Fine Art orientated qualitative research procedure. Set within the framework of a broader project of action research in South African art education, this report explores ways in which qualitative inquiry can be adapted to the representation of Fine Art practice, without losing its qualitative character through descriptive translation. A detailed outline will discuss: procedures of conducting and reporting on a program of qualitative inquiry into the work of practicing artists; strengths and weakness in the value of this research approach to practicing artists. This paper will be accompanied by examples of artworks produced by fourth year Fine Art degree students in relation to whom this procedure is being developed.

MTH01583   Paper
Using Predict- Observe-Explain technique to enhance students' understanding of chemical reactions

Zuziwe Mthembu, Centre for Advancement of Science and Maths, South Africa

The grade 10, 11 and 12 science curriculum in South Africa places great emphasis on practical orientated activities as a tool for learning science. However resources as found in the schools are limited and some of the teachers are not competent in using these materials needed for practical work. This study investigates the outcomes of a new teaching strategy, called Predict-Observe-Explain, that can be used to teach practical orientated activities and which will be negotiated with science teachers from secondary schools. The Predict-Observe -Explain (POE) is a teaching strategy that probes understanding by requiring students to carry out three tasks. First the students must predict the outcome of some event, and must justify their prediction; then they describe what they see happen; and finally they must reconcile any conflict between prediction and observation. This paper will report on a pilot study that has been carried out to evaluate the effectiveness of this technique by students' attitudes and students' understanding.

MUR01081  ®   Paper
Life at school in Australia and Japan: The impact of stress and support on bullying and adaptation school

Rosalind Murray-Harvey, Phillip Slee, Judith Saebel and Mitsuru Taki, Flinders University

In this international, comparative study, path analysis was used to examine eight different aspects of Japanese and Australian students' experiences of school life in relation to their effect on adaptation to school. Adaptation was constructed to include information on enjoyment of school, feelings of belonging to school, and relationships with other students. Two separate path models were tested to compare questionnaire data from over 3000 Australian and 6000 Japanese students across Years 5-10.

The questionnaire was developed collaboratively by the authors to examine issues of common concern in both countries. Issues that related to the impact on adaptation to school of stress and support: family teachers, peers and school work, as well as bullying were of particular interest. Lack of support and the influential effect of stress were found to exert direct negative effects on adaptation to school, especially for high school students in Japan and Australia. The path results also confirmed the stressful effects of bullying in both countries. The finding of a strong relationship between bullying others and being victimised is discussed in the paper. Finally, the differences and similarities between Japanese and Australian students' perceptions of school life are extrapolated.

MYI01168   Paper
Investigation of tertiary classroom learning environment in Singapore

MYINT Swe Khine and GOH Swee Chiew, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore

Over the last three decades, researchers in many countries have shown increasing interest in the conceptualisation, assessment and investigation of student perceptions of psychosocial dimensions of their classroom environment. A considerable amount of work on the assessment and investigation of classroom environment in schools were conducted in Singapore over the last few years. These include studies on the associations between students' perception of interpersonal teacher behaviour and learning outcomes in primary mathematics classrooms (Goh & Fraser, 1996) and environment-attitude associations in secondary science classrooms (Wong & Fraser, 1996). However, no studies were made to examine the tertiary learning environment. This paper reports the first study to focus on the learning environment in the only teacher-training institution in Singapore. The College and University Classroom Environment Inventory, the CUCEI, was used to measure the perceptions of graduate teacher trainees' learning environment and also to examine the associations between attitude and environment. The sample comprised two groups of graduate teacher trainees (primary and secondary teachers) enrolled on the one-year Postgraduate Diploma in Education Programme at the National Institute of Education, Singapore. The findings provided evidence of a significant attitude-environment relationship in teacher education, as well as gender-related and programme-related differences between the two groups.

N

NAI01417   Paper
Perfornativities' and 'fabrications' in performance management

Shamalin Naidu, Flinders University of South Australia

This paper draws on doctoral work underway into the analysis of teachers' voices in recent South Australian initiatives in teacher evaluation. The implementation of a new Performance Management policy is currently one aspect of the major educational reforms introduced to the public sector workforce in South Australia. Performance Management clearly illustrates an attempt by the state to control the work of teachers. The underlying philosophy of Performance Management is to make teachers more efficient, more effective and more accountable. The paper will critically scrutinise this bureaucratic process and amplify the voices of those being controlled. It will start out by considering a similar study of Performance Management undertaken in Western Australia, and discuss its implications for South Australia. Secondly, it will locate Performance Management in a broader social and political context and consider the interests being served. And finally, the paper will highlight first-hand accounts of how teachers, employ defence mechanisms ('performativities and fabrications) in order to resist evaluation as a form of bureaucratic and ideological control.

This paper will be presented as part of Symposium 14 SMY01412 Landscapes of space, place, power and identity in contemporary schooling.

NAJ01247   Paper
Approaches to learning and studying in psychology: A revised perspective

Robyn Najar and Kerrie Davis, Flinders University

This paper discusses the first 18 months of a three-year investigation into differences in learning styles of students in psychology. Bigg's (1987) Study Process Questionnaire (SPQ) was administered 1st and 2nd semesters to first-year psychology students and repeated semester 2 in the following year (n=181). At this stage both cross-sectional and longitudinal effects have been examined. The greatest change in approaches to learning occurred between the first and second administrations of the SPQ. Longitudinal data from a sub-sample of 64 students showed a significant improvement in Deep Approach, Achieving Approach and Deep Achieving Approach scores. However, this was not reflected in the cross-sectional data, which suggested a decline. Additionally, the observed differences in gender (cf. Wilson, Smart & Watson, 1996), year level and type of degree were not found to be significantly related to levels of processing or motivation as measured by the SPQ. In conclusion, the data suggests that a dichotomous approach (deep/surface) to learning is overly simplistic and that it is essential to consider the context of study, such as the task at hand, in evaluating approaches to learning (Fogarty & Taylor, 1997). If this is the case, then we need to revise our theoretical approach to embrace a framework such as transfer appropriate processing (Dyne, Taylor & Boulton-Lewis, 1994) as a more meaningful way to understand student learning in higher education.

NAJ01248  ®   Paper
Facilitating the development of disciplinary knowledge and communication skills: Integrating curriculum

Robyn Najar, Flinders University

While proficiency in academic writing and communication skills, such as teamwork, are seen as desirable graduate outcomes in higher education, they have taken a secondary place to the teaching of disciplinary knowledge within curricula. Not uncommonly, writing, such as writing a researched report, is a source of anxiety for students at all levels. Academic and professional expectations, unfamiliarity with the conventions of research writing, limited exposure to report writing and levels of writing proficiency are some contributing factors. Similarly, teamwork has presented students and lecturers with a myriad of difficulties from the development interpersonal skills to assessment. The following paper presents an innovative 1st-year topic designed to integrate the learning of communication skills and disciplinary knowledge in engineering. The three modules comprising the integrated topic are discussed with a focus on the key module, Language in Use (LIU). LIU is focussed on developing the skills necessary to enable students to become more successful researchers, writers and team participants in the context of engineering. The LIU curriculum presents a holistic approach to learning in which the teaching of communication skills and disciplinary knowledge are embedded into the curriculum design. Furthermore, the curriculum is designed to connect students, lecturers and industry participants in order to support the development of writing and teamwork skills on authentic tasks. Factors, as identified by lecturers and learners, contributing to the curriculum's success in facilitating the learning process and resulting in a higher degree of student and lecturer satisfaction are also presented.

NEV01518   Paper
Peel Education and TAFE, learning model: A regional Western Australian response to learning communities

Jennifer Nevard and Malcolm Goff, Challenger TAFE

Collocation of services in regional Western Australia is an important strand in W.A.'s Regional Development Policy. The intent of this initiative is to foster working relationships amongst stakeholder groups, with a view to ensuring regional Western Australian communities have access to quality services.

Challenger TAFE with two education partners, the W.A. Department of Education and Murdoch University, has produced a new concept in joint delivery of education and training. It goes beyond existing utility focused Australian models of education campus collocation and incorporates the values of a learning community. Key factors influencing this initiative have been formulated from the positive flow-on from two national education and training policy decisions and through the cooperative and trusting local arrangements that have been built over the last decade, within the region. These energies have come together at the Peel Education and TAFE Campus to produce a concept that extends beyond existing models and commitments to cross-sectoral education and training in Australia. The model reflects local circumstances and a history of trust and cooperative activity amongst the organisations involved. It is not intended as a blue print for other locations because circumstances vary and this model may not be readily replicable.

NGO01735   Paper
A model for the integrated professional development of Secondary Mathematics teachers

Mapula Ngoepe and Diane Grayson, University of South Africa, and David Treagust, Curtin University of Technology

This paper presents research that is aimed at developing a model that will address the professional needs of secondary mathematics teachers in the South African context. The proposed professional development model will evolve from integrating mathematics teachers' content knowledge, teaching approaches and pedagogical content knowledge (PCK), and professional attitudes. All features need to be developed in a holistic way, with a focus on enabling teachers to learn about and develop their own meta-cognition. (Gunstone, 1994). The model will be developed with the teachers in their own classrooms in keeping with the implications of the situative approach for research in teacher education (Putnam& Borko, 2000). This will be achieved by collecting baseline information pertaining to the professional attitudes of teachers, the teachers' subject knowledge, teaching styles and pedagogical content knowledge. The next step will be to develop the model, then trial the model and evaluate the efficacy of the model. Data will be collected through different methods namely, interviews, classroom observations, tape recording and questionnaires to ensure authenticity and credibility of results. It is hoped that when the model will be developed it will help to inform professional development programs in Mathematics education.

NG01265   Paper
Usage of computer-based technology by Science teachers in Victorian schools

Wan Ng and Richard Gunstone, Monash University

Over the last 5-10 years, large amounts of money have been provided to set Victorian schools up with computers and associated technologies. In the area of science, a range of LT resources is available for use in the teaching and learning processes in the classroom. However, there has been little evaluation of the types and methodology of usage, and the effectiveness of these resources in the process of concept construction in students. This study aims to identify a profile of the usage of computer-based technologies in science classrooms in Victorian schools. The research tool used in this study is a questionnaire, which asks teachers to identify: Their attitude towards the use of computer-based technologies in science teaching. The types and availability of computer-based resources for use in the teaching of science in their school. Those resources that they have found to be effective in helping students learn science and how these resources have been used in their classes. Professional development activities that would be useful. Based on the feedback in the questionnaire, follow-up interviews with teachers will be conducted. Data is currently being collected and hence no conclusion can be given in this abstract.

NIX01095   Paper
Collaborative research into ICT and the literacy curriculum: Crossing borders or creating new barriers?

Helen Nixon, and Rosie Kerin University of South Australia and Lee Sansom, Technology School of the Future

This paper reports on a 12-month collaborative research project conducted by a university and education department research team in two South Australian middle school classrooms. The research investigated the resources drawn upon by teachers and students during the design and implementation of literacy/English curriculum that integrated ICT. Tensions between participants' understandings of the keywords of the research project (literacy, electronic writing, etc) will be explored. Issues relating to collaboration, partnership and ownership in university-industry partnerships will be discussed.

NIX01440    Paper
'Slow and steady - not enough pace!': Reviewing a longitudinal case study of one child's literacy acquisition

Helen Nixon, University of South Australia

In this part of the symposium I will consider how the assessments made of one case study child's achievement and progress worked to foreground some of his literacy and other classroom practices and to background others. 1 will particularly focus on what this longitudinal study might have to teach us about the centrality of visual modes of communication for some children.

This paper is presented as part of Symposium 18, COM01437 Literacy learning long term: Investigating children's acquisitions of school literacies.

NIX01448   Paper
Evaluation of an integrated science learning environment that bridges university classes and field trips

Rebekah Nix, The University of Texas, Cynthia Ledbetter and Barry Fraser, Curtin University of Technology

This study focused on the development of an Integrated Science Learning Environment (ISLE) to bridge the gap between the university classroom and field trip learning environments. The program modelled a constructivist paradigm to help teachers to learn and apply science content by creating a web page. Their own unique school classroom learning environments further influenced this implementation. The aim of the study was to evaluate the ISLE in terms of promoting conceptual understanding, attitudes and a constructivist classroom learning environment. Specifically, the course design addressed two major issues that not only challenge effective field work, but are the key to effective design and integration of web-based media into the classroom learning environment: information overload and non-linear processing. The study is important in that it combines the use of: concept maps to assess adult knowledge and understanding; the Teachers' Attitude Toward Information Technology (TAT) survey to gauge experience and exposure to information technology; and a modified version of the Constructivist Learning Environment Survey (CLES) written for adults to evaluate their perceptions of the university/field trip program. The dimensions of these instruments were found to be correlated for both teachers with science backgrounds and those with non-science backgrounds.

NOR01595  ®   Paper
Use of cognitive tools as support mechanisms for adult learners in a mathematics unit

Maria Northcote, Linda Marshall and Max Lenoy, Edith Cowan University

The staff at Kurongkurl Katitjin (the School of Indigenous Australian Studies, at Edith Cowan University) design, develop and teach courses that are offered in a variety of delivery formats: on-campus, online and through traditional distance education. For example, the individual units within the Indigenous University Orientation Course (IUOC) are currently being redesigned to incorporate these new learning and communication technologies. With the major components of these units being based on the Internet, learning is also supported by contact with on-campus lecturers, print and multimedia learning resources. This paper considers the instructional design, content preparation and delivery methods selected to create one particular unit of study in the IUOC course, Thinking Mathematically. The paper particularly focuses on the manner in which cognitive tools have been incorporated into the unit to scaffold learning opportunities, to promote positive attitudes to the topic and to identify and strengthen the link between theoretical and practical mathematics. Previous research into Indigenous students' reactions to online learning and mathematics in general informed the unit development processes and was supplemented by research from contemporary literature relating to effective online learning guidelines. Primarily, the paper reports on which cognitive tools were implemented to achieve specific learning outcomes in terms of the students' knowledge, skills and attitude development.

NOR01596  ®   Paper
Informal online networks for learning: Making use of incidental learning through recreation

Maria Northcote and Amanda Kendle, Edith Cowan University

Contemporary tertiary students require a different set of skills from the population of students who attended university campuses even just a decade ago. The modern student is expected to be comfortable and often proficient with both printed and digital resources. Such a level of expertise is necessary not only so students can access study materials, but also to also enable them to efficiently filter information, communicate using diverse methods and store relevant resources within practical and logical systems. Many university courses now include components which provide opportunities for students to develop digital information competencies and such skills are almost essential to succeed within current academic and employment contexts. This paper suggests that technologically related and information management skills and expertises need not only be developed within formal educational settings. It is our experience that the modern day student can be encouraged to access a variety of recreational digital resources and experience effective learning through these experiences in a more incidental, informal manner. We have identified five main categories of online networks: (1) common interest communities (e.g., e-groups, hobby sites); (2) competition and game sites (e.g., networked multi-player games, entering competitions); (3) file download sites (e.g., Napster, clipart); (4) corporate and e-commerce sites (e.g., internet banking, online shopping); and (5) information access sites (e.g., maps, timetables, White Pages). Participating in these online networks can allow students to develop many useful skills including database searching, information filtering, data storage and retrieval, critical analysis of resources and effective online communication. This paper examines a range of examples, which demonstrate how a number of useful academic skills can be developed using non-traditional, less academic approaches in order to maintain and improve student motivation, enjoyment levels and learning outcomes in tertiary situations.

NTU01131   Paper
Evaluating and improving teaching practice and distance teacher training programs using learning environment instruments

Sipho Ntuli, University of South Africa and Curtin University Western Australia

This study proposes to examine the viability of using learning environment instruments in, first, the supervision and assessment of teaching practice, and second, the evaluation of a distance education teacher training program. Both quantitative and qualitative methods of collecting, analyzing and interpreting data will be employed, paralleled by a formative and summative assessment of student-teachers' practice teaching. The student teachers will be sensitized to subtle but important aspects of classroom life (Fraser, 1993, 2000) using the What is Happening in this Class? (WIHIC) questionnaire which they will then administer to learners in their primary school mathematics classes, along with a student satisfaction scale to measure the preferred and actual perceptions of the classroom environment and their satisfaction with their mathematics classroom. Based on the results of the data collected using the WIHIC, teaching strategies, proposed by the student-teachers and the researcher, will be implemented with the view to reducing the discrepancies between learners' preferred and actual perceptions. Data will be collected during this intervention phase using student teacher's reports, contact sessions and discussions between the student teachers and the researcher. In addition, two case studies emanating from classroom visits to student teachers' classrooms will provide thick descriptions of teachers' reactions to using a learning environment instrument in their class. The WIHIC and student satisfaction will be administered to the same classes at the end of the intervention phase to ascertain whether students are more satisfied with their class and discrepancies between students' actual and preferred perceptions have been reduced. At the time of presenting this paper, only the following three research questions will be addressed: How was WIHIC modified for the use in, and validated within, the South African classroom context? How was the administering of WIHIC received by the mathematics teacher educators, student teachers and learners? To what extent has the learning environment instrument (WIHIC) facilitated formative assessment of student teachers' teaching practice in the mathematics classroom?

NYL01251  ®   Paper
Language, literacy and participation rights: Factors influencing educational outcomes for Australian boys

Berenice Nyland, RMIT University

This paper is concerned with the present position of boys in Australian early childhood programs, especially the early years of school. The argument is made that schools are not resourced to deal adequately with the problems many children face in their daily lives. Teachers are restricted in their practice through curriculum frameworks and a narrow concept of literacy that fails to acknowledge different cultural and social backgrounds, or styles of learning. As the gap between the haves and have-nots grows increasingly wider the ideological climate does not allow for the confrontation of issues, such as poverty, that influence the life chances of so many young children. This paper discusses circumstances influencing the educational outcomes of children in relation to gender differences, as well as economic, cultural and language factors.

NZA01219   Paper
The impact of the primary school lead teacher development project on grade 4 mathematics classroom learning environments at Eshowe district in KwaZulu Natal, South Africa.

Francis Mhlawumbe Nzama, KwaZulu Natal Department of Education & Culture, South Africa.

This paper reports on the findings of a study that examined the impact of the Primary School Mathematics and Science Lead Teacher Development Project on the grade 4 mathematics classroom learning environments of the lead teachers and their colleagues in cluster schools at Eshowe district. This lead teacher development project responds to lack of skills among primary school mathematics and science teachers, inappropriate models of In-Service Teacher Education and Training (INSET), little teacher development by way of INSET organised by districts, and poor performance in mathematics and science by students which results from the lack of basic skills in these subjects. Multiple research methods of both quantitative and qualitative nature were used to explore the nature of mathematics classroom learning environment in both the experimental (intervention) and control (non-intervention) groups. When English and IsiZulu versions of a 'What Is Happening In this Class' (WIHIC) questionnaire assessing students and teachers perceptions of seven dimensions of the mathematics classroom learning environment were administered to 7 classes of different schools in the experimental group and 3 classes of different schools in the control group, data analysis supported the reliability and factorial validity of the questionnaire and revealed differences between the experimental group and control group classroom learning environments.

O

OER01269   Paper
Local area education planning - Policy planning and practice

Karin Oerlemans, University of Western Australia

This paper presents the beginning of an analysis of the Education Department of Western Australia's Local Area Education Planning (LAEP) Policy, which has involved school amalgamations, closures and sometimes the emergence of middle schools. Policymaking is an intrinsically political activity; a way by which governments prescribe social change. At the micro level of policy implementation it is likely to be sharply contested as agents (administrators, teachers, parents and students) struggle to understand and influence the changes in progress. This paper is an analysis of what individuals and groups have 'done' with a top-down macro-level policy. The challenge is to reveal the messiness and the complexities of policy in practice, with a particular emphasis on the perspectives of students involved in educational change. The research involved in-depth case studies of two schools undergoing considerable educational change as the result of LAEP policy. Data collection methods for this study involved focus group and semi-structured interviews with a number of student cohorts, document analysis, staff interviews and field notes. The initial findings point to significant tensions between the macro level policy makers and the local agents involved in the policy implementation.

This paper is presented as part of Symposium 8, VID01266 A conceptual framework for analysis of education policy and practices, with case studies in schools.

ONG01640 Paper
Maximising co-curricular activities for educational excellence: A perspective by Anglo-Chinese school (Independent), Singapore

Teck Chin Ong and Chee Wei Chan, Anglo-Chinese School (Independent), Singapore

A framework for maximising co-curricular activities is in place. The range of co-curricular activities include uniformed youth organisations, sports and games, clubs and societies, performing and visual arts, enrichment and community involvement programmes and students-initiated interest groups. In addition a number of leadership programmes reinforced the already wide variety of co-curricular activities offered. Student participation rate in our school of more than 1750 students is 100% with each student involved in at least 2 formal co-curricular activities complemented with enrichment and leadership programmes. A steady progressive trend for the assumption of leadership roles and positions is recorded, with a range from 40% to more than 75% of total student cohort having leadership appointments from the year 1997 to 2001. Strategies for selection of students and structured processes for participation and evaluation are well aligned to the positive results and outcomes of the co-curricular activities. This is attributed to the clear rationale and vision of the school in providing a programme of educational excellence to nurture the "Scholar, Officer and Gentleman" in our students.

ORE01741   Paper
Another look at teachers' lives: (Re) Shaping the research process

Jonathan Bayley, Peter Hemingway, Kathleen O'Reilly-Scanlon and Heather Ryan, University of Regina, Canada

In Canada, increasing numbers of children are coming to school with risk factors such as poverty, poor housing, transiency, substance abuse, lousy nutrition, broken families - factors that contribute to a meaner and more marginalized life. According to the Campaign 2000's Child Poverty in Canada: Report Card 1995, more than one in five children now live in a poor family. Moreover, among Canada's largest urban centres one-quarter of preschoolaged children are poor. As a result, schools are finding it more and more difficult to meet the needs of students on their own because they simply do not have the resources, the specialized staff, or the time to "be all things to all people."

While there has been recognition about the need to look at the preparation of preservice teachers (O'Reilly-Scanlon, 2001), and increasing studies about the need for integration of services and the changing role of schools (Tymchak 2001), little information has been gathered nationally about the effects that the current realities of the classroom are having on the daily lives of teachers -specifically on teachers' satisfaction with their work, motivation and health. What is the impact of the increasing numbers of children with risk factors on teachers' lives? On their practice? On how they view themselves? These are some of the questions that motivated us - four university researchers - and our educational partners from government, school and community nation-wide to become involved in conducting the Canadian 2001 component of the Teacher 2000 Project: an International Study of Teacher Satisfaction, Motivation and Health.

This paper will outline the adaptations made to reflect the Canadian context in terms of its cultural and language diversity, and geographical size and population, as well as changes to the research process itself. We will identify how both the research structure and process were shaped by partnerships with teacher associations in a widespread, culturally diverse, officially bilingual population.

Traditionally, survey research has involved designing, field-testing and distributing a paper survey to a select population. However, due to Canada's vast geographic size and relatively large population, we describe issues surrounding the creation of a website to facilitate accessibility and generate an adequate response rate.

We describe issues that arose when identifying factors influencing teacher health, multicultural experiences and diversity of relationships with school boards, ministries of education and the academic community. We argue how these data may differ from the smaller sampling of approximately 700 teachers per country by international colleagues in the Teacher 2000 Study, considering that all interested teachers were able to participate with encouragement from their professional organizations. We question how teacher practice and perceptions of the impact of their careers on their private life differ with level of education, perceived support/relationships in schools, with boards and with professional associations. Factors found common in teacher practice and experience across Canada and those idiosyncratic to particular environments, allow comparison between provinces, territories and the international findings in Australia, England, New Zealand, Malta and the United States are discussed. The collaborators seek understandings of teacher experience that may guide improvements to policy, professional development and support for teachers.

This paper will be presented as part of Symposium 32 SCO01723 ePosters.

OVE01171   Paper
Mapping Literacy in Tasmania

Jenny Overton, University of Tasmania

Over the last 25 years Schools in Australia have seen changes in the teaching of literacy. The Tasmanian context is no different. This paper, based on early work toward a PhD thesis, reviews the literacy policies and practices evident in early childhood classrooms in Tasmanian government schools over the past 25 years. In more recent times, the Tasmanian Department of Education (DoE) has implemented a variety of specific literacy programs in the Early childhood years. Some of these programs have been 'imported' into the Tasmanian context - such as Reading Recovery and Spalding, while others have been developed by the DoE - for example the Flying Start program and the Program of Additional Support and Structure (PASS). An analysis of the content of the most prevalent of these programs will examine areas of intersection in practices and theoretical frameworks. A mapping of literacy programs in Tasmanian gives an overview of the policy and practice changes and an understanding of literacy discourses circulating in the state.

P

PAR01107  ®   Paper
The principal is hopeless. She needs a good boot in the rear end: Cultural diversity and conflicting school agendas

Gary Partington, Kurongkurl Katitjin, John Godfrey and Kaye Richer, Edith Cowan University

When the goals of education are usurped by other agendas, education takes a back seat. In the present study, the school principal's desire to present her school as efficient and herself as a competent principal led to oppression of teachers and parents in an effort to put a lid on dissension. As a consequence, the Aboriginal students in the school were alienated from the school and became antagonistic towards the teachers. The study focused particularly on one of the teachers (who was also the deputy principal) at the school who was keen to implement effective schooling for the indigenous students in his class. His efforts were frustrated by the principal who ignored the requests for cultural relevance and more appropriate relations with parents.

The study is placed in a critical perspective. Institutional agendas are examined in the context of cultural difference and social distance between teachers and students. The rationalisation of actions by the school is evaluated in the light of diverse reports from teachers, parents, support staff and students.

PAY01228   Paper
Conflict along the borders: Issues of governance for small schools

Lesley Payne, Murdoch University

The issues discussed in this paper arise from a study to investigate governance in small independent schools in Western Australia. Fourteen principals and twelve founding council members were interviewed and the resulting data analysed using QSR NUD*IST software. Critical areas of focus for the study are how school identity is maintained, how the differing expectations of the various constituents are catered for, and how tensions between democratic imperatives, professionalism, competing goals and a sense of community are managed within the school sites. Every organisation has boundaries and its borders are knowingly and unknowingly beset by conflicts on many different fronts. Difficulties around the drawing and defence of boundaries emerged as of particular interest in understanding the stability and durability of independent schools, their management of conflict and their resources of trust. Implications drawn from this research include the need for schools to be more strategic and flexible in their structures, to respect and maintain borders while still allowing information flow across them, and to set clear and visible goals which can be overseen and assessed without resulting in destabilising territorial disputes.

PEA01175  ®   Paper
Indigenous students at university: is teaching still a colonising process?

Jane Pearce, Murdoch University

As a teacher educator I encourage my students to develop culturally inclusive pedagogies, and also see it as my responsibility to practise them myself. However, I have found that my position as a culturally inclusive practitioner is rarely tested in my work in a university setting. While universities are welcoming increasingly diverse groups of students into their midst, most of the students I encounter share cultural capital with me. This paper is an exploration of a 'critical incident' when the presence in my class of an Indigenous Australian student; a culturally "different" student; challenged me to act according to my stated position as a culturally inclusive teacher. I shall outline my reflections on this experience, using post-colonial theory as a framework to examine the colonising nature of my pedagogy, and invite discussion of the possibilities for a more culturally inclusive definition of what is acceptable as teaching and learning in universities.

PEE01238   Paper
A 'Methodist' Intervention in the History of New South Wales Art Education

Chris Peers, University of New South Wales

This paper reports an archival investigation of the history of a rare visual arts education documentary film, produced in 1960, under the auspices of the Australian UNESCO Committee. 'An Approach to Art Teaching' was intended to showcase the development of innovative curriculum policies in New South Wales art education. Included in UNESCO's commitment to sponsoring arts education, the film was exhibited internationally and was translated into several languages. A screening of the film will be followed by commentary upon specific film sequences, in relation to theoretical debates in New South Wales art education. One such debate led to the film's producers being dubbed 'Methodists' in relation to the perception that the film advocated an interventionist model of art teaching. The value and appropriateness of art as a scholastic discipline for students of either sex was an undercurrent of the historical context within which the film was produced. The study raises the film's depiction of art students as women, so as to investigate the film's contribution to historical representations of art as a school subject. The paper analyses the film as an artefact of changes to the conceptualisation of NSW art education in the early 1960s.

PEN01179   Paper
Re-shaping the borders for policy research : The development of specialist sports colleges in England.

Dawn Penney and Barrie Houlihan, Loughborough University U.K.

This paper addresses the complexities of the policy location of Specialist Sports Colleges (SSCs) in England and the issues that arise for educational research. Attention focuses upon the 'dual policy location' of Specialist Sports Colleges, that are now formally established as part of the Department for Education and Employment's (DfEE) Specialist Schools Programme but also the Department of Culture, Media and Sport's strategy for sport, 'A Sporting Future for All' (DCMS, 2000). The paper outlines the parallel but distinct agendas established for the Specialist Sports Colleges and points to the tensions that may arise in curriculum development in SSCs as teachers attempt to embrace multiple policy agendas.

It is argued that SSCs are sites where there is a particular need for policy research to explore the ways in which different agendas are positioned, and in particular, who and what defines the discourses that are ultimately privileged in school curricula and teachers' pedagogical texts. Exploring these issues is identified as demanding that the borders of educational research are extended beyond educational arenas to engage with increasingly complex policy networks and with changing policy relations at a national and local level.

PEN01213   Paper
The power of silence and myth of neutrality: Gender in the national curriculum for physical education in England.

Dawn Penney, Loughborough University.UK

This paper explores the ways in which 'gender issues' have been addressed in the official texts relating to the National Curriculum for Physical Education in England and specifically, the conceptualisation's of gender, sexuality, masculinity and femininity that can be identified as inherent in, promoted by, but also excluded from these texts. It is argued that in important respects, silences speak loader than words and that neither silence nor the use of 'neutral' language is in any way neutral. These characteristics of the texts are identified as having important implications in relation to the degree to which the National Curriculum for Physical Education serves to (I) demand or encourage that established and inequitable practices and beliefs will be challenged, and (ii) prompt and support the development of new practices in which currently marginalised (or absent) discourses will be accorded a higher status. Attention is then directed to the scope for teachers and teacher educators to 'fill the silences' in official texts in ways that may serve to extend the 'gender agendas' addressed by and reflected in physical education curricula and teaching.

PEN01537   Paper
Contesting control; Playing a political game. Educational research and curriculum development in contexts of constraint

Dawn Penney, Loughborough University, UK

Since the Education Reform Act of 1988, in England and Wales we have witnessed the development of a comprehensive array of policy initiatives designed to collectively (re-)establish central government control of the curriculum. Teachers, teacher educators and researchers can all claim to have been marginalised in and by these developments. All are increasingly positioned and portrayed as technicians. Drawing upon experience of undertaking qualitative and ethnographic research that has spanned a decade of policy and curriculum development in physical education, this paper will consider how educational researchers may be proactive in seeking to reposition themselves more centrally in curriculum development work. It will argue that if we are to be more active players in a political game, we need to review and extend established conceptualisations of educational research, and specifically, explore the ways in which power-relations clearly constrain but also enable researchers to actively engage in developments. The politics and ethics of researchers attempting to take a strategic stance in a highly contested curriculum field are discussed.

This paper will be presented as part of Symposium 21 HAR01533 Curriculum control.

PER01366   Paper
Partnerships for effective teacher renewal

Chris Perry, Deakin University and Maxine Cooper, The University of Melbourne

The Quality Teacher Program (QTP) recently introduced by the Commonwealth Government is a three year program that provides funding to strengthen the skills and understanding of those in the teaching profession. In Victoria, The Association of Independent Schools of Victoria (AISV) in response to this initiative, has developed a project entitled 'School-based Teacher Renewal' involving three independent sector specific strategies and one cross-sectoral strategy. One of these strategies, 'Teacher Renewal Through Partnerships' is a strategy which focuses on schools establishing a teacher renewal coordinating team being assisted by a university facilitator to address teacher issues of teacher renewal. Schools were required to develop a Quality Teacher Strategic Plan associated with target curriculum area/s. Integral to this strategy is the provision of an external facilitator to support the teacher renewal coordinating team in each school. Approximately 46 academic staff from Faculties of Education at Deakin University and the University of Melbourne are working with in partnership with AISV across 50 schools on this three-year project. This project builds on successful teacher professional development outcomes learned from the previous Commonwealth project, the Innovative Links Between Universities and Schools under the National Professional Development Program (NPDP) from 1994 to 1996. This paper, presented by the Project Directors from Melbourne University and Deakin University will describe outcomes of the 'Teacher Renewal Through Partnerships' program and discuss findings gathered from experiences to date of those involved in this partnership program.

PER01471   Paper
Web based collaboration: An opportunity for developing critical multicultural, consciousness in the pre-service educator

Denise Perrin, University of New South Wales

The presentation investigates a range of understandings about collaboration, multicultural education and computer-assisted learning. Each educational construct, with its implied concept of interactivity, enjoys currency in the language of educational innovation and social change as articulating and integrating principles of action. They are however, uncritically advanced as the panacea for complex educational dilemmas, with scant regard for the complexity of possible meanings. Analysis makes visible the relationship between specific meanings of the constructs and their potential as agents of social change. This provides the basis for planning and facilitating particular types of collaborative, on-line interaction that emphasise conditions for innovating thinking about multicultural educational practice. Interpretations of these constructs, together with their corresponding assumptions of interactivity, are synthesised into a framework for web-based collaboration. The model aims to advance the transformative possibilities of socially reconstructive, multicultural learning in preservice education. It is proposed an alternative to the distancing and objectifying orientation of previous educational discourses for diversity, which despite their rhetoric otherwise, still continue to have a static determinism about ideas around issues of culture and education.

PET01263  ®   Paper
Expecting too much from collaborative projects: Revealing false assumptions

Judy Peters, University of South Australia

In the past ten years the author has worked as a university participant in a number of collaborative projects between schools and universities that were expected to result in educational improvement. These included the Innovative Links Project (1994-1996), the National Middle Schooling Authentic Assessment Research Circle (1997), the School-based Research and Reform Project (1998-1999) and the Learning to Learn Project (1999 - 2001). Each of these projects had a range of expectations of school and university participants in relation to the roles they would play, the ways they would relate to each other, the processes they would use and the positive educational changes they would deliver. In all cases, some expectations proved difficult or impossible to meet in practice. In this paper the author draws on extensive data collected from school and university participants in one of these projects, and her observations and experiences in the others, to show that, to varying extents, the project expectations were based on a number of invalid assumptions about the personal, structural and cultural conditions that impact on participants' professional lives. She argues that it is this disparity between the actual conditions and the assumed conditions that makes it so difficult for participants to meet some of the expectations of collaborative endeavours. She concludes by posing a series of questions that could be used to more closely align expectations with the realities of participants' working lives when planning collaborative projects.

PIM01016  ®   Paper
The marketing of Australian education: The influence of normative referents on Thai students' choice of international education

Nattavud Pimpa, Monash University

As international students play an important role in today's Australian education, there has been considerable interest in the subject of factors influencing their choices of international education.

Several factors have been identified as major influencing factors. It has been well reported that international students from different cultural backgrounds may react differently toward different influencing factors. In order to scope the focus of this study, the specific role of normative referents in influencing choices of international education of Thai students in Australian higher education sector is extensively examined. The theoretical basis for this study is the influence of referent group model, which posits that different reference groups may exert different types and levels of influence on students.

In this study, it is hypothesised that normative referents can influence the choice of international education via their financial, informational, encouragement, and expectation influence. These types of influences are tested to define their relationship with choice of international education, namely, choice to study abroad, choice of country, choice of city, choice of academic course, and choice of university.

The study reports the relationship finding from both quantitative and qualitative analysis.

PET01402   Paper
Professional development for new times

Judy Peters, University of South Australia

This paper will examine the contributions made by constructivist learning theory and change theories (eg systems theory) to the reconceptualisation of professional development for teachers and teacher educators. The author will analyse recent changes in the contexts, principles, purposes, forms, processes and content of professional development in the light of these theories. Insights from this analysis will be used to reflect on the benefits, difficulties and potential of the current emphasis in Australia and overseas on school/university partnership models of professional development for teachers and teacher educators.

PLE01756   Paper
UBC as a Summer destination

Judith Plessis, The University of British Columbia

Since the fall of 1999, UBC Continuing Studies has brought together campus groups, attractions and programs to collaborate on a Summer Destination initiative. The purpose of this project is to increase public awareness of the University of British Columbia (UBC) as a destination for the general public, encourage development of new courses to serve audiences during the summer months, and give various faculties and departments the opportunity to showcase programs jointly. A multi-faceted plan was implemented to achieve these goals.

This presentation will take conference attendees through the steps involved to establish their institution as a destination for summer educational programs and activities. I will share the experiences gained coordinating the Summer 2000 and 2001: Destination UBC initiative. The project has gained momentum with corporate sponsors and new educational programming. I will describe the initial objectives of the initiative, review the planning process, and demonstrate how we took advantage of cross-campus promotional synergies to leverage a very limited marketing budget into one that captured the attention of the campus and community. Sample materials will be available to participants.

The response from within and without UBC Continuing Studies has been very positive. I will discuss feedback from our partners and share plans for Summer 2002, which will include the new UBC campus in downtown Vancouver.

PRE01315   Paper
A mirror has many faces: Negotiating a classroom community of learners through reflection

Kimberley Pressick-Kilborn, University of Sydney, and Leigh Weiss.

Pedagogical approaches developed from Vygotskian and neo-Vygotskian theories emphasise the importance of reflection within the learning process. Through focusing on the ways in which language socially and culturally constructs the experiences and emerging identities of learners reflective writing and discussion create vehicles for scaffolding students classroom-based learning. Students are able to assume increased responsibility for their learning through a heightened awareness of both personal and shared meanings as well as metacognitive strategies as they move towards becoming experts within the classroom community. This paper will consider possibilities for supporting students reflection through sharing the experiences of one fifth grade class currently engaged in learning science as a community of learners and participating in an ethnographic research project. In this project strategies for reflection have included journal writing two-way postcards use of the left-hand side of the page of class work books peer interviews and collective reflection through class discussions. Qualitative analysis of field notes reflective writing and interviews supports students needing specific thinking time in order to engage in productive reflection. The students awareness of their learning and feelings about learning is evident but there is more limited articulation of analytical thinking. In concluding the paper we will argue that reflection appears to be an important activity towards negotiating this classroom learning community because of the challenges to students and teachers identities as learners

PRE01632   Paper
Teachers and nurses: professional futures

Barbara Preston, Barbara Preston Research

Both teaching and nursing experienced rapid expansion during the 1960s and 1970s, both related to the large expansion in public expenditure around that time and the need by the post war baby boom for schooling and health services. Both teaching and nursing experienced the effects of cutbacks in public expenditure around the early 1990s and a relative hiatus in demographically-driven demand. Numbers entering professional preparation programs for both nursing and teaching fell around the early to mid 1990s. Those recruited around the 1970s who stayed in the two professions are now moving into retirement age. Age profiles for the teaching and nursing workforces, projected for the coming decade, will be compared. In the context of projections for the general workforce, the implications for the two professions will be considered. This will include implications for the structure of the two professions (a 'hollow middle' with a small cohort from which to recruit professional leaders), career opportunities and work-lives, and the quality of patient care and student learning (especially those in regions or institutions in a weak position in the professional labour market).

PRE01633    Paper
Policy and politics in teacher and nurse supply and demand projections

Barbara Preston, Barbara Preston Research

After the surpluses of the early and mid 1990s, the labour market for both nurses and teachers is very tight. Making good decisions intended to prevent seriously damaging shortages (or surpluses) needs the evidence of good supply and demand projections. The paper will critically examine projections that have been used, rightly or wrongly, to inform policy (especially university intakes), and outline the features of useful projections for particular circumstances. The inter-relationships between 'quality' and 'quantity' will be considered - in practice, in policy, and in rhetoric. There will be examination of the interests of various parties (university-based educators of the professions; university administrations, graduates, members of the professions, their unions, their employers, and students/patients) - how these interests have been expressed, and understood by other parties, and how actual policies and practices have been affected.

Q

QUE01434   Paper
Determinants and effects of perceptions of chemistry classroom learning environments in secondary school gifted education classes in Singapore

Choon Lang Quek, and Barry Fraser, Curtin University of Technology, and Angela F L Wong, Nanyang Technological University

The present study investigated the impact of the chemistry laboratory environment and teacher-student interaction on student attitudes towards chemistry for 200 gifted secondary-school students in Singapore. The data were obtained using three instruments: the 35-item Chemistry Laboratory Environment Inventory (CLEI), the 48-item Questionnaire on Teacher Interaction (QTI) and the 30-item Questionnaire on Chemistry-Related Attitudes (QOCRA). The study confirmed the reliability and validity of the Science Laboratory Environment Inventory (adapted to create the CLEI) and the QT1 for use in gifted chemistry laboratory classrooms. Statistically significant associations were found between the nature of the laboratory classroom environment and students' attitudes towards chemistry. Associations were also found between the interpersonal behaviour of the chemistry teachers and students' attitudes towards chemistry. Based on the findings, suggestions for improving the chemistry laboratory classroom environment and the teacher-student interaction for gifted students are provided.

This paper is presented as part of Symposium 17 WON01431 Learning environments of different types of Singapore classrooms.

QUE01466   Paper
Are my students collaborating effectively in my classroom?

Choon Lang Quek, Curtin University of Technology and Angela Wong, Nanyang Technological University

In the primary school classrooms, students spend almost one term (20-25 hours) doing project work in-groups of 4-5. In order for any learning task to be conducted effectively, the pupils need to know how to work collaboratively in their groups, and teachers need to find out how their pupils perceive one another while working in their groups. This will in turn help teacher's help their pupils build the interdependence and team spirit needed to develop the correct attitude toward project work. The objectives of this study are to assist teachers better understand how their pupils collaborate with one another in their groups, and to suggest strategies to enhance pupils' collaboration in the classroom. Using one of the standard learning environment instruments, the My Class Inventory (MCI), pupils' perceptions of their actual and preferred learning environments are assessed. This paper will report the results and suggest how it will be used to assist in developing appropriate strategies to enhance collaboration in project work classrooms.

R

REA01301   Paper
Called to Renewal

Dianne Reardon, Queensland Catholic Education Commission and Gayle Spry, Australian Catholic University

The Bishops of Queensland have implemented a major Research and Development project that focuses on Catholic schools. The project has had a three-year implementation cycle (1998-01) and has been deliberately designed and timed to enable Catholic schools to re-focus their role in the world of the 21st Century. The methodology has been consultative and collaborative. Major aims of the project's design were to generate a dynamic conversation among partners on the future of Catholic schools and to support leaders in having the courage to change. Managing the project has involved: working with 5 independent employing authorities whose schools range across a geographic area close to 3 times the size of Britain; collecting data in diverse ways from diverse sources; coordinating the work of approx. 100 co-researchers (ranging from students to university professors); and structuring decision-making processes for approx. 100 Education and Church leaders. Findings indicate that the roles Catholic schools fulfil both within the society and Church that they serve need to change. The proposed presentation will address the comprehensive, system wide research and development process that has been implemented across a diverse system of schooling, and the directions for change raised by that process.

RIC01273   Paper
Reading and writing from textbooks in higher education: The dangers of other people's words

Paul Richardson, Monash University

This paper reports on part of a larger study which examined the literacy and learning experiences of a group of first year undergraduates in their encounters with the discipline of Economics. Through an analysis of lectures, tutorials, textbooks and reading and writing assignments, the research exposes the complex and often unrecognised language and disciplinary demands and their significance in influencing the students' ultimate academic success. Literacy is traditionally narrowly conceived as an ability to read and write. This study however takes its departure from the view that literacy has no meaning when disconnected from the cultural contexts of use. In addition, it looks at learning from the learner's perspective and shows how individuals differentially take up with the new and unfamiliar discourses and genres required by Economics. In the disciplinary context of Economics and in the particular research site of an introductory Economics classroom, the textbook assumed a status similar to that of a canonical religious text. Western education expects students to write in their own words after reading received, authoritative accounts of ideas and concepts that are held to be fundamental to a discipline. The paper explores the complexities and dilemmas for students of reading and writing from textbooks and uncovers their unresolved tensions and anxieties concerning plagiarism.

RIC01274   Paper
Becoming a mature-aged teacher: Career change into teaching

Paul Richardson and John Gough, Monash University

The paper will report on an investigation into why mature-aged students who have had alternative careers in a range of other occupations decide to change their careers in favour of teaching. The project focused on a cohort of students enrolled in the first year of a Grad. Dip Ed. at Monash University (N = 147). The whole cohort was surveyed by questionnaire followed by in-depth interviews with 15 randomly selected volunteer students. While teaching is not looked upon as a high status career and does not attract a high salary, this two year part-time program regularly attracts applicants who are qualified, practising solicitors, veterinarians, medical doctors, petroleum engineers, designers as well as a host of other occupations. This off-campus course is offered to students located in all States and Territories of Australia with a small number of students located overseas. Most of the students enrolled in the course are concurrently working in other occupations while completing the program. The paper provides an analysis of the factors influencing career change and the implications these have for mature-aged teacher recruitment.

RIC01318    Paper
Electronic-age education and the need to revamp the action research model

Dr. Cameron Richards

This paper discusses how the practical challenge of integrating Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) in education is linked to the methodological problem of 'participation' in educational action research and professional reflective practice. Self-fulfilling prophecies of either success or failure are perhaps just as much a tendency for academic researchers as well as teacher practitioners seeking to integrate ICTs in education. Whether or not a particular educational technology program, method, or approach is effective for an individual teacher or in a specific context will be highly dependent on not only the attitude and experience of that teacher and also their students but the extent to which they either proactively or passively frame implementation in an integrated or 'add-on' way. The paper began as an inquiry into how the concept of action research might provide a useful model for encouraging teachers both informally and formally to integrate ICTs more effectively into teaching and learning practice. It ended up becoming a parallel and ultimately convergent inquiry into the need to revamp the action research model to provide a framework of 'change and improvement' which more effectively links reflection and action, theory and practice, and generally the 'thinking' and 'doing' of teachers and their students in the electronic age.

ROB01105  ®   Paper
Tracking students' perceptions of their learning across disciplines: A team approach to reflective practice

Margaret Robertson, Jon Osborn and Richard Langman, University of Tasmania

Driven by an interest to know more about the impact of assessment on the teaching and learning process this paper describes the reflective practice of an eclectic group of colleagues working together for constructive change. Collegial decision-making and action-research methods to improve teaching and learning outcomes were the strategies used. Broad questions asked in survey questionnaires distributed to students enrolled in such disparate disciplines as Geography, Engineering, Aboriginal Studies, Surveying and Education were: How do we find out what students learn? Do they learn a greater or less amount about something, or do they understand about something in different ways? What can students do with what they learn? What can we do to improve their learning? Using phenomenographic techniques to code responses provided formative feedback for students and staff. We consider the approach taken is innovative for several reasons. Designed to make the teaching content including assessment an authentic learning experience large numbers of students were invited to contribute to the course development as it happened. Colleagues met regularly during the process to reflect upon their own teaching and contribute to an ongoing conversation on improvements not necessarily linked to specific content domain.

ROW01760   Paper
Barriers to crossing the boundaries of school science: A study in two Canadian sixth grade classrooms

Patricia Rowell and Margaretha Ebbers, University of Alberta

In science education research, there has been increasing interest in exploring the frontier afforded by the role of language in learning. Researchers have turned to an examination of the kinds of reading, writing and talking that take place in school science, and have begun to re-consider the pedagogical potential of these activities. In this paper, we report on a study of two teachers' shaping of school science when offered support in the form of language-oriented resources to complement manipulative investigative activities.

RUS01123  ®   Paper
Student teachers' perceptions of anxiety and confidence in relation to music education

Deirdre Russell-Bowie, Dennis McInerney and Alex. Yeung, University of Western Sydney

Many students who are enrolled in compulsory Primary Creative Arts Education subjects as part of their teacher education have often had little experience of formal music education, are very anxious about their own ability within the area of music and not at all confident about teaching music lessons to children. Earlier research indicates that approximately 60% of Primary Teacher Education students enter teacher training courses having minimal, if any, formal music education experience. Anecdotal evidence seems to indicate that a lack of a good background in music education decreases the student's confidence and increases their anxiety in regard to their ability to make or teach music. This study, as part of a larger study on Creative Arts: Students' Attitudes (CASA), initially investigates if a reliable set of scales relating to anxiety in music, confidence in music and background in music could be derived from the CASA data using exploratory principle component analysis. Secondly, it investigates if there is a difference between the frequencies in students' responses to the questions relating to anxiety, confidence and their background in music, and thirdly the study investigates if there is a correlation between the age of the students, their TER score, year level and SES background, and their anxiety in relation to music education, their confidence in teaching music lessons and their musical background.

RUT01660   Paper
Pathway to undergraduate study: Academic discourse in foundation studies

Janine Rutledge and Thelma Blackford, Curtin University of Technology

Pathways or enabling programs are seen as an effective alternative to traditional entry to university, and provide the university with a larger more diverse student body often with global networks to many communities. The majority of these programs tend to be targeted to the international market or to equity initiatives. The programs are geared to assist students to meet matriculation requirements and therefore mainstream entry. Academic writing is a core focus of enabling programs because proficient writers are identified as able students. Often students who have been successful writers in their home country are confronted with failure when they produce their first essays. Our research has shown that when students lack confidence and are confronted by the discourse requirements they tend to use near copying, and demonstrate limited paraphrasing, summarising and referencing skills. For students to be successful in our system they must acquire the competencies to write successfully within a tertiary discourse. The requirements can be seen as diverse and yet subject specific and they include: Information literacy, Style/Genre, Format/Structure, Referencing, Critical responses, Understanding the task, Language issues, Writing as a process/drafting.

S

SAC01538   Paper
Curriculum control: The cost to teacher professionalism

Judyth Sachs, University of Sydney

In recent times there have been attempts at the national and state level to develop curriculum frameworks, standards frameworks and other externally imposed structures and processes to curtail the level of autonomy and judgement of teachers. These attempts at controlling what essentially comprise significant aspects of teacher professionalism are to be strongly resisted. In this paper 1 examine the effects of centralised curriculum control on teacher professionalism, specifically 1 will focus on the extent to which such initiatives restrict teachers making decisions about context, resources and pedagogy. I argue that the increasing tendency to control teachers' work, to define what constitutes professional knowledge and judgement is eroding teacher' professionalism in general and professional identity in part. I will explore the residual, dominant and emergent effects (Williams, 198 1) of curriculum control on teachers and suggest ways in which teachers might mobile to resist such forms of intrusion onto their areas of professional experience.

This paper will be presented as part of Symposium 21 HAR01533 Curriculum control.

SAN01187   Paper
Educating Muslim children: A study of the hidden and core curriculum of an Islamic school

Fida Sanjakdar, University of Melbourne

The establishment of Islamic schools has been an important development for the Muslim community in Australia. Islamic schools are believed to be, by the Muslim community, an effective and valuable means of providing educational programs that are consistent with the Islamic vision of education. In these schools, aspects of school organisation and structure are brought into line with Islamic principles and beliefs, including adherence to prayer, modest Islamic dress, segregation of students after puberty and provisions of halal (permitted) food in the school canteen. However, a recent study of a large and well established Islamic school in Victoria, King Khalid Islamic school of Victoria, showed that there are many problems on a teaching and learning level, when there is an imbalance of secular and religious subjects in the core curriculum. This paper will report on this study and discuss the curriculum paradox in Islamic schools, where culturally contentious areas such as health education (including sexuality education) and music are omitted but the school curriculum is claimed to reflect Islamic values. This paper will explore the complex relationships between religion, culture, curriculum planning and innovation.

SAN01521   Paper
Teacher or trainer? The shaping of teacher identities in adult education contexts.

Ninetta Santoro, Deakin University

In response to changing government funding priorities there has been a shift away from the provision of needs based language and personal development courses for adults in community based contexts towards the delivery of vocational education. Much vocational education is characterized by competency-based curriculum and outcomes influenced by the needs of the current labour market as well as economic driven initiatives such as competitive tendering for short-term course funding. These trends have resulted in changes to the nature of curriculum, assessment, and the purpose and nature of the delivery of courses to adult learners. In turn, these changes affect the ways in which teachers see themselves and carry out their roles as professionals. This paper explores the ways in which the current discourses of vocational education shape teacher identities across a variety of vocational education contexts and the ways in which teacher identities are played out through training and teaching practices.

SAN01187   Paper
Educating Muslim children: A study of the hidden and core curriculum of an Islamic school

Fida Sanjakdar, University of Melbourne

The establishment of Islamic schools has been an important development for the Muslim community in Australia. Islamic schools are believed to be, by the Muslim community, an effective and valuable means of providing educational programs that are consistent with the Islamic vision of education. In these schools, aspects of school organisation and structure are brought into line with Islamic principles and beliefs, including adherence to prayer, modest Islamic dress, segregation of students after puberty and provisions of halal (permitted) food in the school canteen. However, a recent study of a large and well established Islamic school in Victoria, King Khalid Islamic school of Victoria, showed that there are many problems on a teaching and learning level, when there is an imbalance of secular and religious subjects in the core curriculum. This paper will report on this study and discuss the curriculum paradox in Islamic schools, where culturally contentious areas such as health education (including sexuality education) and music are omitted but the school curriculum is claimed to reflect Islamic values. This paper will explore the complex relationships between religion, culture, curriculum planning and innovation.

SAR01112   Paper
Home literacy practices in Singaporean families: Case studies of Indian families

Vanithamani Saravanan, Nanyang Technological University, and S. Balakrishnan Ministry of Education Singapore

Home literacy practices are seen as a 'microsocial system of constructive and co-constructive processes (Leseman de jong (1998), and, Teale (1986) on how literacy is organised in daily living changes according to and are dependent on socio-cultural factors Teale, 1998), and Fitzgerald, Siegel and Cunningham's (1991) study describes parental perceptions of the importance of literacy artefacts and events/ experiences in preschoolers' literacy development. Sripathy's Singapore study (1998) looked at 'cultural scripts' and the need for teachers to be sensitised to pedagogic approaches and V.Saravanan (1999) (bilingual children's language choices in multilingual Singapore).

This study investigates the literacy practices of families in Singapore. Literacy is conceived as a socio-cultural phenomenon as it is developed in the cultural context of the home. As the home is a fertile ground for literacy practices this study provides an understanding on how home and interpersonal interaction primarily among parents and children adds to literacy practices amongst Singaporean families. The study is based on a detailed qualitative study of four Indian families giving the researcher a rich source of observations to analyse literacy practices in the home and to observe parents as models of literacy practitioners and their use of literacy activities as support and transition to primary school.

SAR01113   Paper
The management of multilingual and multicultural communities in Singapore

Vanithamani Saravanan, Nanyang Technological University

The Island State of Singapore comprises diverse, disparate multilingual communities, which vary in the amount of access that they have to power, status, and management of their language. Political and economic stability and growth have contributed towards socialising many Singaporeans into a common national, social identity (Gopinathan, 1998). How do these multilingual communities forge their links to culture and identity? In 1965 the formula adopted was that of portraying the Singapore nation as a unique ethnic mosaic and the key terms used were multiculturalism and unity in diversity symbolised by the four official languages where educational policies had to be ethnically balanced. The seventies were an attempt at constructing a framework for the underlying themes and models of Singaporean culture. The concept of multiculturalism has allowed the different communities to display their identity through ethnicity, language, religion and other cultural elements. The paper will look at current political discourse on the conceptualisation of multilingualism and multiculturalism in Singapore. It will discuss ideological frameworks used by government agencies to develop a common Singaporean identity but one that retains the separate distinctive linguistic and cultural identities. The conceptual framework that is used to identify multilingual, multicultural identity is not that simple and clear as linguistic and socio-cultural stereotyping is used to ascribe characteristics of ethnic, linguistic, cultural and social identity to Singaporeans with labels that range from 'Chinese-educated' to 'English -educated', 'Chinese elite', to 'Malay elite', 'heartlanders' to 'cosmopolitans' (Saravanan, 1998). Chua (1999) refers to the corporatist characterisation of the Singaporean State to explain the development and implications of its ethnic management policies. The paper will consider implications arising out of socio-linguistic policies for smaller communities. Where do smaller linguistic communities in the Island State of Singapore fit in? Thus to be more Singaporean in one less Chinese, Indian, Malay? Do smaller linguistic communities such as the Indian and Malay communities belong to a conceptual framework of a homogeneous Singapore identity or to a separate, distinctive, ethnolinguistic, bicultural identity or within hybrid bilingual, multilingual identities within a Singaporean identity?

SCA01718   Paper
The 'Boundary Spanner': Exploring the new frontiers of a school-university partnership

Lesley Scanlon, University of Sydney

In the United States the 'boundary spanner', in the educational context, is one who facilitates a partnership between school and university. Such partnerships have been pursued in the United States for over a decade. In Australia however, such partnerships represent a recent and significant educational change. The University of Sydney and a Senior College in NSW embarked, in early 2001, on a school-university partnership.

This paper provides a unique insight, from the perspective of the 'boundary spanner', into the early implementation of this partnership. The paper explores the characteristics of the communities of practice of the school and the university and examines the strategies used to develop a reciprocal partnership between these two communities. Amongst the strategies discussed are: school based pre-service teacher preparation; the development of an educational forum within the school to develop a professional learning community of teachers; and the development of a course, taught by the university to school students, to prepare them for learning within the university context.

The paper will also critically examine the role of the 'boundary spanner' and suggest ways of theorising this role in terms of social interaction.

SCO01018   Paper
The impact of teachers' interpersonal behaviour on examination results in Brunei

Rowena H. Scott and Darrell L. Fisher, Curtin University of Technology

An elementary version of the Questionnaire on Teacher Interaction (QTI) and a scale for determining students' enjoyment of their science lessons were translated into Standard Malay. The instruments were validated with a sample of 3,104 students in 136 classrooms in 23 typical, co-educational government primary schools in Brunei Darussalam. Scale means showed that students enjoyed their science lessons. They perceived their teachers mostly as good leaders, helping/friendly, understanding and strict, seldom allowing student responsibility and freedom, seldom uncertain or dissatisfied and seldom admonishing. There were associations between students' enjoyment of science lessons and each QTI scale. Regression coefficients revealed that the QTI scale that impacted most on students' enjoyment was teachers' helping/friendly behaviour. Associations between students' perceptions of their teachers' interpersonal behaviours and their external exam result in science were investigated for a subsample of students who sat a national end-of-primary external science examination. Positive and negative correlations were found between cooperative and submissive teacher behaviours, respectively.

SCO01745   ePoster
Measuring motivation: Why people teach

Catherine Scott and Kathy Skinner, University of Western Sydney

What motivates people to enter teaching has been widely researched. There has, however, been a tendency for researchers to concentrate on what may be called intrinsic motivators, such as desire to work with children and young people. Indeed responses along these lines form the 'party line' for most teachers questioned about their reasons for entering teaching, and 'always wanting to be a teacher' features in the explicit motives reported by teachers form a variety of countries (Dinham and Scott, 2000).

However, other motives also exist, ones which are more 'extrinsic' to the core business of teaching. Research conducted by Dinham and Scott has revealed that a sizeable percentage of teachers enter the profession for reasons such as liking the hours and holidays, or because they had not other options available. In addition, Provenzo has proposed a four typology of teachers, that includes motivation to teach: (1) student centred, (2) subject centred, (3) enclave builders and (4) strugglers.

The research reported here was an attempt to find ways to operationalise these 'types' and to develop a questionnaire that could be used to assign teachers to one of these. The instrument used was a self report on line questionnaire consisting of three sections: (1) demographics (2) 14 forced choice items that asked participants to choose between pairs of professional practices, (3) 12 items that asked participants to rate the applicability to them of reasons for entering teaching.

An international sample of 120 teachers whose werk places ranged from ‘preschool to post grad' completed and returned the survey. Factor analysis revealed evidence for Provenzo's typology.

This paper will be presented as part of Symposium 32 SCO01723 ePosters

SEA01394   Paper
Crossing cultural borders: The negotiation of value conflicts by migrant teachers of mathematics in Australia

Wee Tiong Seah and Alan Bishop, Monash University

Migrant teachers' negotiation of cultural value differences and conflicts during their respective professional socialisation experiences is explored from a social constructivist perspective in this paper, based on Bishop's classification of classroom approaches to cultural conflicts. Successful negotiation of these conflicts contributes towards increased teacher efficacy, and thus promotes students' cognitive, affective and behavioural developments. On the other hand, education involves teachers' inevitable portrayal of values related to the curriculum subject and its pedagogy, in addition to other more general values. This applies also to school mathematics, since mathematics and mathematics pedagogy are socio-culturally referenced. A teacher who is more conscious of this can better assess the extent to which values embedded in his/her practice are pedagogically and socially beneficial for the Australian society. This paper examines two migrant teachers of mathematics, being part of a larger study which investigates the nature of value conflicts and the range of teacher responsive strategies in the secondary mathematics classroom. A qualitative case study methodology which triangulates data from document analyses, lesson observations and interviews is adopted. Value conflicts encountered reflect Hofstede's value dimensions. The teachers' negotiation strategies, though different, are understood against a socio-cultural educational context.

SEA01453  ®   Paper
Exploring issues of control over values teaching in the mathematics classroom

Wee Tiong Seah, Alan Bishop, Gail FitzSimons, Monash University and Philip Clarkson Australian Catholic University

In our previous AARE paper (Clarkson, Seah, Bishop, & FitzSimons, 2000), we discussed methodological challenges to researching values in the mathematics classroom. We have now collected data in this project from classroom observations. In analysing as case studies the teaching of eight teachers, we were able to categorise whether teachers did, or did not, nominate the values that were subsequently observed (or sometimes not observed). Where teachers were observed to teach the nominated values, a conscious decision by the teacher could have been made to address them explicitly (eg. "today we are going to focus on co-operation"), or implicitly (eg., by rewarding co-operative behaviour without mentioning it explicitly). Of more interest in this paper is the converse: values that were not nominated by teachers but subsequently observed. Transcripts of data reveal that sometimes teachers were aware of the underlying values but, to the extent that they had internalised them, they had not considered them worthy of mention. At other times their responses appeared to indicate a measure of surprise. This paper will elaborate on how the project team approached the issues of control over the teaching of values, focusing especially on those not explicitly nominated.

SEB01443   Paper
Using teacher action research to promote constructivist classroom learning environments in mathematics in South Africa.

Mokgoko Sebela, Centre for Professional Development, South Africa and Curtin University of Technology

This paper reports on a student's work-in-progress, the research study is to be completed in 2002. In this study I seek information that will assist teachers to become reflective practitioners in their daily mathematics classroom teaching. The study involves both quantitative and qualitative research methods. Quantitative data is collected using Constructivist Learning Environment Survey (CLES: to assess students' and teachers' perceptions on the constructivist learning environment) and an attitude scale (to assess students satisfaction with their mathematics classroom). The qualitative information is gathered using classroom observations, interviews with teachers and students and teachers' records of their experiences in the form of journals. The study includes a sample of 6 intermediate phase and senior phase schools, selected from both rural and urban areas in South Africa. Three mathematics teachers are selected from each school, providing a sample of 18 teachers, with 36 classes and around 1700 students. The actual and the preferred learning environment questionnaires will be used as pre-test and post-test to gather and generate graphical profiles of teachers' and students' perceptions. The intervention phase of the study is to last for 12 weeks with the researcher making regular visit to the schools to collect data. It is believed that the study will encourage teachers and provide them with the skills to be reflective practitioners and researchers within their own classrooms, and that the findings will have the potential to guide the curriculum advisers in the organisation and running of in-service training courses.

SEE01666   Paper
Using action research and action learning to develop project management skills in tertiary education students

Manoko Seerane, Technikon Northern Gauteng, South Africa

This exploratory work in progress paper discusses the activities of a project aimed at developing project management skills of students involved in projects at Technikon Northern Gauteng. It highlights some of the issues around the aims and objectives of the project, the learning that took place during the course of the project and the challenges and achievements regarding the use Action Learning and Action Research. Project work is an essential component of learning in Technikons. Learners in historically disadvantaged Technikons in South Africa have recently been introduced to learning through projects. The challenge is therefore for staff and students to engage and utilise alternative teaching and learning methods to inculcate the skills necessary for project management.

I started working with a group of students from Engineering, but we later decided to include students from other Faculties as well so that there could be an interchange of different skills. So far the collaborative approach we used provided the students with the opportunity and environment to learn from and with each other, under circumstances that are not threatening, and also helped build the self confidence of those members that are not normally selfconfident. The skills that developed within a period of a year and a half include interviewing skills, writing a business plan and reports, etc. Leaders emerged from the group, there was individual accountability and the group became more motivated and focussed.

SEL01575   Paper
Action research as a tool for promoting reflective practice among technikon educators participating in a professional development programme.

Caroline Selepe, Technikon Northern Gauteng, South Africa

Educational research has found that change in the classroom can only take place if it is approached using the action research model. Action research provides a useful method of carrying out classroom based research. It is also an important approach to use in professional development programmes. As a means of professional development, action research helps the educators and practitioners to develop the skills of careful observation and critical reflection on their practices with a view of improving teaching and learning. The approach used in action research can usefully be applied to many aspects of classroom practice such as curriculum development, teaching methods, assessment et cetera. The purpose of the project is to introduce the critical reflective practice among new academics using action research approach. These academics participate in a yearlong professional development programme. The academics are encouraged to reflect on their practices and to share their reflections. This approach (action research) is newly introduced, where previously no follow-ups and reflections were used to evaluate the impact of the programme on the academics as well as on teaching and learning. This paper is meant to provide reflections and evaluation of a few case studies conducted by the participants and the author.

SEN01364   Paper
Parental involvement in child assessment: A dynamic approach

Alice Seok-Hoon Seng, Nanyang Technological University

Initiatives in intervention programs for young children have strongly recommended that parents be involved in the assessment process. This is to contribute toward a more accurate diagnosis of and prescription for the developmental progress of the whole child. Child assessment has been an area in which the specialist retains strong professional control but a focus on parental involvement in assessment today is timely for ethical, theoretical and practical considerations where the parental role can be expanded. The purpose of this paper is to explore the use of a dynamic approach or the mediated learning experience theory (Feuerstein, 1980) as a framework which underlies the parental role in the assessment process. This dynamic procedure places great importance on the pretest/mediation/posttest model and is based on ten experiential criteria. (Tzuriel,1997). It is hoped that this study will stimulate further research on how parents' competence as a mediator of learning and of social experience can be enhanced. Three case studies of parents assessing their children at home will be examined and discussed. A variety of issues concerning dynamic assessment for older children and the training of professionals who work with families will be explored.

SET01088  ®   Paper
Ken Wilber's integral philosophy and educational research: Fleshing out the 'seventh moment' (and beyond?)

Lily Settelmaier and Peter Taylor, Curtin University of Technology

Because science education stands between the natural "objective" and the human "subjective" sciences, it has a difficult task trying to mediate between the two, often privileging (implicitly) the validity claims of the former to shape curriculum policy, pedagogy and classroom research. In this paper, we argue that Ken Wilber's 'integral philosophy', which brings together Eastern and Western knowledge frameworks, especially science and spirituality, offers space to science education to position itself more comfortably between the natural and human sciences, without the need to privilege or reject either. We have found Wilber's work to be a valuable and powerful referent for moving towards a more holistic model of educational research. Drawing on the first author's doctoral research - a study of the teaching and learning of ethics in Austrian school science -- we illustrate how Wilber's framework, in addressing issues of validity, genre and voice, (a) fleshes out Denzin and Lincoln's (2000) "seventh moment" of qualitative inquiry, while simultaneously (b) acknowledging the legitimacy of objectivist forms of educational research, and (c) suggesting how the two may be combined in a single 'integral study'.

SET01568   Paper
Dealing with cultural change forces in whole-school professional development

Elisabeth Settelmaier, Peter, Taylor, John Wallace and Janelle McGann, Curtin University of Technology

During the past three years, we conducted the Teaching Learning Project (TLP) at Smith College in metropolitan Perth. Over 30 teaching/administrative staff completed one-year action research projects aimed at fostering a 'culture of learning' within this independent K-12 College. Two external consultants (Peter and John) worked with the college's professional development officer (Janelle), within an epistemological framework of action research. An evaluation was conducted (by Elisabeth) into the extent to which the TLP had become embedded within the culture of Smith College, with a special focus on the nature of Janelle's role as an in-house 'change agent'. Selected teachers and administrative staff were interviewed, with a special focus on how the college developed and changed over the past three years, and how much these processes were influenced by the TLP. Evidence was drawn also from Janelle's journal and records of project team meetings. Indices of the project's success include the continuing participation of significant numbers of teachers, a "ripple" effect on other staff members, ongoing support from administration, and the mainstreaming of Janelle as professional development coordinator. Evidence from the various action research projects indicates that the project is having an important impact at the classroom level. Significantly, countervailing anti-change forces also have been identified.

SHA01713  ®   Paper
Having their cake and eating it too: Pre-service teachers' perspectives of internships

Elaine Sharplin, The University of Western Australia

This qualitative study examines the perspectives of pre-service secondary teachers completing a ten-week internship while concurrently enrolled in a Graduate Diploma of Education. Participants completed an open ended qualitative survey, which was analysed to identify the significant issues from the perspectives of the interns. The reported comments of the interns illustrate the belief that the internship experience was highly valuable, enabling them to gain further practical experience, qualitatively different to the practicum experience. Interns noted the heavy demand of competing university and school based workloads. The interns recommend the experience to future pre-service teachers with excellent management and organisational skills. The interns' comments demonstrate their engagement in reflective practice, supporting the position that the internship represents more than an apprenticeship model focussing on limited technical competence.

SIE01654   Paper
Roadmaps t to numeracy - Reflections on the Middle Years Numeracy Research Project

Dianne Siemon, RMIT University

Numeracy has become a major focus of government policy generating a significant number of numeracy-related projects in recent years. However, relatively few have focussed on the middle years of schooling or collected largescale data on student numeracy performance at this level. This paper will provide an overview of the Middle Years Numeracy Research Project commissioned by the three educational -systems in Victoria from 1999-2000 and supported by the Commonwealth's Successful Interventions Initiative. The paper will report on the implications of the data derived from close to 7000 students in Years 5 to 9 from a representative sample of Victorian schools. It will also report on the experience of the 20 Trial Schools who participated in a follow-up action research approach to improving numeracy outcomes in the middle years of schooling. Data from the final stage of the project indicate that teachers working in professional teams in a coordinated and purposeful way do make a difference, resulting in improved numeracy outcomes for the majority of students. However, evidence from individual interviews with 'at risk' students suggest that systems and schools still face a significant challenge in recognising and dealing with difference. Implications for future research and current practice will be discussed.

SIL01089   Paper
Pedagogic competency of the Brazilian.university professor

Etelvina Silva, University of Vicosa, Brazil and Curtin University of Technology

Pedagogic competency is amongst one of the most important issues in Brazilian universities dealing with the quality of teaching of university professors. This kind of competency is the main problem related to the didactics and methodology used in classroom teaching. It means that good classroom practice needs more than specific academic discipline knowledge. This study was carried out at the Federal University of Vitosa, Brazil, where the researcher used the Delphi Forecasting method. The study involved diagnostic testing of the professors' difficulties in their class work and the researcher described what the professors think about themselves in relation to their preparation to teach. The results highlight the main difficulties as being the lack of public support for the university, greater importance given to research than teaching, the heterogeneous mix of students, the necessity and demand to publish a lot and the complexity of the current educational system. In relation to professor preparation, the researcher found a lack of seminars and pedagogic courses, and little interdepartmental integration and support. These difficulties and preparation problems are caused by current distortions and constraints in the Brazilian educational system.

SIL01289   Paper
Monitoring student progress: To use a published test or teacher developed tests

Gina Silis, RMIT University and Monbulk Primary School, and John Izard, RMIT University

Schools are required to monitor student progress in achieving the intentions of the curriculum. This paper presents a critical look at the use of external measurement tools such as published tests and teacher designed measurement tools like tests and checklists. The paper addresses the evidence gathered from each source and evaluates the quality of that evidence for teaching purposes. The paper examines data from some five years of work at an outer urban primary school. This paper is a report of research in progress for later submission as a Masters thesis.

SIL01398  ®   Paper
Reframing schools: The case for system, teacher and student learning.

Halia Silins, Flinders University and Bill Mulford, University of Tasmania

An Australian government funded four-year research project involving 96 secondary schools, over 5,000 students and 3,700 teachers and their principals has provided a rich source of information on schools conceptualised as learning organisations. The LOLSO Project focussed on three aspects of high school functioning: leadership, organisational learning and the impact of both on student outcomes. This research has established a relationship between the system factors of leadership and organisational learning and student outcomes as measured by student levels of participation in and engagement with school. This paper summarises this research and reports on a study that uses model building and path analysis. The importance of learning at the organisational, teacher and student level is discussed in the context of school restructuring.

SIM01039   Powerpoint Presentation Children in child care who have experienced refugee trauma

Margaret Sims, Edith Cowan University

Research consistently demonstrates that children who have experienced torture or trauma, and who receive appropriate support in early childhood services, can prove resilient to the long-term impact of their negative experiences. However, the ability of early childhood services to deliver appropriate support is limited by the increasing demands placed on early childhood personnel. This project investigates the reality of day-to-day experiences of children in childcare who have experienced refugee or war-related torture or trauma. The aim is to determine the most effective and realistic interventions for these children in their early childhood settings.

SIM01040   Powerpoint Presentation
Teaching for diversity

Margaret Sims, Edith Cowan University

Our world is becoming increasingly diverse. Graduates in early childhood must have the ability to work with children and families whose needs reflect this diversity and difference. This requires a move from traditional approaches to service delivery and an understanding of the issues involved in equity and social justice. This paper reports on an ongoing research project investigating appropriate pre-service training for early childhood professionals who aim to work in the community with children and families.

SMY01413   Paper
'Cultural strife' in teachers' work: Reflections on a 'damaged life'

John Sinyth, Flinders University of South Australia

This paper invokes categories from Adomo (1994) and Sennett & Cobb (1972) to explore an alarming trend in reconfiguring the work of teaching in western. The paper engages in a conversation with ethnographic fieldwork from two recent Australian studies - the Teachers' Learning Project and the Self-Managing School Project. It is clear from both studies that the marketized policy trajectory of government is bent on tearing schools away from the fabric of a culture of debate around teaching and learning, and inserting in their place a set of market exchange relationships. Four key questions are interrogated:

• how do teachers handle the stigmatisation of efficiency reforms?
• in face of the current "policy hysteria" (Stronach & Morris, 1994), how do teachers sustain the capacity of teaching as a "social practice" (Connell, 1995fl
• around what educational visions do teachers construct counter-hegemonic practices that push back into the imposed calculable and measurable agenda?
• in a prevailing ethos of schools as neo-managerialist marketplaces, what might an alternative theorisation of teachers' work look like that is framed from the position of schooling as a socially just "socio-cultural practice" (Morley & Rassool, 1999fl

This paper will be presented as part of Symposium 14 SMY01412 Landscapes of space, place, power and identity in contemporary schooling.

SNE01382   Paper
What teachers think about assessment in the visual arts: Searching for authenticity

Kim Snepvangers, The University of New South Wales

This research reports on what classroom teachers think about assessment in the visual arts, using interviews with classroom teachers, ethnographic research data and case studies. The author speculates as to the emergence of an "assessment industry" in the sorting, ranking and comparison of students' artworks by teachers in the local context of the classroom. Emergent categories from the case studies, comprising assessment as authority, rites of passage, a form of exclusion, credentialling, formulas and self-serving activities are placed against traditional assessment theory and alternative proposals. Of particular interest is 'authentic assessment' which provides a point of comparison with the author's research findings about complexity, teacher autonomy and local views of assessment. This presentation focuses on understanding the procedures and hidden roles that assessment plays in the selected example.

SNG01002   Paper
A critical discourse analysis of educational mission statement and goals

Bee Bee Sng, Nanyang Technological University

In this paper, critical discourse analysis is used as a tool to examine the ideology implicit in a mission statement of education and a speech about the goals of higher education in Singapore. This paper begins by discussing critical discourse analysis as a linguistic tool in uncovering the ideology present in both written and spoken texts. It then goes on to trace the historical events and factors that shape the educational policy, purpose and goals of Singapore. Such thinking about educational purpose and goals eventually becomes an ideology, or accepted views on education in Singapore.

This ideology, in turns, leads to different metaphors of education used in the mission statement and speech of goals of higher education. Such metaphors are drawn from areas like economics, finance, technology and nature. These metaphors also show the values held by society, in terms of the more general goals of national development.

Lastly, an examination of this ideology helps in understanding of the organizational structure and goals of an educational institution, such as the University.

SNI01719    Paper
Psychometric analysis of Triandis' instruments of individualism and collectivism using modern item response theory

Paul Snider and Irene Styles, Murdoch University

Psychological research addressing cross-cultural issues is contemporary and prolific; however, much of the research explores cultural variables that are not adequately identified. Two examples are the concepts of individualism and collectivism. Although a popular research topic, these concepts are defined vaguely and often used in the literature in a self-evident manner. Further, there is little research using modem item response theory (IRT) to establish the psychometric properties of instruments frequently used to measure such concepts. This paper presents the findings of a study in which ethnic Chinese international students, and Australian and American university students were asked to respond to Triandis' Individualism and Collectivism scales (INDCOL), and scenarios. The psychometric properties of the scales were explored using Rasch's IRT measurement model. The composition of the respondents provided the opportunity to identify evidence of differential item functioning (DIF) amongst individuals sharing a common language but not a common culture. A method for accounting for the DIF is explained. To deepen our understanding of differences in functioning of some of the INDCOL items amongst respondents, qualitative data concerning the interpretation of items were collected from members of the groups. Additionally, comparisons between INDCOL scales and scenarios provides evidence of the importance of context when discussing cultural variables, and of taking account of contextual meaning of items when designing attitudinal instruments for crosscultural research.

SOE01034   Paper
Learning environment, teacher-student interpersonal behaviour and achievement among university students in Indonesia

Widia Soerjaningsih and Bina Nusantara,Universityof Indonesia and Curtin University of Technology and Barry Fraser and Jill Aldridge, Curtin University of Technology

The present study aimed to furnish educators with important insights into the field of learning environments at the tertiary level in Indonesia and to provide practical information for guiding the improvement of tertiary computer-related education. Questionnaires were administered to 422 students in 12 research methods classes at a private university in Indonesia. The What is Happening in this Class? (WIHIC) questionnaire was used to measure students' perceptions of the learning environment and the Questionnaire on Teacher Interaction (QTI) was used to measure teacher interpersonal behaviour.

To assess students' affective outcomes, two scales were adapted from an existing questionnaire to examine students' attitudes towards the Internet and students' attitudes towards leisure activities in computing. Students' final grade score for the research methods course was used to provide and indication of students' cognitive outcomes. The data were analysed to describe the learning environment and to examine associations between the learning environment and students' affective and cognitive outcomes at the tertiary level of education in Indonesia.

SOL01721    Paper
Towards best practice in teaching internationally: Does it transcend cultural differences?

Izabel Soliman, University of New England

Australian universities are increasingly expected to be more entrepreneurial and self-funding. This had led to increased activity in recruiting international students, establishing an offshore presence and forming partnerships with offshore universities. Academics who are required to teach subjects to international students are responding in different ways. For example, some offer their subjects without any change at all; others include international content; and some make use of examples and cases from the relevant local context. This paper is concerned with identifying what is perceived to be best practice in teaching internationally. Best practice is developed from interviews with academics who are teaching internationally in various disciplines and from examining the emerging body of knowledge on teaching and learning strategies for internationalisation.

SOU01446   Paper
The relationship of perceived and actual physical competence to body composition in children.

Jodie Southall and Tony Okely, University of Wollongong

The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship of perceived and actual physical competence to body composition in children. The sample included 150 children, 10-12 years of age who were classified as non-overweight or overweight/obese based on BMI cut-points from Cole et al. (2000). Body composition was measured by taking height and weight and calculating body mass index (BMI). Actual physical competence was assessed using the Test of Gross Motor Development (2nd Edition; Ulrich, 2000). Perceived physical competence was assessed using an expanded version of the Self-Perception Profile for Children (Harter, 1985). A two-way ANOVA was used to analyse the differences in actual and perceived physical competence between non-overweight and overweight/obese children. Results are reported in terms of the differences between actual and perceived physical competence levels of non-overweight and overweight/obese children. Implications of the results for physical and health education will be discussed.

SOL01721   Paper
Towards Best Practice in Teaching Internationally: Does it transcend cultural differences?

Izabel Soliman, University of New England

Australian universities are increasingly expected to be more entrepreneurial and self-funding. This had led to increased activity in recruiting international students, establishing an offshore presence and forming partnerships with offshore universities. Academics who are required to teach subjects to international students are responding in different ways. For example, some offer their subjects without any change at all; others include international content; and some make use of examples and cases from the relevant local context. This paper is concerned with identifying what is perceived to be best practice in teaching internationally. Best practice is developed from interviews with academics who are teaching internationally in various disciplines and from examining the emerging body of knowledge on teaching and learning strategies for internationalisation.

SPA01178   Paper
Teachers' beliefs and practices related to a professional development programme in South African rural schools.

Rose Spanneberg, Rhodes University, South Africa and Curtin University of Technology

This paper is a report of a study into the impact of a professional development programme designed to bring about changes in the classroom practices of teachers and change in their beliefs and attitudes. The programme is offered to in-service teachers of mathematics over a period of two years. The study is focused on the assumption that what a teacher believes about mathematics and teaching mathematics is integrally related to the quality of mathematics being taught in the classroom (Thompson, 1992).

In addition, the attitudes to mathematics itself may affect the teacher's attitudes to the teaching of mathematics, which in turn have a powerful impact on the atmosphere and ethos of the mathematics classroom (Ernest, 1989). Also notable is the importance ascribed to the teacher's reflectivity concerning the teaching and learning of mathematics and implementation of change in the classroom.

SPA01256   Paper
Innovation in Evaluation - a qualitative approach to HE student feedback

Mike Spark and Ken Trimble, Swinburne University of Technology

Most universities today have survey programs in place to obtain feedback from students on a range of issues. From general observation, these programs tend to be centralised and narrowly focussed on student expectations and satisfaction as to course delivery and facilities availability. These evaluation programs are, in the main, quantitatively based. This research project employs focus groups at all levels of an undergraduate Marketing program to gather data on student attitudes, opinions and perceptions. The aim is to provide timely and specific information as to the currency and relevance of course structure, subject content, learning and teaching approach, and the availability of needed facilities. This new qualitative approach enables us to tap into real underlying attitudes rather than the more superficial "top of mind" response commonly associated with the traditional quantitative approach. The approach differs from the traditional approach in that the students can raise and comment on any topic or issue they perceive as important and relevant to them. The outcomes include much valuable data on the gamut of student expectations, not only with regard to more rigidly defined academic matters pursued using the traditional survey method but also with career, social and equity considerations.

SPA01340  ®   Paper
Beginning teachers of primary mathematics: Recurring themes and emerging issues

Len Sparrow and Sandra Frid, Curtin University of Technology

A large study tracked four primary teachers during their first year of teaching, with a focus on factors that influenced their pedagogical practices and beliefs concerning mathematics as well as the influence of a 'fellow worker' for professional development support. The case studies used an interpretive research approach for analysis of data from interviews, observations, reflective journals, and group meetings. This paper focuses on the recurring themes and emerging issues that arose from data analyses, including: classroom 'control', time constraints, syllabus coverage, teaching mixed ability children, assessing student achievement, teaching 'isolation', and demands of personal lives. Of significance in these findings is that they reflect those in the research literature on beginning teachers, but do so within a previously neglected area - primary mathematics education. They also highlight a mismatch between pre-service education, research, and the realities of classroom practice. Finally, of significance is that this study showed how support in the form of a 'fellow worker' is needed to help beginning teachers survive their first year and move towards a less teacher-centred approach to teaching.

STE01110  ®   Paper
Computers as cognitive tools: Do they really enhance learning?

Carole Steketee, Jan Herrington and Ron Oliver, Edith Cowan University

Do computers, when implemented effectively, enhance learning? This question is the essence of the second phase of a Ph.D. study where computers were integrated as cognitive tools into a tertiary learning environment. The implementation framework was based on a social constructivist perspective of learning where discourse and collaboration were highly valued, and students were encouraged to distribute their learning between social, physical, symbolic and intellectual resources found within the learning environment. Using action-research methodology, this framework provided the catalyst for exploring how computers can be used effectively in higher education. It also permitted insight into the extent to which computers, when used as cognitive tools, can promote and foster higher order learning, the results of which are discussed in this paper.

STE01207   Paper
The social representation of desire and children's development in art

Julie Stevens, University of New South Wales

This paper characterises the development of children's artistic reasoning in terms of Freud's theory of socialisation. It draws parallels between the gradual development of the super-ego and children's increasing autonomy to mentally represent the range of indirect cultural and other agencies contributing to the formation of artworks. Precisely as children learn to socially represent their desires, and to use social reasoning for inferring how social practices can be used in the satisfaction of desire, this paper proposes that children also gain access to the aesthetic values of complex artworks through an increasing ability to understand the concealed socio-cultural processes which shape them. This paper counters the misconception that the values afforded by complex works of visual art are open to immediate gratification. The qualities and significance of artworks are concealed within representational layers of technical, cultural, and subject content. The assumption is consistent with the status of artworks as artifactual as opposed to natural kinds, insofar as artworks are representational objects composed of intentional rather than natural properties. It is argued that the socialisation of desire models the critical relation between mind and passion that has proven so illusive in the explanation of artistic cognition.

STE01249   Paper
Incorporating authentic learning experiences within a business management course

Sarah Stein, Trish Andrews and Geoff Isaacs, University of Queensland

Current approaches to understanding learning imply that authentic learning experiences assist students to develop appropriate and effective understandings. Authentic learning experiences are those that are personally relevant from the learner's perspective and situated within appropriate social contexts. In planning for authentic learning to occur, tensions can emerge between providing real world "natural" experiences and the nature of experiences that are possible to offer within institutions, which can often be "artificial or staged", and seen as unauthentic by students. Bridging the gap between the learning taking place within formal institutions and learning within real life communities of practice can be difficult for university teachers. This paper reports the efforts of a university teacher who, through a one-semester course, endeavoured to bridge this gap between university study and learning about the world of business management. Data sources included the teacher's plans, diary and written reflections on his activities related to his teaching during the semester; course materials; teacher and student interviews; and classroom observations undertaken by the researchers. The various strategies the teacher used to develop authenticity in students' learning experiences are discussed, as well as the teachers' reflections on how he tried to capitalise on the formal structures possible in a university setting to support his students as they developed their understandings about what it is like to be practicing members of the business management community. Implications for teaching and learning in general, and for university staff development, are outlined.

STE01296   Paper
Making the processes of design explicit within an information technology environment

Sarah Stein, Michael Docherty and Rachel Hannam, University of Queensland

In this paper, technology is described as involving processes whereby resources are utilised to satisfy human needs or to take advantage of opportunities, to develop practical solutions to problems. This study, set within one type of technology context, information technology, investigated how, through a one semester undergraduate course, elements of technological processes were made explicit to students. While it was acknowledged in the development and implementation of this course that students needed to learn technical skills, technological skills and knowledge, including design, were seen as vital also, to enable students to think about information technology from a perspective that was not confined and limited to "technology as hardware and software". This paper describes how the course, set within a three year program of study, was aimed at helping students to develop their thinking and their knowledge about design processes in an explicit way. An interpretive research approach was used and data sources included a Repertory Grid "survey"; student interviews; video recordings of classroom interactions, audio recordings of lectures, observations of classroom interactions made by researchers; and artefacts which included students' journals and portfolios. The development of students' knowledge about design practices is discussed and reflections upon student knowledge development in conjunction with their learning experiences are made. Implications for ensuring explicitness of design practice within information technology contexts are presented, and the need to identify what constitutes design knowledge is argued.

STO01354   Paper
Promoting the professional development of mathematics teachers through aligned assessment tasks

John Stoker, Rhodes University

The introduction of Curriculum 2005 marks a shift away from the present school curriculum in South Africa towards an Outcomes-Based Curriculum. This shift has implications for teacher education. As the facilitators of an intervention programme for teachers of primary school mathematics, we are concerned with the teachers' understanding of mathematics concepts and how these concepts relate to classroom practice. As more and more attention and funding is being directed towards the upgrading of teachers, so the alignment between course goals and teacher assessment becomes critical. The purpose of this paper is to describe our research on assessment tasks (we call them Insight Tasks), that have been developed to promote the professional growth of teachers and at the same time are aligned to the goals and principles advocated in the OBE curriculum.

STR01459  ®   Paper
Recent developments in 'training': The emergence of embeddedness in state policy

Robert Strathdee, Murdoch University

Up until recently, the dominant response from western governments to the problem of youth unemployment has been to promote a high-wage/high-skill training strategy. Accordingly, governments have invested heavily in training programmes designed to improve the human capital of young people and, therefore, their chances the open labour market. However, to date, this strategy has not been effective, and youth unemployment remains high. The contention of this paper is that although high-wage/high-skill-training strategy remains a powerful force for mobilising consent for new training initiatives, faith in this strategy has waned amongst policy makers. This claim is evidence through drawing on two recent initiatives designed to improve school-to-work/welfare-to-work transitions (Skill New Zealand & Enterprise and Career Education Foundation). Evidence suggests that policy makers and practitioners have adopted two, inter-related strategies for solving youth unemployment. The first of these is to employ brokers to generate employment opportunities on behalf of job seekers and the State. The second is to focus on soft skill development in an attempt to improve job seekers' 'employability'. Combined, these factors suggest that economic interactions remain embedded in the social infrastructure and that the State is attempting to prepare young people for the contingent labour market.

SUT01176
Children with special needs in reading and learning: A sight vocabulary project

Margaret Sutherland, Edith Cowan University

The purpose of this study was to observe how well three students with reading and learning difficulties recognise 100 words in isolation and then in context, following a period of testing, teaching and intervention: To determine whether an improvement in reading and learning will be aided by the ABAC method of testing (Wolery, 1988). Also to determine if parent intervention improves word recognition for children with reading difficulties; if testing, teaching phonemic analysis and synthesis, and testing improves word recognition; and delayed testing improves word recognition. The background for this project relates to the work that has been done by Margaret Sutherland with three privately tutored students over a number of years. All have known reading or learning difficulties and they range from lower primary to high school level, 9 yrs to 15 yrs. The initial program that was implemented consisted of a sight vocabulary book with 22 lists of 10 words. Parents supervised the reading of each list of words 3 times weekly. The tutor then tested the current list and taught unknown words phonetically at tutoring sessions each week. Each word had to be recognised immediately otherwise it would be considered as unknown. The words were from the Dolch (1953), a list of 220 words, which are words that are mostly found in basal readers.

SUT01733    Paper
Participants' perspectives of the goals of the practicum component in a teacher education program

Louise Sutherland, University of Sydney

There is an extensive body of work (Wideen, Mayer-Smith & Moon, 1998; Gale & Jackson, 1997) which has investigated the role of the practicum in Teacher-Education programmes. If the practicum programme is to be effective then this research suggests that there should be a strong collaboration between schools, the participatingteachers, and the university. Investigations of other Teacher-Education programmes, however, suggested that there might be diversity in the goals amongst the major stakeholder groups (Toohey, Ryan & Hughes, 1996) since the different participants have different models of the purpose of the practicum program in teacher education.

Gale and Jackson (1997) outlined two possible models of the practicum component. These researchers found that apprenticeship model, with its emphasis on performance and product, was the prominent model used by many cooperating teachers. By contrast, current education theory suggests that a supervisory relationship, which encourages critical reflection, may be a more appropriate mechanism in fostering the development of student teachers' professional skills and attitudes.

In their extensive review of Teacher-Education training programmes, Wideen et al., (1998) indicated that differences in people's perceptions of the practicurn component of Teacher-Education programmes had a significant influence on the types of experiences to which students-teachers were exposed, and the support and feedback they were given. Different goals amongst the participants reduced the effectiveness of the practicum component of the Teacher--Education programmes.

This paper examines similarities and differences in the major groups of stakeholders' (pre-serv ice teachers, associate teachers, school principals, supervising staff from the university) perspectives on the goals of the practicum in the Bachelor of Education (Secondary) programme at University of the South Pacific (USP). Staff from selected rural and urban schools in Fiji, academic staff in the Department of Education at USP as well as students in the final year of the Bachelor of Education (Secondary) participated in the research. Data was collected from the participants using questionnaires and serni-structured individual and group interviews. From an examination of the participants' perceptions of goals for the practicum, the underlying model(s) used by the representatives of the major groups of stakeholders are identified.

S

TAN01292   Paper
Online tutorial system for learning semiconductor devices in an electrical engineering course

Wei Boon Tan and Leng Seow Tan, National University of Singapore

This paper describes a web-based online tutorial system for undergraduate students in an Electrical Engineering course to learn the fundamentals of Semiconductor Devices. Each student is presented with a different set of values of the parameters for a particular problem, and is expected to supply a numerical (not multiple choice) answer. The program checks the answer and provides an instant feedback. In order to help the weaker students, if they are unable to obtain the correct answer after several attempts, the problem is broken down into simpler parts, and the students are guided through each part in turn. In the case where a student gives a wrong answer, the program captures the answer given, as well as the parameter values generated by the online system. These can then be analysed by the course lecturer to see if there is a pattern of mistakes made by the students, arising from certain misconceptions about the subject matter. Remedial action can then be taken by the course lecturer concerned. The system is useful in large classes where contact time with individual students is limited. A preliminary trial of the system will be conducted in the July 2001 academic session.

TAN01551   Paper
Revisiting moral objectivity at values education research

Tai Wei Tan, Nanyang Technological University

A recent international conference on values education addressed "the growing disparity, increasing violence, deteriorating environment, and shrinking altruism" of "postmodern living", and how best values education might respond in such environments. This paper suggests that the root cause is the widespread assumption of moral subjectivism in our time. Long after some influential philosophers, who decried moral objectivism, had been in vogue, social scientists including educational sociologists and psychologists, public and political personnel, and lay-persons have continued to flag moral relativism. They are supported at this by some, mostly younger philosophers, who seem not to know that important answers to moral subjectivist criticisms of moral objectivism have since been provided. The paper will highlight some of these answers. Some parts of them will be supplemented. It will synthesize them, via a critique that will add elements where these are needed, in order to suggest a case for the reinstatement in our time of an objective basis for moral education.

TAN01698   Paper
A cross-age study of students' understanding of basic Inorganic Chemistry qualitative analysis

Kim Chwee Daniel Tan, Nanyang Technological University

This cross-age study sought to determine the extent of secondary students' (14-17 years old), junior college students' (Grade 11 and 12 - 16 to 19 years old), and graduate teachers and trainee-teachers' understanding and alternative conceptions of basic inorganic chemistry qualitative analysis. The results from the administration of the two-tier multiple choice Qualitative Analysis Diagnostic Instrument showed that the mean scores of the three groups were low - teachers and trainee-teachers (9.9/19), junior college students (8.1/19) and secondary students (5.8/19) - indicating that many did not understanding the basic concepts involved. The cross-age study also showed that many alternative conceptions were prevalent among the different groups. However, these alternative conceptions were consistently held by only a small number of students (0-23%) across all contexts examined in the QADI, indicating that the subjects might have more than one conception for a particular concept, or had little understanding of qualitative analysis and resorted to guesswork. It was suggested that the lack of understanding of qualitative analysis was due to insufficient emphasis placed on the understanding of concepts in the qualitative analysis practical examinations as students were mainly assessed on observational and recording skills in the practical examinations.

TAN01755   Paper
Analysis and evaluation of the Thinking Programme in developing critical and creative thinking among lower secondary students in The Chinese High School

Gertrude Yam Hua Tan, The Chinese High School

This paper sets out to analyze and evaluate the effect of the Thinking Programme taught to the Secondary One students in The Chinese High School. Through both qualitative and quantitative research methods, it seeks to find out if the explicit teaching of thinking skills has helped to develop the Secondary One pupils into better thinkers. It will also look into some of the factors that help promote or hinder thinking.

It seeks to analyze the impact of the programme on the individual creativity and their learning attitude and examine if the teaching of explicit thinking has enable pupils to acquire and understand the core thinking; whether the pupils apply these skills beyond the thinking class. Lastly, it is to find out if pupils have developed positive habits which would help them become critical, creative and self-regulated thinking learners.

TAR01193  ®   Paper
Exploring children's racial attitudes in Australian context - the link between research and practice

Anna Targowska, Edith Cowan University

This paper is based on the research project conducted recently in WA that aimed to contribute to a better understanding of young children's awareness and prejudice. Children's racial attitudes have been of researchers interest for a considerable number of years, in Australia however this topic has been, until recently, relatively unexplored (see Palmer, 1991; Black-Gutman and Hicks, 1996; MacNaughton, 2001). This project used a phenomenological, qualitative approach in order to explore in the most possible natural and developmentally appropriate way how young children perceive and interpret racial differences. The study involved a small sample of children aged 3, 5 and 7 years from an European-Australian background who were randomly selected from two childcare centres and one school in WA and examined their perception and evaluation of difference in relation to Asian, European and Aboriginal - Australian children. The study findings appear to indicate the importance of environmental rather than cognitive factors in the development of children's racial attitudes. It suggests that children start absorbing prevailing social attitudes early in their life and that environmental-learning factors play a significant role in how children perceive and evaluate difference. These research findings appear to confirm some earlier results of studies conducted overseas (see Ramsey1991; Katz, 1987) as well as in Australia (Black-Gutman & Hickson, 1996; MacNaughton, 2001).

TAY01411  ®   Paper
Mandatory reporting and child sexual abuse: Contextualising beliefs and attitudes.

Shannon-Caroline Taylor and Doug Lloyd, University of Ballarat.

Despite greater social awareness the topic of child abuse within the family unit continues to be a vexing issue for professionals and the lay community. Mandatory reporting of child abuse was introduced in Victoria in 1993 after community outrage at the killing of a young child through parental abuse. Legislating against child abuse recognises that children have a right to be protected from abuse, but it does not protect children from prevailing social attitudes and beliefs about child abuse, especially abuse within the family unit. Attitudes and beliefs have been articulated as a problem among mandated professionals nationally and internationally. This paper discusses the intersection of beliefs and attitudinal factors among teachers and the community; rural community's attitudes to family violence and the implications for a range of behaviours and issues such as mandatory reporting the nature of reports and consequent behaviours of those associated with reports.

TAY01682   Paper
Exploring four faces of learning in courses for beginning teachers

Collette Tayler, Mary Hanrahan, Margot Duncan, Tania Aspland and Michael Ryan, Queensland University of Technology.

In an environment where QUT promotes alignment of courses with desired professional outcomes in terms of graduate attributes, and prompted by critical reviews of Bachelor of Education courses, the team responded with a pilot action research project. &   With contributions from a range of stakeholders we drew up a list of the attributes, called and quot; teacher practitioner attributes and quot; that attempted to describe what an ideal teacher should possess at the start of their professional life. Significantly, this list was re-worked into a four-part structure describing the attributes in terms of beginning teacher's relationships with their peers, their 'clients' (eg. students and surrounding communities), their core discipline (Education) and, most importantly, themselves (as continuous, reflective learners). and   We then used this framework for involving students and core subject coordinators in identifying the attributes currently being addressed and how well courses as a whole covered the full range. and   We found firstly that there was a real need for students to have opportunities for dialogue with mentors, and secondly that a lack of communication and coordination between subject coordinators in different discipline areas meant that each was not making sufficient allowance for the contribution of others. and   We also found that holistic practitioner attributes were more workable as a framework for dialogue than atomistic skill groupings. and   Nine practical recommendations came out of the project.

TEH01064   Paper
Assessing students' perceptions of synchronous internet-based learning environments

George Teh, Nanyang Technological University

The use of the Internet in higher education is increasing at an exponential rate. However, little research had been done on the efficacy of using the Internet in the educational milieu. As well, research on students' perceptions of psychosocial aspects of Internet-based online learning environment has been negligible. This paper reports a study of students' perceptions of their Internet-based learning environment in Singapore. Specifically, it focuses on the cross-validation of an Internet Classroom Environment Inventory (ICEI), which assesses students' perceptions of synchronous Internet-based learning environment. The ICEI assesses student perceptions of the levels of gender equity, investigation, innovation and resource adequacy. The synchronous Internet-based learning is in real time mode, online and takes the form of web-based mediated conferencing and telecomputing approaches. Student data were collected from 256 postgraduate diploma in education students in 12 classes in a tertiary institution in Singapore. This study once again provided cross-validation support for the use of the ICEI in Singapore. Each scale displayed satisfactory internal consistency reliability, discriminant validity, and differentiated between the perceptions of students in different synchronous Internet-based learning environments.

TEM01236
Career decisiveness and course selection

Viviene Temple and Brad Temple, RMIT University

Tension often exists between the provision of vocational and generic courses in university environments. In the field of exercise science this tension is epitomised by the distinction between physical education (PE) and human movement science (HM). This study examined aspects of course selection for HM and PE students including sources of career and course information used; career aspirations; and degree of certainty in course selection, using the Career Decision Scale. Independent t-tests revealed that PE students were significantly (p < .01) more certain than HM students upon commencement were were. Compared with US College norms for freshmen, commencing PE males and females were in the 68th and 76th percentile and HM males and females in the 23rd and 33rd percentile for Certainty. However, there were no differences in Certainty between 2nd and 3rd year PE and HM students, with the exception that HM students were experiencing more choice anxiety in 3rd year. Overall, the results suggest that despite the current trend within universities toward highly vocational programs, there is a defined group of secondary students with low levels of career decidedness who are specifically attracted to generic programs. The final year HM students were more decided that commencing HM students and no less certain that 3rd year PE students, suggesting that course experience is mediating career decidedness.

TEO01705   Paper
Self-knowledge Education: Educating gifted children in Singapore on their hemispheric functioning

Chua Tee Teo and Marilyn May Ling Quah, Nanyang Technological University and Ridzuan B. Abdul Rahim and L. J. Rasanayagam, Ministry of Education, Singapore

With the advent of a new millennium, new forms of education are needed to meet the exigencies of the times. This paper proposes to include human education, specifically the education on self-knowledge, in the school curriculum as a catalyst to speed up the development of gifts and talents and hence the realisation of human potential. The entire series of self-knowledge lessons include knowledge of the gifted pupil's character composition, brain functioning preferences and intellectual attributes, moral and volitional attributes, social abilities, and other personal and inter-personal skills. A total of 497 Primary 5 pupils in nine schools hosting the Gifted Education Programme (GEP) in Singapore were taught a series of self-knowledge lessons over a one-year period. This paper will discuss the profiles of the gifted pupils in terms of their preferred hemispheric functioning and how such awareness could enhance their academic performance.

THI01323   Paper
Children's literature: Vehicle for the transmission of national culture and identity or the victim of mass-market globalisation?

Joyce Bainbridge, University of Alberta, and Judy Thistleton-Martin, University of Western Sydney

The history of children's literature in both Australia and Canada reflects a shared colonial past, evidenced through the development of individual national identities. Research into the relationship between Australian and Canadian children's literature, exemplified through the similarities and differences in the construction of those identities, is virtually unknown. Diakiw (1997) argues that there are powerful commonplaces in the construction of culture and identity, shared values that can be identified and revealed through story and literature. Schools too provide an important forum where these commonplaces can be explored, discussed and debated. This paper will use, as its framework, the ten commonplaces proposed by Diakiw, to explore the connection between Australian and Canadian identity, children's literature and the classroom. Through a selection of Canadian and Australian children's literature, the distinction between commerce and culture will also be examined. Australian and Canadian children's book publishers, constantly make decisions about accepting the rhetoric of globalisation or maintaining national and local differences. Such decisions create tensions between 'cultural value' and the 'market', where text and audience become part of the wider context of industrial and professional production. The implications of these decisions will also be discussed.

THI01505  ®   Paper
Factors affecting students' attitudes toward social studies - a case study in a catholic secondary school

Katie Thiveos and Wally Moroz, Edith Cowan University

The case study described in this paper sought to investigate secondary students' attitudes towards social studies and factors, which influence these attitudes. This paper focuses in particular on findings from the study, which relate to two factors, student gender and Year level. In a previous study Moroz (1996) found that Western Australian government primary school students' liking for social studies declined from Years 4 to 7 more strongly than any other school subject. This case study of Catholic secondary students suggests that the declining support for social studies continues into the lower secondary years (8, 9 &10). The decline is greatest for male students who by Years 9 and 10 have negative attitudes towards the subject. Students disliked some teaching-learning practices associated with social studies. This case study appears to have implications for implementation of the new Society and Environment learning area.

THO01195   Paper
Creativity as symbolic gift exchange between visual arts teachers and their senior school students

Kerry Thomas, The University of New South Wales

This paper reports on qualitative research undertaken over the last year that investigates creativity as a kind of symbolic gift exchange between Visual Arts teachers and their senior students. This research takes into account the intentional presence of the teacher as a creative function in the student's artworks. The research draws on the theory of Pierre Bourdieu who explains the notion of the 'project of the gift' within his theory of the habitus and symbolic capital. The paper questions conventional views of creativity as fixed behaviours. It acknowledges the importance of the micro-contextual history underlying the functional transactions between the teacher, student and creative performances and how these performances are transformed by the intercession of new agencies over time. Fieldwork involves observations and interviews with teachers and their students in the senior art classroom. Attention focuses on the transactions between the teachers and their students at moments of creative origination as students make artworks in their final year of schooling in Visual Arts. Transactions are conducted in the production of diverse art forms. Observations and interviews are semantically analysed and emergent results interpreted.

THO01491   Paper
Doubling up: The representational and reform work of principal associations

Pat Thomson, University of South Australia

One of the self appointed tasks of principals' associations is to represent principals and to promote the status of their work. This can take the form of industrial activity around wages and conditions and also substantive engagement in various professional development activities. In recent times, principal associations have also begun to represent principals' work by developing rubrics of professional practice used for professional accreditation. The task of principals association can thus be said to be intimately concerned with 'double representation'.

Based on analysis of some employer and professional association Australian principal competency rubrics, and using Bourdieu 's theorisations of 'field', 1 argue that in order to 'play the game' of representation, principals associations must produce textual versions of principals' work that have considerable overlap with those produced by employers. The differences however point to the ways in which associations continue to have legitimacy with members.

Playing this duplicitous game of representation means that associations must tread a strategic path through capitulation, simulation and resistance to required policies, roles and tasks. However, the increasing power and influence of principal associations is not just a product of their adeptness at playing two-handed games. 1 produce evidence to suggest that it is also because they have moved beyond the play of double representations to take up new positions in the educational 'field' as change agents.

This paper is presented as part of Symposium 19, TH001490 Bourdieuian analyses of educational change.

THR01631  ®   Paper
How does age relate to lifelong learning?

Paul Throssell, University of Tasmania

Recent medical and social advances have increased longevity throughout the world. However, cultural stereotypical perceptions may limit the quality of this extension to life. People who conduct their lives in ways that are not chronologically age stereotypical in relation to the culture they live in, are sometimes referred to as possessing "agelessness" and would appear to resist being culture-bound. This in-progress doctoral research focuses on the links between lifelong learning and age with a view to establishing possible connections between lifelong learning, "agelessness" and social wellbeing. It discusses emerging reflections on descriptors of "agelessness" and relates these to a positive view of ageing and lifelong learning, with a presuming contention that agelessness in a person enables them to choose to respond to learning opportunities throughout their lives.

THU01057   Paper
Language use and interaction in the history classroom

Pamela Thuraisingam, Edith Cowan University

The teaching and learning of history involves a process where students and teachers interact in order to analyse evidence, raise questions and hypotheses, synthesise facts, communicate their ideas, understand others viewpoints, consider values, reflect and engage in moral reasoning (Brophy, 1996). Further it is interaction that helps in the development of thinking in history (Coltham, 1971). This paper reports on an in-progress PhD study in which the metacognitive language demands of the history class are explored. The form that metacognitive language may take in the history classroom is not well documented, hence the purpose of this investigation. This study was conducted by examining the language use and interaction pattern in the teaching and learning of history. The data was gathered from six classes from schools in Singapore. They constituted two classes of above average students (Gifted stream), two classes of average students (Express stream) and two classes of below average (Normal stream). Audio and video recordings were made of two lessons from each of the six classes. These lessons were transcribed and analysed to ascertain which contexts were more conducive for the production of metacognitive language. It was found that a complex interrelationship of factors including type of pedagogic activity, type of teacher questions, and type of student activities determined whether or not metacognitve language was used.

TOH01357   Paper
Practicum student teachers' reflectivity, practicum performance and clinical supervision

Wah Seng Toh, The University of Western Australia

The purpose of the study reported here was to investigate practicum student teachers' reflectivity and to examine its relationship to their performance and clinical supervision. The participants were student teachers from teachers' college in Malaysia who were undergoing their teaching practicum of six weeks. Data on student teachers' reflectivity was from their journal writings and the level of reflectivity of each participant was assessed through the use of a reflective pedagogical thinking rating scale. Data on their practicum performance was sourced from the college records. Clinical supervision was measured in terms of the degree of clinical supervisory behaviours exhibited by the supervisors as perceived by the student teachers. Results of the analyses indicate that student teachers were hardly reflective, exhibiting very low levels of reflectivity based on van Manen's classification of levels of reflectivity. There were no indications that reflectivity was related to practicum performance and clinical supervision. However a significant relationship between clinical supervision and practicum performance was detected. Student teachers' gender, academic qualifications and coursework performance were also examined in terms of their relationships to reflectivity and practicum performance. Interpretations of the results and recommendations are discussed in relation to the context of the study.

TRI01042   Paper
Adopting and adapting information and communications technology (ICT) in teaching and learning environments within a university.

Lina Macchiusi and Sue Trinidad, Curtin University of Technology

The rate of Information and communications technology (ICT) adoption is likely to increase over the next few years as growing numbers of Faculty across all disciplines in educational institutions adopt and adapt ICT resources in their instructional activities. ICT places additional demands on academic staff such as necessitating the learning of new skills in developing and maintaining course and assessment materials and spending time differently. The new products of teaching will mean some lecturers will have to make a radical shift in their orientation from a view of transmitting information to one of directly attending to the process of learning of their students. This paper discusses the results of a study that involved surveying the academic teaching population at one Australian university and identifying their use of ICT in their teaching and learning. A group of teaching staff were then monitored over 16 months to identify how their ICT environment evolved. Results indicate that teaching staff: have significantly increased their adoption of ICT in their teaching and learning; are committed to providing successful learning environments for their students; are reflective about the use of ICT; are very clear about the type of support they need to effectively adopt ICT. The findings have also revealed that there has been an increase in the commitment to ICT initiatives by the University as a whole through the introduction of major structural changes in order to put in place appropriate support structures for the adoption of ICT.

University leaders need to be acutely aware of providing the most effective strategies to promote such teaching and learning environments by listening to and supporting the needs and concerns of those directly involved in the teaching and learning process.

TRI01683   Paper
On-line and length? Provision and use of learning technologies in government schools

Karen Trimmer, Office of the Auditor General, Western Australia

In 1998 the Western Australian State Government allocated $80 million to Education Department of Westem Australia (EDWA) to fund the provision of a Learning Technologies Project for 266 000 students in 770 government schools in Western Australia over four years. In keeping with the Government emphasis on increasing computer numbers within schools, computer to student ratios were identified as the key measure of access. Schools were required to achieve a computer to student ratio of 1:5 for secondary students and 1: 10 for primary students by 2002.

Actual student access to learning technologies is also dependent upon other factors such as the capacity of schools to install and maintain computer networks and software, and the capacity of teachers to use the equipment for teaching purposes. EDWA defined six critical success factors as a basis for evaluating implementation of learning technologies in schools including the Learning Technologies Project. The Office of the Auditor General conducted a performance examination to assess the implementation of the project against these factors, which are: planning; hardware; electronic educational resources (software); connectivity; staff capabilities; and integration and use. Because the Learning Technologies Project builds on and sits in the context of many previous technology initiatives, the examination also reviewed the wider impact of technology in Western Australian government schools.

TSO01192  Paper
International education - understanding new cultures and new pedagogies

Georgina Tsolidis, Monash University

Taking as a base understanding that pedagogies are themselves culturally situated knowledge's, the intention is to explore the cultural understandings which underpin pedagogies used in international education. It is argued that these pedagogies are expressions of new cultural formations that both characterise and are facilitated by international education. Through an examination of Bauman's development of the consumer cooperative as a metaphor for postmodern culture, the argument is made that cross-cultural pedagogies at the heart of international education have a radical possibility which can be realised if the dialectical relationship between sameness and difference is mediated by an understanding that both students and teachers act and author in the classroom. This framework is used to explore interviews undertaken with international students for an ARC funded study. This is very much a work in progress and the intention here is to consider these students' experiences studying in Australia in relation to the role of international education more broadly. What role does international education play in assisting international and Australian students develop identities responsive to and representative of new cultural imperatives?

TSU01462   Paper
Teaching and learning reasoning in genetics with multiple external representations

Chi-Yan Tsui and David Treagust, Curtin University of Technology

The paper reports an ongoing research project on classroom teaching and learning involving secondary students' reasoning in genetics. Genetics is a difficult but important topic in school science yet research indicates that students do not understand genetics concepts even after instruction. Although teachers have long been using different representations in teaching science, multiple external representations (MERs) used in computer interactive multimedia (IMM) are now increasingly powerful and affordable to schools. MERs can be textual, visual-graphical, tabular, mathematical or in other formats. Researchers claim that computer-based MERs support learning by providing complementary ideas and processes, by constraining interpretations or by promoting a deeper understanding of the domain but some studies show that learners find translating between representations difficult. In this research, science teachers integrated into their classroom teaching and learning an IMM called BioLogica that features MERs. The design of BioLogica aims at overcoming some of the linguistic and pedagogical barriers that students face when learning to understand genetics. This research uses largely qualitative methods; classroom teaching and learning with BioLogica was interpreted within a framework that includes computational and social constructivist perspectives. The research describes the benefits and costs of using MERs in developing students' reasoning in genetics.

TUR01514   Paper
"New conceptions of student "neediness" and directions for better responses"

Sue Turale and Doug Lloyd, University of Ballarat

This paper is about the issues relating to students' lived experiences and responses associated with poverty. We show that poverty is a limited and limiting concept. Instead we focus on developing an understanding of the nature of 'needy' students' lived experiences, the impact of these on their wellbeing and on success in several domains, and the strategies students employ in coping with and overcoming need-related problems. It will be particularly useful for post-compulsory secondary students and those in further and higher education. The paper builds a theoretical analysis of stress and coping. It shows how a longitudinal study of the nature of needy students' problems and experiences, the responses that are employed in seeking to manage these problems, and the outcomes that result over time will yield important new understandings for students, schools, universities and policy makers. The framework allows an analysis of the influence of 'place' (rural, regional or urban) to identify context-specific differences in need, problems arising from need, coping strategies, and longer-term outcomes. The results from a use of the new framework will allow for improved assessment of the impact of neediness on a student's academic status and wellbeing, and better student and institutional responses. It will also allow state and national policy makers to facilitate improved national capability and return on school and tertiary education expenditure. The research will also indicate the extent to which 'place' issues need to be taken into consideration in assessing and alleviating the effects of neediness.

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ULJ01003   Paper
General theory of pedagogics - an impossible but necessary project?

Michael Uljens, University of Helsinki

Since the beginning of the 1990's general theory education has been under discussion both in the Nordic countries and very much so in Germany. The vivid discussion may be seen as both related to fast expansion of the discipline and in relation to the postmodern criticism concerning the possibility of general theories. The paper argues that we are still forced to develop general conceptual systems with the ambition of being fundamental because of the constitutive and functional value these theories have. Another conclusion is that educational theory must proceed from the question of the individuals becoming a cultural subject, and not so much from the anthropological question of what a subject is. In order to move "beyond postmodernism" there is reason to in greater detail analyze what meaning concepts like the classical German notions of "Bildsamkeit", and "Aufforderung zur Selbstt E4tigkeit" have today. The view developed in this paper allows for the possibility of fundamental, but not universal, theories. Self-ironical fundamentalism avoiding both relativism and dogmatism are seen as paths leading us further. Universal theories are thus impossible. They are not even necessary, but fundamental theories are both possible and also necessary, not logically but pragmatically. In presenting such fundamental theories we do not have to pretend to write the ultimate reality but our experience of it.

ULV01245  ®   Paper
Dialogue as a strategy for enlightening help or oppression?

Jorun Ulvestad, University of Oslo

The aim of The National Program of Parental Guidance in Norway is to support and to help ordinary parents in their parental role. The guidance is voluntarily. Professional helpers are meant to guide on the basis of scientific knowledge and in respect for parents' own practice and knowledge in their parental role. This new concept of building knowledge in the private sphere is based on the idea of dialogue. Macro perspectives: The number of professional helpers is increasing, and many problems seek solutions. Scientific knowledge is often seen as solutions. New knowledge is, in this way, pointing out which problems that are to be solved. Will this develop a situation characterised by solutions seek problems? Meso perspectives: Habermas understands dialogue as the foundation in developing emancipating knowledge. The purpose is to obtain consensus, carried out on a common rational basis. Lyotard gives rise to doubts to Habermas's underlying idea about intersubjectivity and universalism when he discuss the meetings between different types of knowledge. Further discussions: What are the professional-political perspective's of the main problems and challenges in the parental role, and what is the foundation of these problem definitions?

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VAL01102   Paper
Research: A cultural bridge

Roger Vallance and Liz Tchacos, University of Notre Dame

Cross-cultural research brings one to the interface where personal, moral, and cultural sensitivities are active. This qualitative account takes as its context the vexed questions of indigenous youth suicide, immersion into a culture not one's own, listening across cultural experiences and the training of indigenous research assistants to ensure that the inclusion of local peoples is not eroded.

In June and July 2001 a qualitative research project, using ethnographic methods of immersion and situating what is heard within the lived experience, is addressing the tragic experiences of high rates of indigenous youth suicide in remote Kimberley W.A. communities. Local reference groups of community representatives, personal approaches to gatekeepers and clear ethical principals guide the research. To ensure cultural sensitivities are observed and work towards valid data collection methods as well as analysis, local research assistants are being trained to interface between the research team and the local peoples. It is hoped that this training will raise personal, local skill levels as well as achieve meaningful data in these remote communities. This paper explores the issues of building bridges between these communities by means of the research assistants' training.

VAL01111   Paper
Teachers perceptions of career: Crises, development and successes

Roger Vallance, University of Notre Dame

This qualitative study arises from interviews of twenty secondary school teachers. The teachers came from four different secondary schools in metropolitan Perth and were each interviewed once a term over two school years. The age, subjects taught and teaching experiences of this groups of teachers was diverse and without bias towards gender or school. In these interviews the teachers addressed, at times spontaneously, their concerns about professional career development. The teachers focused on initial career progress, their career crises and storms as well as the impediments they perceived toward real professional development. For many of these teachers their reflections covered a career coming to a close after a long classroom teaching vocation. These teachers, identified by their principals as excellent classroom teachers, reflect on how their journey has modified their sense of success as a teacher and what they now are prepared to claim that is of worth in classroom teaching and learning. They also reflect on their own motivation to teach, not as it was initially, but what keeps them active and hopeful in the classroom today.

VEN01542    Paper
Challenging the unchallengeable high ground: Curriculum integration and the school subject

Grady Venville, Edith Cowan University and John Wallace, Leonie Rennie and John Malone, Curtin University of Technology

Commentators have described the school subject as "unchallengeable high ground" and an "impregnable fortress". Indeed, curriculum documents throughout the western world stand as evidence that the school subject is as strong as ever. There is, however, a persistent movement that is lapping at and eroding the high ground of the school subject know as curriculum integration. There is considerable breadth to the literature base about curriculum integration, including classroom testimonials, research reports and theoretical attestations of avid supporters and opponents. In this paper we review and critically analyse this literature through a theoretical framework that describes the curriculum in terms of disciplinary and worldly paradigms. While the disciplinary paradigm is still the hegemonic curriculum structure in Australia and most other countries, we suggest that there has been a shift in its dominant position.

This paper will be presented as part of Symposium 22 WAL01539 Integrating the curriculum: A case of shifting paradigms or shifting sands?

VID01267   Paper
A conceptual framework for analysis of education policy and practices

Lesley Vidovich, University of Western Australia

In education policy research over the last decade, there has been increased interest in moving the focus from macro level policy intentions by central authorities to micro level policy practices/consequences within individual institutions. Research focusing on micro political processes turns attention to practitioners as relatively free agents, actively interpreting, negotiating, and often resisting policy from central authorities. However, this micro focus has not gone uncontested in the literature. An opposing view argues for assigning a stronger role to the state in understanding policy processes because central authorities wield sufficient power to force compliance with their policy intentions, such that practitioners are constrained as passive recipients rather than active constructors of policy.

The framework offered here for policy analysis draws from both 'macro constraint' (including global, national and state policy agendas) and 'micro agency' of individual participants to track policy processes through different 'moments' in the policy cycle. Three different contexts - influence, policy text production and practice - are the key components of the policy cycle, with the addition of contexts of outcomes and political strategies to address issues of social inequalities. In subsequent papers in this symposium, the policy framework outlined in this paper will be applied to specific case studies of policy production and practice in schools.

This paper is presented as part of Symposium 8, VID01266 A conceptual framework for analysis of education policy and practices, with case studies is schools.

VON01293   Paper
The teaching profession in the global age: Challenges ahead

Athena Vongalis, Monash University

While evidence from supranational agencies shows that teachers are crucial in the 'positive' implementation of educational change, the teacher is commonly treated as a functionary in education system instead of a key actor who can effect the successful outcome of education change (OECD 1998, Higginson 1996, WorldBank 1999). Policy directives globalising education overlook the complexity of teachers' agency and how this agency interacts and engages with the education structure (Phillips 1999). There is a reciprocal relationship between teachers as agents and education. Yet this relationship is down played in the policy of supranational organisations and this limits understanding of the role of teachers as crucial professionals within a changing education system. Giroux (Giroux 2000) outlines teachers' predicament as actors within a global vision of education, "Asked to define themselves either through the language of the market place or through a discourse of liberal objectivity and neutrality that abstracts the political from the realm of the cultural and social, educators are increasingly being pressured to become either servants...or disengaged specialists" (p.343). The implications of this limitation has political and professionals ramifications for teachers and their capacity to act on behalf of a more equitable and socially responsible education system. This study uses Computer Assisted Qualitative Data Analysis Software (CAQDAS) to clarify how teachers' agency is being redefined in global education policy. The intention is to investigate the reasons behind such redefinition, how this effects the relationship between teachers and education, and to evaluate the implications of these changes to teachers, as a professional body, in the future. The project aims to build on current research on that analyses global education policy emerging from international agencies OECD, World Bank and UNESCO (Dale 1999, Berkhout 1999, McNeely 1994, Spring 1998) with a specific emphasis on how this policy is impacting on teachers' agency. It examines the kinds of agency created for teachers in the particular education structures promoted in the policy discourse of international organisations. The final outcome is to inform teachers and representatives of the profession about political and professional tensions that need to be addressed in order to secure the role of teachers as engaged, social activists in the future.

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WAL01096   Paper
Perceptions of student-teacher interactions in exemplary science teachers' classroom

Bruce Waldrip, La Trobe University and Darrell Fisher, Curtin University of Technology

The purpose of this study was to identify and describe exemplary science teachers. These exemplary teachers were identified through very favourable scores on the Questionnaire of Teacher Interaction (QTI) and were validated by school principals. With a sample of over 2,300 science students, the reliability of the CLEQ scales ranged from 0.62 to 0.83 and showed acceptable discrimination between the scales as the mean correlation between scales ranged from 0.22 to 0.37. The construct validity of the QTI to identify exemplary teachers was confirmed through interviews with students and these views are reported in the paper. In an application, associations between student perceptions of the classroom learning environment as measured by the scales of the QTI and attitude to class were found.

WAL01214   Paper
The work of school administrators in changing times

Janice Wallace, University of Western Ontario

My paper is based on research conducted in two Canadian provinces: Ontario and British Columbia. Ontario has been led by a neo-conservative government and British Columbia a "third-way" socialist government during a time of massive educational restructuring. Interviews with school administrators and leaders of teacher unions and professional organisations demonstrate that several converging factors are transforming the role of educational administrators. First, a performative ethos has moved the work of administrators away from leadership and towards management. Second, the separation of bargaining units for administrators and teachers has exacerbated work divisions and made it more difficult for administrators to provide instructional leadership. Third, entry level positions are increasingly unattractive for potential candidates because principals are being positioned politically between Ministries of Education who are cutting resources, boards who are being asked to do more with much less, and teachers who have had their work load increased while professional autonomy has been decreased. My research provides a comparative analysis of the following two questions: 1) How is the role of educational administrators being transformed by post-modern social, political, and economic conditions in Ontario and British Columbia; and 2) How are these changes affecting the work of women in school administration.

WAR01232   Paper
Facilitating migrant settlement; strategies for education

Catherine Ward, Curtin University of Technology, and Irene Styles, Murdoch University

Migration is a traumatic experience for many people; however, education of prospective migrants and organisations involved in assisting and advising migrants may mitigate negative consequences. Appropriate preparation, pre and post migration, could buffer the possible negative impact of migration and assist in settlement. This paper reports findings from a study of the impact of migration on women from the United Kingdom (UK) and Eire (the "invisible migrants") now living in Australia. Bowlby's grieving process was used as a theoretical framework to explore grief reactions to leaving the homeland (homesickness), exposure to a new culture and how transition through the process facilities re-invention of the self and settlement. Crucial to successful settlement was the nature of strategies the women used to negotiate the grieving process. Participants who successfully settled and re-invented themselves engaged in more social, cultural and country activities - those participants who were less successful in this endeavour tended toward more solitary strategies. The study has social implications for the education of future migrants, migrant organisations and the general community since the awareness of, and encouragement and utilisation of appropriate strategies could reduce the period of adjustment, enhance the ability to survive in the new country/culture and foster a sense of belonging to the new place.

WAR01328   Paper
Education for the human journey: Personal narrative in the primary classroom

Gay Ward, University of Notre Dame

This study is part of a Ph.D. qualitative exploration into the use of narrative in Montessori, Steiner, and other primary schools. In-depth interviews of teachers from twelve schools were used to collect stories on how teachers use narrative for curriculum and personal development and how they perceive these uses as relating to their own educational philosophies and to the ethos of their particular schools. Teachers' storied experiences were analysed using NUD*IST software. A wide spectrum of narrative uses related to meaning making was revealed including using narrative as both an oral and written language genre, as a means of curriculum integration, as a means of identifying and understanding personal journeys as well as universal values, and as a tool for establishing connectedness and effecting transformations. This paper will focus on the interesting and varied approaches revealed for helping students experience the complexity of the human journey including acknowledging narrative thinking as separate from paradigmatic thinking, provision for imagery and allegory, rhythm, ritual and memory. In addition, educational approaches for fostering the construction and exploration of personal narrative will be discussed including creating opportunities for authentic dialogue, the use of sharing, autobiography and biography and catering for individual differences including temperament, gender and multiculturalism.

WAT01030  ®   Paper
The nature and development of boys' and girls' self-perceptions and value judgements in maths and English through grades 7 to 11: An application of Latent Growth Modelling

Helen Watt, The University of Sydney

The present study traces boys' and girls' developmental trajectories for key constructs within the Expectancy-Value Theoretical framework in relation to secondary school maths and English, using latent growth modelling. These trajectories are contrasted and explanations for gender and age effects suggested where these occur. Participants span grades 7 to 11 in a longitudinal cohort-sequential design comprising 1323 students in 3 cohorts drawn from three upper-middle class coeducational government secondary schools in metropolitan Sydney. The combined sample provides information on students from grades 7 to 11, with replication of grade effects across cohorts. Growth models were estimated for self-perceptions (perceived talent and success expectancies) and values (interest and utility judgements) in relation to maths and English. Declines were evident for all perceptions, with gender differences in each case excepting maths utility judgements, and English self-perceptions. Results are interpreted in terms of understanding how boys and girls differ and develop with respect to each of these key constructs with respect to operation of sex-typed or gender-differentiated socialisation influences. In addition, the critical intervention points for each attitudinal construct are identified from inspection of when changes occur. The contribution of this study lies first in its empirical clarification of constructs employed, and also in its examination of the development of constructs which have been identified as influential in predicting achievement-related choices and behaviours, and contrasting these developmental trajectories for boys and girls from junior through to senior high. A subsidiary contribution lies in the fact that the study sample comprises Australian students, who have been less prevalent in the expectancy-value literature than students from the United States.

WAT01470    Paper
Changing patterns of pre-service teachers' ICT competencies and what it means for pre-service teacher education programs

Glenice Watson and Sarah Prestridge, Griffith University

Pre-service teacher education programs are under pressure from employing authorities to prepare teachers to be confident and competent users of information and communication technologies (ICTs) in their classrooms. It is no longer sufficient (if it ever was) for teachers to leave tertiary institutions with basic ICT competence and depend on employing authorities to provide the necessary professional development to turn those competencies into meaningful ICT classroom practices. Frequently employers are looking to recent graduates to provide ICT leadership and exemplary innovative ICT practice. The rapidly changing nature of ICT and the enormous divergence between the ICT competency base of entry students poses a considerable challenge to academics responsible for the development of the ICT components of pre-service teacher education programs. The research that forms the basis of this paper involves a longitudinal study of the changing nature of pre-service teachers' entry ICT competencies and their evaluation of their experiences of an ICT component in their pre-service teacher education program. These data are used to inform practical outcomes for the ICT components of the teacher pre-service program that better meet the demands of employing authorities, the rapidly changing nature of ICT in learning, and the diverse ICT competency base of entry students.

WAU01047  ®   Paper
Creating a scale to measure motivation to achieve academically: Linking attitudes and behaviours using Rasch measurement

Russell F. Waugh, Edith Cowan University

Background. Motivation to Achieve Academically has been used in many educational and other studies in many countries and the large majority has not used an interval level scale based on a good theoretical model in which the items are linked to behaviour. Aims. One, to create an interval level, unidimensional scale of Motivation, with attitude items linked to behaviour items, based on a conceptual model of Motivation, involving Striving for Excellence (Standards, Goals, Tasks, Effort, Values and Ability), Desire to Learn (Interest, Learning from Others and Responsibility for Learning), and Rewards (Extrinsic, Intrinsic and Social). Two, to analyse its Psychometric properties using the Extended Logistic Model of Rasch (Andrich, 1988a, 1988b; Rasch, 1980/1960). Three, to investigate the structure and meaning of the Scale. Sample. The convenience person sample was 239 first-year students selected for three special entry programs at an Australian university. The stem-item sample was initially 45, reduced to 24, that fitted the measurement model to form a valid and reliable scale. Method. Based on recent literature, a conceptual model of Motivation was devised and items written in line with the model. Data were collected by self-report questionnaire and analysed with the computer program Rasch Unidimensional Measurement Models (RUMM) (Andrich, Lyne, Sheridan, & Luo, 1998). A scale was created in which the Motivation measures were calibrated on the same scale as the item 'difficulties'. Results. Twenty-four Motivation items fitted the model and were 'easier' than their corresponding behaviour items, as conceptualised.

They formed an excellent scale in which the proportion of observed variance considered true was 0.92. Items from all aspects of the Motivation model named in the aims above, except Ability and Extrinsic Rewards, fitted the measurement model. Conclusion. The Rasch model and the RUMM computing program were very useful in creating a unidimensional, interval level scale of Motivation to achieve academically, with good psychometric properties.

WAU01048    Paper
Academic staff perceptions of administrative quality at universities

Russell Waugh, Edith Cowan University

This is a theoretical paper that gives direction as to how Administrative Quality at a university can be measured on an interval scale. There are no service quality measures available for universities. The best-researched service quality measures come from the business area and, in particular, the scale SERVQUAL (Parasuraman, Zeitham]. & Berry, 1985, 1994) for measuring customer services. The measure for my paper is oriented towards service quality. it is based on a model of academic staff perceptions in relation to Central, Faculty or School administration (as the case may be) for the quality of service provided to academics. The Australian government has set up a new Australian University Quality Agency in 2001 and one of its objectives is to measure quality in administration (management).

Academic staff perceptions of Administrative Quality are proposed to consist of two 1 st order aspects, operationally defined by a number of 2nd order aspects. These are: Reliability and Responsiveness (Administrative Contact, Provision of Administrative Material, Confident and Dependable Administrative Advice and Advanced Notice of Administrative Changes), and Assurance and Empathy (Courteousness and Confidence in Contact, Individual and Understanding Contact and Feeling Secure Contact).

The 21 stem-items measuring each 2nd order aspect are set up in Guttman patterns, conceptually ordered by increasing 'difficulty'. Academics are asked to respond to each of the 21 stem-items in two parts, conceptually ordered from 'easy' to 'hard': Ideally, This is what I think my university administration should do ('easy'), and This is what my university administration actually does ('hard'). This model has been pilot tested successfully with a small sample (N=27) and is now ready for a full test.

WEB01573   Paper
A two-step approach to modelling student performance: A methodology that accounts for measurement and structural error.

Beverley Webster and Darrell Fisher, Curtin University of Technology

This paper describes the methodology used to investigate influences on student science and mathematics achievement and addresses the techniques of secondary analysis and its associated limitations and includes a two-step approach to modelling. A total of 57 Australian schools were surveyed and data collected from 620 teachers and 4645 students. The two-step model building approach consisted of the analysis of two conceptually distinct models. The first was an analysis of the measurement model, which specifies the relationships between the observed variables and the latent variables. The results of this analysis identified the measurement properties (reliabilities and validities) of the observed and latent variables. The second involved a structural equation model, which specifies the relationships among the latent variables as posited by theory and previous research and also describes those links between the latent variables and student science and mathematics achievement. This two-step approach to modelling student performance allows for clarity of model fit and identifies whether any source of poor fit is due to the measurement or the structural model. This paper then presents an explanatory model of student performance incorporating the student home background, student attitudes towards science and mathematics, instructional practices and school level contextual and environment factors.

WEB01576   Paper
School level environment and student outcomes in science and mathematics

Beverley Webster and Darrell Fisher, Curtin University of Technology

The purpose of this study was to investigate whether a relationship exists between school level environment and student outcomes. The study involved 620 teachers and 4,645 students from 57 Australian secondary schools in all states and territories. Student outcome measures included science and mathematics achievement, career aspirations and students' attitudes and beliefs about success in science and mathematics. Teachers' perceptions of their school environment were measured using the School Level Environment Questionnaire and included variables such as empowerment, affiliation, mission consensus, resource availability, work pressure, student support, innovation and professional interest. Previous research has shown that factors at the school level, like environment, influence education at the classroom level and to further investigate this, data regarding the instructional practices of teachers was included in the analysis. The results of these analyses showed that various factors of the school level environment were linked to improved student outcomes. For example, teachers who felt supported and empowered were more likely to employ student centred instructional practices and work pressure and resource adequacy influenced the instructional approaches in the classrooms. Furthermore, these results indicate relationships between instructional practices and improved student outcomes and these relationships were mediated by student attitudes and beliefs about success.

WEI01305   Paper
Communicative language teaching and Confucianism in China and Taiwan

David Wei, Deakin University,

Communicative Language Teaching has been applied to English teaching in both China and Taiwan since the 1970s. However, several factors constrained the application of such a method in both places. Confucianism has been considered as among the cultural and academic factors that lead to standard entrance examination and authoritative way of teaching and constrain the application of Communicative Language Teaching as well as democratic way of teaching in both China and Taiwan. Such an argument is challenged in this paper. The author argues that Confucianism has been taken by authoritative Confucians as well as power holders in China and Taiwan as a tool to manipulate thought and maintain power and brought standard entrance examination and authoritative way of teaching. Political factor, instead of Confucianism, constrains Communicative Language Teaching as well as democratic way of teaching in both China and Taiwan. China and Taiwan are proceeding in different tempos in dealing with the political factor to enhance democratization and educational modernization. Different tempos of political development in both places influence the application of Communicative Language Teaching and democratic way of teaching differently and bring different result.

WEL01215  ®   Paper
Some effects of structured workplace learning on students' attitudes to school learning and its impact on personnel in host workplaces

Allan Welch and John Williamson, University of Tasmania

This paper reports on the findings of a case study into the effects of structured workplace learning on secondary students' attitudes to learning in compulsory schooling and the effects of such programs on personnel in host workplaces. The attitude study used matched pairs to compare two groups from a year 10 cohort in compulsory schooling. In each pair one student undertook structured workplace learning as an adjunct to their studies and the other did not. The study found that for students exposed to structured workplace learning there was a tendency towards improved attitudes to learning at the valuing level of Krathwohl's (1964) taxonomy. The host workplace study found evidence of favourable impacts on personnel in terms of O'Connell's (1994) workplace context layers. The implications for school authorities and host employers are discussed.

WHI01153   Paper
Asian Success in Our Schools - A Challenge?

Louise White, Rae Allan and Darrell Fisher, Curtin University of Technology

The aim of this study was to investigate reasons for the high success rates of Asian students in mathematics in New Zealand schools, taking into consideration factors such as motivation, repetition, parental support and language. Louise conducted a survey of views on mathematics in seven high schools, involving nearly 400 students. Factor analysis enabled the creation of two main scales (Enjoyment) and (Value). The Asian students seemed to have a far more positive view of both mathematics and their abilities in the subject. John surveyed a group of Chinese parents and interviewed in depth their attitudes to the early development of their children's concepts of numeracy. He is now in the process of developing tests to show the differences in the acquisition of mathematical concepts between a group of Hong Kong children and New Zealand children all under the age of six years. The results suggested that the initial success of Chinese students, in particular, is due to the existence of mathematical concepts embedded in their language.

WHI01680    Paper
Teaching swimming: Issues beyond drowning!

Peter Whipp, Edith Cowan University and All Saints' College

With aquatic education in some primary schools in crisis (Cross, 1997) and parents believing that children leaving primary school should be reaching stage 9 rather than the current stage 3 ? the school curriculum, at both primary and secondary levels, must devote significant time and resources to swimming and water safety education. Moreover, with the most common level for drop out in Vacation swimming programs at stage 3 (RLSS, 2001) and assuming that many weak swimmers are choosing not to go swimming in their own time (Hardy, 1991), secondary school Physical Education programs have much to do! This paper presents the results of a study investigating the current status of swimming and water safety programs in WA schools. The views of Heads of Department and student perceptions will be highlighted. The importance and relative success of swimming activities currently undertaken in schools, issues of concern, and exemplar pedagogies employed to deal with varied ability levels, are addressed. While the transition from primary to secondary school (years 7-8) has been targeted, issues dealing with the teaching of swimming and the achievement of outcomes throughout schools and systems will be presented.

This paper will be presented as part of Symposium 30 TAG01676 Collective and individual visions of netball, basketball and swimming by/for adolescents.

WIL01001   Paper
Methodological difficulties of assessing metacognition: A new approach

Jeni Wilson, The University of Melbourne

Metacognition has been identified as having an important role in many aspects of education, yet specific details about how students use metacognition when they tackle problems is not well researched. Research in the field has spanned three decades, therefore this field would not be considered a new frontier but the assessment of metacognition is.

One of the difficulties associated with researching metacognition is that the term lacks clarity. The implication for research is that parametres need to be defined to conduct assessment research. Another problem for researchers interested in metacognition is that techniques used in the research of metacognition, such as, verbal self-reporting are often criticised.

This paper will discuss methodological difficulties of researching metacognition and propose a viable, new multi-method technique used for assessing student metacognitive behavior. This is crucial for educational practice because without a working definition of metacognition teachers cannot identify student metacognitive actions, or improve student metacognitive behavior.

The research was conducted with Year 6 students undertaking a range of mathematical problems but it is believed that the results are applicable across other age groups and perhaps across different curriculum domains.

WIL01233  ®   Paper
Upgrading technology teachers by distance

John Williams, Edith Cowan University

As more countries around the world recognise the increasing importance of technology in society, there is a corresponding resurgence of interest in technology as a school subject, and in many instances, a core subjects compulsory for all students. As an area of academic interest, technology has a comparatively short tradition. The outcome of this in smaller countries is that it is not as well catered for in the higher education sector, including teacher training. A common example of this situation is where technology teachers are trained to a certain level, for example a two year diploma, and the provision is not available in the country to train beyond that, say to a bachelors degree level. This paper will describe an approach that has been developed and implemented in a number of countries to meet this need. It will outline the principles of course design, the mixed mode of delivery (distance and onsite) which has been found to suit both the course requirements and the clients, and some of the issues of course delivery derived from program and subject evaluations related to foreign currency, cultural contextualization of the curriculum, local coordination and resources.

WIL01347   Paper
The impact of school cultures on the newly qualified teachers' first year in post

Anne Williams, King Alfred's College, England

This paper based upon a funded project, focuses upon how school cultures affect the context within which the newly qualified teacher has to work and how these cultures facilitate or militate against the new teacher's further development. Our analysis takes Hargreaves' typology of school cultures, individual, balkanised, collaborative and contrived collegial as a starting point. Preliminary analysis suggests that, for the newly qualified teacher, cultures operate at both a macro and a micro level and that both can make a significant different to the individual's experience and perceptions of their first year of teaching. In Hargreaves' terms, newly qualified teachers do not appear to thrive in a school where the culture is individual. The most positive experiences were reported by NQTs who had worked within a collaborative culture whether this was at school level, generally found in primary schools, or at departmental level, normally found in secondary schools. After identifying examples of Hargeaves' typology of teacher cultures and relating aspects of NQT experience to that typology, we discuss some of the problems which this particular typology poses and suggest, as an alternative, a continuum of school and teacher culture in terms of their appropriateness as induction contexts.

WON01036    Paper
Blurring borders, respecting culture

Lily Wong, Advent Links-SAUC Singapore and Vicki Banham, Edith Cowan University

The international community recognizes that curriculum for preschool teacher education includes similar issues in childhood development and education. Including parent educations and family involvement.

However, as collaborations between international institutions are increasing, of greater interest is how different cultures address generic and culturally specific curriculum issues and present these to their students to avoid the downloading effect. Singapore with its Asian and Confucian approach and Australia with its European approach collaboratively developed a curriculum framework that enabled teachers to be exposed to developmental and educational issues across the lifespan thus meeting the needs of the child, family and community.

This paper will address this issue by examining the process that two international institutions underwent to ensure that the needs of both countries were met when developing a preschool teacher education curriculum framework.

1. Introduction to the issue
2. Singapore approach to care, development and education
3. Australian approach to care, development and education
4. The process of identifying care, development and education needs of each society
5. Negotiation and matching of identified needs
6. Identifying a common framework
7. Final outcomes
8. The approval process
9. Lessons learnt and implications for the future.

WON01076   Paper
Push and pull factors affecting school relocation in Singapore: The past and the present

Jessie Wong Yuk Yong, Canada and Ho Kwok Kueng, Hong Kong

In history and at present, some schools have been and are still being relocated for one reason or another. Putting all the factors together and sorting them into categories: some are push and some are pull factors. Relocation of schools has seldom been fully documented and researched. One reason is, perhaps, there are a lot more other important issues in education which have more direct impacts on education, and on people than relocation business. This paper attempts to argue that school relocation deserves more serious attention than it has usually been given, and it affects the people as well as the education of the kids as much as any other changes in education. Taking the history of school relocation of some old schools in Singapore, especially those built in the late 19th and early 20th century, it can be noticed that these schools have had moved 3 to 7 times in history. Most of them have achieved a rather stable location today, unlikely to be subjected to relocate in the near future. It can be argued that these schools have arrived at an equilibrium stage; at this stage, the pull and push factors settle down. The reasons for relocation of these schools have been identified as mainly push factors, such as poor building, noise problem, congested environment and the lack of space for expansion. This paper also discusses the planned relocation of schools in Singapore today under the mother programme, called PRIME. It can be noticed that Singapore has developed a very neat system in education today, including its plans for school improvement, expansion, upgrading and relocation. The factors for school relocation are certainly different in the past and at present.

WON01419    Paper
Metacognition, reading of narrative and science reading

Mei Yin Agnes Wong, Shook-Cheong Agnes Chang and Ee-Li Hong, Nanyang Technological University

This study aims to determine the metacognitive knowledge and the use of metacognitive strategies during the reading of a narrative text and reading from a Science text. The students' knowledge and use of metacognitive strategies for the two types of texts will be compared. Good and poor readers from Secondary One will complete two survey instruments to determine their metacognitive awareness and use of metacognitive strategies. Data from these instruments will provide for quantitative analyses. Qualitative analyses will rely on interview data and thinking aloud tasks. Discussion of students' knowledge and use of metacognitive strategies will stem from the basis that good readers have been found to be aware of and proficient in their use of metacognitive processes during reading comprehension, while poor readers have tended not to demonstrate that same level of awareness and control of strategies. With respect to students' knowledge and use of metacognition during different text reading, previous research has found that students' metacognitive knowledge about science reading is more like that of younger and poorer readers than the knowledge of older and better readers. It would be interesting to investigate the Singaporean students' knowledge and use of metacognition during the reading of the different text types for instructional implications.

This paper will be presented as part of Symposium 15 LEE01418 Thinking across the curriculum.

WON01433    Paper
Students' perceptions and attitudes in upper primary computer-assisted Mathematics classrooms

Angela F L Wong, Nanyang Technological University and Lai Kwan Teng, Clementi Primary School

The main aim of this study was to examine the relationship between the nature of the classroom learning environment and the students' attitudes towards computer-assisted Mathematics classes. In addition, the students' actual and preferred perceptions of the computer laboratory learning environment and gender differences in students' perceptions of computer-assisted Mathematics classroom environment were also explored.

The sample used in this study comprised 177 Primary 5 (Grade 5) pupils from a government primary school located in a densely populated housing estate in Singapore. The instruments used were the actual and preferred versions of the My Computer Class Inventory (MCCI) and the Computer Lesson Attitude Questionnaire (CLAQ). A series of data analyses were conducted to establish the MCCI's internal consistency reliability, discriminant validity and ability to differentiate between perceptions of students in different classes. The investigation of attitude-environment association involved using simple correlation and multiple regression analyses using the student as the unit of analysis. The findings from this study revealed the existence of positive associations between the nature of the computer-assisted Mathematics classroom environment and the students' attitudinal outcomes. It was also found that the perceptions of boys and girls differed; i.e., the girls held more favourable perceptions than the boys.

This paper is presented as part of Symposium 17 WON01431 Learning environments of different types of Singapore classrooms.

WOO01295   Paper
Early intervention: A second chance to learn what? For whom? Narratives of learning, discipline and enculturation

Annette Woods, University of Queensland and Robyn Henderson, James Cook University

Current understandings about literacy have moved away from the belief that literacy is simply a process that individuals do in their heads. However, in many cases our response to early intervention in literacy is firmly based in theories which seem out of step with current literacy research and consequent evidence that literacy is socially and culturally constructed. One example of such a response is the Reading Recovery program based in Clay's theory of literacy acquisition. Clay (1992) describes the program as a second chance to learn. However, others have suggested that programs like Reading Recovery may in fact work toward the marginalisation of particular groups, thereby helping to maintain the status quo along class, gender and ethnic lines. Dudley-Marling and Murphy (1997) suggest that Reading Recovery may in fact act as a gatekeeper to protect the institution of schooling by privileging the skills and experiences of middle- and upper-middle class students.

This paper allows two professionals, who unwittingly found themselves involved within the institution of Reading Recovery, to bring their insider's knowledge to an analysis of the construction of the program. The paper interweaves this analysis with the personal narratives of the researchers as they negotiated the borders between different understandings and beliefs about literacy and literacy pedagogy.

X

XIE01330   Paper
The impact of school re-mapping on China's universal education in the rural areas: A case study of Guangdong province

Shaohua Xie, South China Normal University

The author now heads a research team responsible for school re-mapping for the Education Department of Guangdong province. As part of the commissioned research results, this paper intends to analyse, within a critical theory framework for educational policy study, the underpinnings for school re-mapping both on national and provincial levels. Down along the line, it will focuses on policies, plans and on-going practices for school re-mapping in Guangdong province. Particular attention will be paid to assess the impact of school re-mapping, in terms of educational quality and equal opportunity, universal education retention rate, social stability, economic promotion and quality of life, on students, their families and communities in poor areas, rural areas, mountain areas and areas where minorities reside. Based on the gains and losses of this policy, suggestions will be made for policy amendments. Also, further efforts will be made to explore the possibilities for policy amendments. And in conclusion, a sketch of envisaged rural universal education will be provided.

Y

YAP01154   Paper
A school by design - The Chinese high school approach to restructuring and reculturing

Yap Meen Sheng, The Chinese High School, Singapore

In December 1998, the Chinese High School introduced the first 'Consortium', QUEST as a pilot project in its restructuring effort. The Consortia Scheme is an attempt too right-size the school into 5 mini self-managing schools within the school. The aim is to replace the traditional Department System, which was found to have compartmentalised teaching and learning. Another aim of the new system is to bring about the micro-management of the cohort and to adopt a holistic approach to bring about the total development of every pupil. The Scheme has since being completed on a school-wide scale. The presentation aims to share the CHS's experience in the restructuring and reculturing exercise and also to examine its contribution to educational reforms in a cross-cultural context and the challenges faced.

YEA01420   Paper
Facilitating sense-making in primary mathematics through word problems

Ban Har Yeap, Nanyang Technological University and Melati Abdul Ghani, Elias Park Primary School, Singapore

This paper is based on a research project that aimed to encourage children to engage in sense-making through mathematics word problems. About 200 Year Three children in a primary school were involved in an instructional programme Think-Things-Through for six months. The two key characteristics of the programme were (1) children were engaged in 'what-if problem posing to extend textbook problems, and (2) children were exposed to word problems which required contextual knowledge for successful solution. The instructional programme was implemented as part of the regular curriculum by the children's mathematics teachers. The specific research questions were (1) Are children more able to make-sense when they solve word problems after the programme? (2) Are children able to transfer this ability to solve problems that are not similar to those used in the programmes? (3) Are children able to retain this ability several months after the programme? A pre-test, a post-test and a retention test were administered at the start, at the end and three months after the end of the programme, respectively. The test comprised standard or problematic word problems. Some items in the post-test and retention test are neartransfer items while others are far-transfer items.

This paper will be presented as part of Symposium 15 LEE01418 Thinking across the curriculum.

YEU01019   Paper
Does school motivation change over secondary school years?

Nancy Tsui Yee Yeung, The Hong Kong Institute of Education

A total of 199 students from a school in Hong Kong responded to 25 items in a survey. Principal components analysis found 4 school motivation factors consistent with the Task, Effort, Competitivenes and Praise scales of the McInerney et al. Inventory of School Motivation, 1 education aspiration factor and 1 career aspiration factor. The correlations indicated significant relations between the motivation factors and the aspiration factors. A path model applying a structural equation modeling approach found that Task, Effort and Competitiveness orientations had relatively stronger impacts on education aspirations whereas Task and Praise had stronger impacts on career aspirations. Analysis of variance found that grade 7 students had significantly higher Task, Effort and Praise scores and higher career aspirations than students from grades 9 and 11. The drastic drop from grade 7 of motivation scores--especially Task and Effort, both pertaining to a mastery orientation dimension that has been assumed to be a major driving force for excellence-calls for urgent attention to student motivation in junior secondary classes.

Z

ZAJ01149
Global dimensions in teacher education as a curriculum innovation

Joseph Zajda, Australian Catholic University

Globalizing teacher education has become an urgent task of educators around the world. This paper examines some of the effects of globalization, and argues for the need to introduce international and global dimensions in teacher education. Some 278-teacher education students were surveyed between 2001-1999. The aim of the surveys was to discover the process of change, if any, underlying the patterns of knowledge, attitudes and values among Year 1 BA/BT teacher education students, who are enrolled in a four-year professional program at the Australian Catholic University (Melbourne), a government-funded university. It has been hypothesized that students' existing knowledge base, and their attitudes and values can be influenced and transformed by the worthwhile, relevant and significant learning experiences in the foundation courses in teacher education programs. The survey contained questions, which specifically tested students' attitudes to the international and global dimensions in the course. The survey demonstrates that the inclusion of the global perspective in teacher education courses provides a pragmatic model for teaching values education within a framework of global awareness. The topics, most frequently mentioned by student teachers, included gender discourses, environment education, students and academic achievement, educational inequality and postmodern education.

ZIG01253  ®   Paper
Investigating the potential of touchscreen technology in early childhood education

Chris Ziguras, Geoff Romeo, Suzy Edwards, Sue McNamara, and Ian Walker, Monash University

In June 2000 MicroTouch Australia approached Monash University to discuss the potential of touchscreen technology in the classroom. The company believed the technology had the potential to enhance children's use of computers and invited the Faculty to suggest ways in which that potential might be investigated. The aim of the project was to investigate children's use of touchscreens in early childhood and junior primary settings. The project studied the introduction of touchscreens in five classrooms in Melbourne. Several methods to obtain information about how children interacted with the touchscreens were used including observation, journals and field notes, and interviews. The report identifies a number of key findings relating to children's use of the touchscreen. The findings are organised around six themes: children's use of the touchscreen over a period of time, children's preference for a particular input device, difficulties with the use of the touchscreen in the classroom, differences in children's approach to the touchscreen, collaboration in the children's use of the touchscreen, and teacher use of the touchscreen for professional purposes. The report concludes by making several recommendations regarding the use of, and introduction of, touchscreens into classrooms, and avenues of further research.

ZIG01257       ® Paper
The effect of GATS on transnational higher education: Comparing experiences of New Zealand, Australia,Singapore and Malaysia

Chris Ziguras, Monash University

This paper examines the impact of the General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS) on transnational higher education in four countries -New Zealand, Australia, Singapore and Malaysia. GATS is administered by the World Trade Organisation (WTO) and is a framework in which governments commit to liberalising trade in services in a particular industry. Transnational education refers to education that is delivered by an institution based in one country to students located in a different country. Two of the countries considered, New Zealand and Australia, have made commitments under GATS to allow relatively unrestricted cross-border provision of education in their countries, while the other two countries, Singapore and Malaysia have made no such commitment. There is currently considerable activity in renegotiating countries' commitments to GATS as part of the millennium round of WTO negotiations, and simultaneously bilateral free trade agreements are being proposed between countries in the region. In this context, this paper examines the practical impact that GATS has had on these two countries that made commitments regarding educational trade, and the likely impact that similar commitments by the governments of Malaysia and Singapore would have on the higher education systems in those major importing countries.

Symposia

Symposia

Symposium 1

MAC01008   Paper
Crossing borders and exploring new frontiers in professional practice research

Ian Macpherson and Tania Aspland, Queensland University of Technology, Ross Brooker, University of Tasmania

CONTACT:
Dr Ian Macpherosn
School of Professional Studies
QUT, Kelvin Grove Campus.

This symposium will begin with a paper which frames reflections upon a range of professional practice research activities in which the presenters have been engaged in recent times. A series of short papers follows, and the presenters will highlight a number of insights they have gained that have relevance for crossing borders and exploring new frontiers in professional practice research.

MAC01009
INTRODUCTORY PAPER
Crossing borders and exploring new frontiers in professional practice research: introductory considerations about conceptual and methodological frameworks.

Ian Macpherson, Tania Aspland and Ross Brooker

The symposium will begin with a brief paper which presents some ontological, epistemological, methodological and ethical perspectives about professional practice research; and a view of what it means to cross borders and explore new frontiers in this area of educational research. The paper is situated within such areas as Action Research, Practitioner Research and Teacher Research, all of which focus significantly on what it means to engage in research efforts in developing professional knowledge, in improving practice and in influencing policies that will support and sustain a research-based approach to professional work and practice.

A number of short papers will follow this brief introductory paper (which will be presented as a conversation among the three of us). The titles and presenters of these papers are as follows:

MAC01010    Paper
Reporting a recently-established research partnership between a group of schools in a local school district and a university: crossing borders in identifying and engaging in research agendas

Ian Macpherson

This paper explores border crossings in the development of a research partnership between a university and a group of schools in a school district. While the university may have been proactive is seeking new research partnerships with schools, it has been the schools in this particular district which have driven the desire to be more research-based in their professional work and practice and the focus for a collaborative research agenda. Such a shift is defined as a significant border crossing. The paper will elicit a number of emerging themes in making the crossing, not the least of which has to do with parity of esteem of the research partners and with the leading role of the "industry partner" in defining the "what" and the "how" of the collaborative research effort as an example of professional practice research.

MAC01014   Paper
Developing a draft policy statement for a national professional association (the case of the Teacher Education Network of ACSA and a policy statement for "Curriculum Studies in Teacher Education Programs"): How authentic can consultation, negotiation and collaboration be at this level of scale?

Ian Macpherson, Tania Aspland and Ross Brooker

Since 1995, the ACSA Teacher Education Network has facilitated six-hours workshops at each Biennial Conference. The workshops have focused on the intensification of teachers' curriculum work, the framing of teachers' curriculum work as curriculum leadership, and the implications for supporting and sustaining teachers' efforts in curriculum decision-making conceived as curriculum leadership. The workshop at the 2001 Biennial Conference drew from these earlier foci and from a national mapping exercise across Australian Universities to develop a draft policy statement for ACSA for "Curriculum Studies in Teacher Education programs. In reflecting on the process leading to this draft policy statement, we cross borders by asking ourselves how authentic consultations, negotiations and collaboration were in this research-based process about professional practice.

Key points will be drawn from each individual paper within a framing provided by the introductory paper. It will be these key points, together with perspectives from research participants, which will form the basis for conversation in the symposium. A synthesis of the conversation, along with plans for continuing the conversation will conclude the symposium. The symposium will also include input from a discussant (yet to be identified).

SYMPOSIUM 2 - BOU01115
The impact of special education policy change on practice

Roseanna Bourke, Jill Bevan-Brown, Alison Kearney, and Janis Carroll-Lind, Massey University

Over the past five years significant restructuring aimed at changing resourcing systems in special education has been undertaken in New Zealand. This is part of the introduction of the first policy in special education for all New Zealand schools. One of the objectives of the new policy was greater equity and distribution of resources, for all learners with special educational needs, regardless of where they are educated. The government's intention in 1996 was that the policy Special Education 2000 would create a world class inclusive education system. However, in effect, the policy has not succeeded in achieving this. Instead it has influenced the way in which "inclusive education" is viewed. Resourcing through the Special Education 2000 policy attempted to move away from a categorization system, but instead has created clear chasms between learners who receive support and those who do not. The Ministry of Education sought independent evaluation and monitoring of the new policy. A research team from Massey University has been involved in a longitudinal study (1999-2001) evaluating and monitoring the impact of this policy on schools. This symposium outlines the framework for the multi-method participatory research approach involving a team of 16 researchers and 70 teacher fieldworkers, presents the findings over the three years, and examines the educational and political implications of the results.

SYMPOSIUM 3:
JEF01144
Testing for Teaching Purposes

Presenters: John Izard, RMIT University and John Izard and Associates, Peter Jeffery, Professional Resources Services, Gina Silis, RMIT University and Monbulk Primary School, and Ray Yates, Monbulk Primary School

After an introduction to the idea of testing for teaching purposes by the symposium leader, Yates and Silis will describe the school context and how testing for teaching fits in with overall programmes at their school. Reference will be made to other schools with different approaches using the same test materials. Izard will present statistical data describing the improvements in achievement of students at the schools and with Jeffery elaborate on further work recently undertaken [April, 2001] to extend the Australian data for the test series using Item Response Modelling [IRM]. In a separate paper elsewhere in the conference Silis and Izard will report other research on IRM.

PAPER 1: JEF01145
Research and development of tests for teaching purposes

Peter Jeffery, Professional Resources Services and RayYates, Monbulk Primary School

Research and development prior to publication of Australian adaptations of Maths 7 - 11[YO] tests began in 1996 as a result of direct assistance to Monbulk Primary School from Professional Resources Services. The school sought to identify where each student had reached in learning and to assist that student to make further progress. Following successful implementation of Testing for Teaching at Monbulk several other schools in Australia have adopted the idea and use the materials.

PAPER 2: YAT01146
School effects of Testing for Teaching assessment program

Ray Yates and Gina Silis, Monbulk Primary School

Testing for teaching has had wide ranging positive effects on the conduct of programmes at Monbulk Primary School over the past 6 years. First there were professional development issues for teachers regarding educational measurement followed by selection and implementation of appropriate instruments to assist in achieving school and teacher goals. Affective education effects were considered at all times and have been enhanced as cognitive outcomes were achieved.

PAPER 3: SIL01147
Achievement data from Testing for Teaching

Gina Silis, Monbulk Primary School and RMIT University and John Izard, RMIT University and John Izard and Associates

This section of the symposium will concentrate on tracking the growth in achievement in Spelling, Maths and Reading skills at Monbulk Primary School since the introduction of Testing for Teaching in 1996. The project uses assessment instruments featuring item response modelling [IRM].

PAPER 4: IZA01148    Paper
Australian data for Mathematics 12, 13 and 14 [YO] tests

Peter Jeffery, Professional Resources Services and John Izard, RMIT University and John Izard and Associates

This paper will describe the process of data collection and analysis undertaken in two NSW schools to extend the Australian Item Response Modelling [IRM] data for a series of mathematics tests covering six year old to 14 year old children. In the project, students in two Sydney schools were tested with Maths 12, or 13 or 14 [YO] tests according to their chronological age at date of testing. Each student also took the Maths 11 [YO] test as well, to allow statistical analyses with Quest software [ACER 1996] to create extensions to the profiles already published for Australian teachers by Professional Resources Services [PRS] for Maths 7 - 11 [YO]. The extension data will be publicly released at the time of presentation of this paper. Discussion will focus on the diagnostic and curriculum planning possibilities facilitated by the testing and IRM analyses to encourage and allow 'Testing for Teaching Purposes".

SYMPOSIUM 4
HAN01184
Implementing a fundamental movement skill program in an early childhood setting: The children's and teacher's perspectives

Presenters:  Marie Martin and Beth Hands, Edith Cowan University

The place of explicit movement skill development programs in early childhood settings is contentious. However given the growing understanding that movement competence is important for maintaining an active and healthy lifestyle, well planned and effective programs specifically designed for young children are important. In these papers, the influence of a new teaching resource designed to support teachers in implementing a fundamental movement skill program is presented using a case study approach. The case studies were constructed with teachers working in a range of early childhood settings.

PAPER 1: MAR01185
Introducing a fundamental movement skill program in an early childhood setting: The teacher's perspectives

Marie Martin, Edith Cowan University

In the first paper the impact of the program on teachers' level of confidence, knowledge of fundamental movement skills and personal physical activity level is presented. The information was gathered using a structured self reflection process including a journal, group meetings, individual face to face interviews and a final written evaluation. The findings indicated an increase in teacher confidence and knowledge but no impact on personal physical activity level.

PAPER 2: HAN01186
Introducing a fundamental movement skill program in an early childhood setting: The children's perspectives

Beth Hands, Edith Cowan University

In the second paper, changes in children's skill levels, understanding of movement, and self confidence after participating in the program are reported. The information was gathered through qualitative skill evaluations, quantitative skill measures, timed observations of activity level, self reports, work samples and photographs. In general, the children reported increased understanding about how to move well and also greater confidence in their own ability.

SYMPOSIUM 5 - FOS01222
Identity challenges citizenship: And what of civics education?

Chairperson and Discussant: Marie Brennan, University of Canberra
Presenters: Georgina Tsolidis, Monash University, Kerry Kennedy and Victoria Foster, University of Canberra and Jo Milne-Home, University of Western Sydney

The four presentations in this symposium together deliver a challenge to the dominant constructions of citizenship in Australia, in turn reflected in current models of civics and citizenship education. These constructions reinforce normalising and universalising conceptions about what it means to be an Australian, particularly in relation to ethnicity, race, social class and gender. A strong theme to be explored is the impact of these constructions on both individual and national identity, and the implications for issues of human rights and social justice. Although the field of civics and citizenship education has been slow to respond to such challenges as those posed here, these presentations include case studies of innovative research with ethnic minority schoolgirls and boys in Melbourne, secondary graduate diploma of education students in western Sydney, and Sri Lankan senior teacher educators.

PAPER 1: TSO01223
Cultural identifications - young people extending understandings of Australianness

Georgina Tsolidis, Monash University

The current interest in civics and citizenship provides an opportunity to reflect more deeply on dominant constructions of Australianness. The imperatives of globalization have created new tensions between specificity and universalism - on the one hand there is a move towards sameness yet in contradistinction to this, there is a desire to reinscribe national identities in often narrow ways. The Olympics, for example, provided strong images of indigenous Australia at the same time as the Prime Minister was refusing to apologise. This provides a dramatic example of the argument made by Attwood (1996) that indigenous Australians have the burden of authenticity, that is, the responsibility of providing Australia with its distinctive national identity. In attempting to construct an image of Australianness which provided a defining edge the Olympics show-cased thongs, Hills hoists, motor mowers, sheep and Blundstone boots - yet ethnic diversity, a corner-stone of Australian reality, was barely visible. Has civics education moved beyond traditional frames of Australianness which assume an 'us' and a 'them' requiring 'our' tolerance, to broader and more relevant definitions of Australianness? This presentation will explore this question through the school-based experiences of ethnic minority girls and boys and their views of their cultural identities.

PAPER 2: KEN01224
The Western imagination and Indigenous knowledge: Implications for civics education

Kerry Kennedy, University of Canberra

The collapse of Eastern European communism and the resulting adoption of market dominated Western liberal democracy has privileged market liberalism both economically and politically. Yet there are strong voices, albeit coming from different theoretical and political stances, that continue to challenge the hegemony of Western liberal democracy with its social, political and economic overlays. Within both post modern social theory (eg Rorty) and nation states in the Asia Pacific region (eg Mahartir) two sometimes conflicting arguments have been made. For the postmodernist, the very notion of a universalistic approach to knowledge and values has been challenged while Asian politicians have advocated the notion that "Asian values", rather than Western values, should guide the democratic process.

This paper will explore these positions and their implications for civics education. In particular, it will seek to address the particular issue of the international human rights education agenda as a core component of civics education. The views of both postmodernist theorists and Asian politicians challenge any such universalisizing agenda, especially when it is seen to be yet another product of the Western imagination. Yet on a daily basis the world is confronted with human rights abuses on a massive scale. If civics education cannot address the issue within an educational context, its role in building community at both national and international levels must be seriously undermined.

PAPER 3: MIL01225
Pedagogies promoting self awareness and citizenship: Adolescent identity development in secondary education

Jo Milne-Home, University of Western Sydney

The presentation reports on 2001 research conducted by Secondary Diploma of Education Students at UWS (Penrith Campus), drawing on case studies of secondary school students and reports written by Dip Ed Students. Theories of Identity Development were linked to issues of physical, social, emotional and cognitive development in the contexts of media images, home and school environments. Gender, ethnicity and social class are key elements in any understanding of self and society, let alone the many facets of identity and citizenship. Given the persistence of prejudice towards policies promoting equity, fairness and equality - this presentation looks at pedagogies that promote social justice through understanding Adolescence as well as knowing the History of the Australian Constitution and Parliamentary Processes. Education, like curriculum focused pedagogies for Civics and Citizenship, assumes that posturing the stuff of history and values enshrined in public or political life is sufficient to enlighten the wit and will of students in the classroom. Indeed, knowledge is sufficient to make students beacons for democracy in their own public and private lives. Movements for change have long pitted their critical edge in that nexus of the political and personal - "Whereas the Pedagogies?......".

PAPER 4: FOS01226   Paper
"We've formed a national Gender and Citizenship Education Society in Sri Lanka": Pedagogies and the process of change in postgraduate studies with senior teacher educators

Victoria Foster, University of Canberra

In 1999, a newly developed graduate course on "Gender and Citizenship" at an Australian regional university attracted a group of Australian and international students, mostly from what are usually described as marginalized positionings. This presentation reports on longitudinal research with ten of these students, eight male and two female Sri Lankan senior teacher educators. Innovative pedagogies were developed collaboratively and the students were asked to keep detailed journals of their experiences in the course, and to submit two evaluations. Their responses suggest new answers and meanings to Spivak's (1987) question, "Can the subaltern speak?" Follow-up research with the students in 2000 after their return to their colleges in Sri Lanka revealed profound change, both personal and professional. A further study is planned for 2001.

As Arnot and Dillabough (2000) note, citizenship education is seriously un(der)theorized, particularly in relation to the vast literature on feminist theory and citizenship.

The research questions in this study are: what is the nature of changes in the students' construction of their own identity in relation to gender and citizenship issues in the longer term, and what is the impact of these changes? This presentation explores the students' responses after nearly three years, and my own reflections on what occurred.

SYMPOSIUM 6 - CAR01227
Does the Index for Inclusion provide a framework for school improvement and professional development for inclusive education?

Presenters: - Mel Ainscow, University of Manchester; Suzanne Carrington and Robyn Robinson, Queensland University of Technology; Joanne Deppeler, Monash University; and Julianne Moss, Mary Fearnley-Sander and Lesley Harbon, University of Tasmania.

The recently developed British Index for Inclusion (Booth, Ainscow, Black-Hawkins, Vaughan, & Shaw, 2000) was developed in Britain at the Centre for Studies in Inclusive Education (CSIE) in collaboration with the University of Manchester and University of Christ Church College Canterbury and was released by the Department of Education to all government schools in March 2000. The Index is also currently under trial in the UNESCO Four Countries project- South Africa, India, Brazil and Romania as a school-based resource for development of inclusive practice and school reform as part of the United Nations Education for All imperative. In this symposium researchers will report on current studies using the Index for Inclusion in a range of international settings and Australian schools. Mel Ainscow will explain the rationale of the Index. He will also report on its use in England, Portugal and Romania, drawing out issues in relation to practitioner research and the role of academics in supporting school and teacher development. Suzanne Carrington and Robyn Robinson will report on the use of the Index in a collaborative partnership with a primary school in a disadvantaged community where teachers are working to enhance learning and participation for all students. Joanne Deppeler will present a summary of outcomes from the first stage of a three year project funded through the Australian Research Council Strategic Partnership Industry Research Training (ARC-SPIRT) scheme and the Catholic Education Office in Victoria investigating the effectiveness and sustainability of a whole-school approach to improving inclusive practice. Julianne Moss, Mary Fearnley-Sander, and Lesley Harbon will report on an Australian-Indonesian collaboration which used the Index to model and audit the development of democratic primary classrooms and language use in cluster schools on Indonesia.

The following questions will be addressed in the symposium:

1. Is the Index for Inclusion framework appropriate for the context of curriculum change and school reform in Australia and internationally?
2. Do the indicators reflect values appropriate for a range of contexts?
3. What modifications need to be made?
4. How has it been used in different settings?
5. How does the focus of inclusion vary across the study settings.
6. How is professional development linked to school development in the different settings.

PAPER 1: AIN01656   Paper
Understanding the development of inclusive schools: Some lessons from international experience

Mel Ainscow, University of Manchester

Currently many countries are seeking to encourage the development of more inclusive schools. This trend reflects the U.N. agenda of 'Education for All'. This paper will be based on research being carried out in Portugal, Romania and England that attempts to throw light on ways of addressing barriers to participation and learning. It will explain how evidence of various types can be used to analyse school practices, policies and cultures in order to formulate development strategies. Particular emphasis will be placed on the importance of analysing classroom interactions and listening to the voices of students. Examples will be used to illustrate how engaging with different perspectives can stimulate critical reflection in ways that help focus attention on new possibilities for moving schools forward. Attention will also be given to the social processes involved in such development activities. Implications will be drawn for the work of researchers involved in supporting the development of inclusive practices.

PAPER 2: CAR01657 ®   Paper
A journey of learning: Inclusive school development

Suzanne Carrington and Robyn Robinson, Queensland University of Technology

A global recognition of students' rights requires school organisations to recognise, value, and provide for diversity. The move towards more inclusive schooling in Queensland, Australia requires schools to address professional development on two levels: reculturing of the school to reflect inclusive beliefs and values; and enhancement of teacher skills and knowledge to better address the learning needs of all students. The recently developed Index for Inclusion (Booth, Ainscow, Black-Hawkins, Vaughan, & Shaw, 2000) is one resource that can facilitate the process of professional development and facilitate change in school culture, policy and teaching practice. The Index process described in this paper incorporates the use of a critical friend and peer mentoring within an action research model which together provide benefits for all involved in the professional development process. This paper reports on the initial stages of a collaborative partnership between a university and a primary school in a disadvantaged socio-economic area of Queensland, Australia. The stages of the journey of learning incorporating the Index for Inclusion are reported.

PAPER 3: DEP01658
Validating the British Index for Inclusion for the Australian context: Stage one

Joanne Deppeler, Monash University

This paper will present a summary of outcomes from the first stage of a three-year project funded through the Australian Research Council Strategic Partnership Industry Research Training (ARC-SPIRT) scheme and the Catholic Education Office in Victoria. This longitudinal study, in Catholic primary and secondary schools, will investigate the effectiveness and sustainability of a whole-school approach to improving inclusive practice, strengthening transition networks outside the school, and improving learning for students with disabilities. The first stage of the project will evaluate the recently developed British Index for Inclusion (Booth, Ainscow, Black-Hawkins, Vaughan, & Shaw, 2000). While the British Index clearly provides a valuable starting point, development for the Australian context will need to validate processes that fit with local 'cultures' including Commonwealth legislation and State and school level policies policy legislation. The paper will report on the process of content/face validity procedures with 30 exemplary teachers and other educators nominated by the industry partner along with representatives from the Australian Association of Special Education and UNESCO and DDA. Redundancies and ambiguities are highlighted and a draft of a revised version of the Index will be presented.

PAPER 4: MOS01659  ®     Paper
The Civic School: Australian-Indonesian professional collaboration to model and audit the development of democratic primary classrooms and teacher language using the Index of Inclusion

Julianne Moss, University of Tasmania

The study is a pilot project in Australian-Indonesian institutional collaboration for the professional development of primary school teachers in West Sumatra in citizenship education. Senior staff in the department of Pancasila and Citizenship Education at the State University of Padang (UNP), West Sumatra initiated the project. UNP staff sought the collaboration of the Faculty of Education at the University of Tasmania for bringing about and sustaining changes in teacher practice needed to implement the new civic goals in the 1999 Suplemen. The Index of Inclusion was used to model and audit the development of democratic primary classrooms and language use in a cluster of Padang schools in West Sumatra. The paper describes the background to the project and how the Index of Inclusion was understood during the initial two-week implementation phase by teachers and school principals.

The significance of the study lies in the potential of the Index of Inclusion internationally to citizenship education, a field of education that was not considered in the initial development of the Index project and the contribution of the multiple fields of inquiry to the evolving theoretical understandings of inclusive education.

SYMPOSIUM 7   MAR01241
Academic capitalism in the enterprise university

Presenters: Sheila Slaughter, and Larry Leslie, University of Arizona and Simon Marginson, Monash University

The Symposium focuses on the political economy and sociology of universities as enterprises, particularly the growth of profit-taking activities in non-profit institutions, and some implications of these activities for the public interest. The research presented in the Symposium draws on data from the U.S. and Australia, and builds on earlier work published as 'Academic Capitalism' (Slaughter and Leslie 1997) and 'The Enterprise University' (Marginson and Considine 2000).

PAPER 1: SLA01242   Paper
Academic capitalism as theory

Sheila Slaughter, University of Arizona

Sheila Slaughter examines the various ways in which different kinds of universities are reorganizing academic work so as to promote academic capitalism across their several functions - students as consumers, administration-student recruitment and care; entrepreneurial endeavor; faculty work in teaching, research and service. Universities are becoming more like profit-taking organisations; changing boundaries between private for-profit, private non-profit and public sector activity allow them to participate more fully in private for-profit activities; and some are increasingly attractive markets for venture capitalists and 'external' corporations. University administration often plays as great or a greater role than do academic faculty. Academic capitalism is most developed in student-as-consumer practices and in the loan, grant, debt nexus that surrounds student recruitment and payment for the educational product, the degree. It also operates in areas of market opportunity - the life sciences, computer sciences, foundations/ giving, distance education - proliferating in areas close to the technoscience core of the economy and able to guarantee graduates high rates of return, such as graduate/MA level professional schools like MBA programs, law, medicine and veterinary science; and areas close to federal research markets (physical and life sciences). Academic capitalism is beginning to appear in areas experiencing loss of resources and destabilization, such as education, sociology, physics, some fields of mathematics. It is least developed in undergraduate fields with large, predictable student enrolments, typically the 'classic' liberal arts. The paper draws on statistical reports on the condition of education in the United States (National Center for Educational Statistics), from empirical studies of science and technology (National Science Foundation Science Statistics Reports), from institutional research reports put out by institutions in several states, from legal disputes surrounding intellectual property, state and federal statutes that deal with higher education and intellectual property, administrative law, and a variety of case studies that have appeared in the literature. It is planned to extend the analysis to Australia, Canada and the UK.

PAPER 2: LES01243   Paper
Resource dependency and university behaviour

Larry Leslie, University of Arizona

Larry Leslie reports on a National Science Foundation (NSF) (U.S.A.) project which as in the Australian case studies reported in 'Academic Capitalism', employs Resource Dependency (RD) theory to empirically examine the effects of government funding declines on public research universities.

(1) Utilizing U.S. samples of 175 public universities, causal models used in the project demonstrate that changes in revenue patterns affect changes in university activities (e.g. teaching, research). Efforts shift in accord with the desires of the new resource providers. The paper postulates threats to the public interest. (2) Utilizing two National departmental data sets plus new data from 600 faculty and unit heads in 55 departments in 11 universities, departments are found to be remarkably stable in meeting their fundamental responsibilities, even during periods of financial stress. Departments shift their resources to maintain homeostasis. (3) Utilizing econometric models of academic faculty time allocations, controlled for quality of outputs, faculty allocations varare found to vary with such activities as grant and contract work. Overall, RD theory was a powerful predictor of internal university behaviors although major changes occurred primarily when units were destabilized.

PAPER 3: MAR01244    Paper
Capitalism within the enterprise: The case of international education in Australia

Simon Marginson, Monash University

Drawing largely on DETYA statistical data and ARC-funded research, Simon Marginson analyses the system-dynamics of international education in Australia, drawing out tensions between international and domestic education. Like international education in the UK but unlike its American counterpart, international education in Australia has been framed by national policy as fully capitalist in character. In a period of declining public funding - per student government funding is now at 40% of the level of the late 1970s - international education has become the main source of discretionary finance and a chief driver of enterprising and entrepreneurial behaviours in universities. The outcome has been immense growth in international student numbers while domestic numbers have stalled; university development has been skewed to those disciplines (Business Studies and Computing) and course levels (vocational Masters) that attract fee-paying students; and corporate functions such as marketing, off-shore activities and quality assurance have expanded while student-staff ratios have risen from 12 to 1 (1990) to 18 to 1 (1999).

SYMPOSIUM 8 - VID01266
A conceptual framework for analysis of education policy and practices, with case studies in schools

Presenters:Lesley Vidovich, Linda Mosen, Karin Oerlemans and Barbara Watterson, University of Western Australia

The theme is contemporary policy analysis, and the focus is very much what is happening in schools, which hopefully will be appropriate for a session on teachers' day. The first paper provides a conceptual framework for policy analysis and then the following 3 papers provide specific case studies of policy analysis in government schooling. Dr Lesley Vidovich provides the framework paper and then the case studies are provided by 3 of her doctoral students who are working in and with schools and teachers both as practitioners and researchers.

PAPER 1: VID01267  ®   Paper
A conceptual framework for analysis of education policy and practices

Lesley Vidovich, University of Western Australia

In education policy research over the last decade, there has been increased interest in moving the focus from macro level policy intentions by central authorities to micro level policy practices/consequences within individual institutions. Research focusing on micro political processes turns attention to practitioners as relatively free agents, actively interpreting, negotiating, and often resisting policy from central authorities. However, this micro focus has not gone uncontested in the literature. An opposing view argues for assigning a stronger role to the state in understanding policy processes because central authorities wield sufficient power to force compliance with their policy intentions, such that practitioners are constrained as passive recipients rather than active constructors of policy.

The framework offered here for policy analysis draws from both 'macro constraint' (including global, national and state policy agendas) and 'micro agency' of individual participants to track policy processes through different 'moments' in the policy cycle. Three different contexts - influence, policy text production and practice - are the key components of the policy cycle, with the addition of contexts of outcomes and political strategies to address issues of social inequalities. In subsequent papers in this symposium, the policy framework outlined in this paper will be applied to specific case studies of policy production and practice in schools.

PAPER 2: MOS01268   Paper
'Students at educational risk': An analysis of a policy process

Linda Mosen, University of Western Australia

This paper analyses the Education Department of Western Australia's policy: 'Making the Difference: Students at Educational Risk' (SAER) as a process extending between macro and micro levels of the organisation between 1998 and present. The study aims to develop an understanding of how the production and practices of the policy reflect wider - and potentially competing - economic and social justice rationales, and to what extent it advocates and/or marginalises the needs of students 'at risk'. Policy is identified as an interactive process that is shaped and reconstructed by different 'contexts'. It is how individual agents interpret, resist, accommodate or conform within and between these different 'contexts' that helps provide a clearer understanding of how the SAER policy intent is executed in practice.

The primary methods of data collection in this study are document analysis, semi-structured in-depth interview and field notes. The research sample included key administrators from Central and District Offices and four primary schools, from both metropolitan and country locations, because the identification of students, processes and resources to address 'at risk' may be affected by local contextual factors. In the early stages, the study finds that the policy is being interpreted and adapted at different sites, along a similar continuum, but in different ways.

PAPER 3: OER01269   Paper
'Local area education planning' - Policy planning and practice

Karin Oerlemans, University of Western Australia

This paper presents the beginning of an analysis of the Education Department of Western Australia's Local Area Education Planning (LAEP) Policy, which has involved school amalgamations, closures and sometimes the emergence of middle schools. Policy making is an intrinsically political activity; a way by which governments prescribe social change. At the micro level of policy implementation it is likely to be sharply contested as agents (administrators, teachers, parents and students) struggle to understand and influence the changes in progress. This paper is an analysis of what individuals and groups have 'done' with a top-down macro-level policy. The challenge is to reveal the messiness and the complexities of policy in practice, with a particular emphasis on the perspectives of students involved in educational change.

The research involved in-depth case studies of two schools undergoing considerable educational change as the result of LAEP policy. Data collection methods for this study involved focus group and semi-structured interviews with a number of student cohorts, document analysis, staff interviews and field notes. The initial findings point to significant tensions between the macro level policy makers and the local agents involved in the policy implementation.

PAPER 4: WAT01270   Paper
Practices and policies on single sex classes within co-educational schools

Barbara Watterston, Unviersity of Western Australia

Gender education issues have been highlighted by a number of Commonwealth and State policy initiatives. The Education Department of Western Australia's Social Justice in Education Policy (EDWA 1991, revised 2001) seeks improved outcomes for both boys and girls, identifying gender difference as one of the main factors influencing student participation, achievement and post school options. Within WA, policy on single sex classes in coeducational government primary schools is increasingly being generated within individual schools - a bottom-up approach. With an emphasis on micro political processes, the present research is based upon an exploration of the efficacy of single sex classes, from the perspectives of teachers, parents and students. It highlights the messiness of different policy perspectives within individual educational institutions.

A major challenge is the extent to which policy makers are able to recognise and build upon the heterogeneity of students' backgrounds, aspirations and needs, to provide varied and meaningful learning experiences for them. Emphasis is placed on examining the way in which limiting stereotypical notions of gender impact on learning and participation. In light of the interviews currently in progress, this paper will explore propositions for policy development - at both micro and macro levels - to facilitate the use of single sex classes within the coeducational context.

Symposium 9 -HAR01277
Border crossings and dangerous frontiers: Constructing inclusive methodologies in Educational Research

Jan Edwards, Margaret Kumar and Mary Louise Rasmussen, University of South Australia, and Valerie Harwood, University of Queensland

Symposium Theme:

Tackling issues of inclusivity in educational research requires border crossings in terms of how we think about whom we research, and how we construct, conduct and interpret research. Making these crossings can lead to dangerous frontiers and the need for new styles of research that change and reconfigure traditional research modalities. This symposium takes up the theme of this conference and applies it to a discussion of educational research that seeks to develop inclusive methodologies. The panel will discuss the 'border crossings and dangerous frontiers' encountered when educational research tackles inclusivity. Each of the participants will discuss recent and current research projects that constructed new and innovative ways for developing inclusive research methodologies. This will include the presentation of a range of innovative methodologies, from research involving young women as researchers of their own subjectivity and youth policy, postcoloniality and international students, disrupting existing methodological heteronormalising processes and subjugated disqualified knowledges as tools of methodological insurrection.

PAPER 1: EDW01278
Disrupting normative readings: Young women researching their subjectivity as constructed through youth policies

Jan Edwards, University of South Australia

A feminist and poststructuralist stance is adopted in a study of young women and their subjectivity as constructed through and by youth policies. Young women at a disadvantaged secondary school in South Australia will work together with the researcher examining their classed and gendered lives. Recent Welfare Reform initiatives position youth and young women in particular ways. A focus of the study is on the 'Mutual Obligation' aspects of the welfare reform agenda as Foucauldian disciplinary technologies and technologies of the self and young women's subjectivities as constructed through government policies around youth. This paper outlines the innovative methodology developed for the study and critically examines literature around student research, participatory research, and students acting as researchers. This provides a beginning for disrupting and disturbing youth policies, whilst developing research methods involving young women that can be described as empowering, emancipatory and inclusive of the needs interests and aspirations of a group of young women.

PAPER 2: HAR01279
Methodological insurrections: The strategic value of subjugated disqualified knowledges for disrupting Conduct Disorder

Valerie Harwood, University of Queensland

This paper argues for the strategic value of subjugated disqualified knowledges as tools of 'methodological insurrection' to disturb the truth and authority of Conduct Disorder. As a mental disorder, Conduct Disorder functions as a compelling knowledge that inserts the young individual into psychopathological discourses. Within this discursive field, this individual becomes subjected to the inclusionary notions of 'disability' and 'specialness' and excluded from the qualified knowledge of the diagnoser. Paradoxically, this disqualification offers insurrectionary potential for destabilising Conduct Disorder and questioning its semantics of inclusion. Subjugated disqualified knowledges provide articulation of sites of contestation, a quality that enables these knowledges to have a twofold value: as indicators of the existence of dominating knowledges and as tactical markers that signal where insurrectionary questions can be targeted.

PAPER 3: KUM01280
The strands that determine a postcolonial link with international students.

Margaret Kumar, University of South Australia

This paper provides a methodological revisionism and critique of discourse that is informed by the strands of 'race', 'culture' and 'identification' to enable one to move into the arena of multiplicity and subjectivity and the constituting and reconstituting of Self. The postcolonial position is that of a hybrid subject. The notion of moving beyond informed by a postcolonial theory provides a pathway towards foregrounding the multiplicities of language and identity and exploring how information, knowledge, belief and value systems are codified discursively to create meaning for everyday living. This paper will attempt an exploration from past and contemporary discursive practices and open up inquiry that goes 'into' and 'beyond' a space where discourse is generated without the definitive properties of absoluteness. The paper will use as a reference point a research project that is being undertaken with international undergraduate students.

PAPER 4: RAS01281
Rethinking inclusivity in research related to sexualities and schooling

Mary Louise Rasmussen, University of South Australia

Research related to sexualities and schooling often focuses on ways to alleviate homophobia and heterosexism in the hope of creating schools that are more inclusive of lesbian, gay, and bisexual (and very rarely transgender) teachers and students. This approach to sexualities and schooling is informed by multicultural discourses in education, discourses that are often invested in the notion that teachers might somehow overcome or eradicate heterosexism and homophobia in school cultures. Apart from being problematic methodologically, this approach may also place an unrealistic onus on teachers and students to bring about reform. This paper will draw on a queer theoretical framework to advocate a rethinking of research related to sexualities and schooling. It is argued that research that fails to problematise sexual and gender based identity categories often marginalizes people within the school community while simultaneously normalizing heterosexuality. The production of certain "truths" is an elemental aspect of any research process. By critiquing the exclusionary aspects of identity based research and grappling with inclusivity this paper details a means to disrupt methodological heteronormalising processes.

Symposium 10 - SIN01285
Basil Bernstein's research legacy

Presenters:  Bill Tyler, Northern Territory University, and Parlo Singh, Helen Nicolson and Beryl Exley, Queensland University of Technology

PAPER 1: TYL01287
Bernstein, pragmatism and semiotics : Towards a genealogy of pedagogic discourse

William Tyler, Northern Territory University

Basil Bernstein's later writings on the structure of pedagogic discourse provide a rich resource for formulating a social semiotic model of teaching and learning. This paper develops a genealogy of pedagogic discourse through an exploration of both its institutional and semiotic dimensions. This is expressed in the form of a framework which builds on recent insights into the relationships between pragmatism, progressive pedagogies and post-structuralist theories of signification. The paper then applies Bernstein's theories to recent reforms and developments in education such as the national curriculum, market-oriented and vocational pedagogies and on-line instruction or e-learning.

PAPER 2: EXL01288  ®   Paper
Teacher talk and classroom practice: An analysis of the constitution of pedagogic identities

Parlo Singh, Helen Nicolson and Beryl Exley, Queensland University of Technology

This paper examines the potential use of Basil Bernstein's theory of pedagogic discourse to develop a conceptual language for describing the talk and practices of secondary school teachers working in schools situated in low socio-economic urban communities. Specifically the paper draws on Bernstein's concepts of instructional and regulative discursive and social orders to analyse the professional-academic talk of a cohort of secondary school teachers about education for students in culturally diverse secondary schools situated in low socio-economic urban communities. The talk of the teachers is conceptualised as informational resources upon which they may draw in terms of planning and enacting classroom lessons. The paper also compares and contrasts three secondary school classroom lessons in terms of 'what' is taught, and 'how' it is taught. Specifically, the paper analyses the pedagogic identities made available to students through the arbitrary internal ordering of the pedagogic discourses in these three lessons. Implications for the differential distribution of knowledge and therefore acquisition of different types of pedagogic identities are discussed, particularly in light of ideological struggles over different pedagogies (progressive, critical, feminist, poststructural feminist and postcolonial) for students who have been educationally disadvantaged.

SYMPOSIUM 11 KEN01369
Spatial paradoxes: What if anything is Australian about Australian educational research? Does Australian-ness matter?

Chairperson:  Jane Kenway, University of South Australia

Presenters:  Nakata Martin, University of South Australia, Bill Louden, Edith Cowan University,Julie Mathews, University of Queensland, and Robin Usher, RMIT University

PAPER 1: KEN01370
Should 'critical' educational research be branded unAustralian?

Jane Kenway, University of South Australia

This Symposium is 'sponsored' by The Australian Educational Researcher. Participants will address the questions in the title. In increasingly globalsing circumstances nationhood is ever more invoked. For instance, those who protest against corporate globalisation (eg the M1 activists on May day) are accused of being unAustralian and of being vandals and exhibitionists. Indeed, any critics of the 'national interest' understood in the neoliberal economic terms promoted by various transnational economic agencies are now routinely called unAustralian, treated as outsiders within, as implicitly 'foreign'. A common view among our proudly Australian politicians is that supporting 'globalisation from above' is in Australia's national interest and that globalisation from below' (via people's movements with different agendas) is not. Further, while 'Australian owned' does not necessarily mean Australian made, nonetheless 'Australian owned' was mobilized in recent TV commercials to prompt us to change our brand of pain-killers. National loyalty and brand loyalty were fused. Connections are drawn between spaciality, identity and virtue in these examples. But what do such connections mean for educational research? Should education researchers be brand loyal to Australia? Is some educational research 'unAustralian? Should we practice foreignness, mobile locatedness and outsider belonging in educational research? How?

PAPER 2: NAK01371
Indigenous education, educational research and falling short on Rights

Martin Nakata, University of South Australia

Now that the national figures show a 15% decline in Indigenous enrolments in Australian higher education, the realisation of what was forewarned over the past four years about the reduction of financial support to students has now arrived. Many of us will now again point to short-sighted approaches by in-coming governments to appease opposing communities generated by political parties in election campaigns. A smaller number will point to years of liberal preoccupation in Australia with mis-match theories and their currency in educational research and practice. Even fewer will point to left-wing moral imperatives to 'fix things' for and on behalf of Indigenous people - a practice that often takes precedence over any considered position including Indigenous standpoints. This paper will address the notion of Australianness through a consideration of Human Rights agendas as they relate to Indigenous people's Rights to access and to participate fully in the political, economic, social and cultural life of the Australian state while maintaining our distinct political, economic, social and cultural characteristics. It will show that Human Rights and particularly the narrow use of 'Rights' on the ground, which seems to be singularly about the preservation and maintenance of Australian Indigenous cultural traditions is a concern. It will then outline the dilemma of such preoccupations with Cultural Rights before describing how they come to delimit approaches in Indigenous Education and educational research in this country. The paper concludes with a reminder of the dual goals of the Human Rights agenda to maintain cultural traditions as well as to enjoy full participation in the changing and globalising world.

PAPER 3: LOU01372
Merely national? Dilemmas in Australian educational research

Bill Louden, Edith Cowan University

What's Australian about Australian educational research? Not much, I think. In common with the rest of the Anglophone world, non-researchers regard local educational research as irrelevant to the interests of teachers and school systems. We write and write and write, but we write with one eye on the DETYA categories and the other eye on the choir. For researchers seeking an international audience, the impulse is to suppress the local detail, predict the readings of (parochial) Americans, and work on issues of interest to international journal reviewers. In this paper I want to talk about what is lost in the search for an international audience. For example, are questions of policy and practice in remote schools serving Indigenous Australians best understood as local manifestations of global generalities? More generally, how differently do questions of educational inequality play out in a country that is rapidly residualising attendance at government schools? Australian researchers can work on these issues - and they are of interest to local teachers and school systems - but they run the risk of being read as merely of 'national' interest by metropolitan reviewers and editors.

PAPER 4: MAT01373
Too Asian to be Anglo and too Anglo to be Asian: Who are Australian educational researchers anyway?

Julie Matthews, University of Queensland

Commonly regarded as too Asian to be Anglo and too Anglo to be Asian, my citizenship status is a floatation device which when all else fails gives me claim to being Australian - of sorts. From this -of sorts, shifting, often sinking position I want to dispense first with the question of whether Australian research has to be done on Australia because it discounts all those Australian based studies about non-Australian things, and second the question of whether it has to be done by 'Australians' because it discounts all those studies done by non-'Australians' about Australian things. Basically I want to cut to the quick and interrogate the thing that has always preoccupied me - but has only recently come to preoccupy others. I want to question the soundness of the new-found identity-thing-ness obsession which stalks our talk, research and thinking.

PAPER 5: USH01374
Globalisation and the uniquely Australian: Both/and?

Robin Usher, RMIT University

In the contemporary globalised moment, can educational research have a national identity? Doesn't globalisation inevitably mean that research transcends national boundaries given that the concerns and issues which motivate it are global in scope? If Australia is now part of the global economy and globalised culture, to what extent can educational research in Australia claim to have uniquely Australian characteristics? There is much to suggest that it cannot - educational research increasingly seems to be concerned with similar themes and issues across the globe, whether in terms of dominant or resistant ideologies. Yet we know also that the contemporary moment is characterised by the intersection of the global and the local - there is no such thing as the purely global. Where then is the 'local', that which is uniquely Australian, in the globalised educational research carried out in Australia? Or could it be that it is itself problematic to talk about the 'uniquely Australian'?

SYMPOSIUM 13 - GAL01407
Social justice, the market and education policy

Presenters: Carmen Mills and Trevor Gale, Central Queensland University and Peter McInerney, Flinders University of South Australia

Social justice is not a self evident concept but attracts a range of advocates and detractors who are not neatly positioned as for or against. Our own view is informed by a politics of recognition that is concerned with institutional processes as well as with socio-cultural and economic outcomes. The symposium begins by setting out this ideal for schooling and then moves to consider how it might be engaged in contexts of practice. In particular, we consider the challenge to social justice of neo-liberal and neo-conservative approaches. We conclude where we began: that teachers' and schools' responses need to include a reconfigured ideal of a socially just schooling, one that takes account of the general and the particular.

PAPER 1: MIL01408   Paper
The 'ideal': What does this mean for schools and their communities?

Carmen Mills & Trevor Gale, Central Queensland University

This paper considers what the 'ideal' arrangements to promote 'success' in schooling for all students - especially so called 'disadvantaged' students - look like from a socially critical perspective. In particular, the paper considers the ideal for schools and their communities proposed by what has been termed 'recognitive justice' (Gale & Densmore, 2000): a model of social justice that incorporates a positive regard for social difference and the centrality of socially democratic processes. Three conditions of (i) self-identity and respect, (ii) self-development and self-expression, and (iii) self-determination are explored in the paper as a way of conceiving of the social justice literature at large. Specifically, the paper asks and seeks answers from this literature in relation to the following questions: How can schools foster self-respect in and facilitate positive self-identities for students? What part can and should schools play in promoting the development of their students' abilities and encouraging student expressions of their experiences? What might meaningful involvement in schooling, premised on self-determination, look like?

PAPER 2: MCI01409   Paper
Reconfiguring a commitment to social justice in public schooling

Peter McInerney, Flinders University of South Australia

The pursuit of social justice is inextricably linked to the maintenance of a vibrant, well-funded and accessible public education system. But there are unmistakable signs that public schooling is being undermined, undervalued and degraded as a consequence of the 'dictatorship of the market place' (Meier, 1995) and the reductions in government spending on public schooling following the ascendancy of neoliberal governments. Is it possible to contest these developments? Can schools sustain a commitment to socially just curriculum in spite of its evacuation from official policy? This paper draws on a recently completed critical ethnographic study to present an argument for a reconfigured commitment to social justice in and through public schooling. Such a commitment, it is suggested, needs to incorporate responses to the classed nature of society and inequalities arising from the political economy but must also be attentive to the claims to recognition of groups who have been marginalised or excluded in traditional schooling arrangements as a result of various forms of cultural oppression. Whilst outlining the importance of locally conceived responses to educational disadvantage, the paper warns against the dangers of 'romantic localism'(Troyna and Vincent, 1995) and highlights the need for collective commitment and political action across the public education system, teacher unions, teacher education and community groups.

PAPER 3: GAL01410
Engaging policy: Is it for teachers?

Trevor Gale, Central Queensland University

Teachers sometimes regard education policy as a fait accompli that leaves them with few alternatives but to embrace it -- a palatable option if the policy resonates with a teacher's own values -- or reject it and be left 'out in the cold' with no authority to question its legitimacy. For teachers who value a socially just education, policies that propose otherwise pose such a dilemma. This paper argues that in part their predicament is born of a traditional yet erroneous conception of policy that separates it from practice and which is devoid of strategic forms of engagement. Addressing these two concerns, a case is made for teachers as policy producers and for strategies they might employ in negotiating policy as including: trading, bargaining, arguing, stalling, manoeuvring, organising and lobbying. Two areas of education policy, one global in orientation and the other local, which reflect the dominant 'back-to-basics' push in western education systems, are examined; specifically, standardised testing and homework. While there are market threats to a socially just agenda in education, the conservative arm of new right politics provides its own distinctive challenges. As the paper seeks to demonstrate, engaging with policy is not separate from an engagement with policy matters.

SYMPOSIUM 14 - SMY01412
Landscapes of space, place, power and identity in contemporary schooling

Convenor: John Smyth, Flinders University of South Australia

Presenters: Peter McInerney, Kenn Fisher and Shamalin Naidu, Flinders University of South Australia and Robyne Garrett, University of South Australia

This symposium of five papers picks up on the conference theme of crossing borders and explores an ensemble of inter-related and multi-dimensional themes around how economic, social, cultural and political power operate on the socially constructed landscapes of schooling. At the outset, issues of space/place will be explored through a critical spatiality of learning, asking questions about presence/absence of 'enunciative space' (Smyth, 1998). How student bodies are inscribed by institutional and cultural power will be examined through relationships of the body, physicality and identity. The corrosion of borders between schools and the educational 'centre' will be analysed through contestations around devolution of authority. And, as an instance of the intensifying control of the cultural pedagogy of teaching, there will be an analysis of a mandated performance management policy and the 'performatives' and 'fabrications' experienced/enacted by teachers. Finally, the wider meaning of school reform attaching to each of these themes will be explored through a consideration of the 'damaged' identities of teachers and counter hegemonic moves towards reclamation.

PAPER 1: SMY01413   Paper
'Cultural Strife' in teachers' work: Reflections on a 'Damaged Life'

John Smyth, Flinders University of South Australia

This paper invokes categories from Adorno (1994) and Sennett & Cobb (1972) to explore an alarming trend in re-configuring the work of teaching in western. The paper engages in a conversation with ethnographic fieldwork from two recent Australian studies - the Teachers' Learning Project and the Self-Managing School Project. It is clear from both studies that the marketized policy trajectory of government is bent on tearing schools away from the fabric of a culture of debate around teaching and learning, and inserting in their place a set of market exchange relationships. Four key questions are interrogated:

• how do teachers handle the stigmatisation of efficiency reforms?
• in face of the current "policy hysteria" (Stronach & Morris, 1994), how do teachers sustain the capacity of teaching as a "social practice" (Connell, 1995)?
• around what educational visions do teachers construct counter-hegemonic practices that push back into the imposed calculable and measurable agenda?
• in a prevailing ethos of schools as neo-managerialist marketplaces, what might an alternative theorisation of teachers' work look like that is framed from the position of schooling as a socially just "socio-cultural practice" (Morley & Rassool, 1999)?

PAPER 2: MCI01414   Paper
Moving into dangerous territory: Devolution in the public education system of South Australia

Peter McInerney, Flinders University of South Australia

Government schools in Australia are undergoing major organisational changes as a consequence of shifts towards a more devolved public education system. This is neither a recent happening nor a purely local phenomena however towards school-based governance and management have gathered speed in the United Kingdom, the United States, Canada, New Zealand and all Australian States over the past decade or so. Although the latest version of local school management in South Australia is contained in Partnerships 21 (Department of Education Training and Employment, 1999 ) it is worth noting that the roots of devolution were planted as far back as the Schools Commission Report (Karmel, 1973 ). Taking a lead from the conference theme, this paper attempts to explore the ongoing contestations over issues of authority taking place on the borders between the educational centre and the local school. With particular reference to the South Australian scene it traces the changing relationships and responsibilities in such areas as curriculum development, school governance, teachers' learning, educational leadership, resource allocation and matters of social justice and equity and argues that current moves represent dangerous incursions into unchartered and potentially unfriendly territory.

PAPER 3: FIS01415
A critical pedagogy of space: Re-claiming dialogic spaces in the classroom

Kenn Fisher, Flinders University of South Australia

For two centuries schools have been designed by professionals with minimal involvement from teachers and students. This practice has effectively disenfranchised the inhabitants of schools by preventing them from having a voice in the design of their places and spaces of learning. Whilst school architects and infrastructure administrators have made attempts at collaborative and inclusive design processes, these top-down approaches provide little opportunity for teachers and students to shape their own environments because of the limits applied as practitioners jealously guard their professional knowledges and positions of power. What is needed to transform this situation is a bottom-up 'grassroots school reform' approach grounded in critical spatial and visual literacy as part of curriculum and classroom pedagogical practice. Such an approach will not only engage teachers and students with the lived reality in the school (in which the physical environment has been traditionally perceived as immutable), it will also demonstrate that it is possible to change their environment 'against the grain' of the bureaucracy. This paper will draw on the work of a range of critical theorists to offer an 'architecture of resistance' through a collaborative 'dialogical theory building', directed at a creating a 'critical pedagogy of space'.

PAPER 4: GAR01416
How young women move: Gender construction and physical activity: Place, space and power

Robyne Garrett, University of South Australia

This paper investigates the social construction of gender within the context of movement, sport and physical activity. Specifically, it investigates the nature and meaning of physical experiences to the individual, the way gender is constructed for students and the relationship between the body, physicality and identity formation. The reasons for choosing not to be active may be complex, social and cultural. Female students in their final year of schooling have been participants in the study. The qualitative research approach is based on a feminist post-structuralist methodology that recognizes women as neither powerless victims nor free from oppressive and restrictive discourses which influence their involvement in physical activity. The research methods included unstructured interviews, author reflexivity and the co-authoring of stories. Collectively the research data give evidence of the vast subjectivity in and around being physical. They illuminate the complex processes whereby young female bodies become active and physical as well as the processes whereby some young women are denied this power. The stories identify discourses, ideologies and institutional practices, which serve to inhibit or enhance an individual's subjectivity and relationship to physical activity. They also give evidence of the individual's struggle to express bodily competence and remain physically active.

PAPER 5: NAI01417   Paper
'Perfomativities' and 'Fabrications' in performance management

Shamalin Naidu, Flinders University of South Australia

This paper draws on doctoral work underway into the analysis of teachers' voices in recent South Australian initiatives in teacher evaluation. The implementation of a new Performance Management policy is currently one aspect of the major educational reforms introduced to the public sector workforce in South Australia. Performance Management clearly illustrates an attempt by the state to control the work of teachers. The underlying philosophy of Performance Management is to make teachers more efficient, more effective and more accountable. The paper will critically scrutinise this bureaucratic process and amplify the voices of those being controlled. It will start out by considering a similar study of Performance Management undertaken in Western Australia, and discuss its implications for South Australia. Secondly, it will locate Performance Management in a broader social and political context and consider the interests being served. And finally, the paper will highlight first-hand accounts of how teachers, employ defence mechanisms ('performativities and fabrications) in order to resist evaluation as a form of bureaucratic and ideological control.

SYMPOSIUM 15 - LEE01418
Thinking across the Curriculum

Chairperson: Shook Cheong Agnes Chang, Nanyang Technological University

Presenters: Mei Yin Wong, Ban Har Yeap and Ngan Hoe Lee, Nanyang Technological University

PAPER 1: WON01419   Paper
Metacognition, reading of narrative and science reading

Mei Yin Agnes Wong, Shook Cheong Chang and Ee-Li Hong, Nanyang Technological University

This study aims to determine the metacognitive knowledge and the use of metacognitive strategies during the reading of a narrative text and reading from a Science text. The students' knowledge and use of metacognitive strategies for the two types of texts will be compared. Good and poor readers from Secondary One will complete two survey instruments to determine their metacognitive awareness and use of metacognitive strategies. Data from these instruments will provide for quantitative analyses. Qualitative analyses will rely on interview data and thinking aloud tasks. Discussion of students' knowledge and use of metacognitive strategies will stem from the basis that good readers have been found to be aware of and proficient in their use of metacognitive processes during reading comprehension, while poor readers have tended not to demonstrate that same level of awareness and control of strategies. With respect to students' knowledge and use of metacognition during different text reading, previous research has found that students' metacognitive knowledge about science reading is more like that of younger and poorer readers than the knowledge of older and better readers. It would be interesting to investigate the Singaporean students' knowledge and use of metacognition during the reading of the different text types for instructional implications.

PAPER 2: YEA01420   Paper
Facilitating sense-making in primary mathematics through word problems

Ban Har Yeap, Nanyang Technological University and Melati Abdul Ghani, Elias Park Primary School, Singapore

This paper is based on a research project that aimed to encourage children to engage in sense-making through mathematics word problems. About 200 Year Three children in a primary school were involved in an instructional programme Think-Things-Through for six months. The two key characteristics of the programme were

1. children were engaged in 'what-if' problem posing to extend textbook problems, and
2. children were exposed to word problems which required contextual knowledge for successful solution.

The instructional programme was implemented as part of the regular curriculum by the children's mathematics teachers. The specific research questions were (1) Are children more able to make-sense when they solve word problems after the programme? (2) Are children able to transfer this ability to solve problems that are not similar to those used in the programmes? (3) Are children able to retain this ability several months after the programme? A pre-test, a post-test and a retention test were administered at the start, at the end and three months after the end of the programme, respectively. The test comprised standard or problematic word problems. Some items in the post-test and retention test are near-transfer items while others are far-transfer items.

PAPER 3: LEE01421   Paper
Trainee teachers' reaction to the use of multiple intelligences in the mathematics classroom

Ngan Hoe Lee and Joon Hwang Wong, Nanyang Technological University

As the educational system in Singapore shifts from an efficiency driven approach to one that is ability driven, there is now a more urgent need to look at individual student's learning style. The concept of multiple intelligences, as proposed by Howard Gardner, fits in well as a framework for such a consideration. Since teachers are found to teach the way they were taught, this study looks at the reaction of trainee teachers' reactions to the use of musical intelligence in learning activities for lower primary mathematics. In this study, the teachers were brought through the steps of such a lesson as part of their pre-service training. A short video clip of the session will be used to illustrate the participatory level of the teachers in such a session.

Symposia 16 - RAS01424
Wounded identities and the aesthetics of pleasure in educational contexts

Vicki Crowley and Mary Louise Rasmussen, University of South Australia, Valerie Harwood, University of Queensland and Deborah Youdell, Macquarie University

Chairperson: Mary Louise Rasmussen

Panel Theme

What if, ... queer research were something more essentially disturbing than the stories we tell ourselves of our oppressions in order precisely to confirm, yet once more, our abjection, our victimized subjectivity, our wounded identity?

What if thereby queer research actively refused to forget that perversity, that chaos of pleasures and affects, that anonymic existential exigency which has been the occasion of its emergence? (Haver, 1997: 278)

This panel will reflect on how an aesthetics of pleasure might be used to proliferate ways of reading, producing and experiencing diverse genders and sexualities in educational contexts. This consideration of pleasure provides an efficacious departure from educational research that too often reinscribes pathological stereotypes of people who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer and questioning. As argued by Haver (1997), these stereotypes often work to confirm "our victimized subjectivity, our wounded identity". We use this panel to problematize people's investment in wounded identities. It will be argued that an aesthetics of pleasure is integral to each individual's ongoing project of self transformation and therefore to inciting those involved in education to consider the intensification of pleasure as a means to enabling individuals to transform themselves.

PAPER 1: CRO01425
Kiss and tell: Taking pleasure in perversity

Vicki Crowley, University of South Australia

An 'aesthetics of pleasure' that proliferates reading practices and the production of diverse genders and sexualities is often confined by many regulatory prohibitions within traditional K-12 learning environments. This paper examines pedagogical moments that occur outside the formal classroom environment, and within the queer space provided by Feast Festival, Adelaide's annual lesbian and gay cultural festival. These pleasurable pedagogical moments (as evidenced by the raucous laughter, bawdy humour and packed houses that attend the 'Kiss and Tell' forums) provide an opportunity for people to gather together and view a broad selection of film and television representations of 'lesbians', edited together around particular themes (representations of kissing, representations of sex). These excerpts are not only titillating, they are also the catalyst for conversations about the layers of meaning that underlie cultural representations of 'lesbian' lives. These conversations, conducted by panellists (from within and outside the academy) who draw on their varied expertise and experience, analyse and critique excerpts viewed by audience members and panellists alike. These excerpts, and the commentary on them, reflect the diversity of meanings that may be attached to lesbian signifiers, and, it is contended, provide an exemplary occasion by which pleasure prompts individuals to view shifting lesbian identifications and to consider their own identifications as ongoing projects of self transformation.

PAPER 2: HAR01426
Self, subjectivity and pleasured games of truth

Valerie Harwood, University of Queensland

"In every culture, I think, this self technology implies a set of truth obligations: discovering the truth, being enlightened by truth, telling the truth. All these are considered important either for the constitution of, or the transformation of, the self" (Foucault, 1997: 177-178). What if we were to play the 'games of truth differently', if we were to take truth obligations to woundedness and twist them with pleasure? This manipulation could turn the self technology of sexuality from an adhesion to victimization and abjection to a collusion with pleasures and desire. If as Foucault (1997) indicates above, self technology is connected to a set of truth obligations, what can be made by courting a different set of obligations that seek an aesthetics of pleasure? In this paper I explore how the dependence of self and subjectivity on truth can be manipulated to suit an aesthetics of pleasure.

PAPER 3: RAS01427
Wounded Identities, Sex and Pleasure: 'Doing it' at school. NOT!

Mary Louise Rasmussen, University of South Australia

Sex and pleasure are fundamental aspects of students' lives and school cultures. They are also integral to students' sense of well-being and can determine their propensity to engage or disengage with the desire to love, learn and transform themselves. Taking the fundamental role of pleasure as its starting point, this paper discusses the idea of how a Foucaultian inspired 'ethics of pleasure' might be used to proliferate ways of reading, producing and experiencing research related to sexualities and schooling in Australia and the United States. This 'ethics of pleasure' is considered through a reading of two texts, Young, Gay and Proud (YGP) (1978), a text written for lesbian and gay young people by an autonomous collective of the Melbourne Gay Teachers' and Students' Group (MGTSG) and, a letter written to Dan Savage, a nationally syndicated agony aunt in the United States.

An agony aunt is someone who publicly responds to questions about sex, love and relationships that have been penned by anonymous readers

PAPER 4: YOU01428
Wounds and reinscriptions: Constituting sex-gender and sexuality in a London secondary school.

Debra Youdell, Macquarie University

This paper considers the possibilities for and potential limits to diverse genders and sexualities within the school context. These are explored through a close reading of data generated within a school ethnography. Underpinning this analysis is the understanding that, by rendering the subject, the constituting hail ensures the discursive agency of the Other - a discursive agency which includes the possibility of reinscription. That is, it deploys Butler's notion of a politics of performative resignification. The paper examines the ways in which sex-gender and/or sexual Otherness is recuperated, redeployed and reinscribed through the discursive practices of those students who are Othered. These students' resistant practices do not assert a self which cites heteronormativity, nor effect some sort of (impossible) admittance into the sex-gender hegemony which dominates the context. Rather, their practices at once embrace and reject the wounds of the prior constitution and inscribe these again differently.

The paper illustrates students' tacit engagement in a politics of performative resignification, recuperating the wounded identities through which they have been constituted Other and reinscribing these to constitute themselves in ways which might open up possibilities for pleasures and their intensification.

SYMPOSIUM 17 - WON01431
Learning environments of different types of Singapore classrooms

Convenor: Angela F. L. Wong, Nanyang Technological University

Presenters: Angela Wong, Siew Lian Chua, Nanyang Technological University, Tan Ying Chin, Xishan Primary School, Lai Kwan Teng, Clementi Primary School, Choon Lang Quek and Barry Fraser, Curtin University of Technology, and Der-Thanq Chen, University of Canterbury

The presentations in this symposium revolves around the theme of learning environments in Singapore classrooms. They report studies which have been conducted in this field in a whole range of settings, ranging from primary school science and mathematics classrooms to secondary Chinese Language and gifted chemistry classrooms. In all cases, the students' perceptions of their classroom learning environments were sought and their associations with their attitudinal outcomes were examined. The primary school science study also examined the environment-achievement association, while the primary mathematics study investigated the learning environment of a computer-assisted mathematics class. In the study of gifted chemistry classes, the teacher-student interactions were also investigated. Finally, in the study involving the Chinese Language classrooms, an existing learning environment instrument was modified, translated and validated for use in such classes in the Singapore context.

PAPER 1: CHI01432   Paper
Upper primary pupils' classroom environment perceptions, attitudes and achievement in Science

Tan Ying Chin, Xishan Primary School and Angela F. L. Wong, Nanyang Technological University

This study of pupils' classroom environment perceptions, attitudes and achievement is the first of such studies to focus on the learning environment of the primary school science classroom in Singapore. The primary aim was to examine the relationship between pupils' perceptions of their science classroom environment and their achievement and attitudes in science. Another purpose was to compare the actual and preferred perceptions of pupils, and the perceptions between boys and girls. The instrument used to assess the pupils' perceptions was adapted from pre-existing ones. The sample used consisted of 7 intact classes of Primary 5 pupils from one coeducational government primary school in Singapore.

The investigation of attitude-environment, achievement-environment and attitude-achievement associations involved using simple and multiple correlational analyses. A univariate one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) for repeated measures was used to compare pupils' actual and preferred, and boys' and girls' perceptions. The instrument used was analyzed for internal consistency, discriminant validity, ability to differentiate between classes and its factor structure.

The findings revealed the existence of positive associations between the nature of the primary science classroom environment and the pupils' attitudinal and achievement outcomes. In addition, it was found that girls held more favourable perceptions than boys.

PAPER 2: WON01433   Paper
Students' perceptions and attitudes in upper primary computer-assisted Mathematics classrooms

Angela F. L. Wong, Nanyang Technological University and Lai Kwan Teng, Clementi Primary School

The main aim of this study was to examine the relationship between the nature of the classroom learning environment and the students' attitudes towards computer-assisted Mathematics classes. In addition, the students' actual and preferred perceptions of the computer laboratory learning environment and gender differences in students' perceptions of computer-assisted Mathematics classroom environment were also explored.

The sample used in this study comprised 177 Primary 5 (Grade 5) pupils from a government primary school located in a densely populated housing estate in Singapore. The instruments used were the actual and preferred versions of the My Computer Class Inventory (MCCI) and the Computer Lesson Attitude Questionnaire (CLAQ). A series of data analyses were conducted to establish the MCCI's internal consistency reliability, discriminant validity and ability to differentiate between perceptions of students in different classes.

The investigation of attitude-environment association involved using simple correlation and multiple regression analyses using the student as the unit of analysis. The findings from this study revealed the existence of positive associations between the nature of the computer-assisted Mathematics classroom environment and the students' attitudinal outcomes. It was also found that the perceptions of boys and girls differed; i.e., the girls held more favourable perceptions than the boys.

PAPER 3: QUE01434   Paper
Determinants and effects of perceptions of chemistry classroom learning environments in secondary school gifted education classes in Singapore

Choon Lang Quek and Barry Fraser, Curtin University of Technology, and Angela F. L. Wong, Nanyang Technological University

The present study investigated the impact of the chemistry laboratory environment and teacher-student interaction on student attitudes towards chemistry for 200 gifted secondary-school students in Singapore. The data were obtained using three instruments: the 35-item Chemistry Laboratory Environment Inventory (CLEI), the 48-item Questionnaire on Teacher Interaction (QTI) and the 30-item Questionnaire on Chemistry-Related Attitudes (QOCRA). The study confirmed the reliability and validity of the Science Laboratory Environment Inventory (adapted to create the CLEI) and the QTI for use in gifted chemistry laboratory classrooms. Statistically significant associations were found between the nature of the laboratory classroom environment and students' attitudes towards chemistry. Associations were also found between the interpersonal behaviour of the chemistry teachers and students' attitudes towards chemistry. Based on the findings, suggestions for improving the chemistry laboratory classroom environment and the teacher-student interaction for gifted students are provided.

PAPER 4: CHU01435   Paper
Validation of the Chinese Language Classroom Environment Inventory (CLCEI) for use in Singapore secondary schools

Siew Lian Chua, Nanyang Technological University, Angela F. L. Wong, Nanyang Technological University, and Der-Thanq Chen, University of Canterbury

The Chinese Language Classroom Environment Inventory (CLCEI) is a classroom environment instrument for assessing students' and teachers' perceptions of their Chinese Language classroom environment in Singapore secondary schools. It is a bilingual instrument with 48 items presented in both English and Chinese. The English version of the CLCEI was customised from the original English version of the 'What is Happening in This Class?" (WIHIC) questionnaire (Fraser, Fisher & McRobbie, 1996) and its Chinese version was modified from the Taiwanese Chinese version of the WIHIC questionnaire (Huang & Fraser, 1997) for use in Singapore Chinese Language classrooms. The CLCEI was validated using 1460 secondary three (express) Chinese Language students in Singapore. Various statistical procedures were undertaken to examine validity, reliability and the factor structure of the six 8-item scales of the CLCEI. The purpose of this paper is to describe how the CLCEI was validated and to report on the validation results. The validation results obtained were compared with that for the original WIHIC questionnaire. The outcomes of the comparisons were analysed and discussed.

SYMPOSIUM 18 - COM01437
Literacy learning longterm: Investigating children's acquisition of school literacies

Chairperson:   Barbara Comber, University of South Australia

Presenters:   Jo-Anne Reid, University of New England and Helen Nixon, University of South Australia

This symposium draws on two longitudinal studies to consider theoretical, analytical, ethical, methodological and representational questions about longitudinal case study research in literacy acquisition. We have been involved in two large studies of literacy development running simultaneously over a five year period. We will outline the studies concerned, the objectives and potential insights and pitfalls in the projects. Both studies drew on observations and interviews, as well as formal assessment data. The aim of the symposium is to discuss the value of such work, particularly the way it might contribute to questions of social justice and unsettle old versions of 'development' or 'progress'. Yet at the same time we wish to open up the perils of such longterm child studies, and examine some of the dilemmas faced by researchers working on longterm contract bases, in relation to both the subjects and the objects of the research.

PAPER 1: COM01438   Paper
Literacy development and normative fantasies: What can be learnt from watching students over time?

Barbara Comber, University of South Australia

Longitudinal case study research is labour intensive, demanding on relationships and perilous in its extended journey. It's also potentially rich in terms of generating new insights and questions. In this session of the symposium I'll consider how the longitudinal studies elicit fundamental doubts about discourses of normative literacy development, but also and at the same time raise complex dilemmas about questions of unequal outcomes. These studies begin to demonstrate the very great differences in the literacies to which Australian children have access at home and at school and the contrastive ways in which different children take up what is on offer.

PAPER 2: REI01439
Staying the distance: What ethical considerations arise from long-term data collection in schools and families?

Jo-Anne Reid, University of New England

In longitudinal literacy case study research with children, relationships between researchers and a range of research subjects must be built, balanced and constantly re-negotiated over time. These relationships reflect ongoing changes in the families, schools, teachers and peer-classroom situations of the focus children. In this session, I will outline two instances from our recent report of this research, and reflect on the ethical considerations that arose in the conduct and writing of case studies focussed on factors influencing the nature and outcomes of individual children's literacy experience in school situations over several years. Going 'behind the scenes' of the research report, I want to place particular focus on dilemmas arising in the negotiation of research relationships involving participating teachers and parents.

PAPER 3: NIX01440   Paper
"Slow and steady - not enough pace!": reviewing a longitudinal case study of one child's literacy acquisition

Helen Nixon, University of South Australia

In this part of the symposium I will consider how the assessments made of one case study child's achievement and progress worked to foreground some of his literacy and other classroom practices and to background others. I will particularly focus on what this longitudinal study might have to teach us about the centrality of visual modes of communication for some children.

SYMPOSIUM 19 - THO01490
Bourdieuian analyses of educational change

Presenters: Patricia Thomson, University of South Australia, Lew Zipin and Marie Brennan, University of Canberra

Pierre Bourdieu has been a significant influence in education and social science research generally. However, since his earlier work with Passeron on the (re)production of social status through schooling, Bourdieu's more developed theoretical framework has not been used as amply as might be expected among anglo-american educational researchers. Scholars of educational change might gain fresh insights from Bourdieu's conceptions of how the 'logic of practice', and the 'habitus' of practitioners, are distinctive to the diverse contexts of different 'professional fields'.

This symposium examines how Bourdieu's concepts of 'practice,' 'habitus' and 'field' can generate rich data and analysis in researching the shifting (post)modern contexts of educational agents. Our presentations draw upon studies in three sites: principals' associations, university governance structures and the construction of young people as the object of educational reform. These studies draw on the authors' experiences and research engagements with a range of situations and roles: that of school principals, school system executives, university administrators, and university teachers and researchers in education. In taking up Bourdieu's call for critical analysts to engage in a 'reflexive sociology' of their own contexts of practice, in order to understand how these influence research of other practical contexts, this collection of papers examines how distinctive habits and perspectives emerge in the contexts of historically derived practices.

The objectives of the symposium are:

1. to explore how Bourdieu's conceptual frameworks and methodological approaches might broadly apply in the research of educational change;
2. to illustrate concretely how Bourdieu's concepts and methods elucidate three different 'fields' of educational change.

PAPER 1: THO01491   Paper
Doubling up: The representational and reform work of principal associations

Pat Thomson, University of South Australia

One of the self appointed tasks of principals ' associations is to represent principals and to promote the status of their work. This can take the form of industrial activity around wages and conditions and also substantive engagement in various professional development activities. In recent times, principal associations have also begun to represent principals' work by developing rubrics of professional practice used for professional accreditation. The task of principals association can thus be said to be intimately concerned with 'double representation'.

Based on analysis of some employer and professional association Australian principal competency rubrics, and using Bourdieu 's theorisations of 'field', I argue that in order to 'play the game' of representation, principals associations must produce textual versions of principals' work that have considerable overlap with those produced by employers. The differences however point to the ways in which associations continue to have legitimacy with members. Playing this duplicitous game of representation means that associations must tread a strategic path through capitulation, simulation and resistance to required policies, roles and tasks. However, the increasing power and influence of principal associations is not just a product of their adeptness at playing two-handed games. I produce evidence to suggest that it is also because they have moved beyond the play of double representations to take up new positions in the educational 'field' as change agents.

PAPER 2: ZIP01492
Changing habitus in Australian higher education: Managerial governmentality and the suppression of ethical conversation

Lew Zipin and Marie Brennan, University of Canberra

This paper draws on two kinds of 'data': (1) experiences in Australian universities on the part of both authors; and (2) the work of one of the authors as Academic Workloads Project Officer at an Australian University. In interpreting the data from interviews, personal experience in a range of university committees and policy struggles within the institutions, we note that a recent context of intensified 'fiscal crisis' and 'economic rationalist' pressure - involving years of severe cuts to the public operating grants of the university sector (or 'field') - induces this Australian University toward an increasingly 'corporatist' and 'managerialist' structure in the administrative governance of academic work. Associated with this shift are moves in the habitus of people operating in various positions within the field, affecting both the practices and underlying dispositions of 'Management' and 'Academic staff.'. In moving to define all 'problems' as solvable through technologies of efficiency, there is an accompanying suppression of dialogue about ethical issues. This has the effect of curtailing the agency of academics to affect the decisions shaping their working lives, often in the forms of attacks on 'democracy' and 'collegiality' as inimical to the new interests of 'the university'. .

PAPER 3: BRE01493
Dispositional resources in an era of young people as the outputs of educational reform

Marie Brennan, University of Canberra

An alternative approach to policy analysis, using conceptual frameworks from Pierre Bourdieu and Basil Bernstein, might examine the resources made available for the dispositions and identity of those involved and affected by an educational reform or a general approach to change initiatives in the field. This paper will analyse the resources for dispositions made available to both teachers and young people as students through the contradictory moves towards the 'generic, lifelong, flexible learner' and the 'standards-based reforms' such as competency-based education, testing and school accountability moves. It works at both a methodological reflexive level and as a form of policy analysis that provides a range of ethical opportunities for critique and development.

SYMPOSIUM 21 - HAR01533
Curriculum Control

Participants:   Maree Dinan-Thompson, James Cook University, Catherine Harris and Judyth Sachs, University of Sydney, Dawn Penney, Loughborough University, and Kerry Kennedy, University of Canberra

Issues of curriculum control are broadly and globally impacting upon the work of teachers. Curriculum control as evidenced in the development of standards frameworks, the introduction of high stakes testing, continued reliance on top-down change processes and the consolidation of rigorous accountability mechanisms further marginalises and de-professionalises teachers as a workforce. This symposium presents a multilayered perspective of curriculum control through a focus on the work of the teacher, educational researchers and policy makers at an international, national and state level. Specifically,the work of 5 educational researchers is presented with a particular focus on issues of curriculum control in the areas of educational research, teacher professionalism, civics education, history, and health and physical education.

PAPER 1: DIN01534
The Rooster, Chicks or Mother Hen - who has control over curriculum change in this chookyard?

Maree Dinan-Thompson, James Cook University

This paper presents a specific case study of curriculum change at a secondary school site. It explores the journey of implementing the Trial Queensland Health and Physical Education (HPE) Key Learning Area syllabus under the guidance of the Queensland School Curriculum Council (QSCC). The interplay of external agents, teachers in the HPE faculty and the HPE Co-ordinator are studied in the attempt to gain a deeper understanding of the enabling and constraining factors influencing curriculum change. Relevant to this study is the analogy of the chookyard in exploring the levels of power and control, and more specifically the "seedy underside" (Datnow, 1998) of curriculum change. Teacher ownership and decision-making processes, balkanised cultures, multiple allegiance to groups and ambivalence in the change agent role are highlighted.

PAPER 2: HAR01535   Paper
Curriculum control: At what cost?

Catherine Harris, University of Sydney

The increasing bureaucratisation of the NSW Board of Studies, the statutory body responsible for curriculum determination in NSW, has led to a tightening of curricular controls and the further marginalisation of teacher participation in curriculum decision-making processes. This is evidenced in the development and dissemination of the 1998 Stages 4-5 History Syllabus, which was highly contested. Much of this contestation centred on issues of curriculum control. Curriculum control assumes many forms and is evidenced in the negotiation and renegotiation of curriculum at various levels across differing arenas. Throughout the development of this syllabus, curricular control was manifest in debate over teacher accountability, and subject knowledge - what historical knowledge is, and how that knowledge is best taught, learnt and assessed. This paper examines issues of curriculum control through an investigation of the syllabus development process. It is agued that the ways in which teachers define issues of curriculum control and locate the locus of curriculum control, shapes the ways in which they perceive their role and that of others in the syllabus change process. Further, exploring issues of curriculum control uncovers the power relationships underlying efforts at curriculum change, highlighting those power relationships which foster change and those which constrain it.

PAPER 3: KEN01536
Curriculum control and Civic Education in Australia

Kerry Kennedy, University of Canberra

Civic education is a relatively recent emphasis in the school curriculum. It has bilateral political support. The response of academics to the Commonwealth's initiative has not been overwhelmingly supportive (Foster, 1995; Gill and Reid, 1997; Hogan and Fearnley-Sander, 1999). Yet missing from the debate has been an analysis of civic education initiatives at the level of the States and Territories. Has the curriculum that frames classroom practice in Australian schools sought to control the construction of citizens in a particular way?

This paper will build on Kennedy (2001) where a preliminary attempt has been made to examine a sample of State/Territory civic education initiatives. There are three main points to be made:

1. The rapidity with which States and Territories have incorporated civic education into their local frameworks.
2. Local adaptations favour a broader citizenship education perspective rather than a narrow civic education perspective.
3. The extent to which local civic education curriculum can be said to "control" the construction of citizenships depends on how the concept of "active citizens" is understood, especially in light of Howard's recent critique of the term (Howard, 2001).

The real issue for debate is whether local constructions are neo-conservative in their orientation or emancipatory and the weight of evidence seems to suggest the latter.

PAPER 4: PEN01537   Paper
Contesting control; Playing a political game. Educational research and curriculum development in contexts of constraint

Dawn Penney, Loughborough University

Since the Education Reform Act of 1988, in England and Wales we have witnessed the development of a comprehensive array of policy initiatives designed to collectively (re-)establish central government control of the curriculum. Teachers, teacher educators and researchers can all claim to have been marginalised in and by these developments. All are increasingly positioned and portrayed as technicians. Drawing upon experience of undertaking qualitative and ethnographic research that has spanned a decade of policy and curriculum development in physical education, this paper will consider how educational researchers may be proactive in seeking to re-position themselves more centrally in curriculum development work. It will argue that if we are to be more active players in a political game, we need to review and extend established conceptualisations of educational research, and specifically, explore the ways in which power-relations clearly constrain but also enable researchers to actively engage in developments. The politics and ethics of researchers attempting to take a strategic stance in a highly contested curriculum field are discussed.

PAPER 5: SAC01538   Paper
Curriculum control: The cost to teacher professionalism

Judyth Sachs, University of Sydney

In recent times there have been attempts at the national and state level to develop curriculum frameworks, standards frameworks and other externally imposed structures and processes to curtail the level of autonomy and judgement of teachers. These attempts at controlling what essentially comprise significant aspects of teacher professionalism are to be strongly resisted. In this paper I examine the effects of centralised curriculum control on teacher professionalism, specifically I will focus on the extent to which such initiatives restrict teachers making decisions about context, resources and pedagogy. I argue that the increasing tendency to control teachers' work, to define what constitutes professional knowledge and judgement is eroding teacher' professionalism in general and professional identity in part. I will explore the residual, dominant and emergent effects (Williams, 1981) of curriculum control on teachers and suggest ways in which teachers might mobile to resist such forms of intrusion onto their areas of professional experience.

SYMPOSIUM 22 - WAL01539
Integrating the curriculum: A case of shifting paradigms or shifting sands?

Presenters: John Wallace, Leonie Rennie, John Malone, Fiona Budgen and Robyn Chien, Curtin University of Technology, and Grady Venville, Edith Cowan University

Introduction

John Wallace, Leonie Rennie and John Malone, Curtin University of Technology

In this symposium, we report on findings from a 4-year study of integrated curriculum practice involving observations of integrated teaching and learning in more than 20 Australian schools. Drawing our experience in these schools (focusing particularly on two case study schools) and on the international literature, we offer our observations about the factors enabling and constraining curriculum integration, student learning in integrated settings, the place of integration in the curriculum culture of schooling and the prospects for more widespread integrated practice in the future.

PAPER 1: BUG01540   Paper
Case Study 1: Teaching and learning in integrated settings

Fiona Budgen, John Wallace, John Malone and Leonie Rennie, Curtin University of Technology

In this first case study we describe an integrated program offered to a class of Year 8 students and a group of academically talented Year 10 students at one Perth high school. We observed a range of ventures involving the integration of mathematics, science and technology through the vehicle of a technology-based project. The study examined the teaching strategies, student enjoyment and student learning in these integrated settings. A variety of data collection methods was employed, including field notes, interviews, photographs and the collection of artefacts such as teaching notes and work samples. Students completed concept maps and learning journals. We present evidence that learning outcomes were more successfully achieved in some projects than others and theorise the factors that may have influenced the project outcomes.

PAPER 2: CHI01541
Case Study 2: Integrated studies and school curriculum culture

Robyn Chien and John Wallace, Curtin University of Technology

The second case study describes a Year 7 integrated study program in a Perth independent girls school. The two-week program, organised around the theme of forensic science, involved the integration of social studies, English, mathematics, science and drama. Data consisting of interviews with students, the teacher and other school personnel were collected while the principal researcher worked in the classroom as a participant observer. In describing the program, we focus particularly on how the integrated studies unit was situated in the otherwise academic curriculum culture of the school. This case offers some insights into the status of integrated studies and the prospects for "mainstreaming" this form of curriculum practice.

PAPER 3: VEN01542   Paper
Challenging the unchallengeable high ground: Curriculum integration and the school subject

Grady Venville, Edith Cowan University, and John Wallace, Leonie Rennie and John Malone, Curtin University of Technology

Commentators have described the school subject as "unchallengeable high ground" and an "impregnable fortress". Indeed, curriculum documents throughout the western world stand as evidence that the school subject is as strong as ever. There is, however, a persistent movement that is lapping at and eroding the high ground of the school subject know as curriculum integration. There is considerable breadth to the literature base about curriculum integration, including classroom testimonials, research reports and theoretical attestations of avid supporters and opponents. In this paper we review and critically analyse this literature through a theoretical framework that describes the curriculum in terms of disciplinary and worldly paradigms. While the disciplinary paradigm is still the hegemonic curriculum structure in Australia and most other countries, we suggest that there has been a shift in its dominant position.

SYMPOSIUM 23 - CHA01559
Bilateral research in education: Putting IDEA into practice in Singapore and Brunei Darussalam

Presenters: Wong Kooi Sim, University of Brunei Darussalam, S Gopinathan, Nanyang Technological University, Robyn Gail Cox, Rita Skuja-Steele, Berinderjeet Kaur, Koay Phong Lee, Vilma D'Rozario, Angela Wong, A.Lourdusamy, Soh Kay Cheng, Moo Swee Ngoh, Joy Oon Ai Chew and Wing Fatt Leong, National Institute of Education, and James Mannes Bourke, Hajah Jamilah binti Hj Mohd Yusof, Hjh Romaizah binti Hj Mohd Salleh, Wong Khoon Yoong, Hjh Zaitun binti Hj Mohd Taha, S.Chandraseagran S., Rohani MatZin, Jamilah Othman, A.Lourdusamy, Soh Kay Cheng, Moo Swee Ngoh, Hj Abdullah Hj Lampoh and Wong Kooi Sim, Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah Institute of Education

PAPER 1: SIM01560
Developing an IDEA: Overview

Wong Kooi Sim, University of Darussalam and S Gopinathan, Nanyang Technological University

Notwithstanding some apparent differences between the Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah Institute of Education (SHBIE) in Brunei Darussalam and the National Institute of Education (NIE) in Singapore, both institutes are the sole teacher education institutions in their respective countries. As such, they have similar concerns, especially in fostering greater rapprochement between theory and practice and helping teachers to "practise theory" as well as to "theorise practice." While collaborative research in education has a longer history in Singapore, the more recent development of a collaborative agenda for research in education within Brunei Darussalam had prompted the development of an annual Inter-institute Dialogue on Educational Advances (IDEA) with NIE, focusing on bilateral research in education.

The first bilateral meeting in 1998 was one of sharing ideas and experiences. During the 1999 meeting, some 13 collaborative projects were formulated. While some of these projects commenced shortly afterwards, some others required further dialogue, including e-mail communication, to refine or further refine the studies. The 2000 meeting was therefore instrumental in taking stock of the projects that would be completed, re-directed or even terminated. Hopefully, a selection of five projects - a few of which are still ongoing - for presentation at the AARE Annual Conference would provide a flavour of the ideas and concerns in the bilateral research between SHBIE and NIE.

PAPER 2: COX01561
Exploring English language teaching in primary classrooms in Brunei Darussalam and Singapore

Robyn Gail Cox and Rita Skuja-Steele, National Institute of Education and James Mannes Bourke, Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah Institute of Education

This paper will report on the findings of a collaborative research initiative, undertaken as part of the IDEA research project, and conducted with English language teachers in Brunei Darussalam and Singapore primary classrooms. The study investigated the English language teaching in the middle primary years, with a particular focus on English Language Activities (ELAs). The research aimed to collate an inventory of ELAs that learners were engaged in, as well as to investigate the manner in which school and policy contexts influence lesson implementation.

The data consists of a month long teacher-recorded ELAs, together with their reasons for incorporating the ELAs into their lessons. The twelve participating teachers were also interviewed to further explore their views. The analysed data provides an inventory of commonly used ELAs as well as insights into teacher decision-making with regard to primary English language lessons in two countries.

PAPER 3: JAM01562
Perceptions of learning primary mathematics: A comparative study of Brunei Darussalam and Singapore Primary 6 pupils

Hajah Jamilah binti Hj Mohd Yusof, Hjh Romaizah binti Hj Mohd Salleh, Wong Khoon Yoong and Hjh Zaitun binti Hj Mohd Taha, Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah Institute of Education, and Berinderjeet Kaur and Koay Phong Lee, National Institute of Education

Many factors contribute to success in learning mathematics. The pupils must have at least a moderate level of self-esteem about their mathematical ability, enjoy doing mathematical activities, complete assigned homework, know how to prepare for tests and examinations, and request for help whenever necessary. This paper explores the perceptions of a sample of Primary 6 pupils in Brunei (n = 209) and Singapore (n = 334) towards these factors and relates these perceptions to pupils' perceived grade in the Primary 6 public examination in each country. In addition to these factors, the pupils were also asked to mention the mathematics topics they find to be useful in everyday life.

The findings show interesting similarities and differences between pupils in the two countries and contribute toward the recent trends of comparative studies in mathematics education. Within each country, however, the findings will provide food for thought in the design of teaching strategies and motivation for pupils to study mathematics.

PAPER 4: CHA01563
Adolescent ways of coping in Singapore and Brunei Darussalam

S.Chandraseagran S., Rohani MatZin and Jamilah Othman, Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah Institute of Education, and Vilma D'Rozario and Angela Wong, National Institute of Education

A study on Adolescent Ways of Coping (in Singapore) was initially conducted by D'Rozario et al. In 1998, based on the Adolescent Coping Scale (ACS) by Frydenberg & Lewis (1993). The coping strategies as well as coping styles of the sample of 467 secondary students (222 girls and 245 boys) in Singapore were reported and discussed. Recently, the study was replicated using the same instrument with a sample of 705 secondary students.

A pilot study, using the ACS, with eighteen distinct coping behaviour categories, together with an additional category of "humour", which was derived from the research by Fanshaw (1993), was also conducted recently in Brunei Darussalam. A sample of 383 secondary students (221 girls and 162 boys) was employed in the pilot study, which has suggested possible areas of modification of the ACS instrument. It is envisaged that the revised instrument would then be used for a subsequent study, with a larger sample, in Brunei Darussalam.

Some comparisons are made between the results of the various studies, namely the two studies in Singapore which are separated in time, and the studies in two neighbouring countries, which are separated in space.

PAPER 5: LOU01564
Development and evaluation of teaching competence in Singapore and Brunei Darussalam

A.Lourdusamy, Soh Kay Cheng and Moo Swee Ngoh, National Institute of Education and Lim Siew Bee and Sim Wong Kooi, Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah Institute of Education

This paper attempts to combine two inter-related studies associated with the development and evaluation of teaching competencies. For the first study, a 10-item Questionnaire for the evaluation of teacher education programmes, in terms of perceived competencies, was initially developed. Whereas this instrument was used to evaluate a number of programmes in SHBIE, an augmented questionnaire with 10 additional items was used for evaluating some of the programmes in NIE. Inter-institutional comparisons are therefore based only on the 10 common items. It is assumed that soliciting the views of student teachers is crucial to refining, or reforming, teacher education curricula, which is often based on common sense and/or management's beliefs about what constitutes effective teaching. Besides seeking the student teachers' opinions on the competencies they regarded as most important, they were also asked to indicate their own strengths/weaknesses and the most contributory modules/courses vis-a-vis these competencies.

The second study is aimed at the development of co-operating teachers in the supervision of student teachers, especially in developing and evaluating desirable teaching competencies, in SHBIE. A consultant from NIE, who has had considerable experience and success in conducting workshops for co-operating teachers, would do so for a selected group of co-operating teachers in Brunei Darussalam. Besides comparing, on a pre-post basis, their perceptions regarding the development and evaluation of teaching competencies by means of a Questionnaire, their use of the Assessment of Teaching Practice form for supervising and evaluating student teachers will also be compared with a control group of co-operating teachers, before and after their exposure to the workshop.

Implications are drawn from the findings of the two studies for possible changes in pre-service teacher education, especially towards improving the development and evaluation of teaching competencies.

PAPER 6: ABD01565
Mentoring in principalship preparation: Mentor-mentee matching

Hj Abdullah Hj Lampoh and Wong Kooi Sim, Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah Institute of Education and Joy Oon Ai Chew and Wing Fatt Leong, National Institute of Education

Since 1989, some newly-appointed principals in Brunei Darussalam have been sponsored to attend the Diploma in Educational Administration programme for preparing prospective principals at the then Institute of Education in Singapore. Even though the Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah Institute of Education introduced a Practicum Strand in its Master of Education programme in Educational Management in 1997, with the express purpose of preparing future principals, a few new principals continue to be sent to the National Institute of Education in Singapore. A common feature of the two programmes is the period of attachment, during which specially selected principals serve as mentors to the mentees, who would demonstrate principalship competence by taking over, fully or partially, the management of the school towards the end of the attachment period. The matching of mentors and mentees is therefore considered to be most important.

The present study is a post hoc survey of past participants of both the programmes in Singapore and Brunei Darussalam with regard to such questions as: What, in their opinions, were the actual, desirable and feasible attitudes/behaviours/skills of their mentors in mentoring? The perceptions of these past participants, some of whom are no longer principals but are serving as senior officers in the Ministry of Education, will be compared in terms of their different backgrounds, especially between those who attended similar programmes in the two countries.

PAPER 7: GOP01566
Sustaining the IDEA: Problems and prospects

S. Gopinathan, National Institute of Education, and Wong Kooi Sim, Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah Institute of Education

Recently, both institutes have encountered serious problems arising from severe staff shortages, which are incommensurate with the substantial increases in student intakes. While this situation has considerably slowed down the bilateral research agenda in both countries, innovative coping strategies seem to have emerged. A sharing of ideas and experiences is perhaps essential to ensure the sustainability of the Inter-institute Dialogue on Educational Advances (IDEA) projects.

A close scrutiny and reflection on the strengths/weaknesses of various projects may also provide clues for a possible change in the direction and modus operandi for IDEA. In this regard, a few initiatives taken by each institute, that may have potential for bilateral research would be discussed. For example, as and when funds are available, SHBIE could consider exploring the use of Multipoint Desktop Video Conferencing, which has been effectively utilised by NIE for teaching practice supervision at a distance. Likewise, NIE researchers associated with the development of "Thinking Schools" might be able to benefit from the attempts to develop "Thoughtful Schools" in Brunei Darussalam

SYMPOSIUM 24 - GRE01577
What makes some schools hum? Investigating the achievement of outstanding outcomes in Junior Secondary schooling in New South Wales:
A preliminary project report

Presenters:   Bill Green and John Pegg, University of New England, Geoff Barnes and Paul Brock, New South Wales Department of Education and Training, and Wayne Sawyer and Steve Dinham, University of Western Sydney

A research team from the Universities of New England and Western Sydney, in partnership with the NSW Department of Education, is currently engaged in a large-scale project, addressed to the study of those processes involved in the achievement of outstanding educational outcomes, with specific reference to public schooling in NSW. Funded over three years (2001-2003) within the ARC SPIRT scheme, the project's focus is on junior secondary education (Years 7-10) - commonly regarded as a 'black hole', and increasingly an explicit object of policy and public interest and concern. The project is currently in its first year of operation, corresponding to Phase One of its research design. Even at this preliminary stage of its investigation, however, the project team is interested in entering into dialogue with the Australian research community, with a view thus to contributing to richer and more informed debate in this crucial area.

The symposium will comprise three papers. The first will present an overview of the project, and a brief account of its conceptualisation and design. The second will address some of the technical and methodological dilemmas and challenges arising from the work to date. The third will focus on the issue of subject-departments and curriculum organisation, as a key organising problematic for the project.

PAPER 1: BAR01578   Paper
Introducing AESOP: An overview of the project

Geoff Barnes and Paul Brock, New South Wales Department of Education and Training, and John Pegg, University of New England

Using the wealth of quantitative and qualitative data available in one of the world's largest school systems, this project aims to identify and analyse those junior secondary 'schooling' processes that generate outstanding educational outcomes in metropolitan, rural, and isolated NSW public schools. The focus is on those processes operating within schools, in general, but particularly within subject-departments and/or other within-school groupings or teams of teachers, that appear influential in achieving 'outstanding educational outcomes' in approximately 50 identified Years 7-10 NSW public school sites.

The research is divided in three phases, representing each year of the project. The first year will be spent on accumulating and analysing the quantitative and qualitative data on the 458 public secondary and central schools in NSW. The second year involves intensive case-study research within the 50 sites selected, focusing as appropriate on subject-departments, programs and initiatives within the schools in question. The third year will focus on the development and trialling of professional development programs designed to assist all schools to improve the quality of Years 7-10 schooling provision by enriching the teaching and learning environment for both students and teachers. This paper introduces the project and presents an account of its overall design.

PAPER 2: BAR01579   Paper
Methodological challenges: Selecting schools and other issues in the AESOP study

Geoff Barnes, New South Wales Department of Education and Training, and Wayne Sawyer, University of Western Sydney

A project such as this clearly requires a sophisticated and innovative mix of methodologies. Phase I has been focused on identifying which school-sites are likely candidates for further investigation, given the overall aims of the study. The site-selection process has involved the consideration of a wide range of quantitative and qualitative data available within the NSW Department of Education and Training.

A key feature was the use of both value-added performance data, as a primary source of evidence in choosing the English, Mathematics and Science faculty sites, and also students' BST performances in Year 5, linked to their School Certificate outcomes. These were used to identify those schools consistently achieving 'outstanding' outcomes, taking into account socioeconomic and geographic contextual factors. Additional sites in other KLAs were identified by extrapolating back from SC/HSC value-added data. As well, quantitative data relating to student attendance, truancy, counsellor referrals, and like, was drawn on, along with DET's growing body of student affective outcomes data. Qualitative data was obtained from DET's School Improvement Officers and Curriculum Consultants, as well as a variety of other stakeholders and interested parties. These sets of quantitative and qualitative data sources were then 'triangulated' against each other, in order to identify approximately 50 'sites of excellence' across traditional 'subject-departments' and whole-school programs.

This paper presents some of the technical issues and challenges in this phase of the project.

PAPER 3: DIN01580
Departmentalising knowledge and identity? Subject-areas and the (re-)organisation of Junior Secondary schooling

Steve Dinham, University of Western Sydney and Bill Green, University of New England

An important issue in the (re)conceptualisation, conduct and renewal of junior secondary schooling is the manner in which it is characteristically organised. In New South Wales, this is shaped and even determined by what has been called the 'impregnable fortress' of the school-subject department. Whether or not this is in the best interests of students or supportive of the kinds of learning needed for a new era is, however, increasingly a matter for debate. This paper seeks to review the existing state of play in the literature, with specific regard to subject-matter and secondary education. In doing so, it brings together recent work in educational management and teacher and subject-department efficacy with work in curriculum inquiry and curriculum history.

SYMPOSIUM 25 - HOL01586
Frontiers in research training: Evaluating PhD examination and supervision

Presenters: Allyson Holbrook, Sid Bourke, Jill Scevak, Robert Cantwell, Melissa Monfries, Terence Lovat, Gavin Hazel, Shen Chen and Doug Absalom, University of Newcastle

There is currently a surge of interest in research training in Australia, largely in response to DETYA's revised program of research funding for universities, but also in response to a growth in research degree enrolments and an evolution in student's expectations of research candidature. This symposium focuses on a number of projects being undertaken by the personnel of a new centre at the University of Newcastle - the Centre for the Study of Research Training and Impact (SORTI). Thesis outcomes, examiners reports, and the expectations about successful completion that shape student-supervisor relationships form the dominant theme of this symposium.

PAPER 1: HOL01587   Paper
PhD examination - Assessment's least mapped frontier

Allyson Holbrook, University of Newcastle

This paper presents a critical analysis of research studies in the area of research training in universities, particularly the PhD in the past decade. Increasing research attention is now directed at PhD completion, the process and practice of supervision, and student preparation and experience. However, there has been scant attention paid to PhD outcomes, particularly the examination of the thesis, the qualities of the research undertaken by PhD students and the effectiveness, usefulness and application of the research training received across disciplines. Research into the PhD has been restricted by a lack of international comparison and collaboration, an impoverished theoretical base, and a lack of attention to the fundamentals of learning and assessment at this advanced level of study. The final section of the paper focuses on studies of examination and how such studies are essential to an understanding of the expectations underpinning research quality.

PAPER 2: BOU01588   Paper
PhD examination and examiner characteristics

Sid Bourke, Jill Scevak and Robert Cantwell, University of Newcastle

The choice of examiners for PhD theses across disciplines tend to be based on a stable group of features, i.e. reputation in the field, publication record, subject and/or methodological expertise, and experience of research supervision and examination. In Australia each thesis is normally examined by three examiners, and there is the expectation that most or all examiners will be drawn from outside the examining institution, with possibly some from overseas. What are the results of this process? It is a question that is rarely posed, and yet may have a significant impact on the process of assessment. For any one thesis how 'balanced' are examiner characteristics and is there a difference by discipline? Do individual or collective examiner characteristics predict the ratings given to a thesis, or particular qualities of examiner reports? This paper draws on data from a study of the examination of one hundred PhD theses from one institution (i.e more than 300 examiners reports including some cases of resubmission). The findings have implications for the process of thesis examination, the interpretation of thesis reports, and advice given to supervisors and candidates.

PAPER 3: LOV01589   Paper
What qualities are rare in PhD examiner reports?

Terence Lovat, Allyson Holbrook and Gavin Hazel, University of Newcastle

A study of some 300 examiner reports from one institution indicate that the reports are far more heterogenous than reported in previous studies, particularly with respect to evaluative comment. This paper begins with an overview of the findings of a content analysis of the reports. It then proceeds to a more thorough examination of those areas that receive the least attention or less attention than reported elsewhere. For example, one of the areas that attracts the least attention is ethics. Another, more complex imbalance is between detailed and descriptive evaluative comment. Although other research has reported that examiners treat the PhD as a work-in-progress and engage in formative assessment, the degree to which this is so varies according to the rating given to the thesis, but in addition a close examination of 'instructive' comment reveals considerable variation in comment characteristics.

PAPER 4: SCE01590
Preliminary reflections on the quality of the student/ supervisor relationship in doctoral study

Jill Scevak, Robert Cantwell and Melissa Monfries, University of Newcastle

Recent trends in the funding of doctoral study in Australia has placed greater emphasis on the completion rate as opposed to the process in doctoral research. Such trends have accentuated the pressure on supervisors to manage the process effectively within a limited time frame. There are clear implications of this tendency on the quality of student/ supervisor relationships. The quality of the student/supervisor relationship has been argued by many to be critical to the successful completion of doctoral study (eg. Styles & Radloff, 2001; Caffarella & Barnett, 2000; Johnson, Lee & Green, 2000). In the current study, factors hypothesised to influence the quality of the student/supervisor relationship are investigated through a series of interviews with supervisors and students across a range of fields of study. These factors include academic issues (such as epistemological expectations, writing skills and strategies), interpersonal issues (such as dyadic interactions, conflict resolution), communication (such as feedback strategies) and institutional issues (infrastructure and pastoral support). Interview data is discussed in relation to the existing research on the effect of supervisor/student relations on doctoral completion.

PAPER 5: CHE01591
The impact of cultural conflict in PhD supervision

Shen Chen, Allyson Holbrook and Doug Absalom, University of Newcastle

According to Valimaa (1998) new postgraduate students, whatever their cultural origins encounter two cultural frames, discipline-based and institutional based, when they begin their research candidature. In addition overseas students are also faced with differences between their home culture and target culture. The difficulties that emerge for students under these conditions are not yet fully mapped or understood within the broader framework of research training. One of the problems attending such research is that significant nuances of experience are lost in the translation of the student's stories. This paper reports on the first phase of a case study of students of Chinese cultural heritage in one institution and faculty. The aim is to identify the cultural conflicts identified by the students and the nature of their impact on the development of effective research dialogue and interaction during candidature. The extended interviews on which the study is based are collected in the speaker's first language and interpreted in that language as well as in English.

Symposium 26 - PAR01614
Climbing the wall: Collaborative research over the border

Presenters:  Gary Partington, Graeme Gower, Les Mack and John Godfrey, Edith Cowan University, Anna Sinclair, Association of Aboriginal Independent Community Schools and Ken Wyatt, Education Department of Western Australia

In this symposium the issues surrounding the initiation of a research project will be explored in three papers which focus on getting research under way in Indigenous education. In the first paper, the translation of policy in Canberra into practice in schools is explored critically and consequences for conducting research related to those policies are suggested. In the second paper, entry into communities and schools to do research is considered in the context of growing disaffection with researchers in Indigenous communities. The third paper examines the problem of measuring student achievement when the available tools are incapable of accurate measurement.

PAR01615  ®   Paper
The Yes Minister factor: Policy and practice in Indigenous research

Gary Partington, Edith Cowan University and Ken Wyatt and John Godfrey, Education Department of Western Australia

In this paper, the expectations of policies in Indigenous education will be critically analysed from the viewpoint of feasibility of implementation, both as research projects and as school programs. Recent federal government policies as expressed in such reports as the National Indigenous English Literacy and Numeracy Strategy initiative and A National Strategy for the Education of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples (1996 ? 2002) are driving developments in Indigenous education in Australia at present. The potential for effective implementation of the recommendations of these reports will be considered along with an examination of the implications for the conduct of research into the process and products of implementation.

GOW01616  ®   Paper
Keeping the bastards at bay: Indigenous community responses to research

Graeme Gower and Les Mack, Edith Cowan University

Researchers are not always readily welcome in Indigenous communities. The failure of researchers to adequately explain the research they are conducting or provide useful feedback to communities, as well as the potential to use the data to condemn the participants to a deficit position in society has resulted in many Indigenous communities being unwilling to host researchers. In this paper, the implications for the conduct of a research project that will operate in a number of urban and remote communities will be discussed.

GOD01617  ®   Paper
To test or not to test?: The selection, adaptation, administration and analysis of instruments to assess literacy skills among Indigenous children

John Godfrey and Gary Partington, Edith Cowan University, and Anna Sinclair, Association of Aboriginal Independent Community Schools

This paper explains the process of selecting diagnostic reading instruments to be used with Indigenous children. The selection process included the examination of numerous instruments, consultation with various educators, classroom teachers and community leaders. The instruments finally chosen contained items that appeared to form a basis, after some adaptation, to analyse the literacy skills of Year 1 and 2 Indigenous children. However further analysis after the instruments were trialed with a sample of Indigenous children revealed that revisions were necessary to some of the instruments. Results of the preliminary assessments will be presented to indicate the success or otherwise of the selection, adaptation , administration and analysis processes.

This paper will be presented as part of Symposium 26 PAR01614 Climbing the wall: Collaborative research over the border.

SYMPOSIUM 27 - STA01627
P1 groupings: Do they place students at educational risk?

Elizabeth Stamopoulos, Edith Cowan University

The Early Childhood sector in Western Australia faces profound educational change as a result of an innovation called P1 as a result of changes to age of entry. P1 involves a deliberate mixing of pre-primary and Year 1 students. Teachers are concerned about the P1 curriculum offered to young children and the expectation on teachers to simultaneously provide a quality curriculum for two such diverse areas. The literature indicates differences between early childhood and primary education in terms of curriculum, programs of teacher training, teaching methods and styles, with implications for early childhood programs and student learning. Added to teachers$rsquo; dilemmas have been issues of guidelines, leadership and support structures, resources and expert personnel. Teachers report they have no direct evidence of the link between P1 and improved student learning. Furthermore, they are sceptical about the benefits of P1 grouping for school development, teacher development, curriculum development and community development, all of which are intended to improve student learning.

This paper will be presented as part of Symposium 27 WIL01622 Students at educational risk: Causes, correlates, consequences.

SYMPOSIUM 29- -TAG01669
SEPEP in the trenches: Is it really new millennium PE?

Presenters: Andrew Taggart, Ken Alexander and Joan Strikwerda, Edith Cowan University, Jenny Moyle, Busselton Primary School, Tom Browne, Australian College of Physical Education, Adrian Lister, York District High School, and Richard Tinning, University of Queensland

PAPER 1: ALE01670
Australian teachers’ perceptions and uses of the sport education curriculum model

Ken Alexander, Edith Cowan University

This paper reports the results of a recent questionnaire completed by 377 Australian primary and secondary physical education teachers who had used the sport education curriculum model. As such, it constitutes one of the few large-scale accounts of teachers’ perceptions of a curriculum model first proposed by Siedentop in the early 1980s. The purpose of the questionnaire was to discover how teachers implemented the model and to report whether they believed it produced better learning outcomes, was responsive to particular types of students and their needs and helped students accept responsibility for their own physical education.

The report provides support for the view that sport education can be an exemplary context for pursuing a broader range of learning outcomes than PE has traditionally sought and achieved, and that many teachers’ disappointment with the nature and quality of interactions with students can be overcome, in turn enhancing their ‘quality of working life’.

PAPER 2: MOY01671
"No longer voiceless and exhausted": Sport Education from a generalist primary school teacher’s viewpoint

Jenny Moyle, Busselton Primary School, and Joan Strikwerda-Brown, Edith Cowan University

This paper presents a female generalist primary school teacher’s perceptions of the implementation of the Sport Education in Physical Education Program (SEPEP) curriculum model. The focus teacher, a highly regarded classroom teacher, described herself as non-sporty and lacked confidence and expertise in PE teaching.

Employing a SEPEP approach to teaching PE was found to be less stressful, more enjoyable and more rewarding in terms of student outcomes. These perceptions will be discussed, together with some problems in the implementation of the program.

PAPER 3: BRO01672
Teaching for the development of offensive and defensive game skills

Tom Browne, Australian College of Physical Education

The teacher education unit was developed so that physical education student teachers would develop the planning and implementation skills, within a sport education curriculum context, to promote the development of game playing outcomes.

The learner-centered unit attempted to get students to assume some responsibility for their own learning, develop greater insight into the games they play and to become effective players, carry out different roles with assurance, and demonstrate good sporting behaviour.

The unit deconstructs the game and requires students to obtain insight into attack and defence principles while exploring player responses, and to recognise how attack and defence fits into strategic game play. The principles of attack and defence are considered in three distinct stages: Game event (‘know what’ - operational definitions of defence and attack), Insight (‘know why’ - the principles of defence and attack are important and related) and Technical control of physical capability (‘know how’ - playing games cognisant of the principles of attack and defence). Student outcomes, assessment strategies, lessons and activities and the complementary relationship of the game sense model and sport education will be discussed.

PAPER 4: TAG01673
SEPEP teachers and school-community links

Andrew Taggart, Edith Cowan University, and Adrian Lister, York District High School

The third phase of the ACB SEPEP Cricket project was the development of school-community links through the implementation SEPEP at selected schools. The schools chosen had previously conducted at least one season of SEPEP Cricket.

At workshops teachers and development officers devised a school-community link focus that considered each school’s setting and existing strategies. The project incorporated a questionnaire, interview and case study methodology.

Ten teachers (six primary), six development officers and 400 students participated in the Project. The foci selected by teachers included cluster schools and clubs, teachers as the link, links for girls, Super 8l’s school competition, development officer links and cross-curricular and assessment links.

All teachers agreed that school-community links are an important element of quality physical education programs while DOl’ss feel that for school-community links to be successful new structures need to be put in place. SEPEP cricket continues to have positive outcomes for students. Some students (32%) wanted to join a community cricket club with many now knowing where and how to join clubs following their season of SEPEP. 12% of students joined clubs during the SEPEP Cricket season and many agreed they could now occupy roles within a club other than player if given the opportunity.

PAPER 5: TIN01674
Revisiting the sport education movement: A phoenix, bandwagon or hearse for physical education

Richard Tinning, University of Queensland

This paper will respond to the four papers and revisit the ACHPER Healthy Lifestyles article (Summer 1995) of the same title. The paper will consider SEPEPl’ss success or otherwise, the form of pedagogy inherent in the model, the perceived danger of sport dominating PE offerings and the continual use of the term sport education.

SYMPOSIUM 32 - SCO01723   ePoster
ePosters

Presenters: Jonathan Bayley, Peter Hemingway, Kathleen Ol’sReilly-Scanlon and Heather Ryan, University of Regina, Canada, Steve Dinham, Catherine Scott and Kathy Skinner, University of Western Sydney, Barbara Preston, Elena Papanastasiou, University of Kansas, Meagan Demant and Gregory Yates, University of South Australia, Cedric Cullingford, Huddersfield University, and Michael Eells and Doug Lamoreaux, Pacific Lutheran University

The Teachersl’s Work and Lives SIG will be hosting a poster session at AARE 2001, and featured will be ePosters. Included will be an ePoster ‘how tol’s to get participants started on using this form of conference presentation.

A poster that is presented at a professional conference is not usually a single "chunk" of information or a single page. However a poster is usually a "stand alone" which means it must make the presentation itself.

An ePoster is any display that would typically be delivered as a poster, but, instead incorporates computer driven electronic presentation tool formatting in the design and/or delivery.

ePosters can incorporate sound, video, animation, various kinds of graphics, hyperlinks, activities, even opportunities for the viewer to make changes and/or additions. For example, with the proper interactivity and programming tools, you could change the words of the ePoster that is described above so that they said whatever you would like for them to say.

So, the bottom line is that an ePoster is an electronic presentation that is developed and/or delivered with the use of computer technologies. An ePoster has all of the characteristics of a regular poster, and it is enhanced in some way by the use of tools that are available through computer based electronic presentation applications.

An ePoster can be developed and/or delivered by using any electronic presentation application program. And, ePosters that provide opportunities for active audience participation through uses of hyperlinks, computer generated interactivity, and/or "on-the-fly" programming tend to be particularly effective.

PAPER 1: ORE01741   Paper
Another look at teachersl’s lives: (Re) Shaping the research process

Jonathan Bayley, Peter Hemingway, Kathleen Ol’sReilly-Scanlon and Heather Ryan, University of Regina, Canada

In Canada, increasing numbers of children are coming to school with risk factors such as poverty, poor housing, transiency, substance abuse, lousy nutrition, broken families - factors that contribute to a meaner and more marginalized life. According to the Campaign 2000l’ss Child Poverty in Canada: Report Card 1995, more than one in five children now live in a poor family. Moreover, among Canadal’ss largest urban centres one-quarter of preschool-aged children are poor. As a result, schools are finding it more and more difficult to meet the needs of students on their own because they simply do not have the resources, the specialized staff, or the time to "be all things to all people."

While there has been recognition about the need to look at the preparation of preservice teachers (Ol’sReilly-Scanlon, 2001), and increasing studies about the need for integration of services and the changing role of schools (Tymchak 2001), little information has been gathered nationally about the effects that the current realities of the classroom are having on the daily lives of teachers - specifically on teachersl’s satisfaction with their work, motivation and health. What is the impact of the increasing numbers of children with risk factors on teachersl’s lives? On their practice? On how they view themselves? These are some of the questions that motivated us - four university researchers - and our educational partners from government, school and community nation-wide to become involved in conducting the Canadian 2001 component of the Teacher 2000 Project: An International Study of Teacher Satisfaction, Motivation and Health.

Forging new research partnerships...

While the content of traditional surveys has often been the sole undertaking of researcher(s), with little or no design input or content from potential participants, we will describe how and why we invited educational associations, such as the Canadian Teachersl’s Federation, and provincial and territorial teacher organizations, to partner with us in this joint research endeavour. We will describe how these partnerships helped us to:

• connect with individuals willing to serve as advisors regarding local contexts, sensitivities and issues of school access;
• ensure that survey questions were appropriate to particular contexts and situations (e.g., partners were invited to submit additional questions relevant to their particular interests and contexts);
• promote the involvement of the study among teachers across Canada; and
• provide necessary funding;

This paper will outline the adaptations made to reflect the Canadian context in terms of its cultural and language diversity, and geographical size and population, as well as changes to the research process itself. We will identify how both the research structure and process were shaped by partnerships with teacher associations in a widespread, culturally diverse, officially bilingual population. While participants had the opportunity to respond to questions in either of Canadal’ss two official languages - French and English - we also note that it was necessary for us to consider the feasibility of having the survey available in a variety of different languages including Canadal’ss Aboriginal and immigrant populations.

Traditionally, survey research has involved designing, field-testing and distributing a paper survey to a select population. However, due to Canadal’ss vast geographic size and relatively large population, we describe issues surrounding the creation of a website to facilitate accessibility and generate an adequate response rate. Although hard copy surveys were made available to those who require them, this represents a different mode of delivery from that of other Teacher 2000 researchers.

We describe issues that arose when identifying factors influencing teacher health, multicultural experiences and diversity of relationships with school boards, ministries of education and the academic community. We argue how these data may differ from the smaller sampling of approximately 700 teachers per country by international colleagues in the Teacher 2000 Study, considering that all interested teachers were able to participate with encouragement from their professional organizations. We question how teacher practice and perceptions of the impact of their careers on their private life differ with level of education, perceived support/relationships in schools, with boards and with professional associations. Factors found common in teacher practice and experience across Canada and those idiosyncratic to particular environments, allow comparison between provinces, territories and the international findings in Australia, England, New Zealand, Malta and the United States are discussed. The collaborators seek understandings of teacher experience that may guide improvements to policy, professional development and support for teachers.

PAPER 2: DIN01742   ePoster
The Teacher 2000 Project: An international study of teacher and school executive satisfaction, motivation and health

Steve Dinham, University of Western Sydney

The Teacher 2000 Project is an international program of research into teachersl’s motivation, satisfaction and health, which addresses the following questions:

1. Why do teachers enter teaching?
2. How do teachers feel about teaching?
3. Are all teachers the same?
4. How do teachers feel they are regarded by their employer and society generally?
5. What aspects of their role do teachers find to be satisfying and dissatisfying?
6. Is teacher pre-service and in-service training adequate to meet the needs of todayl’ss and tomorrowl’ss teachers?
7. How teachers are coping with change and the pressures placed on them?

To date, more than 4000 teachers and school executive have been surveyed in Australia, England, the USA, Malta and New Zealand. This poster gives a summary of the projectl’ss main findings.

PAPER 3: PRE01743   Powerpoint Presentation
A bifurcated teaching profession?

Barbara Preston

For a quarter century the teachers recruited in the 1970s have dominated the teaching workforce. Their peak in the age profile has moved through from under 30 to around 50. The age profile will soon become sharply bifurcated, with large groups over 50 and under 35, and few between. The poster will illustrate implications for: staff-room culture; professional development; succession planning; the staffing of schools; and much more in teachersl’s work lives.

SCO01723    ePoster
PAPER 4: PAP01744
Teacher satisfaction and motivation in Cyprus

Elena Papanastasiou, University of Kansas

Many societies today place a considerable emphasis on education, and therefore expect a lot from teachers. However, the possibility of attaining desirable educational outcomes and meeting societyl’ss expectations of the role of the teacher strongly depends on the quality of those employed as teachers, on the motives that have influenced them to join the teaching profession, as well as on their motivation and satisfaction while they are actually teaching. The purpose of this study is to examine the motivational and satisfaction levels of teachers in Cyprus. This study should be especially interesting, in light of the fact that most teachers in Cyprus join the teaching profession because of extrinsic reasons, such as status of the profession, high salary and long summer vacations. Such information can be especially enlightening in trying to determine the effects that these extrinsic reasons for entering the teaching profession can have on the quality of the teaching profession in this country.

PAPER 5: SCO01745   Electronic Poster
Measuring motivation: Why people teach

Catherine Scott and Kathy Skinner, University of Western Sydney

What motivates people to enter teaching has been widely researched. There has, however, been a tendency for researchers to concentrate on what may be called intrinsic motivators, such as desire to work with children and young people. Indeed responses along these lines form the ‘party linel’s for most teachers questioned about their reasons for entering teaching, and ‘always wanting to be a teacherl’s features in the explicit motives reported by teachers form a variety of countries (Dinham and Scott, 2000).

However, other motives also exist, ones which are more ‘extrinsicl’s to the core business of teaching. Research conducted by Dinham and Scott has revealed that a sizeable percentage of teachers enter the profession for reasons such as liking the hours and holidays, or because they had not other options available. In addition, Provenzo has proposed a four typology of teachers, that includes motivation to teach: (1) student centred, (2) subject centred, (3) enclave builders and (4) strugglers.

The research reported here was an attempt to find ways to operationalise these ‘types’ and to develop a questionnaire that could be used to assign teachers to one of these. The instrument used was a self report on line questionnaire consisting of three sections: (1) demographics (2) 14 forced choice items that asked participants to choose between pairs of professional practices, (3) 12 items that asked participants to rate the applicability to them of reasons for entering teaching.

An international sample of 120 teachers whose work places ranged from ‘preschool to post gradl’s completed and returned the survey. Factor analysis revealed evidence for Provenzol’ss typology.

PAPER 6: SKI01746   ePoster
The Hows and Whys of ePosters

Kathy Skinner, University of Western Sydney

Computer technologies have introduced a multitude of new opportunities to our world. You will want to take optimal advantage of those opportunities. This ePoster demonstrates the importance of integrating technology into professional presentations as it helps you develop both practical and creative ideas about how to do so.

PAPER 7: DEM01747   ePoster
Primary teachersl’s attitudes toward the ‘direct instructionl’s construct

Meagan Demant and Gregory Yates, University of South Australia

Does the idea of ‘direct instructionl’s have positive or negative associations within teachersl’s minds? In this survey we sought to investigate the extent to which primary school teachers working in Adelaidel’ss northern suburbs (mainly lower SES) would relate to direct instruction as a viable teaching method in their professional work. Through approaches in school staffrooms, we distributed 190 questionnaires and had 58 of these returned via mail. A Likert-scale was used with 5 positive and 6 negative items, and a single factor resolution was evident. It was possible to identify 11 (19%) respondents exhibiting varying degrees of negative attitude, and 38 (66%) exhibiting varying degrees of positive attitude. Attitudes to direct instruction correlated positively with teachersl’s years of experience (r = .34), and with a checklist measure tapping actual knowledge of the components of direct instruction as described by Rosenshine (r = .65). Item analysis indicated a consistent pattern of generally positive orientation towards direct instruction, except in the case of one item, "Direct instruction is an effective method with all students", which elicited an agreement level of only 39%.

PAPER 8: CUL01748    ePoster
Schools and Skills

Cedric Cullingford, Huddersfield University

The research on the formal curriculum and its testing is almost as extensive as the research on school improvement but in both areas of interest there are significant gaps. One is the exploration of what skills the pupils have learned at school, from those that employers are supposed to desire to those more personal understandings, sometimes inadvertent , that lie behind the formal curriculum. The other gap is the exploration of the experience of school from the point of view of the pupils themselves. This paper is an analysis of what a large and representative cohort of school leavers state about their perceptions about what they have really learned during their years at school.

PAPER 9: EEL01749   ePoster
Possibilities of power: The hopes and tensions of teaching for change

Michael Eells, Pacific Lutheran University

The purpose of this study was to investigate the tensions that result from critical teaching for democracy and social justice in settings dominated by traditional teaching methods. With an exploration of the practices in two classrooms at a middle school-one featuring critical teaching practices and another featuring more traditional methods-this study examines the ways that students encountered conflicting regimes of truth and investigates the tensions and challenges related to the work of critical teachers. Drawing from the ideas of Foucault, this study analyzes the ways that several students used power, and the ways they accepted or rejected particular regimes of truth in different classrooms. The findings in this case illustrate ways that teachers might exercise power and influence the development of purposes on collaborative teams as well as in individual classrooms.

PAPER 10: LAM01750    ePoster
Learning to teach and teaching to learn: A conceptual foundation for the use of qualitative inquiry in the education of teachers

Doug Lamoreaux, Pacific Lutheran University

The ability to pose questions and reflect on possible responses to them is important for all teachers who will better understand their work with the young people in their classrooms. This paper explores the possibilities and outcomes of the use of qualitative inquiry as a primary vehicle in the education of teachers and the ways in which it may enrich their lives as teachers. Specific attention is directed to the sensibilities and skills associated with the use of qualitative inquiry and the ways in which it reinforces teachersl’s abilities to observe, listen, reflect, and pose questions. Drawing from examples of teachers who employ qualitative inquiry in the pursuit of graduate degrees, the author examines the ways that teachers make decisions relating to the social, political, and practical issues they encounter in relationships with parents, colleagues, and students.

SYMPOSIUM 33 - WRI01059
An investigation of a curricular innovation in physical education

Presenters:  Steven Wright, Michael McNeill, Joan Fry and Clara Tan, Nanyang Technological University

The Ministry of Education, Singapore has mandated that schools implement a new approach to teaching games within the physical education curriculum. This innovation, called the Games Concept Approach (GCA), is similar to the Teaching Games For Understanding approach and is a departure from teaching games-related activities from a more traditional, skills-based approach. This change is in line with Singapore schools placing more emphasis on creative and critical thinking by students, as part of the "Thinking Schools, Learning Nation" mission. The sport pedagogy faculty within the Physical Education and Sports Science (PESS) academic group of the National Institute of Education, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore has engaged in a pilot study to investigate the implementation of the GCA in primary schools. The research team set out to determine the impact of the GCA approach on a range of participants. The sample for this study included eleven trainee (student) teachers, 11 cooperating teachers in schools and pupils in grades five and six. One purpose of the study was to determine the level of support systems and the type of challenges trainee teachers from PESS, who were completing their final nine-week practicum, experienced when using the GCA. Feedback from cooperating teachers was also obtained to assess their views of the GCA, both in the teaching of physical education in general, and specifically as taught by the trainee teacher. The pupilsl’s perspective was also investigated to understand how they perceived the GCA lessons as opposed to their former, more traditional physical education lessons. Data were collected on all three categories of participants through semi-structured interviews, which were conducted one-on-one for trainee and cooperating teachers, but through focus groups with the pupils. Trainee teachers also provided data through a journal of their teaching using the GCA, plus lesson plans and evaluations of their lessons. All pupils were also given a questionnaire to complete. Each trainee teacher was also videotaped four times, which included pre and post sessions of pupils engaged in game play to help determine the effectiveness of the GCA, as well as two lessons that focused on the trainee teachers utilizing the approach. Results of this study will be discussed and included in the context of a longitudinal, in-depth study of the GCA.

PAPER 1: MCN01751
A Trainee Teacherl’ss Perspective of the Games Concept Approach

Michael McNeill, National Institute of Education, Singapore

The Ministry of Education, Singapore has mandated that schools implement a new approach to teaching games within the physical education curriculum, as part of the "Thinking Schools, Learning Nation" mission.

The research team from PESS (NIE) set out, as part of the investigation, to determine the impact of the GCA approach on a cohort of eleven post-graduate trainee teachers (TTs). One purpose of this investigation was to determine how useful their pre-service education had been in providing the essential theory and practices for the GCA model. Another purpose was to determine the TTsl’s perspective about the use of this approach when teaching and finally to investigate what challenges and successes were experienced during the practicum. Data was collected from all TTs through observation, videotape and semi-structured interviews, which were conducted individually in private. Trainee teachers also provided data through a journal of their teaching using the GCA, plus lesson plans and evaluations of their lessons. Additionally all TTsl’s were invited to attend a plenary session on completion of the practicum when they were given the opportunity to share their opinions with each other. This final source of data collection proved to be the most valuable as it more accurately defined what the GCA needed for successful implementation and produced a collective reflectivity. Results from this part of the study will be discussed in the context of an initial investigation into systemic curricular review.

PAPER 2: WRI01752
Implementation of the games concept approach from the cooperating teachersl’s perspective

Steven Wright, National Institute of Education, Singapore

As stated in the introduction, this view of the cooperating teachersl’s perspective is part of a larger study examining a curricular innovation of the games concept approach (GCA). As the initial question was concerned with the trainee teachersl’s perception of implementing the GCA, it seemed logical to study the role of the cooperating teacher (CT) as well. As stated earlier, data were collected on these participants through semi-structured interviews. All of the CTs had heard of the GCA, save for one who was not PE trained. Their ‘trainingl’s in the approach varied from taking a two-day workshop to taking a 20-hour in-service module. Half of the participants spoke of being comfortable enough with the GCA to help their TTs and half felt that they were of little help with the approach specifically. All of the CTs stated that they learned something by watching and talking to their TT about the GCA, and all of the CTs expressed a desire to be trained further in the approach. Implications of this limited pilot will be discussed in relationship to a larger three-year study on the GCA.

PAPER 3: FRY01753
A games concept approach to teaching physical education: Pupilsl’s perspectives

Joan Fry and Clara Tan, National Institute of Education, Singapore

Trainee physical education (PE) teachers (n=10) used a games concept approach (GCA) in their delivery of nine-week instructional modules to upper primary classes (n=10). In order to determine the quality of the learnersl’s experiences of the GCA, the pupils (Tn=297) completed a one-paged questionnaire comprising six open-ended items. Information was sought about the childrenl’ss perceptions of the nature of the GCA, the module focus, the aspects of the lesson seen as most and least enjoyable, the significance of what was learnt and specifics of what they learnt during the lessons. Data were open coded using analytic induction techniques and then reduced using axial coding (Strauss & Corbin, 1990). The key findings in terms of studentsl’s perceptions of the instructional approach were that the GCA was enjoyable, exciting and challenging as well as focussed on learning "how to play" the game and learning "about the game". Almost all children recognised that, as well as learning skills, they had been learning how to play, often citing situationally specific games strategies. The most liked aspects of the GCA experiences were, again, learning how to play as well as playing the game. These contrasted with their not liking drills, or not being able to play (because of not having skill or simply running out of lesson time or the teacher over-talking). With regard to important things they had learnt, the children noted the significance for them of teamwork as well as general and specific tactical GCA knowledge. Although the study was limited by lack of data about prior PE experiences, the information gained was useful in refining the ongoing study.