Bridging the gap for at-risk readers: reading theory into classroom practice. This project will merge theoretical and practical aspects of teaching reading through assimilating research with teachers' pedagogical knowledge and experiences to ensure sustainable, differentiated classroom reading interventions for all P-3 (preparatory year to year three) readers, particularly at-risk students.
Career change teachers: Addressing teacher shortages in Australia . Australia is facing a teacher shortage crisis. Consequently, there have been concerted efforts by governments to attract people into teaching from other sections of the workforce. However, career change teachers often do not stay longer than five years in the profession. There is little evidence on how their retention can be enhanced. This project aims to better understand the differing motivations and experiences of these teach ....Career change teachers: Addressing teacher shortages in Australia . Australia is facing a teacher shortage crisis. Consequently, there have been concerted efforts by governments to attract people into teaching from other sections of the workforce. However, career change teachers often do not stay longer than five years in the profession. There is little evidence on how their retention can be enhanced. This project aims to better understand the differing motivations and experiences of these teachers from diverse backgrounds, and to determine how they can be better prepared and supported through their early years of teaching. A clear benefit of this project will be the longer term success for career change teachers and their schools and will ensure young people are not disadvantaged by high teacher turnover. Read moreRead less
Improving outcomes through accessible assessment and inclusive practices. Complex assessment tasks and pedagogies present barriers to the learning and achievement of students with disability, including those with language and/or attentional difficulties. This research will test: 1) whether accessible assessment task design leads to improved student outcomes; 2) whether enhancing teachers’ inclusive practice improves student access to formative assessment pedagogies, enabling more accurate studen ....Improving outcomes through accessible assessment and inclusive practices. Complex assessment tasks and pedagogies present barriers to the learning and achievement of students with disability, including those with language and/or attentional difficulties. This research will test: 1) whether accessible assessment task design leads to improved student outcomes; 2) whether enhancing teachers’ inclusive practice improves student access to formative assessment pedagogies, enabling more accurate student understanding of assessment aims and requirements; and 3) how improvements in task design and teacher practice can be sustained and upscaled across secondary school departments. Expected outcomes of international significance are more inclusive learning and assessment practices with the potential to benefit all students.Read moreRead less
Investigating the efficacy, complexity and sustainability of teacher change. This project aims to investigate the path from professional development to changes in teaching practices and student achievement. As a randomised controlled trial, this study integrates sophisticated quantitative and qualitative methods, driving innovation in educational research. Expected outcomes include significant insights into how professional development can impact measurably in ways that benefit the ongoing renew ....Investigating the efficacy, complexity and sustainability of teacher change. This project aims to investigate the path from professional development to changes in teaching practices and student achievement. As a randomised controlled trial, this study integrates sophisticated quantitative and qualitative methods, driving innovation in educational research. Expected outcomes include significant insights into how professional development can impact measurably in ways that benefit the ongoing renewal of Australia's teachers to enhance student outcomes. This project will provide evidence to inform teacher development policy and practice in order to enhance student outcomes.Read moreRead less
Designing effective learning experiences: Investigating novice and expert teachers’ design processes. Quality teaching leads to quality learning outcomes for students. Primary school teachers are responsible for designing learning experiences for their students in an increasingly complex environment. This project will advance understanding by: characterising and identifying differences in how novice and expert teachers approach the design of learning experiences for their students; capturing exp ....Designing effective learning experiences: Investigating novice and expert teachers’ design processes. Quality teaching leads to quality learning outcomes for students. Primary school teachers are responsible for designing learning experiences for their students in an increasingly complex environment. This project will advance understanding by: characterising and identifying differences in how novice and expert teachers approach the design of learning experiences for their students; capturing expert design processes through practice examples; and investigating how expert practice examples stimulate novice teachers to design learning experiences. This new understanding of teachers' design processes is necessary to enhance teacher preparation and continued professional learning.Read moreRead less
Improving numeracy outcomes for young Indigenous children through the Patterns and Early Algebra Preschool (PEAP) professional development program. The study aims to improve mathematics outcomes for young Indigenous children and advance the pedagogical content knowledge of early childhood educators and working towards closing the gap in numeracy achievements for Indigenous children. The study will add to the research literature on early algebraic thinking and mathematical reasoning.
Improving teacher assessment using exemplars and online moderation. This project aims to assess the dependability of teacher judgement using psychometric scaling and online moderation. The project will use an innovative approach to connect achievement standards and judgement-practice for middle-year students in Australian education system. Expected outcomes of the project include the development of scaled work samples exemplifying A-E standards of achievement, refined methods for the consistency ....Improving teacher assessment using exemplars and online moderation. This project aims to assess the dependability of teacher judgement using psychometric scaling and online moderation. The project will use an innovative approach to connect achievement standards and judgement-practice for middle-year students in Australian education system. Expected outcomes of the project include the development of scaled work samples exemplifying A-E standards of achievement, refined methods for the consistency and comparability of assessment decisions, and a new approach to moderating teacher judgements. This project should provide significant benefits in building teachers’ assessment capabilities, shaping policy and teacher preparation.Read moreRead less
Educating preservice teachers to teach diverse learners. This project aims to investigate links between teacher educators’ reflexive decision making and the preparation of teachers for teaching in socially and culturally diverse Australian classrooms. The project takes a transdisciplinary approach, bridging the fields of epistemic cognition and reflexive decision making, to explore how rigorous teaching can be enacted in socially and culturally diverse classrooms. Expected outcomes include enh ....Educating preservice teachers to teach diverse learners. This project aims to investigate links between teacher educators’ reflexive decision making and the preparation of teachers for teaching in socially and culturally diverse Australian classrooms. The project takes a transdisciplinary approach, bridging the fields of epistemic cognition and reflexive decision making, to explore how rigorous teaching can be enacted in socially and culturally diverse classrooms. Expected outcomes include enhanced capacity of those preparing future teachers for new classroom conditions, which will provide benefits for a quality teaching workforce.Read moreRead less
Investigating the effectiveness of teacher education for early career teachers in diverse settings: a longitudinal study. This project investigates the effectiveness of teacher education programs in Victoria and Queensland in preparing teachers for the variety of school settings in which they begin their careers. The findings will inform state and national policy, as well as the work of professional regulation authorities and teacher education providers.
Supporting teachers and teaching in flexible and non-traditional schools . This project aims to address a critical gap in knowledge about the experiences and conditions of people who teach in flexible and non-traditional schools in Australia. These schools provide a second chance at education for young people with challenging behaviours and/or learning problems. This project expects to generate new knowledge about the experiences and needs of these teachers, using a combination of in-depth resea ....Supporting teachers and teaching in flexible and non-traditional schools . This project aims to address a critical gap in knowledge about the experiences and conditions of people who teach in flexible and non-traditional schools in Australia. These schools provide a second chance at education for young people with challenging behaviours and/or learning problems. This project expects to generate new knowledge about the experiences and needs of these teachers, using a combination of in-depth research methods. Expected outcomes include detailed understanding of support needs for this workforce. This will significantly benefit teachers, sponsors and principals through recommendations on best practice management of this important work, along with evidence-based training artefacts for staff recruitment and retention.
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