Australian Volunteers Abroad in Communities in the Asia/Pacific Region. Each year over 300 Australian volunteers work abroad in communities in the Asia Pacific region. This project researches key questions about the role of volunteers in contributing to regional stability, community capacity building and poverty alleviation. The research also explores questions about the preparation and knowledge required for overseas volunteers working in local communities in the future. The project aims to ana ....Australian Volunteers Abroad in Communities in the Asia/Pacific Region. Each year over 300 Australian volunteers work abroad in communities in the Asia Pacific region. This project researches key questions about the role of volunteers in contributing to regional stability, community capacity building and poverty alleviation. The research also explores questions about the preparation and knowledge required for overseas volunteers working in local communities in the future. The project aims to analyse an important aspect of Australia's interaction with the Asia Pacific region; identify key features of volunteering from the perspective of volunteers, volunteer organisations, host communities and government; and develop up-to-date research material and procedures for preparing Australian volunteers.Read moreRead less
Discipline and Diversity: Cultural Practices and Dispositions of Learning. This project, based in six primary schools across a number of regions in the Sydney metropolitan area, will examine the links between ethnicity, sociocultural background and 'scholarly habitus' - the embodied dispositions and educational capital necessary for participation in the Australian educational system. It will explore the extent to which such a habitus can be explained by ethnicity, or whether it also relates to a ....Discipline and Diversity: Cultural Practices and Dispositions of Learning. This project, based in six primary schools across a number of regions in the Sydney metropolitan area, will examine the links between ethnicity, sociocultural background and 'scholarly habitus' - the embodied dispositions and educational capital necessary for participation in the Australian educational system. It will explore the extent to which such a habitus can be explained by ethnicity, or whether it also relates to a complex set of factors related to family background and socioeconomic status, manifest in specific home- and school-based practices.Read moreRead less
Productive Partnerships for Teaching Quality: Quality Improvement, School-Community Practice and Teacher Education in and for Rural and Remote Settings. This project aims to develop a partnership between two teacher-education institutions and eleven school districts in NSW, in researching quality improvements in teaching for rural and remote areas. These areas and their communities, including schools, are clearly under pressure, given global economic developments. Using various forms of data ana ....Productive Partnerships for Teaching Quality: Quality Improvement, School-Community Practice and Teacher Education in and for Rural and Remote Settings. This project aims to develop a partnership between two teacher-education institutions and eleven school districts in NSW, in researching quality improvements in teaching for rural and remote areas. These areas and their communities, including schools, are clearly under pressure, given global economic developments. Using various forms of data analysis, case-studies, interviews, Web-networks and school-based action research, the project will identify successful strategies for building rural teacher and community capacity, improving educational outcomes for all children, and appropriately preparing and retaining teachers for rural schools. The project will make recommendations for general educational policy and practice and for teacher education.Read moreRead less
Engaging economically disadvantaged adolescent girls in physical activity and healthy eating to improve health and prevent obesity. Secondary school represents the final opportunity to influence individuals as they develop adult lifestyle behaviours and enter a transitional period in their lives. Considering the increased prevalence of lifestyle diseases among Australian adults and increases in the prevalence of obesity among young Australians, targeting health-promoting behaviours in adolescent ....Engaging economically disadvantaged adolescent girls in physical activity and healthy eating to improve health and prevent obesity. Secondary school represents the final opportunity to influence individuals as they develop adult lifestyle behaviours and enter a transitional period in their lives. Considering the increased prevalence of lifestyle diseases among Australian adults and increases in the prevalence of obesity among young Australians, targeting health-promoting behaviours in adolescents is clearly a national priority. Furthermore, rates of obesity are much higher in economically disadvantaged areas, with girls more susceptible to the SES disadvantages. This project has the potential to develop a knowledge base and improve the health behaviours of current and future Australians most at risk for the development of lifestyle diseases.Read moreRead less
Addressing the teacher exodus: Enhancing early career teacher resilience and retention in changing times. This research will produce new knowledge, strategies, models and recommendations that will help to keep early career teachers in the profession in regional, rural and remote areas. In doing so it will address the problem of teacher shortage that is currently threatening the nation's educational, economic and social outcomes. The research outcomes will have particular credibility at the natio ....Addressing the teacher exodus: Enhancing early career teacher resilience and retention in changing times. This research will produce new knowledge, strategies, models and recommendations that will help to keep early career teachers in the profession in regional, rural and remote areas. In doing so it will address the problem of teacher shortage that is currently threatening the nation's educational, economic and social outcomes. The research outcomes will have particular credibility at the national level because they will be the result of dialogue and collaboration across three universities and six industry partners who are the key stakeholders in teacher employment in two states. In addition, the collaborative approach will facilitate implementation of recommendations at the local, state and national levels.Read moreRead less
Maximising the benefits of diversity in university through cross-cultural interaction. Australia is unique among Western nations because of its proximity to Asia and its ability to attract large numbers of international students to its universities. This issue is extremely important as numerous Asian countries (China and India, in particular) have become increasingly dominant players in global markets. This research will contribute to enhancing Australia's capacity to understand and effectively ....Maximising the benefits of diversity in university through cross-cultural interaction. Australia is unique among Western nations because of its proximity to Asia and its ability to attract large numbers of international students to its universities. This issue is extremely important as numerous Asian countries (China and India, in particular) have become increasingly dominant players in global markets. This research will contribute to enhancing Australia's capacity to understand and effectively engage with diverse others through a greater understanding of other cultures and societies. The insights gained from this research will allow us to better prepare our university graduates with the skills necessary to benefit from this diversity. Read moreRead less
Professional learning for knowledgeable action and innovation: The development of epistemic fluency in higher education. The ability to work effectively with complex knowledge, as a member of a multidisciplinary team, is essential for many areas of professional practice and in other areas of graduate work. Little is known about the abilities that allow individuals, teams and professional communities to work effectively with complex knowledge. The project will therefore help understand some key a ....Professional learning for knowledgeable action and innovation: The development of epistemic fluency in higher education. The ability to work effectively with complex knowledge, as a member of a multidisciplinary team, is essential for many areas of professional practice and in other areas of graduate work. Little is known about the abilities that allow individuals, teams and professional communities to work effectively with complex knowledge. The project will therefore help understand some key aspects of innovation and of knowledge-intensive work. This has implications for individual employability, the competitiveness of Australian firms in a global economy and the ability of Australian organizations to innovate and improve, using the best available evidence. Project outcomes will be able to inform the enhancement of professional education.Read moreRead less
Identity, Belonging and Citizenship in urban and regional Australia. This project examines a sense of identity, and belonging in relation to citizenship among young people in urban and regional Australia. The project will examine what it means to be an individual, and to have a sense of belonging, and what it means to be an Australian. The project will show where understandings are common to adolescents and young adults. An additive model is proposed of the personal and social identities that a ....Identity, Belonging and Citizenship in urban and regional Australia. This project examines a sense of identity, and belonging in relation to citizenship among young people in urban and regional Australia. The project will examine what it means to be an individual, and to have a sense of belonging, and what it means to be an Australian. The project will show where understandings are common to adolescents and young adults. An additive model is proposed of the personal and social identities that are particular to urban and regional areas of Australia, that have discrete historical, gendered, social and economic foundations. Innovative methodologies integrate implicit and explicit attitudes as aspects of self knowledge. The project therefore contributes to a new contextualized understanding of Australian identity, democracy and citizenship.
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Beyond training and learning: integrated development practices in organisations. It is necessary for Australian businesses to maintain and enhance their productivity in the competitive global marketplace. As enterprises anticipate and face the challenges of the contemporary economy, a central concern is ensuring that employees learn what is needed to engage successfully with these challenges. Rapid growth in unstructured training in organisations demonstrates the importance of focusing on learni ....Beyond training and learning: integrated development practices in organisations. It is necessary for Australian businesses to maintain and enhance their productivity in the competitive global marketplace. As enterprises anticipate and face the challenges of the contemporary economy, a central concern is ensuring that employees learn what is needed to engage successfully with these challenges. Rapid growth in unstructured training in organisations demonstrates the importance of focusing on learning that is integrated into work processes. The outcomes of this project will help organisations exploit the productive potential of these different forms of learning. It will do this by identifying the links between organisational imperatives and the development of personnel.Read moreRead less
Australia's International Relations in Education 1945-2000. The project provides the first comprehensive historical account of Australia's international relations in education, presented in light of evolving policy and strategic concerns. International education has become increasingly important for Australian foreign policy and national development post-WW2, and has been taking on particular weight in educational policy and practice. The project investigates how pursuing the national interest ....Australia's International Relations in Education 1945-2000. The project provides the first comprehensive historical account of Australia's international relations in education, presented in light of evolving policy and strategic concerns. International education has become increasingly important for Australian foreign policy and national development post-WW2, and has been taking on particular weight in educational policy and practice. The project investigates how pursuing the national interest through international engagement has helped shape the educational dimensions of economic and social policy in Australia. Developing an innovative conceptual framework - based on a contrast between the logic of internationalism and of globalisation - is of particular significance.Read moreRead less