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Exemplary early childhood educators at work: A multi-level investigation. Exemplary early childhood educators at work: A multi-level investigation. This project aims to inform strategies to better attract, prepare, recognise, support and retain a high quality workforce, by investigating the complexity of early childhood educators’ work. Seemingly entrenched workforce shortages threaten the objectives that governments and families seek through investment in early childhood education. Popular imag ....Exemplary early childhood educators at work: A multi-level investigation. Exemplary early childhood educators at work: A multi-level investigation. This project aims to inform strategies to better attract, prepare, recognise, support and retain a high quality workforce, by investigating the complexity of early childhood educators’ work. Seemingly entrenched workforce shortages threaten the objectives that governments and families seek through investment in early childhood education. Popular images of work with young children as easy and instinctual, or of teaching as only school based, mislead potential workforce entrants and erode the status of educators, leading to attrition. This project’s audit and description of exemplary educators’ work, across each level of mandated qualification, will inform strategies to sustain a high quality early childhood workforce into the future.Read moreRead less
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
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE120101469
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$375,000.00
Summary
The effects of the National Assessment Program - Literacy and Numeracy on Australian School Communities. The National Assessment Program - Literacy and Numeracy is a significant part of Australian schooling for all stakeholders, but there is little research investigating claims of improved educational outcomes. This project examines the positive and negative effects of the National Assessment Program - Literacy and Numeracy testing on classroom pedagogy, curriculum and student learning through t ....The effects of the National Assessment Program - Literacy and Numeracy on Australian School Communities. The National Assessment Program - Literacy and Numeracy is a significant part of Australian schooling for all stakeholders, but there is little research investigating claims of improved educational outcomes. This project examines the positive and negative effects of the National Assessment Program - Literacy and Numeracy testing on classroom pedagogy, curriculum and student learning through the experiences of teachers and parents.Read moreRead less
How schools foster refugee student resilience. This project aims to investigate the work of schools that successfully resettle and include refugee students by creating the social and educational conditions that enhance their resilience. The project expects to provide education sectors, schools, and refugee service providers with knowledge about how school-based policies and practices can foster refugee student resilience.
Keeping the best: how school leaders engage and retain high quality early career teachers. This project will investigate how school leaders use micropolitical strategies to engage and retain high quality early career teachers. It will develop a framework for school leaders to guide policies and practices to keep the best early career teachers in the profession.
Improving middle leading practices in schools to enhance student learning. This project aims to understand how middle leaders in schools can build teacher capacity to positively influence student learning. With Australian students falling behind their peers internationally, improving academic results is a national imperative. School-based professional learning for teachers is key to achieving that, and middle leaders are recognised as important facilitators of such learning. Using practice-based ....Improving middle leading practices in schools to enhance student learning. This project aims to understand how middle leaders in schools can build teacher capacity to positively influence student learning. With Australian students falling behind their peers internationally, improving academic results is a national imperative. School-based professional learning for teachers is key to achieving that, and middle leaders are recognised as important facilitators of such learning. Using practice-based methodology, the project will study how their implementation of professional learning impacts on classroom teaching and student outcomes. The anticipated results will enable the development of practices to inform a charter of middle leadership best practice for improving teaching and learning in Australian schools. Read moreRead less
Making a digital difference? An investigation of new technologies in secondary schools. This project addresses the long-standing question of why digital technologies have largely failed to have a consistent impact on the core processes of schools and schooling. The overarching aim of the project, therefore, is to identify the socio-technical adjustments that might be made within schools to facilitate ‘better’ uses of digital technology. Using an innovative combination of large-scale surveying, i ....Making a digital difference? An investigation of new technologies in secondary schools. This project addresses the long-standing question of why digital technologies have largely failed to have a consistent impact on the core processes of schools and schooling. The overarching aim of the project, therefore, is to identify the socio-technical adjustments that might be made within schools to facilitate ‘better’ uses of digital technology. Using an innovative combination of large-scale surveying, in-depth ethnographic study and critical participatory design, the project will: provide rich insights into why digital technologies are often not being used to their full potential in schools; and actively collaborate with school communities in experimenting and constructing alternatives.Read moreRead less
Walan Mayiny: Indigenous leadership in higher education. This project aims to explore the way universities currently ‘do business’ with Indigenous Australians through focusing on Indigenous leadership in higher education. It will identify the essential components of Indigenous leadership and will establish a model of best practice for the inclusivity of Indigenous leadership within higher education governance structures. Particular focus will be placed on the roles and values of senior Indigen ....Walan Mayiny: Indigenous leadership in higher education. This project aims to explore the way universities currently ‘do business’ with Indigenous Australians through focusing on Indigenous leadership in higher education. It will identify the essential components of Indigenous leadership and will establish a model of best practice for the inclusivity of Indigenous leadership within higher education governance structures. Particular focus will be placed on the roles and values of senior Indigenous appointments as well as factors effecting institutional fit and contribution to Indigenous outcomes. In addition the project will develop new tools and methods to explore this under-theorised area.Read moreRead less
School principals’ diminishing wellbeing. School principals’ diminishing wellbeing. This project aims to investigate the effect of State Education Departments’ policy interventions designed to improve school principals’ flagging wellbeing. Increasing competition, accountability and public scrutiny make principals stressed; since their influence on students is second only to teachers’, this threatens Australia’s socioeconomic outcomes. The project will map policy interventions to changes in princ ....School principals’ diminishing wellbeing. School principals’ diminishing wellbeing. This project aims to investigate the effect of State Education Departments’ policy interventions designed to improve school principals’ flagging wellbeing. Increasing competition, accountability and public scrutiny make principals stressed; since their influence on students is second only to teachers’, this threatens Australia’s socioeconomic outcomes. The project will map policy interventions to changes in principals’ motivation and wellbeing, and share information about the most productive and cost effective interventions with key stakeholders across Australia. This research could reverse the declining wellbeing of Australia’s school leaders.Read moreRead less
Out-of-field Teaching: Sustaining Quality Practices Across Subjects. Teaching out-of-field (teaching a subject without qualifications) is a rising concern internationally, and is linked to attrition, stress, and reduced student learning outcomes. With a comparatively high percentage of out-of-field teachers, Australia is exposed to significant social, economic and educational costs. Through the development of longitudinal case studies, this project investigates the changing landscape of teacher ....Out-of-field Teaching: Sustaining Quality Practices Across Subjects. Teaching out-of-field (teaching a subject without qualifications) is a rising concern internationally, and is linked to attrition, stress, and reduced student learning outcomes. With a comparatively high percentage of out-of-field teachers, Australia is exposed to significant social, economic and educational costs. Through the development of longitudinal case studies, this project investigates the changing landscape of teacher perceptions and practices over three years, within school institutional cultures relating to teacher assignment, support, and out-of-field mathematics and science teaching. Outcomes of the project will aim to inform the development of system and school policy and practice, in dealing with this internationally pervasive issue.Read moreRead less