Providing the Mathematical Foundation for an Innovative Australia within Reform Based Learning Environments. The focus of this project is the pedagogical change that The Review of Teaching and Teacher Education indicates must take place in order to lay the quantitative foundations for advancing innovation, science, technology, and mathematics, while satisfying the requirements of a reform-based learning environment. Professional learning directed at teachers' pedagogical content knowledge and be ....Providing the Mathematical Foundation for an Innovative Australia within Reform Based Learning Environments. The focus of this project is the pedagogical change that The Review of Teaching and Teacher Education indicates must take place in order to lay the quantitative foundations for advancing innovation, science, technology, and mathematics, while satisfying the requirements of a reform-based learning environment. Professional learning directed at teachers' pedagogical content knowledge and belief structures with respect to mathematics within an environment of curricular change, will be evaluated in evidence-based terms related to teacher change and student outcomes. Significance includes the context, the middle school years in rural district schools, and the influence of technology on pedagogy.Read moreRead less
Digital Divas: Designing approaches to enthuse girls' interest in ICT studies and ICT careers. A strong information and communications technology (ICT) industry, a skilled ICT workforce and excellence in ICT research is vital to Australia's future. However, girls' interest in ICT, and the numbers of women entering the ICT workforce, are at record lows, while Industry skills are critically short. Digital Divas will pioneer a program to build girls' ICT skills and confidence, increasing their mot ....Digital Divas: Designing approaches to enthuse girls' interest in ICT studies and ICT careers. A strong information and communications technology (ICT) industry, a skilled ICT workforce and excellence in ICT research is vital to Australia's future. However, girls' interest in ICT, and the numbers of women entering the ICT workforce, are at record lows, while Industry skills are critically short. Digital Divas will pioneer a program to build girls' ICT skills and confidence, increasing their motivation to study ICT and enter the ICT workforce. The benefits of education will be maximised by addressing the gender digital divide evident in classrooms, universities and professions.Read moreRead less
Longitudinal Study of Indigenous Student Retention and Success in High School. This longitudinal study of the implementation of an Aboriginal secondary student retention and achievement program in ten centres in Western Australia will result in a policy and program framework for better education of Indigenous students. Policy formulation and the development of theoretical propositions regarding the ways schools and agencies work with Indigenous students will be an outcome of the project. This is ....Longitudinal Study of Indigenous Student Retention and Success in High School. This longitudinal study of the implementation of an Aboriginal secondary student retention and achievement program in ten centres in Western Australia will result in a policy and program framework for better education of Indigenous students. Policy formulation and the development of theoretical propositions regarding the ways schools and agencies work with Indigenous students will be an outcome of the project. This is a significant project because it will provide evidence of the success of potentially valuable strategies to encourage Indigenous students to remain at school, complete Year 12 and enter further education or the work force.Read moreRead less
Supporting personalised learning in secondary schools through the use of specific mathematics assessments that reveal thinking. This project will improve numeracy standards in secondary schools, by assisting teachers to personalise the teaching of each student. Through detailed research, the project will develop sophisticated assessments that clearly reveal students' mathematical thinking. On-line diagnosis will suggest teaching activities that can bring about desired conceptual changes. The eff ....Supporting personalised learning in secondary schools through the use of specific mathematics assessments that reveal thinking. This project will improve numeracy standards in secondary schools, by assisting teachers to personalise the teaching of each student. Through detailed research, the project will develop sophisticated assessments that clearly reveal students' mathematical thinking. On-line diagnosis will suggest teaching activities that can bring about desired conceptual changes. The effectiveness of the resources will be thoroughly tested, for impact on student achievement and the mathematics teaching skills of teachers, especially those working out-of-field. Rural schools will have equal access to these resources. Good numeracy provides the foundation for life-long learning, employment satisfaction and the economic competitiveness of Australia.Read moreRead less
Smart Communities - Applied research into integrated government services and regional networked neighbourhoods to support children and young people at risk. This applied research project investigates and provides directions for improvement in the life choices available to children and young people at risk in remote, rural and urban areas of Western Australia. It does this by (i) conducting a detailed study of children and young people at risk, as identified by government and non-government agen ....Smart Communities - Applied research into integrated government services and regional networked neighbourhoods to support children and young people at risk. This applied research project investigates and provides directions for improvement in the life choices available to children and young people at risk in remote, rural and urban areas of Western Australia. It does this by (i) conducting a detailed study of children and young people at risk, as identified by government and non-government agencies (ii) conducting quantitative and qualitative fieldwork into the communication patterns and information-seeking behaviour of children and young people at risk; (iii) exploring strategies and interventions through inter-agency co-operation in the provision of content and technology (as geographical or virtual communities).Read moreRead less
Building professional learning communities in a large Australian school district: School leadership within an information and communications technology (ICT) environment. Recent school restructuring in Australia has centred on devolution and the development of self-managing schools. In another layer of workplace complexity for school leaders, the past decade of educational restructuring has also been characterised by increased implementation and reliance upon ICT within the educational system, s ....Building professional learning communities in a large Australian school district: School leadership within an information and communications technology (ICT) environment. Recent school restructuring in Australia has centred on devolution and the development of self-managing schools. In another layer of workplace complexity for school leaders, the past decade of educational restructuring has also been characterised by increased implementation and reliance upon ICT within the educational system, schools and classrooms. Through a unique collaboration between a University and an entire School District as an industry partner, this study examines leadership attributes in an ICT rich environment. The study will provide information about how to maximize leadership skills in ICT-rich environments by developing an empirically-based innovative professional development model for Australian schools.Read moreRead less
Western Australian rural and remote schooling: The influence of learning environments on student participation and retention. By 2010 all Australian States and Territories will have raised the school leaving age from 15 to 17 years of age. As one of the first States to have undertaken this essential step toward re-engaging disaffected youth in education, training and/or employment options, it is important that a rigorous examination of the Western Australian experience is conducted. The proposed ....Western Australian rural and remote schooling: The influence of learning environments on student participation and retention. By 2010 all Australian States and Territories will have raised the school leaving age from 15 to 17 years of age. As one of the first States to have undertaken this essential step toward re-engaging disaffected youth in education, training and/or employment options, it is important that a rigorous examination of the Western Australian experience is conducted. The proposed research focuses on what is likely to be the most problematic area of the initiative for school communities - how and why the programs offered to students in rural and remote school and classroom learning environments impact upon student engagement and retention.Read moreRead less
Misperceptions in mathematics and music education: A computer-enabled diagnostic and remediation investigation involving metacognition. This project investigates the new and significant problem of misperceptions confounding learning in mathematics and music education. Supported by international and Australian industry partners, it builds on case studies of misperceptions by school and university students in both disciplines, to ascertain the extent that misperceptions occur in the wider school p ....Misperceptions in mathematics and music education: A computer-enabled diagnostic and remediation investigation involving metacognition. This project investigates the new and significant problem of misperceptions confounding learning in mathematics and music education. Supported by international and Australian industry partners, it builds on case studies of misperceptions by school and university students in both disciplines, to ascertain the extent that misperceptions occur in the wider school population. It breaks new ground by using mathematics to remediate music and vice versa. Aided by computer software, links are made between linear transformations in mathematics (a national curriculum topic) and commonly used techniques in music composition. Intra- and inter-disciplinary metacognitive techniques will be developed to remediate the misperceptions.Read moreRead less
Outcomes-focused Learning Environments, Affective Outcomes and Achievement Standards in Senior School Classes in Western Australia. Given the controversy in the media about outcomes-focused education and the acute lack of research into its implementation and effectiveness, this research is timely and useful. It could have far-reaching implications for educational systems about how to effectively create outcomes-focused learning environments and whether educational standards are being maintained. ....Outcomes-focused Learning Environments, Affective Outcomes and Achievement Standards in Senior School Classes in Western Australia. Given the controversy in the media about outcomes-focused education and the acute lack of research into its implementation and effectiveness, this research is timely and useful. It could have far-reaching implications for educational systems about how to effectively create outcomes-focused learning environments and whether educational standards are being maintained. It will provide information about how teachers can use action research, involving feedback from students, to guide the improvement of learning environments. Training opportunities will be provided for one Master's and two doctoral students.Read moreRead less
Maintaining a precise, invariant unit in state, national and international educational assessment. School achievement testing is a high stakes activity for state and national governments, not just for school students. Significant educational policy decisions turn on comparisons of test results over time, and among states and nations. These decisions rest on assumptions about the validity and precision of national testing. In particular, current measurement systems assume that assessment scales h ....Maintaining a precise, invariant unit in state, national and international educational assessment. School achievement testing is a high stakes activity for state and national governments, not just for school students. Significant educational policy decisions turn on comparisons of test results over time, and among states and nations. These decisions rest on assumptions about the validity and precision of national testing. In particular, current measurement systems assume that assessment scales have common units. Empirically, it is clear that many factors can compromise this assumption, making it rarely justified. This study will serve the national interest by building the theory and technology necessary to solve this problem.Read moreRead less