E-Learning Advocacy : Understanding Students' Experience of New Learning Environments to Promote Quality Sustainable Developments. Increasing investment in new learning environments (NLEs) including e-learning is guided by limited empirical research. Learning in NLEs involves more than a set of skills - it requires a new mindset. This project will delineate the different opportunities and demands, the nature and development of undergraduate students' experiences of NLEs and compare those with eq ....E-Learning Advocacy : Understanding Students' Experience of New Learning Environments to Promote Quality Sustainable Developments. Increasing investment in new learning environments (NLEs) including e-learning is guided by limited empirical research. Learning in NLEs involves more than a set of skills - it requires a new mindset. This project will delineate the different opportunities and demands, the nature and development of undergraduate students' experiences of NLEs and compare those with equivalent programs taught in more traditional ways. Major outcomes involve understanding learners' experiences when engaging in ICT settings, and an understanding of the mutual constructions of the experience. Such understanding will inform development of e-learning programs and the nature of support necessary for optimising learning.Read moreRead less
Vocational Education and Training in Schools: Cultural Resistance and the Academic Tradition. This study seeks to relate how well different models of VET in Schools delivery (in different settings) work towards achieving the objectives of improved participation, more effective transitions and engagement of reluctant learners. It also seeks to assess how effectively the different ways of delivering VET are meeting governments' objectives to build Australia's skills base and provide young people w ....Vocational Education and Training in Schools: Cultural Resistance and the Academic Tradition. This study seeks to relate how well different models of VET in Schools delivery (in different settings) work towards achieving the objectives of improved participation, more effective transitions and engagement of reluctant learners. It also seeks to assess how effectively the different ways of delivering VET are meeting governments' objectives to build Australia's skills base and provide young people with effective pathways. This study will provide education and training systems with valuable data on the effectiveness of this major policy innovation for different student groups. It will do so by analysing three major school leaver data-bases, followed up by qualitative studies in 12 schools in Victoria, New South Wales and Queensland.Read moreRead less
A Tale of six cities: Explaining social inequality in secondary school systems: an international comparative study. Australia is frequently compared with other Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) countries as 'only average' in equity. But why? League tables don't explain this and commentators are vague. What good are comparisons if they don't improve student outcomes through better understanding and better policies? This study shows why inequality persists in six cou ....A Tale of six cities: Explaining social inequality in secondary school systems: an international comparative study. Australia is frequently compared with other Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) countries as 'only average' in equity. But why? League tables don't explain this and commentators are vague. What good are comparisons if they don't improve student outcomes through better understanding and better policies? This study shows why inequality persists in six countries. It highlights the role of curriculum as a vehicle for distinguishing between students in more or less sharp ways and of selective schooling as a vehicle for gaining access to the most discriminating paths in the curriculum. It points to ways in which schooling can operate more equitably without sacrificing quality.Read moreRead less