Engaging to learn: Increasing the engagement of children with autism in learning activities. This research addresses the ARC national research priority of promoting and maintaining good health and well being for all Australians by enabling children with autism and their families to lead more productive and fulfilling lives. Children with autism are amongst the most challenging of all students for educators. Improving educational outcomes by engaging these children in learning, the aim of this re ....Engaging to learn: Increasing the engagement of children with autism in learning activities. This research addresses the ARC national research priority of promoting and maintaining good health and well being for all Australians by enabling children with autism and their families to lead more productive and fulfilling lives. Children with autism are amongst the most challenging of all students for educators. Improving educational outcomes by engaging these children in learning, the aim of this research, is critical if these children are to achieve their full potential. This will benefit the Australian community by increasing independence, reducing barriers to inclusion, and improving the quality of life for children with autism and their families.Read moreRead less
The transition to school for young children with developmental disabilities: The impact of interpersonal relationships on successful school adjustment. Increasing numbers of young children with developmental disabilities are included in regular school settings. Children with developmental disabilities have additional support needs and are at high risk for poor school outcomes. Effective programs to support success in the transition to school have the potential to improve children's long-term soc ....The transition to school for young children with developmental disabilities: The impact of interpersonal relationships on successful school adjustment. Increasing numbers of young children with developmental disabilities are included in regular school settings. Children with developmental disabilities have additional support needs and are at high risk for poor school outcomes. Effective programs to support success in the transition to school have the potential to improve children's long-term social and behavioural adjustment. In this research, the focus on modifiable mediating factors for successful school transitions will inform inclusive educational policy and practice. Investment in optimising child outcomes in the early years has long-term social, community, and economic benefits.
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Predicting progress: A longitudinal study of the social behaviour, numeracy and literacy of children in the Queensland preparatory trial. High quality early education has been shown to improve later school performance. By identifying factors that affect literacy, numeracy and social behaviour in the early years, this project contributes to improvements in literacy and numeracy outcomes for children and increased levels of pedagogical expertise for teachers. Children will have better chances of a ....Predicting progress: A longitudinal study of the social behaviour, numeracy and literacy of children in the Queensland preparatory trial. High quality early education has been shown to improve later school performance. By identifying factors that affect literacy, numeracy and social behaviour in the early years, this project contributes to improvements in literacy and numeracy outcomes for children and increased levels of pedagogical expertise for teachers. Children will have better chances of achieving essential standards in literacy and numeracy, especially in rural, remote, Indigenous, and culturally and linguistically diverse communities. National benefits include contributing to life long learning and improving the life chances of young children. Read moreRead less
Learning about social and moral values for active citizenship: Educational policy and practice in early education. It is economically sound to invest in quality early education programs to ensure productive engagement for individuals in society. In particular, the early years are considered to be a significant period for learning moral and social values necessary to ensure a tolerant and cohesive society. This study will provide an evidence base for how educational policy and practice, informed ....Learning about social and moral values for active citizenship: Educational policy and practice in early education. It is economically sound to invest in quality early education programs to ensure productive engagement for individuals in society. In particular, the early years are considered to be a significant period for learning moral and social values necessary to ensure a tolerant and cohesive society. This study will provide an evidence base for how educational policy and practice, informed by teacher beliefs, do (or do not) support children's moral and social learning about active citizenship.Read moreRead less
Linking to learn and learning to link: building integrated school-based support systems for children and families in a disadvantaged community. The project will implement in a disadvantaged community changed institutional practices within primary schools and a partner welfare agency to increase family-school connectedness to improve children's behaviour and school performance. We build on the Pathways Project, which improved these outcomes for vulnerable preschool children, but highlighted the c ....Linking to learn and learning to link: building integrated school-based support systems for children and families in a disadvantaged community. The project will implement in a disadvantaged community changed institutional practices within primary schools and a partner welfare agency to increase family-school connectedness to improve children's behaviour and school performance. We build on the Pathways Project, which improved these outcomes for vulnerable preschool children, but highlighted the critical importance of family involvement with schools to effect enduring change and the difficulties of achieving this within current structures. We address this challenge by nurturing whole-school culture change, providing teacher professional development, and locating family support resources within schools to promote home-school partnerships, family functioning, and child well-being. Read moreRead less
Self-regulation in very low birthweight/very preterm 2 and 4 year olds: A comparison study. Increasing numbers of extremely low birthweight children are surviving, and the majority go on to have learning problems. The difficulties these children experience and the resources that are devoted to the task of improving their academic skills have personal, social and economic costs. This project will assist in the identification of areas of difficulty that contribute to their problems in learning, es ....Self-regulation in very low birthweight/very preterm 2 and 4 year olds: A comparison study. Increasing numbers of extremely low birthweight children are surviving, and the majority go on to have learning problems. The difficulties these children experience and the resources that are devoted to the task of improving their academic skills have personal, social and economic costs. This project will assist in the identification of areas of difficulty that contribute to their problems in learning, essential for developing effective interventions. Success will bring substantial benefits at both the level of the individual and of society. The study will be undertaken by a PhD candidate as part of a multidisciplinary team, an experience that will provide an exceptional training in research with vulnerable children.Read moreRead less
Compromised or competent? A longitudinal study of twin children's social competencies friendships and behavioural adjustment. Twins are a significant and increasing proportion of the school population. This study of twins, transition to school and friendship will advance knowledge in young children's social and emotional health, the national priority area Promoting and maintaining good health. It informs the early childhood education community (particularly policy makers, educators and parents) ....Compromised or competent? A longitudinal study of twin children's social competencies friendships and behavioural adjustment. Twins are a significant and increasing proportion of the school population. This study of twins, transition to school and friendship will advance knowledge in young children's social and emotional health, the national priority area Promoting and maintaining good health. It informs the early childhood education community (particularly policy makers, educators and parents) about twin children's transition to school with a particular focus on social competence. It will address many key outcomes, identified by Commonwealth Department of Family and Community Services, as priorities for the Early Years. The findings will have direct relevance for parents, educators, health professionals and policy-makers.Read moreRead less
The development of the capacity to delay gratification in children with an intellectual disability. Individuals with intellectual disability have difficulty managing their behaviour when they need to wait for a goal, particularly when there are other temptations. This is detrimental to their development, as the capacity to delay gratification has been shown to be important for later developmental outcomes, such as academic achievement, personal relationships and emotional competence. In the fi ....The development of the capacity to delay gratification in children with an intellectual disability. Individuals with intellectual disability have difficulty managing their behaviour when they need to wait for a goal, particularly when there are other temptations. This is detrimental to their development, as the capacity to delay gratification has been shown to be important for later developmental outcomes, such as academic achievement, personal relationships and emotional competence. In the first phase the proposed study will investigate factors thought to contribute to this difficulty, including language ability, use of appropriate strategies and maternal support. The second phase will develop, implement and evaluate a parent training program aimed at increasing children's capacity to delay gratification. Read moreRead less
Thinking about the future: The nature and development of mental time travel. This project is one of the first systematic investigations into the development of the human capacity to consider future events. A variety of novel tasks will probe what children know about the future and how it relates to their ability to reason about past events. Comparisons between children and apes will further inform us about the nature of this crucial mental skill. The findings will provide valuable information fo ....Thinking about the future: The nature and development of mental time travel. This project is one of the first systematic investigations into the development of the human capacity to consider future events. A variety of novel tasks will probe what children know about the future and how it relates to their ability to reason about past events. Comparisons between children and apes will further inform us about the nature of this crucial mental skill. The findings will provide valuable information for developing appropriate educational approaches and for our understanding of abnormalities. As international leaders in this field, we are in an ideal position to conduct this research, offer unique opportunities for postgraduate training, and to continue in Australia's outstanding tradition of excellence in basic research.Read moreRead less
A Method for Analysis of Complexity in Cognitive Processes: Applications to Prediction of Industrial Workloads. The project will develop a method for analysis of cognitive complexity in human and animal cognition. It will contribute to basic research because it will enable equivalences and relative complexities of cognitive functions to be determined, independent of content or methodology. It will have applications to education, because it enables complexities of concepts to be recognised and a ....A Method for Analysis of Complexity in Cognitive Processes: Applications to Prediction of Industrial Workloads. The project will develop a method for analysis of cognitive complexity in human and animal cognition. It will contribute to basic research because it will enable equivalences and relative complexities of cognitive functions to be determined, independent of content or methodology. It will have applications to education, because it enables complexities of concepts to be recognised and appropriate pedagogies determined. It also has application to human factors, especially industrial performance and decision making. It will advance on currrent methods because it enables workload to be analysed and predicted, so that it can be factored into job and system design. Read moreRead less