Mandated literacy assessment and the reorganisation of teachers' work. The study will inform practitioners, teacher educators and educational policy-makers about the ways that teachers' work is being changed by the introduction of mandated standardised assessment and reporting processes. The research will provide insights into the ways in which teachers need to adapt standardised processes and policies to account for the varied student and community populations they serve. This is significant fo ....Mandated literacy assessment and the reorganisation of teachers' work. The study will inform practitioners, teacher educators and educational policy-makers about the ways that teachers' work is being changed by the introduction of mandated standardised assessment and reporting processes. The research will provide insights into the ways in which teachers need to adapt standardised processes and policies to account for the varied student and community populations they serve. This is significant for educational policy as recent international studies of students' literacy performance suggest Australia is lagging in terms of equity for low SES students. Read moreRead less
Teachers Investigate Unequal Literacy Outcomes: Cross Generational Perspectives. Unequal outcomes in literacy remains the most intractable problem facing our educational community. This research will investigate both historical and contemporary literacy practice in terms of its differential effects on primary school children. It recognises the teacher as the most significant factor in improving student outcomes and builds teacher researcher communities to document teaching that makes a differenc ....Teachers Investigate Unequal Literacy Outcomes: Cross Generational Perspectives. Unequal outcomes in literacy remains the most intractable problem facing our educational community. This research will investigate both historical and contemporary literacy practice in terms of its differential effects on primary school children. It recognises the teacher as the most significant factor in improving student outcomes and builds teacher researcher communities to document teaching that makes a difference for 'at risk' children. Its unique cross generational methodology will make overt links between one generation of teachers and the next and produce new knowledge about literacy and disadvantage. Practical applications for teacher education and professional mentoring across generations will be developed.Read moreRead less
Reinvigorating middle years pedagogy in 'rustbelt' secondary schools. Internationally, the middle years of schooling are increasingly problematic for students and teachers, and thus a crucial site for pedagogical reform. The last decade of research and development is nearly exhausted. There is need for a new generation of pedagogical innovation that recognises shifts in demography, identities and socio-economic conditions. This project aims to build curriculum and pedagogical practice that enga ....Reinvigorating middle years pedagogy in 'rustbelt' secondary schools. Internationally, the middle years of schooling are increasingly problematic for students and teachers, and thus a crucial site for pedagogical reform. The last decade of research and development is nearly exhausted. There is need for a new generation of pedagogical innovation that recognises shifts in demography, identities and socio-economic conditions. This project aims to build curriculum and pedagogical practice that engage young people's lifeworlds and the concerns of their communities. It will, develop a university-school professional learning community that supports educational action research and that informs pedagogical practices through ethnographies of the everyday lives of diverse young people.Read moreRead less
Investigating the relationship between literacy teaching, research and policy. An expected outcome is contribution to the development of a national literacy research agenda that includes priority areas; conceptual frameworks for characterising literacy; research approaches that help illuminate key issues and practices in literacy teaching and policy; and means for dissemination amongst researchers, teachers and policy makers. Another outcome is establishment of an Australia-based journal that pu ....Investigating the relationship between literacy teaching, research and policy. An expected outcome is contribution to the development of a national literacy research agenda that includes priority areas; conceptual frameworks for characterising literacy; research approaches that help illuminate key issues and practices in literacy teaching and policy; and means for dissemination amongst researchers, teachers and policy makers. Another outcome is establishment of an Australia-based journal that publishes substantial literacy studies, which is not currently done in Australia. With a view to internationalisation of the journal, and encouragment of submissions that explore nexus of research, policy and practice, this journal would fulfil a significant function in assisting interaction among the three fields. Read moreRead less
The National English Curriculum: Understanding the development, interpretation and implementation of disciplinary knowledge. The National English Curriculum, the focus of this project, represents a renewed national effort to improve every students' educational achievements to the betterment of their social and economic participation in society. Explicating how knowledge about the subject English is institutionalised and implemented, and the role of social structures amongst those involved in the ....The National English Curriculum: Understanding the development, interpretation and implementation of disciplinary knowledge. The National English Curriculum, the focus of this project, represents a renewed national effort to improve every students' educational achievements to the betterment of their social and economic participation in society. Explicating how knowledge about the subject English is institutionalised and implemented, and the role of social structures amongst those involved in the curriculum in shaping this process, will be key outcomes. Examples of classroom implementation will document the intellectual challenges teachers present to students and give voice to teachers in terms of how policy works for them, the challenges they face, and the support they require.Read moreRead less
Literacy and the environment: A situated study of multimediated literacy, sustainability, local knowledges and educational change. The Murray-Darling Basin represents one of the major ecosocial challenges facing Australia. Finding long-term sustainable solutions requires a knowledgeable and literate citizenry and due educational investment now. This study seeks to extend 'special Forever?, an innovative environmental communications project, involving the Primary English Teachers Association an ....Literacy and the environment: A situated study of multimediated literacy, sustainability, local knowledges and educational change. The Murray-Darling Basin represents one of the major ecosocial challenges facing Australia. Finding long-term sustainable solutions requires a knowledgeable and literate citizenry and due educational investment now. This study seeks to extend 'special Forever?, an innovative environmental communications project, involving the Primary English Teachers Association and The Murray-Darling Basin Commission, designed to enhance primary school children's knowledge and literacy regarding the Murray-Darling Basin. This research will analyse the Special Forever archive, develop ecosocial cartographies, and document school-based environmental projects through writing, the arts and contemporary multi-media. In doing so, it will extend current understandings of literacy education and the environment. Read moreRead less
Culturally Responsive Schooling. Australian schools are struggling to respond positively to the increasing cultural diversity of the student cohort. The aim of this study is to research how schools become culturally responsive and specifically explores how the affective environments of schools attend to the diverse cultural, academic and emotional needs of their communities. This this study brings together methods borrowed from educational ethnography, critical policy analysis, and educational ....Culturally Responsive Schooling. Australian schools are struggling to respond positively to the increasing cultural diversity of the student cohort. The aim of this study is to research how schools become culturally responsive and specifically explores how the affective environments of schools attend to the diverse cultural, academic and emotional needs of their communities. This this study brings together methods borrowed from educational ethnography, critical policy analysis, and educational action research. The study will inform curriculum and pedagogical reform in schools, changes to teacher education programs, and potentially ameliorate systemic inequality in Australian schooling. Read moreRead less
New literacy demands in the middle years: learning from design experiments. National benefit and impact accrues most particularly in terms of (i) capacity building across the teaching profession, including increased preparedness of teachers to effectively teach curriculum literacies and adopt pedagogically sound practices with digital technologies; and (ii) the sound use of evidence to inform decision-making and curriculum design in Australian schools, including to inform professional developmen ....New literacy demands in the middle years: learning from design experiments. National benefit and impact accrues most particularly in terms of (i) capacity building across the teaching profession, including increased preparedness of teachers to effectively teach curriculum literacies and adopt pedagogically sound practices with digital technologies; and (ii) the sound use of evidence to inform decision-making and curriculum design in Australian schools, including to inform professional development programs for classroom teachers, drive understanding of the complex nature of contemporary teachers' work; to sustain and retain innovative, change-ready teachers; and engage directly with the key predictions of the OECD's Futures of School scenarios in local, national and international arenas.Read moreRead less
Toward an Australian culturally responsive pedagogy. This project aims to examine how teachers in mainstream middle school classrooms can teach young Indigenous Australians in a culturally sensitive way. The large disparity between Indigenous and non-Indigenous outcomes at school is an urgent problem. Young people are more likely to attend school, learn and reach their potential when they are taught to belong. Teachers, researchers, Aboriginal Education Officers and Elders will develop an Austra ....Toward an Australian culturally responsive pedagogy. This project aims to examine how teachers in mainstream middle school classrooms can teach young Indigenous Australians in a culturally sensitive way. The large disparity between Indigenous and non-Indigenous outcomes at school is an urgent problem. Young people are more likely to attend school, learn and reach their potential when they are taught to belong. Teachers, researchers, Aboriginal Education Officers and Elders will develop an Australian theory for culturally responsive pedagogy that draws on International and Australian Indigenous Studies, pedagogy studies, and empirical work in schools. This project is expected to inform theory, policy and practice in schools and teacher preparation courses.Read moreRead less
Engaging Students during the Early Years of Secondary School. This project aims to design, test and share sustainable strategies to support teachers and enable students from low socioeconomic communities to achieve success. The greatest decreases in students’ interest and effort occur when they transition into secondary school, with students from low socioeconomic communities at greatest risk of disengagement. What can teachers do to engage their students during this key life transition? This pr ....Engaging Students during the Early Years of Secondary School. This project aims to design, test and share sustainable strategies to support teachers and enable students from low socioeconomic communities to achieve success. The greatest decreases in students’ interest and effort occur when they transition into secondary school, with students from low socioeconomic communities at greatest risk of disengagement. What can teachers do to engage their students during this key life transition? This project plans to identify teacher behaviours that motivate students in their first year at secondary school. Using an experimental design with a representative sample of 150 teachers and 1500 students in low socioeconomic areas across three states, the project plans to test whether an online professional learning program for teachers can improve student engagement and achievement. This cost-effective and scalable intervention is designed for widespread dissemination to Australian teachers.Read moreRead less