Telling Tales from the Bush: Gender, rurality and post-school transitions. The completion of formal schooling is a critical point of decision-making for all young Australians, but it is particularly critical for young men and women from the bush, who are often already disadvantaged in the quality of schooling they receive, and their access to facilities and opportunities. This longitudinal study will address a significant research gap in this area, by analysing the potentially limiting effect g ....Telling Tales from the Bush: Gender, rurality and post-school transitions. The completion of formal schooling is a critical point of decision-making for all young Australians, but it is particularly critical for young men and women from the bush, who are often already disadvantaged in the quality of schooling they receive, and their access to facilities and opportunities. This longitudinal study will address a significant research gap in this area, by analysing the potentially limiting effect gender constructs can play in the decision-making and life trajectories of these young adults. By so doing, the study contributes directly to the national interest by improving the social and economic futures of rural Australians.Read moreRead less
Innovations in Clinical Education for Physiotherapy Students. Australia has workforce shortages and an ageing population. Physiotherapists are key players in promoting and maintaining good health through their leadership in physical activity and rehabilitation to retain Australians in the workforce and to ensure quality of life for our ageing population. There is a national shortage of physiotherapists. Increasing numbers of physiotherapists are being trained, requiring new models of clinical tr ....Innovations in Clinical Education for Physiotherapy Students. Australia has workforce shortages and an ageing population. Physiotherapists are key players in promoting and maintaining good health through their leadership in physical activity and rehabilitation to retain Australians in the workforce and to ensure quality of life for our ageing population. There is a national shortage of physiotherapists. Increasing numbers of physiotherapists are being trained, requiring new models of clinical training as there is no capacity in conventional training to cope with student numbers. This research will develop and evaluate new models of training incorporating standardised patients (actors) and simulators (mannequins) which increase education capacity. Models are transferable to other health professions.Read moreRead less
Learning for sustainability: The role and impact of Outdoor and Environmental Education Centres. The proposed research will contribute to the National Research Priority for an Environmentally Sustainable Australia by addressing the effectiveness of educational interventions. Education plays a key role in providing the means and knowledge to address environmental issues, and research indicates that direct experiences with nature are a critical component. In Queensland, such experiences are provi ....Learning for sustainability: The role and impact of Outdoor and Environmental Education Centres. The proposed research will contribute to the National Research Priority for an Environmentally Sustainable Australia by addressing the effectiveness of educational interventions. Education plays a key role in providing the means and knowledge to address environmental issues, and research indicates that direct experiences with nature are a critical component. In Queensland, such experiences are provided by Outdoor and Environmental Education Centres (O&EECs). This research will advance our theoretical understanding of the role and impact of nature-based environmental learning experiences, identify factors that facilitate learning for sustainability, and develop empirically-based principles to support O&EECs in providing effective education for sustainability.Read moreRead less
Reconnecting Disaffected Youth through Successful Transition to Work. According to the ABS (2006) more than 15% of Australia's youth receives employment benefits at a cost that the Department of Family and Community Services (2000) estimated between $44 000 and $46 000/person/year. High rates of offending and repeat arrests are prevalent within the group at a cost to the youth concerned and to the nation. The Productivity Commission estimated in 2004 that outlay to keep someone in prison was bet ....Reconnecting Disaffected Youth through Successful Transition to Work. According to the ABS (2006) more than 15% of Australia's youth receives employment benefits at a cost that the Department of Family and Community Services (2000) estimated between $44 000 and $46 000/person/year. High rates of offending and repeat arrests are prevalent within the group at a cost to the youth concerned and to the nation. The Productivity Commission estimated in 2004 that outlay to keep someone in prison was between $67,000 and $85,0004 per year. We seek to short-circuit the human and economic costs of the failure cycle by improving individuals' capacities to gain and retain work, and to have healthy lifestyles and positive self-concept, and thereby to contribute to their positive participation in society. Read moreRead less
Sustaining older workers' competence: Informing policy and practice. Maintaining the effective working life of older Australian workers is central for sustaining the economic and social health of the nation and for their workplace efficacy and sense of self as productive members of the community. This project will identify and recommend practices and policies for both Australian workplaces and educational institutions to sustain and develop further the skills of Australia's growing number of ol ....Sustaining older workers' competence: Informing policy and practice. Maintaining the effective working life of older Australian workers is central for sustaining the economic and social health of the nation and for their workplace efficacy and sense of self as productive members of the community. This project will identify and recommend practices and policies for both Australian workplaces and educational institutions to sustain and develop further the skills of Australia's growing number of older workers and effectively manage their work transitions. These outcomes will also be used to inform processes and practices to develop the capacities of older Australians in maintaining personally and economically productive working lives.Read moreRead less
Workplace participatory practices: Learning through and for work. The project aims to examine the relationship between individuals? participation in and their learning through paid work. This is warranted because current conceptions of learning throughout working lives fail to fully account for the reciprocal processes of workplace affordances and individual engagement that together shape participation in and learning from work. The study seeks to illuminate participatory practices across differ ....Workplace participatory practices: Learning through and for work. The project aims to examine the relationship between individuals? participation in and their learning through paid work. This is warranted because current conceptions of learning throughout working lives fail to fully account for the reciprocal processes of workplace affordances and individual engagement that together shape participation in and learning from work. The study seeks to illuminate participatory practices across different kinds of workplaces and also those within workplaces for different categories of workers. The procedures comprise an investigation of the participation in and learning of 6 groups of workers employed in distinct kinds of work over an eighteen month period.Read moreRead less
Learning and mentoring in high performance sports coaching. Effective coaching is held responsible for Australia's international sporting performance. Yet little is known about how best elite sports coaches learn effective and innovative high-performance coaching practices. This project aims to identify and contribute to effective elite sport coaching development in Australia. This will be achieved through understanding how best current elite coaches learn through their coaching work. Implicatio ....Learning and mentoring in high performance sports coaching. Effective coaching is held responsible for Australia's international sporting performance. Yet little is known about how best elite sports coaches learn effective and innovative high-performance coaching practices. This project aims to identify and contribute to effective elite sport coaching development in Australia. This will be achieved through understanding how best current elite coaches learn through their coaching work. Implications here extend across sport and to other domains of human activity. The contribution of sport to Australian national identity is well established and the economic benefit of sport and more specifically sporting success in Australia is also well recognised.Read moreRead less
The role of subject-matter knowledge in teaching science and mathematics: Practices of teachers with advanced qualifications in the sciences. High quality science and mathematics education is central to economic prosperity. This study will achieve two outcomes. Firstly it explores the importance of subject matter knowledge in teaching. Much has been studied about the knowledge of teachers but limited research has been conducted with teachers who have substantial subject-matter knowledge. These f ....The role of subject-matter knowledge in teaching science and mathematics: Practices of teachers with advanced qualifications in the sciences. High quality science and mathematics education is central to economic prosperity. This study will achieve two outcomes. Firstly it explores the importance of subject matter knowledge in teaching. Much has been studied about the knowledge of teachers but limited research has been conducted with teachers who have substantial subject-matter knowledge. These findings will inform the current debate about the appropriate models of teacher education and the balance of emphasis on content knowledge and pedagogical knowledge. Secondly, given a number of attempts to attract mid career professionals with high qualifications to teaching, the study will provide evidence on how these people transition to their new careers and what support is needed.Read moreRead less
Emotional Transitions: Exploring Professional Transitions of Science Teachers. Research most needed to inform policy and practice for improving teacher education and the retention of new-science teachers is that which captures the experiences and development of the new teacher, particularly in the critical transition period from university to full-time work in schools. This period is fundamental to becoming a satisfied and effective teacher. Our study contributes significantly to national concer ....Emotional Transitions: Exploring Professional Transitions of Science Teachers. Research most needed to inform policy and practice for improving teacher education and the retention of new-science teachers is that which captures the experiences and development of the new teacher, particularly in the critical transition period from university to full-time work in schools. This period is fundamental to becoming a satisfied and effective teacher. Our study contributes significantly to national concerns for quality-teacher education by providing new insights into the emotions and identities of transitioning-science teachers in practice. The proposed study also models innovative procedures that can enrich subsequent longitudinal studies of teacher transitions and impact of teacher-education programs.Read moreRead less
International students in secondary schools. This longitudinal project aims to analyse the forms and effects of international secondary students’ transnational connectedness with different people and places in physical and online environments. It plans to examine how and why students’ relationships change across Years 10–12 of school, and the implications for students’ experience of school, Australia, and post-school pathways. The findings may provide the empirical knowledge and theoretical insi ....International students in secondary schools. This longitudinal project aims to analyse the forms and effects of international secondary students’ transnational connectedness with different people and places in physical and online environments. It plans to examine how and why students’ relationships change across Years 10–12 of school, and the implications for students’ experience of school, Australia, and post-school pathways. The findings may provide the empirical knowledge and theoretical insights to support the development of policies and practices to support international school students, protect their social, emotional and physical wellbeing, and improve the economic competitiveness of Australia’s international education sector.Read moreRead less