Girls, Empowerment, and Markets in Education: A History of The Mac.Robertsons Girls' High School. With its centenary approaching, the school wants to evaluate its past. In cooperation with RMIT, the writing of a school history can produce three important outcomes. As historian in residence, the doctoral scholar can provide focus for self reflection by the school community. As social history, the work can fill a significant gap in the understanding of publicly funded education in Australia. As co ....Girls, Empowerment, and Markets in Education: A History of The Mac.Robertsons Girls' High School. With its centenary approaching, the school wants to evaluate its past. In cooperation with RMIT, the writing of a school history can produce three important outcomes. As historian in residence, the doctoral scholar can provide focus for self reflection by the school community. As social history, the work can fill a significant gap in the understanding of publicly funded education in Australia. As contribution to policy, it can address two continuing debates: about the place of selective state schools in a national system of education, and about the dynamics of single sex schools, and the education of girls more generally.Read moreRead less
Vocational studies in school - does it matter if I'm a girl and if I'm poor? The growth of VET in Schools has been associated with government policy to promote an innovation culture and economy, to increase secondary retention, and to strengthen transition from school to tertiary study, training and work. This study seeks to examine the effectiveness of VETiS, from a gender and SES perspective, in strengthening participation, fostering student engagement and facilitating effective transition. It ....Vocational studies in school - does it matter if I'm a girl and if I'm poor? The growth of VET in Schools has been associated with government policy to promote an innovation culture and economy, to increase secondary retention, and to strengthen transition from school to tertiary study, training and work. This study seeks to examine the effectiveness of VETiS, from a gender and SES perspective, in strengthening participation, fostering student engagement and facilitating effective transition. It does so by analysing national VETiS data, followed up by a longitudinal study of students in 12 schools (small, large, single sex, co-educational, metropolitan and non-metropolitan). It uniquely combines a system-wide perspective with a detailed and qualitative school-level view.Read moreRead less
From high school to higher education: Gendered pathways in information, communication and computer technology education. Serious gender-based disparities exist in participation in the Information, Communication, and Computing Technologies (ICCT) field, in both higher education and industry, with a 2004 review of Australian university participation rates identifying women as an equity target group in this field. A multi-method, multi-stage project has been design to identify the processes that le ....From high school to higher education: Gendered pathways in information, communication and computer technology education. Serious gender-based disparities exist in participation in the Information, Communication, and Computing Technologies (ICCT) field, in both higher education and industry, with a 2004 review of Australian university participation rates identifying women as an equity target group in this field. A multi-method, multi-stage project has been design to identify the processes that lead to this gender gap. Specifically, the project will focus on students' experiences and decisions at secondary school in three states to ascertain why so few girls choose to enter university-level ICCT courses, and what strategies could be implemented in schools to remedy this problem. Read moreRead less
Educating the Adolescent: An historical study of curriculum, counselling and citizenship in Australia 1930s -70s. This project is a history of the education of Australian adolescents during the mid-twentieth century (1930s-70s). It investigates international and Australian practices and debates concerning how best to prepare adolescents for citizenship; and examines changing ideas about the 'good student', and the role of school curriculum and counselling services in shaping student values and w ....Educating the Adolescent: An historical study of curriculum, counselling and citizenship in Australia 1930s -70s. This project is a history of the education of Australian adolescents during the mid-twentieth century (1930s-70s). It investigates international and Australian practices and debates concerning how best to prepare adolescents for citizenship; and examines changing ideas about the 'good student', and the role of school curriculum and counselling services in shaping student values and wellbeing. Combining documentary and oral history research, it provides historical perspectives on these topical issues, which will benefit policy, teacher education and teaching practice. It will create an oral history archive for, and deepen community and professional knowledge of, an important period of Australian educational history. Read moreRead less