Engaging economically disadvantaged adolescent girls in physical activity and healthy eating to improve health and prevent obesity. Secondary school represents the final opportunity to influence individuals as they develop adult lifestyle behaviours and enter a transitional period in their lives. Considering the increased prevalence of lifestyle diseases among Australian adults and increases in the prevalence of obesity among young Australians, targeting health-promoting behaviours in adolescent ....Engaging economically disadvantaged adolescent girls in physical activity and healthy eating to improve health and prevent obesity. Secondary school represents the final opportunity to influence individuals as they develop adult lifestyle behaviours and enter a transitional period in their lives. Considering the increased prevalence of lifestyle diseases among Australian adults and increases in the prevalence of obesity among young Australians, targeting health-promoting behaviours in adolescents is clearly a national priority. Furthermore, rates of obesity are much higher in economically disadvantaged areas, with girls more susceptible to the SES disadvantages. This project has the potential to develop a knowledge base and improve the health behaviours of current and future Australians most at risk for the development of lifestyle diseases.Read moreRead less
On feeling good and succeeding: Identifying the antecedents of emotional well-being and school success amongst adolescents. We propose a multi-wave longitudinal study of all high school students in the Wollongong Catholic Diocese, identifying the psychological predictors of academic and emotional problems. We will track students and monitor the influence over time of a comprehensive set of predictors, examining their unique effects on the trajectories of educational and emotional outcomes. The s ....On feeling good and succeeding: Identifying the antecedents of emotional well-being and school success amongst adolescents. We propose a multi-wave longitudinal study of all high school students in the Wollongong Catholic Diocese, identifying the psychological predictors of academic and emotional problems. We will track students and monitor the influence over time of a comprehensive set of predictors, examining their unique effects on the trajectories of educational and emotional outcomes. The study will inform us about the developmental processes through which youth pass, leading to a new model of the psychological processes involved in academic and emotional outcomes. This model will enhance future intervention programmes with youth at risk of academic and emotional problems.Read moreRead less
Academic Buoyancy and Academic Resilience: New Approaches to Examining and Understanding Adversity and Setback in the Academic Domain. Although Federal & State/Territory governments inject millions of dollars into schools, multitudes of students fall short of their academic potential due to an inability to deal with academic adversity. Essentially, these students are not academically buoyant or resilient. This diminishes their personal capacity through life & ultimately Australia's capacity to c ....Academic Buoyancy and Academic Resilience: New Approaches to Examining and Understanding Adversity and Setback in the Academic Domain. Although Federal & State/Territory governments inject millions of dollars into schools, multitudes of students fall short of their academic potential due to an inability to deal with academic adversity. Essentially, these students are not academically buoyant or resilient. This diminishes their personal capacity through life & ultimately Australia's capacity to compete globally. The proposed Research Program conducts a comprehensive analysis of academic buoyancy & resilience & the attributes pivotal to them. In so doing, it seeks to promote & maintain young people's good academic health. According to Australian authorities (eg. Australian Bureau of Statistics, The Ministerial Council on Education, Employment, Training and Youth Affairs), young people's academic health is vital to our nation's economic, cultural, & social success.Read moreRead less
Mental Toughness: What Makes a Champion? "Mental toughness" is claimed to be what makes champion athletes; separates winners from losers and those who buckle under pressure. Despite widespread use in sport (business, military, etc.) there exist no well-validated mental toughness measures. In collaboration with Australian Institute of Sport and Westfields Sports High School, we will develop a multidimensional, hierarchical measure of mental toughness, test it across gender, age, and different spo ....Mental Toughness: What Makes a Champion? "Mental toughness" is claimed to be what makes champion athletes; separates winners from losers and those who buckle under pressure. Despite widespread use in sport (business, military, etc.) there exist no well-validated mental toughness measures. In collaboration with Australian Institute of Sport and Westfields Sports High School, we will develop a multidimensional, hierarchical measure of mental toughness, test it across gender, age, and different sports, validate it in relation to relevant outcomes, and evaluate its growth/development in athletes varying in age and sporting development. Potential benefits include improved talent identification, counselling, self-concept, coping strategies, coaching, benchmarking, tracking, and athletic performance.Read moreRead less
Realising Gifted Students' Potential: Elucidating psychosocial determinants and the impact of different educational settings on educational outcomes and psychosocial wellbeing. As current gifted students are expected to provide future leaders in all fields of endeavour, there is an increasing emphasis in Australia and worldwide on how to educate gifted students most effectively. Our proposed research will improve Australia's capacity to educate gifted students by: informing practice on how best ....Realising Gifted Students' Potential: Elucidating psychosocial determinants and the impact of different educational settings on educational outcomes and psychosocial wellbeing. As current gifted students are expected to provide future leaders in all fields of endeavour, there is an increasing emphasis in Australia and worldwide on how to educate gifted students most effectively. Our proposed research will improve Australia's capacity to educate gifted students by: informing practice on how best to select students to participate in gifted education; maximising the potential of gifted young Australians; and providing guidance for future intervention strategies. This research will contribute substantially to further actualising Australia's claim to be the clever country and will have important implications for the future of gifted education.Read moreRead less
New Solutions For Maximising Secondary Indigenous Students' Full Potential: Identifying Causal Constructs That Enhance Indigenous Students' Aspirations and Educational Outcomes. Indigenous students are the most disadvantaged Australians on all indicators.Indigenous students' aspirations are significantly lower in comparison to non-Indigenous peers.Given the vital importance of aspirations for predicating life opportunities this is of dire concern.Capitalising on recent advances this investigatio ....New Solutions For Maximising Secondary Indigenous Students' Full Potential: Identifying Causal Constructs That Enhance Indigenous Students' Aspirations and Educational Outcomes. Indigenous students are the most disadvantaged Australians on all indicators.Indigenous students' aspirations are significantly lower in comparison to non-Indigenous peers.Given the vital importance of aspirations for predicating life opportunities this is of dire concern.Capitalising on recent advances this investigation aims to identify constructs that causally impact on Indigenous students' aspirations and educational outcomes, and test whether the pattern of relations differentially varies for Indigenous and non-Indigenous students. This will result in: Identifying new solutions for intervention, sound measurement instruments for Indigenous populations, and distinguishing effective theoretical orientations and research methodology.Read moreRead less
Discovery Indigenous Researchers Development - Grant ID: DI0561141
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$37,942.00
Summary
New Solutions For Maximising Secondary Indigenous Students? Full Potential: Identifying Causal Constructs That Enhance Indigenous Students' Aspirations and Educational Outcomes. The proposed research offers important educational and social benefits for righting the disadvantaged status of Indigenous Australians within the secondary education system. Identifying specific psychological constructs that act as potent keys directly impacting on Indigenous students educational aspirations will eventua ....New Solutions For Maximising Secondary Indigenous Students? Full Potential: Identifying Causal Constructs That Enhance Indigenous Students' Aspirations and Educational Outcomes. The proposed research offers important educational and social benefits for righting the disadvantaged status of Indigenous Australians within the secondary education system. Identifying specific psychological constructs that act as potent keys directly impacting on Indigenous students educational aspirations will eventually assist Indigenous students in reaching their full potential. In identifying these causal constructs, potent new interventions can then be created to enhance Indigenous schooling, create a stronger capital base in Aboriginal communities, and ensure a stronger Indigenous Australian representative population who will aid in shaping a better future for Australia.Read moreRead less
Discovery Indigenous Researchers Development - Grant ID: DI0560709
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$38,631.00
Summary
The Benefits of HSC Aboriginal Studies: Disentangling the Impact on Indigenous Students? Self-Concepts and Educational Outcomes . The HSC Aboriginal Studies course was introduced into NSW secondary schools in 1991 however the anticipated positive impact of this course on Indigenous students? self-concepts and educational outcomes has not been evaluated. This research aims to evaluate the impact of this course on Indigenous students? self-concepts and educational outcomes in order to: Identify st ....The Benefits of HSC Aboriginal Studies: Disentangling the Impact on Indigenous Students? Self-Concepts and Educational Outcomes . The HSC Aboriginal Studies course was introduced into NSW secondary schools in 1991 however the anticipated positive impact of this course on Indigenous students? self-concepts and educational outcomes has not been evaluated. This research aims to evaluate the impact of this course on Indigenous students? self-concepts and educational outcomes in order to: Identify strengths and limitations of this course as a basis of strengthening curriculum; identify new solutions for enhancing the tangible impact of this course on desirable educational outcomes for Indigenous students, and result in increasing Indigenous students? participation and retention in the HSC to predicate important further education, employment and life opportunities.Read moreRead less
Enabling schooling success: Psycho-social drivers & impact of Positive Behaviour for Learning intervention on behaviour, well-being, academic engagement & achievement. Reducing behavioural & emotional difficulties in schools is vital given their pervasiveness & long-term consequences for academic failure, mental health & anti-social behaviour. Consistent with National Research Priorities to promote proactive health & wellbeing effective research-based positive behaviour for learning intervention ....Enabling schooling success: Psycho-social drivers & impact of Positive Behaviour for Learning intervention on behaviour, well-being, academic engagement & achievement. Reducing behavioural & emotional difficulties in schools is vital given their pervasiveness & long-term consequences for academic failure, mental health & anti-social behaviour. Consistent with National Research Priorities to promote proactive health & wellbeing effective research-based positive behaviour for learning interventions will yield important educational & socio-economic benefits by enriching learning, psychosocial adjustment, schooling success & life potential of young Australians. Research outcomes have the potential to seed success by generating new solutions to strengthen schooling; enable students to reach potential; build capacity at individual & community levels & contribute to national socio-economic wellbeing.Read moreRead less
Blended learning in schools, TAFE and universities: experience, principles, patterns and practice. Effective use of technology in education depends upon the teacher's understanding of good ways to support learning. New uses of technology to improve learning are emerging constantly: the challenge is to share good practice. This project focuses on investigating the quality of blended learning experiences and using the outcomes to identify and share good practice using a format called a 'design pa ....Blended learning in schools, TAFE and universities: experience, principles, patterns and practice. Effective use of technology in education depends upon the teacher's understanding of good ways to support learning. New uses of technology to improve learning are emerging constantly: the challenge is to share good practice. This project focuses on investigating the quality of blended learning experiences and using the outcomes to identify and share good practice using a format called a 'design pattern'. Design patterns combine research-based evidence and the knowledge of experienced practitioners in a format which is relatively easy to communicate, learn and apply. They are not yet used in teaching with technology. We will generate and test design patterns for learning through discussion in technology-based and other classroom settings.Read moreRead less