Dissertations / Theses on the topic 'Literacy Study and teaching (Secondary) Australia'
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1
Paris, Lisa F. "The graduate-mentor project in visual arts education: Mentoring within the Western Australian curriculum framework: A study of the impact of mentoring on beginning-teachers' perception of their success in visual literacy education during the first year." Thesis, Edith Cowan University, Research Online, Perth, Western Australia, 2008. https://ro.ecu.edu.au/theses/231.
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Western Australian tertiary graduates who enter the visual arts education profession are often well acquainted with the theoretical underpinnings of the Western Australian Curriculum Framework. This knowledge base, in combination with their own visual arts training, typically enables them to enter teaching theoretically well equipped to support students in the development of arts ideas and studio works. The important outcome areas of visual arts history and visual arts criticism often present major challenges for graduates. In the absence of significant post-university support and more importantly, within the context of limited preservice training where visual conceptual understandings and studio skills repertoires have priority, many beginning-teachers are often left to their own devices in sourcing visual arts history/criticism content and pedagogy. Uncertainty in either one or both of these key areas of visual literacy education tends to create unsustainable levels of stress for beginning-teachers and often results in attrition.
The Graduate-Mentor Project research examined the experience of 20 beginning-teachers as they moved from the pre-service phase of their career through to the end of the first year post graduation. The findings underscore the value of mentoring during the first year. Mentoring significantly impacted the induction experience of the beginning-teachers and in many instances made it possible for them to survive when they would otherwise have left teaching. The research reinforces the need for new approaches to initial teacher education and the essentialness of first year of teaching induction. In addition, there is a need for a partnership approach involving: universities, professional associations and school-based teachers, in establishing a reciprocal mentoring framework. The most valuable aspect of the research, was the development of an innovative 'reciprocal mentoring' Artist-in-Residence model, which reframed the status of the pre-service teachers from that novice to expert artist. The program answered one of the most troubling questions to emerge from the study, that of how best to ensure ongoing procurement of mentors for new graduates.
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Langham, Karin. "Exploring Maori identity (Whakapapa) through textile processes : a visual arts program for year 11 students." Thesis, Edith Cowan University, Research Online, Perth, Western Australia, 2010. https://ro.ecu.edu.au/theses/1862.
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In 2007 the Curriculum Council of Western Australia (CCWA) introduced a new Visual Arts Course of Study (2007), which contains a postmodern perspective and is inclusive of social criticism, multiculturalism, feminism and non-Western art forms. In keeping with the new Visual Arts Course of Study in this Creative Visual Arts Project, I have used the CCWA course outcomes as a framework to develop a visual arts program that is a vehicle for exploring individual personal identity, and has the potential to increase self-esteem in students in Western Australian secondary schools.
The research stems from my personal view that students can benefit significantly from investigating their identity, enabling them to situate their self in a stronger position in their present day life-world when they have a more definite sense of who they are and where they come from. I have placed myself in the position of ‘the subject’ in order to transfer the process into a visual art program that can be utilised within the classroom. The visual arts program is underpinned by Efland’s expressive psychoanalytic model for aesthetic learning, which posits that art is self-expression, a form of learning that contributes to emotional growth. Visual art awakens intellectual inquiry in an individual, increases cognitive potential through enabling personal liberation, and is an adjunct to informing society and culture.
The research project culminates in an exegesis and an exhibition of artworks that communicate personal memories and significant historical events exclusive to my whakapapa (Maori genealogy). The artworks are a vehicle for exploring my individual self-identity, enabling me to connect more deeply with my Maori cultural roots. The research paradigm utilised is narrative inquiry, a process of collecting and structuring stories that is characteristic of the traditional Maori practice of storytelling. This project has resulted in a reinterpretation of the perception of myself within my personal life-world. I have a deeper understanding of my cross-cultural roots, a stronger sense of who I am, and a sense of empowerment. I believe Year 11 students can also achieve this outcome through the visual arts program, using it as a tool for investigating their own identity, challenging cultural, social and gender limitations that impact on them, and ultimately empowering their personal life-world.
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Woodward, Robert. "Teaching television literacy in South African secondary schools." Master's thesis, University of Cape Town, 1992. http://hdl.handle.net/11427/18321.
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Bibliography: pages 190-196.This dissertation develops a syllabus for the study of television literacy in South African secondary schools. There are two natural divisions in the development of the thesis; the section which explores epistemological issues and the section which describes the strategic issues. The first section examines the nature of print literacy. This consists of four elements: mastering the basic language of the medium; being able to decode this language; using the medium for personal creative ends; and having the capacity for critical reflection. It is possible to talk in terms of a language of television and so this definition of literacy can be extended to television as well. There are three main areas for the study of television literacy. These are: the production techniques and effects of television; the conventional forms of the medium; and the nature of television as a mass medium. Once this has been established the dissertation explores the strategic issues of a methodology and areas of knowledge for teaching television literacy. Although there are many methodologies for the study of the mass media, the British Cultural Studies approach, together with Hall's three moments of encoding and decoding, seems to offer the methodology most suitable for teaching critical literacy. Within this theoretical framework it is possible to describe a syllabus for teaching television literacy. This syllabus involves studying the encoding and decoding of television messages within the context of the technical infrastructure of television; the internal and external relations of production, and the frameworks of knowledge which determine the form and content of television.
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Mockel, Lindsey Joan. "Thinking Aloud in the Science Classroom: Can a literacy strategy increase student learning in science?" PDXScholar, 2013. https://pdxscholar.library.pdx.edu/open_access_etds/1420.
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This research study investigated the effect of using the think aloud protocol while reading informational text on students' ability to learn from text in a secondary science classroom. The participants in this study were high school students (n=47) in three classes of a mixed-grade Integrated Biology, Chemistry, and Physics course. The study tracked student achievement during a four-week curriculum unit on the theory of evolution and evidence for biological evolution. All students received instruction on using the think aloud protocol, and all students practiced the think aloud protocol when reading short articles related to scientific evidence for evolution. The researcher measured student's ability to read and understand science text by comparing scores from a reading skills pre-assessment and post-assessment from each student. Student surveys were conducted to gather feedback on the effectiveness of the strategy in teaching students to use a literacy strategy while reading science text. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics.
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Johnson, Valerie. "Drama teaching: Understanding what we do." Thesis, Edith Cowan University, Research Online, Perth, Western Australia, 2002. https://ro.ecu.edu.au/theses/732.
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Drama teaching in secondary schools in Western Australia has become an increasingly complex discipline in recent years. This study has considered the work of Drama teachers from the point of view of those practising the discipline, using a phenomenological methodology which allowed the voices of the participants to be heard directly. In the discussion, consideration is given to the way in which these teachers practice the dynamic which is drama, are influenced by the art form of theatre, and deliver the school subject, Drama.
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Crawford, Pamela Sharp. "A Study of Secondary District-Level Literacy Coaches’ Beliefs about How to Teach Reading." DigitalCommons@USU, 2012. https://digitalcommons.usu.edu/etd/1175.
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This was a qualitative case study that compared data across six district-level literacy coaches’ epistemological and ontological beliefs about how to teach reading. All six coaches were working as a cohort of literacy coaches on the development and implementation of a secondary reading intervention program for seventh-grade struggling readers. Data were collected over a 6-week period where the coaches responded to questions and vignettes through a think-aloud protocol. The data collection instruments addressed personal, work, and educational experiences that influenced the development of their beliefs about how to teach reading. A survey of their professional library was also taken. The coaches responded to three other instruments and questions to glean epistemological beliefs about knowledge and to address the instructional needs of a struggling reader. There were three major findings. First, the report of the National Reading Panel (NRP) was very influential to the forming or affirming of their beliefs about how to teach reading. The findings of the NRP were privileged in instructional decision making by the coaching cohort, while the adolescent literacy research was ignored or marginalized. Second, self-stated instructional choices were made by the literacy coaches based upon three models that reflected their perspective about how to teach reading. These models were: (a) a skills development model that focused on beginning reading skills, (b) a deficiency model that focused on intervention and remediation, and (c) a proficiency model that focused on social-constructivist learning. Third, the literacy coaches’ epistemological and ontological beliefs about how to teach reading to struggling were either flexible (changing) or rigid (unchanging) as reflected by whether they changed their instructional approaches or choices across grade levels or populations.
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Kim, Sun Hi. "Preferred contexts for mathematical literacy of Korean grade 8-10 learners." Thesis, University of the Western Cape, 2006. http://etd.uwc.ac.za/index.php?module=etd&.
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The twenty-first century society demands a high level of mathematical literacy. This drove Korean educators to evaluate their students using international mathematics tests such as TIMSS, PISA and IMO. In these tests, Korean students ranked highly among the participating countries. Korean students, however, had done poorly in the application of mathematics in daily life situations as well as in their interest in mathematics in comparison to those of other countries. Based on these observations, the present study was an investigation on the contexts which Korean grade 8 to 10 students would prefer to deal with mathematics, in order to improve these weak points and thus increase their mathematical power. The aim of the study was to investigate mathematical literacy in connection with the relevance of mathematics and mathematical modelling. The study paid more attention to mathematics education in real life situations.
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Spielmann, Christopher David. "Information literacy of high school students in Kenya : the impact of teacher training." Thesis, The University of Hong Kong (Pokfulam, Hong Kong), 2013. http://hdl.handle.net/10722/193546.
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This study investigated the Information Literacy levels of High School students in Kenya and has examined the relationship between these and the frequency of access to ICT and the internet. The level of teacher training in ICT and its impact on Information Literacy was also explored.
An Instrumental case study approach was used to assess the Information Literacy levels of students in 4 High schools in the North Rift of Kenya. Teachers from each school outlined their training and the extent of their ICT use with the students.
It was found that the frequency of access that students had to ICT and to the internet had a positive impact on their ability to evaluate information and its sources critically. This correlation was found to be stronger if the access was outside of school. However, students with more frequent access were not better at retrieving information efficiently or at determining the nature and extent of information needed.
The 4 schools involved in the study all had at least one teacher with advanced ICT training such as a computer science degree, however the majority of teachers at these school had only received training in the use of software packages or had not received any formal ICT training. The study found that there was a strong correlation between the level of teacher training and the extent to which they allowed students to use ICT in their lessons.
The need for teacher training in pedagogic techniques for ICT was highlighted, as was the need for Information Literacy to be explicitly taught within the Kenyan High School Curriculum.published_or_final_version
Education
Master
Master of Science in Information Technology in Education
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Mayaba, Nokhanyo Nomakhwezi. "The effect of a scientific literacy strategy on grade 6 and 7 learner's general literacy skills." Thesis, Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University, 2009. http://hdl.handle.net/10948/1012.
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In this study I investigated the effect of a science literacy strategy on the development of grade six and seven second-language learners’ general literacy skills in both their home language (isiXhosa) and language of instruction (English). The scientific literacy strategy used focuses on reading to learn science, writing to learn science, classroom discussion and argumentation. A mixed method design was used. Quantitative data were collected from baseline and post-testing of language skills of learners. Qualitative measures were generated through interviews of learners and teachers and classroom observations. The sample comprised of seven grades six and seven (multigrade classrooms) classes in seven primary schools situated in the rural areas near Hogsback in the Eastern Cape (five experimental schools and two control schools). Mean differences between the experimental and control groups for the reading, listening, writing and speaking aspects of the literacy tests were computed and the data generated were treated statistically using Analysis of Variance. The qualitative data were used to gain deeper insights into the quantitative results. The data suggest that the science literacy strategy statistically significantly improved the learners reading skills in English, their listening skills in both English and isiXhosa, and their writing skills in isiXhosa over a six-month period. Possible explanations for these results are that the reading material was in English only, extensive use of code-switching from English to Xhosa was made by the teachers while teaching, and that learner classroom discussion and writing in isiXhosa was encouraged.
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Lam, Kai-shun, and 林啟信. "Digital divide in secondary schools : a Hong Kong study." Thesis, The University of Hong Kong (Pokfulam, Hong Kong), 2014. http://hdl.handle.net/10722/209544.
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There is always a gap between student learning and classroom teaching in Hong Kong education. The use of information and communication technology has made the situation even worse. It is a common practice for students to work together through digital media like Instagram, WhatsApp, opening online Chat Room and Facebook by using elements like video, music, texts and artistic photography to reflect and discuss ideas for project assignment. During the process, students can further investigate what they have learnt in lessons and construct new knowledge. However, our schools are still concentrating on text-based presentation software for teaching. Schools have been reacting slowly to the appearance of this new popular participatory culture.
Therefore it is interesting to study schools’ ICT infrastructure, the digital literacy in classrooms as well as students’ individual usage behavior in digital media. From the study, we are able to realize the reasons for choosing those multimodal elements in the students’ learning as well as posting them online. Then, we can determine the relationship between the participatory culture in creating multimodal artifacts and digital divide in education among students; as well as finding out those factors which lead to the gap and enhance participatory culture in academic purpose for students. Thus, we can improve the situation of students’ learning outcome gap during the use of digital media in teaching and studying.
My thesis will employ qualitative research method in case study approach. It consists of 6 students’ interviews as well as teacher’s focus group interviews of three teachers from two schools. The results show that there are different forms of technology and usage gap among the students in using digital tools. Certainly, there are several ways to overcome the barriers.published_or_final_version
Education
Master
Master of Science in Information Technology in Education
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Britton, Katherine F. "A model of employment literacy: Young people in Western Australia." Thesis, Edith Cowan University, Research Online, Perth, Western Australia, 2009. https://ro.ecu.edu.au/theses/158.
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This exploratory study aimed to examine the meanings of employment literacy among young people undertaking vocational education or training (VET), trainers, funding representatives and employers in Western Australia. A further objective was to develop a model of employment literacy that would inform training or educational organisations. Employment literacy incorporates the personal and social dimensions that young disadvantaged people require to secure and maintain employment. It also includes the understandings and capacity to access infonnation from a variety of sources and negotiate with a range of people in employment related settings. In-depth interviewing was the main method used so that different interpretations of employment literacy could be examined. In total ninety two interviews were undertaken. These included sixty six with young people, nine involving trainers, eight representatives of funding bodies and nine employers. The young people were interviewed on two occasions to consider the implications of the education or training . programs. Nvivo was used to assist in the analysis of the data across and between the four groups included in the study.
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Parlindungan, Firman. "The literacy teaching and learning in a classroom: A case study in an American Islamic school." The Ohio State University, 2019. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1554578759732856.
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Mazibuko, Edmund Z. "The mediation of teaching through central curriculum controls: Four case studies of history teaching in year 12 in Western Australia." Thesis, Edith Cowan University, Research Online, Perth, Western Australia, 1995. https://ro.ecu.edu.au/theses/1573.
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The work of scholars on pedagogical content knowledge has drawn attention to the importance of mastery of subject matter. Good teachers are able to make clever transitions between their knowledge of content and their pedagogy. The examples of these transitions in the literature usually assume that teachers have a large measure of control over the content: lessons are exploratory and concerned with understanding the deeper meanings and fundamental concepts that underpin the discipline base. The reality of most classrooms is otherwise; teachers are guided by syllabus statements, textbooks and end of year examinations. Sequence and pace of instruction are often implicitly or explicitly controlled. Teachers are required to make choices: either teach towards the examination or teach for deeper understanding and jeopardise the completion of the examinable content. The purpose of this study was to examine how experienced Year 12 history teachers in Western Australia managed the tension between content coverage and teaching for deeper understanding of the subject matter. To examine this question, four experienced history teachers in four high schools in Perth, Western Australia took part in the study. These teachers were observed teaching history in Year 12 during the 1994 school year and they were also interviewed on aspects of their teaching, the syllabus and the TEE examination. The students in these classrooms were also interviewed during the data collection period. The stories of these teachers are presented in four case studies. Evidence from this study indicates that the experienced Year 12 teachers have learned to make compromises in the way they teach and manage content coverage in such a way that they are able to achieve high levels of examination performance while maintaining a focus on conceptual learning. The teachers managed this balancing act by (a) representing high examination performance and conceptual understanding of the subject matter as a single objective rather than as two objectives in opposition, (b) ensuring that students had a broad conceptual understanding of the key issues contained in the examination syllabus so that the students could independently construct answers to the kinds of questions contained in examinations and (c) selectively emphasising and teaching in depth some parts of the syllabus though the whole syllabus was covered at least superficially. Though the teachers would have preferred more personal control over the selection of content and assessment procedures, they nevertheless saw the external examination to have merit; however, as this study has demonstrated, the external examination is clearly a fallible means of student evaluation.
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Ntshuntshe, Nososi Anastina. "Literacy practices and English as the language of learning and teaching in a grade nine classroom." Thesis, Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2011. http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11838/1964.
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A full dissertation submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master
in Education.
Presented to the Faculty of Education and Social Sciences
At the Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2011This research was prompted by the discrepancy between levels of achievement in Grade 9 in a township school and the expectations at Further Education and Training (FET) Grades 10-12 levels. The literacy practices of Grade 9 learners were investigated to establish whether these practices prepared them adequately for Grade10. This research then sought to describe practices that were carried out in reading and writing in a Grade 9 classroom, with a specific focus on a township school in which the language of teaching and learning was English, which was not the learners’ mother-tongue. This research looked at the literacy gaps in reading and writing between the General Education and Training (GET) Phase and the FET Phase that impact on their preparation for the final phase of schooling and entry to tertiary level. Statistics show that in South Africa learners still perform poorly in reading and writing compared to their counterparts in Africa, especially in English. This is an empirical study using qualitative methods that include personal narratives, interviews and learner portfolios. The purpose was to establish how societal and pedagogical factors impact on literacy practices for effective learning and teaching in order for learners to acquire academic proficiency in English as a First Additional Language. The findings from this study revealed that the literacy practices that were investigated and the use of English as LoLT did not fully facilitate their preparedness for Grade10. Learners in this study still face challenges of acquiring basic reading and writing skills. Although they view English as an emancipatory and economic tool, it is still a difficult language to learn. Therefore their readiness to proceed to the FET level is minimal.
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Kindler, Michael, of Western Sydney Nepean University, and Faculty of Education. "Human literacy: liberal neglect in A Statement on English for Australian Schools." THESIS_FE_XXX_Kindler_M.xml, 1996. http://handle.uws.edu.au:8081/1959.7/272.
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This thesis critiques A Statement on English for Australian Schools (1994) for what it does, and what it does not, say in respect of literature education. It argues the need to reconceptualise the way literature education is thought to benefit adolescent readers. The initial discussion identifies the issues which are raised in that document. This yields the need to redefine literature education as Human Literacy. It does so on the basis of a theoretical exploration of reader and text. Human Literacy is able to define reader response to show certain orientations which have either been left out, misunderstood or inadequately portrayed in A Statement. This thesis places Human Literacy within real world educational aims of homo economicus as well as homo sapiens sapiens. Such a context recognises liberal and utilitarian value positions, and is able to balance these in a manner which A Statement does not. In placing Human Literacy within educational philosophies of competing models of practice, literature education becomes nested within a more comprehensive understanding of education. Human Literacy provides a way by which educational value of literature is maximised. However, this projects a paradigm shift for A Statement, by identifying a liberal neglect through flawed assumptions, omissions, and contradictions. The presence of these in A Statement inhibit literature from working to best advantage. Human Literacy provides a more comprehensive way by which current theory is accommodated within an English curriculumDoctor of Philosophy (PhD)
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Blackmon, Phyllis Ann. "A Case Study Investigating Secondary Science Teachers' Perceptions of Science Literacy Instruction." ScholarWorks, 2015. http://scholarworks.waldenu.edu/dissertations/1670.
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This project study addressed the lack of inclusion of discipline literacy pedagogy in secondary classrooms in a rural school district in eastern North Carolina. Discipline literacy practices are recommended in the Common Core Standards for History/Social Studies, Science, and Technical Subjects. The district had implemented content area reading strategies across content areas, yet no significant progress in secondary students' reading abilities had been demonstrated in statewide or national assessments. The conceptual framework that drove this study was disciplinary literacy, founded by the literacy research of Shanahan, Shanahan, and Zygouris-Coe. Within a qualitative case study method, this investigation of 8 secondary science teachers' experiences teaching literacy during content instruction focused on practices of embedding science-specific reading strategies into lessons and factors that influence teachers' decisions to participate in professional development to advance their learning of discipline-specific literacy methods. Data were collected and triangulated using a focus group and 8 individual interviews. Data from both methods were analyzed into codes and categories that developed into emergent themes. Findings from the focus group and individual interviews revealed that the science teachers possessed limited knowledge of science-specific reading strategies; used random, general literacy practices; and had completed inadequate professional development on science-related topics. Positive change may occur if district leaders support teachers in expanding their knowledge and application of discipline literacy strategies through participation in discipline literacy-focused professional development. The study may provide educators and researchers a deeper understanding of disciplinary literacy and increase research on the topic.
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Mokuku, Tsepo. "Education for environmental literacy : towards participatory action research in the secondary school science curriculum in Lesotho." Thesis, Rhodes University, 2000. http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1003385.
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The dependency of educators in Lesotho on externally developed curriculum theories and concepts is fundamental to issues of relevance of the school curricula. This study set out to develop the meaning of environmental literacy in the context of three secondary schools and to explore appropriate teaching methods for the development of this concept in the science curriculum. The participatory action research process involved a team of four science teachers, including the researcher, in partnership with an environmental centre. We progressively developed the meamng of environmental literacy by monitoring teaching innovations in the classroom, holding meetings and workshops and attending conferences where we shared classroom findings and reflected on our emerging understandings based on classroom experiences. Data collection involved: audio-recording of classroom lessons, interviews with teachers and students, audio-visual recording, classroom observations and students' questionnaires. The research process made apparent the complex nature of the process of clarifying and developing environmental literacy in this context. Classroom actiyities planned to inform the team's understanding of the meaning of environmental literacy and develop appropriate teaching methods encountered constraints associated with the education system and the legacy of colonialism. These contextual constraints crystallised the need for the education system to be transformed in order to make schools more conducive environments for the gevelopment of students' environmental literacy. While initially teachers were reluctant to engage in critical reflection, the research process did encourage the team to revise and expand their understandings of both environmental literacy in the science classroom, and the action research itself. The emerging meaning of environmental literacy in this context and how it may be developed among students does not involve a definition with prescriptive, effective teaching methods, but provides insights and understandings gained by the participants in their engagement with a reflective process of reconslructing meaning. I have come to understand environmental literacy during the study to be a process that should draw strongly on the local knowledge and understandings into the science curriculum, through participatory process-based curriculum development models.
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Ainsworth, Sharon G. "Perspectives on differentiation in practice : an interpretive study from teaching Japanese as a second language in Western Australian secondary schools." Thesis, Edith Cowan University, Research Online, Perth, Western Australia, 2007. https://ro.ecu.edu.au/theses/288.
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This focus of this interpretive study was aimed at presenting an active conception of differentiated curriculum from within the context of Western Australian (WA) second language teaching practice. Significantly, research into differentiation is a relatively new phenomenon in Australia and in particular, to WA second language teaching. Data was collected from seven Japanese language tcachers and their perspectivcs illustrated the realities of individual teaching in the construction and implementation of diffrerentiated curriculum. These teachers worked within an outcomes-based Curriculum Framework (Curriculum Council. 1998) mandate which defines curriculum for all WA schools and require responsive teaching to cater for the myriad range of learners apparent in classrooms. Differentiation authors suggest how teachers may differentiate classroom elements of ' content', 'process'. 'product' and 'learning environment' and design curriculum in response to student needs and address learner characteristics of 'readiness', 'interest', 'learning profile' and 'affect'. Teachers' interviews in this study highlighted how students enter Year 8 with a range of prior primary school second language learning experience that differs in terms of intensity, duration or type. Students in transition to secondary school may therefore be both beginners and continuers of the Japanese language and be in the same Year 8 class.
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Borchers, Tracy Schneider. "A study to define secondary computer literacy programs: Implications for restructuring vocational education policy directions." CSUSB ScholarWorks, 1995. https://scholarworks.lib.csusb.edu/etd-project/1059.
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Seah, Wee Tiong. "The negotiation of perceived value differences by immigrant teachers of mathematics in Australia." Monash University, Faculty of Education, 2004. http://arrow.monash.edu.au/hdl/1959.1/5456.
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Le, Kim. "Cultural hybridity and visual practice: Towards a transformative-repair multicultural pedagogy for visual arts education." Thesis, Edith Cowan University, Research Online, Perth, Western Australia, 2004. https://ro.ecu.edu.au/theses/790.
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This research project examines how transitional multiculturalism, cultural hybridity and transformative-repair are practiced by a professional artist-researcher and novice artists. Transitional multiculturalism and cultural hybridity are examined through a series of artworks by a Vietnamese-born artist-researcher. This series of artwork, which reflects 35 years of creating art in both Vietnamese and Australia, demonstrate a personal engagement with issues of cultural diversity, upbringing, and related aesthetic studies. The intention of this exhibition is to chart the characteristics of the artist's expression, which is culturally hybridised. This part of the study aims to identify those artistic conventions associated with specific visual traditions that have been incorporated into the artist-researcher's paintings. The main influences identified originate from both Eastern arts traditions (Viet nam, Japan and China) and Western visual arts traditions. This study also aims to identify how to use artistic conventions associated with the expression of one's culture und ancestry, which may continue to improving one's knowledge in different traditions and history across diverse aesthetic systems of hybridity. Information and understandings gained from the first part of this research will provide insigns, which will have relevance to secondary school visual arts learning areas. The transformative-repair model of multiculturalism is examined through a visual arts project conducted by secondary school students. More specifically this part of the study aims to identify principles, approaches and content for transformative repair, experiences of two students of culturally diverse hack grounds (African and Vietnamese) who are currently engaged in this culturally diverse Australian society.
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Shumbusho, George N. "Investigating Kiswahili academic literacy : the case of two primary and two secondary schools in Morogoro region, Tanzania /." Thesis, Online access, 2009. http://etd.uwc.ac.za/usrfiles/modules/etd/docs/etd_gen8Srv25Nme4_7737_1279663194.pdf.
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Bushula, Bruce Simphiwe. "Using a classroom library to promote extensive reading in a Grade 8 class in a Fort Beaufort District School, Eastern Cape : an action research case study." Thesis, Rhodes University, 2015. http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1017333.
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This thesis reports on a collaborative action research case study with Grade 8 learners in a rural high school in Fort Beaufort District, Eastern Cape, South Africa. The goals of the case study were firstly, to understand best practices for promoting extensive reading using a classroom library, and secondly, to use these insights to put an extensive reading programme in place with a view to improving my practice as a language teacher and to gain better understanding of ways of enhancing my Grade 8 learners’ literacy skills. The following qualitative methods were used to collect data: observation, semi-structured interviews, class discussion, questionnaires, journal reflections and document analysis. Analysis of data involved identification of emerging themes and patterns. The findings suggest that the strategies used in the extensive reading intervention improved my learners’ levels of engagement with reading. Putting these strategies into practice, and reflecting critically on how to refine them helped enrich my own professional insight and development in relation to the implementation of extensive reading programmes. Since action research is usually designed in spirals of action, this research serves as a first spiral and a foundation upon which to build second and subsequent spirals (which do not form part of this research). The study highlighted the fact that certain challenges that emerged (for example, shortage of books at the learners’ level, and a lack of parental cooperation) need to be addressed in a second spiral of intervention. The study further suggested that the implementation of effective extensive reading programmes by teachers in the middle and upper phases of secondary schooling requires further investigation.
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Wong, Ming-fai Patrick, and 黃明暉. "Integrating computer literacy across different subjects." Thesis, The University of Hong Kong (Pokfulam, Hong Kong), 2003. http://hub.hku.hk/bib/B29599908.
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Sheffield, Rachel. "Facilitating teacher professional learning : analysing the impact of an Australian professional learning model in secondary science." Thesis, Edith Cowan University, Research Online, Perth, Western Australia, 2004. https://ro.ecu.edu.au/theses/811.
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In education, innovations are frequently introduced to promote changes to the curriculum, teachers' practice, and the classroom environment, however, these initiatives are often implemented without sufficient evaluation to monitor their impact and effectiveness in bringing about the desired changes. This thesis analyses the impact of a teacher professional learning program on lower secondary science teachers' practice. It examines the relationship between teachers' concerns about the strategies incorporated in the Collaborative Australian Secondary Science Program (CASSP) and teachers' ability to understand the strategies, on their ability to utilise those strategies in the classroom. It also seeks to determine teachers' beliefs about their current science teaching practice and how this is different from their beliefs about ideal science teaching, and also, how these beliefs direct teachers’ classroom practice. Finally this study describes a number of primary and secondary factors found to impact on teachers' professional learning. 11tc CASSP model encapsulates the primary factors of curriculum exemplars (curriculum resources), explanation und modelling (professional development), and reflection (participative inquiry). The secondary factors include ensuring adequate time for change to occur, student support and participation, peer teacher support, support from lenders including-heads of department, support from the school administration and support from state education officers. This study has demonstrated that teachers’ professional learning is a complex process that is strongly influenced by teachers' beliefs, concerns and understandings, and is impacted by the primary and secondary factors identified by the research. Teachers must be able to envision the advantages of incorporating new strategies into their existing practice, and consequently seek to make these changes to their teaching. This study has shown that students are also an important influence the implementation of an innovation, without their support, teachers are unlikely to make successful changes to their teaching practice. lmplications of the research include the need to elaborate the CASSP professional learning model to include the secondary factors identified in the study, and the need to inform students about innovations so that they can see the benefits for them in terms of improved learning outcomes.
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Lewis, Ann S. "The effect of trade books on the environmental literacy of 11th and 12th graders in aquatic science." Thesis, University of North Texas, 2003. https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc4311/.
Full textAbstract:
The purpose of this study was to compare the environmental literacy of 11th and 12th graders who participated in an eighteen-week environmental education program using trade books versus 11th- and 12th-graders who participated in an eighteen-week, traditional environmental education program without the use of trade books. This study was conducted using a quasi-experimental research technique. Four high school aquatic science classes at two suburban high schools were used in the research. One teacher at each high school taught one control class and one experimental class of aquatic science. In the experimental classes, four trade books were read to the classes during the eighteen-week semester. These four books were selected by the participating teachers before the semester began. The books used were A Home by the Sea, Sea Otter Rescue, There's a Hair in My Dirt, and The Missing Gator of Gumbo Limbo. The instrument used to measure environmental literacy was the Children's Environmental Attitude and Knowledge Scale. This test was given at the beginning of the semester and at the end of the semester. The scores at the end of the semester were analyzed by 2 X 2 mixed model ANOVA with the teacher as the random effect and the condition (trade books) as the fixed effect. The statistical analysis of this study showed that the students in the experimental classes did not score higher than the control classes on the Children's Environmental Attitude and Knowledge Scale or on a subset of "water" questions. Several limitations were placed on this research. These limitations included the following: (1) a small number of classes and a small number of teachers, (2) change from the original plan of using environmental science classes to aquatic science classes, (3) possible indifference of the students, and (4) restrictive teaching strategies of the teachers.
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Leask-Smith, Lyn Ann. "A picture's worth a thousand words: a case study of grade 10 English language educators teaching visual literacy." Thesis, Rhodes University, 2009. http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1003585.
Full textAbstract:
The aim of this research was to better understand teacher's beliefs about visual literacy and to explore how their beliefs influence their teaching practice. In order to investigate this, a case study was conducted that comprised of lesson observations and semi-structured interviews with two secondary school English home language educators. The backdrop to the research was the implementation of the new national curriculum for grade 10. The participants, though well educated and experienced teachers, felt their training had been inadequate in the area of teaching visual literacy and although they acknowledged the importance of visual literacy, it seemed to have a fairly low priority in their actual teaching practice. In particular, very little attention was given to the production of multimodal texts by learners. The reason for this low priority may be related to the requirements of the formal assessment programme as well as limited lesson time in which to cover an extensive curriculum. The research findings would seem to suggest a need for in-service training in this area as well as access to suitable learning support materials and teacher resources.
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Quin, Robyn. "A socio-historical study of the construction of knowledge in secondary media education in Western Australia - whose knowledge?" Thesis, Edith Cowan University, Research Online, Perth, Western Australia, 2001. https://ro.ecu.edu.au/theses/1022.
Full textAbstract:
This thesis investigates the history of the construction of knowledge in the school subject media studies using the Western Australian experience as the case for the study. It seeks to explain why the subject media studies looks and sounds the way it does today through the production of a genealogy of the subject. The problems addressed are first, why was this subject introduced into the curriculum in the 1970s. Secondly, how has the knowledge in the subject been defined and contested, how and why has it changed in the course of the subject’s history. Thirdly, which knowledge attains the status of truth and becomes the accepted definition of what the subject is about.
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Kettner, Paul. "Evolving notions of literacy and the teaching of English : a document analysis of the Secondary English Language Arts Program for Secondary Cycle Two in Quebec." Thesis, McGill University, 2007. http://digitool.Library.McGill.CA:80/R/?func=dbin-jump-full&object_id=101886.
Full textAbstract:
This study examines how changing notions of literacy are translating to curricula in the teaching of English. Two tasks are undertaken: the first is to survey the literature that has informed the ongoing evolution of the concept literacy with the specific goal of highlighting recurring themes in an effort to determine what a New Literacy curriculum would look like in practice. The second part of this study is a document analysis of the Secondary English Language Arts (SELA2) Program for Cycle Two students. The analysis attempts to determine the degree to which the SELA2 document has been informed by new theories of literacy stemming from social theory, critical theory, and New Literacy Theory. Special attention is given to the ways in which the document politicizes the teaching of English, shifting the learning of literacy from an individual skill to a social endeavor that has as one of its tenets a societal move toward greater democracy.
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Farringdon, Fiona. "Developing a post compulsory evidence-based alcohol education curriculum that is relevant to students and acceptable to teachers." Thesis, Edith Cowan University, Research Online, Perth, Western Australia, 2000. https://ro.ecu.edu.au/theses/1394.
Full textAbstract:
The aim of this study was to develop a post compulsory, alcohol education curriculum that would be perceived as relevant by students and acceptable to teachers. The study had its conceptual basis in harm minimisation that has considerable justification in terms of what school-based alcohol education can realistically achieve. A harm minimisation approach is supported by parental attitudes, teachers, young people and government policy. To ensure the curriculum was developed in the Western Australian education context it has been linked to the Western Australian Curriculum Framework and adheres to the principles that underpin the framework. Furthermore, this study draws on the features from evaluated health, alcohol and other drug education programs that have the potential to produce some behaviour change. Accordingly, a major focus of the study was to involve young people in the development of the curriculum. To ensure that the curriculum was sensitive to the concerns of the students it sought to influence, twelve focus groups were conducted with year twelve Western Australian students. These focus groups provided invaluable information about young people's alcohol use experiences, alcohol-related harms that are of particular concern to young people, harm reduction strategies used by young people and educational approaches likely to be effective with young people. These insights were incorporated into the development of the curriculum, ensuring it has a basis in situations experienced by young people. Particular attention was also paid to the needs of teachers, involving current health education teachers and health professionals in the development of the content and teaching strategies In addition, teachers who pilot tested the curriculum were trained prior to implementation of the curriculum, The training, based on interactive modelling of activities, was designed to equip teachers with the knowledge, skills and confidence to teach the curriculum as written, and to document any variation so that fidelity of implementation could be assessed. The curriculum was piloted in three Perth high schools in fourth term of 1999. A triangulation of measures was adopted to assess the curriculum including teacher and student assessment and an evaluation workshop. The process evaluation data from both students and teachers indicated that the curriculum was faithfully implemented and consequently evaluated as relevant by the students who participated in the pilot and acceptable by the teachers who taught it. The apparent success of the curriculum in terms of relevance to students and acceptability to teachers appears to be due to the collaborative process used to develop the curriculum. This process may be replicated, adapted, or added to, by other researchers and educators wishing to develop health education curriculum materials that will be viewed as relevant by students and acceptable by teachers while incorporating an evidence-based approach.
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Batt, Deleece A. "The communicative orientation of virtual language teaching in upper primary and lower secondary telematics in Western Australia." Thesis, Queensland University of Technology, 2003. https://eprints.qut.edu.au/36669/1/36669_Digitised%20Thesis.pdf.
Full textAbstract:
The aim of this study was to investigate the communicative orientation of classroom interaction in Japanese language lessons that are conducted in the virtual environment of synchronous (real-time) telematics. Specifically, the study examined Japanese telematics classrooms in upper primary and junior secondary schools in Western Australia. This study focused on whether the interaction in the classes studied, evident in the virtual learning mode of telematics was facilitative of second language (L2) acquisition.
The form of telematics used in this study was synchronous communication between teacher and students using telephone and computer links, sometimes also referred to as "audiographics". Telematics may also include the use of other communication technologies, such as live interactive television (LIT) however this was not available to all sites in the current study so it was not investigated.
The aim of this study is articulated through the research questions:
1. What is the nature of the communicative orientation in upper primary and junior secondary Japanese language classrooms in telematics mode?
2. ls the interaction observed in Japanese language telematics classrooms of the type that promotes L2 acquisition?
The first question seeks to identify the relative emphasis placed on interaction and form-focused interaction in the telematics classroom context. The second question identifies whether the features of interaction that SLA researchers suggest promote L2 acquisition are evident in the telematics context. This study uses the term interaction to refer to the type of human-human communicative interaction occurring in L2 telematics classes via the computer/technology that is facilitated by a number of key communicative features of interaction drawn from the second language acquisition (SLA) research. Interactivity on the other hand is used to refer to the human-computer engagement which is technologically facilitated.
Subjects in the study were three telematics teachers, with distributed classes across several student receival sites. The study examined descriptive process data collected from Japanese telematics classes in Western Australia via audio and video recordings. The study engaged in a descriptive inquiry using Classroom-Centred Research (CCR) methodology. CCR as a methodology provides evidence about the nature and influence of language instruction and classroom interaction have on L2 acquisition. This study used multi-methods of data collection via four stages: teacher questionnaire, classroom observations of interactions, teacher focus group discussion and follow-up interviews conducted later in the study to confirm the findings.
The major analytical tool used was the current version of the Communicative Orientation of Language Teaching (COLT) Observation (1995). The use of this scheme stems from its ability to bring together all of the communicative variables to capture features deemed theoretically and empirically relevant to the L2 classroom. The COLT Observation Scheme also provides a framework for comparing features of discourse in classrooms with features of natural language acquisition considered to be facilitative of L2 acquisition. In this way the extent to which an instructional treatment may be characterised as communicatively orientated can be measured. Both Part A and Part B of the scheme were used. The features and categories in Part A are primarily derived from pedagogical issues identified in the literature on communicative language teaching (CL T). Features and categories in Part B reflect issues in first and second language acquisition. The only modification was an additional investigation of how form was used in the telematics lessons.
Although recent studies have recommended improvements to telematics delivery, no other known study has specifically investigated whether the interaction evident in the delivery of Japanese via telematics is of the type that promotes successful L2 acquisition. Through the use of the COLT Observation Scheme, this study was able to capture and measure features of L2 classroom interaction in these telematics environments.
The results indicate that there were a number of internal and external variables that influenced the nature of the communicative orientation of telematics classes in this study. In terms of the communicative features of interaction identified in the COLT Observation Scheme as predictors of successful L2 acquisition, a number of these were not strongly evident in the results, for example, use of the target language, interaction in group work, use of extended text, use of authentic resources and student-made materials, reaction to message and clarification request.
Pedagogic factors impinging on the communicative orientation of the telematics environment included the highly teacher-centred nature of the telematics context. The use of the computer as a controlling device and the only visual connection also moved teachers further towards a more directive delivery style and greater dependence on using the L 1. Given the recent support for the incorporation of some focus on form into a communicative curriculum, the supplementary focus on form data revealed how the electronic nature of telematics delivery influenced how form was taught and the overuse in some cases of vocabulary games, drilling, substitution and repetition. There was also little evidence of students initiating discourse, negotiating activities or requesting clarification. Students engaged in mainly minimal rather than extended text thus limiting opportunities to experiment with the L2.
The communicative orientation of L2 telematics classes in this study was also impacted upon by a number of external factors, such as noise, technical breakdowns and inadequate learning environments at receival sites. The impact of the absence of a two-way human visual connection led to teachers using a more directive style of teaching where "silences" were often filled with teacher talk. Teachers identified this limitation as also limiting opportunities for students to obtain comprehensible input. However, teachers developed useful compensation strategies to overcome some of these limitations such as, using colour on the computer screen and tone of voice to highlight salient features. They also introduced games that promoted interaction between sites.
Whilst this study has revealed that some of the communicative features of interaction are evident, a greater number of these features need to become more prominent or more communicative. As well as targeting the technological orientation of the delivery method by adding a human visual connection, this would also involve the careful incorporation of the features that are characteristic of a more communicative approach to L2 acquisition.
This study has contributed to the fields of SLA and virtual delivery in a number of ways. It has added to the existing literature base through interfacing the SLA literature with the telematics literature. It has also contributed to a new methodology by taking an existing methodology and methods and applying them to the virtual L2 telematics classroom, in particular, the use of the COLT Observation Scheme in a virtual context. A contribution this study has made to language teaching through telematics lies in a mapping framework that has evolved from the study that aims to bring the type of interaction that occurs in SLA, communicative interaction and telematics closer together.
Further research needs to determine how interaction can be more effectively promoted m the telematics and virtual learning environments. It is anticipated that this study will encourage other researchers to further investigate the benefits of a more communicatively orientated intervention which will ultimately lead to positive L2 learning outcomes for all students in telematics environments and the broader virtual learning contexts.
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Chin, Kwan-ying, and 錢群英. "How can critical thinking skills be strengthened in media education?: a case study in a secondary school." Thesis, The University of Hong Kong (Pokfulam, Hong Kong), 2003. http://hub.hku.hk/bib/B27722983.
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Shand, Jennifer. "From essay to resumé : a study of writing genre and discursive positioning in senior school English." Thesis, Edith Cowan University, Research Online, Perth, Western Australia, 2011. https://ro.ecu.edu.au/theses/465.
Full textAbstract:
In 2004, the Western Australian government signalled its intention to increase the school leaving age from 15 to 17 by 2008 (Carpenter, 2004). During the period from 2004 to 2006, increasing numbers of young Western Australians completed twelve years of secondary school. For English faculties in Western Australian schools, this resulted in a notably diverse cohort of students undertaking compulsory English studies in their final two years of school. The central aim of this thesis was to examine what it means to be a writer in senior school English. In doing so, the thesis investigated the construction of student writing identities in an environment where increasing numbers of students progressed through senior school with the intention of pursuing pathways other than university. In this setting, students were offered a range of English subjects, each of which represented and promoted particular writing identities, and access to specific opportunities for learning about genre. The thesis explored the role of environmental and discursive features in shaping student writing identities through the selection, presentation and construction of genre. In this process, it examined the discursive framing of writers through the key features of writing in curricula, policy, seminal discourses of the English subject area, teacher interpretation of curricula and the texts students construct. A review of the literature, particularly the recent work of Kress (2005, 2006), Bourne (2003) and Kress, Jewitt, Bourne, Hardcastle, Jones, and Reid (2005) suggests that the factors shaping writing identity in the English subject area emanate from both the local contexts of the classroom and broader cultural and institutional contexts. In order to analyse and interpret the influence of broader social and cultural values and practices, a discourse analysis (Bernstein, 1990, 1996, 2000) has been applied to policy, curriculum and classroom practice. To do this specifically, Bernstein’s notion of pedagogic discourse has been used to explain how educational contexts were framed through regulative discourses that shape social order and outline how learning takes place. Additionally, using Bernstein’s framework, the thesis explored how opportunities for learning and access to particular forms of genre were framed at the level of policy and curriculum. Central to this investigation of identity has been an analysis of how the selection, presentation and construction of genre discursively positions students. It drew upon the theoretical framing of genres as culturally embedded templates, which influence the features of texts and the parameters of successfully constructed texts (Feez, 2002; Macken-Horarik, 2002, 2006a; Martin, 1985, 2002, 2009). The thesis examined the discourse roles (Smidt, 2002, 2009) offered to students and their own attempts to establish identities as they engaged with the genres they encountered. To examine the nexus between identity, genre and discourse, the thesis has utilised Bakhtin’s (1986) notion of the discourse community and its use in studies of genre (Hyland, 2010; Ivanic, 2006; Smidt, 2009). Aspects of systemic functional linguistics (Butt, Fahey, Feez, Spinks & Yallop, 2000; Halliday, 1978, 1994; Halliday & Hasan, 1985) have been employed to identify and interpret some of the linguistic resources presented to students and the ways students appropriated and transformed these. In doing so, the research drew upon investigations of the positioning of students writers in subject English through a number of discourses and practices (Bourne, 2003; Christie, 2002b, 2005a, Christie & Derewianka, 2008; Christie & Macken-Horarik, 2007; Kress et al., 2005). A case study methodology provided the primary research design. Elements of the ethnography were used as interpretative tools, and the thesis incorporated the social semiotic ethnography (van Leeuwen, 2005a, Vannini, 2007). Data from a range of sources were used including policy and curriculum documents, teacher and student interviews, classroom observations and text analysis.
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Wagner, Brandon Joel. "Integrating K-W-L Prompts into Science Journal Writing: Can Simple Question Scaffolding Increase Student Content Knowledge?" PDXScholar, 2014. https://pdxscholar.library.pdx.edu/open_access_etds/2127.
Full textAbstract:
Writing-to-learn strategies have been administered in the past to enrich student learning. The purpose of this study was to see if K-W-L prompts in science journal writing could benefit student content knowledge within biology. Two high school biology classes were provided with learning journals. The journals given to the students during the treatment unit were provided with K-W-L question prompts to guide student learning while during the comparison unit students were given an open ended writing assignment. Pre and posttests were administered to determine student-learning gains. Student motivations and opinions of the treatment were collected through student interviews. The combined results were used to determine to what extent could K-W-L prompts in science journal writing influence comprehension of content knowledge. This study found there to be no difference in student learning gains when utilizing the K-W-L literacy strategy versus another free-writing activity. When scored, student K-W-Ls total scores did correlate to student success on unit tests. This opens up the potential for K-W-Ls to serve as an adequate tool for formative assessment. Here the K-W-L could be expanded to enrich student question asking, potentially aid students learning English, and potentially be used by students without teacher scaffolding.
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Vale, Pamela. "Describing the relationship between the cognitive and linguistic complexity of a mathematical literacy examination and types of student errors." Thesis, Rhodes University, 2013. http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1001774.
Full textAbstract:
Much prior research has shown that if students have a poor command of the language in which they are taught and assessed, they experience a complex and deep learning disadvantage (Barton & Neville-Barton, 2003). Abedi (2006) mentions, in particular, that unnecessary linguistic complexity can threaten the validity of examination items and thus compromises the fairness of the assessment for English language learners. In Clarkson’s (1991, p. 31) research it was found that for the English language learners in the study “comprehension errors [made] up a high proportion of the errors made when…students attempt[ed] to solve mathematical word problems”. In an attempt to explore whether this was the case for a group of National Certificate (Vocational) [NC(V)] students at an FET college, the research conducted in this study focused on describing the cognitive and linguistic complexity of Level 4 Mathematical Literacy examination items as well as the types of responses from a sample of students. A mixed-methods case study design was selected. Student errors were classified as either due to mathematical literacy-related sources, or language-related sources and the question was asked as to how the cognitive and linguistic complexity of items might be related to the types of errors made. Statistically significant correlations were found between the linguistic complexity of items and language-related errors, and between the cognitive complexity of items and all types of errors. It was also possible to identify which language features, in particular, were statistically significantly correlated with linguistic complexity, namely: prepositional phrases; words of 7 letters or more and complex/compound sentences. As was expected, the majority of errors were categorised as mathematical literacy-related. However, as many as 19.22% of all errors made were identified as language-related. While the scope of the study prevents any generalisations from being made, the results indicate a need for a larger-scale study of this nature to determine if the complex and deep learning disadvantage mentioned by Barton and Neville-Barton (2003) does exist with regard to the assessment of Mathematical Literacy for NC(V) students who are English language learners (Barton & Neville-Barton, 2003).
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Turner, Elisabeth. "Factors in the development of early childhood distance education curriculum materials for language and literacy in Western Australia." Thesis, Edith Cowan University, Research Online, Perth, Western Australia, 2001. https://ro.ecu.edu.au/theses/1079.
Full textAbstract:
Many factors influence the changing nature of education: family structures, cultural diversity, rapid technological change, social conditions. In response to these changes the Curriculum Framework for Western Australian schools has been developed to establish the learning outcomes expected of all students from K-12. Students in isolated and distance education settings are supplied curriculum materials designed to meet their diverse educational needs. This study presents one snapshot of an ongoing research project in which new language and literacy curriculum materials for early childhood distance education learners were developed, trialled and further developed. Some factors that appear to be important in the development of early childhood distance education curriculum materials for language and literacy in Western Australia were identified through the use of grounded theory and explored through the development of draft and final curriculum materials for K-3 students in distance education. These factors include; state government mandated Curricufrm1 Framework and Outcomes and Standards Framework, federal government initiatives, the impact of information and communication technologies, the needs of home tutors, the diversity of students enrolled in distance education and factors related to early childhood language an literacy needs identified through the literature review. The implications highlight the need to continue to seek feedback from all stakeholders, especially home tutors and the need for frequent reviews and rewriting of curriculum materials, taking into account current literature, technologies and pedagogical change.
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Kirsten, Monica. "Multilingual/multicultural aspects of visual literacy and interpretation in multimodal educational communication." Thesis, University of the Western Cape, 2004. http://etd.uwc.ac.za/index.php?module=etd&.
Full textAbstract:
The aim of this thesis was to investigate the use of visual images in print texts produced for language teaching and learning. It tested the manner in which learners from different cultural contexts relate to selected visual images in language textbooks prepared for use in secondary schools. More specifically it aimed to gain clarity on how certain visual elements, relevant to the illustration of people, contribute to encouraging students to access their learning material. The research aimed to gain insight into the way in which visuals can be bridges or barriers to reading and thus also to learning in learner-centred language education in a multilingual/multicultural South African context.
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Cox, Philip F. "Student beliefs about learning in religion and science in Catholic schools." Thesis, Edith Cowan University, Research Online, Perth, Western Australia, 2004. https://ro.ecu.edu.au/theses/799.
Full textAbstract:
The focus of this study is the impact of student perception of the validity of content on student learning. It is proposed that, if the content of a subject is perceived by students as being different to the content of another subject, a result of this perceived difference is that students will treat their learning in these subjects differently. To test this proposal, student beliefs about items from the content of the religious education course are compared with student responses to items of content of their science course. A sample of 1418, year 11 students from nine co-educational Catholic secondary schools were asked to respond to a series of outcome statements from the year 10 religious education and science courses. The questionnaire asks two questions; one, can• the student recall being taught each item; and two, does the student believe that the item is true. If the students believe that the item is true, they are asked to indicate one of three possible reasons for their belief. One, they believe the item because the teacher had provided them with evidence that convinced them that the item is true; two, they believe the item because they trust the teacher to teach them what is true, or three they believe the item for some other reason such as faith. This study does not deal with the issue of faith formation, catechesis, new evangelisation or evangelisation which are significant raison•d'etre of Catholic schools and are closely linked to the study of religious education in Catholic schools. Student and staff responses to a number of open-ended questions, and extensive discussions with students in a Reference Group, provide additional insights into the student beliefs regarding the nature of knowledge particularly for the content of their religious education and science courses.
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Brown, Roger George, and rogergbrown@mac com. "The impact of the introduction of the graphics calculator on system wide 'high stakes' end of secondary school mathematics examinations." Swinburne University of Technology, 2005. http://adt.lib.swin.edu.au./public/adt-VSWT20051117.121210.
Full textAbstract:
There has been widespread interest in the potential impact of the graphics calculator on system wide 'high stakes' end of secondary school mathematics examinations. This thesis has focused on one aspect, the way in which examiners have gone about writing examination questions in a graphics calculator assumed environment. Two aspects of this issue have been investigated. The first concerns the types of questions that can be asked in a graphics calculator assumed environment and their frequency of use. The second addresses the level of skills assessed and whether with the
introduction of the graphics calculator has been associated with an increase in difficulty as has been frequently suggested. A descriptive case study methodology was used with three examination
boards, the Danish Ministry of Education, Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority and the International Baccalaureate Organization.
Four distinct categories of questions were identified which differed according to the potential for the graphics calculator to contribute to the solution of the question and the freedom the student was then given to make use of this potential. While all examination boards made use of the full range of questions, the tendency was to under use questions in which required the use of the calculator for their solution. In respect to the level of skills assessed, it was found that both prior to and after the introduction of the graphics calculator, all three examination boards used question types that primarily tested the use of lower level mathematical skills. With exceptions, where graphics calculator active questions have been used, the tendency has been to continue to ask routine mechanistic questions. In this regard, there is no evidence of the introduction of the graphics calculator being associated with either lowering or raising of the level of the mathematical skills assessed.
For all cases studied, the graphics calculator was introduced with minimal change to the curriculum and examination policies. The role of the graphics calculator in the enacted curriculum was left implicit. The resulting examinations were consistent with the stated policies. However, the inexperience of some examiners and a general policy of containment or minimal change enabled examiners to minimise the impact of the introduction of the graphics calculators on assessment.
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Revelle, Carol L. "Constructing Transformative Experiences Through Problem Posing in a High School English Research Project." Thesis, University of North Texas, 2009. https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc9919/.
Full textAbstract:
This dissertation chronicles my search to engage high school English students in inquiry as part of a formal research process. The perspective of critical literacy theory is used to describe the four phases of the problem posing process in shaping student research and action. Grounded in Freire's approach and consistent with Dewey and others who advocate inquiry, action and relevance, Wink's process is built into the instructional plan described in this study. Because of the real-life context of the classroom and the complex social phenomena being considered, a case study methodology was utilized in which multiple sources of data converged to develop the themes. Data sources included the work and artifacts of ten students in a tenth grade English class during the spring semester of 2008. The analysis focuses on the supports, the constraints and the impact of problem posing on the high school research assignment. The analysis, findings, and conclusions contribute to the literature in three areas: audience, reflection and grading.
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Whipp, P. R. "Aquatic programmes and swimming activities in health and physical education : a case for differentiation." Thesis, Edith Cowan University, Research Online, Perth, Western Australia, 2004. https://ro.ecu.edu.au/theses/784.
Full textAbstract:
This research study provides a 'snap-shot' of the current status of teaching aquatic programmes in Western Australian secondary schools. This study also encapsulates the thoughts and feelings of the teachers and the students engaged in these programmes, scrutinises the outcomes of existing programmes and advances practical recommendations to address the problems identified. The study was conducted within a contemporary context where little innovation in aquatic education has accompanied the Australian and state-wide curriculum development based on outcomes-focused education. The research was underpinned by a conceptual framework which conforms to the principles of constructivist learning (Kirk & Macdonald, 1998; Wittrock, 1978; Woods, 1996) and was viewed through Tomlinson's (1999, 2000, 2001) differentiated classroom and Shulman's'(1986, 1987) pedagogical content knowledge, and articulated through Choi's (1992) curriculum dimensions. The study incorporated empirical/analytic and interpretive research paradigms, collecting data from 33 Teachers in Charge of Health and Physical Education Departments (TiC's), 43 teachers of Health and Physical Education (HPE) swimming, and 1532 students Year 8/9 in both Government and Independent schools. In addition, case study observation and interview data (4 HPE classes) were used in the triangulation of common happenings, issues, perceptions and experiences to provide an in-depth analysis of aquatics in HPE. Teacher data were presented for school sector (Government, Independent) and schools with and without a swimming pool; while student responses for differing year levels, gender, school sector, swimming ability, ethnicity and perceived parental swimming ability comparisons- are offered. Observation and interview data were inductively analysed employing a thematic cross case analysis process. The results indicated that there was a lack of HPE swimming and formalised aquatic award programmes offered in Western Australian secondary schools. At the conclusion of the HPE swimming unit, which was defined by 'stroke technique analysis and correction,' more than 40% of students did not meet the requirements that define a competent swimmer (Ministerial Swimming Review Committee - Report, 1995). Girls and students of ethnic origin were under-represented in the higher swimming categories. On an annual learning continuum, Year 8/9 students appeared to 'tread-water.' Staff/student ratios typically exceeding 1:20 impacted negatively on teacher effectiveness and the student outcomes. Additional issues impacting on programmes included: inadequate time and pool space; varied swimming abilities; students feeling cold; student related personal, interest/readiness, maturation, gender and cultural dynamics, and inadequate teaching resources. School HPE programmes that were required to access a public swimming venue for lessons were disadvantaged from a range of perspectives. This study makes recommendations with the ultimate goal to increase the number of secondary schools offering this curriculum and the number of Western Australian children who are aquatically competent. Findings and conclusions highlight the need for new HPE aquatic policy, differentiated teaching and professional development aimed at meeting students’ readiness and interest levels. Recommendations for further research to consider how contemporary HPE aquatics might be presented to accommodate student needs, to identify and map the aquatic competencies of Western Australian school children, and the minimum aquatic proficiency for students exiting the compulsory HPE years, are offered.
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Ottati, Daniela F. "Geographical Literacy, Attitudes, and Experiences of Freshman Students: A Qualitative Study at Florida International University." FIU Digital Commons, 2015. http://digitalcommons.fiu.edu/etd/1851.
Full textAbstract:
The purpose of the study was to explore the geography literacy, attitudes and experiences of Florida International University (FIU) freshman students scoring at the low and high ends of a geography literacy survey. The Geography Literacy and ABC Models formed the conceptual framework. Participants were freshman students enrolled in the Finite Math course at FIU. Since it is assumed that students who perform poorly on geography assessments do not have an interest in the subject, testing and interviewing students allowed the researcher to explore the assumption.
In Phase I, participants completed the Geography Literacy Survey (GLS) with items taken from the 2010 NAEP Geography Subject Area Assessment. The low 35% and high 20% performers were invited for Phase II, which consisted of semi-structured interviews. A total of 187 students participated in Phase I and 12 in Phase II.
The primary research question asked was what are the geography attitudes and experiences of freshman students scoring at the low and high ends of a geographical literacy survey? The students had positive attitudes regardless of how they performed on the GLS.
The study included a quantitative sub-question regarding the performance of the students on the GLS. The students’ performance on the GLS was equivalent to the performance of 12th grade students from the NAEP Assessment. There were three qualitative sub-questions from which the following themes were identified: the students’ definition of geography is limited, students recall more out of school experiences with geography, and students find geography valuable. In addition, there were five emergent themes: there is a concern regarding a lack of geographical knowledge, rote memorization of geographical content is overemphasized, geographical concepts are related to other subjects, taking the high school level AP Human Geography course is powerful, and there is a need for real-world applications of geographical knowledge.
The researcher offered as suggestions for practice to reposition geography in our schools to avoid misunderstandings, highlight its interconnectedness to other fields, connect the material to real world events/daily decision-making, make research projects meaningful, partner with local geographers, and offer a mandatory geography courses at all educational levels.
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Chaipraparl, Pornpun. "Thai High School Compute Literacy: A Content Analysis." Thesis, University of North Texas, 1989. https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc330995/.
Full textAbstract:
This study examined the extent to which each computer literacy objective domain, each specific mode of instruction, and each type of question were treated in Thai high school computer literacy text materials. Two textbooks and their accompanying teachers' manuals were examined using three analytical schemes as frameworks for the examinations. The Minnesota Educational Computing Consortium (MECC) computer literacy objectives were used to classify the content in the text materials in order to determine the degree of emphasis on each computer literacy objective domain. The Hawaii state Department of Education (HSDE) instructional modes were used to classify the content in the text materials in order to determine the degree of emphasis on each mode of instruction. Bloom's taxonomy of education, cognitive domain, was used to classify the review questions and exercises in the text materials in order to determine the degree of emphasis on each cognitive level. Detailed findings are given as numerals, percentages, and decimal values. Perspectives are offered on the need for textbooks which reflect the values and feelings objectives. Conclusions were that (a) text materials focus most on the programming/algorithms objectives and tend to exclude the values and feelings objectives; (b) text materials use only three modes of instruction, focusing first on the topic mode, second on the tutee mode, and last on the tool mode; (c) text material questions focus more on higher cognitive than on lower cognitive levels.
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Png, Jessie L. "The use of scaffolding through think-alouds and reciprocal teaching in the teaching of reading comprehension to lower secondary students in two Singaporean schools." Thesis, Edith Cowan University, Research Online, Perth, Western Australia, 2007. https://ro.ecu.edu.au/theses/309.
Full textAbstract:
This Portfolio examines the use of scaffolding through Think-alouds and Reciprocal Teaching in the teaching of reading comprehension to lower secondary students in two schools in Singapore. The researcher noticed while doing her research that where scaffolding in reading is conccrned, many books and articles tend to focus on children in kindergarten and primary schools. She felt that students in the secondary schools, especially those in the lower secondary, need scaffolding too. It is for this reason that this study focuses on scaffolding at the lower secondary level. In addition, it is quite common to see English Language teachers in secondary schools running out of scaffolding tools to use in their reading lessons. Therefore it is the aim of the researcher of this study to introduce the Think-aloud and Reciprocal Teaching methods to two groups of teachers in two different schools, and to find out how receptive these teachers are to the use of these two scaffolding tools.
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au, Ronald Aubrey@det wa edu, and Ron Aurbrey. "Student and teacher perceptions of preparation in mathematics in middle school and its impact on students' self-efficacy and performance in an upper secondary school in Western Australia." Murdoch University, 2006. http://wwwlib.murdoch.edu.au/adt/browse/view/adt-MU20070419.111054.
Full textAbstract:
Middle school initiatives (including heterogeneous classes and an integrated, flexible curriculum together with promotion of student input) have been implemented in schools in Western Australia in response to a perceived need to align schools more closely with a more student-centred approach to learning, in the expectation of meeting more students needs and thereby reducing student dissatisfaction and increasing the possibility of students pursuing life long learning. Specific goals underlying the initiative include the development of independent learning and student responsibility for learning through a series of strategies such as self-paced learning, student involvement in negotiating their own learning, and a strong emphasis on respecting and valuing student input into the implementation of curricula. However, owing to the way that the curricula for Middle and Upper secondary school mathematics are currently structured, problems might arise for students in the transition from a relaxed to a highly discipline-based organization of content (as described by Venville, Wallace, Rennie, Malone (1998). Students accustomed to the current approaches implemented in Middle schools (Years 8 to 10) may be disadvantaged in the transition to Upper secondary school courses (Years 11 and 12) compared with those students who have been exposed to a more discipline-based organization of content throughout early adolescence and prior to entry into courses leading to tertiary entrance (T.E.E. courses). The aim of this project was to investigate the possible effects of Middle school initiatives in a group of students from three Middle schools in Western Australia in one subject area mathematics on the perceptions of self-efficacy and preparation in mathematics once the students encounter Year 11 Upper school courses.
A survey containing Likert-type rating scales pertinent to four areas of interest Self-efficacy in mathematics; Self-Directed Regulation; Views on current teaching; and Views on prior teaching were administered to students transferring from three feeder Middle schools to Year 11 (Upper secondary school) classes in one Senior College in Western Australia for each of 4 consecutive years. Students were also asked for their comments regarding preparation for the challenges of their chosen courses in mathematics. In addition, their levels of performance in a range of mathematical skills were assessed using a teacher-developed test. The perceptions of their Middle and Senior School teachers were also sought. As the survey was administered to all students as a routine part of action research within the mathematics faculty at the Senior College, only the results of those students who subsequently agreed to be participants in the study are reported in this dissertation. Results indicated that a mismatch existed in approaches and skills between Middle School and Senior College Mathematics. The reliance on students making suitable choices for themselves, the absence of specialist teachers of mathematics in middle schools, mixed ability classes in which specialist teachers of mathematics find it difficult to operate successfully and a curriculum that was so flexible that teachers omitted key elements required for later studies were the main factors that resulted in a significant number of students making the transition from middle to senior school with insufficient preparation. Implications for the teaching of mathematics in these three Middle schools and the Upper school are discussed.
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Burgis, Paul Lindsay Education Faculty of Arts & Social Sciences UNSW. "The role of secondary schools in the development of student knowledge about poverty in Australia, The Philippines and Zimbabwe." Awarded by:University of New South Wales. School of Education, 2006. http://handle.unsw.edu.au/1959.4/25483.
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This thesis examined student knowledge about the nature, scope, causes and responses to poverty, student perceptions of the emphasis in the school curricula on poverty and development, student attitudes to poverty and the factors that influence such knowledge and attitudes. Knowledge and attitudes at the end of primary school were compared with those after four years of secondary school in three nations, Australia. The Philippines and Zimbabwe, involving 1296 surveys and 188 interviews. The investigation draws on earlier work in Ireland (Regan, 1996). and is a response to the recent emphasis on the role of schools in development education in Europe (Lemmers, 2001) and the call for a greater emphasis in Australia on this area (Simons. Hart and WTalsh, 1997). The survey compared student understanding with current 'knowledge' in the literature and the interview allowed an examination of the stories students constructed about people in poverty, including their cognitive and affective responses to people in poverty. Results showed that whilst almost all students recognised that poverty exists, they were more likely to define it simply as a lack of income than as a phenomenon involving social power and self esteem. Few students were aware that the majority of the world's poor are female. Nationality was an important predictor of student knowledge and values. Australian students considered nationally based causes (e.g., government, education) to be more important than personal qualities (e.g., laziness) or international causes (e.g., powerful countries). Australian students were also more likely to value hedonism, but it could not be demonstrated conclusively that this affected the ways that they defined poverty and its causes. Filipino students were more likely to perceive poverty as being the fault of the person experiencing poverty and were more pejorative towards the poor. Whilst Filipino and Zimbabwean students considered that they had learnt a lot about poverty, few Australian students thought this to be the case. Students in senior secondary school were not well informed of current understandings about poverty and development and did not possess a significantly greater knowledge than primary school students on these matters. Specifically. current school practices allow students to perceive poverty as primarily income related and do not place due emphasis on internationally related causes.
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Lovesy, Sarah Caroline, University of Western Sydney, of Arts Education and Social Sciences College, and School of Education. "Drama education secondary school playbuilding : enhancing imagination and creativity in group playbuilding through kinaesthetic teaching and learning." THESIS_CAESS_EDU_Lovesy_S.xml, 2003. http://handle.uws.edu.au:8081/1959.7/787.
Full textAbstract:
This research investigates the drama eduction form of playbuilding, and particularly the phenomenon of kinaesthetic teaching and learning which is aimed at enhancing group imagination and creativity. Playbuilding is a process whereby groups of students devise and act in their own plays using a variety of dramatic elements and theatrical conventions. This research explores the playbuilding learning experiences of two secondary school drama classes and the playbuilding teaching experiences of four drama teachers. The research underpins current drama and theatre education praxis that relates to learning through embodiment, symbolic creativity, and the purpose and function of metaxis in a secondary drama classroom. The study relied on qualitative research grounded theory techniques, focus groups, student workbooks, classrooms practices, closed questionnaires, face to face interviews and videotaped materials. Central to this research are the phenomena of imagining and creating that occur in secondary drama playbuilding groups learning through a group kinaesthetic paradigm. This study concludes that there is a paradigm which identifies secondary drama students as group kinaesthetic learners, and that kinaesthetic teaching and learning practices open up pedagogic spaces in playbuilding that significantly improve the effectiveness of group embodied learning in drama educationDoctor of Philosophy (PhD)
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Arnolds, Keith Victor. "A comparative study of the language, mathematics and science literacy knowledge and skills of grade 9 learners in secondary schools in Port Elizabeth." Thesis, Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University, 2012. http://hdl.handle.net/10948/d1016062.
Full textAbstract:
In South Africa, on-going concerns surrounding the development of learners’ literacy, mathematics and science skills are evident and drive various research studies in this field. International studies and assessments, such as the Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) and the Progress in International Reading Literacy Study (PIRLS) show major differences in the proficiency levels of learners in South Africa in comparison with their international counter parts. To date, however, the more comprehensive international standardised assessment called the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA), has not been administered in South Africa. The main aim of this research study was to investigate and scientifically explore the real situation in terms of language, mathematics and science literacy knowledge and skills of Grade 9 learners in South Africa and to draw a comparison between Grade 9 learners from secondary schools in the Port Elizabeth district in South Africa and their international counterparts, using the PISA standardised international assessment. In addition, the aim of the study was to determine the actual language, mathematics and science literacy skills and knowledge acquired by participants in this study. Quantitative data collection was done by administering a modified version of the Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) to learners from eight schools in Port Elizabeth, supplemented with questionnaires completed by participating learners and school principals. Findings revealed that the South African learners sampled, ranked in the bottom percentile of participating countries in reading, mathematics and science. The study also exposed the glaring inequalities still prevalent in South African education today, 17 years into democracy. The implications point to a serious investigation into the societal and political factors responsible for the discrepancies in the South African educational system at present.
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Holly, Christina R. "An investigation of the factors that influence the career aspirations of Year 12 science students." Thesis, Edith Cowan University, Research Online, Perth, Western Australia, 2005. https://ro.ecu.edu.au/theses/1549.
Full textAbstract:
What has become apparent in recent years is the lack of upper secondary students choosing science related subjects in their final years of schooling. Even of those students who choose science subjects to study in Years 11 and 12 in Australia, many tend to choose non-science pathways for tertiary education options (department of Education, Science and Training, 2003). This is worrying trend, given the numbers of science professionals and teachers required in the new age of technology. By investigating a sample of Western Australian Year 12 students that study any science related subjects, it is expected that there may be some underlying factors that can be identified that play important roles in their career aspirations. Previous research suggests that these factors will most likely be a combination of social, environmental and individual influences. Science learning experiences, albeit positive or negative, also most certainly determine an individual’s interest in science. It is important to understand why science is failing to capture the interest of our best students, who potentially could contribute intellectually to the future of Australian science. A sample of five secondary metropolitan schools was involved in the collection of data. Using a qualitative case study research method, Year 12 science students, aged 16 to 17 years, were surveyed on aspects of career aspirations and experiences in science. Focus groups from each school participated in a narrative inquiry with the author to further probe their thoughts about career choices in relation to science learning experiences. Staff involved in helping students with their career decisions such as Career Advisors, Year 12 Coordinators and science teachers were also interviewed. In summary, it can be noted, that whilst many of our Year 12 science students are reported high levels of enjoyment of science, there is significant room for improvement. Teachers are seen as a vital link in fostering students’ enjoyment of science, and need to be able to teach science in a relevant fashion, enabling students to understand and to be able to explain the concepts of science. Teachers also have an important role to play by identifying the range of careers that scientific knowledge will support. The study found that personal interest and academic ability are significant factors that influence the career aspirations of Year 12 students, it must also be acknowledged that parental influences also have a large influence on career aspirations of Year 12 students, as well as a range of other factors that will be discussed in the body of this research. The choices of university versus TAFE continue to be an issue, with the majority of students opting for university courses even when not academically able to fulfil the course requirements. Career counsellors also need to play a more active role in helping Year 12 students with decisions by being more readily accessible with relevant information, as this was one criticism of Year 12 students that participated in this research. In conclusions, it is important to note that a greater priority needs to be given to developing the quality of secondary science, and education about career pathways in science. It is very important that all students experience a science education that will make a difference in their lives whilst fostering scientific literacy. It is also important, as a society, to attract our best young minds into science as this will only endeavour to increase the competitiveness of Australian science (Goodrum, Hackling & Rennis, 2001).
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Fairclough, Kelvin. "Assessing moral reasoning development through values education within a Western Australian independent school." Thesis, Edith Cowan University, Research Online, Perth, Western Australia, 2000. https://ro.ecu.edu.au/theses/1366.
Full textAbstract:
The relationship between Values Education and corresponding moral reasoning development has been explored within a group of forty-six year eight students (twelve and thirteen years old). Participants were tested with a Sociomoral Reflection Objective Measure instrument to index their moral reasoning stage development (reported as a Moral Maturity Score). Randomly dividing the group into two equal proportions they were assigned to an Experimental or Control group. The Experimental group was presented with Values Education through exposure to age relevant moral dilemmas which envelope a societal value drawn from the Core Shared Values (Curriculum Council of Western Australia, 1998). Within each session the discussions were both inductive and didactic. After a ten-week exposure to forty-minute sessions the students were re-tested. The aim is to investigate evidence of significant change in moral development of the Experimental group compared to the Control group. The degree to which changes occur impinges upon the relevance of inclusion of Core Shared Values into the Curriculum Framework (Curriculum Council of Western Australia, 1998) being established in Western Australian schools. The Core Shared Values are to be infused into the curriculum in order to enrich the morality of students, the future societal generations, and raise the moral standards of our society. The presupposition is that the integration of these values will in fact enhance moral development through moral reasoning. The findings of this study did not support the premise that using a Values Education will improve the mora1 reasoning capacity of students within an experimental group above that of a control group. Even though overall improvements were made in both groups, neither reached statistical significance. Recommendations included in the body of the text include the consideration of a longitudinal study using values integrated into the curriculum rather than an interventionist approach.