Academic literature on the topic 'School improvement programs Victoria Evaluation Case studies'

The objectives of this study were to perform an economic evaluation of a targeted school-based dental checkup program in northern metropolitan Melbourne, Victoria. A 12-mo retrospective case-control cohort analysis using the decision tree method evaluated the incremental cost-utility and cost-effectiveness ratio (ICUR/ICER) for passive standard care dental services and an outreach pilot intervention completed in 2013. A societal perspective was adopted. A total of 273 children ( n = 273) aged between 3 and 12 y met the inclusion/exclusion criteria: 128 in the standard care group and 145 in the intervention group. The total society costs included health sector costs, patient/family costs, and productivity losses in 2014 Australian dollars. Outcome measures were evaluated using quality-adjusted tooth years (QATY) and the combined deciduous and permanent decayed, missing, and filled teeth prevented (DMFT-prevented). A generic outcome variable was created to determine the impact of the intervention to reach underserved populations based on government concession eligibility (cardholder status). Uncertainties were incorporated using 95% confidence intervals. The mean total society cost per child is $463 and $291 ( P = 0.002), QATY utility difference is 0.283 and 0.293 ( P = 0.937), effectiveness difference is 0.16 and 0.10 ( P = 0.756), and cardholder status is 50.0% and 66.2% ( P = 0.007), respectively, for the standard care and intervention groups. On average per child, there was a cost saving of $172 and improvement of 0.01 QATY, with an additional proportion of 16.2% of cardholder children reached. The calculated ICER was $3,252 per DMFT-prevented. The intervention dominates standard care for QATY and per 1% cardholder reached outcome measures. Our study found the pilot checkup program was largely less costly and more effective compared with the current standard care. Further research is needed to quantify the value of outreach interventions to prevent dental caries development and progression in populations from low socioeconomic status. Knowledge Transfer Statement: The findings of this research demonstrated that an outreach dental program can be less costly and more effective than standard models of dental care. It showed that a school-based dental checkup program is beneficial despite other opinions that dental screening is ineffective as a method to improve public dental health. There is fiscal economic evidence to support broader expansion of similar programs locally and internationally to reduce dental caries for children from low-income families.

Teacher professional development (TPD) is integral for faculty development through quality teacher performances and student outcomes. Prior research on TPD indicates that school leaders at the helm of educational affairs are responsible for implementing and sustaining TPD activities for better school improvement. In the higher education (HE) context, fewer research studies have been conducted on TPD. Most HE institutions still struggle to implement, sustain, and improve TPD in China and significant parts of the world. The qualitative research utilized a case study approach to solicit information from two deans of a selected university faculty in China reputable for its TPD programs. The three key leadership practices explored in this study were; how leadership support TPD, the role of TPD in faculty development, and the challenges of TPD in the HE context. Findings from the study indicate that China's hierarchical structure has positively affected TPD programs in this university due to the Chinese culture and tradition. Clear and concrete policies emerged as an essential step towards TPD implementation. Motivational strategies such as incentives and academic conferences have been identified as integral factors for TPD sustainability. Also, mentorship and collaboration among teachers and other stakeholders were integral to enhancing teachers' research capacity. Educators should ensure the evaluation and supervision of TPD for it to achieve its intended goals.

Context Policymakers have increasingly advocated for incentive-based approaches for improving urban schools. Purpose of the Study Few studies have examined the implementation of incentive based approaches in the urban charter school context. This paper presents research findings from a 4-year longitudinal study of the implementation of a comprehensive incentive-based program for school improvement. Setting The study was conducted in cluster of 12 charter schools in a large urban school district. Participants/Subjects Participants in the study included classroom teachers, administrators, and staff in the charter schools; program staff from the school district; and consultants to the project. Research Design The study used a mixed methods design, which included a comparative case study, and quasi-experimental design. Data Collection and Analysis Qualitative data elements included semistructured interviews and observations of program activities. Quantitative data elements included the official classroom teaching evaluation scores, teacher attitudes survey data, standardized student achievement scores from state and district assessment programs, and researcher-developed surveys of teacher and administrator perceptions. Results The results suggest that, in addition to questions about the viability of this comprehensive incentive model, there were several challenges related specifically to the context of the schools that affected program implementation. These included: misconceptions about performance pay; difficulties learning, understanding and sustaining a complex professional development model; poor fidelity of program implementation; varying capacities of the leadership teams; inability to sustain the incentive component; differences in the contexts and missions of the participating schools; and high teacher turnover at the schools. All the 12 schools reported some improvement in student achievement which led to performance rewards; however, this was not substantial or consistent over the course of the 4 years of implementation. The program also did not impact teacher retention at the schools. Schools that benefited the most from the program demonstrated an alignment of goals between the program staff, school leadership, and teachers. Conclusions/Recommendations The study findings suggest that even comprehensive incentive-based models are not yet viable and have limited effectiveness. Educators needed significant salary increases to be incentivized by money and incentive-based models need to be simpler in design for participants to understand them. The aspect that was somewhat sustained was the professional development and collegiality among the teachers indicating that a professional community is what teachers appreciated most from the program.

With no doubt, evaluation has a significant role to ensure continuous improvement of any course, and ESP course, which is included in language teaching programs to satisfy a particular need, is not an exception. However, ESP course evaluation studies are still rare. With this in mind, this study reports the tertiary level students’ end-of-course evaluations regarding the ESP course offered within Banking department at Applied Sciences School of a state university in Turkey. Adopting survey methodology to unearth instances of the case being examined within its natural context from the perspective of its participants i.e. the students, the study gathered quantitative data through a scale which the students (N=96) reflected back on; the ESP practitioner, course materials, and course, and also qualitative data via open-ended items to elicit the students’ evaluations regarding the strengths of the course and likely changes and improvements. While the analysis of the quantitative data broadly showed the students’ satisfaction with the ESP practitioner, course materials, and the course itself, the content analysis of the qualitative data revealed insights regarding such issues as content-specific instruction and language skills development as strengths of the course. However, the qualitative data also showed that the students’ evaluations upon likely changes and improvements such as use of L1, teacher talk, and assessment diverged, which indicate heterogeneity as a challenge along the way impeding the effectiveness of ESP courses.

Background Increasing access to Advanced Placement (AP) coursework has been a long-term goal of the College Board and many districts across the country, yet achieving this goal has remained elusive, particularly for African American and Latinx youth and youth in poverty. Purpose In this study, we analyze the work of five districts that have identified inequities in AP participation and developed initiatives to address these inequities. We examine these districts’ strategies, as well as their impact on both access to AP coursework and success on AP exams. We consider how efforts to increase access to AP have affected different racial/ethnic student groups. Participants The five districts are led by superintendents who were members of the Instructional Leaders Network (ILN), a statewide network that focuses on supporting superintendents’ system-wide, equity-focused improvement. The districts vary in demographics, size, and socioeconomic status. Data Collection and Analysis This mixed methods study includes five years of AP enrollment and performance data for four districts, and two years of data for one district. We also identified two of these districts as case studies of AP initiative development and implementation and conducted a series of interviews with administrators from the districts over the five years of the study. We analyzed quantitative data descriptively and used Bonilla-Silva's (2018) concept of color-blind racism to analyze these data in relation to the interview data. Findings All districts adopted strategies focused on students as a whole, which for the most part led to an increase in access for all racial/ethnic groups, but no consistent pattern of reducing over- or under-representation. In terms of outcomes, in some districts, more students received scores of 3 or higher from all racial/ethnic groups, but disparities in average test scores remained. Additionally, across all districts, Black students continued to receive the lowest scores. Conclusions As school districts, individual high schools, and the College Board continue their focus on increasing equity in both access and performance, their approaches need to involve ongoing data collection and evaluation on how different programs and initiatives are positively or negatively affecting student populations that have been traditionally under-served as well as students in general. This research demonstrates that color-neutral policies need to be constantly interrogated by K–12 administrators and other stakeholders to ensure that the policies do not reinforce and sustain existing inequities. If districts seek to target groups of students who are underserved, they need to consider strategies and policies that explicitly and directly address those groups.

Students of Elementary School Teacher Education programs must be able to have higher-order thinking skills (HOTS) so that they can train students to have HOTS through learning activities created when they have become elementary school teachers. This study aims to explain students' high-level thinking skills in solving HOTS-oriented questions in Instructional Evaluation courses. This study uses qualitative research methods with data collection techniques using cognitive test instruments in the form of descriptions. Data analysis techniques use simple descriptive statistics. The results showed the level of thinking ability of students in answering HOTS practice questions still needed improvement. Students who have high learning abilities are better at answering HOTS-oriented questions compared to students in the medium and low categories. Recommendations for future research are required learning modules that can facilitate learning activities that lead to HOTS so that students are skilled in answering and making HOTS-oriented practice questions for elementary school students when they become a teacher. References Abdullah, Abdul Halim; Mokhtar, Mahani; Halim, Noor Dayana Abd; Ali, Dayana Farzeeha; Tahir, Lokman Mohd; Kohar, U. H. A. (2017). Mathematics Teachers’ Level of Knowledge and Practice on the Implementation of Higher-Order Thinking Skills (HOTS). EURASIA Journal of Mathematics, Science and Technology Education, 13(1), 3–17. https://doi.org/10.12973/eurasia.2017.00601a Altun, M., & Akkaya, R. (2014). Mathematics teachers’ comments on PISA math questions and our country’s students’ low achievement levels. Hacettepe Üniversitesi Eğitim Fakültesi Dergisi, 29(1), 19–34. Bakry, & Md Nor Bakar. (2015). The process of thinking among Junior High School students in solving HOTS question. International Journal of Evaluation and Research in Education (IJERE), 4(3), 138–145. Budsankom, P; Sawangboon, T; Damrongpanit, S; Chuensirimongkol, J. (2015). Factors affecting higher order thinking skills of students: A meta-analytic structural equation modeling study. Educational Research and Review, 10(19), 2639–2652. doi:10.5897/err2015.2371 Chinedu, C. C., Olabiyi, O. S., & Kamin, Y. Bin. (2015). Strategies for improving higher order thinking skills in teaching and learning of design and technology education. Journal of Technical Educationand Training, 7(2), 35–43. Retrieved from http://penerbit.uthm.edu.my/ojs/index.php/JTET/article/view/1081/795 Didis, M. G., Erbas, A. K., Cetinkaya, B., Cakiroglu, E., & Alacaci, C. (2016). Exploring prospective secondary mathematics teachers’ interpretation of student thinking through analysing students’work in modelling. Mathematics Education Research Journal, 28(3), 349–378. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13394-016-0170-6 Duan, J. (2012). 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Purposely teaching for the promotion of higher-order thinking skills: A case of critical thinking. Research in Science Education, 37(4), 353–369. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11165-006-9029-2 Nagappan, R. (2001). Language teaching and the enhancement of higher-order thinking skills. Anthology Series-Seameo Regional Language Centre, (April 2000), 190–223. Retrieved from http://nsrajendran.tripod.com/Papers/RELC2000A.pdf Nguyen, T. (2018). Teachers ’ Capacity of Instruction for Developing Higher – Order Thinking Skills for Upper Secondary Students – A Case Study in Teaching Mathematics in Vietnam, 10(1), 8–19. Puchta, H. (2007). More than little parrots: Developing young learners’ speaking skills. Www.Herbertpuchta.Com. Raiyn, J., & Tilchin, O. (2015). Higher-Order Thinking Development through Adaptive Problem-based Learning. Journal of Education and Training Studies, 3(4), 93–100. https://doi.org/10.11114/jets.v3i4.769 Retnawati, H., Djidu, H., Kartianom, K., Apino, E., & Anazifa, R. D. (2018). Teachers’ knowledge about higher-order thinking skills and its learning strategy. Problem of Education in the 21st Century, 76(2), 215–230. Retrieved from http://oaji.net/articles/2017/457-1524597598.pdf Snyder, L. G., & Snyder, M. J. (2008). Teaching critical thinking and problem solving skills. The Delta Pi Epsilon Journal, L(2), 90–99. https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1009682924511 Stahnke, R., Schueler, S., & Roesken-Winter, B. (2016). Teachers’ perception, interpretation, and decision-making: a systematic review of empirical mathematics education research. ZDM - Mathematics Education, 48(1–2). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11858-016-0775-y Sulaiman, T., Muniyan, V., Madhvan, D., Hasan, R., & Rahim, S. S. A. (2017). Implementation of higher order thinking skills in teaching of science: A case study in Malaysia. International Research Journal of Education and Sciences (IRJES), 1(1), 2550–2158. 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Challenges in wide scale implementation efforts to foster higher order thinking (HOT) in science education across a whole school system. Thinking Skills and Creativity, 10, 233–249. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tsc.2013.06.002 Zohar, A., & Schwartzer, N. (2005). Assessing teachers’ pedagogical knowledge in the context of teaching higher-order thinking. International Journal of Science Education, 27(13), 1595–1620. https://doi.org/10.1080/09500690500186592 Zulkpli, Z., Mohamed, M., & Abdullah, A. H. (2017). Assessing mathematics teachers’ knowledge in teaching thinking skills. Sains Humanika, 9(1–4), 83–87. https://doi.org/10.11113/sh.v9n1-4.1129

Tujuan penelitian ini yakni untuk mendeskripsikan, (1) manajemen hubungan masyarakat dengan sekolah, (2) prosedur operasional hubungan masyarakat di sekolah, dan (3) peran kepala sekolah dalam meningkatkan mutu sekolah. Metode penelitian menggunakan pendekatan kualititatif dengan rancangan penelitian studi kasus. Lokasi penelitian di SMPN 15 Malang. Teknik pengumpulan data diperoleh melalui observasi, wawancara mendalam dan studi dokumentasi. Hasil penelitian ini yakni (1) manajemen hubungan masyarakat dalam peningkatan mutu sekolah secara internal maupun eksternal meliputi dimensi perencanaan, pelaksanaan dan evaluasi pihak sekolah dalam merancang program-program sekolah, (2) prosedur operasional hubungan masyarakat di sekolah meliputi pertemuan kepala sekolah dengan komite dan masyarakat dalam mensosialisasikan citra sekolah serta pengadaan infrastruktur sarana dan prasarana pendidikan, pertemuan unsur sekolah dengan orang tua peserta didik untuk pengambilan buku raport siswa, mengatur strategi hubungan kerjasama unsur sekolah seperti; perkemahan, gotong royong, visit school, serta kegiatan perlombaan, dan mengatur koordinasi hubungan kerjasama antar lembaga pendidikan terhadap feedback penyelenggaraan program kerja sekolah, dan (3) peran pemimpin sekolah yakni dengan mengaplikasikan konsep manajemen pendidikan, serta monitoring pada setiap aspek komponen manajemen pendidikan di sekolah.Kata kunci: Kepemimpinan kepala sekolah, manajemen hubungan masyarakat, mutu sekolahSchool quality improvement through public relationship managementAbstractThe purpose of this study is to describe, (1) management of public relations with schools, (2) operational procedures for public relations in schools, and (3) the role of principals in improving school quality. The research method uses a qualitative approach with a case study research design. The research location is in SMPN 15 Malang. Data collection techniques were obtained through observation, in-depth interviews and documentation studies. The results of this study are (1) management of public relations in improving the quality of schools internally and externally covering the dimensions of planning, implementation and evaluation of the school in designing school programs, (2) operational procedures for community relations in schools including meeting principals with committees and the community in disseminating the image of the school as well as the procurement of educational facilities and infrastructure infrastructure, meeting elements of the school with parents of students to retrieve student report, set up strategy of cooperative relations between school elements such as; camp, mutual cooperation, visit school, and event activities, and regulate the coordination of collaborative relationships between educational institutions with regard to feedback on the implementation of school programs, and (3) the role of principal by applying educational management concepts and monitoring on every aspect of education management components in school.Keywords: Principal leadership, public relationship management, school quality

The background of this research is the weakness of teacher learning management in fostering students' social skills which implies the low ability of students to build oral and written communication. The focus of the problem is how to improve teacher learning management so that the development of students' social skills is increased, especially in building student's oral and written communication optimally. The purpose of the study was to find out the management of teacher learning at MAN Tasikmalaya Regency in the form of policies for planning, organizing, implementing, monitoring, learning problems and solutions in fostering students' social skills. The approach used in this research is qualitative with descriptive method. Data obtained from interviews, observations and document studies. Data analysis uses individual case data analysis techniques and cross-case data analysis (cruss-cases analysis). Checking the validity of the data is carried out through member checks, and discussions with colleagues based on the findings obtained, Learning Management at MAN 1 Tasikmalaya Regency partially has similarities with both holding scientific learning and authentic assessment referring to the 2013 curriculum and Education System Law number 20 of 2003. Learning planning in fostering students' social skills is carried out at the beginning of each school year through madrasa work meetings with the agenda of compiling and establishing operational curricula, syllabus development, preparation of annual programs (Prota), semester programs (Prosem) , learning implementation plans (RPP), preparation of teaching materials by each subject teacher, and subject cluster teams, preparation of supervision or learning evaluation tools. Organizing learning in fostering students' social skills is carried out through mapping the duties of subject teachers and extracurricular coaches, scheduling, fulfilling workloads and additional teacher assignments. The implementation of learning in social skills development is carried out through scientific learning management where students as learning subjects can observe, ask questions, collect information, associate, communicate learning materials. Supervision of learning through authentic assessments during the learning process takes place to measure students' abilities in building question-and-answer communication, reasoning, making stories orally and in writing. The development of students' social skills is carried out through oral and written communication in the management of scientific learning and authentic assessment of intracurricular and extracurricular activities can run well, although there are still shortcomings and weaknesses. Problems that arise in learning management in fostering students' social skills are accommodated through follow-up plans (RTL) and solutions for preparation for improvement of learning activities in fostering students' social skills to achieve further goals on an ongoing basis.

PurposeThe main objective of this article is to contribute to the field of accessibility in the teaching of sign language in the international panorama, examining its applicability, evaluation methods as well as the assistive technologies used to improve teaching experiences and the creation of new materials, proposing a theoretical framework that relates the teaching of sign language at different academic levels, the training of teachers, as well as parents, and the use of technology to achieve educational inclusion. It follows that the adoption of hybrid technology approaches, following universal design principles, can help to integrate access to education and sign language literacy.Design/methodology/approachThe working method used to carry out this work consists of a systematic review of the scientific literature. This is a research project based on the recapitulation of information about sign language in the international panorama and the improvements used for its instruction. For this purpose, the well-known PRISMA (Moher et al., 2009) is used to synthesize the search carried out. A systematic review of the articles published in scientific journals about pedagogy in the teaching of sign language in the international field and technological innovation for sign language teaching has been carried out, incorporating different approaches and personal assessments. The first phase of the method consists of identifying and analyzing the articles published in scientific journals on the teaching of sign language on the international scene and the importance of new educational models with the incorporation of various didactic adaptations, evaluating the selected articles over a period of time from 2009 to 2021. Six steps were used in the systematic review study (Figure 1). First, Steps 1–4 were conducted in 2020 and 2021 as part of a doctoral research. A schematic summary of Steps 1–4 is presented below, followed by Steps 5 and 6, added later to the study after completion of Step 4. In the case of the first four steps they were conducted by two researchers: the thesis tutor and the doctoral student, and Steps 5 and 6 were conducted by the Ph.FindingsTo carry out the analysis of the results, the codification of the variables was carried out. The selected studies are characterized by their international context with a final selection of 39 studies have found several variables that affect the relationship between the teaching of sign language in the international arena and the use of technological innovations to adapt their teaching to students (Figure 4). In this section we present the technology grouped variables included in each factor and the possibilities of standardization and applicability of sign language teaching in the international panorama. Within these articles, the importance of defining training programs in sign language for teachers and the need to evaluate teaching programs is identified, with a focus on actions to improve school curricula to achieve linguistic standardization and inclusion in the academic environment, as well as their use at all levels of education. Therefore, professional practices and cooperation between institutions such as: associations of families of deaf students and educational institutions must be improved, making it possible to give a quality education. Within the exclusion criteria, the articles that do not use sign language teaching tools (n = 45) were subsequently discarded, followed by the articles that do not indicate any intervention in students with disabilities (n = 48), concluding with the articles that nonsign language disability education (n = 44). Subsequently, among those selected, the technology articles that do not speak about sign language were discarded (n = 32), as well as the studies that protect indigenous language but not sign language (n = 33) and, to conclude, the linguistic normalization articles but do not cite sign language (n = 37).Originality/valueCommunication is the element by which the authors can understand each other with the rest of the people around us, in the diversity of language, within non-verbal language, the authors find sign language, the language of deaf and mute people, of families, as a professional employee and nowadays, learned by many non-deaf and mute people to achieve a more inclusive and integrated society with all people. Every country has the right to have its own sign language, especially one that claims its culture and customs, through non-verbal communication with which to express multiple meanings, emotions and intentions. It is essential to know and apply the technological advances that are being developed, promoting the right to autonomy and the defense of the indigenous language as a cultural element of the intangible heritage of each country. The use of technology allows the democratization of culture and access to information regardless of where one lives in the world, in an increasingly globalized society in which communication plays a fundamental role. In the case of the global pandemic, it has forced us to the advancement of home education and the use of efficient digital tools to achieve it such as videoconferencing, in the field of disability there are still many limitations on this use by the various companies that develop them. Within the inclusive educational research the authors must emphasize the need for equality of tools and content for all types of students, especially in sign language. Large digital gaps have been generated in families with and without resources at international level, which also have a member with a disability, this is pointed out in the research mentioning the current situation of the American continent, as well as the search for improvement of the tools and platforms in which they are developed.

Introduction Children are beginning to use digital technologies at younger and younger ages. The emerging trend of very young children (babies, toddlers and pre-schoolers) using Internet connected devices, especially touch screen tablets and smartphones, has elicited polarising opinions from early childhood experts. At present there is little actual research about the risks or benefits of tablet and smartphone use by very young children. Current usage recommendations, based on research into passive television watching which claims that screen time is detrimental, is in conflict with advice from education experts and app developers who commend interactive screen time as engaging and educational. Guidelines from the health professions typically advise strict time limits on very young children’s screen-time. Based for the most part on policy developed by the American Academy of Paediatrics, it is usually recommended that children under two have no screen time at all (Brown), and children over this age have no more than two hours a day (Strasburger, et al.). On the other hand, early childhood education guidelines promote the development of digital literacy skills (Department of Education). Further, education-based research indicates that access to computers and the Internet in the preschool years is associated with overall educational achievement (Bittman et al.; Cavanaugh et al; Judge et al; Neumann). The US based National Association for Education of Young Children’s position statement on technology for zero to eight year-olds declares that “when used intentionally and appropriately, technology and interactive media are effective tools to support learning and development” (NAEYC). This article discusses the notion of Digitods—a name for those children born since the introduction of the iPhone in 2007 who have ready access to touchscreen technologies since birth. It reports on the limited availability of evidence-based research about these children’s ICT use concluding that current research and recommendations are not grounded in the everyday life of very young children and their families. The article then reports on the beginnings of a research project funded by the Australian Research Council entitled Toddlers and Tablets: exploring the risks and benefits 0-5s face online. This research project recognises that at this stage it is parents who “are the real experts in their toddlers’ use of screen technologies. Accordingly, the project’s methodological approach draws on parents, pre-schoolers and their families as communities of practice in the construction of social meaning around toddlers’ use of touch screen technology. Digitods In 2000 Bill Gates introduced the notion of Generation I to describe the first cohort of children raised with the Internet as a reality in their lives. They are those born after the 1990s and will, in most cases; have no memory of life without the Net. [...] Generation I will be able to conceive of the Internet’s possibilities far more profoundly than we can today. This new generation will become agents of change as the limits of the Internet expand to include educational, scientific, and business applications that we cannot even imagine. (Gates)Digitods, on the other hand, is a term that has been used in education literature (Leathers et al.) to describe those children born after the introduction of the iPhone in 2007. These children often begin their lives with ready access to the Internet via easily usable touch screen devices, which could have been designed with toddlers’ touch and swipe movements in mind. Not only are they the youngest group of children to actively engage with the Internet they are the first group to grow up with a range of mobile Internet devices (Leathers et al.). The difference between Digitods and Gates’s Generation I is that Digitods are the first pre-verbal, non-ambulant infants to have ready access to digital technologies. Somewhere around the age of 10 months to fourteen months a baby learns to point with his or her forefinger. At this stage the child is ready to swipe and tap a touch screen (Leathers et al.). This is in contrast to laptops and PCs given that very young children often need assistance to use a mouse or keyboard. The mobility of touch screen devices allows very young children to play at the kitchen table, in the bedroom or on a car trip. These mobile devices have, of course, a myriad of mobile apps to go with them. These apps create an immediacy of access for infants and pre-schoolers who do not need to open a web browser to find their favourite sites. In the lives of these children it seems that it has always been possible to touch and swipe their way into games, books and creative and communicative experiences (Holloway et al. 149). The interactivity of most pre-school apps, as opposed to more passive screen activities such as watching television shows or videos (both offline or online), requires toddlers and pre-schoolers to pay careful attention, think about things and act purposefully (Leathers et al.). It is this interactivity which is the main point of difference, one which holds the potential to engage and educate our youngest children. It should be noted within this discussion about Digitods that, while the trope Digital Natives tends to homogenise an entire generation, the authors do not assume that all children born today are Digitods by default. Many children do not have the same privileged opportunities as others, or the (parental) cultural capital, to enable access, ease of use and digital skill development. In addition to this it is not implied that Digitods will be more tech savvy than their older siblings. The term is used more to describe and distinguish those children who have digital access almost since birth—in order to differentiate or tease out everyday family practices around these children’s ICT use and the possible risks and benefits this access affords babies, toddlers and pre-schoolers. While the term Digital Native has also been criticised as being a white middle class phenomenon this is not necessarily the case with Digitods. In the Southeast Asia and the Pacific region developed countries like Japan, Korea, New Zealand and Singapore have extremely high rates of touchscreen use by very young children (Child Sciences; Jie; Goh; Unantenne). Other countries such as the Philippines and Indonesia have moved to a high smart phone usage by very young children while at the same time have only nascent ICT access and instruction within their education systems (Unantenne). The Digitod Parent Parents of Digitods are usually experienced Internet users themselves, and many are comfortable with their children using these child-friendly touch screen devices (Findahl). Digital technologies are integral to their everyday lives, often making daily life easier and improving communication with family and friends, even during the high pressure parenting years of raising toddlers and pre-schoolers. Even though many parents and caregivers are enabling very young children’s use of touch screen technologies, they are also concerned about the changes they are making. This is because very young children’s use of touch screen devices “has become another area where they fear possible criticism and in which their parental practices risk negative evaluation by others” (Holloway et al). The tensions between expert advice regarding young children’s screen-time and parents’ and caregivers’ own judgments are also being played out online. Parenting blogs, online magazines and discussion groups are all joining in the debate: On the one hand, parents want their children to swim expertly in the digital stream that they will have to navigate all their lives; on the other hand, they fear that too much digital media, too early, will sink them. Parents end up treating tablets like precision surgical instruments, gadgets that might perform miracles for their child’s IQ and help him win some nifty robotics competition—but only if they are used just so. (Rosin)Thus, with over 80 000 children’s apps marketed as educational in the Apple App Store alone, parents can find it difficult to choose apps that are worth purchasing (Yelland). Nonetheless, recent research regarding Australian children shows that three to five year olds who access touch screen devices will typically have five or more specific apps to choose from (5.23 on average) (Neumann). With little credible evidence or considered debate, parents have been left to make their own choices about the pros and cons of their young children’s access to touch screens. Nonetheless, one immediate benefit that comes to mind is toddlers and pre-schoolers video chatting with dispersed family member—due to increased globalisation, guest worker arrangements, FIFO (fly-in fly-out) workforces and family separation or divorce. Such clear benefits around sociability and youngsters’ connection with significant others make previous screen-related guidelines out of date and no longer contextually relevant. Little Research Attention Family ownership of tablet devices as well as touch screen phones has risen dramatically in the last five years. With very young children being loaned these technologies by mum or dad, and a tendency in Australia to rely on market-orientated research regarding ownership and usage, there is very little knowledge about touch screen usage rates for very young Australian children. UK and US usage figures indicate that over the last few years there has been a five-fold increase in tablet uptake by zero to eight year olds (Ofcom; Rideout). Although large scale, comparative Australian data is not available, previous research regarding older children indicates that Australia is similar to high use countries like some Scandinavian nations and the UK (Green et al.). In addition to this, two small research projects in Australia, with under 160 participant families each, indicate that two thirds of these children (0-5) use touchscreen devices (Neumann; Coenenna et. al.). Beyond usage figures, there is also very limited evidence-based research about very young children’s app use. Interactive technologies available via touch screen technologies have been available domestically for a very short time. Consequently, “valid scientific research has not been completed and replicated due to [the lack of] available time” (Leathers el al. 129) and longitudinal studies which rely on an intervention group (in this case exposure to children’s apps) and a control group (no exposure) are even fewer and more time-consuming. Interestingly, researchers have revisited the issue of passive screen viewing. A recent 2015 review of previous 2007 research, which linked babies watching videos with poor language development, has found that there was statistical and methodological issues with the 2007 study and that there are no strong inferences to be drawn between media exposure and language development (Ferguson and Donellan). Thus, there seems to be no conclusive evidence-based research on which to inform parents and educators about the possible downside or benefits of touch screen use. Nonetheless, early childhood experts have been quick to weigh in on the possible effects of screen usage, some providing restrictive guidelines and recommendations, with others advocating the use of interactive apps for very young children for their educational value. This knowledge-gap disguises what is actually happening in the lives of real Australian families. Due to the lack of local data, as well as worldwide research, it is essential that Australian researchers obtain a comprehensive understanding about actual behaviour around touch screen use in the lives of children aged between zero and five and their families. Beginning Research While research into very young children’s touch screen use is beginning to take place, few results have been published. When researching two to three year olds’ learning from interactive versus non-interactive videos Kirkorian, Choi and Pempek found that “toddlers may learn more from interactive media than from non-interactive video” (Kirkorian et al). This means that the use of interactive apps on touch screen devices may hold a greater potential for learning than passive video or television viewing for children in this age range. Another study considered the degree to which the young children could navigate to and use apps on touch screen devices by observing and analysing YouTube videos of infants and young children using touch screens (Hourcade et al.). It was found that between the ages of 12 months and 17 months the children filmed seemed to begin to “make meaningful use of the tablets [and] more than 90 per cent of children aged two [had] reached this level of ability” (1923). The kind of research mentioned above, usually the preserve of psychologists, paediatricians and some educators, does not, however, ground very young children’s use in their domestic context—in the spaces and with those people with whom most touch screen usage takes place. With funding from the Australian Research Council Australian, Irish and UK researchers are about to adopt a media studies (domestication) approach to comprehensively investigate digital media use in the everyday lives of very young children. This Australian-based research project positions very young children’s touch screen use within the family and will help provide an understanding of the everyday knowledge and strategies that this cohort of technology users (very young children and their parents) have already developed—in the knowledge vacuum left by the swift appropriation and incorporation of these new media technologies into the lives of families with very young children. Whilst using a conventional social constructionist perspective, the project will also adopt a co-creation of knowledge approach. The co-creation of knowledge approach (Fong) has links with the communities of practice literature (Wegner) and recognises that parents, care-givers and the children themselves are the current experts in this field in terms of the everyday uses of these technologies by very young children. Families’ everyday discourse and practices regarding their children’s touch screen use do not necessarily work through obvious power hierarchies (via expert opinions), but rather through a process of meaning making where they shape their own understandings and attitudes through experience and shared talk within their own everyday family communities of practice. This Toddlers and Tablets research is innovative in many ways. It seeks to capture the enthusiasm of young children’s digital interactions and to pioneer new ways of ‘beginnings’ researching with very young children, as well as with their parents. The researchers will work with parents and children in their broad domestic contexts (including in and out-of-home activities, and grandparental and wider-family involvement) to co-create knowledge about young children’s digital technologies and the social contexts in which these technologies are used. Aspects of these interactions, such as interviews and observations of everyday digital interactions will be recorded (audio and video respectively). In addition to this, data collected from media commentary, policy debates, research publications and learned articles from other disciplinary traditions will be interrogated to see if there are correlations, contrasts, trends or synergies between parents’ construction of meaning, public commentary and current research. Critical discourse tools and methods (Chouliaraki and Fairclough) will be used to analyse verbatim transcripts, video, and all written materials. Conclusion Very young children are uniquely dependent upon others for the basic necessities of life and for the tools they need, and will need to develop, to claim their place in the world. Given the ubiquitous role played by digital media in the lives of their parents and other caregivers it would be a distortion of everyday life for children to be excluded from the technologies that are routinely used to connect with other people and with information. In the same way that adults use digital media to renew and strengthen social and emotional bonds across distance, so young children delight in ‘Facetime’ and other technologies that connect them audio-visually with friends and family members who are not physically co-present. Similarly, a very short time spent in the company of toddlers using touch screens is sufficient to demonstrate the sheer delight that these young infants have in developing their sense of agency and autonomy (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aXV-yaFmQNk). Media, communications and cultural studies are beginning to claim a space for evidence based policy drawn from everyday activities in real life contexts. Research into the beginnings of digital life, with families who are beginning to find a way to introduce these technologies to the youngest generation, integrating them within social and emotional repertoires, may prove to be the start of new understandings into the communication skills of the preverbal and preliterate young people whose technology preferences will drive future development – with their parents likely trying to keep pace. Acknowledgment This research is supported under Australia Research Council’s Discovery Projects funding scheme (project number DP150104734). References Bittman, Michael, et al. "Digital Natives? New and Old Media and Children's Outcomes." Australian Journal of Education 55.2 (2011): 161-75. Brown, Ari. "Media Use by Children Younger than 2 Years." Pediatrics 128.5 (2011): 1040-45. Burr, Vivien. Social Constructionism. 2nd ed. London: Routledge, 2003. Cavanaugh, Cathy, et al. "The Effects of Distance Education on K–12 Student Outcomes: A Meta-Analysis." Naperville, Ill.: Learning Point Associates, 2004. 5 Mar. 2009 ‹http://www.ncrel.org/tech/distance/index.html›. Child Sciences and Parenting Research Office. Survey of Media Use by Children and Parents (Summary). Tokyo: Benesse Educational Research and Development Institute, 2014. Coenena, Pieter, Erin Howiea, Amity Campbella, and Leon Strakera. Mobile Touch Screen Device Use among Young Australian Children–First Results from a National Survey. Proceedings 19th Triennial Congress of the IEA. 2015. Chouliaraki, Lilie and Norman Fairclough. Discourse in Late Modernity: Rethinking Critical Discourse Analysis. Edinburgh: Edinburgh UP, 1999. Department of Education. "Belonging, Being and Becoming: The Early Years Learning Framework for Australia." Australian Government, 2009. Ferguson, Christopher J., and M. Brent Donnellan. "Is the Association between Children’s Baby Video Viewing and Poor Language Development Robust? A Reanalysis of Zimmerman, Christakis, and Meltzoff (2007)." Developmental Psychology 50.1 (2014): 129. Findahl, Olle. Swedes and the Internet 2013. Stockholm: The Internet Infrastructure Foundation, 2013. Fong, Patrick S.W. "Co-Creation of Knowledge by Multidisciplinary Project Teams." Management of Knowledge in Project Environments. Eds. E. Love, P. Fong, and Z. Irani. Burlington, MA: Elsevier, 2005. 41-56. Gates, Bill. "Enter 'Generation I': The Responsibility to Provide Access for All to the Most Incredible Learning Tool Ever Created." Instructor 109.6 (2000): 98. Goh, Wendy W.L., Susanna Bay, and Vivian Hsueh-Hua Chen. "Young School Children’s Use of Digital Devices and Parental Rules." Telematics and Informatics 32.4 (2015): 787-95. Green, Lelia, et al. "Risks and Safety for Australian Children on the Internet: Full Findings from the AU Kids Online Survey of 9-16 Year Olds and Their Parents." Cultural Science Journal 4.1 (2011): 1-73. Holloway, Donell, Lelia Green, and Carlie Love. "'It's All about the Apps': Parental Mediation of Pre-Schoolers' Digital Lives." Media International Australia 153 (2014): 148-56. Hourcade, Juan Pablo, Sarah Mascher, David Wu, and Luiza Pantoja. Look, My Baby Is Using an iPad! An Analysis of YouTube Videos of Infants and Toddlers Using Tablets. Proceedings of the 33rd Annual ACM Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems. ACM, 2015. Jie S.H. "ICT Use Statistics of Households and Individuals in Korea." 10th World Telecommunication/ICT Indicators Meeting (WTIM-12). Korea Internet & Security Agency (KISA), 25-7 Sep. 2012.Judge, Sharon, Kathleen Puckett, and Sherry Mee Bell. "Closing the Digital Divide: Update from the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study." The Journal of Educational Research 100.1 (2006): 52-60. Kirkorian, H., K. Choi, and Pempek. "Toddlers' Word Learning from Contingent and Non-Contingent Video on Touchscreens." Child Development (in press). Leathers, Heather, Patti Summers, and Desollar. Toddlers on Technology: A Parents' Guide. Illinois: AuthorHouse, 2013. NAEYC. Technology and Interactive Media as Tools in Early Childhood Programs Serving Children from Birth through Age 8 [Position Statement]. Washington: National Association for the Education of Young Children, the Fred Rogers Center for Early Learning and Children’s Media at Saint Vincent College, 2012. Neumann, Michelle M. "An Examination of Touch Screen Tablets and Emergent Literacy in Australian Pre-School Children." Australian Journal of Education 58.2 (2014): 109-22. Ofcom. Children and Parents: Media Use and Attitudes Report. London, 2013. Rideout, Victoria. Zero to Eight: Children’s Media Use in America 2013. San Francisco: Common Sense Media, 2013. Rosin, Hanna. "The Touch-Screen Generation." The Atlantic, 20 Apr. 2013. Strasburger, Victor C., et al. "Children, Adolescents, and the Media." Pediatrics 132.5 (2013): 958-61. Unantenne, Nalika. Mobile Device Usage among Young Kids: A Southeast Asia Study. Singapore: The Asian Parent and Samsung Kids Time, 2014. Wenger, Etienne. Communities of Practice: Learning, Meaning, and Identity. New York: Cambridge University Press, 1998. Wenger, Etienne. "Communities of Practice and Social Learning Systems." Organization 7.2 (2000): 225-46. Yelland, Nicola. "Which Apps Are Educational and Why? It’s in the Eye of the Beholder." The Conversation 13 July 2015. 16 Aug. 2015 ‹http://theconversation.com/which-apps-are-educational-and-why-its-in-the-eye-of-the-beholder-37968›.

The South African education system is in crisis; with low matric pass rates, high dropout rates, teacher strikes, rising pregnancy rates among teenaged learners, and assaults by learners on educators and other learners. The system is unable to cope with the multiple demands placed on it and a number of NGOs are stepping in to aid the system. This study is an evaluation of an NGO aimed at developing learners through the application of the Appreciative Inquiry approach. The Appreciative Inquiry approach is a method for generating change within an organisation by looking at what works in the organisation and facilitating active participation. The main findings from this study were that the programme seems to have positively affected learners‟ performance both academically and behaviourally; the programme was perceived to have raised the general standard of academic performance at the school.
Psychology
M.A. (Psychology)

The purpose of the study was to investigate the practices and challenges faced by primary schools in the Western Cape province when implementing the Integrated Quality Management System (IQMS) policy. The study concentrated mainly on monitoring and evaluation processes; as well as the relevance and appropriateness of the measures in place for refining the IQMS. In 1994, the attainment of democracy in South Africa brought radical transformation to the education system, which resulted in the development of various educational policies. One of these policies was the Integrated Quality Management System (IQMS), which was introduced in 2003. The IQMS was aimed at improving quality education delivery. However, based on learners’ academic and quality results in terms of progression over the past two decades, the South African education system may not have achieved all of its desired outcomes. The school development teams, especially those in rural and previously disadvantaged schools, do not comply with the principles of the IQMS policy and, as a result, fail in their mandate. The empirical approach employed in this study was successful in obtaining information from participants about the challenges they faced in implementing the IQMS policy. The study used qualitative approach. Participants included post-level one teachers as well as members of the school management team at five different schools. The research findings indicated that some schools only implement the IQMS to comply with the department requirements and to ensure that their educators receive the salary increments based on IQMS. Consequently, there is no real school development taking place. The study made a number of recommendations to consider with regard to effective implementation of IQMS in schools. It is recommended that the School Development Team (SDT) and the School Management Team (SMT) employ a well-adjusted approach to whole school evaluation, with a resilient effort on both professional development and performance appraisal in the engagement of whole school development. The study also suggests the appointment of Senior Education Specialists who will be based at every school and become part of the SDTs in order to assist the schools in converting evaluation into school development. Further suggestion is also made for performance agreements and targets linked to salary increments.
Educational Management and Leadership
Ph. D. (Education Management)