Shaping science, technology, engineering and mathematics curriculum in Australian schools: An ecological systems analysis
- Authors: Falloon, Garry , Powling, Markus , Fraser, Sharon , Hatisaru, Vesife
- Date: 2022
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: The Australian journal of education Vol. 66, no. 2 (2022), p. 171-195
- Full Text: false
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- Description: Improving young people's engagement in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) is being promoted worldwide as a means of addressing projected shortfalls in expertise needed to further nations' economic, social and environmental goals. Responding to this, schools are reforming traditional discipline-based curricula into interdisciplinary approaches based on problem and project-based designs, to make STEM learning more relevant and meaningful for students. This study drew on a dataset of 449 Australian principal and teacher interviews, to identify factors influencing STEM curriculum in their schools. It utilised Ecological Systems Theory to build understanding relating to the influence of activities and outputs originating at macro, exo and meso system levels, on STEM curriculum and practices in classrooms. Results demonstrated how many innovative schools were able to successfully leverage community, business and national resources to enhance their STEM curriculum, while others struggled due to limitations imposed by geographic or socio-economic factors, or limited access to resources, expertise or advice. Central to achieving this was the powerful influence of principals' and teachers' 'proximal processes and developmental assets' in establishing effective and engaging interdisciplinary STEM curricula, despite constraints imposed by, at best, ambiguous national and state curriculum and policies, rigid assessment regimes and compliance-focused reporting requirements.
STEM in the Making? Investigating STEM Learning in Junior School Makerspaces
- Authors: Falloon, Garry , Forbes, Anne , Stevenson, Michael , Bower, Matt , Hatzigianni, Maria
- Date: 2022
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Research in science education (Australasian Science Education Research Association) Vol. 52, no. 2 (2022), p. 511-537
- Full Text: false
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- Description: Makerspaces are recent additions to schools and have been promoted as a means of developing STEM knowledge and skills. According to literature, the practical nature of making supports deeper engagement with STEM concepts and enhances development of STEM capabilities such as creativity, critical thinking, problem solving and collaboration. However, to date, limited empirical work has been completed investigating STEM learning in school makerspaces. This article reports outcomes from a study of 24 classroom makerspaces, where 5-8-year olds used 3D printing technology to design and develop artefacts responding to different problems, needs and opportunities. Findings were mixed, with evidence supporting makerspaces as effective for STEM skill and disposition development but more limited in their capacity to build STEM knowledge, unless this was explicitly identified and targeted by teachers. This paper questions assumptions about makerspaces as implicitly effective for STEM knowledge-building, arguing that teachers must specifically target conceptual outcomes in planning and teaching if makerspaces are to be effective for this purpose. Also, findings suggest the need to rethink how makerspaces contribute to holistic STEM literacy development, moving beyond current perspectives focused on learning about STEM, to one where makerspaces are viewed as epistemic environments beneficial to knowledge-building, of STEM. Findings will be of value to educators considering makerspaces as a component of STEM curriculum and infrastructure development. [Author abstract]
Making #blacklivesmatter in universities: a viewpoint on social policy education
- Authors: Bennett, Bindi , Ravulo, Jioji , Ife, Jim , Gates, Trevor
- Date: 2021
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: International journal of sociology and social policy Vol. 41, no. 11/12 (2021), p. 1257-1263
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- Description: Purpose The purpose of this viewpoint article is to consider the #BlackLivesMatter movement within the Aboriginal Australian struggle for equality, sovereignty and human rights. Indigenous sovereignty has been threatened throughout Australia's history of colonization. We provide a viewpoint and recommendations for social policy education and practice.Design/methodology/approach. We provide commentary and interpretation based upon the lived experience of Black, Indigenous and Other People of Color (BIPOC) co-authors, co-authors who are Allies, extant literature and practice wisdom as social policy educators. FindingsUniversities are sources of knowledge production, transmission and consumption within society. We provide critical recommendations for what social policy education within universities can address human rights and the #BlackLivesMatter movement.Originality/valueCulturally responsive inclusion for BIPOC has only just begun in Australia and globally within the context of the #BlackLivesMatter movement. This paper adds critical conversation and recommendations for what social policy programs might do better to achieve universities' teaching and learning missions.
Communities of practice : a systematic review and meta-synthesis of what it means and how it really works among nursing students and novices
- Authors: Terry, Daniel , Nguyen, Hoang , Peck, Blake , Smith, Andrew , Phan, Hoang
- Date: 2020
- Type: Text , Journal article , Review
- Relation: Journal of Clinical Nursing Vol. 29, no. 3-4 (2020), p. 370-380
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- Description: Aims and objectives: To evaluate the enablers, barriers and impact that communities of practice have on novice nurses and students learning to become registered nurses. Background: Communities of practice have formed the basis for conceptualising the process of learning that occurs among groups of people within a place of work—a mainstay of healthcare practice. There is a dearth of literature that focuses specifically on the outcomes from student and novice engagement with existing communities of practice. Design: Systematic review and Meta-synthesis. Methods: MEDLINE, PubMed, EMBASE, CINAHL, ProQuest, Scopus and PsycINFO databases were accessed between 1997–2019. The screening and selection of studies were based on eligibility criteria and methodological quality assessment using the Critical Appraisal Skills Programme tool for qualitative research. Meta-synthesis was grounded in the original experiences and collectively synthesised into meaningful themes. The review follows the PRISMA reporting guidelines and PRISMA checklist. Results: The findings highlight three major themes and included enablers for successful communities of practice, barriers to successful communities of practice, and success in action as described by students and novice nurses. Discussion: We suggest successful communities of practice occur when safe and supported spaces ensure students and novices feel comfortable to experiment with their learning, and we emphasise the benefits of having more novice nurses situated within close proximity and under the direct influence of the established practices of more experienced or core group of peers. Relevance to clinical practice: Communities of practice that function successfully create an environment that prioritises the embedding of novices into the broader group. In so doing, students and novice nurses feel supported, welcomed, empowered, and able to make the transition from student to colleague and novice nurse to more experienced nurse. It allows them to experiment with ever new ways of fulfilling the role, while aiding better clinical outcomes. © 2019 John Wiley & Sons Ltd
Makerspaces pedagogy - supports and constraints during 3D design and 3D printing activities in primary schools
- Authors: Bower, Matt , Stevenson, Michael , Forbes, Anne , Falloon, Garry , Hatzigianni, Maria
- Date: 2020
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Educational media international Vol. 57, no. 1 (2020), p. 1-28
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- Description: Makerspaces have been heralded as an effective way to support the development of 21st Century and STEM capabilities, yet there is a paucity of systematic, multiple-case analysis to guide educator and researcher practice. This collective case study examined 24 primary school classroom contexts to understand what supports and constrains learning and teaching in technology-oriented makerspaces. Thematic analysis of 24 teacher in-situ reflective journals and focus group interviews of all teacher participants revealed 19 supports and 11 constraints, relating to pedagogy, task design, learner attributes, technological factors, the school environment, and teacher capabilities and beliefs. These were used to form an evidence-based framework for learning and teaching in makerspaces. Findings are discussed in relation to previous research which has tended to be anecdotal and based on single cases. Implications for future teaching, research and policy initiatives are also detailed.
Creating a culturally safe space when teaching aboriginal content in social work: A scoping review
- Authors: Fernando, Terrina , Bennett, Bindi
- Date: 2019
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Australian social work Vol. 72, no. 1 (2019), p. 47-61
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- Description: Teaching Aboriginal content in social work education presents risks of retraumatisation for students. There are international calls for a trauma-informed teaching model that creates cultural safety in the classroom. This study aimed to develop a trauma-informed model for social work education by reviewing the literature on cultural safety for Aboriginal peoples. This model incorporates key aspects of ensuring Aboriginal cultural safety: de-colonise social work education collaborative partnerships build relationships critical reflection develop cultural courage and yarning and story-telling. It provides a valuable framework for creating a more equitable teaching and learning environment that also ensures the essential academic content is covered. IMPLICATIONS Trauma underlies the historical, contemporary and cultural narratives of Aboriginal peoples. Students engaging in Aboriginal content that is traumatic can mean connecting with trauma that has occurred in their own lives. Trauma-informed teaching and learning will ensure that educators create culturally safe spaces that enable students to engage well with content. The adoption of the framework proposed in this paper may lead to the creation of a culturally safe space for teaching and learning in social work education.
‘If there’s no sustainability our future will get wrecked’: Exploring children’s perspectives of sustainability
- Authors: Green, Monica
- Date: 2017
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Childhood Vol. 24, no. 2 (2017), p. 151-167
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- Description: Education for Sustainability is an internationally recognised field of learning that is currently mandated as a cross-curriculum priority in the Australian curriculum. Empirical research into children’s views about sustainability, and how they develop sustainability knowledge, however, remains limited. This article focuses on research that investigated children’s perspectives of sustainability in Victoria, Australia. The children were recruited through the Sustainable School Expo where they delivered keynote presentations about their school’s respective Education for Sustainability initiatives. Data were generated from interviews with 16 children aged from 9 to 13 years and included a set of self-created and designed sustainability artefacts. The article contends that children have strongly conceptualised ideas about sustainability that are developed through interactions with material entities (human/more than human) in diverse environments. A key finding suggests that children become vital stakeholders in Education for Sustainability through experiential, investigative, sensorial and place-oriented ways of learning, which informs how they build sustainability knowledge.
'They're funny bloody cattle': encouraging rural men to learn
- Authors: Vallance, Soapy , Golding, Barry
- Date: 2008
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Australian Journal of Adult Learning Vol. 48, no. 2 (Jul 2008), p. 369-384
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- Description: Our paper examines and analyses the contexts and organisations in rural and regional communities that informally and effectively encourage men to learn. It is based on a combination of local, rural adult education practice and a suite of studies in Australia and elsewhere of learning in community contexts, most recently into community-based men's sheds. It is underpinned by both experience and research evidence that many rural men tend to have an aversion to formal learning. The intention of our paper and its specific, practical conclusions and recommendations is to focus on and share positive and practical ways, demonstrated through practice and validated through research, of encouraging rural men to learn.
- Description: C1
Contemporary ways of learning in secondary teacher education : Towards a deeper understanding of teacher learning
- Authors: Brown, Maryann
- Date: 2006
- Type: Text , Thesis , PhD
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- Description: "The focus of this portfolio is an exploration of contemporary ways of learning in secondary teacher education."
- Description: Doctor of Philosophy
Listening to men learning
- Authors: Golding, Barry
- Date: 2006
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: The international journal of learning Vol. 12, no. 9 (2006), p. 265-272
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- Description: This paper reports on the results of a study of the learning preferences of adult males in small, rural Australian towns. The researcher employed a survey of men in each of ten towns in 2004 to explore and compare their learning experiences and preferences-in adult and community education (ACE) programs on one hand, and in community-based volunteer organisations (fire services, landcare senior citizens and football clubs) on the other. The research confirms the considerable importance for men of regular learning experienced in less formal learning contexts as community volunteers, and highlights the barriers ICT poses for older men.
- Description: 2003002093
About Face : Implications of research into men's learning preferences in rural towns
- Authors: Golding, Barry
- Date: 2005
- Type: Text , Conference paper
- Relation: Paper presented at Emerging Futures 2005: recent, responsive and relevant research Conference, Brisbane : 13th -15th April, 2005
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- Description: E1
- Description: 2003001327
The applicability of networks in Australian adult and vocational learning research
- Authors: Golding, Barry
- Date: 2004
- Type: Text , Conference paper
- Relation: Paper presented at Learns and Practitioners: The Heart of the Matter, Canberra : 17th March, 2004
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- Description: Networks have increasingly been recognised by educators as important in adult and vocational learning contexts, in that they have the capacity to help potential learners engage and become better connected with a wide range of learning organisations through their families, jobs and communities and also with opportunities for future learning and work. The importance of ‘being connected’, including through networks to and between learning organisations, has come into higher relief with a recent increase in theorising about aspects of social capital including learning networks, the growth of lifelong learning and an identification of the particular penalties associated with several forms of disengagement from learning for people of all ages. This paper begins with a scan of research literature on networks in adult and vocational learning. The paper identifies some new techniques involving networks, found by experience to assist in the process of adult and vocational learning research: particularly for identifying potential research interviewees within learning organisations and communities, strengthening relationships between learning organisations and identifying opportunities for future collaboration. It also provides some insights from new data on organisational networks derived from a number of recent research studies about learning networks in TAFE, adult and community education and public safety organisations in small and remote towns. The paper finally provides a number of tentative, general findings about the broader applicability of network theory to research and theories about learning in such contexts.
- Description: E1
- Description: 2003000774
Who's doing the hunting and gathering? : An exploration of gender segmentation in adult learning in small and remote Australian communities
- Authors: Golding, Barry
- Date: 2003
- Type: Text , Conference paper
- Relation: Paper presented at 2003 AVETRA Conference, Sydney : 10th -11th April, 2003
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- Description: Adults in Australia have tended to return relatively recently to learning in patterns that are significantly different by gender. These patterns of gender segmentation for adults are particularly noticeable in the findings of recent research by the author into adult, community and vocational learning in small and remote towns in Victoria. The issues associated with such patterns form the basis of this exploratory paper.
- Description: E1
- Description: 2003000498