Adult education, social inclusion and cultural diversity in regional communities
- Authors: Townsend, Robert
- Date: 2008
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Australian Journal of Adult Learning Vol. 48, no. 1 (2008), p. 71-92
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- Description: This article presents the outcomes of recent research into adult education programs and experiences in the Shire of Campaspe, a region in northern Victoria. Research data of people from diverse cultural backgrounds reveal how individuals can utilise adult education as a space to explore their own social and cultural isolation in a regional context. The research reveals patterns of migration, internal population mobility, social isolation and cultural identity within the context of this one regional shire. The article discerns the roles that adult education providers play in creating specific kinds of space for people to discover new social networks while interacting with informal and formal structures and processes of adult learning. Adult education programs and practices can play an important role in providing space for the exploration of social, cultural and economic experiences. However, individual adult education organisations manage their spaces and programs in such a way that excludes some people from social and economic activity crucial to the development of individual and community social capital. Adult learning policies, programs and practices in regional communities need to address the holistic nature of adult learning for people from culturally diverse backgrounds in order to contribute to the development of sustaining social capital for individuals, families and communities in Australian society.
Perspectives on peer learning as adult education in diverse communities
- Authors: Townsend, Robert
- Date: 2014
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: International Journal of Adult, Community and Professional Learning Vol. 20, no. 2 (2014), p. 45-58
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- Description: Peer led learning reduces the number of barriers between education institutions, teacher led instruction, and learners. Peer led approaches to learning, whether in formal educational settings or as part of informal community services, can positively affect attitudes and behaviour. The research gap is identifying the elements of peer learning that can enhance education pathway development for individuals and groups who have turned away from formal education. Most activities, programs, and research around peer learning are directed at the 'formal' peer assisted learning within educational institutions or peer mentoring within clinical and professional settings. There is a need to locate, record, and debate all of the peer learning activities that occur within education providers, community programs, 'underground education', recreational clubs, and arts and performance spaces. This article will present the reflections of the author's own peer education experiences, as well as the preliminary findings of a systematic review about peer learning, and outline the need for future mixed methods research about student informal peer activities. © Common Ground, Rob Townsend, All Rights Reserved.
Rural's men's experience of returning to study in human services and social sciences
- Authors: Townsend, Robert , Lang, Natasha
- Date: 2013
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Advances in social work and welfare education Vol. 15, no. 2 (2013), p. 97-100
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- Description: This article discusses the narratives of twelve participants who shared their experiences of returning to study as mature-age men. The majority of the participants came from small rural farming communities where the expectation from their family and friends was about finding employment, preferably working on the family farm, not about continuing with education. Significant life events such as family illness also impacted on decisions in relation to further study. The narratives reveal a complex composition of societally gendered expectations, family expectations and individual expectations that influence boys'/men's identities as learners no matter their age. Questions remain in relation to how mature-aged men can be engaged to consider education as an available option. Tertiary education for the participants in this research clearly had positive outcomes in relation to familial relationships and wellbeing.
South East Asian migrant experiences in regional Victoria: Exploring well-being
- Authors: Townsend, Robert , Pascal, Jan , Delves, Mel
- Date: 2014
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Journal of Sociology Vol. 50, no. 4 (December 2014 2014), p. 601-615
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- Description: This article outlines a recent pilot project in Bendigo that collected baseline data in order to develop a preliminary understanding of regional migration experiences. The literature indicated that migrant experiences in Australian regional communities are under-researched. Sixty participants from South East Asia, who have migrated to Bendigo, Victoria within the last five years, completed a mixed-methods survey. The key findings reported upon are socio-structural factors, social connectedness and psychosocial well-being. Crucial factors such as culture, spirituality and non-English-language, link to the more complex issues of personal, social and cultural identity. These findings are significant in adding to the limited data and discussion about newly arrived migrants in rural and regional communities. There are sociological implications from this preliminary data concerning social capital and psychosocial well-being. There are also implications for policy development and professional practice for migration to rural and regional communities.
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Student diversity as grass roots internationalisation in social work education
- Authors: Grace, Marty , Townsend, Robert , Testa, Doris , Fox, John , Custance, Juanita , O'Maley, Pauline , Daddow, Angela
- Date: 2013
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Advances in social work and welfare education Vol. 15, no. 1 (2013), p.
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- Description: Internationalisation of social work education is driven by student diversity as well as by employer demand, the profession internationally, and by universities. Students from diverse backgrounds bring with them their own distinctive cultures, knowledges and ways of being. At Victoria University, Melbourne, Australia, this diversity has prompted us to explore and develop a grass roots approach to internationalisation. This paper gives details of three projects undertaken as part of this exploration. Our approach includes some exploratory research with students, and collaborations with the university's Curriculum Innovation Unit, Language, Literacy and Numeracy Strategy, and Student Learning Unit. Our work focuses on understanding and embedding into the curriculum, students' own experiences and 'funds of knowledge'. At the same time we support students as they develop familiarity with the academic and professional discourses of social work, and advance their academic and professional literacy. This collaborative work is situated within critical social work, critical pedagogy and critical literacy.
The perspective of health care professionals on the value of peer mentoring during rehabiliation
- Authors: Townsend, Robert
- Date: 2013
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Journal of Peer Learning Vol. 6, no. 1 (2013), p. 46-58
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The popular education network of Australia (PENA) and twenty-first century critical education
- Authors: Ollis, Tracey , Williams, Jo , Townsend, Robert , Harris, Anne , Jorquera, Jorge , Campbell, Lea
- Date: 2015
- Type: Text , Book chapter
- Relation: Paolo Freire: The global legacy Chapter 10 p. 175-186
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- Description: Drawing on the philosophies and writings of Paulo Freire regarding education as activism, this chapter explores the history and activities of the Popular Education Network of Australia (PENA). The network, founded in 2009, involves educators, academics, and community workers working together on issues relating to critical pedagogy and social change in schools, communities, and adult education contexts. Two symposia have been organised on critical education in Australia. In 2010, Teaching and Learning for Social Justice and Action was the inaugural gathering. In 2012, Freire Reloaded: Learning and Teaching to Change the World featured a diverse range of workshops and Professor Antonia Darder as keynote speaker and observer. Through the perspectives and experiences of six academics involved in PENA, this chapter will explore the group's activities and reflect on the inspiration drawn from the work of Freire, Darder, and others. Creating spaces for discussion of critical pedagogy affords opportunities for academics, educators, teachers, and activists to reflect on their practice and also leads to further spontaneous networking and planning of action. We argue that there is continuing importance, in fact urgency, in producing places and spaces for conscientisation to occur, and for examples of critical education to be shared amongst twenty-first-century educators.
Therapeutic landscapes: Understanding migration to Australian regional and rural communities
- Authors: Townsend, Robert , Pascal, Jan
- Date: 2012
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Rural Society Vol. 22, no. 1 (2012), p. 59-66
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- Description: This article explores the connections between therapeutic landscapes, social capital and personal well-being for migrants to rural and regional communities. We suggest the theoretical literature and empirical research is underexplored with regard to migration to regional and rural Australia; the landscapes and communities that migrants encounter; and how the migrant experience can be linked to notions of therapeutic landscapes, social capital development and personal well-being. Linking these concepts extends the extant discourses about the economic impact of migration; the social ghettoisation of migrants, and the representation of their experiences in local, regional and national media. Instead, we shift the focus to the connections, processes and relationships that impact social and economic exclusion for South East Asian migrants. Copyright © eContent Management Pty Ltd.
University students' perceptions of social networking sites (SNSs) in their educational experiences at a regional Australian university
- Authors: Sadowski, Christina , Pediaditis, Mika , Townsend, Robert
- Date: 2017
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Australasian Journal of Educational Technology Vol. 33, no. 5 (2017), p. 77-90
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- Description: Higher education institutions, and the way education is delivered and supported, are being transformed by digital technologies. Internationally, institutions are increasingly incorporating online technologies into delivery frameworks and administration – both through internal learning management systems (LMS) and external social networking sites (SNSs). This study aims to explore how higher education students in a regional Australian dual-sector institute use and manage SNSs for personal and study-related activities and their perceptions of how this impacts their educational experiences. This mixed-methods study involved a quantitative and qualitative survey of 355 vocational training and higher education students and in-depth focus groups with ten higher education students. Four key themes were identified through thematic analysis: SNSs as a tool for fostering peer connectedness with fellow students; deliberate and distinct variation between personal and educational use of SNSs; resistance to external SNSs within education settings; and, need for a balance between digital and face-to-face learning and connectedness. Implications for curriculum design and delivery, and development of support for students in diverse learning contexts, are considered.