Effective science teaching and a strategy for its implementation

Is the way being lost in teaching science? Many primary schools do not have a well developed culture of science teaching and learning, there is a declining interest in science over the years 7 to 10, and there are proportionally fewer students continuing onto science in the senior years. In response to these concerns, the Victorian Department of Education, Employment and Training (DEET) established a major initiative, the Science in Schools (SiS) Research Project, to enhance and invigorate science teaching and learning. During 2000 and 2001 the project team has worked with teachers in primary and secondary schools across Victoria to introduce new initiatives into their science programs. Central to the project are the SiS Components, a framework that describes effective science teaching, and the SiS Strategy, a process by which schools implement change. This paper outlines the SiS Components and Strategy and describes some of the findings that have emerged from the project.

Lessons for 2003 from 1993 : primary teacher standpoint on policy backlash against the gender inclusive curriculum

In this paper, I provide evidence of policy 'backlash' against feminism from the standpoint of the practitioner. When asked, in a case study of Victorian primary schools how the gender inclusive curriculum was conceptualised and enacted, practitioners critique the conservative policy shift that they observed. I premise this paper on the notion that critical reflection on the specificities of policy discourse from the previous decade represents transformative work for the contemporary policy context. I conclude with a discussion of how research agendas in the current era of uncertainty can be re-assessed in the light of this study.

A preliminary investigation of the relationship between parental empathy and social anxiety and children's social anxiety

This study investigated the association between parents' social anxiety and empathy, and their children's social anxiety, Twenty-one mothers, 12 fathers and 24 children aged between 7 and 12 years were recruited from state primary schools in the eastern metropolitan region of Melbourne, Australia. Parents completed self-report questionnaires assessing their parental empathy and level of social anxiety. Children completed a modified version of the social anxiety questionnaire. All parent variables, except for maternal anxiety, were related to children's social anxiety. Overall, parental empathy was found to have a considerable association with child social anxiety, which is consistent with arguments that micro-level family mechanisms are important influences on child social anxiety. Future studies of parental empathy with clinical populations and data collection from multiple sources are recommended.

Team teaching in teacher education: towards an interdisciplinary approach

‘Team teaching’ across disciplines at Australian universities is rare. Academics are rigorous in developing specific disciplinary expertise that often prevents collaboration outside of their disciplinary area. In pre-service primary education courses, academics often teach in traditional and exclusive disciplinary approaches. This separation is at odds however with the impetus for a pedagogical move forward towards an interdisciplinary approach in primary schools. The authors contend that primary
teacher educators must model effective interdisciplinary practice to their student teachers and unpack the processes of how to make meaningful connections together. This paper presents the work of two teacher educators who are involved in a broader, innovative, team teaching, field based collaboration with schools and non-school settings for the Bachelor of Teaching (Postgraduate) at Deakin University. In this paper, the authors firstly discuss their rationale for adopting a team teaching approach and describe how they are working towards an interdisciplinary model, bringing together the two areas; music and literacy and providing examples from their team teaching experience. The paper concludes with reflections and recommendations for future team teaching at the tertiary level.

Effectiveness of fire safety education in primary school children

Young children have been identified as a high-risk group in relation to fire-related deaths because of their limited ability to understand the intinsic dangers of fire, to foresee the consequences of playing with fire, or to manage a fire if it were to become out of control.  Children are also not equipped to respond in a meaningful way in the event of a fire.  It is therefore essential that fire safety education be imparted to children in an effective manner so as to equip them to deal with a fire efficiently.  The objective of the present study was to evaluate the 'Fire Ed' program conducted by the Melbourne Metropolitan Fire Brigade for primary school children to determine whether exposure to the curriculum will influence children's knowledge of fire safety behaviours.  Although the program has numerous positive features, its overall effectivenedd has not been evaluated.  It was hypothesised that: a) children will not be aware of essential fire safety information prior to attending the 'Fire Ed' program, and b) children will display a significant gain in fire safety knowledge after participation in the program.  Sixty children from six primary schools participated in the study and they were tested on their level of fire safety knowledge prior to and after partcipation in the 'Fire Ed' program.  Results show that the children's knowledge of fire safety procedures improved significantly after participation in the program when tested after three weeks, however, when their knowledge was examined after five weeks, a significant decline was seen.  The findings show that regular evaluations of fire safety programs are required and that they could be improved by considering the different stages of cognitive development in children.

Residential proximity to school and the active travel choices of parents

Issue addressed: Walking for transport can contribute significantly to health-enhancing physical activity. We examined the prevalence and duration of walking to and from school, together with perceived influences on doing so, among parents of primary school children. Methods: Questionnaires were completed by parents from four primary schools (one government and three private) located in south-east Queensland (n=559; 40% response rate). Results: Eighteen per cent of parents reported walking for at least 10 minutes during journeys to school. Significantly greater proportions of parents with only one car in their household, with a child who attended a government school, with no driver’s licence, who had less than 11 years of education, and lived within two kilometres of the school walked for at least 10 minutes during the school journey. Factors perceived by parents most strongly to influence walking to school were: being physically active; safety concerns for the child walking alone; not having to park; walking being the child’s preferred option; too much motor vehicle traffic; and their child’s age and level of road sense. Conclusions: Despite the overall low prevalence of walking to school by parents, health-enhancing benefits may be achieved even when other modes of transport are used in conjunction with walking.

Fresh kids: the efficacy of a health promoting schools approach to increasing consumption of fruit and water in Australia

The Fresh Kids programme utilized the Health Promoting Schools (HPSs) framework to design a whole-of-school, multifaceted intervention targeting specific behaviours to promote healthy eating and reduce the risk factors associated with childhood obesity. The aim of the programme was to evaluate the effectiveness of the HPS framework to increase fruit and water consumption among primary school-aged children over a 2-year period. The study design was an interrupted time series. Four primary schools in the inner west of Melbourne, Australia, participated in the programme intervention. Baseline data were collected using a lunch box audit to assess the frequency of children with fresh fruit, water and sweet drinks, either brought from home or selected from canteen lunch orders. The lunch box audit was repeated periodically for up to 2 years following programme implementation to assess the sustainability of dietary changes. Across all participating schools, significant increases between 25 and 50% were observed in the proportion of children bringing fresh fruit. Similarly, all schools recorded increases between 15 and 60% in the proportion of students bringing filled water bottles to school and reductions between 8 and 38% in the proportion of children bringing sweet drinks. These significant changes in dietary patterns were sustained for up to 2 years following programme implementation. Targeting key nutrition behaviours and using the HPS framework is an effective and simple approach which could be readily implemented in similar childhood settings. Effective strategies include facilitating organizational change within the school; integrating curriculum activities; formalizing school policy and establishing project partnerships with local community nutrition and dietetic services.

Silenced sexualities in schools and universities

This study investigates how sexuality is dealt with at all levels of formal education and focuses on the way sexualities are manufactured in, and by, educational establishments, ranging from primary schools through to universities and colleges.

What are grade 5 and 6 children buying from school canteens and what do parents and teachers think about it?

Objective: The foods sold in school canteens have a significant role to play in ensuring children consume a healthy balance of nutritious foods. However, no research to date has described the foods that Australian children are purchasing at school canteens, or the perceptions held about school canteens by students, teachers and parents.
Design: An exploratory cross-sectional survey was used to obtain information from students, parents and teachers through self completion questionnaires.
Subjects: There were 384 children aged nine to 12 years, 404 parents and 41 teachers involved.
Settings: The study was conducted in 12 primary schools in Victoria, Australia.
Main outcome measures: Types of foods purchased at school canteens, school canteen usage, parents' and teachers' perceptions of the role of the school and canteen in influencing children's eating habits.
Results: More than 50% of the children surveyed used the school canteen at least once per week. Children identified preference for unhealthy alternatives and availability as key barriers to choosing healthy foods at the canteen and suggested increased availability, advertisements and cost reductions as aids to purchasing healthy foods. Teachers placed more importance on the role of the canteen than parents did.
Statistical analyses: Frequencies, cross-tabulation analyses and chi square tests were undertaken using the SPSS 11 computer program.
Conclusions: These Victorian primary school children and their teachers, and to a lesser extent parents, had a clear understanding of healthy foods. Children and teachers identified barriers that prevent school canteens
from providing healthy foods. There is likely to be strong support from these stakeholders for novel health promoting policies.

The mental health Risk Assessment and Management Process (RAMP) for schools: II. Process evaluation

The Risk Assessment and Management Process (RAMP) is a whole-school process for the assessment and management of student’s mental health and wellbeing in primary and secondary schools. A process evaluation revealed that RAMP was implemented as intended across six primary and three secondary schools in Melbourne, Australia. Using the RAMP risk and protective factors monitoring form and screening processes, each school identified ‘at-risk’ students who had not previously been identified or received assistance from welfare staff at the school. School staff and mental health workers from local agencies reported improvements in their knowledge of risk and protective factors, and their ability to identify at-risk students following RAMP. They also reported satisfaction in outcomes for at-risk students managed within the school using RAMP. All the primary schools and one of the
secondary schools continued to use some RAMP processes in their school up to 6 months after the initial implementation of the program.

Assessment of physical activity among primary school aged children: the Children's Leisure Activities Study (CLASS)

Overweight and obesity rates among children in Australia have increased twofold in the last decade. Physical activity is thought to play an important role in the prevention and treatment of childhood obesity. Children's physical activity data in Australia are incomplete and mainly based on parental proxy reports. One of the reasons for the lack of children's physical activity prevalence data in Australia is the difficulties of measurement. The aim of this study was to develop and examine a reliable, valid and feasible method for assessing physical activity among primary school aged children. A total of 112 grade 5 and 6 children and their parents were recruited from four state primary schools in the eastern and western suburbs of Melbourne. The test-retest reliability of a parental proxy physical activity questionnaire and a children's self report physical activity questionnaire was assessed. The criterion validity of the questionnaires was assessed using accelerometry. Findings suggest that the self report and proxy report questionnaires provided reliable measures of the type, frequency and duration of children's physical activity behaviour. Overall, the criterion validity of the questionnaires was poor. Although accelerometry as an objective measure shows promise, it does not provide the important physical activity behavioural and contextual information that is critical for the development of strategies to promote physical activity among children. We recommend that a combination of self report or proxy and objective measurement (using accelerometry or even pedometry) appears to be the current 'best buy' in the assessment of children's physical activity behaviour.

Having fun outside : teaching and learning science through the environment

Examines how some Victorian Schools have incorporated both science and environmental education into their programs through the Science in Schools Research Project. Development of environmental science education in two primary schools; Conceptualizations of science teaching and learning in schools.

Primary school music

Primary teaching and music qualifications - a rare combination, not only in New Zealand today but in primary schools the world over for more than a decade. Helen Stowasser (1993) writes of 'insecure music teachers' and questions the adequacy of teacher education courses. The Arts in the New Zealand Curriculum states: 'The arts develop the artistic and
aesthetic dimensions of human experience. They contribute to our intellectual ability and to our social, cultural and spiritual understandings. They are an essential element of daily living and of lifelong learning' [the italics are mine]. If our Ministry of Education truly believes this and wants
to ensure that the music discipline is adequately taught, then there are some issues to be addressed, such as recruitment of musically capable teachers; acceptable standards of professional expertise in music; content, length and timing of pre-service programmes; and making provision for teachers' ongoing development.

SOSE curriculum structures : where to now?

SOSE curriculum structures have changed dramatically over the last few decades. Teachers who once taught history, geography and economics have found themselves teaching in the SOSE KLA which many perceive as a generic mish-mash of former school subjects. Some saw this as the death of their disciplines whilst others saw it as an opportunity to explore transdiciplinary and inter-disciplinary teaching and learning. Regardless of opinion, many teachers and tertiary education students often asked a familiar question - What am I supposed to teach and how am I supposed to teach it?

Whilst NSW retained a disciplinary structure for the teaching and learning of SOSE in secondary schools, all other Australian States and Territories adopted a Key Learning Area [KLA] approach. In recent years Victorian curriculum change has seen the re-emergence of a disciplinary approach to the teaching and learning of SOSE in upper primary schools and secondary schools and we can only wonder what curriculum change in other States and Territories will bring. In this paper we explore disciplinary, transdiciplinary and interdisciplinary approaches to SOSE and critique these in relation to effective teaching and learning.

Reducing unhealthy weight gain in children through community capacity−building: results of a quasi−experimental intervention program, Be Active Eat Well

Background:
Be Active Eat Well (BAEW) was a multifaceted community capacity-building program promoting healthy eating and physical activity for children (aged 4–12 years) in the Australian town of Colac.
Objective:
To evaluate the effects of BAEW on reducing children's unhealthy weight gain.
Methods:
BAEW had a quasi-experimental, longitudinal design with anthropometric and demographic data collected on Colac children in four preschools and six primary schools at baseline (2003, n=1001, response rate: 58%) and follow-up (2006, n=839, follow-up rate: 84%). The comparison sample was a stratified random selection of preschools (n=4) and primary schools (n=12) from the rest of the Barwon South Western region of Victoria, with baseline assessment in 2003–2004 (n=1183, response rate: 44%) and follow-up in 2006 (n=979, follow-up rate: 83%).
Results:
Colac children had significantly lower increases in body weight (mean: -0.92 kg, 95% CI: -1.74 to -0.11), waist (-3.14 cm, -5.07 to -1.22), waist/height (-0.02, -0.03 to -0.004), and body mass index z-score (-0.11, -0.21 to -0.01) than comparison children, adjusted for baseline variable, age, height, gender, duration between measurements and clustering by school. In Colac, the anthropometric changes were not related to four indicators of socioeconomic status (SES), whereas in the comparison group 19/20 such analyses showed significantly greater gains in anthropometry in children from lower SES families. Changes in underweight and attempted weight loss were no different between the groups.
Conclusions:
Building community capacity to promote healthy eating and physical activity appears to be a safe and effective way to reduce unhealthy weight gain in children without increasing health inequalities.