Promoting rural and remote teacher education in Australia through the Over the Hill project

Attracting quality teachers to rural areas is an ongoing international concern. Teacher education institutions have been criticised for contributing to this problem by failing to raise an awareness of teaching in rural areas in their teacher education programs. This study investigates preservice teachers’ perceptions towards teaching in rural areas after participating in a rural experience through the Over the Hill project. A self-selected group of second and third year preservice teachers from a regional campus of an urban Queensland university participated in a six-day rural experience, which included being billeted with local families, attending local community events and observing and teaching in rural primary and secondary schools. Data collected from the preservice teachers before and after the rural teaching experience were analysed to reveal positive perceptions towards teaching and living in rural communities. The findings revealed that even a brief immersion into rural schooling communities can positively influence preservice teachers’ attitudes towards seeking rural teaching placements. These findings have implications for the ways in which teacher education institutions can promote rural teaching opportunities in their teacher education programs.

Media Literacy through Arts Education in Australia

Media arts has been included as one of five Arts subjects for the new Australian Curriculum and will become mandatory learning for all Australian children from pre-school to year six, and elective for children in years seven to twelve. While media education has historically been associated with English curriculum in Australia, it has also occurred through the Arts since at least the 1960s and creative practice has almost always been included as an aspect of official media curricula. This chapter investigates the possibilities for creative and critical learning enabled through media arts by discussing the media learning of one primary school student. This chapter investigates the possibilities for creative and critical learning enabled through the inclusion of media arts in the curriculum. Media arts has been included as one of five Arts subjects for the new Australian Curriculum and will become mandatory learning for all Australian children from pre-school to year six, and elective for children in years seven to twelve. Media education has historically been associated with English curriculum in Australia due to its development through the critical reading tradition. However, media literacy education in secondary schools has also occurred through the Arts since at least the 1960s and creative practice has almost always been included as an aspect of official media curricula. This chapter investigates the media learning of one primary school student, to consider the nature of creative learning and how this relates to the ‘critical’ aspects of media arts curriculum. We undertook this work as part of a large research project that has been investigating the relationship between digital media and traditional literacy outcomes in a primary school.

A methodological approach to modelling design led innovation across secondary education : an Australian case study

Incorporating design thinking as a generic capability at a school level is needed to ensure future generations are empowered for business innovation and active citizenship. This paper describes the methodology of an investigation into modelling design led innovation approaches from the business sector to secondary education, as part of a larger study. It builds on a previously discussed research agenda by outlining the scope, significance and limitations of currently available research in this area, examining an action research methodology utilising an Australian design immersion program case study, and discussing implications and future work. It employs a triangulated approach encompassing thematic analysis of qualitative data collection from student focus groups, semi-structured convergent interviews with teachers and facilitators, and student journals. Eventual outcomes will be reviewed and analysed within the framework of a proposed innovation matrix model for educational growth, synthesising principles responding to 21st century student outcomes. It is anticipated this research will inform a successful design led secondary education innovation model, facilitating new engagement frameworks between tertiary and secondary education sectors, as well as providing new insight into the suitability of action research in prototyping social innovation in Australia.

Internationalising Australian secondary education

This thesis presents the findings of a case study of international students who enrol in Australian secondary schools. Specifically, it focuses on the ways that staff in three schools and two international colleges position Eastern Asian international students through discourses of cultural difference. It draws together the Discourse Historical Approach to Critical Discourse Analysis with the work of Basil Bernstein and Pierre Bourdieu. The study finds that groups of students are positioned positively or negatively depending on their relationship to the dominant discourses of the Australian school. Australian students, while rarely mentioned, were positioned positively. By contrast, the Eastern Asian international students were positioned negatively in relation to the privileged discourses of Australian schooling. These discourses reflected the cultural capital that was valued in the schools. In particular, the cultural capital of active and willing engagement in competitive sports and being rough, rugged and an ‘ocker’ were privileged at the schools. International students from Papua New Guinea, and a few Eastern Asian students who behaved as ockers, were positioned positively because they realised cultural capital that was valued at the schools. By contrast, the students who were unable to be positioned through these discourses, because they did not realise cultural capital that was valued, were not viewed favourably. As a result, the data showed that there was a hierarchy of positions at the schools that were constructed in staff accounts. The analysis of data suggests that only some students are positioned favourably in Australian schools. The students who were already able to construct privileged Australian school discourses were positioned positively. The data suggest that the majority of the Eastern Asian students were represented through negative discourses because they did not realise cultural capital that was valued at the schools. Findings of this study may assist schools to identify international students who may experience their Australian school education negatively. The findings may also contribute to assisting staff to better engage with international students.

A case study of pedagogical responses to internationalisation at a faith-based secondary school in Australia

This case study investigated pedagogical responses to internationalisation by a faith-based secondary school in Australia. Using social constructivism as the theoretical framework the study examined teaching and learning for culturally and linguistically diverse students. Data generated through questionnaires, focus groups, individual interviews and document archives were analysed and interpreted using thematic analysis. The findings showed that teachers believed themselves to be ill-equipped to teach international students. Their concerns centred on a lack of explicit pedagogical, cultural and linguistic knowledge to help the students acculturate and learn. Recommendations include the dissemination of school policies to teachers, intentional staff collaboration and professional development to address the teachers’ needs for internationalisation.

Empowering innovative and active citizens: Design education in an Australian independent school

Consumerism is arguably one of the strongest forces affecting society today. Its affect on young people and their ability and desire to create, design, and innovate is cause for concern. It has been suggested that design, when viewed as “a fundamental category of meaning making” (Cope and Kalantzis, 2010, p.597), can be conceived as a “foundational paradigm for representation and action” (Cope and Kalantzis, 2011, p.49). As a component of a general education, it has the capacity to give future generations a framework for collaborative creative and critical thinking required for business innovation, while developing resourceful optimism, motivation, morality and the citizenship needed to develop awareness and resilience to this ideology (Design Commission, 2011; Design Council, 2011). However, to date clearly defined frameworks and empirical data surrounding design education integration in secondary school contexts and its impact on innovation and active citizenship in Australia, is extremely limited. This paper will explore the value of a hands-on and collaborative design-based education model in an independent secondary school environment in Australia and its effect on students’ self- perception, core beliefs, empowered participation and ability to innovate towards sustainability. Following is an overview of relevant literature, the research question, and potential significance and contribution of this research.

Science, ICT and Mathematics Education in Rural and Regional Australia: The SiMERR National Survey

The SiMERR National Survey was one of the first priorities of the National Centre of Science, Information and Communication Technology and Mathematics Education for Rural and Regional Australia (SiMERR Australia), established at the University of New England in July 2004 through a federal government grant. With university based ‘hubs’ in each state and territory, SiMERR Australia aims to support rural and regional teachers, students and communities in improving educational outcomes in these subject areas. The purpose of the survey was to identify the key issues affecting these outcomes. The National Survey makes six substantial contributions to our understanding of issues in rural education. First, it focuses specifically on school science, ICT and mathematics education, rather than on education more generally. Second, it compares the different circumstances and needs of teachers across a nationally agreed geographical framework, and quantifies these differences. Third, it compares the circumstances and needs of teachers in schools with different proportions of Indigenous students. Fourth, it provides greater detail than previous studies on the specific needs of schools and teachers in these subject areas. Fifth, the analyses of teacher ‘needs’ have been controlled for the socio-economic background of school locations, resulting in findings that are more tightly associated with geographic location than with economic circumstances. Finally, most previous reports on rural education in Australia were based upon focus interviews, public submissions or secondary analyses of available data. In contrast, the National Survey has generated a sizable body of original quantitative and qualitative data.

Moral Education in the Japanese Primary School Curricular Revision at the Turn of the Twenty-first Century: Aiming at a Rich and Beautiful Kokoro

This study examines values education in Japanese schools at the beginning of the millennium. The topic was approached by asking the following three questions concerning the curricular background, the morality conveyed through textbooks and the characterization of moral education from a comparative viewpoint: 1) What role did moral education play in the curriculum revision which was initiated in 1998 and implemented in 2002? 2) What kinds of moral responsibilities and moral autonomy do the moral texts develop? 3) What does Japanese moral education look like in terms of the comparative framework? The research was based on curriculum research. Its primary empirical data consisted of the national curriculum guidelines for primary school, which were taken into use in 2002, and moral texts, Kokoro no nôto, published by the Ministry of Education in the same context. Since moral education was approached in the education reform context, the secondary research material involved some key documents of the revision process from the mid-1990s to 2003. The research material was collected during three fieldwork periods in Japan (in 2002, 2003 and 2005). The text-analysis was conducted as a theory-dependent qualitative content analysis. Japanese moral education was analyzed as a product of its own cultural tradition and societal answer to the current educational challenges. In order to understand better its character, secular moral education was reflected upon from a comparative viewpoint. The theory chosen for the comparative framework, the value realistic theory of education, represented the European rational education tradition as well as the Christian tradition of values education. Moral education, which was the most important school subject at the beginning of modern school, was eliminated from the curriculum for political reasons in a school reform after the Second World War, but has gradually regained a stronger position since then. It was reinforced particularly at the turn of millennium, when a curriculum revision attempted to respond to educational and learning problems by emphasizing qualitative and value aspects. Although the number of moral lessons and their status as a non-official-subject remained unchanged, the Ministry of Education made efforts to improve moral education by new curricular emphases, new teaching material and additional in-service training possibilities for teachers. The content of the moral texts was summarized in terms of moral responsibility in four moral areas (intrapersonal, interpersonal, natural-supranatural and societal) as follows: 1) continuous self-development, 2) caring for others, 3) awe of life and forces beyond human power, and 4) societal contribution. There was a social-societal and emotional emphasis in what was taught. Moral autonomy, which was studied from the perspectives of rational, affective and individuality development, stressed independence in action through self-discipline and responsibility more than rational self-direction. Japanese moral education can be characterized as the education of kokoro (heart) and the development of character, which arises from virtue ethics. It aims to overcome egoistic individualism by reciprocal and interdependent moral responsibility based on responsible interconnectedness.

Teacher attitudes and best practices with ICT faculty Adult Continuing Education in Andalusia

The present paper reports the results of a study aiming to describe the attitudes of teachers in adult continuous education in the Autonomous Community of Andalusia (Spain) towards the use and integration of information and communication technologies (ITC) in the educational centres they work in, while identifying those factors that favour the development of good practice. It is a mixed methods descriptive research, and information collection techniques include a questionnaire and in-depth interviews. A total number of 172 teachers were surveyed, as well as 18 head teachers and coordinators, in adult education. For questionnaire validation the expert judgment technique was used, as they were selected by the «expert competence coefficient» or «K coefficient» procedure. To improve its psychometric properties, construct validity was determined by means of Varimax factor analysis and maximum likelihood extraction (two factors were extracted). Confidence was set by Cronbach's alpha (0.88). The interview guide was also validated by this group of experts. Results point out, on one hand, that teachers hold positive attitudes towards ICT regarding both ICT's role in professional development and their ease of use and access. On the other hand, among the most important factors for ICT-supported good educational practices lies in ICT's capacity to favour personalized work.

Use and access to ICT in students of public secondary schools in Chihuahua City, Mexico: inclusion in teaching and digital literacy

This paper addresses the issue of the digital divide in students of public secondary schools at Chihuahua City, Mexico. It seeks to identify potential inequality of opportunities with regards to subjects’ access to information, knowledge and education through the ICT (internet, mobile telephony, broadband and television). The study takes three schools as investigative stage, using the survey as a data collection instrument, identifying patterns of behavior regarding: general knowledge of them, access to computer equipment and internet, and characterization of their use. Other aspects of analysis are the identification of the educational level of parents and access to technology resources available for academic and non-academic purposes in various application areas (home, school and social environment). The proposal concludes, that it is through the recollection of alternatives suggested by the teachers themselves to incorporate ICT for teaching purposes in a systematic and planned fashion, whose greatest reflection manifests in better digital literacy indicators.

How teachers of Geography and History of Secondary Education assess?

The purpose of this article is to analyse the assessment procedures and instruments used by teachers of Geography and History of Compulsory Secondary School (ESO) in the Region of Murcia (Spain). The data have been extracted implementing a survey technique proceeded by a descriptive analysis. The results show that teachers generally have a traditional conception of assessment, reflected in the fact that they think that assessment should not change when teaching strategies are changed or when they innovate. On the other hand, although they consider that is necessary to employ a variety of instruments to assess well and to prevent school failure, they still use exams as the most objective and essential instrument in the assessment, while they don’t apply continuous assessment, only tests in a continuous way. The implementation of similar research in other areas or in other subjects shows the existence of contrasts in teacher assessment practices.

Journeys into the unknown: shared schooling and social change in Quebec and Northern Ireland

This article compares experiences of shared schooling in societies with 2 distinctive traits: first, a history of intercommunity conflict and isolation; and second, a segregated school system. Drawing on Parekh’s (2006) reconceptualisation of multiculturalism, this article analyses issues arising from experiences of intercommunity contact in shared schools in Quebec and Northern Ireland—in one case, bringing Anglophones and Francophones together and, in the other, Protestants and Catholics. Research data from both contexts is drawn upon to reflect on how this experience is lived. The metaphor of a journey is used to capture what it represents for those involved. A need to clarify, recognize, and exploit the potential of shared schooling for the transformation of divided societies is identified.