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.

Factors influencing mathematics and science teachers' self-assessment as teaching 'out-of-field' in rural and regional schools

Teaching 'out-of-field' occurs when teachers teach a subject for which they have no disciplinary or methods qualification. The incidence of out-of-field mathematics, science and technology teaching are particularly high in rural and regional areas. Given that mathematics and science are key areas of policy concern, there is an urgent need to understand teachers‟ position in this increasingly common practice in order to provide appropriate system responses. This paper asks the question, how are mathematics and science teachers‟ professional identities influenced by having to teach out-of-field? Twenty teachers who had taught science or mathematics at some time in their career, two school leaders, and two support staff, took part in semi-structured interviews, which I then transcribed. This paper reports on a thematic analysis of a subset of the data that isolated factors influencing teachers‟ self-assessment of themselves as out-of-field or in-field. Excerpts from the interviews are used to introduce and contextualise these factors within rural and regional settings. These factors are used to generate a theoretical model, the Boundary Between Fields (BBF) Model, that enables analysis of the impact of these factors on identity construction during a boundary crossing event. The Model highlights the influence of support mechanisms, contextual factors and personal resources on the nature of teachers‟ negotiation of subject boundaries and its impact on professional identity. This innovative model provides a platform for re-conceptualising these experiences as opportunities for professional learning occurring within schools as communities of practice, where teachers are supported and enabled to expand their professional identity. These findings provide insight for policy-makers, school leaders and teacher educators, into the complexity of the issue for teachers, as well as the conditions required for such teaching to be considered learning opportunities.

A proposal for change to teacher education in and for rural and regional Australia

In recent years, much attention has been given to the preparation of teachers for rural and regional schools (for example, Marks et al, 2000, Marks et al, 2001, Jones, 2002). Rural and regional teacher education brings with it exciting opportunities for individuals and communities. However, it is also coupled with specific demands on governments, teaching staff and tertiary institutions. However, as yet little attention has been given to how to reform teacher education to address the identified issues (Green & Reid, 2004). At present, the teacher education course offered on the Warrnambool campus of Deakin University is identical to that offered on the metropolitan (Burwood) and regional (Geelong) campuses. The course is a traditional four-year course.

At the Warrnambool campus we are embarking on a project which aims to reconceptualise teacher education for rural and regional contexts. It seeks to: better understand the issues and challenges rural and regional stake holders face within the profession, including both pre-service and service dimensions; identify the context specific knowledge, skills and strategies rural and regional schools are looking for in graduate teachers; and develop and implement a revised Bachelor of Education program that reflects the needs of rural and regional education.

In this paper, we outline how we intend determining the demand for a community-based teacher education program in western Victoria and determining/negotiating community support for such an initiative.

Developing a rural and regional science challenge to utilise community and industry-based partnerships

Interest and participation in science in schools has been declining for many years and there is a genuine need to rejuvenate interest in science at the high school level. One possible solution is the completion of challenging science projects which fulfill an authentic purpose in the community. This paper discusses the results of ongoing research into the establishment of a rural and regional Science Challenge which makes use of partnerships with local industries and community groups to encourage the development of authentic science projects. In the development of the Science Challenge, many issues are emerging in relation to teachers' work, resources, administration and school cultures. This paper reports on the preliminary findings and indicates directions for the future.

Developing a science challenge to support partnerships and pedagogy in rural and regional science

In 2007 the researchers decided to investigate the development of a “science challenge” as a means of engaging students in science. They wanted to ensure that whatever was developed was sustainable, addressed the needs of students and provided some answers for the dilemma of equitable education in regional and rural areas. A literature search indicated that whilst science competitions were not new, one which was based on schoolcommunity partnerships and involved students in the solving of real problems, was quite different. This paper will report on the development of the science challenge with reference to the viewpoints of teachers, community and industry participants.

The rural practicum : preparing a quality teacher workforce for rural and regional Australia

Communities play a critical role in supporting pre-service teachers during rural and regional professional experience. This support, coupled with access to teacher educators and university resources, appears to positively influence graduate attitudes toward taking up a rural appointment. These are among the key findings to emerge from open-ended responses within 263 surveys completed for the Rethinking Teacher Education for Rural and Regional Sustainability—Renewing Teacher Education for Rural and Regional Australia project (TERRAnova). The national surveys, collected annually from 2008-2010, monitored the impact of state-based financial incentives designed to promote rural and regional professional experience. Findings discussed in this article have implications for teacher educators and rural school leaders as they work in partnership with communities to support pre-service teachers on rural and regional practicum.

Educating law students for rural and regional legal practice: embedding place consciousness in law curricula

As with other professions, the declining rates of recruitment and retention of lawyers in rural and regional Australia is of significant concern. Whilst the causes of this vary between communities, common depictions of the rural and regional lawyer’s role indicate that employment as a lawyer in such areas is characterised by unique personal and professional challenges. Nonetheless, employment as a rural and regional lawyer also offers practitioners rewarding opportunities and lifestyle benefits. Research from other disciplines indicates that the challenges inherent in rural and regional professional practice may be alleviated, and benefits more easily harnessed, via place conscious discipline-specific curriculum that sensitises tertiary students to, and prepares them for, the rural and regional career context.Largely oriented towards substantive content to satisfy external accrediting bodies, undergraduate legal education does not typically acknowledge the ‘places’in which graduates will practice as professionals. This article argues however that there is scope to incorporate place within legal education, and documents an innovative curriculum development project which embeds place consciousness to better prepare law students for employment in rural and regional legal practice.Drawing upon methods from other disciplines, the project team designed a curriculum package which aims to sensitise students to the rural and regional legal practice context, and equip them with the skills to overcome challenges and take advantage of the opportunities available in a rural or regional professional career.

Mental health issues and resources in rural and regional communities : an exploration of perceptions of service providers

Objective: To identify service providers’ and community organisations’ perceptions of the resources available to support people with mental illness and the unmet needs of this client group in rural Queensland. Design: An exploratory study was undertaken involving focus group interviews across the study sites. Setting: Five regional towns in rural Queensland. Participants: Ten to 14 members were recruited for each of the five focus groups. The groups represented a diverse mix of participants including health and community service providers and representatives from community organisations. Results: Participants identified gaps in services in relation to health, employment and education, housing and accommodation, transport and social inclusion and health promotion. Inter-service communication and inappropriate funding models were themes affecting service delivery. Conclusions: Specific service issues of housing and transport were identified to be particularly problematic for people with mental illness across all towns. Intersectoral communication and funding models require further research.

Crime in Rural and Regional Areas

This Chapter provides an overview of available corrent data measuring crime in Australia's States and Territories broken down into regions and localities The data is limited, has reliability problems and lots of gaps. Nevertheless when the data are analysed according to offence type (in particulary violence versus property offences) an interesting but complicated empirical picture emerges that departs from what most scholars and policy makes have commonly assumed about crime and rural communities - that there is not much of it! The chapter begins with an assessment of the uses and limitations of different ways of measuring crime for those interested in a spatialised analysis of crome dispersion in rural communities.

Motivations, expectations and experiences of Australian rural and regional planners

Despite playing an extremely important role in shaping communities, the role and contribution of planners is not widely understood or acknowledged. At the same time, there is a shortage of planners in Australia, especially in non-urban areas. Thus, though an online survey of 185 rural and regional planners, this research explores their motivations, expectations and experiences. Most enjoyed and felt confident in their role, explaining that they valued the relaxed family orientated rural lifestyle and the varied nature of the planning work. Although they sometimes felt isolated, the non-urban location provided quicker progression to senior roles, the ability to engage directly with the community and to see the consequences of their decisions. Only half felt their education had prepared them well for their role, citing gaps in terms of computerised modelling, team leadership and conflict resolution skills. Their feedback centred on providing a more practical course, focussing more on regional planning, and encouraging urban and rural experience placements. As the first study to quantifiably explore rural and regional Australian planners perceptions of their role and challenges, the findings illustrate current experiences, key planning challenges, perceived educational gaps and future priorities.

Remote, rural, and regional airports in Australia

This paper provides an overview of the challenges faced by remote, rural and regional airports in Australia. The deregulation of airports over the past decades has resulted in local councils owning most of the rural and regional airports across Australia. The paper provides an overview of the international literature on regional airports and research directed at defining the issues faced by regional and rural airports in Australia. A survey of airport managers, regulators and local councils was undertaken across Australia to outline the challenges and stresses that regional airports are facing. Core findings indicate that the operation of rural and regional airports is under stress due to the interrelating factors of infrastructure costs, high cost of maintenance, and security infrastructure upgrades. Small airports often compete with one another to attract airlines and maintain their infrastructure advantage.