Renewing the teaching profession in regional areas through community partnerships. Schools are at the heart of community, social and economic regeneration in regional areas but teacher shortages and high turnover put quality of learning at risk. Improving teacher quality, attracting new teachers and retaining more experienced teachers will expand learning opportunities for young people in rural and remote areas, and make the region attractive to other workers recruited to bring their families to ....Renewing the teaching profession in regional areas through community partnerships. Schools are at the heart of community, social and economic regeneration in regional areas but teacher shortages and high turnover put quality of learning at risk. Improving teacher quality, attracting new teachers and retaining more experienced teachers will expand learning opportunities for young people in rural and remote areas, and make the region attractive to other workers recruited to bring their families to the area - for mining, industry, service or professional employment. This partnership study will enable policy makers, employers, country community groups and teacher education faculties to be more strategic in working together in providing necessary teaching staff; with potential implications for other professional groups.Read moreRead less
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE180100107
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$414,325.00
Summary
Resilience, culture, and class: A sociological study of Australian students. This project aims to promote academic resilience and school success in contexts of adverse conditions. Using interviews, Social Network Analysis, and psychometric measures, the project will explore links between academic resilience, culture, and class. The project is designed to provide insights that can reduce educational failure and enhance life prospects of at-risk students. Expected outcomes include publicly availab ....Resilience, culture, and class: A sociological study of Australian students. This project aims to promote academic resilience and school success in contexts of adverse conditions. Using interviews, Social Network Analysis, and psychometric measures, the project will explore links between academic resilience, culture, and class. The project is designed to provide insights that can reduce educational failure and enhance life prospects of at-risk students. Expected outcomes include publicly available project findings and an instructional animation to assist end-users build academic resilience in Australia's multicultural contexts. Expected benefits include attenuated achievement gap, increased social cohesion and mobility, and reduced public cost on educational failure.Read moreRead less
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE170100510
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$350,977.00
Summary
How first-in-family males transition to Australian university life. This project aims to study how gender, ethnicity and social class affect Australian males from low socio-economic backgrounds as they transition to university. Despite an emphasis on widening participation in the Australian university sector, the path to university is still precarious, particularly for first-in-family students. Males from low socio-economic backgrounds remain severely underrepresented in higher education, and ho ....How first-in-family males transition to Australian university life. This project aims to study how gender, ethnicity and social class affect Australian males from low socio-economic backgrounds as they transition to university. Despite an emphasis on widening participation in the Australian university sector, the path to university is still precarious, particularly for first-in-family students. Males from low socio-economic backgrounds remain severely underrepresented in higher education, and how these students experience university life is unclear. The project will use qualitative research to better understand the experiences of first-in-family males entering universities in different locales/institutions across Australia. Expected outcomes include improved targeted support systems to enable their success.Read moreRead less
Mandated literacy assessment and the reorganisation of teachers' work. The study will inform practitioners, teacher educators and educational policy-makers about the ways that teachers' work is being changed by the introduction of mandated standardised assessment and reporting processes. The research will provide insights into the ways in which teachers need to adapt standardised processes and policies to account for the varied student and community populations they serve. This is significant fo ....Mandated literacy assessment and the reorganisation of teachers' work. The study will inform practitioners, teacher educators and educational policy-makers about the ways that teachers' work is being changed by the introduction of mandated standardised assessment and reporting processes. The research will provide insights into the ways in which teachers need to adapt standardised processes and policies to account for the varied student and community populations they serve. This is significant for educational policy as recent international studies of students' literacy performance suggest Australia is lagging in terms of equity for low SES students. Read moreRead less
Improving zoo/aquarium conservation learning outcomes: a values approach. This project aims to improve the educational value of zoos and aquariums in teaching and engaging the public about conservation issues. Although zoos and aquariums claim their current education programs are effective in reaching and educating the public on conservation issues, research shows their influence on visitors’ environmental behaviour is limited. The project intends to investigate the influence of zoo and aquarium ....Improving zoo/aquarium conservation learning outcomes: a values approach. This project aims to improve the educational value of zoos and aquariums in teaching and engaging the public about conservation issues. Although zoos and aquariums claim their current education programs are effective in reaching and educating the public on conservation issues, research shows their influence on visitors’ environmental behaviour is limited. The project intends to investigate the influence of zoo and aquarium visitors’ values or broad life goals on their environmental learning outcomes; develop values-based conservation education strategies; and measure the impact of these on visitors’ adoption of conservation actions. The intended outcomes are guidelines that will replace the current ‘one size fits all’ conservation messages with tailored experiences that attract, engage and influence those for whom environmental care and protection are not necessarily of central concern.Read moreRead less
Settlement outcomes of Syrian-conflict refugee families in Australia. This project aims to focus on the policy responses to, and settlement outcomes for, Syrian-conflict refugee families in Australia with an emphasis on employment and education. The Syrian conflict has generated an unprecedented flow of refugees across Europe and other countries, including Australia. These countries face new challenges in providing successful settlement outcomes for the refugees. Utilising a longitudinal study o ....Settlement outcomes of Syrian-conflict refugee families in Australia. This project aims to focus on the policy responses to, and settlement outcomes for, Syrian-conflict refugee families in Australia with an emphasis on employment and education. The Syrian conflict has generated an unprecedented flow of refugees across Europe and other countries, including Australia. These countries face new challenges in providing successful settlement outcomes for the refugees. Utilising a longitudinal study of 250 refugee families and fieldwork in key areas of high refugee settlement in NSW, Victoria and Queensland, this project will generate comparative insights to identify policy and program responses that lead to the most successful settlement outcomes. Improved employment, education and settlement outcomes for refugees will have economic, social and cultural benefits for Australian society and improve the quality of life of refugees.Read moreRead less
The Kids in Communities Study: national investigation of community level effects on children's developmental outcomes. This project (a cross-disciplinary collaboration) will investigate community level factors influencing early childhood developmental outcomes using a mixed methods approach in up to 10 communities across Australia. This will result in a potential set of measures or indicators that reflect communities that are good for children.
Capacitating student aspirations in classrooms and communities in a high poverty region. This project studies the aspirations of students in a disadvantaged area, as cultural resources for completing school, accessing higher education and realising desirable futures. It will produce new concepts and research methods for increasing social equity by working closely with students and families, and making links between schools and communities.
Innovative learning environments and teacher change. This project aims to bridge a gap between the educational potential of innovative learning environment designs, and their actual performance. Currently, multi-modal technology-enabled spaces are not producing demonstrable benefits for students. Many teachers resist altering their mindset about how students learn effectively in these spaces and thus how teachers should teach differently. The project aims to work with schools, government and ind ....Innovative learning environments and teacher change. This project aims to bridge a gap between the educational potential of innovative learning environment designs, and their actual performance. Currently, multi-modal technology-enabled spaces are not producing demonstrable benefits for students. Many teachers resist altering their mindset about how students learn effectively in these spaces and thus how teachers should teach differently. The project aims to work with schools, government and industry to analyse the relationships between quality teaching and effective use of innovative learning environments. The new understanding gained through the project is expected to guide developments in pedagogy, policy and design and to produce strategies to improve learning in schools across Australia and New Zealand.Read moreRead less
Novel Interventions To Address Methamphetamines In Aboriginal Communities, Including A Randomised Trial Of A Web Based Therapeutic Tool Used To Treat Dependence In Clinical Settings.
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$2,177,908.00
Summary
Methamphetamine use in Aboriginal communities has gained much media attention, despite limited research studies to ascertain the full extent of its use and its impact. We propose a randomised trial of a web based therapeutic tool for use in Aboriginal Medical Services to treat clients using methamphetamines. In addition we will characterise the health and well-being of Aboriginal people who use methamphetamines and trial unique Aboriginal community led interventions to address methamphetamines.