Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE140100751
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$379,506.00
Summary
How health shapes young children’s academic outcomes, and opportunities to intervene. Every year, about 280,000 Australian children make the crucial transition from preschool to formal education. Within this population, there is a wide range of learning capabilities and levels of preparedness. Children who have difficulties during the early years have greater risk of poorer academic and social outcomes. This project aims to determine how children's academic outcomes are shaped by common physical ....How health shapes young children’s academic outcomes, and opportunities to intervene. Every year, about 280,000 Australian children make the crucial transition from preschool to formal education. Within this population, there is a wide range of learning capabilities and levels of preparedness. Children who have difficulties during the early years have greater risk of poorer academic and social outcomes. This project aims to determine how children's academic outcomes are shaped by common physical health problems during the early years of school and how best to address these problems within the traditional school setting. This will inform future research as to the opportunities to help all children have the best opportunity to learn so they can reach their academic potential.Read moreRead less
Promoting healthy eating, active play and sustainability awareness in early childhood curricula: Addressing the Ben10™ problem. A pedagogical communication strategy has been developed to allow early childhood educators to design curriculum interventions that support children’s learning about healthy eating, the importance of active play and the sustainability consequences of their food and toy selections. The aim of this study is to conduct a randomised trial to evaluate the efficacy of the curr ....Promoting healthy eating, active play and sustainability awareness in early childhood curricula: Addressing the Ben10™ problem. A pedagogical communication strategy has been developed to allow early childhood educators to design curriculum interventions that support children’s learning about healthy eating, the importance of active play and the sustainability consequences of their food and toy selections. The aim of this study is to conduct a randomised trial to evaluate the efficacy of the curriculum interventions, developed by teachers using this pedagogical communication strategy, on children’s knowledge about healthy eating, active play and the sustainability consequences of their food and toy selections. This project connects strongly with the learning outcomes of the National Early Years Learning Framework and the Australian Curriculum to be implemented in 2014.Read moreRead less
Does binocular vision training enhance literacy among primary school children with poor reading? One in ten Australian children can not read well despite adequate intelligence and opportunity. This project aims to find out the extent that these reading problems reflect poor binocular vision (the eyes not working well together) and evaluate new treatments.
Practical methods to evaluate school breakfast programs. This innovative project will provide a doctoral student with the opportunity to develop in-depth academic research within the practical constraints of field-based program evaluation. The candidate will develop a practical methodology to evaluate community-based programs, specifically school breakfast programs in New South Wales. The outcome of the project will be an evaluation protocol, set of tools and reporting proforma that can be appli ....Practical methods to evaluate school breakfast programs. This innovative project will provide a doctoral student with the opportunity to develop in-depth academic research within the practical constraints of field-based program evaluation. The candidate will develop a practical methodology to evaluate community-based programs, specifically school breakfast programs in New South Wales. The outcome of the project will be an evaluation protocol, set of tools and reporting proforma that can be applied by volunteers and teachers to evaluate school breakfast programs. The research process undertaken by the candidate also will be applicable to the development of evaluation methodologies of a range of community-based programs.Read moreRead less
Early childhood sustained home visiting: outcomes at 4 years and the transition to school. The Commonwealth has been committed to developing a national agenda for early childhood, with a strong focus on development and use of Australian-relevant evidence, an outcomes focus, a focus on vulnerable communities, families and children, and strengths-based approaches. This agenda is also reflected in the key research priority areas of the Commonwealth Government. The proposed study is a critical next ....Early childhood sustained home visiting: outcomes at 4 years and the transition to school. The Commonwealth has been committed to developing a national agenda for early childhood, with a strong focus on development and use of Australian-relevant evidence, an outcomes focus, a focus on vulnerable communities, families and children, and strengths-based approaches. This agenda is also reflected in the key research priority areas of the Commonwealth Government. The proposed study is a critical next step in the development of an Australian evidence base for professional home visiting: a key strategy for the delivery of services to promote the health and development of young Australians. The findings of this study will have significant implications for the development of early childhood policy and strategy throughout Australia.Read moreRead less
Childhood obesity, physical activity and wellbeing: Discovering the influence of children's understandings and experiences of places, spaces and communities. The study aims to discover 3-13 yr old children's understandings, perceptions & experiences of physical activity & associated places & spaces. Childhood obesity is a modern 'epidemic' & governments agree that low physical activity levels contribute significantly. Epidemiological & clinical research has been undertaken, but we lack Australia ....Childhood obesity, physical activity and wellbeing: Discovering the influence of children's understandings and experiences of places, spaces and communities. The study aims to discover 3-13 yr old children's understandings, perceptions & experiences of physical activity & associated places & spaces. Childhood obesity is a modern 'epidemic' & governments agree that low physical activity levels contribute significantly. Epidemiological & clinical research has been undertaken, but we lack Australian studies that systematically listen to & understand the pivotal voices of children themselves. Failure to develop such theoretically sound, practice-based understandings may mean ineffective interventions that misunderstand children's worlds. This collaborative study unites highly experienced researchers, practitioners & policy makers who will actively involve children in creating & using new knowledge.Read moreRead less
Psychosocial and economic impacts of rare diseases on Australian children, families and health professionals. Rare childhood diseases have enormous impacts on children and families; health services, and health professionals. This project will enable Australia to lead the international research effort by using a coordinated approach to study the impacts of rare diseases in order to improve psychosocial, health and economic outcomes for children and families.
Discovery Indigenous Researchers Development - Grant ID: DI0989770
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$80,000.00
Summary
Solid Kids Solid Schools: conceptualising bullying in an Aboriginal context as reported by the Yamaji community. This project holds significant national benefit as the correlations between health and education outcomes are well evidenced as is the unacceptable inequity in education outcomes for Indigenous and non-Indigenous children. It seeks to improve school attendance, retention and academic achievements, as well as quality of school experience for Aboriginal children
ARC Centre of Excellence for the Digital Child. Our vision is for Australian children to be healthy, educated and connected. This Centre will integrate child health, education, and digital and social connectedness, innovating across disciplines to meet Australia’s ongoing challenges of supporting young children growing up in a rapidly changing digital age. The Centre’s world-leading team investigates children’s digital practices through three interconnected research programs supported by a longi ....ARC Centre of Excellence for the Digital Child. Our vision is for Australian children to be healthy, educated and connected. This Centre will integrate child health, education, and digital and social connectedness, innovating across disciplines to meet Australia’s ongoing challenges of supporting young children growing up in a rapidly changing digital age. The Centre’s world-leading team investigates children’s digital practices through three interconnected research programs supported by a longitudinal family cohort study and children’s technology laboratories. The Centre will address tensions in a contested field to inform government and non-government policy, technology innovation, and develop programs and guidelines for children, families, educators and technology developers. Read moreRead less
Our Children, Our Families, Our Place: Enabling Communities for Child Health and Wellbeing. This study focuses on community capacity building, participation and reciprocal knowledge development, early prevention and intervention, and multi-tiered intersectoral collaboration to ensure efficient use of resources and maximise positive outcomes for children. The project is set in the Peel Region of WA, among the fastest growth areas in Australia with sufficient sub-populations of interest to enable ....Our Children, Our Families, Our Place: Enabling Communities for Child Health and Wellbeing. This study focuses on community capacity building, participation and reciprocal knowledge development, early prevention and intervention, and multi-tiered intersectoral collaboration to ensure efficient use of resources and maximise positive outcomes for children. The project is set in the Peel Region of WA, among the fastest growth areas in Australia with sufficient sub-populations of interest to enable innovative multilevel statistical modelling techniques to inform other regions across Australia. In addition, the study will implement and evaluate a suite of interventions. Read moreRead less