Early Career Industry Fellowships - Grant ID: IE230100268
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$476,053.00
Summary
Supporting successful educational pathways of First Nations students. The aim of this study is to develop strategies to prevent the steep drop in school attendance rates of First Nation students as they transition from primary to secondary school. The project expects to generate effective culturally embedded support strategies. In partnership with communities, industry partners and schools we propose to consult, codesign and assess the effectiveness of peer-mentoring of primary school students b ....Supporting successful educational pathways of First Nations students. The aim of this study is to develop strategies to prevent the steep drop in school attendance rates of First Nation students as they transition from primary to secondary school. The project expects to generate effective culturally embedded support strategies. In partnership with communities, industry partners and schools we propose to consult, codesign and assess the effectiveness of peer-mentoring of primary school students by those from the same community who have successfully reached senior grades. The outcome is the evaluation of students’ experiences and ongoing attendance and attainments. Significant benefits are for students’ ongoing school engagement and academic success. Cultural and economic benefits are for all Australians.Read moreRead less
Towards a School-Community Based Approach to Addressing Student Absenteeism. This project aims to develop an integrated school-community approach to assist education systems to effectively address student absenteeism in marginalised communities. Excessive absenteeism is linked to low academic achievement and school dropout, which limits young people’s life opportunities and perpetuates social disadvantage. This project will use interdisciplinary methods to bring the experiences of schools and co ....Towards a School-Community Based Approach to Addressing Student Absenteeism. This project aims to develop an integrated school-community approach to assist education systems to effectively address student absenteeism in marginalised communities. Excessive absenteeism is linked to low academic achievement and school dropout, which limits young people’s life opportunities and perpetuates social disadvantage. This project will use interdisciplinary methods to bring the experiences of schools and communities, existing research evidence, and academics together to enable schools to work in new ways to improve attendance. Expected outcomes will be enhanced capacity of schools to address absenteeism with the benefit of assisting the government to alleviate the societal and economic costs of this enduring problem.Read moreRead less
Neurodevelopmental disorders and loneliness: School predictors & outcomes. This project aims to establish trajectories of loneliness across the 10-18 year developmental period in adolescents with neuro-developmental disorders (NDDs). This is significant because adolescence is the peak period for loneliness and the social communication difficulties experienced by adolescents with NDDs place them at greater risk of loneliness. Lower levels of school attendance, connectedness and mental well-being, ....Neurodevelopmental disorders and loneliness: School predictors & outcomes. This project aims to establish trajectories of loneliness across the 10-18 year developmental period in adolescents with neuro-developmental disorders (NDDs). This is significant because adolescence is the peak period for loneliness and the social communication difficulties experienced by adolescents with NDDs place them at greater risk of loneliness. Lower levels of school attendance, connectedness and mental well-being, and higher rates of disruptive behaviour, expulsion, drop-out, depression, social withdrawal, and suicide ideation are strongly linked to loneliness. Therefore predicting critical times in trajectories will enhance emotional, behavioural and school related outcomes and optimise economic, societal and quality of life benefits.Read moreRead less
Improving outcomes through accessible assessment and inclusive practices. Complex assessment tasks and pedagogies present barriers to the learning and achievement of students with disability, including those with language and/or attentional difficulties. This research will test: 1) whether accessible assessment task design leads to improved student outcomes; 2) whether enhancing teachers’ inclusive practice improves student access to formative assessment pedagogies, enabling more accurate studen ....Improving outcomes through accessible assessment and inclusive practices. Complex assessment tasks and pedagogies present barriers to the learning and achievement of students with disability, including those with language and/or attentional difficulties. This research will test: 1) whether accessible assessment task design leads to improved student outcomes; 2) whether enhancing teachers’ inclusive practice improves student access to formative assessment pedagogies, enabling more accurate student understanding of assessment aims and requirements; and 3) how improvements in task design and teacher practice can be sustained and upscaled across secondary school departments. Expected outcomes of international significance are more inclusive learning and assessment practices with the potential to benefit all students.Read moreRead less
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE230100300
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$392,877.00
Summary
Boosting high school students’ interest and course taking in STEM fields. This education psychology research aims to develop and test an online motivation intervention promoting high school students' interest and course-taking in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). The project expects to generate new knowledge of psychological and sociocultural factors (including gender) which affect STEM interest and subject choices, and which influence the effectiveness of a motivation in ....Boosting high school students’ interest and course taking in STEM fields. This education psychology research aims to develop and test an online motivation intervention promoting high school students' interest and course-taking in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). The project expects to generate new knowledge of psychological and sociocultural factors (including gender) which affect STEM interest and subject choices, and which influence the effectiveness of a motivation intervention for high school students. Expected outcomes include a scalable intervention that will be effective in replenishing the STEM skills pipeline. Benefits include better information for teachers and policy makers seeking to promote and sustain students' STEM interest, thus motivating them towards STEM pathways.Read moreRead less
The impact of urban vertical schools on students’ capability and wellbeing. Urban vertical schools are new types of schools in Australia. There are no evidence-based Australian precedents to guide designers or educators, no formal knowledge sharing processes that draw on experiences of pioneers, and little understanding of what these spaces mean for student capability and wellbeing. This evaluative case study will bring together evidence from designers, educators and students in three newly buil ....The impact of urban vertical schools on students’ capability and wellbeing. Urban vertical schools are new types of schools in Australia. There are no evidence-based Australian precedents to guide designers or educators, no formal knowledge sharing processes that draw on experiences of pioneers, and little understanding of what these spaces mean for student capability and wellbeing. This evaluative case study will bring together evidence from designers, educators and students in three newly built urban, vertical schools. Project findings will point to inclusive principles for designing and leading in physical, digital and social school spaces to maximise student wellbeing and capability. Insights into student experiences in urban, vertical school spaces will have value for infrastructure spending in all schools.Read moreRead less
Shifting the Culture of Out-of-field Professional Education for Teachers. This project aims to model an education system that would diversify the expertise of teachers as part of attending to long-term teacher shortage. It responds to a pressing national need for a system of valued and accessible professional education (PE) for out-of-field teachers. The project draws on perspectives from schools, governments and PE providers to expose current practices, cultural norms, and policies; propose an ....Shifting the Culture of Out-of-field Professional Education for Teachers. This project aims to model an education system that would diversify the expertise of teachers as part of attending to long-term teacher shortage. It responds to a pressing national need for a system of valued and accessible professional education (PE) for out-of-field teachers. The project draws on perspectives from schools, governments and PE providers to expose current practices, cultural norms, and policies; propose an 'ideal' PE ecosystem that values re-specialisation in the core subjects; and develop principles to inform policy and practice needed to attain this ideal. The evidence-based framing of PE will inform efforts by schools, PE providers and policy makers to sustain a highly capable, adaptive and specialised teaching workforce.Read moreRead less
Reasonable Adjustments to Maths for Students with Intellectual Disabilities. Reasonable adjustments to secondary mathematics – parents want it, students need it, the Australian law requires it – but how do teachers achieve it? The aim of this project is to find ways to adjust, teach and assess secondary mathematics for students with intellectual and developmental disabilities. The significance of this study is in solving a problem facing teachers who are required by law to teach mathematics with ....Reasonable Adjustments to Maths for Students with Intellectual Disabilities. Reasonable adjustments to secondary mathematics – parents want it, students need it, the Australian law requires it – but how do teachers achieve it? The aim of this project is to find ways to adjust, teach and assess secondary mathematics for students with intellectual and developmental disabilities. The significance of this study is in solving a problem facing teachers who are required by law to teach mathematics without evidence informed approaches. Expected outcomes are an evidence-base for reasonable adjustments to secondary mathematics and approaches and strategies for teachers for inclusive practices. If ways for teaching year-level mathematics to learners with intellectual disability are developed, many more students may benefit.
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Australian Laureate Fellowships - Grant ID: FL220100061
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$3,147,256.00
Summary
Literacy in adolescence: The next major challenge in the science of reading. This project aims to address the pressing problem of why Australian secondary school children have been declining in literacy. To do so is crucial, since adolescence is a period when strong literacy is critical for knowledge acquisition and preparation for adult life. The project will use a range of theoretically-informed methods to scrutinise cognitive processes in adolescent reading, as well as identify interactions b ....Literacy in adolescence: The next major challenge in the science of reading. This project aims to address the pressing problem of why Australian secondary school children have been declining in literacy. To do so is crucial, since adolescence is a period when strong literacy is critical for knowledge acquisition and preparation for adult life. The project will use a range of theoretically-informed methods to scrutinise cognitive processes in adolescent reading, as well as identify interactions between reading progress and socio-emotional functioning and motivation. Expected outcomes will be the first comprehensive account of secondary school reading acquisition and new insights into how to optimise progress. These will inform research, policy, and reading instruction practice, to the benefit of Australia's children.Read moreRead less
Constructing a rich curriculum for all: ‘Insights into practice’ . Not all students in Australia have access to the same high quality curriculum. The curriculum is often differentiated in ways designed to make outcomes achievable for marginalised young people. While this is often well meant, it has worked against the interests of these young people by denying them from a young age the same levels of access to curriculum options as their peers. This narrows the range of their future opportunities ....Constructing a rich curriculum for all: ‘Insights into practice’ . Not all students in Australia have access to the same high quality curriculum. The curriculum is often differentiated in ways designed to make outcomes achievable for marginalised young people. While this is often well meant, it has worked against the interests of these young people by denying them from a young age the same levels of access to curriculum options as their peers. This narrows the range of their future opportunities. This project aims to provide the foundations for strategies that can be implemented by teachers, schools and systems to address this problem. This projects works closely with teachers to determine a framework that can encourage pedagogical approaches that make a rich curriculum accessible to all. Read moreRead less