Special Research Initiatives - Grant ID: SR0354538
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$30,000.00
Summary
Enabling Sciences Education (EnSE) Research Network. The Network aims to ensure the long-term ability of Australians to excel in scientific and technological innovation at all levels of community activity. This will be achieved by establishing significant and ambitious research agendas for improving the teaching and learning of Mathematics, Science and Technology in primary, secondary and tertiary education sectors. Of significance will be the productive synergies flowing from uniting, across ....Enabling Sciences Education (EnSE) Research Network. The Network aims to ensure the long-term ability of Australians to excel in scientific and technological innovation at all levels of community activity. This will be achieved by establishing significant and ambitious research agendas for improving the teaching and learning of Mathematics, Science and Technology in primary, secondary and tertiary education sectors. Of significance will be the productive synergies flowing from uniting, across the three disciplines, Australia's most outstanding, experienced and dedicated researchers with new and mid-career colleagues. Expected outcomes include a diverse but cohesive and collaborative research community that provides international leadership in helping students achieve their full potential. Read moreRead less
Providing the Mathematical Foundation for an Innovative Australia within Reform Based Learning Environments. The focus of this project is the pedagogical change that The Review of Teaching and Teacher Education indicates must take place in order to lay the quantitative foundations for advancing innovation, science, technology, and mathematics, while satisfying the requirements of a reform-based learning environment. Professional learning directed at teachers' pedagogical content knowledge and be ....Providing the Mathematical Foundation for an Innovative Australia within Reform Based Learning Environments. The focus of this project is the pedagogical change that The Review of Teaching and Teacher Education indicates must take place in order to lay the quantitative foundations for advancing innovation, science, technology, and mathematics, while satisfying the requirements of a reform-based learning environment. Professional learning directed at teachers' pedagogical content knowledge and belief structures with respect to mathematics within an environment of curricular change, will be evaluated in evidence-based terms related to teacher change and student outcomes. Significance includes the context, the middle school years in rural district schools, and the influence of technology on pedagogy.Read moreRead less
The International Classroom Research Collaboration. The International Centre for Classroom Research at the University of Melbourne is the hub of an international network of classroom researchers. Australian coordination of this major international research network ensures that the priorities and initiatives, characteristic of contemporary Australian education (eg problem-based learning, authentic assessment, and working mathematically) can be anticipated and accommodated in the research agenda o ....The International Classroom Research Collaboration. The International Centre for Classroom Research at the University of Melbourne is the hub of an international network of classroom researchers. Australian coordination of this major international research network ensures that the priorities and initiatives, characteristic of contemporary Australian education (eg problem-based learning, authentic assessment, and working mathematically) can be anticipated and accommodated in the research agenda of the International Classroom Research Collaboration. Connections with state departments of education, state and national professional associations, and Australian schools and school systems, ensure that the findings of this international collaboration will be communicated efficiently to schools and classroom practitioners in Australia.Read moreRead less
Conceptual complexity and student engagement with science in secondary school. Research demonstrates that negative student attitudes to school science are associated with the subject's difficulty and its lack of relevance to real-world experience. However, teachers who link learning to students' experience may exacerbate the difficulty of science, because real-world applications of concepts are complex. This study will initially investigate teachers' perceptions of this dilemma, and then focus ....Conceptual complexity and student engagement with science in secondary school. Research demonstrates that negative student attitudes to school science are associated with the subject's difficulty and its lack of relevance to real-world experience. However, teachers who link learning to students' experience may exacerbate the difficulty of science, because real-world applications of concepts are complex. This study will initially investigate teachers' perceptions of this dilemma, and then focus on two classrooms where teachers acknowledge the complexity involved. Using a novel conceptual framework and an innovative data collection technique the study will explore how the students? experiences of complexity shape their attitudes to science. The findings will help improve student engagement with science.Read moreRead less
Values in mathematics and science education: mapping the relationships between pedagogical practices and student outcomes. Mathematics and science in schools both involve the teaching of values. Some value outcomes are intended by the teachers and are explicitly taught, particularly in science, while other values are only implicitly present in classroom practices, as is typically the case with mathematics. What is not yet known is what values students learn from different teachers and from their ....Values in mathematics and science education: mapping the relationships between pedagogical practices and student outcomes. Mathematics and science in schools both involve the teaching of values. Some value outcomes are intended by the teachers and are explicitly taught, particularly in science, while other values are only implicitly present in classroom practices, as is typically the case with mathematics. What is not yet known is what values students learn from different teachers and from their practices, and how these learned values impact on student engagement with these subjects. This project will explore the relationships between the values embedded in the pedagogical practices of primary and secondary teachers of mathematics and science, and student values outcomes.Read moreRead less
The Shallow Teaching Syndrome in School Mathematics - towards practical ways that will engage students more deeply. Australian governments have made considerable investment in international comparative studies of student achievement in mathematics. One of the findings is that an average Australian lesson exhibits the 'shallow teaching syndrome', having relatively lower complexity, higher repetition and less mathematical reasoning than high-achieving countries. This project will interview cur ....The Shallow Teaching Syndrome in School Mathematics - towards practical ways that will engage students more deeply. Australian governments have made considerable investment in international comparative studies of student achievement in mathematics. One of the findings is that an average Australian lesson exhibits the 'shallow teaching syndrome', having relatively lower complexity, higher repetition and less mathematical reasoning than high-achieving countries. This project will interview curriculum leaders and textbook writers, and analyse both traditional textbook and innovative curriculum materials. This will help to understand the reasons for the syndrome and recommend practical ways in which lessons that engage students more deeply, can be encouraged.Read moreRead less
Enhancing mathematics achievement and engagement by using technology to support real problem solving and lessons of high cognitive demand. New technologies have exciting potential to bring real world applications to life in the mathematics classroom. Working collaboratively with researchers, industry-partner teachers will design, evaluate in classrooms and iteratively refine technology-supported tasks that sustain higher-order thinking and deep engagement with the context. Outcomes include guide ....Enhancing mathematics achievement and engagement by using technology to support real problem solving and lessons of high cognitive demand. New technologies have exciting potential to bring real world applications to life in the mathematics classroom. Working collaboratively with researchers, industry-partner teachers will design, evaluate in classrooms and iteratively refine technology-supported tasks that sustain higher-order thinking and deep engagement with the context. Outcomes include guidelines for managing increased cognitive demand and for balancing abstract and concrete aspects of mathematics, so that students are more engaged in their learning. The effects of technology features, including dynamic control of variables and hot-linked representation, will be tested against theory. Substantial cultural diversity in industry partner schools ensures the findings will be widely applicable.Read moreRead less
Developing portfolio assessment in Mathematics and English: Insider and outsider perspectives on the implementation of professional teaching standards. In previous parallel SPIRT projects the national subject associations in Mathematics and English/Literacy developed professional standards for excellence in teaching. This research project, with the Victorian Institute of Teaching, will study both the preparation of portfolio items by groups of 'outsider' teachers who played no part in the develo ....Developing portfolio assessment in Mathematics and English: Insider and outsider perspectives on the implementation of professional teaching standards. In previous parallel SPIRT projects the national subject associations in Mathematics and English/Literacy developed professional standards for excellence in teaching. This research project, with the Victorian Institute of Teaching, will study both the preparation of portfolio items by groups of 'outsider' teachers who played no part in the development of the Standards, together with the evaluation of their portfolios by groups of 'insider' assessors from the respective subject associations who helped develop the Standards. Data from this project will contribute to validating the Standards, to clarifying the issues of subject-specific/generic professional standards, and to improving quality in teachers' professional development.Read moreRead less
Learning outcomes in mathematics and science classrooms in Australia, Finland and China: Interrogating the alignment of curriculum, instruction and assessment. Our capacity to promote effective instruction depends upon our ability to recognize and assess useful knowing and to identify the instructional practices through which such knowing is engendered. International achievement tests are impacting educational policy in Australia, with significant attention on top-performing Finland and the cons ....Learning outcomes in mathematics and science classrooms in Australia, Finland and China: Interrogating the alignment of curriculum, instruction and assessment. Our capacity to promote effective instruction depends upon our ability to recognize and assess useful knowing and to identify the instructional practices through which such knowing is engendered. International achievement tests are impacting educational policy in Australia, with significant attention on top-performing Finland and the consistent success of Asian classrooms. Recent research has raised concerns about what forms of knowing (i) find their expression in student test performance, or (ii) remain unrevealed by most available forms of testing (particularly international testing). This project looks closely at classroom practices and learning outcomes in China, Finland and Australia to provide new guidance on these issues.Read moreRead less
Designing a model of pedagogy for low literacy refugee-background students: Connecting language, literacy and content-based learning
. Policy makers and schools are urgently seeking models of literacy pedagogy which maximise student engagement and positive outcomes for low literacy refugee background (LLRB) students. This project will establish a model of literacy pedagogy that is adapted to the needs of these learners and will result in higher attainment and increased retention rates. The mo ....Designing a model of pedagogy for low literacy refugee-background students: Connecting language, literacy and content-based learning
. Policy makers and schools are urgently seeking models of literacy pedagogy which maximise student engagement and positive outcomes for low literacy refugee background (LLRB) students. This project will establish a model of literacy pedagogy that is adapted to the needs of these learners and will result in higher attainment and increased retention rates. The model will facilitate students' successful transition to the secondary school curriculum and their social integration and economic participation in Australian society. The project findings will provide a solid base for planning future provision which will benefit curriculum writers, teacher educators, policy makers, funding bodies, and teachers.Read moreRead less