Engaging science students' hearts and minds: Researching science teachers' professional learning in the development of contemporary understandings of scientific literacy. This project will develop, support and value the work of science teachers in developing students' scientific literacy and share the subsequent knowledge gains in the educational community to positively advance quality teaching and learning in school science. Improving science teaching and learning hinges on offering new ways of ....Engaging science students' hearts and minds: Researching science teachers' professional learning in the development of contemporary understandings of scientific literacy. This project will develop, support and value the work of science teachers in developing students' scientific literacy and share the subsequent knowledge gains in the educational community to positively advance quality teaching and learning in school science. Improving science teaching and learning hinges on offering new ways of responding to the problems inherent in teaching science in the 21st century. By supporting and encouraging the creative and innovative ideas, concepts and approaches to quality science teaching and learning embedded in teachers' professional learning the development of the critical knowledge for challenging the status-quo will be advanced.Read moreRead less
Sustainable mathematics education capacity building: Empowering Indigenous teacher aides to enhance rural and remote Indigenous students' numeracy outcomes. Rural/remote Indigenous students perform well below other students in statewide numeracy tests. Because teachers are generally non-Indigenous, inexperienced and stay for less than two years and Indigenous teacher aides have little training in teaching mathematics, schools do not the capacity to affect this outcome. This project will work wit ....Sustainable mathematics education capacity building: Empowering Indigenous teacher aides to enhance rural and remote Indigenous students' numeracy outcomes. Rural/remote Indigenous students perform well below other students in statewide numeracy tests. Because teachers are generally non-Indigenous, inexperienced and stay for less than two years and Indigenous teacher aides have little training in teaching mathematics, schools do not the capacity to affect this outcome. This project will work with eight schools to improve and sustain Years 1-7 mathematics outcomes by enhancing aides' tutoring effectiveness through culturally appropriate mathematics and mathematics pedagogy knowledge. The aim is to develop principles for a professional learning program that can be used with Indigenous aides across Australia to improve Indigenous students' mathematics and therefore employment/life chances.Read moreRead less
Learning by Design: Creating pedagogical frameworks for knowledge building in the 21st century. Our aim is to facilitate and support a generational change of teachers precipitated by the departure of the baby-boomers. The research will investigate the ways in which 'middle-years' teachers design, record and enact their curriculum, searching for evidence of a relationship between pedagogical choices and learner outcomes. From these investigations, and drawing on the theory of Multiliteracies, a t ....Learning by Design: Creating pedagogical frameworks for knowledge building in the 21st century. Our aim is to facilitate and support a generational change of teachers precipitated by the departure of the baby-boomers. The research will investigate the ways in which 'middle-years' teachers design, record and enact their curriculum, searching for evidence of a relationship between pedagogical choices and learner outcomes. From these investigations, and drawing on the theory of Multiliteracies, a tool will be developed to prompt more mindful and context-appropriate pedagogical choices, while encouraging teachers to document and share their practices. This will result in a body of rigorous and shareable knowledge and know-how, potentially improving opportunities and educational outcomes for all Australian students.Read moreRead less
Evaluating professional experience and mentoring in the preparation and induction of teachers for the teaching profession. ? Quality teachers make a difference? (DEST Report, 2003, p1). Possible strategies for the recruitment and retention of high quality teachers to the profession include providing a high quality professional experience component together with effective mentoring for beginning teachers in induction programs. The outcomes of this project will include the articulation of ?high qu ....Evaluating professional experience and mentoring in the preparation and induction of teachers for the teaching profession. ? Quality teachers make a difference? (DEST Report, 2003, p1). Possible strategies for the recruitment and retention of high quality teachers to the profession include providing a high quality professional experience component together with effective mentoring for beginning teachers in induction programs. The outcomes of this project will include the articulation of ?high quality? professional experiences, the development of an instrument for evaluating the effectiveness of mentoring in programs such as induction programs and provide evidence on the effectiveness of such programs.Read moreRead less
Learning for sustainability: The role and impact of Outdoor and Environmental Education Centres. The proposed research will contribute to the National Research Priority for an Environmentally Sustainable Australia by addressing the effectiveness of educational interventions. Education plays a key role in providing the means and knowledge to address environmental issues, and research indicates that direct experiences with nature are a critical component. In Queensland, such experiences are provi ....Learning for sustainability: The role and impact of Outdoor and Environmental Education Centres. The proposed research will contribute to the National Research Priority for an Environmentally Sustainable Australia by addressing the effectiveness of educational interventions. Education plays a key role in providing the means and knowledge to address environmental issues, and research indicates that direct experiences with nature are a critical component. In Queensland, such experiences are provided by Outdoor and Environmental Education Centres (O&EECs). This research will advance our theoretical understanding of the role and impact of nature-based environmental learning experiences, identify factors that facilitate learning for sustainability, and develop empirically-based principles to support O&EECs in providing effective education for sustainability.Read moreRead less
Improving Regional Low SES Students' Learning and Wellbeing. This study aims to address the learning and wellbeing needs of over 7000 predominantly low socio-economic status students in regional Australia by researching the conditions that enable refinement and extension of a successful curricular and wellbeing program. The current low educational performance of this student cohort has significant negative effects on individual employment prospects and broader national productivity. Their under- ....Improving Regional Low SES Students' Learning and Wellbeing. This study aims to address the learning and wellbeing needs of over 7000 predominantly low socio-economic status students in regional Australia by researching the conditions that enable refinement and extension of a successful curricular and wellbeing program. The current low educational performance of this student cohort has significant negative effects on individual employment prospects and broader national productivity. Their under-achievement and disengagement from schooling also contribute to many antisocial, harmful short-and long-term outcomes for individuals, with significant health and other costs to the broader community. Outcomes from the project have the potential to improve these current outcomes and to be applicable to similar settings.Read moreRead less